old school

this summer on one of many trips out to utah, we stopped by provo to visit some old haunts. number one provo haunt on my list is always wasatch elementary school. this is where my public school education started (imagine me as a 5yr old).

this is the front lawn where we would hold on to the edge of parachute and watch in 80's splendor at the colored fabric being tossed to and fro. I think I might have been wearing parachute pants as I did this.

I kind of miss the old playground set...all steal and bars. this place was rampant with 1st grade kissing tag (why did the boy with warts always chase me?! why?!).

somewhere on this batch of cement I decided my imaginary play name would be "crystal".

this is the hallway and doorway I entered for my 1st day of kindergarten.

this is the door I slammed my finger in during a third grade classroom break in. long story. still have a cuticle in the shape of a triangle to prove it.

best school in the WHOLE land.

I think his name was principal allred...far right.

husband in front of wife's elementary school.

all growned up

this was my family's first house when we moved from fairbanks alaska to provo. It was awesome. indoor pool and racquetball court. views of the provo valley. kate and scott were born when we lived there. we also bought our first nintendo while we lived there. mario brothers, ghosts and goblins and duck hunt.

this is the neighbors house where I would jump on the tramp. my nine yr old self ran over there all dramatic and jumped for what seemed like forever when I found out we were moving sandy. tears were streaming down my face.

my friend annie and I planned to runaway one summers night....another long story. I didn't show but she went through with the plan. we had to have a neighborhood search to find her. she was curled in a blanket in this field behind my house and had pee'd her pants. I felt so bad I bought her a box of twinkies the next day.

sometimes there are random deer in my parents backyard in sandy.



thanks for joining me in a trip down memory lane. happy wednesday!

the one and only

this may be a really weird thing to post about, but I was at office max late last night buying some last minute office necessities, and looked for my all time favorite pen. NOT TO BE FOUND. I'm sure I will be able to find them somewhere else, but it really got be thinking....what would my life be like without these?

It has to be medium point bic and NOT the clear ones, WHITE body (is it called a body?...I don't really want to call it a shaft) and must be blue ink. black ink pens make me kind of sad, UNLESS it's a black sharpie, which makes me happy.

I just really love them, and have for years.

oh, and I am also obsessed with canned air. I have four cans of it sitting on my desk at this very moment.

what office supplies can you not live without? I need to know what else to had to my list.

sound of music sing-a-long

with friends we bought tickets for this ages ago and the day before I lost my voice bossing people around at a wedding. NOT COOL! sing-a-long? SING?! Even though I wasn't feeling my best grant and I made our way to the hollywood bowl. It was so fun! One of my all time favorite movies and everyone was singing along and cheering and hissing. It was magical. kind of reminded me of the same feeling I get when I am in a cycling class...everyone in it together. teamwork. mutual love. I think that's why I like group exercise so much. I love the feeling of a shared cause.

I tried shreaching out the first few songs and then my poor voice said no thank you. we only stayed till intermission, but it was worth every minute.

I must go to austria and dance around on that hilltop, voice intact.

(found this clip on youtube..not the best quality but you get the idea)

homegrown

we have been growing and eating these little beauties. very delish.

we also planted strawberries with our meyer lemon tree. I was going to photograph our first ripe strawberry for the blog... but ate it instead.

oc tanner grand opening

big thanks to oc tanner for having me out to shoot the amazing opening of their new store in salt lake city. oc tanner is an utah original and has stood out as utah's finest jewelery retailer for as long as I can remember.

I was super excited to shoot the grand opening of this new store because it was in the renovated hansen planetarium, which holds dear childhood memories for me. I never felt thinner than when I discovered how much I weighed on the moon...and who can forget all the blind dates to the laser shows. the building is different now, but beautiful.

I love shooting architecture and details...and there were some special guests that I was able to photograph and meet. truly once in a lifetime.

thank you to all the amazing people I worked with. It was an honor.

just a taste...

more of this crazy los angeles wedding next week.

I am still full from all the delicious food they fed us that day. editing through the images is making me hungry!

she said yes!

my sister kate is marrying jake!! engagement official and wedding date set for december. I am pretty excited. I can't stop daydreaming about the perfect photo shoot locations for their engagements and her bridals.....they must be perfect!...but I have my concerns that no photo will do her beauty justice. from the lines of "sound of music", " how do you hold a moonbeam in your hand"? not easy, but I will try.

kate+jake= great

more photos from that one awesome night at classic skating...

stoker family

another day shooting in a family's home and I always love the results...crazy, comfortable and fancy free.

I have a slight obsession with this little family. their house is awesome and their yard, even better. janet has done all of the gardening and it is seriously beautiful. We talked about some of my most favorite subjects, photography, food, tomatoes, cooking, travel, family relationships,parenting etc.....

I really wished grant and I lived closer so we could try to copy everything they do and say.

major family crush. love you guys!