Four women, one voice. Raising funds to support cancer patients in need. It was an incredible evening, and one that left people saying, “when’s the next one”. It was out of the ordinary. It was fancy and exquisite. But most of all, it was beautiful to see so many people thinking not of themselves, but of others that go through so much pain from such an ugly disease, cancer. My family has had first hand experience battling the disease, so it was especially touching for me to see the community coming together to support this cause. After a live auction of some awesome donations, the concert started. I smiled almost the entire time and constantly kept my eyes on the stage, and even at times wanted to cry. Not because I was sad, but because of the pride I felt for these ladies and the power they had behind them. It was amazing. The voices, the feelings that were expressed were so real. It left me in awe to think that God has blessed these four ladies with so much talent! I walked away that night with my head held high and my heart happy with song. Here are some images from this wonderful evening. Thanks to Carol Gales and the Nome Arts Council for making this all possible and also for allowing me to take some memorable shots.

Yes, bath time is pretty much a favorite in our household. The kids usually take showers with us just to save time during the day (because bath time not only involves bath time, but wiping up the floor time, making sure Levi doesn’t drink the water time, breaking up splash fights time, etc), but sometimes they are lucky enough to score a bath! HA! It’s almost like a treat to them. So, we had a little fun and I got to take some photos. I’ve been wanting to practice my lifestyle photography anyway so what better time than this. I also wanted to bust out my flash just to see if it still worked. I promise to get the flash thing down by next winter at least. Thank goodness for the flash class I will be taking in a couple weeks. It’s nice to see a smile on the little guy’s face again. And who can resist the old bubble beard?

I’m finally getting around to blogging some photos from the festival I shot a few weeks back. It was a 3 day event, in which the community was invited to attend seminars and events put on by Nome Eskimo Community. The 3rd day was a big potluck with performances by local and non-local musicians, dancers, etc. It was grand, to say the least! What a great experience to be involved in, and I hope my photos reflected what a success it was.

I have been overwhelmed lately at how many photos I’ve taken and not processed. I almost feel like I have to post a million photos to show what I’ve been up to. But this very thought has stopped me from posting on a regular basis. It’s pressure that I hate feeling right now. So, in light of posting more, I wanted to show this, a simple photo that might not mean much but is one of my favorites I’ve taken in the past few weeks. This photo I took a couple weekends ago, and I instantly loved it SOOC. I knew I had to play with it to make it even more special. I’ve realized that it means more to post even just one photo on a more regular basis, than to have a massive explosion of photos over a 1-2 week period. It’s easier and more interesting, and less stressful, and yeah. I’m going to start doing this. I feel good about it, and I will start doing this more often. *BIG sigh of relief* I got that over with! Have a wonderful weekend everyone.

I had the priviledge of photographing my beautiful friend Debbie before her little one’s debut! My goodness, she is glowing and gorgeous and *almost* made me immediately want to have another. I think pregnant women are beautiful and these photos are proof. Definite proof. It was a fun session. We almost had to cancel due to extreme smoke in the area from wildfires that are burning inland. She agreed to go ahead with it, like a trooper. As the smoke was beginning to clear, the mosquitos decided to show up. Armies of mosquitos. Sorry Deb! Thank you a million times over for such a fun session. We need to get together more often, I’ve decided. I absolutely cannot wait until your little peanut arrives. You and Lahka are going to be such wonderful loving parents. Congratulations! Love you and enjoy your sneak peak!

My sister found these shells along Salmon Lake’s shore. What a fun find! I, of course, had to take a photo of them against this cool textured picnic table. I’ve used Jess’s warm honey action (FREEBIE!)and a photo frame from Jessica Sprague. Happy Monday!