it’s called image explorations.

this was my first year attending IE but it most definitely will not be my last! i had such an amazing experience for the week i was there. i met some truly inspiring people and made some wonderful friends too. i spent the week learning from one of the worlds top ten wedding photography duo, steve & jen bebb. i loved their candor and willingness to share their knowledge and especially their wonderfully sparkling personalities! they helped me to push myself beyond my boundaries and try things that…. maybe, at least in my mind, i wasn’t quite ready to try yet. and for that, i will be forever grateful! thank you steve and jen!

fun times indeed!

tyler’s lacrosse season has started – at least one practice and one game every week from now until the end of june. emily began sewing lessons last week. i’m so pleased that she wants to learn how to sew. it’s something that i did when i was her age and i remember absolutely loving it. so why aren’t i teaching her you ask? well, it’s not something that i kept up. i can sew straight lines and could probably follow a pattern if i had to but i think it’s best if i leave it to a pro – thanks vicky!

and as usual, here’s a small collection of pictures from my iphone this last month. happy monday!

as we drove to victoria today, i started entering tyler’s lacrosse schedule into my calendar. pretty much every weekend for may and june are consumed with lacrosse. i’m looking forward to this season – big changes for tyler as he moves up to novice this year. i hope he’s ready for it. i know i am – it’s already in my calendar!

here’s a photo from last year!

so take a look around and enjoy the new digs.

a few weeks ago, we went to the beach. it was great to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather we were experiencing. the fresh air felt so good! here are a few pictures from our walk. i loved capturing all the textures that were on the beach. i wonder how they’d look on photographs???

last fall, we planted grass – well, truth be told, we laid sod.  i was very skeptical about it’s survival, considering when we rolled it out, it was  in about 5 inches of water – i’m not kidding.  and i’m happy to report that it has survived the winter.

we also planted a few trees throughout the yard. a beautiful ornamental plum tree chosen for the front and it’s in beautiful bloom right now. we bought the trees and then waited so long to actually put them into the ground – i wasn’t sure any of them would survive.  experienced gardeners, we are not! but, like the grass, they have all survived too. i’m sure the exceptionally mild winter we experienced helped lots and for that i’m thankful.

our yard need TONS of work still!  landscaping a new yard is a huge undertaking. but we’re up for the task. luckily, there’s only a week and a half until costco opens up their garden center – i love shopping at their garden center. amazing deals and great baskets, shrubbery and trees – everything we’ll need to help complete the job. if you have any advice, please leave a comment below and share it! i’d love to hear it!

or, better yet,  if you’d like to come by and help, just send me an email and i’ll send you the details! 

have i mentioned that i LOVE my iphone? cause i do!

… of VANOC 2010, that despite all the bad publicity, have made these games outstanding!

… of our all of our AMAZING athletes!

… to be Canadian!

GO CANADA GO!!

we stayed in north vancouver at the lonsdale quay hotel and took the sea-bus across. then we caught the sky-train to bc place stadium. i think the kids were more excited about this part than the actual ceremony. it was fun though. totally outside the box for us “country folk”. we weren’t allowed to bring any cameras into the stadium but i had my trusty old iphone with me and managed to capture a few images.

i love the olympics. i think part of my love for them has rubbed off from my husband, since he loves them more than i do but also because this is what he does. he helps organize large sporting events all around the world and it’s always nice when the one he’s working in is right in our own “backyard” – so to speak.

the view from our balcony window.  you can just imagine the joy on an 8-year-old boys face when he looked out and saw this “pirate ship” – though i don’t think there were any pirates on board. as for me, i was dreaming about the yacht on the right.

catching rain drops.

a collage from the opening ceremony dress rehearsal.

and of course i brought my camera. now, keep in mind that my forte is shooting weddings and boudoir. i am not a baby whisperer like my good friends and fellow photogs jillian kirby and shannon stevenson of lucy lime studios. and if you haven’t checked out their site yet, you should!

niamh was awake for most of the photo shoot which is surprising for a 4 day old newborn. but it didn’t matter, she’s sweet asleep or awake.

welcome to the family baby niamh!

proud big sister, who liked entertaining us with her harmonica!

proud cousins!

and one proud auntie!