{San Diego Family Photography~Hotel Del Coronado}

I have been very fortunate my last several sessions to have the pleasure of not only photographing some wonderful families but also the grandparents who make up the extended family. This session was done about a month back at the beautiful and sunny beaches of Coronado in front of the Hotel Del. The session was a gift for the grandparents from their daughter to capture them with their two adorable red headed grandchildren! We did all sorts of combinations and even included the family dog (also adorable) and their eldest grandchild who was visiting CA along with them! Thank you to this lovely family who I just adore, this was a very fun and memorable day! 

Enjoy! xoxo

Grandparents and beautiful Grand babies <3

Really love sweet moments like this so much!

3 Generation Shot 

This little lady was all about the photos! 

Such a cutie!

Elena

Tyson and Elena relaxing 

This was the last shot of the day! Hope these will bring back fond memories for all of you! 

{San Diego Family Photography~La Jolla Cove with the Uy and Weiler Family}

Can you even imagine the excitement and expectation of flying literally around the globe to meet your grandchild for the first time?? Annette's parents are from the Philippines and that is exactly what they did. This was a very special photo shoot to capture the joy and excitement of such a memorable life event for both of these families. I can assure you that Baby A exceeded all their expectations of perfection as she did mine;  she is such a sweet and adorable baby and was happy the whole time! I want to thank the Weiler and Uy family for allowing me to capture such a special time for both of them, it was a pleasure! Enjoy <3

Truly Proud Grandparents and their lovely Grandchild 

Loved this while setting up Mommy and Daddy adoring Baby A :)

The Weiler Family 2012

The Weiler and Uy Family 2012

Annette with her parents and 'first child' Puddin ;0) 

Annetter and Bob on the beautiful cliffs of La Jolla

3 Generation Shot

Grandpa and his girls

Bob was cracking her up the whole time but Grandpa filled in on this one!

Mommy and Baby A

I love this shot, this was 'the' shot that we planned the shoot around and it came out beautifully! Annette's Mom really wanted a San Diego Sunset and although overcast the sky light up perfectly. 

{How To Be An Everyday Philanthropist~ April}

April~ Use Your Talents

"When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, 'I used everything you gave me.' " ~ Erma Bombeck

This is the April edition of a year long goal to practically live out a philanthropic way of life. I am accomplishing this with the help and instruction of  Nicole Bouchard Boles book~ "How to Be an Everyday Philanthropist" The book is a great read in and of itself and oddly enough the beginning of this chapter highlighted a story of a man; Mario Betto, who styles hair for a living and has 'turned that skill into a force for good'. The book goes on to say; "His philosophy is simple: If people don't feel good about themselves, they won't be able to face life's challenges with confidence." So Mario start a nonprofit called Hairstylists for Humanity offering free haircuts to the homeless and other low income people.

I was blown away by this and thus my very own amazing stylist for years, the lovely the endlessly talented Martha Ramirez was recuited (very willingly) to use her amazing gift to bless my friend Regina with a brand new look!! This is a glimpse into how easy it can be to give back and use your talent to make a difference, even if it's one hair cut and color at a time :) 

Martha has worked as a stylist in top salon's in Europe and currently works in and around the San Diego Area while being a devoted wife and mother, she is my kind of girl<3 She can be reached @ hairdone4u2@yahoo.co.uk

Martha hard at work...

Martha complets the cut by blow drying and styling Regina's new look! 

As a side note, Martha introduced me to this stuff and it is amazing, totally changes the texture of corse and over processed hair. 

The Adorable Miss G with Mama:) 

Regina opted for a side swept bang to complete her look!

Ta Da! Fantastic new look in an afternoon and fresh new hair always makes you feel like a new person!

Special thanks to Regina and Martha for being a part of this installment!!

{How To Be An Everyday Philanthropist~ March}

March~ Use Your Computer

So we are a little behind but better late than never right! :) Welcome to those of you who are just joining us!! At the beginning of this year I set a personal goal as a mother to instill the importance of philanthropy by doing simple and easy projects with my two oldest children.  

 In all honesty I had picked up a copy of 

 Nicole Bouchard Boles book~ "How to Be an Everyday Philanthropist"  a year or so before and had never followed through with really using this amazingly helpful guide! So 2012 is the year! I decided to designate each chapter for a month in the year and use one of the suggested strategies in the corresponding chapter to highlight the importance of philanthropy in real hands on ways. 

So March was 'use your computer' which was a very fun and easy way to give back without even leaving our home. My kids are constantly trying to haggle with me for computer time and this was a total win-win for all.  

 This is our photo journal of completing our March challenge and another valuable lesson that giving back can be fun, easy, and even educational!

{Links below for fun and easy click-to-donate sites so take a look!}

The kids choose the site FreeRice.com to start with where you can learn while you give back! The kids were tested on everything from Math, to German, to Flags from around the world and had a blast watching their rice pile up! For each answer they got right 10 grains of rice were donated to the United Nations World Food Program.

The kids actually worked together answering questions and helping each other without fighting which made the experience even better! 

They even took turns being the one to 'click' the right answer to earn the rice;)

By the time we had to leave for school that morning the kids had earned over 1,000 grains of rice for the needy and hungry people around the world; now that is a hugely rewarding endeavor for any child to be a part of and I know we will continue to frequent this site and others for years to come!

If you are looking for fun and interactive ways to help your kids learn to give back here are a few that are listed in the book!

Click-To-Donate
CharityClickDonation.com
HungryChildren.com
Care2.com
TheLiteracySite.com
TheAnimalRescueSite.com
TheRainforestSite.com

This is just a few of the many helpful links listed in the book.
For your own copy of How To Be an Everyday Philanthropist by Nichole Bouchard Boles: {'Click' Here :) }

 

{Special Feature~Jessica of J Hill Interior Designs}

 One of my goals this year was to feature other small business owners who inspire and encourage me! When you are starting your business from scratch it is fellow friends/business owners who can relate to the countless hours that must be invested to develop your brand. I have had the pleasure of watching Jes begin her business to becoming a sought after designer. 

This was such a pleasure for me to capture Jessica in a way that conveys her amazing and colorful personality and give her some up to date head shots as she takes her small business to the next level. 

  So without further ado; Meet the lovely Jessica owner and designer/decorator of J Hill Interior Designs. Jessica runs and operates her business in beautiful Coronado CA, and the greater San Diego area.  Jessica offers a wide spectrum of services that enable many different client types to hire a designer and her work is really amazing! You can check out more of her design projects on her website @  www.jhillinteriordesigns.com

Thank you to Jessica and much success! 

{San Diego Family Photography~ Hotel Del Coronado with the Lutz Family}

 In San Diego the Hotel Del is one of the most iconic features on the island of Coronado.

 This is the Lutz Family on the beaches of Coronado with the Hotel Del in the background for their family portrait session. It is always challenging working with young children but these two little angels were so good and so well behaved I could not believe it! It was a pleasure to work with such an amazing family and capture some really sweet moments with them in such a lovely location while their babies are still small. These are the memories you look back on when they are all grown up and ask where the time went. Thank you so much to the Lutz Family, Enjoy!