Just one from a recent Mini-Session raindate - mmmm, lips & lashes -luscious, no?

So sorry for my poor, neglected blog; busy, busy with a lot of changes in my life, both personal & professional.  Happy to report my business will be expanding!  More info on that in the near future.  Also happy to report that I'll be moving to a new home with a designated natural light studio -- or "un-studio" as I've been referring to it!!  Again, more on that in the near future....  for now, enjoy those lips & lashes.

Went to Sunnidale Park, hoping to find some spring blossoms to photograph; disappointed there were only a couple of magnolia trees in bloom. Took a few random shots around and figured I really didn't get much. They sat in my "to proof" folder for a week untouched. Amazing what a different day & different perspective can make. I actually captured a lot that day; I'm pleased.

Okay, okay, it's no surprise to me -I wrote the interview answers after all & took the self portrait, bit it's still pretty cool, okay?

Click here if you'd like to read the article!

After years in the Fine Arts, and running my Choo Choo Photography portrait business, I'm happy to now offer my Fine Art Giclee Prints through my newest Etsy store:  www.etsy.com/shop/choochoophotography.

Welcome to my world - well, little bits of it, here & there, this and that.   Definitely a different side to my creativity than my portrait work --I like to think I'm well rounded.

Above, from my Retro series; This is a display set, capturing the mood of bygone days; we all remember those times, the carefree summer days.

Above, "The Time Before, I Wasn't Here" from my Persistent Memories series; not all memories are clear, not all memories are our own.

Above "Medley" & below, "Sheltered" from my Layered Memories series; a mix of old and new, reflections on past and present.



Now until April 30th; mention this blog post and receive free shipping on your order.

Thanks for looking.

Here are my son's annual Christmas photos to help wish you the

Merriest of Christmases, and the Happiest of New Years!  

I can't help but adore and share his always cheerful little face and silly antics. 

Here's his annual stocking pics as well -how could I choose just one to post, when he decided to fit both feet in it & hop around like a madman?  Did I mention I adore his silly antics??

This is the "V" family.  A few months ago, feeling a bit lonely around the house after the death of my kitty of 13 years, a year previously, I began searching for some new companionship.   I thought it would be nice to adopt two kitties together, so they had one another to play with and knowing that it was more difficult to find a home willing to take two together.  My search brought me to a recently posted Kijiji ad, showing two very sweet looking kitty companions.  I inquired, "J" responded with more photos, and even some very funny videos.  It was obvious these two were much loved, and were being given up, only for the sake of the health of her little ones. 

Through the months, we've become Facebook friends, I post photos of Sam and Bill, and send her stories about their adventures.  As a thank you for giving me her precious furballs, I had to thank her & her family in the most appropriate way for a photographer such as myself -by taking their photos.  The whole family came by for a family reunion, then we headed to the Maclaren Art Centre for the shoot -a great location by the way!

Thank you "V" family, Sam and Bill are indeed lovely and amusing little members of our family!   

What's really scary is how late I am posting about Halloween!  This is busy time though; working to get Portrait Sessions in time to have prints for Christmas!

Gav decided to be Nightwing Robin this year, which turned out to be an easy costume to make & put together.  Intimidating, no?

Not intimidated yet?

Yeah, me neither. ; )

I am extra proud of our jack-o-lantern this year -it's the only pumpkin that's ever survived long enough in our garden to grow big!  The funky shaped other ones were late starters & because the plant grew so big, I had to tie the vines vertically up the fence, so they were hanging! 

My first ever camera! My Mom recently gave this to me; it's now appropriately displayed on the fireplace in office.

Good ol' Fisher Price toys -they last forever.It's funny though, no matter what I point it at, it still only takes pictures from a trip to the zoo in 1973. I don't even remember the sea lions, but I bet they were great. Oh well, I was only 2 at that time.
Of course, my name is on my camera -Mark had one just like it and you wouldn't want them to get mixed up.

Have you ever taken a vacation alone?  I for one never thought I'd have the opportunity, but at my husband's urging I finally did it.  He & my son were going to spend a week at the family cottage, so he suggested I take a little trip on my own to stave off the inevitable boredom I would experience in their absence -not that I wouldn't find something here or there around the house to do... I took it as a challenge and booked a very reasonable, last minute air & hotel package deal to Montreal, a city I've always wanted to visit. 

I have to say, it was indeed a pleasure and a luxury to visit this beautiful city and it's abundance of culture on my own!  I spent as much time as I wanted strolling the different quarters, art galleries, shops and museums.  I took pictures when I wanted, of what I wanted, or left the camera in the hotel room.   I walked 5 or 6 hours every day; the Metro became my new best friend.  I'm confident I saw more, did more, and spoke with more locals than I ever would have, even with the best travelling companion imaginable.

Enjoy my photos, I certainly enjoyed taking them -not my usual genre, but a wonderful change of pace, and challenge.  More to come!

Fries under the Bridge -get it?  Fries shot under the Bluewater Bridge??  If you're from Sarnia, or anywhere around there, you will know exactly what I mean.  There is nothing -and I mean nothing, like the local fresh cut fries, liberally sprayed (yes, sprayed -it's a Sarnia thing) with vinegar, a generous sprinkle of salt, and gobs of ketchup to fill in the holes.  Yummm!
I recently took my son for his first visit to my hometown of Sarnia, aptly named "Bluewater Land" because of it's amazingly clear azure blue water of the St. Clair river.  We drove around to my favourite places and I showed him the houses I grew up in, and the schools I used to attend.  I also had to prove just how far of a walk to & from school I had -yes, uphill both ways in the dead of winter.  ; )

We spent a lovely afternoon at Canatara Beach Park, it's still pretty cold, but we had a good swim anyways. 

There are always a great variety of interesting rocks and shells to sift through.  This, I could spend hours doing. 

I couldn't wait to take Gav to the Animal Farm; I have many memories of feeding the animals, & being chased by geese.  It did not disappoint, except that we're not allowed to feed the animals any longer.  We spent a good amount of time listening to and laughing at the sound of the goats bleating to one another.  They were certainly vocal that night!

A lot has changed in Sarnia since I lived there; most for the good -the waterfronts and parks are amazingly well kept.  I can't get over the big box developments in the north end, but I guess that's the fate of most towns & cities nowadays.  The downtown, and waterfronts still retain their charm however.  Looking forward to the next visit --next time I get to have a Puffio from Ciccios!

This is Gavin's, 100% natural morning hair style; no gel, no playing with at all.  Thanks to his double crown (which a couple of Chinese ladies have pointed out is very good fortune!), he usually has some form of "Alfalfa" or "fauxhawk" going on. He's in need of a haircut right now, so it's even more pronounced than usual.   I of course, think it's absolutely *adorable*, and oh so "him".

Below:  "I'll just cover it up so you can't take a picture".

Patience, he can't keep his hands on his head forever...

"I do *not* look like "Rooster-Boy"!"

" Mom, promise you'll delete all the pictures you took of me today??"
Of course, I promise -tee hee!

Just a little dose of daily life.  It's very rare that I have to wake my chipper little early bird up in the morning, but it was a school morning and getting late.  Amazed he was still sleeping after I opened his blind, I just had to grab my camera.  I'm glad I did, because I also captured his latest "wall art" - a throwing game with points taped to the wall that we worked on together for a good hour, me drawing the circles and filling in the points, hecarefully cutting each out and creating the pattern on the wall.  We played it exactly 3 times together, but that's the way his games usually go.  So much careful preparation, a quick demonstration, then on to the next thing. 

Even if you aren't a photographer extraordinaire, don't forget to take snapshots on a regular basis.  It's so easy to forget the little things our kids do and take pride in.  The shoebox above is a "nest" for his favourite hummingbird Webkin, "Nature"-raised closer to the nightlight in case she's afraid of the dark.  The box beside that, is a cereal box, cut and decorated to make a magazine holder -I have a lovely one next to my bed as well.  Will we keep all these things in the future?  No, but now I have a permanant record of them and the creativity of my six year old boy. 

Below is a shot of Gavin right after he insisted I take the training wheels off his bike.  We've been trying to convince him he didn't need them for a month now, as they were so bent up, they never touched the ground.  He picked up his friend's bike the other day and rode it back to his house, then realized it didn't have training wheels!  As with anything this stubborn kid does, he has to decide for himself he can do it, then quickly and easily excels.  Go Gavin go!

It's plastic, it was in my neighbour's garage sale, and it's now one of the most precious items in my whole house.  This is the first thing my son ever bought me with his own money.  When I saw that my neighbour across the courtyard was having a garage sale, I could see the rows of kid's toys and tried hard to keep my little guy occupied indoors for as long as I could.  I envisioned him going over there & falling in love with at least a dozen items, his few toonies, loonies and assorted change burning a hole in his little tin Lightening McQueen case.  Finally, I could contain him no longer. 

As expected, he soon came back home and announced he needed a quarter to purchase an item.  Well, not bad, I thought; just one thing caught his eye, and at a quarter no less.  What could be the harm?   Lo and behold, he came back home with an item purchased not for himself, but for me.  Lovely and thoughtful to boot -he knew I needed an "in between" sized vase for holding flowers.   Our children never cease to amaze & surprise us do they?   Little things like this, the notes he leaves me around the house, the mulitple Mother's Day cards he made me a month ahead of time, the small and large tasks he takes upon himself to please me, and all the surprising sweet nothings he says to me on a daily basis.  Man, I love this kid, he is the centre of my universe -and for a precious little while, I know that I am the centre of his.  

How *not* to pick up a cat:
1) wrap arms around cat's belly
2) yank upwards
3) repeat step 2
4) repeat step 2 a few more times, laughing so hard you can no longer hold on to said cat
5) follow cat as she loses patience and tries to walk away (notice paw braced against the couch?

I must add a disclaimer not to try this with just *any* cat; Sam is an unusually tolerant and patient little thing.  Btw, he never was successful in picking her up.