Loving the weather lately!

Happy February, friends ~

Alex

Not much going on at the “Cave Shack” except for of lots of cuddling with our bundle of joy!

Hope your holiday season is wonderful so far!

xo

As you know, I’ll be teaching at The Makerie once again next Spring (Yay!), so I am very excited to announce that Old Glory Antiques and their adorable new boutique Prince Street Dry Goods will be generously offering one full Makerie package (excluding travel costs) for the 2012 event! Starting on January 2nd, we are inviting nominations for a very special someone who would embrace the spirit of the Makerie.

Do you know someone who is deserving of a creative weekend away, but maybe is unable to make the financial commitment at this time? Maybe that someone is YOU! Look at all the amazing teachers and classes lined up ::: I’ll be teaching two workshops “Your life in pictures” and “Shoot your Craft“.

So head over to The Makerie website right now to find out all the deets! I would love for you or someone you love to win :)

***

And for those of you who would like to give the magic of The Makerie for Christmas, there are some sweet giftie certificates available!

Love,

xo

People always complain about travel with kids, but what I realized is that the chaotic nature of it, actually provided me with a great opportunity to slow down and practice how to not take things/ life/ myself so seriously! I think in general parents get overwhelmed during travel because they worry about things/ themselves not being perfect. Of course, there is something to be said about having to change more messy diapers on the go, dealing with a jet-legged kid’s schedule, eating at family friendly restaurants versus fancy gastropubs, hoping in and out of public transportation with stroller & baby gear (especially at rush hour), having to cut a program short because it is nap time, a crying baby in a confined location such as the airplane, caring for a sick kid away from the comforts of our home, etc etc… This is all very vulnerable territory and we hate the feeling of being messy and messing up our plans. But if we just roll with it with as much grace as possible, acknowledging what is out of our control… I swear… It can be done. I think the key is to put the blinds on when it comes to outside judgement, and just focus on handling each situation with lots of calm, while also inviting that unexpected “fun”. These are the good stories. We don’t want to miss out on them.

After we got home, I gave this lighthearted approach some thought and compared it to how I handle things as a photographer.

1. In the absence of props, wardrobe, catering, changing room, etc, I can still make it happen! I’m resourceful and I can improvise like crazy! (Do you remember Macgyver? I used to love that show and now that I’m a mom and photographer, that approach sure comes as handy as ever!)

2. I’ve always been agile with a backpack, but now I am also a pro when it comes to flying, taking the tube, bus, taxi, etc, with loads of photo and/or baby equipment! I really don’t think that many people can plow through London’s rush hour on public transportation with 2 roller suitcases + 2 carry-ons + backpack + baby on ergo, with a smile on their face. But, yes, I can! Okay, the smile wasn’t all there, all the time, but still… And I made sure the most important things weren’t left behind… Yep. Still got the baby! :)

3. I care a LOT. I really do everything in my power to make sure everyone is always well and happy. Fact.

4. Which brings me to another point and confession. I never thought I could be the one to put my oxygen mask first. I can actually look back and see how many times I failed to do so, in order to save another before saving myself. (Not always successful, I might add.) So, finally, motherhood (and travel with a baby) has taught me once and for all, that I’m much MUCH more useful when I am breathing. Yep. Happy mama, Happy baby. Also, Happy business, Happy clients, right? In the past I have bypassed my own needs, rates, processes, etc, in order to try to book a client, and/ or to avoid difficult conversation and dealings. Not anymore. My business policy is full disclosure ahead of time of everything I need in order to get the job done, plus a detailed plan of how I intend to approach the project (logistically and financially), so we are both on the same page ~  and happy ~ throughout the entire process.

5. Lastly, my intuition is so right on and it never EVER fails me. So, from now on, I’m borrowing some of Steve Jobs’ last words to his family (according to his sister’s eulogy in the NY Times): “For the really big, big things, you have to trust me. You have to.” And I really hope that you will, dear clients!

More pics to come soon…

xo

*edited

You will have to forgive my mushy self of late, but I’m one that lives and breathes according to the seasons, which means that at the moment, I’m adjusting to the season of change.

Gabi started daycare today. Sob Sob. Mama feels it the most, I’m sure… They all say and I repeat it to myself, “This will be great for her and now I can do my work!” But underneath the words lays the truth that it is not going to be just {us} all the time, and nothing can ever match that. What we had. What we did. How we were. It was just {us}, learning and growing together, in our clumsy, beautiful ways.

It’s funny how it goes. It’s taken me this entire first year of her life to get comfortable in my “mom skin”, and now that I feel like I’m on top of my game, it’s time to shed that layer and start over, with yet another learning experience. Such is life, I know. Blah Blah Blah, It is all pretty cliche after all. But still…

I came home after dropping her off and did not know what to do with myself. I thought about going out to the beach to shoot the Rip Curl Surf Contest and get my mind off of things. But instead, I came home to mourn in silence. I put the laundry in, did the dishes, made the bed, and finally turned on the computer, moving around with not one peep of sound. It’s a strange quietness today, and not the blissful kind I usually crave. I can hear her delicious voice in my head… Crazy, I know… (please say you relate ;))

Now it is time to work, I say, and do what I’ve been longing to do, which is to dive into my photography once again, go out and shoot, respond to queries and plot new projects. Let’s get to it! Sigh… It will all come, I’m sure. Not today, though. Today, I’m going to take my time and sit here, to honor all these grand feelings about love and the real work we do in our lives every single day, without even noticing it. It seriously blows my mind to think about how complex and powerful we all are, and what sort of strength it takes to move through this world, balancing, loving, healing, pushing further with courage, seeking beauty in all the broken pieces… I honestly can’t quite understand why we doubt ourselves so much all the time. I truly hope that in this new phase of our family life and my career, I can create from this very strong and compassionate place in my heart.

My friend Myriam sent me this poem a while ago and I would like to share it with you today (get ready bc it’s a good one!).

It says more than I ever could…

***

Invisible Work by Alison Luterman

Because no one could ever praise me enough,
because I don’t mean these poems only
but the unseen
unbelievable effort it takes to live
the life that goes on between them,
I think all the time about invisible work.
About the young mother on Welfare
I interviewed years ago,
who said, “It’s hard.
You bring him to the park,
run rings around yourself keeping him safe,
cut hot dogs into bite-sized pieces for dinner,
and there’s no one
to say what a good job you’re doing,
how you were patient and loving
for the thousandth time even though you had a headache.”
And I, who am used to feeling sorry for myself
because I am lonely,
when all the while,
as the Chippewa poem says, I am being carried
by great winds across the sky,
thought of the invisible work that stitches up the world day and night,
the slow, unglamorous work of healing,
the way worms in the garden
tunnel ceaselessly so the earth can breathe
and bees ransack this world into being,
while owls and poets stalk shadows,
our loneliest labors under the moon.

There are mothers
for everything, and the sea
is a mother too,
whispering and whispering to us
long after we have stopped listening.
I stopped and let myself lean
a moment, against the blue
shoulder of the air. The work
of my heart
is the work of the world’s heart.
There is no other art.

xo

The sunshine and the little boogie are making me so happy right now…

ps: Image taken with the Pen Camera (a marvelous gift from Olympus!). Must say that I’m having too much fun with this little camera… My 5D is totally frowning at me! ;-)

beautiful Jen Lemen at  Shutter Sisters Camp

I wasn’t able to attend Camp for its full course, but in the one full day that I was there, I was reminded that one is just great: one day, one moment, one breath, one…

ONE suitcase

ONE camera

ONE pair of boots

ONE full tank of gas

ONE girl in the mood for a road trip

ONE good reason to let go and go…

*

ONE pretty little beach at sunset

ONE fabulous dinner at candlelight

ONE glass of zin

ONE long hot shower before bed

ONE full night of sleep

*

ONE perfect cup of coffee to start the day

ONE quiet walk in nature

ONE good friend to cry and laugh with

ONE new friend * at least ONE but possibly more :)

ONE photo opportunity after another

ONE fun class to teach (and learn from)

ONE person that sees me through and through

ONE big sigh of gratitude

ONE awesome song to blast and sing to on the drive home

ONE full day as the true ME

and

ONE polaroid to tell the story.

*

What is the ONE great thing you can do for yourself today?

*(amended post to add this very important item!)

The article highlights the collaboration project I’m heading over at my other blog, “Gypsy Girls Guide“, and how the community I built online over the years has stepped up to post and share on the blog, while I take a break to focus on my new role as a mother.

The article features photography by myself and some of my talented online/ life pals, who are amazing photographers with gypsy hearts: Jeanine Caron (a Montreal girl in London, who is a mighty good writer in addition to being a captivating photographer), Amanda Gilligan (a Sydney girl in Vancouver, who is a film fanatic and Polaroid guru), Leonie Wise (a girl from New Zealand traveling the world, who is a poetic shooter and cook extraordinaire), Fernanda Montoro (a Polaroid genius from Uruguay) and Jena Ardell (a road tripper and retro goddess from LA). In addition, the article features a shot of my bohemian friend Denise Andrade (by Deb Schwedhelm), and travel journal pages by my good friend Christine Mason Miller.

This was my second time working with Stampington, and once again a great pleasure! Big thanks to my editor Jennifer Jackson and the lovely Editor in Chief and Dir of Publishing, Christen Oliverez.

Hope you enjoyed the tour! Now go grab a copy of your own to read the article and soak in all the beautiful colors ;)

xo

I’m so so excited to be one of the 1000 lucky photographers participating in the Olympus Pen Ready Project!

Truth is I am already * IN LOVE * with this little James Bond camera! It’s so light and modern, and the images it captures are oh so delicious, that I just can’t get enough of it!!!

The images you see on this post were captured with the art setting called “soft focus.” Later I did some color balancing to my taste, but you can see the softness is YUM, and totally out of the box. Other settings are “pop art” (ultra colorful) and “pinhole” (vignetting) among others…

But you don’t need to be in “Arty” mode though. You can shoot Auto or Manual, and the Pen Camera has HD video capability too! I’m excited to get the image quality of a DSLR with the awesome portability of this camera! As a mom I carry enough stuff around, so I can see the little Pen camera becoming my most favorite travel companion from now on.

Thank you, Olympus!

Read more about this precious little gem over {here}.

Are you PEN READY?