Laugh. Love. Photo.

I am the type of person that remembers the most mundane and random details from my life. But I can not for the life of me remember a specific date. I know it was summer because I was wearing shorts. And I know I was 13 because my little sister was almost 3. But I do not remember the exact date that I was sexually assaulted. Maybe because for nearly 20 years, I've tried everything in my power to forget. I have struggled with this post. Do I post? Is it too personal? Will I offend people? What will people say or think of me? Am I ready to tell this story so publicly? Will it be a positive message? When it comes down to it, this is MY blog and MY life. If my story helps just one single woman realize that they can be ok after a sexual assault, then my post was not in vain. And besides, I need to get this OUT - not for anyone else, but for myself. This is my way of coming to terms with what has happened and this post is for me. I will remain as anonymous as possible and only refer t...

A year ago I had the honor of photographing Miss Courtney Slatick. I had the goal of helping her raise awareness of her rare disease, SMA Syndrome. She had the goal of not only raising awareness, but putting out a positive message to women of all ages, that despite the tubes that were hanging out of her body, she was still beautiful. You can see the original blog post, watch her video and see her photos from that session here: http://laughlovephoto.blogspot.com/2012/03/beautiful-and-brave-sma-survivor.html When I met Courtney I knew right away she would do great things with her life. She had a positive attitude and a survivor mentality. She had a motivational drive within her that I knew would propel her to achieve any goals she set. I could tell she was a fighter and instantly the image of "Rosie the Riveter" came to mind. I have waited a whole year to do my take of Rosie and it was a year well worth it. Here's Courtney with her own "Yes, I can" attitude! ...

As a creative person I find the store-bought Valentine's cards repetitive. Given the option my son would probably give Star Wars cards every single year. I feel that in the profession I'm in, I need to step up my Mommy game and provide him with more fun options. I also blame Pinterest for giving me a complex as a Mom!  Anyway, to remedy this I'm going to be offering affordable Valentine's Mini Sessions so your kids can have creative and fun Valentine's to hand out to their friends and family! You will get your choice of 2 digital images with print release to create your own Valentine's cards or 30 custom designed bookmarks that the kids can sign their name own name on. These bookmarks are double sided keepsakes that will have photos on both sides; much more exciting than a Yoda face on a disposable piece of paper (although my Tyler would argue that opinion)! You could easily punch a hole in a corner of the bookmark to attach a piece of candy, pencil or ot...

I am fortunate and honored to be a part of an incredible group of female photographers that sell on Etsy. The group is fPOE for short and we work together as a team. We cross promote by making treasuries on Etsy, we support each other behind the scenes in our Facebook group and we share valuable information that can take years of research to figure out. This group has quickly become my 'safe place' on Facebook and I consider each and every one of them a friend and colleague. The camaraderie in our group is rare amongst females and it is greatly appreciated! And this hasn't gone unnoticed as our fPOE team is among the nominated teams for "Team Spirit" on Etsy. YAY TEAM! When a photographer is asked who they're inspired by, many will rattle off well-known portrait photographers. They may be well known because they host workshops or just have a large Facebook fan base. But the fPOE ladies are the photographers and artists that inspire me the most. They create h...

There's an Alan Jackson song about September 11th, perhaps you're familiar with. In it he sings "Where were you when the world stopped turning...". Of course I know where I was, who I was with and most of all, I will never forget how I felt. I had hoped that would be the only time in my life that I'd have a world event impact my heart so deeply. Unfortunately, on December 14, 2012 another tragic event rocked me to my core. But it affected me differently than 9/11 because this time I was a mother and this time it was innocent children, the same age as my son. It sparked a feeling inside me that can not be explained into words, but the best I can muster is that it was fear, it was a breathtaking heartbreak and it was also an incredible gratitude that my children were safe. As the Alan Jackson song asks, 'where were you...', I have never felt more safe than where I was that day. I happened to have both children home sick and we were all napping in my bed sn...