I made this painted gray canvas backdrop last year and I’ve become quite fond of it. It gives a nice clean crisp look to black and whites, but with the seams and un-even paint, it has a perfectly unperfect feel.
I’ve been using it in my recent newborn sessions and must say I’m loving it!
The stores are out to get us. They have us yearning for what’s next. Valentines decorations the day after Christmas, Easter baskets before Valentines even happens, swimsuits when we are still wearing coats and school supplies for the next year the day after school gets out. And forget about Thanksgiving, we skip straight to Christmas. TARGET, I’M TALKING TO YOU. Summer is one of those times that I don’t want to be rushed. I want to spend my days outside. I want to plan out the days we have without work or obligation to include the optimal amount of sunshine. Yet, it all goes by sooo fast. Summer is slipping out of my grasp as I speak!
I decided to write a list of a few things that I want to make sure we savor before school starts and the hustle and bustle begins. Tonight kicks off the list!
1. Go to a concert in the park. Last year I was introduced to the Long Beach Municipal Band Concerts at El Dorado Park. It’s such a great feeling of community. Everyone walks over, packs a picnic dinner and spreads out blankets on the ground. They only happen on Fridays and tonight is the last one. So, I’m making it by the skin of my teeth!
photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sarrelibre/2628049454/
2. Make ice cream. There’s nothing like homemade ice cream. Especially in the summer. It’s worth the extra time it takes to simmer whole milk and cream, then wait while it chills and churns. Yum…I think maybe that needs to happen this weekend. I’m also thinking a cherry ice cream is tailor-made for this item on the list!
photo credit: http://sugarandspice-celeste.blogspot.com/2011/05/irresistible-fresh-cherry-dark.html
3. Read a chapter book to the kids. Last year I read Farmer Boy and Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder. It was such a nice way to spend the afternoons and on road trips, etc. I have wonderful memories of being read to in elementary school. So, this year I need to choose a good chapter book for ages 7, 9 and 10. Any suggestions??
photo credit: http://julia.blogg.se/ and http://designlovely.tumblr.com/post/698417019/via-qomaspeakup
4. Go to the beach. This one kinda sounds like a no-brainer, especially since we live 5 minutes from the water. But it’s hard to pull it together long enough to pack lunches, towels, chairs, sandtoys, sunscreen and boogie boards!
photo credit: http://www.muralsforkids.com/products/Bali-Breeze-Beach-Mural.html
5. DO NOTHING. So, I’m kinda reminding myself of my type-A 10 year old with this list making business. I’ve promised myself to fit in an hour at the pool doing nothing. An unplanned day or maybe even a nap, or something crazy like that.
photo credit: http://blackeiffel.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2011-05-17T06%3A00%3A00-06%3A00&max-results=5
Hey all…just a quick update that I have filled all the 8 spots for August 10 underwater photo sessions. Woohoo! If you’re interested in being added to a wait list or the possibility of adding time slots to the day, please send me an email. info@kristineldridge.com Don’t miss out on this one…my cousin a crazy talented surf photographer and the two of us working together is going to result in some epic photos!
He also does some amazing videography. Here’s a little taste of what he recently created…
Attention water babies! I’m doing a very special limited edition summer promo on August 10. I’ll be teaming up with my cousin/surf photographer, Kyle MacLennan, to offer underwater photo sessions.
Here’s the scoop:
$120 for 30 minutes and 1/2 off all digital images if you order within a week of proofing.
Kyle will be shooting underwater and I’ll be shooting above water. The location will be at my pool in Long Beach. Parents will need to get in the water if their child is not a proficient swimmer (but you don’t have to be in the photos unless you want to be!). We will be heating the pool, so it’ll be nice and comfy!
This is a totally fun way to document summer…we can’t wait!
**Times will start at 3:00pm and the last session will end at 7:00pm. We will need a minimum of 8 clients to make these sessions happen. I’m happy to add on more time slots if we fill the 8!
I’m dropping by the blog for a quick second to say hi…week two of being away from home has started and we are having a blast. I’m lucky to be able to carry my laptop wherever we go and fit work into the cracks of family life. That’s what summer’s all about, right!?
The kids are off to an insane game of dodgeball…at 9pm. Again, only in the summer… Tomorrow we’ll be doing things like spending hours at the pool, making crafts and taking hikes. What a great life!
As I run off to the game of dodgeball, I’ll leave you with a few adorable pictures of twin boys and their super sweet big brother. PS- I love how their mom dresses them. Perfect mix of color/prints!
Here’s a handful of pictures from Rascals to Rebels 2 weeks ago. I was so happy with the way the backdrop turned out. My brother-in-law found me the barnwood…perfectly distressed and my father-in-law worked it into a backdrop that perfectly fits into our SUV so I can truck it around town and such. He even gave me a little training in how to lift and carry it so I don’t hurt myself. 🙂
Anyway, between this fabulous century old wood and the festive bunting, I was extremely excited to meet all the kids that were going to be photographed over the weekend. And can I just say that the moms BROUGHT IT in the outfit department. I mean cuter than I could have styled myself. Simply adorable.
I’m so lucky to be able to work with Rascals to Rebels and photograph so many cuties in their clothes!
-Kristin
I’m tagging along with Brent this week on a speaking trip in San Diego. I brought my laptop and have been conducting business as usual in between trips to the beach, big-time rec and dinner with students! I’ve been killing time at night after the kids have gone to bed by watching old episodes of SYTYCD and looking through old pictures on my laptop.
I came across these pictures I took in Montana last summer. It’s especially bittersweet because I’m not able to take the kids out to visit this summer. Last summer the kids were dying to go fishing and despite several attempts, we could never catch anything. My dad decided we should take the kids on a trip to The Big Hole Battlefield and stop at some fishing holes along the way.
Let’s just say that when we stopped to get bait at the ONLY STORE in Wisdom, MT they had the strongest mosquito repellent known to man. As in, warning to future unborn children on the package. This stuff was no joke. And neither are the mosquitos in this part of the state. They will drill through sweatshirts and jeans to bite you.
Anyway, we prepared for battle and after a few stops we FINALLY CAUGHT A FISH! Big kudos to my dad for being the grandpa that added ‘catching a fish in Montana’ to list of memories made last summer.
Love.
The ‘you and me. by the sea’ sessions were amazing! I love each and every image that came out of our time at the beach. I have lots to share, but I’ll start with Chloe. She had so much fun with the props, plus her little sundress and red curls. Adorable.
I feel like I may need a t-shirt that says ‘I survived last week.’ Things were humming along and looking great and THEN I got a bee-sting while I was at the beach doing photo sessions on Tuesday. Thankfully, one of my clients was there to help me get the stinger out of my finger. By that evening my finger started to swell. No biggie, just a little bit uncomfortable. I worked away on the computer and woke up the next day unable to bend my finger…every couple hours the swelling moved down my hand, so I decided to see a doctor. Of course this was after the pool party at my house and shooting a line of clothing. So, I got steroids to help with the swelling and went to the next group of photo sessions on the beach on Thursday. Fast forward to Sunday and I had done almost 30 mini sessions at Rascals to Rebels, hosted a few more dinner parties and my finger was back to normal.
It’s amazing how a tiny little bee affected my week so much! I was trying to stay on top of my editing because this week, I’m taking some time off to hang with my family. All that work last week was worth it. I’m all caught up (for the moment!) and loving life with the use of all my fingers. 🙂
Speaking of parties!!! Every so often I get to photograph the birthday parties of one of my clients. I’ve been photographing Chloe for over a year, so when her mom asked me to document her 4th birthday party at the aquarium, I felt like a proud auntie!
This was such a fun place for a party! They kept the kids moving the whole time from one fun activity to the next. Chloe had a blast and with her adorable expressive personality, gave me one fantastic shot after the next!
Strawberries. Jillian just asked me this morning why people are selling strawberries on the side of the road when you can buy them in the grocery store. I thought about it for a sec and was like…because they’re AMAZING. Of course we need them sold on every other street corner!
After buying a flat at Costco, I was looking for recipes to take advantage of my surplus. I’m not ambitious enough to can…but strawberry jam! YUM! Anyway, back to the recipe…my friend told me about Our Best Bites and it happened to have a recipe for Strawberry Cupcakes. It had a few more steps in the recipe than I care for, but it was worth it!!
The recipe for the cupcakes can be found here: http://www.ourbestbites.com/2009/03/strawberries-and-cream-cupcakes/
I changed things up and made a traditional cream cheese frosting instead of the frosting the website recommended…again too many steps. I’m a dump baker…I need to be able to just dump all the ingredients and mix. So, if anyone tries their frosting, let me know how it is! I would’ve been happy to eat the cupcakes sans frosting. The flavor was that good.
Oh and by the way, I made these about a month ago. Soon after my friend Maggie challenged me to a month of healthy eating. And truth be told, I’m a little grumpy when I can’t eat all the yummy things I like. But, my body feels better when I don’t eat whatever I feel like, so there ya go. YOU enjoy the cupcakes, because I won’t be having any for awhile!
-Kristin
