In less than 24 hours......

I will be in New York City!!! After 4 1/2 long years, I'm finally going back...to get some much needed relaxation with Lee(funny that I want to relax in NY)and to visit some old friends. We are packing tons of fun into 5 short days that will surely be an adventure. Also, I heard that the weather in the city has been amazing. I will try to blog from our hotel room at night, but don't hold me to it :)

Happy Labor Day!!

Seattle Wedding Photographers

An old friend of mine is getting married in Seattle next year so I've been helping her to research and somewhat choose a good photographer up there. We've come up with some great choices and I think she's going to be in good hands on her big day. Check out some pics from the photographers we found:

http://laviephoto.com/

http://www.jkhphoto.com/


Since I love weddings so much and I'm always looking on different websites, I thought I'd put together a post of some of my favorite ideas I've come across. Ladies, if you're engaged and out there somewhere, check out this post!!

Dress:
I am a simple girl, but for some reason I'm in LOVE with this dress. It's a bit over the top (Oscar de la Renta), but I can't stop staring at it.

Bouquet:
I've been seeing the Tiffany blue color pop up alot in wedding decor. I love this bouquet that was designed by a florist in NYC. It's classic and stunning.

Decor:
Another thing I've been noticing is umbrellas as bridesmaids accessories and decor which I think is very cool. Check out how this couple used umbrellas and hung them from the ceiling of an outdoor tent.

Ceremony idea:
Andrew Firestone had his guest singing "Living on a Prayer" after he and his wife were married and walked down the isle. WHY didn't I think of that??? Can one of my friends who hasn't gotten married yet PLEASE do this and I will lead the crowd?

Ring Pillows:
I happened upon Anna Whitford's website and these ring pillow are to die for!

First Dance Song:
This song is so old school, but the lyrics are sweet and I don't know about anyone else, but it brings up some great memories for me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Ls7cH3elBc&feature=related

So there you go. I think someone should use all of these ideas at their wedding and invite me :)

Mundane Monday & More Lola

So it's Monday again and I'm sitting at my desk dreaming about my trip to NYC that begins this coming Saturday. Not only am I excited to see all my old friends and co-workers, but I'm excited to catch up on 4+ years away from Manhattan. I can't wait to show Lee all of the places that I lived, ate, stayed out WAY too late with friends, and where I spent many sleepless night editing my films in college. What amazing memories that I get to share!! So hopefully this week will fly by and before I know it, we'll be on the plane. Get ready for me, NYC!

This weekend was pretty quiet. Lee & I joined friends at the Hollywood Cemetery to watch Rear Window and it was a blast. If anyone in LA has never been, it's a MUST! You can bring food, wine, beach chairs and blankets to spread out on the big lawn inside the cemetery. There is a DJ who plays music before the show and then the movie is projected on the side of a large building. It's pretty cool.

Yesterday I edited more pictures of Lola. I wasn't going to post more, but as I went through them, I realized that I can't resist because they're WAY too cute. Here are a few more from our shoot:

More with Mom & Dad

Lola loves the Crackberry!

More Lola!

Last weekend my parents were in town and it was SO much fun! We didn't stop moving for a minute that they were here. Lee & I took them to our favorite Italian Deli, we went to the Hollywood Bowl, and spent ALL day on Saturday at the Laguna Beach arts/sawdust festival and then had dinner at Las Brisas staring at the incredibly beautiful ocean. After the left on Sunday morning, I was exhausted!! Never thought that my parents would tire me out, but they did ;) I fell asleep at 9pm on Sunday night, but last night had time to work on a few more pictures of the most beautiful Lola.

Lola & her Daddy who she Looooves!

Lola with Mommy & Daddy

Lola & Mommy

Being adorable

Bio Bags and more favorites!

It's been a while since I've written about my favorite products and I have a few new things in my repertoire of green goods, so its a good time to share.

First up is the dog waste bag from Bio Bags. Not sure if I've written about these before, but this is one product that Lee & I have been using for over a year now and absolutely have to have around. These dog waste bags are made from corn and completely biodegradable. They fit around your hand nicely and are perfect to stick in your pocket before a walk. Think about how many plastic bags you put in the landfill if you walk your dog twice a day, every day, for their life span? Roughly..13 years x 365 x 2 = about 10,000 plastic bags just from picking up after your dog - SO not good! Check Whole Foods or any health food store to buy these or shop on-line.
http://www.greenfeet.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=8011-00080-0000

Also, tell everyone you know who has a dog!

One of my new favorite products is the plastic bag dryer from Greetfeet.com. You might think it's a bit weird, but plastic sandwich bags and freezer bags can be washed JUST like your dishes and dried on this handy little accessory. You can potentially use a bag 20 times before it needs to go in the recycle bin. Saves $ and the environment...what could be better??
http://www.greenfeet.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=6005-04087-0000

Keeping with the theme of sandwich bags, another new favorite product of mine is the waxed paper sandwich and snack bags from Natural Value. They are also completely biodegradable and landfill safe (they will not contaminate ground water)They coolest thing about them though is that they are microwavable. Again...CHECK them out!!!
http://www.greenfeet.com/itemdesc.asp?ic=6006-00009-0000

Last but not least, for all of my friends who are new moms...Williams Sonoma starting selling a french product that my friend Sophie actually told me about 2 years ago. It's called Beaba Babycook. It's a steamer and a grinder/masher all in one little machine and Sophie swares by it. One day when I'm a mommy, I will most definitely get myself one of these. It would make a great shower gift also!

http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/sku5279732/index.cfm?pkey=xsrd0m1%7C16%7C%7C%7C0%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7C%7Cbaby%20food&cm%5Fsrc=SCH

On another note, my parents are coming to LA tonight for the weekend and I couldn't be more excited. We are going to the Hollywood Bowl tomorrow for "Havana Nights" which I think will be a blast, and then to Laguna Beach for the day on Saturday to show my dad where they should REALLY retire :) I mean, who retires in San Jose, CA?! Just kidding Dad....I'm just happy that you'll finally be on the west coast next year.

More pictures next week!

Summer BBQ...fun times!

I am definitely behind on editing and blogging pictures. I am still working on Lola's wonderful portrait shoot and in the midst of uploading Paul's birthday weekend pictures to my computer. Last night though, I took a few minutes to edit a handful of pictures from the super fun BBQ that Lee & I had at our place a few weekends ago.

In other news....I am working away on my logo right now with a great designer named Heidi Kruger. It should be ready in a few weeks, and shortly after that I will be launching my website - YAY! In the meantime, it's all about the blog.

August is really really busy for me, but I'll try to blog as often as possible.

Here are the pics:

I had to take this picture because of how my dogs were just WAITING for Julie to give them food. Little did they know it was probably mashed sweet potatoes!

The cutest baby!

Great friends

Andrew taking his hot dog VERY seriously...

Lee taking his MAN spatula VERY seriuosly :)

888

Do you feel lucky today? I do! Too bad we're not going to Vegas tonight to test our luck, but instead Lee & I will be driving to San Francisco to spend the weekend with my whole family (parents included) to celebrate Paul's BIG birthday. The plans for tomorrow are a secret, but should be super fun. I of course, will take tons of pictures, but it might take a while for them to reach this blog since I'm incredibly behind!

Here are some interesting facts about the number 8:

Chemistry
-The atomic number of oxygen.
-The number of allotropes of carbon.
-The most stable allotrope of a sulfur molecule is made of eight sulfur atoms arranged in a rhombic form.
-The maximum number of electrons that can occupy a valence shell.
-The red pigment Lycopene consits of eight isoprene units.

Biology
-There are eight known B vitamins that play important roles in cell metabolism.
-All spiders, and more generally all arachnids, have eight legs. An octopus has eight tentacles.
-Timothy Leary identified a hierarchy of eight levels of consciousness
-In the human adult dentition there are 8 teeth in each quadrant. The 8th tooth is the so called the wisdom tooth.

In religion
-The Jewish religious rite of brit milah is held on a baby boy's eighth day of life
-Hanukkah is an eight-day Jewish holiday that starts on the 25th day of Kislev
-Shemini Atzeret (Hebrew: "Eighth Day of Assembly") is a one-day Jewish holiday immediately following the seven-day holiday of Sukkot
-The Eight Immortals are Chinese deities
-Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints believe that humans are responsible for their actions by the age of 8. Before that age, children lack sufficient knowledge to commit sin and are therefore exempt from judgment for their actions.
-In Christianity, it is allegoric to: what is beyond time (because the number 7 refers to the days of the week which repeat themselves), and is the number of Beatitudes.
-In Islam, It is the number of Angels carrying The Holy Throne of Allah in heavens.
In Neopaganism, there are eight Sabbats, festivals, seasons, or spokes in the Wheel of the Year.
-In Hinduism it's the number of wealth , abundance. The Goddess Lakshmi has eightfold forms. There are eight nidhis - seats of wealth.

In superstition and divination
-If each of the classical elements is assigned a cosmic projection, the resulting number (8) represents them.

As a lucky or unlucky number
-Eight is considered a lucky number in Chinese culture because it sounds like the word "prosper" or "wealth".
-In numerology, 8 is the number of building, and in some theories, also the number of destruction.

In astrology
-In Astrology, Scorpio is the 8th astrological sign of the Zodiac
-In the middle ages, 8 was the number of "unmoving" stars in the sky, and symbolized the perfectioning of incoming planetary energy

In music
-A note played for one-eighth the duration of a whole note is called an eighth note, or quaver
-An octave, the interval between two notes with the same letter name (where one has double the frequency of the other), is so called because there are eight notes on a western scale between the two, including the notes themselves
-There are eight notes in an octatonic scale
-There are eight musicians in an octet
-"Eight maids a-milking" is the gift on the eighth day of Christmas in the carol "The Twelve Days of Christmas"
-The 8-track cartridge is a musical recording format
-Eight Seconds, a Canadian musical group popular in the 1980s with their most notable song "Kiss You (When It's Dangerous)"
-"Eight Days a Week" is a #1 single for the music group The Beatles.

In sports
In football, the number 8 has historically been the number of the Central Midfielder while in rugby union the number eight central back row position wears the 8 shirt. Similarly in baseball, in its numbering system used to record defensive plays, eight represents the center fielder's position. The Philadelphia Flyers once had a line called the Crazy Eights with Eric Lindros at center (88); Mark Recchi (8); and Brent Fedyk (18). Kobe Bryant wore this number for most parts of his career. 49ers Quarterback Steve Young wore this number. In chess, each side has eight pawns and the board is made of 64 squares arranged in an eight by eight lattice. The eight queens puzzle is a challenge to arrange eight queens on the board so that none can capture any of the others.

Eight ball billiards is played with 15 balls; the black ball numbered 8 being the middle and most important one. Magic 8 Ball is a randomized process of predicting the future or answering various questions, packaged to resemble this ball and often sold as a fortune-telling device.

In rowing an 'eight' refers to a sweep oar boat with eight rowers plus a coxswain.

In rugby union, the only position without a proper name is the Number 8, a forward position.

It is the retired jersey number of Baseball Hall of Fame players Cal Ripken, Jr., Joe Morgan, Willie Stargell, Carl Yastrzemski, and Yogi Berra.

In hockey, Alexander Ovechkin of the Washington Capitals, widely considered the most talented player in the league, wears the number 8.

Happy 8/8/8 everyone!!

I've missed my blog

So normally I always write a post on either Monday or Tuesday because they're the highest traffic days on my blog and also because this blog is cathartic for me in many ways - additional therapy :) However, with a full time job, a photography business, a husband, two dogs, and a book club to read for....I struggle to fit everything in. This week, unfortunately my blog was the one that suffered (poor thing). So here I am, back again writing to you in the morning, before I leave for work and hoping that the next few days will provide me with some time to work on editing my pictures.

In the meantime....

Last Saturday Lee & I had a BBQ in our backyard to celebrate summer and our great friendships. I only took a few pictures because I was having a blast and didn't want to have my camera strapped around my neck for too long. Before I share all of the BBQ pictures, I wanted to post my two favorite.

This is what Graham was doing at the BBQ. Julie, better watch out for this little guy ;)

And this is what Rocky was doing. He couldn't stand to be away from the party, so I brought his bed outside.

More to come tomorrow!

Happy Birthday to You....

Today is a BIG birthday for my BIG brother Paul. I'm pretty sure that I was the first person to call him today (which was my plan) and wish him a happy birthday, but I wanted to post something here as well. Paul is not only my brother, but my best friend. He's almost 9 years older than me, so when I was a little 8 year old kid, he was in high school and would take me to basketball & football games with his friends and I always felt SO special. What other 8 year old kid was that lucky??

Paul moved out for college when I was 10 and I think I cried for 2 days when he left. Through the years we remained close from summers he spent at home and visits that I made to wherever he was living. He used to write me letters that I cherished; addressed to the nickname he had for me.

When I was 27 and decided to move to California, I took 6 weeks off to travel to Europe and Paul met me there for 2 weeks of it. We met in Paris and then traveled through Italy together. In those 2 weeks we made so many memories that will stay with me forever - most of which I will laugh about for years! Bruce Willis! (inside joke)

So Paul, on your BIG day over the hill (ha!), I want you to know that I love and admire your intelligence, your good taste, your willingness to always have fun, your passion for golf, love for the gym(weird, I know), for the OCD tendencies that we share, for the way you're exactly like dad, but most of all for the unconditional love that you give, which I've counted on since I was little.

Happy Birthday!
I love you,
Wuchums