Little miracle!

Ok, so it's been a very eventful week - and my little nephew has definitely been on his own time schedule! I was up here in L.A. all weekend with my sister, hoping that she would go into labor, but nothing happened! So Monday I drove back to San Diego in order to make it to our book release party (more on that later). And yep, sure enough, late that night I got the phone call that it was time! So I headed back up to L.A. once again, and after many hours of labor, last night, the doctors decided they wanted to do a c-section to get that little guy out.

What a surreal experience! I felt like I was in the midst of an episode of ER, putting on my blue scrubs and mask... scrubbing up with iodine... and entering the operating room to watch the doctors bring my nephew out into the world! The c-section was a very interesting thing to watch... and mere words can't even begin to describe what it's like to see a new little human life begin. Needless to say, I feel incredibly honored that I was able to see my nephew's birth last night!!! And it was so much fun to document the experience with photos. (Although through all of my tears, it's a wonder that I was able to get even one shot!) Here are a few of my favorites...
*Note: friends and family, if you want to see some more photos of Brody, check out this blog we started....

I'm an aunt!!!

Wow, I'm completely speechless- what an amazing thing to experience! Meet my new little nephew, Brody...

Click here to read the story behind this photo.

Boudoir Photography Workshop

In the past few months my biz partner (Marissa Boucher) and I have really thrown ourselves into creating some fun educational resources for photographers who want to learn about boudoir... it's been a crazy few months, with the release of our book, website, and now, a workshop. I still can't believe it's all happening so quickly! The workshop has been a lot of fun so far, we've got 5 gals here for 3 days, learning all about boudoir! Today's focus was on our shooting style... here's one of my favorite shots from the day.

Shooting w/ J*

This weekend, I had the amazing privilege of shooting with the wonderfully talented Jasmine Star! She's awesome.... so sweet, so humble, so genuine, and seriously, SO much fun to hang out with... I just love this girl! :) It was incredibly fun to watch her do her thing- shooting, interacting with her clients, and getting some amazingly stunning images! I honestly feel SO honored that she asked me to come help her shoot. Thanks, Jasmine*!

Excited...

... because I get to shoot a wedding tomorrow with someone AMAZINGLY stellar. Who is it? Hint: She's a super"STAR" in the wedding photography industry! :) ... Can't wait, it's gonna be so much fun!

Come to Starbucks!

If you like coffee... and you like music... and you live in San Diego... then you HAVE to come to one of these shows at Starbucks! I went last week and it was SO great! Awesome music by the super talented, super cute Melissa Vaughan, along w/ a few other local SD artists. Free show, but they're accepting donations to help support Bring Me Hope, which is this really cool nonprofit organization that's helping orphaned kids in China. Next show is tomorrow (Friday 1/18), at a Starbucks in Oceanside ( click here for address )... Check it out! Also, if you can't make it tomorrow, then check out Melissa's myspace page to see a list of her upcoming shows.
PS- I finally jumped into the 21st century and joined myspace; if you're there too, let's be friends! ;)

What the heck is Boudoir?

"Boudoir." (pronounced "bu-dwar")... "A woman's private sitting room, dressing room, or bedroom." 1777, "room where a lady may retire to be alone," from Fr., lit. "pouting room," from bouder "to pout, sulk," which, like pout, is probably of imitative origin. In the photography world, boudoir is: cute/classy/cutting-edge photos of your female clients (brides and wives- intended to give as a gift to her hubby). I know that in the past, boudoir has had some weird connotations in this industry, (either creepiness, cheesiness, or 80's-style glamour shots... a la Deb's glamour shots from Napoleon Dynamite). But currently, boudoir is getting a new look. In my opinion, it's becoming the next hot thing in the industry, and the demand is SO huge right now! I know a lot of people have questioned why I choose to shoot boudoir photography, wondering if it's sort of a strange thing to do (as a Christian woman)... and so here's my stance on the issue. I LOVE helping women realize how beautiful they are! I love that through this experience, women get a renewed sense of confidence. I love that I can help spark a little romance between a husband and wife. I never would have thought I'd like to shoot boudoir sessions, but when Marissa (owner of Woman Captured) asked if I wanted to try it out, I decided to go for it. And surprisingly, after my first shoot, I was completely hooked. The greatest thing about this job is to hear my clients say "Oh my gosh, I'm so gorgeous!" :) I love capturing that beauty in a woman- no matter what shape or size she is. And I love trying to fight society's crazy views of what we as women need to look like in order to be beautiful. Women do NOT need to fit into a certain size jeans, wear the latest fashions, or try to squeeze into the mold our society has created. This issue runs deep in my heart, because I know what it feels like to hear "you're not beautiful enough" ... or tall enough or skinny enough or whatever... (fill in the blank)... as women, we've all heard messages like this; and I just love being able to show women that they are absolutely stunningly beautiful, just as they are!

Ok, so I guess I'm a little passionate about this issue. ;) Getting back to my opinion on boudoir photography. Our boudoir studio (Woman Captured) strives to create classy, fun images for a wife to give her husband, and I think that this is something that completely aligns with my faith. Our mission statement really reflects our hearts' desire for this business: "Our God grants us beauty and love everyday. He gives us strength and wisdom to create a life that will benefit those around us and those he asks us to help and give to abundantly. He gives us the resources and creativity to create a classy and romantic piece of art that ignites confidence and excitement in a bride or wife and reinforces beauty in a woman and romance in a couple. With praise and deep gratitude we thank God everyday for the blessings He gives to us. We have nothing to fear because Christ Jesus sustains us."

About six months ago, Marissa and I decided to create some resources for other professional photographers who want to add boudoir to their list of services. Thus, we began "The Boudoir Divas". And let me just tell you, the past few months have been insane! Like whirlwind, roller-coaster, better hold on for dear life kind of insane. We really had no idea that this concept would take off like it has, but it's been SO exciting! I know I've been slacking in posting images, and this is why. In just a few weeks, we're releasing our brand new BOOK all about boudoir photography! We've also got tons of [unexpected/absolutely awesome] stuff lined up for The Boudoir Divas in the coming months: workshops, speaking at photography conferences, getting published in some national magazines... the list just keeps getting bigger. I don't know what else is going to happen, but I'm excited to see what God's going to do with this. What a fun adventure!

Delayed Holiday Post

Started writing this on Jan. 1st, and here we are about two weeks later. Can you tell my life is a tad bit busy right now??? Oh well, better late than never.
Highlights of my holidays...
-Family being together again (w/ my baby brother home from Iraq- mom was in heaven with all of her kids here this year!)
-Finding out the name of my nephew (arriving next month... can't wait to meet you, Brody!!!)
-New Uggs- yay, thanks Santa! (And yes, I FINALLY threw away my trashed Uggs from 8 years ago... I wore those poor things out... and P.S., I was wearing them way before they were cool!) ;)
-Hanging out w/ family and friends at a baby shower for sis/welcome home party for my bro (so much fun to see everyone!)

What good times! So I just have to end by saying that I have the greatest parents in the world. On the day they headed back to TX (last week), I got home from work to find these awesome surprises all over my place. They left me a cute little plant, a mini rice cooker, some of my favorite groceries (including hummus, soy milk, and veggies), and to top it all off, a Trader Joe's Gift Card! How awesome are my parents? I started crying when I saw everything. Seriously. I was just so overwhelmed with thankfulness. Not just for the things that they left in my room, but for a million little things... countless prayers, hugs, talks on the phone, endless encouragement... and just everything that they do for me. God has blessed me with AMAZING parents who have poured so much love into me. Their support through my entire life (and in the past year especially) has been so incredible, I know I won't ever be able to thank them enough with my mere words. Love you, mom and dad! :)

Misc. Monday

I love so many things! I love music, art, & fashion... I love traveling, meeting new people, and trying to learn new languages... I love hearing about people who are fighting against injustices around the world. I love snuggling up to read a good book when it's pouring rain outside... or blasting my favorite song on my ipod and singing as loud as possible (as long as nobody is within earshot). Anyway, absolutely no point to the above rambling sentences. Just a few random thoughts on this Monday evening.

Here are a few of the miscellaneous things that have inspired me recently...
1) Awesome Music: Like "In My Arms" by Plumb (amazing!) [Click here to listen!]
Also- "Invasion" by Eisley (love them!) [Click here to listen!]

2) Gorgeous Clothing: I watched "The Atonement" this weekend, and I have to say that I am absolutely smitten! Seriously. I have fallen head-over-heels in love (ok maybe it's infatuation)... with the green dress that Kiera Knightly gets to wear in this film. It's so gorgeous!

3) Socially-proactive businesses: Development projects that are more than just "projects" ... instead, they are truly PEOPLE-focused, making a direct impact in the communities and individual lives of the people they interact with. Like Acholi Beads and Tamar Cards.

4) Other Photographers: Like this awesome gal, Esther, whose website I just happened to come across today. What an inspiration (especially because I really want to be able to use photography for nonprofit/travel work more in the future!) Seeing her website has challenged me to really get going with editing and posting some of my images from the time I spent in Asia.

1-1-08!

The start of a new year is always a great time to reflect on the past and look forward to the future. My 2007 marked the ending of a very significant stage of my life. Painful and sad in one sense, and yet at the same time, I can't help but feel an overwhelming sense of peace and anticipation about what is to come. Now, on 1-1-08, I'm looking forward to a year of change in more ways than one. In my personal life, my business, my plans and goals and dreams... I'm expecing a lot of changes throughout the next 12 months... and I am very excited about what is to come! Happy New Year, everyone!