Happy 2nd Birthday!!

What is more fun than a 2 yr birthday party?! Willy and Maddy turned 2 last week and we had a fun party with a couple of friends, cupcakes, running around the yard with new toys and some games of ring around the rosie. 

Susan Z at Dixie Park

"Go itsy, go itsy" . Susan Z's version of itsy bitsy spider teaches kids the sign language sign for 'go'. Susan Z plays guitar at Dixie Park in San Anselmo (she will have a new location starting in July) every tuesday and sings the best songs for kids! She engages them in each song encouraging dancing and learning signs that go along with the songs. It's great for little babies and older toddlers really seem to enjoy it as well. Last Tuesday I was there to take some photos but SO many people showed up it was bit difficult to get everyone! Hopefully we will try and do it again soon!

I thought I would post a few photos of Jackson. He is running on the bridge over the creek in San Anselmo which is my new favorite place to shoot but it only works on these nice foggy mornings. The kids love to run across it for some reason!

daddy's home

Flowers for daddy! The best part of the day is seeing the kid's faces when daddy gets home! They listen for his car and get the biggest smiles on their faces when he walks in the door! So does daddy! Today we picked some daisies for daddy. 

       

On Sunday I photographed this wonderful family. I knew Beau a bit from the playgrounds but it was really fun to get to know him a bit better and try and capture his personality on film. His sister Niyah is adorable and was a great model! 

defying gravity, defying fear

Heather Swan wrote a book about her life as a BASE jumper who is scared of heights. She fought her fear of heights and with her husband, became one of the craziest BASE jumpers in the world! I don't have any desire EVER to BASE jump, but her motivation and passion is inspiring.  I believe that if you are truly passionate about something you will have great rewards. 

Last year I entered the lottery the famous Escape From Alcatraz triathlon. I have been doing triathlons for about 15 years now - from sprints to half ironmans with the hope of someday doing an ironman. When I got the email saying I got in it was bittersweet. To be able to such a famous triathlon that is in my backyard was an awesome opportunity but I was terrified of swimming in the bay and couldn't train that much since my twins were just turning 1 in july and the triathlon was in june. I had visions of being swept out under the bridge or being so nervous in the swim and gasping for air as the waves swallowed me and the current took me off course and hoping the rescue boat would see me!  The coolest thing about doing something that you are terrified of is that it gives you extra motivation to do well and when you finish you feel pretty good about yourself. I ended up having a great swim and I actually enjoyed it! And, I ended up getting 12th in my age group which I was pretty happy about since I didn't have much time for specific training and my plan was just to finish - or at least just to get to shore from the boat you jump off of!! 

Besides photography and exercise, my passion is my family and kiddos are waking up from their nap right now - so I need to go put my mommie hat back on! 

where does the time go

It's 6:40 am and I have about 20 more minutes before kiddos wake up. In those 20 minutes I have a list of about 20 things to do and what doesn't get done will have to wait until nap time. Then I have 3 hours that seem to FLY by everyday. Sounds like a lot of time but the more you put on your plate, the faster time goes by and it doesn't seem like you accomplished anything. Then after nap time I either stay up late after hubby goes to bed or call it quits for the day and wait until 5:30 the next morning to get back to my long list of things to do. I wouldn't trade being a stay at home mom to twins for anything in the world.  I never would have imagined how happy and content my kids make me. If that is all that I did, I would be very happy. I have always dreamed of being a photographer and now that I am taking the time to try and make it happen, I am on cloud nine.  Being a mom to the most incredible twins ever and studying photography is more than I could dream of. I should also mention that my incredible husband plays a big part in allowing both of those things to happen and he is incredibly supportive.  He is the best daddy in the whole world to willy and maddy.  We have a great little family and it wouldn't happen without both of our commitment and love.  

There is so much to write about and then I sit down to write and don't have the time! I can hear Willy right now - "ut-oh", "ma-ma"....Maddy (sissy) is probably still trying to wake up so I'll give him another few minutes before I go in there! 

I'll hopefully be back this afternoon to write more!!

Photography has always been an interest of mine since childhood when I would take endless photographs of my cat 'Herman'. I had a little Kodak camera and a polaroid and would set my cat up in positions in my baby carriage and put silly hats on him. It's no wonder that later in life William Wegman became one of my inspirations. Now I have almost 2 year old twins, Willy and Maddy and I have become truly passionate about photographing them. No, I don't dress them up like I did Herman. They are the best subjects ever. Their expressions are so genuine and change by the second as they discover the world around them. I am so energized photographing them and capturing their expressions that I want to try and do the same for other people with children who want to capture those innocent years before they disappear all too quickly.