Here's a sneak peek from our last-minute session with John and his family. He's being deployed next week and asked if I could create some memories of his family before he left. Introducing John, Whitni, and baby "G..."
We're such procrastinators. Joy, of our "Joy and Light" production, had her birthday last week but it took us over a week before we all went out to celebrate. Party animals that we are, we settled on a girl's breakfast at Cinnamon's of Kailua. We just love their yummy eggs benedict. And I have vague recollection of Krystal saying "we should stop by the beach afterward and build a sand castle." Wow, that sounds like such a cute idea. I thought of tossing on some swim clothes but I figured it would be a brief and carefree jaunt to the beach.
The girls (Tricia, Krystal and "birthday girl" Joy) and I headed over to Cinnamon's. I had the veggie eggs benedict with a poached egg perched on a chair of spinach leaves and tomatoes. Yum Yum. The ordering process was slightly complicated by Tricia who seems to have inherited a little "Sally" from "When Harry Met Sally." We stuffed ourselves full of Portuguese sweet bread french toast covered with drizzled maple syrups and benedicts.
The real adventure started on the sandy shores of Kailua Beach. I think the critical turning point was when someone started digging a hole in the sand and Tricia and I kind of stalled with the infamous question "Do you think that's high enough above the waterline?" Remember that question, it became critical. Thus ensued what was about 75 minutes of hauling endless buckets of sand under the hot sun...75 minutes that felt like 5 hours. It was so much fun...I just don't remember sandcastles being such a workout. I think I'm going to have to fill my plastic blue bucket with wet sand and see how much it weighs.
Krystal was the castle foreman and I focused on the protective moat and property wall. Very quickly we realized the tide was rising and waves were battering across our moat and washing up against our castle walls. Then it became a frantic rescue mission and all four of us had to abandon the castle and dig fervently to keep the water away. It was a total losing battle. We decided our castle would be a duplex so we just extended it up the beach. Despite our red faces, we must have made it look like fun because we had a sibling pair on vacation here from Hawaii join in on the fun. It was perfect timing because I think we were all about to pass out on the sand and they were little balls of energy. They actually were born and raised in New Zealand.
(You can't see me but I'm wearing a bright neon blue T-shirt. I somehow missed the memo to wear a black shirt.)
(Krystal, it's supposed to be fun, remember? There, that's better...there's a laugh)
(Tricia and her minions, she worked those two little New Zealand kiddies)
(Can you believe that Tricia actually thought she was going to go straight to work from the beach?)
(Our sand castle taking shape...it was a mansion)
(I can't tell who is having more fun)
(towers and castle doors)
(she was getting a little worked up over the battle between the wall and the waves)
(her brother was building a pond nearby for the castle royalty)
(then he took a little surf break)
(the stellar castle company)
Every week, our house usually gets a visit from an adorable little 18 month old little girl. I once told my roommate, Tricia, "HB loves you." To which she replied "HB loves everybody." And it's so true. She loves to hug people and she starts to booty dance every time she hears music, even if it is just you singing to yourself. And my husband is the worst. One time, he rushed into the room her on one arm and a tub of M'n'M's in the other hand and gave both to me. He said "Here. She wants candy and I can't tell her no. You tell her." Oh goodness.
She's so photogenic that I have been using her as my model for...well, eighteen months.
But she's starting to pick up the whole camera thing. Now she races towards my camera and lifts it up to her face. It's much heavier than regular point-and-shoot cameras so I've always got a firm grasp on one end. The other day, she figured out how to press the shutter. I took a look and holy cow, she took a really nice picture. I think...I think she's got talent.
Now the logo is actually incorrect. A photo always belongs to the individual who took it. So, disclaimer here: This photo is actually the property of HB, I guess I have to make a "HB Photography" logo. Just a few color curve adjustments in PS and there's your final product. I'm thinking I can be her second shooter when she hits five.
So, I'm in LA. Scott didn't want us to put that on the internet in case our scandalous blog readers (you know...you, John-John,...oh, and you, Joy) read it and decide to burglarize our house. Well, we're on our way home and I feel pretty safe since Dural is house-sitting for us. Come on, Dural's arms need a permit or something.
I had so much fun but I'm also pretty excited to go home. I'm such a homebody. I will post again...with pictures. I just have to wait for Scott to download the pics off his camera since I didn't bring one. I just didn't have room. I hate traveling so all my luggage room was taken up with various media to occupy the flying hours.
We took the overnight flight to LA and it was about 5 hours long. I can't sleep on the plane, so I brought my computer, a DVD player, two books, my own personal pillow, a blanket, snacks, soda, and two magazines on the plane. I couldn't even move, I was cocooned by my belongings. But I think I used almost everything since it was a long flight and no one else stayed awake to entertain me. I even had to ration my water intake since I was on a window seat and both Scott and stranger in aisle seat were both completely out. I was trapped. Let's not forget the family of five in the row behind us with the crying infant and the little girl who kept kicking my chair in her sleep. I couldn't get mad. My heart went out to the mom who was trying to calm the little baby boy. But the rest of the trip was tons more fun. I hope I have time to get back to blogging it once we get back to our "normal lives."
I'm also wishing Joy a "Happy Birthday" just a day early. Girl, how are you celebrating?
Trying something new here...
see www.keaosphotography.blogspot.com
I just had a random thought that watching "So You Think You Can Dance" is a deadly combination when you mix in the fact that they pipe in music through all the rooms and hallways in my office building. Apparently, I now think I can dance...and I tend to do so down the hallways when I swept up by the music. I'm always in the middle of my "dance for you life" solo when some officer walks around the corner...ogh!!!
Although, I don't just think I can dance....I know I can!!!. Okay, maybe I'm losing my touch. Last month, I was hanging out with family and I decided to show my teen niece how you're really supposed to dance. My dad sweetly said "oh, keao, stop. You unfortunately inherited dance skills from me...which are zero to none." I was super indignant.
Me: "What? I can dance. Dad, I danced in high school. Don't you remember?
Dad (perplexed look)
Me: Remember? I was on the school's dance team. Ring a bell?
Dad (perplexed look not fazing)
Me: Hello. I was gone for a whole summer in high school because I was at grandma's ( on a totally different island than where we live) so I could go to the summer practices.
Dad: You did? When was this?
*sigh* Family. But anyways, just keep an eye out when doing turns down the hallway at work.
A photography business has two main components. "Photography" (which I love) and "Business" (which I am still working on). This the third month I've overbooked myself...again. *sigh* Mentally scolding myself as we speak. I keep meaning to take a break, give my poor hubby some quality time without my laptop molded to my lap...relax on the beach with a good book. However, it's the first half of "Photography Business" that gets me in trouble. I love photography. I get so excited when something comes up. An opportunity presents itself and the photography addict in me starts bargaining "Go for it, Keao, you can make time. You'll make it work." I just can't resist. Good photographer, bad bad business-woman. Ha ha. Seriously, you get there and it's so worth it.
For example, last week I received a call from Evelyn, the sweetest woman in the world. She and her husband, Joe, are sweethearts who moved to these islands years ago from Guam. They have raised three amazing kids and they are such a tight family. They joined our church's boot camp exercise together. I'm offering an "Introduction to Digital Photography" seminar in August and they signed up....together. They even do yardwork together. How do I know? They used to be my landlords. Before I married Scott, some friends and I rented out the first level of their duplex. And I fell in love. They were amazing to live under. I can't count how many times I would hear a knock on our door and there was Joe or Evelyn with a steaming pan of deliciousness saying "Oh, we made extra, so please enjoy."
In our premarital counseling, Scott and I read a chapter on "leaving and cleaving your family." Since living in a dorm as a seventh grader at Kamehameha Schools, I have pretty much lived on my own. So I thought this would be an easy and done deal. But the Flores family had quickly become family to me and when I finally got married, there was some definite moments of sadness and wishful thinking. I often joked with Evelyn that I was working on Scott to leave the house he grew up just so we could move back in with the Flores family.
Joe's father was on island visiting so it was a rare moment to have the family together for pictures. Evelyn and I threw this together last minute so we were looking for someplace close by. So we chose Kaneohe District Park. I have a new favorite location. I can't believe I haven't used it before. It has a gorgeous backdrop with the Koolau mountains and these pretty shading trees. I was a little worried about the sheer number of people (with Joe's sister and brother and their respective families), so I recruited fellow photographer, Joy Pishcura.
(Grandpa and all the grand-kids)
(the whole family. Missing only Carl who was firing up dinner on the grill for their barbecue)
just some silly fun, Connie (far right) and her son ,Dural (middle), and nephew Joseph Jr. (left)
(Joe and Evelyn)
(Joe and Evelyn with their amazing kids, Joe Jr., Kardyn, and Jared)
(Dural, a good friend of ours. We usually see him 2 to 3 times a week. Totally worth it)
(Dural and his mom, Connie, who is also Joe's sister)
(Joe's brother Carl couldn't make it so we took tons of pictures of his foursome)
(just some goofing around in the park)
Here's a sneak peek from Scot and Kim. Kim and I had to come up with a system to distinguish our husbands (he's officially hers now) and our conversations were punctuated with my "my scott" versus her "my Scot." I chose this one because...well, it's horizontal and it's just a lot simpler to fit in the column...but also because I love how attentively Kim is listening to that handsome officiant. I was so nervous during my ceremony, I kind of just stared blankly at Pastor Ralph and I was caught a little off-guard when it turns out he was asking me for my vows. Not Kim, she's enjoying every second of her day. If there was a quiz at the end, I'm sure she would have aced it. Kim, don't spoil my Scott. Now he might expect the same set of listening skills from me.
What: The wedding of Nick and Lianne
Where: Ko Olina, Oahu
When: Sunset on a wednesday in June
All details/services provided by: Sands Of Time Weddings
(The setting light was just gorgeous)
(One of my favorites)
To see these images and the rest from this special day, please visit http://www.keaosphotography.instaproofs.com/ and click on "Nick and Lianne."
I'm thirty. I think I'm losing my memory. At first it was a big joke...I was the one who could never remember people from high school. But today, it really started to bother me...I don't remember who people are.
I loved loved loved school...probably why I went into teaching and I wish I could go back and take more college classes. But I would agree that they left out the most important life skills in education. How to small talk. How to make connections. How to understand all those deductions on your paycheck. And I definitely missed the class on how to remember people's names and faces. Seriously, such a great skill that will do you great in life.
What: Kacie's Maternity sesion (joined by hubby, Clinton, and little man "L")
When: a Saturday afternoon in June
Where: Kalama Beach Park
So, Kacie's session was actually a few weeks ago so she has been patiently waiting for her pictures. The wait is finally over. I aim to do maternity shoots between the 32nd and the 36th week of a woman's pregnancy. You'll get the nice baby bump but you dont' want to be too close to the end, where you may be a little more uncomfortable or...the baby might make a surprise entrance before we can get those pictures. So we had to squeeze the session into June. She brought her hubby, Clinton, and their little manly "L" to the family maternity session at Kalama Beach Park. It was a location they chose because of it's meaning and special significance, the place where Clinton proposed to Kacie and set in motion the journey their family would take together.
This was also a Joy and Light production, I was joined by another photographer, Joy Pishcura. She literally had returned to Oahu just three days earlier after being with family in Ohio for six months. I had a sprained ankle so I was hopping around the beach and so I wanted that pair of second eyes there. It was a full car because my hubby decided he wanted to go to the beach and he brought along his friend, Jasen. Don't get me wrong, I love company...if I had any complaint...it would be that when I had a shot lined up with Clinton and Kacie in a sandy pathway under trees with the sand and ocean stretching behind them....there rising out of the seas like King Triton was my husband in his bright yellow surf shorts. His only response to my frantic arm waves motioning for him to move out of the frame was "What? You don't own the beach." Oh, that's my Scott.
Little "L" is...hmmm...I think he's two. He had just come from another party and was crashed out. Then he woke up to find himself at the beach with Auntie Keao chasing him around with a camera...he was more interested in playing. So we let him play. He actually found a dollar bill just digging in the sand and then he found a lone, unclaimed boogeyboard on the beach. His dad, clinton, wisely advised him to leave it there so that everybody else would get to use it.
Thanks so much to Kacie for letting us in on their family day at the beach. Kacie is our women's worship leader at our church and we've sung together so many times. She's an absolute sweetheart. Her hubby, Clinton, is also an uber-talented musician. He played the drums with my husband's band at our wedding and he also has a T-shirt design company, No Idols. They, of course by the pictures, have an adorable little boy "L", and will be joined by their very much already-loved daughter at the end of this summer.
Here's some of my faves from the day:
And by special request (so you know i don't make up these stories), here's a little gem of the stud in the yellow surf shorts.
Don't be jealous, he's mine!!!
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