Pete and Kris are a fellow Navy family my husband worked with years ago back in San Diego. We reconnected in Alexandria when they had their second daughter Madeline. I had the honor of reconnecting with them yet again on my recent trip back home to San Diego where they are oh-so-lucky to be stationed. They are expecting their 3rd baby girl in 2012. Many congratulations to them both on their growing family and gorgeous girls. =)

I had the most amazing weekend with this awesome family at their beach house in Lewes. Good food, good wine, GREAT company. Thank you again for the honor of photographing your fabulous family. Your incredible love for one another is a joy to witness! =) And a very happy birthday to Tricia… grandmother… mother… and a gorgeous person inside and out. No wonder your daughters turned out to be such incredibly warm and brilliant women!

Today is about the only sunny day in our week-long forecast, with more cold and rain ahead for the rest of the week. It is also the first day of the full cherry blossom blooms, so I didn’t want to miss out on all those glorious flowers. I managed to talk 3 out of my 4 kids into waking up at 5am to drive down to the Tidal Basin with me. Turns out a few thousand other photographers had the same idea. We beat the traffic and braved the cold (low 30′s). I got a few token shots off before my little ones decided they had had enough of the cold and wanted to go home. Good deal. So, here are my snapshots of 2011. The photos of me were taken by my oldest son, Caleb (thank you Caleb!). You can view my 2010 cherry blossom shots here.

The light is so amazing in the wee hours of the morning. I wish I could talk my clients into meeting me before sunrise (HINT, HINT). No luck so far. Early bird catches the worm… in this case, the magical morning light.

I’ll be relocating my business to Southern Maryland this summer and am happy to take bookings in the area beginning in September. I will also be available for sessions in DC and Alexandria. =)

I met up with the Tanya, Audrey, Julia, and their grandma and grandpa in DC for some family photos. It was a gorgeous day, with a deceiving bite in the air. I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to these east coast winters. But it sure is beautiful. =) There is so much to see and do in our Nation’s Capital.

You may remember this awesome family that I blogged about 2 years ago. I had the honor of photographing them again this year. I can’t get over how big Gavin and Trevor are! Thanks to John and Joanna for meeting me at Mount Vernon today. The weather was perfect. I’ll take a 70-something degree fall any day. Makes me feel like I’m back home in San Diego… which is where I met John and Joanna almost 12 years ago. I love that we ended up on the same coast and that I get to photograph their beautiful family. And check out Joanna’s awesome boots. STYLIN’!

I have been watching the DC Bloom Watch like a hawk this year. Initially it posted the peak bloom date as April 1st, so I went down on March 31st and the blossoms were spectacular. It was like walking through a dream. Last year the blooms blew away so quickly that I barely had a chance to enjoy them, so I didn’t want to let the opportunity slip away this year. I went again on April 6 and what a difference 6 days made. Most of the blooms had fallen away. There were some tucked away safely on tree trunks and under overpasses that seemed intact.

I love this one of my daughter and I by my dear friend Stephanie at The Hip Studio in Leesburg. Thanks Stephanie!

I can’t help but stand in awe of all the history that has taken place here. And the beauty of the structure is a sight to behold. I recommend going before sunrise or after sunset to appreciate the stillness. After 21 months here, I’ve finally found a quick route out of DC… Down New York Avenue and on to Interstate 66. Otherwise you end up waiting for the hundreds of tourists crossing streets when you have the right of way. Traffic is a bit nutty in DC, especially during broad daylight. Only 14 months left here, then we are off to wherever the Navy decides it needs my husband (crossing my fingers that we make a beeline back to San Diego… my SoCal blood can’t hack the cold winters anymore. But I sure do love the snow. I know, strange).

And because I am so tickled about spring, I’m offering a BOGO special this week. Buy one session, get a 2nd session free (both must be redeemed by May 2011). This special covers session time and editing only. Prints and digital files are sold separately. You can keep the 2nd session for yourself or gift it to a friend or family member that lives within 30 miles of Loudoun County. Please be sure to let them know their session needs to be scheduled before May 2011.

According to our pedometers, we’ve walked about 20 miles shoveling snow off our driveway. I started yesterday morning while my husband was at work. Then we took 2 hour shift turns when he got home. He was up shoveling at 1 a.m., bless his heart. We were at it again this morning, but it still doesn’t look like we touched the driveway. It’s coming down hard and fast. But I still love every bit of it. The igloo that we built on our sidewalk yesterday was wiped away by the snow plows early this morning. My husband says maybe they thought they were doing us a favor. It looked like a big blob by 1 a.m. because of all the snow that came down after we’d gone inside. They are predicting another 9 hours or more of snowfall. A break on Sunday and Monday, then more snow Tuesday and Wednesday. Haha… I find it very amusing. The kids measured 18 inches this morning. It’ll be interesting to see what the full depth will be by the end of this storm. And I’ve come to discover that inhaling snowflakes is one of the oddest things I’ve ever experienced. The cold makes your body numb, so you don’t realize how sore you are until you come inside, toss your wet clothes and gloves in the dryer, defrost, and take a break. When you’re out there shoveling, you switch to autopilot. Just trying to clear a path for your car to get out in case of any emergencies. We’re not in SoCal anymore Toto! =)

Pat and Debbie exchanged wedding vows in the small Chapel on the 8th floor of the George Washington Masonic Memorial in Alexandria, VA. It was a small, intimate affair with 20 guests and the bride was breathtaking… like a starlet straight out of a 1940′s movie. The groom was dapper in his duds, the perfect compliment to his lovely lady. It was a deceptively gorgeous, sunny day and they braved the 12 degree wind chill after the ceremony. Brrr… but it was totally worth it. Special thanks to my fellow photographer Elizabeth Leighton for helping me document their special day. Here is a sneak peek…