I have the best job! Sometimes I can’t believe how great it actually is. Besides getting to meet new and wonderful people, I also get to create beautiful images and experiences for them. Kristina’s beauty speaks for itself. She is stunning. She made my job easy. The thing that really struck me though, was how really nice she was. I also got to meet her mom and was impressed with the fact that in a few short hours I was able to see that the two of them had a great relationship. At the end of the shoot they both talked about what a great time Kristina had. That was the best compliment I could receive! Thank you both for a wonderful shoot. Here are just a few images that struck me right away:

 

 

This next one is probably one of my favorites from the shoot.

 

I’ve been a pretty busy girl this week. I had been looking forward to Katy and Mike’s engagement session for a while. First, just to hang out with Katy a bit and then meet Mike for the first time. And second, because we agreed to do the shoot in and near their Chicago neighborhood, Lincoln Square. Erik came with me again and we both fell in love with the area. Thanks Katy and Mike for introducing us to your neighborhood and Herman, and for doing a fantastic job!  Here is a little peak for you.

Didn’t have to go far to find places to shoot. This was in the alley behind their house.

I love this one. So pretty!

The stairwell behind their home was cool too. Lots of ironwork.

We did some shot’s with their baby, Herman. I think they were worried that he wasn’t cooperative enough. He did a great job and he was really sweet.

Thanks Katy and Mike! I don’t think you had anything to worry about!

Could they be any cuter together? Really, I loved my time with Kaia and Josh. They are so much fun and were up for any hair brained scheme I had. And, they did an amazing job for me. I have known Josh and his family for many years, but this was my first time meeting Kaia and it was a pleasure. I am shooting their wedding in October and cannot wait! Here is just a sneak peek of some images that struck me right away.

I Lu Huv this one so very much!

This one too!

Seriously, look at her gorgeous eyes!

And one last one that was another favorite of mine.

Starting with 3 long posts about my recent Birthday Adventure, I’m gonna work harder at blogging more personal photos and stories.  I used to be much better about that. Hmm…

Seeing one of my photographs displayed in an amazing D.C. Museum= the best birthday ever! If anything can soften the blow of being 3 years into your thirties, it would be that.  Before getting to the museum I wasn’t sure what my reaction was going to be to seeing it. I was a little worried that it was going to be a cheesey little exhibit tucked away in some obscure corner of the Newseum, where no one even looks. I’d hoped that it wouldn’t be the smallest photograph in the bunch. But, I was a little nervous that it would be. Leave it up to me take something awesome and still find something to worry about. Well, I had nothing to worry about. When we got to the Newseum the Exhibit was advertised everywhere. Seeing all of the promotion of it  kinda helped to calm my worries and I began to get really excited to find my photo. The exhibit itself was housed on the 6th floor, which is where visitors are directed to start the museum tour when they arrive. So, via the world’s largest glass hydraulic elevator we went to see my photo.

I’m not gonna lie. When I got there and saw the exhibit and my photo hanging there with a slew of other amazing photos, I was in awe. I figured that it would be a pretty cool experience, but I didn’t expect that I would FEEL that proud. I think the fact that all the photos were so amazing, the fact that they were all huge and printed with such amazing quality, and then just watching people walk by and look at MY photograph, contributed to the coolness of the moment. Realizing that I’d helped record a part of history, and that that record was good enough to hang in the same building where pulitzer prize winners and amazing photojournalists photos are displayed, was a bit of a birthday boost!

So here is my exhibited photo along with A LOT of photos (only part 1) from the museum and my day.

 Leave it up to a boy to not tell a girl that her hair is messy before he snaps a photo.

The exhibit stretched the entire length of the front side of the building and was beautifully lit by a ton of gorgeous natural light. I was excited for the light (to take pictures in of course.)

Me all proud and everything, looking at my photo.  Hehe.

Some lady looking at my photo……….or the photo beneath my photo. But, I bet she saw my photo too.

My Girls looking at their mama’s photo.

What’s that you say? I have photo displayed here and it’s right above my head? Haha. Can’t remember who suggested this pic, me or Erik. Either way, we’re both dorks.

O.K. enough of me and the photo! Here are a bunch from the Fantastic Newseum and a bit from our day.

Some huge chuncks of the Berlin wall were displayed by the glass elevator and we explored those before going up. We had to constantly remind the girls not to touch.

A chunk I thought was pretty cool.

And quite fitting for my girls to stand in front of.

A watch tower that you could actually go inside of.

The giant glass elevator was pretty cool.

 

 A piece of the Twin Towers.

This was pretty interesting. Front pages from around the world on Sept. 11th.

Erik explaining the events of 9.11 to the girls. Abra was 1 month and 1 day old when it happened. I remember watching the footage and looking down at her and thinking, “What kinda of  world did I bring you into?”

 

 

We spent  alot of time at this next exhibit and found it hard to leave. It was called “Our World At War: Photojournalism Beyond The Front lines.” The International Commitee of The Red Cross sent out 5 award winning photojournalists into war-torn countries to document how the violence affected everyday people’s lives. 

One of the countries was Haiti. It was an interesting experience to look at the photos with our Haitian Daughter. She really had not experienced much beyond the walls of her orphanage and certainly had never seen this side of her country.

 

Ashley was really soaking it all in.

This Pulitzer Prize Winning Photograph depicts the devestation after the hurricanes in Haiti last year.

My favorite exhibit (besides my own of course) featured every Pulizter Prize Winning Photographs, along with video footage of some of the photograhers telling the stories behind their photographs. I could have stayed there all day. Here is a quote from one of the photgraphers.

Exactly!!

After our museum time we relaxed a bit by our Amazing Hotels rooftop pool (thank you hotwire.com) 

I let Abra take a few photos. Erik doesn’t like when I hand her my camera. It makes him nervous. I think I’ll let her do it more often because she did a good job.

After relaxing for a while, we headed out into the city and explored the monuments at night. More of those photos to come in Part 2 of “My Awesome DC Birthday.”