Weekend Wedding Sneak Peek!!!

Absolutely super wedding this weekend...but not a lot of time to post at the moment...here are a couple of photos from the beautiful day. More to come later this week!





Hope you are doing well! xo, Katie

Thursday Thoughts, #2 ~ Friday Edition

I can't believe it's Thursday (ummm...Katie, it's Friday now...) already, this week has flown by... In the midst of a very lousy, long-lasting cold it hasn't been the best week ever. Sorry VH1. But there are good things on the horizon still!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My sister-in-law is due with her third son any day now! Yay! I am going to have another nephew! I am very excited to meet this new addition to the family! Good luck with the birth Jen - I am thinking about you!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last weekend I reconnected with yet another old friend. Courtney and I go way back - as far back as 15 years old I think. Despite the fact that we have been out of touch for at least 8 years (WOW, time flies) we were back to chatting like to old days. I had a super time with her and I am so glad we are back in touch. The best part about the whole visit was the way our kids got along together. Her eldest daughter and my eldest son, 5 and 7 respectively, immediately connected, and the moment Ashlyn mentioned Picachu (Pokemon), Jack was hooked. The two were like little peas in a pod chatting away about all of the important things in their lives. I loved watching them and can't wait to get them back together again! Thanks for the good times Courtney, and for refreshing my terrible, TERRIBLE memory! I can't wait until Vinopalooza! ;)

Here are some of the kids at Pumpkintown USA in East Hampton, CT:

Ashlyn:


Charlie: (Sorry buddy, I cut your ear off...)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am second shooting another wedding this coming weekend! Let's hope for warm weather and no rain!! Photos of the event to come!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I have been really working on my website this week, I am getting really excited about it! It'll still be a couple of weeks until launch but once it's done, it'll be a huge weight off of my shoulders!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I CAN NOT WAIT until this election is over with. Not that I want to bring up politics or anything but I really dislike the negative energy that comes with politics and elections. Are you ready to vote?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am still working on my other posts - and I will get them up, eventually... Stay tuned - Grand Canyon, Maternity, Baby, Bother & Sister, and Charlie does Conan...I feel like a rerun.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In closing, I must offer my most sincere condolences to the Moon family in PA. A loss like you have suffered must be one of the hardest kind. My thoughts and prayers are with you as you work through this very difficult time in your lives. I am so happy that you all had a chance to be together for one last time last weekend. May you be comforted by your sweet memories. Please know that my family and I are thinking of you all...xo

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You may recall an early post on my blog about my Auntie Fran...she learned that she will be going through a very difficult and painful surgery on November 4th. If any of you out there pray, please add her to your list, she needs all the prayers she can get! Thanks!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Off to tame the monkeys... xo, Katie

Fall in New England

Autumn is a second spring where every leaf is a flower. ~ Albert Camus

For me, the quote above is a great, fresh way to look at fall. I am just not the kind of person who relishes crisp fall days, the changing leaves, the brilliant colors, drunken bees, and the cool colors in the air - quite honestly, fall to me has always been a sign of winter. That's pretty pessimistic, right? Sorry. It's not that I can't and don't enjoy the fall, I actually do more and more each year but fall to me just means impending winter. And winter in New England can be long and cold, and is always very dark...is anyone with me on this or do you all love the fall? I'd love to know... :)

So in an effort to capitalize on one of the most beautiful times of the year - yes, I do think fall is gorgeous - we took our boys apple picking, they picked out pumpkins with old and new friends, and my husband even purchased us a canoe!! (Cross that off my life list!)

Here are some of the photos from our weekend:

Children of the corn...


He may or may not have stolen that apple... shhhhh, don't tell.


Just keeping it real...




I have a thing for white pumpkins...


Brothers under an orchard canopy...


Hope YOU are enjoying the fall!!! xo, Katie

Kate & Kyle: Just Because

Okay, so I have been a terrible blogger this week. So sorry. But today I have some photographs and a slide show detailing the beautiful morning I spent photographing Kate and Kyle in Forest Park in Springfield, Massachusetts. I know I said it before but I have to say it again - this Kyle is so darn cute! I loved working on these pictures and I hope you enjoy the slide show below.

Here are some of my favorite shots, thoughts I must say I had so many favorites...
A little flare... we love flare!!


Kyle mentioned that the following photos and poses were dedicated to one of his favorite young ladies...this had to have been one of the funniest things I've heard in a long time. Not only does this child ham it up but he can already charm his way in and out of a situation like nobody's business. Check out the following photos...






Toward the end Kyle was completely done with me... he decided he had had enough, I don't blame him!


Kate, you are so beautiful and Kyle, I hope you like the Bumblebee pictures we took!

Enjoy the weekend ahead! xo, Katie

Weekend Sneak Peek!

Yay, I am finally able to post something from this weekend! Whew, I have been a busy bee! This weekend I had a lovely wedding in the Berkshires and a super photo session with a fantastic mom and her gorgeous, no GORGEOUS son. I'll be posting more on them but I thought I would give you a peek into what went on during my beautiful New England weekend! Man, was the weather simply perfect! I hope you are all well! :) xo, Katie
====================================================================
First - the wedding...


Then Kyle - How about this guy for the newest GAP model!




Thanks for stopping by! See you soon!

Thursday Thoughts & Random, Incredibly Uninformative Information

Okay, it's been a crazy week which explains my lack of posting...I'm going to try something new this week and maybe make it a regular "column" on my blog...we'll see, I'm kind of a commitment-phobe but maybe this will work for me. In Thursday thoughts I will share quotes, other people's inspiring blog posts, and just random thoughts and photos from my life. Let's get this ride started.... woo hoo!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week, my internal mantra has been "Safe is Risky." When I said that out loud to my husband he disagreed and went off on a tangent about how safe is safe, yadda, yadda, yadda. Well, it comes from the book The Purple Cow, by Seth Godin. I have been reading this intermittently between working my daily deadlines, not cleaning my house or doing laundry, and being a mommy to my darling, yet psycho monkeys. Anyway, that small sentence, safe is risky, has stuck with me and here's why I think it works for me. Safe is comfortable, warm, and easy. Risky is cold, frightening, and potentially dangerous. But who has ever gotten anywhere by staying warm and cozy on their couch? I've decided that by spending my life holed up in my safe cocoon of happiness (or unhappiness), that I may not ever do what it is that I really want to do. So I've decided to take my head out of...the sand, and take one or even two small risks a day. So far, so good I'm happy to report!! I've got some exciting things on the horizon! :) Yay!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Random tidbit of mildly disturbing news: Yesterday, while my sons and I were riding bikes around our neighborhood, I watched my eldest son accidentally hit a dog. Yes folks, he hit a dog while riding his bike. Not hard I must say. THANK GOD! But none-the-less it scared the daylights out of him and he hopped right off of his bike and ran after the dog to make sure it was okay. The dog was totally fine, but Jack's heart was bruised and he cried when we got home...I'm not sure who I felt worse for, the dog, or Jack. If this is any indication of the type of driver he is going to be as he gets older, I'm already afraid. Here's an odd photo of Jack getting his daily dose of fruit. He really is a great kid with a warm and sensitive heart who would truly be devastated if he had hurt that dog. Jeesh, he wigs out when we suck a bug up in our Bug Vaccuum (Golly gosh, I love the Bug Vaccuum!)...


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I absolutely hate bees!! I have this intensely strong fear of them and I'm really not too sure why. This is the time of year when bees in New England are drunk flying and acting very strange and of course one landed on my leg yesterday. I freaked and Charlie, my youngest, managed to save me from the bee! My little hero!


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In other news you most likely do not care to know...Chris and I were cleaning out some pots in the backyard (Okay, I confess, Chris was doing the cleaning, as I have a severe allergic reaction to anything remotely close to cleaning. I kid, I kid. No I don't. Yes, I do. No, I don't.) Here's what Chris found...amazing, huh????? I have a gazillion photos of these little mice, I just couldn't get enough...

It was so cute, but that momma mouse was so worried, we covered her back up and put the whole hanging pot out in the backyard near the woods. Ahhh, new life. So beautiful to me!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In my blog lineup and in no particular order: the life changing Grand Canyon trip I took this year, the photography superstars in my life, a gorgeous maternity photo shoot, a new baby, a brother and a sister, this upcoming weekends wedding, and a Charlie-does-Conan video...stay tuned!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Off to watch my DVR'd Survivor...yes, I still watch that show and it remains a favorite. Does anyone else still watch it? Nothing like a little brainless TV watching with my hubby. Ahhh...

(Re)Connection

"A good friend is a connection to life - a tie to the past, a road to the future, the key to sanity in a totally insane world" ~ Lois Wyse

There is much to say about being connected to others. But in the tidal wave of life's experiences, friendships (connections) can so easily get lost within the sea of time gone by. I LOVE the positive and renewing effects of what it is like to reconnect with people. Just this weekend, I was lucky enough to get together with an old friend, a good friend, a really solid and super fun person. She carried so much light into my life years ago, and I am so happy to have her back!

When we got together this weekend, it was like no time had passed. We chatted just like we did 5 years ago...and it's weird, the only thing that has really changed between us is that we both had a child! (Not that that is any small feat!) I was really happy to see Taryn again but I was totally excited to meet her baby for the first time. Happy as a clam that little girl is! And so full of life and light, just like her mom! Here are some of the photographs I captured of Taylor this weekend.

Taryn, I am so glad we have reconnected, it was so great to see you (you look fabulous!) and talk with you, and I am really looking forward to getting together again soon! :) xo, Katie

============================================================================

I absolutely adore this first picture: when I was post processing it, I just felt like she was saying something to me...like I could see something inside of her... (is that weird?). I guess it just speaks to me...in a really cute way!











If there is someone out there that you need to reconnect with - now is the time to do it...I dare you! xo, Katie

I'm going to let you in on a secret...

Okay, so let's begin, if you know anything about me it's really not that much of a secret, but to the world at large most people don't really understand my fascination. With what, with whom am I fascinated you ask?

With number 58, with JP, with the little tiger, Jonathan Papelbon. I know...no one really understands why (especially my husband and my brothers) but I know I'm not the only one who likes him!!! Come on people, his Facebook fan page has more than 2,000 fans! Basically, what this comes down to, is that I've got a thing for any guy who can/will/does dance in public, just ask my husband...

This summer Chris and I took our boys to their first Red Sox game. We got free tickets and did our best to give them away but then we realized it might just be a great time to take the kids to see Jonnie P., I mean the Red Sox...

All was going well (thank God for gigantic red foam fingers and cotton candy)...but it was a pretty bad (read: boring) game so the kids started getting a little antsy (thank you, cotton candy). We decided we would leave as we had no chance of winning (see scoreboard below) and we still had to drive home to CT. As we got up to leave I received the worst news ever...Papelbon was walking to the mound and I was LEAVING! AHHH! Total bummer... Thank God that I had my zoom lens...I stuck around for as long as I could but they finally had to drag me away....kicking and screaming...

Here are some pics of the event...please don't judge the quality of these, there was no retouching going on... :)

Fantastic score as you can see (thankfully we kicked some Angel butt the other night...)

















Dude with shiny head, please move out of my ever lovin' way...(sorry shiny headed folks, I love you but not in the way of my little tiger)

























Ahh, Papelbaby...

























The three most important boys in my life...sorry, Papelbaby

























Gorgeous night at Fenway Park in Boston...

And finally, in honor of the Red Sox in the playoffs, (and my childhood fascination with Dirty Dancing...shhh, that's a secret) here's a little video that I could watch all day...