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My Austin Peps: Laguna Beach Kids photography

I have to admit it…. I am obsessed with Austin, Texas!  The food, amazing… some of my favorite restaurants include Eddie V’s, Lamberts Downtown Barbecue, Garridos Austin for atmosphere and great food  , and Blue Dahlia Bistro just to name a few!  The people are so genuinely nice and have such great style, the music scene is exceptional, the landscape is amazing for photography AND you can walk everywhere in the city… a huge plus.  Not to mention that it is my son’s dream to swim for University of Texas.

Over the last several years both my kids have gone to swim camp at University of Texas and Bob and I have spent the same week exploring the city.  It has been our “date” week.  We love it so much that in the future we would like to live there part time.   Really, can you imagine calling Laguna Beach and Austin Texas both home???  Pure bliss.  And we have been so lucky to make friends in Laguna who also call Austin home, The Sadler family.  If you want to really know what the people in Austin are like, you have to meet Frana!  She is an amazing ball of energy and positive vibes.  She has been so generous with our family, helping set up reservations at The Austonian for us, recommending great things to do and places to go, etc.  Her kids are just as amazing as the rest of her family!

So, thank you Frana!  For being a great friend, and raising amazing kids.  I can’t express how grateful we are to you!   Enjoy!

Laguna Beach Kids Photography: Happy Belated Mother’s Day

I live a really busy life.  I mean, crazy from 4:30 am until 8:30 pm.  Between driving to practice before school, then to school, then picking up from school and then back to swim practice not to mention running a full time business and just generally managing life, there isn’t much down time.   Fortunately my husband is all in and does more than his fair share.

Because our kids have set high goals for swimming, we only get 2 weeks off per year to travel as a family.  When they were younger, I could whisk them away for a few days during a long weekend, but this is no longer an option.  It makes me a little sad that our weekend trips are no more, but I am so glad I took the opportunity when it was available.

Yesterday, I got to spend the whole day with the kids and my extended family for Mother’s Day.  I decided to completely unplug.  No cell phone, no computer, just hang out with my family.  We looked back at some great old pictures and laughed at all of our great times together.

I am so grateful that so many of my weekend trips included my Mom.  She is an amazing woman!  A 25 year breast cancer survivor, a pediatric nurse, a world traveler and a caregiver to her grandkids.  She works out every day and is a total role model to our entire family.  Here is one of our last trips to Arrowhead with the kids three years ago.  Photography by both myself and my daughter.  Happy Mother’s Day to all of the moms out there!  I hope you had a great day yesterday!

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Laguna Beach Family Photography

Each and every year for over ten years I make my entire family get together for a family photo session.  Not just my husband and kids…. but my mom and dad, my sister and her family and my brother and his family.  We pick a color scheme, a location and we spend about two hours creating beautiful portraits, as well as some very funny memories.  I then spend my last spare moments during the holidays putting together either a coffee table book or an album for everyone for Christmas.  Every time we get together as a family, the kids sit down and look through the years of their albums and books and laugh.  I am so very glad that I MADE everyone join me, even if it was a really busy year, even if I had to stay up until 2 AM to finish the albums and that I have these precious memories to enjoy year and after year.

That is why I always encourage all my clients to do the same thing, document their family each year and put together some kind of book or album.  Sometimes in the moment, it seems like a real hassle, or like a large investment, but in the end it is one of the best gifts a family can give themselves.

Here is the beautiful Hawkins family that I documented for the first time last year.  I loved how different all the boys personalities were and how much they all loved each other.  Enjoy!

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Laguna Beach Family Photography: The Potalivo Family

Pam called me up saying she had been dreaming of getting great family portraits for years.  After visiting to her niece’s house and admiring the Blue Sky’s portraits on the wall, she decided to make the call.  She was a little worried as her guys were all grown and had their own ideas about clothing and style, but she decided to go ahead and book a session.

Fast forward a few months to a gorgeous afternoon with huge waves on a beautiful beach in Laguna and we had the perfect day for her family portraits.  After her oldest threatened to wear a vintage hawaiian shirt, she was pleasantly surprised when he showed up in a nice dress shirt and jeans.

My favorite part of this photo session was how much warmth and love this family showed to one another and how willing they were to follow my directions, even when they were a little unsure of the results.  Thanks to the whole family for working with me and I hope you enjoy the portraits! :)

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Laguna Beach portrait photographer: The Remillard Family

Life is good!  I recently moved my office to the top floor in my home.  And seriously, why didn’t I move a long time ago?  I now sit and can look out at the beautiful ocean, and I feel really inspired.  I feel like it is just really important to be thankful for all of the wonderful experiences I have had, for the great family I get to hang out with, for the amazing clients I get to work with each day and for my really diverse group of  friends who surround me with love and support.  And the best part, I can now call a lot of my clients, friends.

So now to new friends, the beautiful Remillard family!   I spoke with Lisa about them wanting a really beautiful three generation family portrait.  We talked about all kinds of great locations, and decided on a location with an ocean view.  The only problem was each time the date came, it was too windy, rainy, overcast or something that prevented us from shooting on that date.  Finally I said, let’s try something different.  How about the Mission in San Juan Capistrano?  As it turned out, her mom was a docent at the Mission and it held a special place in her heart.  AND…. she had an inside connect that allowed us to shoot beyond closing time.  Don’t you just love an inside connection?

Not to make any of the adults feel like I don’t love them, but the best part of the session was Lisa’s adorable niece & her pink monkey!  Such a cutie.  It took a lot of fake sneezes and peak a boos to get her great big smile, but it was so worth the effort.  Enjoy!

p.s. my Spring Mini sessions will be announced tomorrow!  Just in time for Easter!