Life in the Carpool Lane.

2009-03-21T23:38:00.000-07:00

MOVING!!!!

I'm handing the blogging over to Evan now, and decided it's time for him to have his own site! This blog will be disabled shortly, so please move over to www.love-evan.blogspot.com and bookmark it for the future.

Thanks, and enjoy =)

There's a monkey on your back!

2008-11-08T14:49:00.000-08:00

I walked Evan to the park to get him tired, but not before putting his monkey backpack on! He loves to run off, but I keep him on a tight leash with his monkey backpack. I used to see parents dragging their kids by these tails, and thought, "I would never do that." Right.

It's the only way to keep him nearby. Plus, I think it's adorable.

I love it when people come up to him and go... "Hey Buddy, there's a monkey on your back!" =)

out with the old... in with the cold.

2008-10-10T13:09:00.000-07:00

The wind is howling today, so I was inspired to do the once-a-year-task that comes around this time: switch out the closet. See, here in Sacramento, there are only two seasons: HOT, and COLD. Luckily, October is the month where you start seeing some in-between, but for the most part, seasons creep up on you and you have drastic weather changes.

So, I have to keep a rotation of my wardrobe. I keep the off-season clothes in a space bag under my bed, and when Fall rolls around, I vacuum up the tanks and shorts, and make room for the sweaters and jeans.

Isn't life funny? One day it's blazing hot, and the next day, we're digging up sweaters for warmth. If I learned anything this year, it's just that: that life can change at any minute. God has a way of showing us that no matter what we're expecting, He is in total control. Things can come, and things can go--opportunities, jobs, money, people, material things. We just have to go with it... we have to let go and let God, and just adapt. Take off some clothes, or throw some on.

The past few days have given me renewed hope. One minute I'm on my knees begging to God for things to be okay, and the next day, there He is, picking me up and showing me that they will be. I just had to let it go.

With that said, today, I welcome Fall, and all that it may bring. I can't wait to throw on a cozy sweater, curl up on my couch with a hot cup of tea and some Beverly Hills 90210 reruns. And, I'll pray all the time-- whether life's good or bad, hot or cold. You never know what God will do.

Happy 4 Years!

2008-09-18T12:17:00.001-07:00

Today marks 4 years of happily ever after for me and Desmond. So to commemorate this day... here's one of my favorites poem of all time, which I also printed on the back of our wedding program:

Sonnet XVII, Pablo Neruda
I don't love you as if you were the salt-rose, topaz or arrow of carnations that propagate fire:
I love you as certain dark things are loved, secretly, between the shadow and the soul.

I love you as the plant that doesn't bloom and carries
hidden within itself the light of those flowers,
and thanks to your love, darkly in my body
lives the dense fragrance that rises from the earth.

I love you without knowing how, or when, or from where,
I love you simply, without problems or pride:
I love you in this way because I don't know any other way of loving

but this, in which there is no I or you,
so intimate that your hand upon my chest is my hand,
so intimate that when I fall asleep it is your eyes that close.

Here's to the last 4 years babe!
May we continue to frolick in green pastures for many more =)

A fresh start.

2008-09-06T22:34:00.001-07:00

I decided randomly Friday to cut 10 inches off of my hair.

It's a bit of Posh Spice with the whole a-line thing. You can't really tell here in this picture. I'm late jumping on that bandwagon, but hey, I always liked that cut.

My hair was dead from the chin down. Maybe it represented all the dead weight in my life. It's been a pretty rough year, so I figure, why not cut off the hair symbolically to have a fresh start? I guess it's true when they say that women make drastic hair changes when they have crises or something going on. So, off it went, and it sure felt good. Very freeing. Not to mention, I save on shampoo and 10 minutes off my hair drying time in the morning. AND, since it was at least 10 inches of hair, I was able to donate it all to Locks of Love. Icing on the cake.=)

The hair before it was sent of to Locks of Love. I can't believe this is only about a year and a half of growth!!

It feels sooo good!! Yay! =)

2008-08-23T14:12:00.000-07:00

Something Special, Colbie Caillat

I found a way to be everything
I dreamed of
And I know it to me that I will become
Who I want to be
And I finally found it
And I’m taking the long way out
Cause its gonna be
Something special to me
Something special to me

Days go by and I’ll grow stronger
It takes time but i’ll never let go
Days go by and I’ll try harder
To make it mine

Its something special to me x3

I found so many things
I dreamed of
And I know it to me
That I will become
Who I want to be
And I finally found it
And I’m takin’ the long way out
And its gonna be
Something special to me
Something special to me

Days go by and I’ll grow stronger
It takes time but i’ll never let go
Days go by and I’ll try harder
To make it mine

Its something special to me
More than I hoped for
More than I dreamed of
This is how it should be
More than I hoped for
More than I dreamed of
This is how it should be

I found this beautiful song today. It expresses perfectly the place where I want to be in my life. This past year has definitely been challenging year for me, personally, emotionally, and spiritually. I know it's all just a test, a trial, and a lesson intended to teach me more about my strengths and weaknesses.

My hopes and goals are all bundled up in one... but basically, I want to find my little niche in this world that unites God's plan for me, using the gifts he gave me, while being able to provide a good life for my family. This year, with I've taken a step forward to get there, I've felt like I've taken two steps back.

The time is coming soon, though, that God will let me harvest what I have planted. I'll get there, and I'm getting closer each day. It's hard to be patient and to let God do his work in me, but maybe that's why he put me in this situation... to bring me to my very knees... to the point of breaking down. Now, all I'm able to do is just let it go, and let God.

"Whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." -Galatians 6:7

2008-08-18T21:57:00.000-07:00

Finally, it's up!

Please visit me at www.kiralaurenphoto.com, my new photography business website. Feel free to share with your friends too!

There are no galleries up yet, but will be coming soon =)

San Diego, Day 1

2008-07-24T23:55:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love San Diego. The weather is beautiful, mild, and sunny, the air is clean and humid, everything is within 15 minutes drive wherever you are, you get the best of both worlds: city and beach, and the food and shopping rock.

We're staying for a total of 10 days, so we're gonna spread out the activities. Today, for the first day of the trip, we just chilled and drove around exploring with no agenda in mind.

First, last night, when we got in to my mom's place, Evan charmed her into letting him play with her computer:

This morning, after dropping mom off to work at the clinic, we grab some lunch at Horton Plaza downtown. I love this mall! I'm a huge mallrat, so wherever I go on vacation, I have to see the malls. This one is a nice gem hidden downtown, with 7 levels of outdoor shopping. Fabulous. We hit up Steve and Barry's too.

Next, we wandered over to Balboa Park. A huge attraction that houses gardens and several museums. I set Desmond up to take this picture of me... lol. I rarely want my picture taken, but since I'm always behind the camera, I wanted a turn too!

Here's Evan goofing around at Pacific Beach. Crowded, but perfect for surf. Chic little hotels on the beach, thrift shops, and a YogurtWorld. We plan on going back to PB next week and rent some cruisers and ride around the beach. We gotta work off all the food we've been eating!

And under the pier:

Finally, toward the end of the day, picking up Mom at the clinic after work... bored waiting in the car, so why not take some pictures =)

We ended the night in Kearny Mesa (land of all food that is Asian), with a Japanese dinner... followed by Yogurtworld! I had a strawberry tart yogurt covered in mochi. Yum. BTW, I'm on a quest to try any and all Yogurt places I ever encounter. A review of all these places will follow in a later post. =)

OK, time to sleep... another adventure tomorrow. Good night!

off we go!

2008-07-22T16:27:00.000-07:00

We're packing to go to San Diego! YAY! The plan: Stay at Mom's place, Kainoa's 1st Birthday Party, a few photo shoots to build up the portfolio, and we're gonna use the Go Card to get us into Legoland, the Wild Animal Park, and some Harbor cruises. Good deal! Fun times, and hopefully, some colorful pictures to bring back and share.

Meanwhile, I'm packing up the photo equipment, and of course, Evan's "helping" me:

What I'm trying to fit in the bags:

Macbook
Nikon sb-28 speedlight
Nikon sb-800 speedlight
Lightsphere
Nikon D200 body
Nikon 70-200 2.8 lens
Nikon 17-55 2.8 lens
Nikon 50mm 1.8 lens
2 pocket wizards
2 CF cards, 12 rechargeable AAs, 2 chargers
tripod
umbrella
My new Shootsac!!!

This will be my first time experimenting with off-camera lighting. It sounds like a lot to pack, but I made sure to only buy equipment that folds down compactly, so let's see how that works. I hope squeeze into the schedule a family portrait session at a park, and an engagement session at the beach. Location TBA. Pictures will follow later.

In the meantime, here are a few pictures from this past weekend. Have a great week, and I'll blog from San Diego!

Some new spots.

2008-07-16T23:46:00.000-07:00

I get to create my own work, and you know what... I love it. Many people think I don't do anything all day except watch Evan run around. WRONG! I definitely keep myself busy.

I spend most of my time online, in blogs, forums, etc, teaching myself more about photography and building and running a business. The other part of my day is focused on shooting for practice, and also scouting out locations around Sacramento to hold portrait sessions. I'm totally excited that I found a new "spot" to take pictures. You know, I spend half my time on this blog complaining about how Sacramento has nothing interesting compared to the Bay Area, but I realized I need to really change my point of view.... appreciate Sacramento for what it is: a city known for its rivers and regional preserves.

So, today was spent "researching" and building my new business: Kira Lauren Photography. I actually found a hidden treasure I've been searching for: a vast meadow of wheat, with some trees for shady spots. After finding it online this morning, and we drove out there to check it out.

Hopefully soon, I'll have a client to photograph in this golden field:

And of course, where there's a camera, there are pictures of my son.

I've also found another spot for myself: ONLINE! Yes, very soon, within the next week or two, I will officially have a Kira Lauren Photography website. I've been spending the last weeks getting it ready, and after some final touches, it will launch!

If you, or someone you know would like some fabulous photos taken, please send them my way. It will be a welcome addition to the growing portfolio.

Till then....

Happy Birthday Evan! You get a mohawk!

2008-07-11T18:30:00.000-07:00

Evan turns 15 months today. What's 15 months like? It's 14 teeth, a lot of running, splashing in water, climbing, clapping, and imitating your every move. He puts the phone to his ear when he hears it ring, makes siren noises when he hears an ambulance, knows how use a mouse, dances in front of MTV, and does his "beautiful eyes." He even picks his nose. It's crazy, tiring, and altogether fun.

So like every month on his birthday, we dress up the poor kid and make him pose for pictures. After careful consideration, we gave in decided to give him a mohawk because his hair was so thick. He sweats like a grown man, and this helps a little. We have a little rockstar on our hands... not so innocent looking anymore!

[B E F O R E]

[ A F T E R ]

My brother sent Evan some cute clothes from Crazy 8, and had a special request to photograph him in his favorite one: the Monkey t-shirt =).

His favorite new toy: the car. He got this from his Ninang Joy for his 1st birthday, but just recently started loving it!

And of course, the mamarazzi and paparazzi sticking 2 cameras in his face.

Till the next backyard photo shoot.....

Searching.

2008-06-23T22:57:00.000-07:00

Right now, I'm yearning to narrow down my many interests into one niche. One niche where I can start a business of my own, and earn some money for my family while satisfying my creative needs. That would be a perfect world.

I'm in a bit of a lull. For the past 2 years I've been pregnant, then focusing on caring for my baby. I haven't devoted any time to myself... to growing, learning more, taking care of my emotional, spiritual, and physical needs. When you have a baby it's easy to focus so much on him/her and not at all on yourself. But that's SO important. If I'm not happy, I can't expect to be a good mother or wife.

So now, I'm making a valiant effort to take time for myself. It's time. If I don't start now, I'll lose myself soon. And you should NEVER lose yourself.

The goal: CREATE EVERYDAY. No matter what it is... I just need to create everyday. To help me do that, I made a simple book for myself to doodle in, write down ideas, reminders, sketches, and inspiration for all the random projects I have running around in my head. I need to make creativity a habit, to make time for it even though sometimes I feel like there's no time to myself. 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes... whatever it is. A time to read, a time to just sit in quiet, a time to go around and shoot pictures, anything. I encourage everyone to take a little time every day to breathe, and to create.

"The journey between who you once were and who you are now becoming is where the dance of life really takes place." -Barbara DeAngelis

Aloha....

2008-05-24T00:05:00.000-07:00

Off to Hawaii on a last-minute vacation. 5 days, 2 suitcases, one backpack, one stroller, one carseat. (And an empty duffle bag for all the stuff we're gonna buy there and bring home). ;)

Packing is never light when you have a kid.

I'll definitely have some beautiful island pictures to share later.

Until then, aloha!

Drenched.

2008-05-15T22:48:00.001-07:00

I'm blogging in my sweat right now.

Everyone who lives in the Bay Area and thought they were gonna die cause it was so hot today, let me make you feel a little better about your situation.

It was about 100 degrees in Sacramento today. You probably had highs in the 80s today, but right now, at almost 11pm, it's 78 degrees here.

And, since we moved into this house in January, we just discovered TODAY that the stupid air conditioning people didn't activate our air conditioning.

Evan's sleeping naked right now, but he's still drenched.

So I'm gonna take a cold shower and try to sleep tonight. Can't wait for Mr. A/C man to show up tomorrow. It's expected to be 104 degrees.

I would kill to be in the Bay right now.

Till next time,
-Sweating in Sacramento.

Updates.

2008-05-06T23:24:00.000-07:00

I've been so caught up in things around the house that I didn't realize I haven't blogged in weeks! So, here are 2 weeks worth of posts all jammed into one.

We decided it would also be a good time to actually move Evan into his crib in his own room (He has been sleeping in our bed for the past few months!). It's hard to do this cold turkey, so we do it a few hours a night until Evan wakes up crying... we'll do this every night until he gets more comfortable on his own. Anyhow, the walls were pretty bare in there, so I decided to make some stuff to hang. When he was napping one day, Desmond and I painted his feet and stamped it on paper to make this. Poor kid.

We also took Evan out of his baby bathtub and started bathing him in the real bathtub in his own bathroom. He loves it, especially since we have toys in there for him. His favorite is the "bathketball" hoop we got him =)

Today we took him to the pool at the gym- his first time swimming since last Summer. He loved it!

He's really made some significant steps in the past few weeks. He's showing a much wider range of emotions, letting you know exactly when he's mad, hungry, excited, happy. AND, when told "no" he knows how to lay the guilt on thick with his pout:

He stands all the time now, and really really wants to walk. He'll let go and stand on his own for a few seconds until he loses courage and just sits down again. Here he is standing, but I didn't get a picture in time when he let go.

Finally, he can wave "hi" and "bye" on command now, and he can actually say it too (sorta). Before, he would only kinda move his hand, plus, it was so delayed... he would wave bye to you 5 minutes after you left. He talks all the time, and we're always amazed when he repeats what we say... and he really tries hard to say the words too.

That's about it for now... just keep us in your prayers... that Desmond and/or I will find a job soon. And, that we can find a good place for Evan to be while we work.

Thanks! =)

1st Birthday Party Pictures... long overdue.

2008-04-14T23:58:00.000-07:00

Sorry, these are over a week late. We've been battling with Evan's stomach flu as of late. Poor little guy... but he's feeling better now, and I finally got around to uploading these pictures from his 1st Birthday Party.

We decided to keep it casual and somewhat small by celebrating at the park down the street from our house. We were blessed with sunny skies, and although a bit windy, it was a beautiful day. I was kinda sad to see that Evan wasn't in the best of moods, though. I think he needed a longer nap, and was a little overwhelmed by being passed around to so many people... I regret being too busy with the party to make more efforts to take him around myself =(

Here he is, arriving at the park in style:

His favorite part of the day...swinging. Mom!! I JUST WANT TO PLAY!!

I set up a special scrapping table for the ladies to each make a page for Evan's "birthday wishes" album. It was so fun to see how involved they got in making their pages so creative and thoughtful...now, I have a cute album with different pages inside, with a Polaroid shot of each of them with the birthday boy =) Special thanks to Karen for all of her hard work in putting together the fabulous Cricut die-cuts to adorn the pages... and for her creative ideas in making this work!

Cake time! I made him a monkey cake to mess up, but maybe it weirded him out a bit, and instead he just stared at it! I made the monkey cupcakes for everyone else to eat.... (Thanks, Prentiss for taking these pictures!!)

And finally, a family portrait =)

There are more shots of the day that I'll have to save for the scrapbook. Thank you to everyone for all of your help!

Happy 1st Birthday sweetie pie....

2008-04-11T22:58:00.000-07:00

Dear Evan,

Today, you're 1. We're so happy that you're growing up to be such a wonderful little boy... but today is bittersweet for mommy. I just can't believe that a year ago today, I met you for the first time, and life changed forever.

I really don't know where the time went. The first time I saw you, I was too scared to hold you because you're so tiny and fragile. I had no idea how to be a mother, and I had no idea what to do when the nurse gave you to me. Today, I know your every cry, my arms are sore from carrying you, and soon, you'll be walking and you won't need to be carried at all.

Every night in bed I watch you fall asleep, then I look at Daddy, and I thank God for the two greatest blessings of my life. It has been an adventurous and memorable year, and watching you grow has been completely amazing. I know it's just gonna get better and better from here.

Here's a glimpse of the first moment I ever saw your face and held you in my arms-- 6:18 am, one year ago. Indescribable. I will never forget it. Please don't grow up too fast. I'll always remember you this way. I love you, and Happy Birthday =)

birthday wishes....

2008-04-04T02:03:00.000-07:00

Evan's turning one next week, and his 1st birthday party is tomorrow (Saturday). I'm still sitting here in denial that a year has passed.... and my son is not a baby anymore, but a little boy. He's almost walking, he's certainly talking (only we can understand him, really, but he's speaking a real language). He's drinking out of a straw for goodness sakes. (deep breath.)

Anyhow, of course I'll be having a scrapping craft at the party for the ladies. Some may love it, others will probably detest having to make something! Either way, the idea is to make an 8"x8" "Birthday Wish" album for Evan. Each person will take a polaroid picture with him and use it in their page, and add a birthday wish for him. I gathered my random alpha stickers, papers, ribbons, punches, scissors, etc for people to use. I needed journaling tags, but couldn't find any that matched the kit, so... I made my own! When you can't find what you want, make your own =)

Well, looking forward to the big day, and excited to see what people create. FUN!

Breathe. Sleep.

2008-04-02T23:38:00.001-07:00

FINALLY.

Evan's approaching ONE year old next week, and I've finally done some scrapping for him.

I'm done with my first complete album ever: Evan's First Year. [Here's the cover]. This was a tough one that took forever because I'm doing all 11 months of the past year at once... including important dates (First tooth, first bath, first swim, etc.) which means I had to dig back into my old calendars to check these stats. THEN, I had to search through my digital catalog of thousands and thousands of pics that I took, edit them, and put them in a collage by month for that month's page. ADVICE: If you're a new mom, and you want to remember these things, take the time to do your First Year album every month and don't procrastinate like I did.

Honestly, I didn't have the time. In my spare time from taking care of Evan, I was more concerned with eating, showering, and sleeping. In fact, these past 2 weeks I've been sleeping at around 3am because I've been up late doing these pages.

It's nothing fancy; I wanted to keep it simple since all 12 months would have the same design. Actually the reason it took me so long was because I did about 6 months worth of pages and started all over because I hated it. This is my challenge in scrapbooking: STOP OVERTHINKING IT AND JUST HAVE FUN!

Of course, the 12th month is missing, because that hasn't happened yet. I'll add that in later.

I plan to do more albums for Evan, of course.... 1) Birthday album: An album of every year of birthday parties so he can look back later on and see how we celebrated. 2) Family Album: Pics taken with relatives, and include a family tree. 3) Personality album: a fun mix of pages that show his favorite things, his playtime, trips and adventures, and his funny faces, etc.....

For now, this is a start. I'm going to bed. =)

Harajuku Cards... CUTE!

2008-03-31T02:52:00.000-07:00

You can download cute Harajuku-style cards from Gwen Stefani's designed for HP--Shower invitations, birth announcements, and even paper dolls that you can create for yourself. So cute, and you can even just frame them for artwork or use them in your scrapbooks. And I'm a sucker for a freebie!

Poetic Spring.

2008-03-25T23:55:00.000-07:00

Spring is my favorite season. Maybe that will change when Summer rolls around, but for the most part, there's so much to love about Spring. There's a certain freshness in the air, and things start to bloom. The sun comes out from what seems to be nowhere, and flowers sprout from nothing. Spring is also when I had Evan, and it will always represent the happiest days in my life.

I found my old poetry book, and a poem I wrote on 3/14/00 about Spring. I remember writing it in Shields Library at UC Davis to take a break from studying. I used to write all the time back then, and I wonder now, why did I stop? It felt so good to write, and it feels even better to find it now and read it again.

Poetic day today...
when couples stroll in free verse
in hand-holding phrases,
and the birds alliterate the bees,
and the sunset forms stanzas of lyrical bliss
as I close my eyes and engulf myself
in the rhythm of new-born Spring.

Poetic day today...
when flowers know it's time
and dance in metered rhyme,
and the breeze gently tiptoes
on the back of your neck--
a comforting caesura
for the overwhelming, yet welcome warmth.

Poetic day today...
the kind that awakens minds
and melts frozen souls
and lures the heart
from past due hibernation --
the kind that makes you stop
and listen and understand
the pure beauty of life.

Poetic day today.

Get out and enjoy the day. If you can't get out, at least take time to look out your office window. It's poetic.

In the meantime, here's an attempt to draw a silly little butterfly on my Wacom tablet. =)

Sweeet!

2008-03-17T12:17:00.001-07:00

I'm a crazy tea drinker.

I drink it like water. Favorite tea of all-time, hands-down: Republic of Tea's Ginger Peach.

With honey.
Now my tea-time will be made better with this new invention. Why didn't I think of this??

Honibe Honey Drops:

Have a sweet day!! =)

Photo Booth Fun!

2008-03-12T00:09:00.000-07:00

Too much fun with Photo Booth. Here we are, in some rare and beautiful family portraits!

Starts off fairly normal:

Then, well, it just gets ugly.

Hope that brings a little smile to your Wednesday! =)

our story.

2008-03-07T12:41:00.000-08:00

Finally. I found a website that I want to use to make our wedding book.

Blurb seems fabulous: Mac friendly and easy to use software, and the result: affordable, high-quality soft or hardcover books designed by you. You can make any kind of book, and you can also sell them on their online bookstore.

I've been married 3 years now, and have no wedding album. It was too expensive to order from the photographer, and being a graphic designer myself, I figured... hey, no problem, I can make my own.

Easier said than done.

I think it's actually harder when you're working on your own wedding album. Why? Because I like so many different things, and I keep bouncing back and forth between ideas. ALSO, since it's my own, I want it to be perfect, which already paralyzes me from the start. Anyhow, I need to get cracking on this. No more procrastination or excuses.

Should be fun! Can't wait to see the result!

i'm inspired: the 21 day challenge.

2008-03-06T21:54:00.001-08:00

ok, so reading Grace's last blog post got me inspired to do Rhonna's 21 Day Challenge on Two Peas.

Basically, the challenge is to do something for 21 days (since they say it takes 21 days to make or break a habit).

I decided to challenge myself to: Take photos EVERYDAY of my everyday life, and make a page about each daily photo. This would result in a 21-page album about the little things that make up my life. I think I'll keep it easy on myself and make it 8.5x11 so I can do it all digitally and print. That's really the fastest way for me to create.

This is really a challenge for me, because it's tough for me to find the time to scrap everyday. So, let's see if I can make time for the next 21 days.

Check it out... and try it... so I can have someone to share the experience with!

I'll post layouts when done. =)