Amanda and Sarah- For Mom

Had a photoshoot of two lovely senoritas this past week, and let me tell you! They are fireballs when put together!

It must have been something in the air to attract siblings, first my own and then these two. Actually, it was set up with the secret intent to be a mother's day gift, but I won't blow it as it seems her mom is also a friend on facebook and, well, tagging them in the photos sort of ruined the surprise!

But Ah-ha! Never to fear for creative ingenuity if here!

Somewhere. Around...

Here.

Anyhow! This sought to remind them and others, that parents enjoy pictures of us kinderlins. Think of it, when is the last time you took a photo with your family? I bet it wasn't your idea, was it? While you might not think of it now, it's certainly not inherent in the minds of those in my age persuasion, a box of photos five, ten years down the road means a lot more than a box of chocolate ever will.

Who knows what will happen during that time. A baby, a move, a gain, a loss. We tend not to think of how important these things are/will be to us.

But Mom's know. Something about having a kid, perhaps, that ingrains this seed of "Capture their lives to be remembered". Perhaps it has to do with the knowledge they earn through time's passage. They watch it elapse, understand the fragility of it.

Yet a picture remains something physical you can hold in your hand. Remember. It's a more vivid version of a memory. It can make you remember, long after the musty smell of hiding in a closet because you'd tried to trim your own bangs and thought triangles made your face look good. (Why else would you cut them into your hair?)

That's great thing about pictures. Unlike smells, unlike textures, it can't be two things, it can't be everywhere. It's one static moment that instills all of the time surrounding it; the meaning and depth behind it.

Mom's know.

So, for you, Mrs. Amanda-and-Sarah's-Mom. Your lovely daughters; as the are today, as you remember them 20 years ago, as they will be remembered 15 years from now.

Late Coming

Anthony here, wrapping up 2010 (almost a month late, I know!) with some thoughts and one of my favorite images of myself, and more importantly, the last big group shot my family has taken:

Los Angeles M.O.M.A.

Our (Chelse and myself) Christmas season was super busy for the first year of the new decade as compared to years prior.  We had 2 family gatherings to make, work schedules to shuffle around, a few photography testing shoots to plan and get under our belt, and the typical housework that goes with decorating and un-decorating after the holiday has been celebrated.  Don't forget to add all of the pure time spent regarding presents.  Thinking about them, forgetting appropriateness levels for the various recipients, wrapping them, deciding after wrapping to change recipients, going to buy them, finding them online, perfecting their locations under the tree, watering the tree so they look good, and oh yes, writing your own list of "Wants."

We did all of this last year ('09, seen above) as well, but had less decorating that we were directly responsible for, and work schedules that were a bit more flexible but we made it work both years in a grand fashion, at least in my opinion.  We had an early Christmas morning with Chelse's family (picts to follow), then headed up from Chula Vista (south San Diego) through abnormally light Orange County and LA traffic to get to my parent's place in west Los Angeles.  In all the hustle, I forgot to bring my camera so you'll just have to imagine how good all of the food looked.  My parents had spent Thanksgiving in London, so we had a British-themed Christmas meal complete with all of us staring at the tiny Marmite container not knowing how to make the first move, as well as meat pies, peas and an assortment of Brit beer.

What did I take away from all of this hustle and bustle?  We are very lucky for very many reasons and we could (and probably should) spend every Thanksgiving just reflecting on how awesome our lives really are.  My little brother, Nic, spent Christmas in Alaska this year, communicating with us and his girlfriend (all in SoCal) and friends outside of the Air Force via Skype.  We had a car to travel with.  We had fantastic food both at my family's gathering and Chelse's.  This list is nearly endless, so I won't bore you with the rest of it, but rest assured, we are well cognizant of our good fortune.  I hope you are able to reflect upon similarly blessed good times and happy moments spent with the important ones in your lives, readers.

Another aspect of live that I learned during this time with the important folks in my life is that there is a time when a camera is a huge hindrance to just absorbing the moment and forgetting all the stresses from daily life.  Family time can be stressful, even with an absolutely awesome family like mine, but it's guaranteed to be more important to you than you ever think it is while you are there, so put the camera down while at the dinner table and as you are opening presents, at least for a while.

Images here would definitely distract from your own recent memories, so flip back through the prints you made of your own family's gathering (you do print some images, right?) or page through the digital album and be ready to make some amazing memories for reflecting back on during the hustle and bustle of Christmas 2011!