The Blair Family | Seattle Family Photographer

Elena and I have been trying to coordinate their session for weeks. One time I was sick, then the weather was nasty, etc etc. We finally had a clear weekend but of course the temperatures were going to be well below freezing. We decided to embrace that because although I've never shot in 28 degree weather, I knew how beautiful the Seattle landscape would be all covered in frost. Elena bundled up her kiddos and away we went! The kids were troopers and everyone was wiping their dripping noses and attempting to keep their fingers warm. I had a moment of panic thinking that my lens was fogging up but it was actually just my warm breath on my LCD screen. Ah yes, I'm a total cold weather amateur (I owned one coat before moving to Seattle). Elena is also a talented Seattle photographer and when I told her what type of location I wanted for her session, she suggested Discovery Park which is just a few miles from my home in Queen Anne. Discovery Park was beautiful on a sunny winter morning and I can't wait to see it in the spring and summer! By the end of our session the kids were ready to get in the warm car and head off for breakfast and hot chocolate which they more than deserved!

Letters To Our Sons - January 2013

It's time for another installment of a personal project that I'm participating in with a handful of other photographers who are mothers to sons. Enjoy! Dear Reid,

Thank you for being an adventurer and adapter. You probably don't realize it, but you've lived in 6 different places since you've been born. Mommy and Daddy thought we had our life together when you were born, but things happen and parents sometimes realize that they can do better. You happily spent the night with Grandma when we downsized our home when you were 9 months old. You braved 16 hour round-trip drives from Sacramento to Riverside while we were house hunting when Daddy decided that he should go back to school. You looked forward to plane rides when Daddy got his internship at Amazon and we headed to Seattle for the summer. You referred to our two different corporate apartments as "The old house" and "The new house" and I know that you preferred the first one because you had a TV in your bedroom! Now that we have settled in Seattle I realize just how flexible you are. You happily embrace every change that we throw your way and while I do not want your childhood to be constantly uprooted, I hope that you are learning to love adventure. I hope that you remember the beauty of the California countryside on our many, many trips down I-5 between Northern and Southern California. I hope you do not develop my fear of flying and continue to fall asleep on airplanes even while they are taking off. I hope that someday you can appreciate all of your Daddy's hard work and and the sometimes scary decisions that we had to make in order to create the best possible life for our family. I do not ever want you to fear change. You are an amazing little boy and I thank you for being a constant trooper and our favorite travel buddy.

I love you, little man!

Head over to Leah Cook's blog to check out her always touching and sweet letter to her sons! http://www.leahcookphotography.com/2013/01/10/letters-to-our-sons-january/

The Meyers Family | Seattle Family Photographer

It was a chilly December afternoon when I met these great people for their family photos. Just like my husband and I, they had recently moved to Seattle because of a job at Amazon. It seems that everyone we meet in Seattle is here either working for Amazon, Microsoft, Starbucks, Nordstrom, Boeing, or the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation! While I'm not completely used to the Seattle "gloom", there is beauty here that you just don't find in Southern California. The leaves change color and the lush green landscape follows you wherever you go. It's really beautiful.