Yearbook Mania

Yearbook season is here, which means the end of senior photos until next spring, and a rush to get all of the yearbooks in on time. Here are the first, Lynden Christian and Squalicum. Are they not an exceedingly good-looking group?!

True Love Hopes

I met Bobby and Stephanie through a friend and shared an hour with them while they played on the beach with their twin one-year-old girls, Halley and Avery. The girls are little heroes, fighting an unknown battle with humor and perseverance we could learn much from. Their determination shines in their bright faces, with eyes adorned with eyelashes worthy of Venus. The tubes in their noses feed them with as much protein as a 3-year-old requires, yet their little bodies have trouble retaining much at all. Bobby and Stephanie spend much of their time at Children's in Seattle and hope to leave soon for Ohio, where specialists will continue to probe the mystery of their illness. If you want to follow their progress, check this link: http://www.carepages.com/carepages/HalleyandAveryBrooks.

Growing up in the Wild

I mentioned my Aleut mom (only 1/4, but still!) back in my June 4, 2008 blog. This weekend I spent several hours with my parents and brothers perusing and sorting family albums. I found two pictures which confirmed my childhood suspicions that my mom was indeed an Eskimo! Both were of her at age 3, one with her sitting on a dead wolf in the snow with a rifle nearby, and the other pictured her in a rugged sled with sealskin boots up to her knees! My mom did indeed grow up in the wild, at least until age seven when her dad was given a legislative appointment and wound up in Washington, D.C., that other wild place.
On Thursday I photographed EllyRose, another girl growing up in the wild, only this time on 200 acres along the sloughs and dikes near Samish Bay in Skagit County. EllyRose's growing up was filled with flocks of ducks, mounds of fossils, visiting whales, rodeos, and more. I captured a few of these wild spots with EllyRose. Afterwards, her mom sent me home with fresh corn and 2 crabs! I have the best job in the world!

Spreading the word

The number-one force behind our growing business is people spreading the word. This year it seems nearly every senior has brought along another after their session. We love the referrals and we know that those people coming in know what to expect - a fun, easy photo session and amazing portraits afterwards. We reward our clients with spiral-bound copies of their proofs when they give a referral. We also have senior reps at some of the high schools, and we load them with free goodies so they can share their photos with their friends. Addeson, pictured here, is our Meridian rep. He was a blast to photograph! Thanks seniors, and thanks parents of seniors for making my job so much easier!

We all have to grow up

One of the pleasures and blessings of my job is watching people grow up! Sometimes that means babies turning into preschoolers, kids graduating, and even parents becoming grandparents. We all still have growing up to do!
Rob & Alicia Wurm first hired me to photograph Rachele, who was beginning her musical career while still in high school and needed cover art for her 2nd CD. After that graduation photos, family photos, more CD art, and now her little sister Heather is graduating and I had the privilege of photographing her at Boulevard Park this week. Enjoy :)

Growing a Family

Last spring I joined an adoption organization, "Celebrate Adoption." My role is helping adoptive families by photographing them for free, giving them a free set of framable proofs and 15% off any additional orders.  I finally got my first call and on Friday I photographed Mike & Kristi Molendyk's family along the Nooksack river.  Mike and Kristi and their biological kids, Brielle and Trey, welcomed Trevin into their home 7 months ago from Ethiopia. I am privileged to have watched and photographed this happy family at play. May God's blessings be on all of you parents who have adopted children. You are among my heroes.

Family Affair

Recently I had a profusion of grandparents accompanying my seniors, along with parents, siblings, boy and girlfriends... while pondering this I realized how much I love having "cheerleaders" along at the session! My own favorite language of love is "words of encouragement" and I love hearing adoring family and friends encouraging and admiring the senior I am photographing.
Two of my favorite recent sessions involved such loving grandparents. Jessica's grandparents hiked all the way to the beach at Larabee State Park, which is a difficult trail. Then when I asked Jessica to climb a boulder in the sea her grandfather was ready to hike into the water to give her a leg up! (dad beat him to it :).
Ellie brought along 2 sets of grandparents to Boulevard Park, who communicated words of cheer and told passerbys about their beloved granddaughter.
Hurrah for grandparents! You are so welcome to tag along at any of my photo sessions!

They're Back!

July brought the first round of 2009 Seniors!
Here are 2 of the first, John & Dirk. You gotta love 'em!

Snuck in, just in time

Yesterday I was in the car with my 7-year-old son Leo, and I was telling him about the global food crisis and how Compassion International was having a day of prayer for the poor people of the world. He said, "Let's pray right now!" Then added, "You don't have to close your eyes." He prayed and then I prayed. I was impressed by his sense of urgency to pray and his complete lack of hesitation. It reminded me of a couple of months ago when we were visiting my college roommate Christi and her family. Christi, Lainie and I were praying and Leo and Jaden, Christi's 6-year-old daughter, were playing nearby. As we prayed the kids gathered around us. Christi prayed something like this, "And God, thanks so much for sneaking Leo in just in time..." Leo immediately turned to Jaden and whispered, "God snuck me in just in time!" May God bring help to those who need Him so desperately, and just in time.

Milestones, not millstones

Photos: My mom in Alaska; Gabe at 13; Gabe at 18; Gabe with his buddies before graduation.



This week marks three major milestones in my life. Today is my mom's 80th birthday, and if my husband was still alive, it would have been our 25th anniversary. Tomorrow my third child, Gabe, graduates from high school.
My mom is a wonderful woman. She prays for us and cares for us with devotion and love. Jewell Lee was born in Valdez, Alaska, was given a mine for her 6th birthday, and later her hometown slid into the sea during the tsunami of '64. I believed she was an Eskimo when I was little, and later learned that her grandmother actually was Aleutian! Her grandfather was a Russian Orthodox Priest. My mom has had a full life. She stayed home with us until I reached junior high, then became a realtor with my dad. She was raised a Christian Scientist and became a Christian while I was in high school. She oversaw the careful feeding of my dad, a life-long diabetic. At 82 and still going strong, my dad is a poster child for the diabetes association, and I give my mom much of the credit for his healthy, happy life. Her influence led me to stay home with my kids. I didn't work full time until Leo died, and even then I have continued to work out of my home so that I can be near little Leo, now 7. My mom took what she was given and made a beautiful life from it. I hope I will always do the same.

My own life changed when my husband died of a heart attack at age 41. I was pregnant, and we had great plans for more adventures for our family. I've tried to take what I have and give back to my kids what Leo and I would have given them together. Some things I have never been able to do again on a serious level, like kayaking and backpacking in the wilderness. But we did backpack together (all 5 of us!) for 9 weeks around Europe, and we've traveled to New York City and Budapest as well. Leo and I had 17 years of lovely marriage. I've had nearly 8 more years on my own, and although I miss him like crazy, I'm glad for all he gave us before he left that has enabled me to carry on.

Finally, Gabe finishes his high school years tomorrow night. I homeschooled Gabe through the 7th grade, though he took over most of his education after Leo died. I'm putting together a photo album for him, and I found a picture of him when he was 13 years old, asleep on the couch with two dictionaries and Chaucer under his arm. That sums up much of Gabe's education: always learning, reading, researching, recording. Gabe never let the loss of his dad stand in his way, or used it for an excuse. He is a scholar, an artist, and a dear, dear son and brother. His affection for Leo and the time he has spent with him could never be overstated. We will miss him so much!

Siblings

This year I have had the privilege of photographing siblings of former seniors, who are now seniors themselves. I am featuring two here: Elsbeth '08, and Sam Doesburg '06, who are not only siblings, but young people I have known and loved since they were preschoolers; and Heidi '08, and Rob Ehlers '05, who I met through their mom four years ago in my grief support group. Like us, the Ehlers lost their dad at a young age. Heidi and Rob both had their photos taken at Larabee State Park. Sam's were taken at Hovander Park, and Elsbeth had two sessions, the one featured is in Winthrop where we were camping last fall together. If you want some unusual senior pictures, we will be on Oregon coast this summer and in Eastern Washington in the fall! Join us!

LITTLE!

I've told you before about my acting kids, well now Gabe is writing, directing, set designing, music writing, etc., and it's on stage tonight, Thursday, May 8 at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday, May 8 at 2:30 and again at 7:30, at Lynden Christian High School. The show is LITTLE, or Not so Happily Ever After. It is a musical based on Rumplestiltskin. Overheard last night from parent reviewers: "Gabe is the next Tim Burton!" Come see for yourself. Share my joy with me!
love,
Karen

Oh Baby!

One of the great things about babies is that they are born year round! As much as I love high school seniors, I only work with them seasonally, whereas babies just keep coming.
Another great thing about babies is observing their amazing personalities - and they are loaded! Lassen is our newest Blessings Collection baby. He is four months old. In my one hour with him, I got to see everything from rage to joy and all the fun curious spots in between. Here are just a few of his memorable expressions - you gotta love this guy! I'm excited to see him again in a few months and see how crawling and standing rocks his world!