I had so much fun yesterday evening at the Sugar Bowl with some new photographer friends. It’s always fun to get together and bounce ideas off each other. I split up with two of the girls to take some new headshots, Gisele Holloway from Gilbert, and Brenda Eden, also from Gilbert. Gisele cracks me up with her contagious laughter (not to mention the way she opens her mouth when she shoots!)
Brenda, you are so sweet, and I’m sure I’ll be seeing you around the Farm Grill!
Here are some photos from the Charity Garage Sale and Auction held this morning. WOW is all I can say about the brain child of my friend, Carolyn Dike. I was there for a little while last night (nowhere near the amount of time that most people spent helping set up for this thing). There were piles and piles of stuff EVERYWHERE! The sale started at 7:00 this morning and I was there at 8:00, and I swear that 2/3 of the stuff was SOLD! I can’t believe the turnout and the generosity of so many people that went into this. Carolyn spent weeks and weeks gathering items and sorting through, and spent the last 2 days (and nights) setting up and making everything look fabulous. She had so many friends there to help, and I think it was a HUGE success! I have yet to hear how much money was raised for the Nielson Family, but thank you for donating if you went-every penny counts! I’m excited to see who the three families are that won free sessions with me!
If you live in the Phoenix area and love to buy stuff (ummm…who doesn’t?), please come to a charity garage sale tomorrow from 7:00 am until 1:00 pm at the Agritopia Community Center (NW corner of Higley and Ray Rd.) Not only is there a TON of really cool stuff (seriously) and some fantastic white elephant gifts (I was down there organizing for a tiny bit tonight, and I have dibs on the XXXL granny panties and Cliff Huxtable sweaters…), but there will also be a silent auction for some other cool stuff.
My good friend Carolyn organized the whole thing, and ALL proceeds are going to benefit the Nie Recovery Fund for the Nielsons, who were badly burned in a plane crash last month. This is a great cause and I can’t say enough about all the hard work that went into it. There is SO much stuff, it’s overflowing, so I’m sure you’ll find something that you absolutely love if you just stop by!
I have given 3 sessions up for auction, and there are tons of other cool auction prizes. Please also don’t forget to keep bidding on my friends, the Sloans, blog for their sessions that are also being donated entirely to this family.
One word: Sick! Thankfully, it’s so hot here that there aren’t a lot of shoots to do. I’ve been working on some commercial work and product work that should be up soon, and as the weather cools down a tiny bit, I’m feeling better.
So, I decided to post up a few things that I like today to help you get to know me better:
I like the sound of: my kids’ laughter, baby talk, the rain, exhaust fans in bathrooms, punk rock music, acoustic guitar (I have one, but can’t play!), popcorn popping.
I like the smell of: rainy days, bleach, clean clothes fresh from the dryer, D+G The One Perfume and Acque Di Gio Cologne (mine and Dan’s fragrances of choice), babies.
I like the taste of: fresh salsa (with my secret recipe), whole wheat bread, grapes (very firm!), Ben + Jerry’s Mint Chocolate Cookie, really good dark chocolate.
I like the sight of: Disneyland, a great photograph, my family, a well-organized refrigerator, lots of good shows recorded on my DVR, the sunlight streaming through the clouds after the rain, an online sale with free shipping (!).
I like the feel of: baby soft skin, my cats’ fur, high thread count cotton sheets, a long, warm shower, well-fitting shoes (hard to find in my case!)
What do you like?
Background story: Abbie has been asking for this dress since the movie “Barbie Mariposa” came out on DVD and she saw the dress at Target like…6 months ago! I kept seeing a few of them at Target thinking I had time to get it. A few weeks ago, they had one left, so I figured I could go back that evening and pick it up and keep it in my closet until her birthday. Well, it was gone. I mean gone GONE. Gone from 3 other Targets that I checked as well. I ended up scouring the internet to find it, and found one on Buy Costumes. Whew-I’ll never wait until the last minute on something she really wants ever again. She also got the doll from Grandma and Grandpa. I love the contrast between the expression on her face and the girl on the box.
She’s also way into Tinkerbell, and I have to hand it to the guys in the Super Target Bakery-they can make a cute cake. Tasty? Well, let’s not push it. At least Abbie liked it because there was a ton of frosting.
Grandma and Grandpa Campbell watching the cake ceremony. This is about the time when Brooklyn realized I was not, in fact, holding her. She didn’t cry too much, though.
I opened our fortune cookies today (all but Dan’s because he can probably open his own…), and the fortunes we really good! First, Abbie’s was right on the money (see next post, as all of her wishes and dreams revolve around a certain birthday dress she’s been asking for that I almost dropped the ball on)
Brooklyn’s was so sweet, since she’s just starting out her life.
And last but not least…what new opportunities are in store for me? I just opened myself up to book weddings again after a brief hiatus, since Brooklyn is now taking a bottle and I can leave her for a longer period of time. Hmmm….cookies can be so vague sometimes.
Post-party, Abbie wants to wear her Disney Princess birthday bling everywhere. That means this is how she dressed for preschool today. Whatever, it’s her birthday, right? Not that I would care if she wanted to wear it any other day either. Brooklyn is still suffering from her lack of sleep yesterday, which means that she’s been taking some really good naps today!
Plans for birthday week day 2 include Inn-n-out for dinner and a tinkerbell cake tonight with Grandma and Grandpa coming over. What does tomorrow (birthday week day 3) hold? Only Abbie knows! I love traditions.
Tonight, we celebrated Abbie’s 4th birthday with her closest friends at our house, kung fu style. I had soooo much fun putting together the little favors, although I made a mental note to not be so cheap, and to buy the “pre-assembled” take-out boxes next time.
Abbie got a kick out of the “Master Abbie” on her box.
I figured out that I suck at frosting cupcakes, but I was pretty pleased with how my panda faces turned out. (Those art classes at ASU sure came in handy)
Abbie pretty much just ate the cookies and frosting and left the rest of her cupcake. Typical Abbie cake eating behavior. I love the action shot of the Jolly Ranchers from the piñata. This was a new “pull string” piñata. No piñatas were actually harmed or beaten during the duration of this party.
I love how excited the other kids get about the presents. I’m sure they’re glad when their friends get cool stuff because they end up playing with it, too.
I am thankful for good friends who help me out (Aimee-thank you for holding Brooklyn so I could take some photos) and make me laugh (that would be you, One-Eyed Mitch). Also, thanks to everyone for coming over and bringing your kids! I hope you had fun!
More festivities to come. It’s our tradition in our family to celebrate for a week, so bring on the week of birthday!
