slice of life: newport, oregon.

just a photo-dump few snapshots of our Labor Day weekend

in Newport, Oregon with some really great friends.

the weather was amazing...

our friends who did most of the cooking are amazing cooks!...

the kids had a blast...

Sammy was just plain worn-out...

it was a good end to the summer.

* * *

the cutest baby age.

A couple of weeks ago our good friends, Doug and Kristi came over with their little man. He's seven months old. And this is the age I go a bit ga-ga over. They smile and are curious about everything! His momma set him on the quilt and I came over with my big black Nikon in my face and "click!" - he just looked up at me with those big sweet eyes. He was so interested in me taking pictures of him. He made my job so, so easy.

Those blonde curls...
That hair...

So glad to spend time with these friends. Some of you may remember Kristi from our weekly Linked Project in 2012.
Thank you, sweet friends. We'll have to do that again soon!

california dreaming (aka the photo dump)

A month ago I was in sunny, warmer California. In fact on the 26th of January we were in Carmel. Oh so lovely. I have yet to even edit those photos. Today you get the Santa Cruz photo dump. :) You're excited to see them right?...To sit and stare and imagine the warmth of the sun on your skin, with your sunnies on and the breeze in your hair...

a first.

A dear friend of mine asked me to take photos of her family awhile ago. Like, months ago. I kept saying, "Maybe..." I had all sorts of excuses - I had never done family photos before, I wasn't familiar with editing with Elements... I warned her that they might not turn out that good. She asked me once and I thought maybe she'd forget. But she kept asking. So I decided to dive in and take-on my first family photo session. And thank goodness my first session was with a good friend. They made it so easy for me.

I love this one.

Cute little smile.

Another favorite. (You gotta love those mossy rocks.)

I learned a lot from this first photo session. From the photo shoot to the editing. (I learned that being a perfectionist makes for lengthy editing. lol.) Perhaps the biggest lesson learned is that I need to trust myself and my skills and talent, just as my friend did. She saw it in me long before I wanted to believe it was in me. Thank you, Anna.