I know... I know...

I haven't blogged in so long. My apologies. Yes, I've been busy with life in general, but I haven't felt like blogging much. You see, my Hubster is now deployed and I'm still at that depressed and grieving stage. Don't worry I always hop right back out of it after a couple sessions of my ugly cries. You know the ugly cry where you look so ugly and sob like a big baby? Everytime I see someone in uniform, or even something as ridiculous as a World of War Craft commerical that reminds of my husband,  that ugly cry seems to creep up on me. I don't try to hold in, I just let go. So I leave you now with this picture.

13 minutes and 46 seconds of pure bliss. 13 minutes and 46 seconds of communicating with my best friend. No one will truly understand the relationship between a married couple whose husband is in the military...and Army...and Infantryman unless their husband is in the military, the Army, and an Infantryman... it's a different breed I tell you. Moments like these 13 minutes and 46 seconds go such a long way and each and every second cherished more than you can imagine.

Exploring

I am absolutely in love with this hidden gem. It is simply beautiful and nature at its best. The rolling hills, long grass, blue sky, green brush, the different textures all call for a wonderful backdrop. You would not believe it, but this place is just in between houses and buildings just a couple of yards away.


SOOC (Straight Out Of the Camera)

So you know how I thought about taking My Boy out here for a shoot? Well, I figured... why not? My Boy had his monthly trip to the barber and right after he got his hair cut, I told him we would go exploring for a little bit. He was so excited when I pulled into the parking lot and asked me if we were going to catch rabbits, squirrels, bugs, lizards, and spiders. Uh huh, sure son. as long as you smile and look at the camera.

And of course it would not be a complete photo shoot with my son if it didn't include something about animals. 



My howling coyote



Field of Dreams

Once again, my beautiful cousin Marsha has done it again. I did a previous shoot with my cousin in Point Loma because she let me use her to practice. This time around, I was on my way home from my last day of school. I took the backroads home because of traffic. On the way home, I saw this beautiful field that I thought was breathtaking. It was a windy afternoon and the sight of the tall grass blowing in the wind just caught my eye. I absolutely had to shoot here. At first I thought about doing a shoot with my son here, but the thoughts of my son rolling down the hill, chasing rabbits, and getting splinters ran through my mind. So then I thought of my cousin Marsha. I contacted her that day and a couple of days later we made it happen. And the results are absolutely stunning. See for yourself...

Summertime

My body is no where beach body ready for the summer, but this little girl is ready for the beach.

I can't wait to enjoy some sun and the sand in between my toes this summer. Although, it's still Spring, southern California is most infamous for its gorgeous weather. This past week we enjoyed some fun, festive "summer" activities. My older brothers, family, and I took the kiddos to the beach for a late night grunion run. The kids had a blast! This was my ninth time going to a grunion run and my dreams of seeing fish jump around in the sand came true this year. You see, everytime we went to see the grunion run in the past I never saw any fish at all. I was beginning to think that this whole grunion run didn't even exist. But low and behold, like my son and daughter, we were able to share that experience for the first time, seeing the many fish flip- flopping on the sandy beach as the waves crashed ashore.

We also got to finally try Lappert's world famous ice cream.

Their guava cheesecake ice cream and dole whip are ahhh-mazzzing!

These boys seemed to disagree with me and think that the blue bubble gum ice cream was the best.

Summertime is a time to enjoy, relax, and enjoy each other's company. Most importantly for me, it is the time to spend with my family and make everlasting memories.

Engagement Session

I had the wonderful opportunity to capture David and Kelly's engagement session at Old Poway Park. I asked my cousin Marsha to be my second shooter that day and we had a wonderful time. Check out her photos at her photography blog.

David and Kelly were amazing to work with. They were fun, energetic, and full of love for one another.

Capturing the Memories

My love for photography first began with the birth of my son, and grew even more with the arrival of my daughter. I love capturing the memories of my kids and seeing them grow and change. When you look back at a photograph, it is a snapshot of the time and memory of that very second. When I look back at a picture, I am emmersed with the sight, smell, and sound of that memory. For instance, when I look at the photograph of when I  captured my son's first time at the beach, I can relive it as if it were yesterday.

This past week, we had some big, important events for my daughter. Her two bottom teeth are coming out and teething is in full effect.

Over Memorial Day, we went to Sea World. It was My Girl's first time there and she enjoyed looking at all the fish.



Just Another One to Check Off my Bucketlist

Growing up, I would tell my parents I wanted to be a doctor. Then that changed into wanting to become a nurse. Then a teacher and then back to a doctor. That was over twenty years ago, and I still don't know what I want to be when I grow up. But who says that our dreams and aspirations only have to be in one career field?

So this summer I am taking a different direction. Instead of starting in my masters program in education, I'm going to do something that I am also passionate about; I am going back to school for photography. Yes, photography! I will be attending UCSD's extension program and will be pursuing my associates degree in photography. However, I still plan on pursuing my masters degree sometime in the near future.

Will this mean I'll make more money at my current job? No. After completeing my degree, will it allow me to advance further in my career? Maybe. Is it a prerequisite for another graduate program? Nope. Do I have to do it? Absolutely not.

But will I enjoy every second of every minute of it? Absolutely. Will I gain the skills and foundations I need to upgrade from being a "photo hobbiyist" to photographer? I hope so.

I am so excited to take this journey on in my life. With my Hubster soon deploying, going back to school will also be an outlet for me to help me get through the deployment and keep me busy; not like having two little ones and working as a teacher does not keep me busy already.

Here's to following all of your dreams and aspirations no matter how big or small. Just another one to check off my bucketlist...