A Washington Vacation

Last month, I took advantage of the slower photography season to sneak up to Washington state for a week to visit my family. I'm a native Texan, but my parents and my sister all migrated up to Washington over the last 8 years. My parents have a spare bedroom, a large supply of tea, a scrabble board, and plenty of chairs for reading and relaxing, so it was exactly my kind of vacation. They have a serious lack of Blue Bell ice cream, but somehow I survived.

On one of my first days in town, my parents and I ventured up to Mount Rainier National Park, and of course my camera came along.

In between visits to coffee shops, restaurants, and antique stores, I walked the Rails to Trails path in Puyallup with my parents, and got a few photos of the happy couple. They're celebrating their 39th anniversary this week!

The backyard is a beautiful haven at every home my parents have owned in my lifetime. Their cat Allister sure enjoys exploring the yard. [Side note: Allister is my cat Calypso's brother. They both started life as stray kittens born in my sister's carport in Washington.] I enjoyed the unseasonably beautiful weather while Texas was being hit with sleet and snow. 

I arranged a portrait session with my sister's beautiful family on one of my last days in town. We tromped around an abandoned dairy farm, working around several other photographers with the same great idea.

I've still got quite a bit of family in Texas, but I sure do miss these Washington transplants!

Eden: Officially Part of the Family

I got a call on Friday with big news: my niece Eden is officially part of the family! Her adoption was finalized at the courthouse that afternoon, after coming home to Washington state with my sister and brother-in-law this time last year from Thailand. She's been called by a nickname rather than her given name for most of her life, and opted to choose a new name for herself. Friday was the day that new name became official: Eden, followed by her Thai surname as a middle name, and my sister and brother-in-law's surname as her new surname. We still call her by her Thai nickname some within the family, but I'm doing my best to remember to refer to her as Eden when talking about her outside the home, since that's the name she chose for herself.

I guess maybe it's unusual for adopted children to choose their own name at any point in the adoption process. Of course, Eden isn't so much an adopted child as she is an adopted teenager, so it makes perfect sense. I think she chose a beautiful name. Can you imagine what you would have chosen if given the chance to choose a new name for yourself as a teenager? She did well.

The adoption being finalized marks another big milestone: we can finally publicly share photos that include her face. Of course I still got her parents' permission, but I can finally share these photos I took of Eden back in May during my trip up to Washington to meet her for the first time! While my nephew Connor was at physical therapy with my sister, Eden and I adventured off on our own for a mini portrait session. Like many a teenage girl, Eden really likes having her photo taken, so it was the perfect opportunity for us to spend time together. I felt especially honored to be the very first person that Eden spent time alone with other than her parents since arriving in the United States. No pressure...




Welcome to the family, Eden! I loved meeting you in May, and I look forward to seeing you again and again for, well, forever! Uncle Opie and I are so proud and happy to call you our niece.

Bonsai!

A couple of weeks ago, I visited my sister in the Seattle area for a week. Besides our usual shenanigans that include laughing perfectly in sync, crafting, and drinking tea, we also set out on a few outings. We hit up the Pacific Rim Bonsai Collection and the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden early in the week, where I went to town with my camera. With my busy schedule, I'm rarely able to carve out time to take photos purely for myself. It's so refreshing when I can. Here are some of my favorite shots I captured of the bonsai trees!






The trees in the rhododendron garden looked unnaturally large after admiring the bonsai!

Sneak Peek: England Family Portraits

I took a vacation last week to visit my sister up in the Seattle area. Before I went, I made plans with my online friend, Emerald England, to meet up for a photo trade. It was so great to finally meet her in person! It's ridiculous how much we have in common. She shot some new headshots for me; the one I've been using was taken well over three years ago. She also created some gorgeous portraits of my sister and her son, and some with me in the mix too. In exchange, I shot family portraits for her. The last time they'd had family portraits made was shortly after their daughter was born six years ago. What is with us photographers neglecting to have our own lives photographed? Right now I'm angling for new professional portraits of my husband and me; the only ones we've ever had were on our wedding day in 2009. I can only do so much with a tripod and a self-timer. In any case, Emerald and I are both a little less neglectful now, thanks to this trade. I'm thrilled with the photos I received, and I hope she will be just as happy with hers. Here's a little peek at the photos of her gorgeous family:

Oh, and here's my favorite headshot from the bazillion that Em gave me to choose from! That's little ol' me!

Seattle Trip!

I went up to Seattle (well, Puyallup) last weekend to visit my sister and her family. We had a blast, as was expected. It's nearly impossible for the two of us to get together without some manner of awesome shenanigans occurring. We spent quite a bit of time harassing the staff at her local coffee shop. We wandered around a nature preserve in the ridiculously cold rain. We went shopping. A lot. We sang in the car. A lot. We ate. A lot. I also got to watch one of her roller derby bouts for the first time, which was of course inherently awesome. Her husband explained the rules to me while she was out there throwing her hips into people and such. I also got to hang out with my nephew a bit. He has grown SO much since I last saw him. Thankfully he was in the midst of a 2-week-long break from his seizures while I was there, so I got to see him at his happy squealy best! Oh, there were chocolate mustaches at one point too, thanks to the aforementioned coffee shop. Here are a few of the photos I took during my stay. I can't wait to get back up again!

Washington is gorgeous this time of year, yes?

My sister, "Gita Kraken" is the one sporting the one red sock and the dark navy tights. You might notice the distinct lack of people on their bench, so she skated a whooole lot.

Enter mustache tomfoolery. My nephew Connor is very dapper.

I miss you sister!

-Mary