Worth 1000 Words

Live in Love,
}:{

There Will Be Brighter Tomorrows

"Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again— my Savior and my God! Now I am deeply discouraged, but I will remember you...I hear the tumult of the raging seas as your waves and surging tides sweep over me. But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me, and through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life." ~Psalm 42:5-8 (NLT)

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This speaks deeply to my emotional state at the moment. There are times when people do or fail to do things that result in us becoming discouraged and a bit down. It's the way life goes and there's not really much we can do to prevent it from happening. What we can control is our reaction to its occurrence. When circumstances get you down, do you wallow in the hurt? Do you allow the negative feelings that arise to affect your feelings and dealings with the other party? Or do you put a song in your heart, focus on the good in your life, learn from the situation and keep stepping?

I've learned that, no matter how difficult it is, it's better to keep stepping. If ever I decide to dwell on the negative, it always ends up that I'm the one adversely impacted by my refusal to move on. The people at the root of the situation are often oblivious to my feelings and are thereby unaffected by them. So why hold myself back? I choose to move on to brighter days and better opportunities.

If life knocked you down today, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and look ahead to a brighter tomorrow. You'll be doing yourself a favor.

Live in Love,
}:{

A Mother's Love for Her Daughter

"A little girl, asked where her home was, replied, "where mother is."
~Keith L. Brooks

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The relationship between a mother and her daughter is constantly evolving. The early years are full of hope & wonder, as Mama is the portrait of perfection and infinite possibilities are contained within the innocent gaze of sweet Baby Girl.

As the sands of time spill away, these two female forces, once so closely intertwined, begin to pull in opposing directions. Baby Girl becomes a woman in spite of Mama's desperate attempts to cling to her baby.

The latter years bring with them appreciation, understanding and a beautiful friendship, when motherhood offers Baby Girl a brand new perspective.





I am creating a promotional Photo Book that showcases the beautiful relationships that mothers and daughters share and am looking for a few willing models to participate. The Mothers & Daughters shoot will take place on Saturday, December 4, 2010, from 10am-12pm. Participants will hang out with me at my home, enjoy some light refreshments, sit for a few photos with their moms/daughters to be featured in the photo book and walk away with a special gift from Papillon.

If you or anyone you know would like to participate, contact me by November 15th and let me know. There are limited spaces available, so the sooner the better! I look forward to hearing from you!

Live in Love,
}:{ Keda }:{

Natural Beauty

Have you ever met someone who was just a naturally beautiful person? They just had that "thing," that inner beauty that couldn't help but ooze outward? Someone with a sweet face, and a sweet personality to match? Well, I had the pleasure of hanging out with just such a person a couple of weeks ago during my session with Tiffany.

She was sooo easy to shoot. No joke, from the very first frame I shot, she was working some kind of magic. I had a terrible time narrowing down the number of photos that I would show her - they were all so beautiful. It wouldn't surprise me if I opened a magazine in the near future and saw her face there.

Well, if a picture is worth a thousand words, let me stop yapping and let the photos speak for themselves. Allow me to present to you, Ms. Tiffany.



















Leave a comment & let me know what you think!

Live in Love,
}:{

5000 Miles at the Sound of My Voice

I had a dream last night. No, I'm not going to tell you about more random craziness like I did last time. But last night...I dreamed. I can't remember most of it, which doesn't surprise me, but the one thing that keeps replaying itself over and over is this: "5000 miles at the sound of my voice."

"The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences" (Proverbs 18:21).

How many times have you been disappointed in yourself and literally voiced your negative opinion to no one in particular? I can recall times (uh, how about last week?) that I have done something a bit less than perfect and before I could blink something like "you're so stupid" came flying out of my mouth. Can you relate? What I failed to realize in that moment is that my negative words to myself will only breed more negativity, whether that be in deeds, emotions or resulting circumstances.

If my words are so powerful that they can bring about life or death, good or bad - and I will "reap the consequences," why not make it my business to speak good things? The way I see it, whether I'm having a good day or not, I have unlimited potential. But if I'm so caught up in my imperfections that I can't see past them, how will I ever tap into that potential to reach and surpass my ideal?

Today, my realization is this:

I can go farther than I imagined if I dare to dream it, and dare to speak it.
"5000 miles at the sound of my voice." 
I can be better than I ever thought I could if I dare to dream it, and dare to speak it. 
"5000 miles at the sound of my voice."
I can achieve more than I thought possible if I dare to dream it, and dare to speak it. 
"5000 miles at the sound of my voice."
I can. I will. I am.

Five thousand miles is that thing in your head, in your heart that seems so impossible for you to achieve that you just shove it to the back of your mind. It's a heart desire that you dare not linger on too long because the thought of it becoming a reality is simply too wonderful. Your five-thousand miles may look different than mine, but I know your heart has one. I dare you to give voice to your dreams and see what happens. I DARE YOU. I double-dog dare you (ooooooooh!). Let's see where our dreams and our voices take us.

 Live in Love,
}:{

Care to share what your "5000 miles" is? I would love to hear from you!

Love: In Shades of Honey & Chocolate

What does love feel like? Perhaps it feels like a soft autumn breeze caressing your cheek while the sun shines kisses down on you.

What does love smell like? Perhaps it smells like the aroma of Jasmine & Lavender welcoming you into life's garden.

What does love sound like? Perhaps it sounds like the sweetest harmonies this side of heaven.

What does love look like? Perhaps it looks like shades of honey wrapped in chocolate. That was what it looked like to me when I had the pleasure of photographing Jamieko & Raynard.

This beautiful young couple embody love and joy. It is becoming more and more rare to see a couple who grow deeper in love as the years progress, but that is the reality for these two. A seasoned marriage and children has not cooled their fire for each other. It was truly a beautiful sight.

Jamieko & Raynard, thank you for allowing me to peek into your relationship and witness a love that is truly a treasure.

Now see their love, through my eyes...


Live in Love,
}:{

Friday Fun Pic

Happy Friday, everyone. I hope that you've had a week filled with beauty and as many hugs as your arms could stand (honestly, hugs are one of the best inventions EVER). This week has simultaneously crawled and sped by for me. Don't know how that happens, but it seems like when I'm in the middle of the week, I can't see the end of it. But by the time Friday comes around, I'm wondering where the time went. I've been editing photos from my last two sessions like a mad woman, plus I've embarked on yet ANOTHER 365 project. I call it Three Times A Charm, cuz darnit, I shall finish this time around. Gracious. So, if you have any ideas for a self portrait (or a series), let me know! I'd love a challenge!

Let me leave you with a shot of me and my Nikko. He saw me taking my daily self-portrait and wanted to play. As soon as he sees the camera he runs to me saying "KoKo's turn! KoKo's turn! Cheeeeeeeese!" I promise you, I've never asked that kid to say cheese in front of the camera. Is that just an instinct kids are born with these days? LOL. Until next time...

Live in Love,
}:{

That big grin on my face is from the unsolicited hug and "I Lah You" that I got right before the shutter clicked.