Change

Anthony here, back from a long break of not writing.  I've been trying to write here but keep getting pulled away, or prevented from posting what I do write.  All mental blocks, and I'm just writing this now to try and help break out of that rut.

So...

I got a car.


To those who know me, and have known me for a couple of years, this is a really big deal.  I haven't had a car since moving from Visalia to San Diego in 2005.  I was bicycle and motorcycle only, aside from borrowing/begging the help of friends to get me moved from apartment to apartment.

It's strange not having to lug the helmet and jacket and gloves and strange-looking riding boots everywhere.  It's strange not having to think about the weather, even less than I did before.  Growing up in Minnesota and Wisconsin like I did, you tend to disbelieve anyone in San Diego saying that "The weather is going to get worse" because it never, ever does.  A little cloud cover, a little rain, a tiny little thunder and lightning preview is all we ever get here.  Well, we did see a bit of hail two months ago, but you get the picture.

It's a big change for me, and I was anticipating the end result on not only my traffic-evasion habits, and gas-saving techniques and general need to polish and spit-shine all four wheels, but it's a change that reverberates throughout my life.  Pride of ownership, a chance to not only start fresh with a blank canvas, but optimize the vehicle for my particular uses again.  Stuff I have grown used to, and slightly bored with, on the motorcycle I've been lucky enough to ride from show-room floor to race track to every day boring commute and back via the long way home.  I missed the researching and mental exercise of sorting out all of the "good" from the "bad" with regards to modifications and necessary maintenance and general level of paranoia when gauging trust in the vehicle.

So, what's my point with this post?  Well, to update family and friends that I can indeed help YOU all move from this day forward.  To mark a turning point in my life where I'm happy to drive to see friends 2 states over, or cross country if the opportunity should arise.  Maybe I'll see my grandma this summer, for the first time in 3 years.  It's marking change in my life that I want to keep everything, not just the stuff in my life but everything fresh and new and not taken for granted.

Here's a fast/bad "First wash" pict to show you all the new steed:

What are you changing?  What are you appreciating?  How are you keeping life and the "stuff" in it fresh and amazing?

Have a great final week of April, check back with us as I'm posting a new blogpost-a-day for a week and maybe all next month!

Meredith and Eric's Wedding

Early on, we had the opportunity to shoot a wedding via our friend Ms. Tina from Stephina Photography here in San Diego. She's (as previously mentioned) been a great source of inspiration and push as we wander blindly towards our goals. =]

The lovely Meredith was the Princess of the Day on the most perfect day for a wedding.

The clouds had been tearing in the few days before and slight sprinkles threatened with a chilling wind. The day of was blissfully and unnaturally sunny and spectacular with crystal blue skies and a warm inviting breeze. (The next day, however, it stormed!) Let me tell you, she is picking MY wedding day! =P

The whole family that day was bright, cheerful and entertaining! Her gentle and petite mom surprising me with random comments and her dad, talking enthusiastically, still calls his wife his Bride (After 30+ years of marriage!) That's His Secret, he says, never forget she's your bride.

His son-in-law Eric, seemed likely to follow suit (at least if Meredith had anything to say). Beautiful and strong willed, but easy going and quick to smile, she rocked the day. Eric's humor was contagious as he gave his guests Kazoos and had them kazoo the wedding march for Meredith!

All in all, it was a wonderful day had by all and a beautifully simplistic ceremony. Thank you both for being awesome!

Happy Easter!

What better way to spend Easter than galavanting with good company? Brunch was an absurdly simple, yet delicious affair served with mimosas for the adults and soy milk for the kiddo. =]

*Commence Boasting*

And isn't he just the most adorable tike you've ever seen? He's such a cutie-candy-coated-cherry-chocolate-banana-split... pie! You just want to hug him! Alright, so Tia's have their biases, but don't you agree? This is one good looking family! ;P

The Hunt consisted of at least 50 eggs, some filled with coins and others with jelly beans. You can bet which were his favorite! He would shake the eggs to hear it's contents and then drop them into the appropriate bags (one for the egg shaped eggs and one for baseball/soccer/football/basketball shaped eggs). He would then, upon hearing the jelly beans vs the coins, drop the egg on the floor so it opened! Tell me he isn't one smart cookie!

*Boasting continues*

Not just that! He knows his letters and colors! He can read the colors when you write it on his easel, letter by letter, and then tell you the word! And he's only 2 and a half! He catches on to what you say and tell him, is now potty trained and tells you what ever is on his mind! (Only half of it is audible, but the other half is crystal clear!)

Alright, alright. I'm biased! But I love him. *heart!*

**

Boyo and I took a work-cation up to Visalia to paint a house for his parents. It turned out to be a lot more work than we expected in the garage and aren't nearly as far along after that week of no computers as we'd hoped.

**

Brenda's wedding is coming up quickly and we need to be learning faster/more/harder/stronger! Not that we don't know the photography end, but there's more, so much more to it than that. Tina's been a great informant in that regards, but man! Until I've got my hands around it, it's not the same.

We've a few graduation clients coming up these next two weeks, a family shoot, and some portraits. Keep it coming, lovelies!

Hey! Here's an incentive! For every person YOU send to us that we book, (after liking this post on Facebook by using the link below) They get 10% off their session AND You get either a coupon for 20% off your session with us OR a $5 giftcard to Lestats!

What?! I know!

Ready kids?! The race is on!

A Month of Trips!

A day-cation as Anthony and I jumped on my motorcycle and buzzed around to my crazy idea to stop in at this random thrift/estate/junk store that we had stopped in at once before after coming back from a day in Idylwild. I won't name the place because it was an eyesore this time around, but it has the strangest things I've ever seen, like an art deco old school tele sitting in a trailer filled with random other "valuables"!

I was tempted by the tele, but 1) we don't own one for a good reason. 2) It probably doesn't work and would just be a cool piece of art for the house 3) We were already 2-up on the moto and the only way to get it home was to bungee it to my back... Yeeah...

So! On my random half day ride to this place about 3-4 hours away on my motorcycle on our first 2-up trip since the Duc. It was positively lovely to be riding again, even on the back. The only thing I wasn't expecting was the snow we encountered coming back through J

ulian. =\

So, I have this strange fascination with old machines. Not that I can get them to work or want to take them home, but I love taking pictures of them. The idea of them being at the top of

their time is fascinating and I am drawn into the memory of the time era it was se

t as I lightly brush my fingers over the keys, never pressing for fear of disturbing the memory of it. =]It's finally occurred to me. If I only had two words to describe Anthony and I, it would be: Seriously Funny.

And a play on words itself at that! We're humorous is our own very different ways, but we're serious. Serious, Sherlock. Serious. *eyebrow twitches* Alright, so not always, but we're serious about a few different things. Photography, riding bicycles, riding motorcycles, writing and cooking (for me), and having fun! You have to be serious about having fun, you know. =P

Have a fun day today and tomorrow, lovelies.

Most of All

One of my favorite part of the day is waking up in the morning. Unromantically, it's usually not to boyo's lovingly smiling face, because he's up and about before I am about 95% of the time. It's the first encounter or kiss in the morning. There was a story someone told me a while ago about a Husband and Wife who were together for 50+ years and someone asked them their secret. Their secret, they said, was to fall asleep entangled in each other. Even on the nights the were fighting and the times they couldn't stand each other. Because, they said, it made them realize that they were still there for each other, no matter what they went through. THAT was a marriage and that's all there was to it.

Now, I had my doubts about it, but even touching every night while falling asleep makes a big difference. Anyhow.

When Anthony and I wake up in the mornings, we hug as though we haven't seen each other in a long time. I don't know why we do this or how this was started. It's our time, our moment of connection so that even if we don't see each other through the rest of the day, we have that and will have that tomorrow.

And coffee. <3

I don't know if this is a secret to success. I don't know if one day, we'll stop! But for now, this is us and we're happy. Hear that, Thunderclouds?! We're Happy!

Tart Panna Cotta

Here at the Voir L'Amour house, I usually wake up first.  Those days that I do, I'm on coffee duty.  We usually use aBodum Kenya French Press in our daily routine.  After a fair bit of experimentation (the tastiest kind!) and narrowing down what was actually viable for week-day caffeine capers. On the weekends when we have more time to put into the process, I'll fire up our espresso machine and revel in the tiny little shots of deliciousness.

Coffee, once doled out, inevitably leads to the question of "What is there to eat?" and that's where my darling Chelse comes in. She's an experimenter in the kitchen, and I'm usually signed up for support/clean-up duty. That suits me just fine most mornings.

This all is back-story to my attempts to break out of the norm and do something different when I do cook. It's either straight-laced and boring "American" food like I'm familiar with from going out to eat as a kid in Wisconsin and Minnesota, or it's something fairly exotic as a first try.

Here is my latest first try. Tart, almost bitter, not apologetic. Loved it! It's a bit too much, but I could definitely see myself enjoying the 110% flavor somewhere on the Amalfi coast as the sun sets after a beautiful day. So if I'd like it there, why not here in San Diego?  Blood Orange Panna Cotta.

Get on it!

I've always found I worked really well in the school setting because everything is organized. I love the idea of setting up a schedule and following it, but since time always feels so tangible outside of class, it doesn't stick to well. Eat lunch at 12:30pm. Err..?

What I'm doing instead is working on weekly projects. No matter the situation (raining or sunny) I undertake a "task" for the week to shoot and everyday, I'm going to shoot it in various situations. I do need to start shooting more, so! It's a great idea. =]

Currently, Anthony is cooking up a lovely blood orange panna cotta and I'm eager for the results! However, a 4 hour chill time is setting that back a bit =P It's raining now, pretty hard and I can hear some old-timey music drifting in from the other room; a delectable contrast of rich warming trumpets and beats to the chilly patter of rain.

Off topic:

Anxiously, I have been awaiting the workshop with Jasmine Star! Her energy is infectious and she is an inspiration with a loud laugh! There is gold to be had here and surely! There is some in hand already! Thus, the weekly project for myself.

Sickeningly Sweet

Being sick is sometimes great for a few reasons. Besides having it as a challenge and trying not to let it slow you down too much, it enables you the excuse to tuck greedily under the covers and watch bad anime and drink orange juice. My current bad romance of choice is Ouran Host Club.

I really wouldn't recommend it.

In other news! In other news!

We've had the honor of learning under the informative wing of Ms. Tina Teat. =D She's really good on keeping us on our game. Let's just say it hasn't been a walk in the park while sneezing on my camera, but it's a good concept to keep in mind.

Speaking of a walk in the park, the photograph today is courtesy of Anthony. =}