So today is the big 4-0 birthday. It is really funny when I talk to my friends and family about the changing of the numbers I really do not have feelings one way or the other on getting older but everyone else does. For me, I am starting to realize that as I get older, that I am learning more about who I am and what I want out of life.

What I know for sure about me and my life are: {in not particular order}

1. Laugh till you cry is the best!
2. Kind people, with kind faces make me smile
3. Helping others fills my heart
4. Seeing people being kind to others is heart warming
5. Snuggling with my daughter on a Friday night watching movies
6. Being with my husband doing nothing
7. Doing what is best for me and not worrying about pleasing others
8. My dog cuddled up so close to me, that there is no room for me to move
9. Sweating on the treadmill {my health}
10. Becoming an aunt warms my heart
11. Seeing my daughter beam with pride when getting her 1st place ribbon in Synchro
12. Surrounding myself with thoughtful, caring and loving friends that have my best interests at heart
13. My daughter singing as she walks around the house
14. Knowing I just took a really great photo
15. A beautiful sunrise or sunset

There has been so many deaths and illness in the past year with family and friends, that I cannot in anyway, be anything but blessed for the wonderful life I have been given. Getting older is a fact of life, so I will embrace it with wide open arms and an open heart.

Thanks to everyone that have sent me well wishes for a great birthday!

And just because a post is always better with a photo … here is one of my favourite sunset photos that I took by Victoria, PEI

I can honestly say that I have the best dad in the world for many reasons ….here are my top 10

1. My dad never judges me
2. My dad loves me unconditionally
3. My dad is up for anything…. at anytime
4. My dad is kind and giving
5. My dad wants the planet to be a better place and is doing his best to get it there
6. My dad never takes no for an answer….EVER! Even when I give the puppy dog eyes…lol
7. My dad has more energy than the average bear
8. My dad has the best sense of humour
9. My dad has very expensive taste
10. My dad is just the BEST

Now that you know a little bit about my dad, you can have a chance to get to know him and follow him through all of his adventures by reading his brand new blog here

Here is one of my favourite photos of my dad!

My dad’s birthday is the end of September…he will be 60 years old and he looks 40 …. he just finished a fundraiser that gave him the opportunity to race with Lance Armstrong!!

Here is my dad getting a shaking finger by Lance Armstrong….it is usually the other way around! (Not sure who took the photo…it was not me)

When Makenzie was born, I remember holding her and thinking of everything we were going to go through together in her life.

I always new Makenzie was a beautiful girl inside and out, but she has far exceeded any of my expectations. Makenzie is funny (she gets this from me ), forgiving, generous, full of life, determined and a very talented synchronized swimmer. She is surrounded by family and friends that she loves and love her. I really could not have been more blessed with such a beautiful daughter.

As hard as it is to see my baby go up and not need me as much in her life, I am very proud of the lady she is becoming but I would like to rewind the time clock, so I could have her be mommy’s little girl for just a little while longer.

There are so many memories that I am so blessed to be able to capture with my camera and this is just the beginning of a lot of milestones for my beautiful daughter….

It was a very hard decision for me to go back to school. It was something that I defiantly wanted but I had a family depending on me. Could I leave a Monday to Friday job with good pay with benefits and security, to a career that was not? It was the closest I felt to jumping out of a plane with no parachute. At the time my kids were 10 and 6 and I wanted to set an example to them to live your happy life and if I was going to preach it to them I also need to show them.

It has now been 6 years since I graduated from the Photography program at Holland College and I have not looked back. I have such a supportive family and friends. I pinch myself everyday that I get to do something that I love.

When I get comments like this…..

“Like them is an understatment…..I love them..I cant believe how lovely you made me look… thank you so much” Amy Scales

“We’ve been pouring over them all day/night yesterday! So fun to re-live it!” Lindsay Park

“The pictures are AWESOME! Everything I hoped they’d be and more.” Kristen Joy

“WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW
WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW
WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW
WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW
WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW WOW !

Shelly!!
WE LOVE THEM!! we were both just saying…. out of everyone and there services we required to help make our day so memorable, by far this was worth the most to us, and we have U to thank for it!!

we can’t believe how fast you had these ready, and as we were looking through them we NEVER WANTED THEM TO END!!! SO GOOD ! and we cant wait to meet up with you when we get back !!

THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN FOR EVERYTHING!!
it meant so much to us to have you there for our special day, Amanda and I both knew you would do an awesome job!
thank you for capturing our favorites moments of our day!” Sincerely, The Newlyweds! Andrew & Amanda Tachauer

This just makes my want to cry (in a good way)! I love making memories that will last forever and to know that this is my job only makes it that much better

Being so grateful…I want to give back. I am going to give away a Portrait Session that includes a 11×14 and 2-5×7’s. This can be a family, an engagement or a new baby.

I am looking for a stay at home mom that never gets a break, a family that just adopted a child, someone that has just overcome a hugh challenge in their life or you just got the best job of your life…..whatever it is, I want to know! Send me a message and the BEST story WINS!!!! This contest will end on Friday….

We have added a new addition to our family. Her name is Sophie, an American Cocker Spaniel and she is a fireball. So full of life and energy, I am not sure if I will be able to keep up. So if anyone has any helpful tips for me, I would love to hear from you. She is suppose to be my daughter’s responsibility, maybe I should start taking bets now to see how long it will last for the picking up poop job and going for walks . Right now, I am the one that has been doing the night duties! The house has been very quiet since Abby, I did miss going on walks and the loving eyes wanting treats, but I do believe that this is going to be WAY more work than I imagined. As I am typing right now little Miss Sophie is trying to type as well… Life is good!

My hubby turned 40 this year, so to celebrate we went to Jamaica. What a nice way to celebrate! We stayed @ Iberostar Rose Hall Beach. The staff was very friendly and lots of fun and the food was great. Here are some photos of our trip….enjoy

our beautiful hotel

our room view

a photo that I really like

Birthday boy

While we were there the Olympics were starting, so we wanted to show our olympic spirit


I love the colors that are down South!

This is my husband doing his version of a photo shoot!

Friends that my hubby made in Jamaica

My man fitting right in

This man is making beautiful wooden carvings

A flea market where the locals sold their stuff..

This the local bar on the beach

I love the name

Here is Brooklyn.  This little sweetheart would melt your heart by blinking her eyes.  She is wise beyond her years and has a gentle spirit about her.  Brooklyn LOVES the camera. I do believe that she is a supermodel!!    I have been taking her pictures since she was in her mommy’s belly  What a fun day. Thanks Brooklyn

This is one of my favorite photos!!!

Today was one of my very saddest days and as I type this I can barely see through the tears, but I feel like I must honor Abby.

Abby was not a pet, she was family.

Let me start at the beginning.  I NEVER wanted a big dog.  I am not sure looking back now why, but I was very adamant.  At the time my brother in law was living with us and a family friend was getting a divorce and Abby needed a new home.  My brother in law knew we would be a great for Abby but knowing that I would say “NO” he had to figure out how to convince me.   He snuck her in the house and hid Abby downstairs with him for a couple of days.  I am not sure how he did this because knowing Abby now, she was not quiet by any means.  Needless to say it was love at first sight.

Abby had the best qualities,  we can learn so much from our pets.  She never judged me on any decision that I ever made.  She had patience (except when she knew she was coming in the truck or going for a walk).  Abby had pure and honest love in her heart, every moment of every day and lived in the moment.  She was up for anything, Abby you wanna….? and her answer was always “YES”.  Abby listened to all of my families secrets and was the best friend to my kids (especially on days when they really needed a friend).  She was a lover not a fighter She was the neighborhood dog that everyone loved.  I always laughed when I would come home from work, Abby was always waiting for us, but we would come to find out that she would spend the whole day with neighbors and 4:00 everyday started her walk home.

A funny story about Abby    I am not sure why but one night Abby was outside, it was very late and instead of coming home she decided to go to the neighbors and at the time their back door opened very easily and Abby knew this.  So at 1:00am Abby gets into bed with them and was there the whole night!!!

In Abby’s prime she would see us coming home and get right in front of the car and bounce up and down.  It would take 5 minutes to go 5 feet.  My husband would do yard work and a job that should take 1/2 an hour would be an hour because he would have to stop and throw a stick or a ball and no matter how far it was, Abby found it

Abby was 14 years old and her body was starting to hurt.  She almost died two summers in a row with heat stroke, her hips hurt, we could not keep the infection out of her ears and she had a hard time breathing.  Even with all of this she was happy every single day.

So on December 2, 2009 at 1:30pm we had to say Good-Bye

If there is something to learn from my Abby, it is patience, kindness, always show love with no judgement and say yes to life.

I am going to miss hearing the click click on the floor, the 3:00am drinks of water, opening the door all by herself, the balls of hair and her snoring beside me as I work on my computer.

Our house is just way too quite without our Abby  I love you…..

Another fun Halloween year has come and gone.  My daughter LOVES Halloween.  We start thinking of costumes in the summer and every year she has had great ideas.  This year was no different except for the fact that the costume was decided the day before Halloween, due to complications on her first costume idea.   There was also a school dance with a dress up theme as well.  So here is the fun.  Enjoy!

This is my daughter and her friend getting ready for the dance  My daughter is in the red sweater.

This is my husband as a Vampire on Halloween…

This is my daughter

My daughter’s best friend

And this is me…..

Welcome to my new blog.

Well here I am.  So nervous about entering the blog world and wondering if I will have anything to say…. or even scarier, no one wants to listen  So be kind blog world, show me love and you will get love back!

My goal is really, to keep me focused on photography, so I can keep learning and growing to become a better photographer.  I want to share my knowledge of photography and maybe a little bit of my life.

It is always nice to see photos on blogs so here is mine for today.  When I was not taking pictures this summer, this is where you would find me, with my daughter, Makenzie.

Enjoy your summer day