Garland The Cowardly

Garland is a very, very, very friendly dog...almost annoyingly so. You think I'm joking but if it moves, she'll want to play with it. Squirrel, spider, trash, laser pointer, cat, small child...it moves, she'll play. I seriously doubt she's met a person she doesnt like. I find myself apologizing a lot when we have company for things like the obnoxious jumping, the face licking, the hair chewing, the talking back - yes, our dog talks back.

We have quite a bit of construction going on on the street outside our housing development and as it turns out, our dog is quite the coward. Loud bangs that not only startle but rattle the house cause her to quiver and attempt to flatten herself into the couch behind me. Oddly, our little Toto wanna be is also afraid of the guitar...who knew?

So today, while the terrible little beastie is hiding away under my desk beneath my feet and I'm listening to a quite playlist on Pandora, I'm reminded of all the relationships in my life that make me feel safe and secure. When the world around me feels intimidating or I just feel the need to hide away beneath a desk, I have comfort, safety, and security.

Dwell in Possibility...
Cassie

Our Favorite Things: Health Mag

Being that it's January, I'm fairly certain health is on the forefront of nearly everyone's mind. Or at least women, because when we see the flood of commercials on eating healthy and working out and feeling good, we tend to get a little, how shall we say, desperate to feel better and look better.

Towards the end of 2009 was my desperate to feel better and look better moment. I'd been married for a little over a year, finally got out from under a job I absolutely couldnt stand and took the plunge into doing what I really love full time. It was around that time that I got a piece of what appeared to be junk mail. Being that I was still a little lost when it came down to what my day to day schedule should look like now that I was working from home, it was one of the few pieces of junk mail that I'd ever looked at. Turns out, it wasnt exactly junk mail; it was my delta rewards points telling me that they were about to expire. At the time, Andrew and I were desperately searching for a home to buy so I knew that traveling was out of the question. I went on the website provided out of curiosity...maybe I could get a free ticket with my points or something. No such luck. I did however qualify for about half a dozen different subscriptions to various magazines. Enter Health magazine.

I've never really been one for the latest fads but I love healthy foods. I love how I feel after a hard workout, I love when my refrigerator is full of vibrant fresh colors and I love love love to eat a whole box full of strawberries in one sitting. 2010 became the year Andrew and I really embraced a healthy lifestyle, and luckily, through dedication, Health magazine and encouraging each other when we really didnt want it, it stuck.

Dwell in Possibility...
Cassie

Us: In Action 2010

As it turns out, my decision to make January my month of creating goals for 2011 was a really, really, really good one. I keep stumbling across things as I'm filing away 2010 and clearing the way for 2011 that make me think "I've really got to get better about..." or "This was a horrible idea!" or what seems to be the most popular "Oops, I was going to do that wasnt I?" So, as I was compiling the photos for this blog post, I realized that yet another thing slipped through the cracks of 2010 and is being put on the list for 2011. Take one photo per photo shoot of Andrew and myself in action...and dont delete it.

The uh, not deleting part was the problem this year. I would forget that I was holding onto them, or I would think I looked awful and so on and so forth. So, here is a little glimpse of us in action in 2010. These photos arent much, they're all I could find in my folders but it's a tiny glimpse. Oh, and did I mention the outfits....yes, the outfits - totally adding that to the list of things to work on because sheesh people, why did I leave the house in some of these!!

This boy thinks he's hilarious...and you know what, I would tend to agree.

There's that beautiful ShootSac cover - oh how I miss you.



In the summer, my hair turns this color and I have no idea how or why.





Ah the braid. Someone needed to tell me how awful this looked.



This is my husbands idea of letting me get a good light reading...funny man.









I swear I look through the viewfinder. Just, not all the time.





I pity Andrew sometimes. I give him this look way more than any wife should.













Yes folks, book Olimb Photography and this face will appear at some point during your wedding reception - guaranteed!





Sometimes I think too hard...this apparently is the face that sticks.









This face makes me happy!

Andrew informed me that during the father daughter dance, my face flickers back and forth between this and near tears. It is by far one of my favorite parts of the reception.

Dwell in Possibility...
Cassie

Roland Family: Anytime

I've expressed this before, but the significance of family photos is impressing itself on me more and more often. It's making me realize how few photos Andrew and I have. We dont have a wedding album or a photo album of any kind on our coffee table...the photos in our picture frames are about three years old. The more I shoot families and receive their emails thanking me for the memories and treasures I captured for them, the more I realize that this is something I need to be sure to start changing this year.

Over the holidays I was presented with multiple opportunities to capture the essence of families in their various parts of their journey. Christi and her sweet little girl were one of them. I'm beginning to really enjoy seeing the different types of kiddos that are in front of my camera. They're all so different! Prancing around in her little Madeline jacket trying her hardest not to complain about the cold...I laughed at how direct she was in what she wanted. She told me when she'd had enough of the cookies, when she didnt want the candy canes any more and when she'd had her fill of the Santa hat. And oddly enough, she even told me when it was time for me to go! But regardless of when she decided it was time to stop being messy and coated in sugar, she was adorable in her toothy little grin and engaging little inquisitive eyes.

Dwell in Possibility...
Cassie

The Christmas Card That Wasnt

Hanging my head in shame, I admitted that we failed this year. As photographers, I think people assume that we are going to have an amazing Christmas card. Believe me, I've seen some rockin Christmas cards from photographers. But, as much as I like to think of myself as a planner, we royally failed this year with our Christmas card. We never took a picture and the pictures we had, we never bothered to go through and pick one for a card. And then, when we thought about it, it was too late to get them ordered, printed, and sent out.

So, here's the Christmas card that wasn't. Happy new year everyone! And I think I'm going to go ahead and start planning our 2011 Christmas card now...then maybe we'll actually get one in the mail on time this year!

Dwell in Possibility...
Cassie

A Year In Review: 2010

It seriously feels like we were just doing this...Andrew and I were just sitting down writing out our goals for 2010; I was just writing in my brand new calendar complete with a new set of post it notes. But at the same time, it also feels like this year has been a long time coming. We have so much to look back on, some much to take in and learn from! Usually I would have a post set up about what we learned from this year and what we hope to accomplish next year, but we're seriously still soaking in everything. So, instead of cheapening the experience and just writing up some quick goals that we would probably never accomplish, I'm giving ourselves permission to wait. January will be our month to make our goals...after all, it's not like January 1 is going to roll over and we're going to be instantly better people - it's a process. And with every good process, time and caffeine and lots of couch talk will be required.

While I'm not going to focus on our past and future goals this post, I do want to focus on our amazing year we've had. This year has definitely been a growing experience in our shooting. It was a first year with the 5D Mark iis and really discovering what our shooting style is. And it's also been the first year that I've embraced my clients wholeheartedly, not caring about whats "normal" and just being what I wanted. The result? We have had the most amazing clients this year. Every year, our clients seem to get better and better. This year, a truly amazing year, our clients have blessed us with loving hearts and amazingly encouraging words every step of the way. Here's a look back at our fantastically fabulous clients this year...

Thank you all so so much for an amazing year. While compiling the images for this post, I at first couldnt stop staring at the technical - our style has changed so much throughout the year...and then I was struck by the sheer amazingness {yes, it's a new word} of it all. All of you chose Andrew and I...all of you have invested in our lives and made us feel like part of your family. Thank you! Words cannot express the gratitude that Andrew and I have for all of you entrusting your memories with us. We love you all - Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Dwell in Possibility...
Cassie