my iphone pic of the donation table with a gorgeous picture of bari pre staph infection.  her smile is contagious.

more than anything, i noticed there were people from all over supporting bari; coming out on their sunday afternoon to give their time and money to help a friend in need.  what an outpouring of love.  i even heard a few people say they didn’t even know bari but came after hearing about her story. while i was so happy to be there to support my friend, i skyped with her and, as i frequently do, realized how fragile life is.  bari is wheelchair bound with a breathing tube.  just like that, she walked herself into the hospital and now faces a life unlike any she could’ve imagined.  she has done so with such grace.  she had a smile plastered on her face the whole time people were skyping with her.

what did we do before skype?  i don’t know which side was more excited us or bari!

i guess situations like this teach me to be more grateful.  when i’m frustrated that i can’t go or do something, i think about bari.  when my house isn’t tidy, i need to step back and look at the big picture.  i and my family have our health.  that’s really all that matters, isn’t it?  and what matters most for bari is that she is making great strides.  she is eating again, talking, having visits from friends and family.  she is a fighter.  bari has overcome obstacles we can’t comprehend.  i am so proud to know her and can’t wait to see how far she can go with her recovery.  i’ll be cheering her on every step of the way and hope you can find it in your heart to do the same.

she’s got to know how cute she is!

see the way he’s looking at her?  daddy’s girl for sure!

love these connection images.  it’s about what you feel when you look at the image.

christmas AND a kiss from mom and dad. what could be better?

cindy got me hooked up with a condo rental site and josh found us a really cheap flight (i can not do 17 hours in a car!!!).  we planned on doing some shoots so, with camera in tow, we headed down.  cindy’s family is gorgeous!  look at all of them.  only problem is emme really doesn’t like having her picture taken.  so we went with it and here’s some of my favorites from their session…

future teen heartthrob!

pensive emme.  they don’t always have to be smiling!!!

i told you they’re gorgeous!

emme and her cousin morgan, who you probably remember from this post,  are the same age and bff.  what a touching moment between these girls.

a true classic!  the epitome of “capturing who they truly are”!

we try to make it out to perfect north slopes each year.  josh is a snowbird.  he grew up skiing down the slopes in his homestate of vermont.  all we have to offer him here is perfect north, so it’ll have to do.  we usually go snow tubing at night.  i don’t know why but it just seems like it’s more fun that way.  if you’ve got little ones, or just aren’t interested in all of the work it takes to snowboard or ski, i highly recommend the fun tubing area!

over the weekend my assistant, kaitlin went to perfect north slopes to celebrate her 21st birthday! she wanted to go snowboarding, even though she is a beginner, and brought along a friend to help her learn. she said even though she fell a couple (or a lot) of times, it was still the most fun she’s had in a while! i haven’t been skiing since the one time i tried when i was 14, but listening to her stories about the great time she had makes me want to hit the slopes and give it another try!  she said they have a huge staff of workers there to help you master the hills, as well as equipment to rent if you don’t have your own.  i always have the lodge to sit and read if i just plain suck!

want to see the slopes or look at how much fun people of all ages have at perfect north?  take a look at their photo gallery!

if all of this snow talk is giving you the winter blues, i have some good news.  check out this article regarding deeply discounted tickets to kings island.  i’m gonna’ get me some of those for sure!

i hope you all have a great weekend.

first i want to post these images of toni, andy and their gorgeous kiddos.  i had the exciting opportunity to shoot a few beach sessions while we were in naples/marco island recently.  we met up with some friends from cincinnati down there who wanted me to truly capture who they are; bathing suits, sand and all.  it was so much fun because it really just was SO much fun!  take a family from up north, plunk them in 85 degree weather by the ocean and this is what you get…

cutest couple!

the calm before the storm…

…crazy seagulls.

this image makes me want to touch my screen to feel that clear water…

future heartbreaker!