A Maine Pizza Party

There is something about the state of Maine.  From the moment you arrive, you know you're somewhere special.  The houses, the fresh air, the ocean, the people...all of it.

I was invited by Adam and Susan (more on them in an upcoming blog) to go to the annual pizza party hosted by Jane and Paul (shown here cooking) on an island in Maine.  The moment I arrived, I felt as if I walked into the pages of a magazine.  They live the Maine lifestyle as you see in the pages of Martha Stewart Living, Sunset, or any other fine entertaining, food or design magazine.  I was smitten.

They built a pizza oven in their yard from scratch and it got plenty of use over the course of the evening when Jane hand made over 50 pizzas while Paul cooked them in their perfect pizza oven.  I have to say that these pizza's were the best I've ever had.  The crust was thin and crispy and each pie was a masterpiece!  I couldn't name all that came out but some of my favorites were the shrimp pizza, pear, caramelized onion and to top it all off, it ended with the best s'more dessert pizza.

As I am writing this, the flavors are coming back to me and I want more!  I was in awe of how seemingly easy they made it look.  From the setting, people, food and drinks...I took a trip and lived the Maine lifestyle, if only for a moment.

Thank you to Paul and Jane for hosting such a lovely party and for all of the people I met throughout the course of the night.  I tried to put my camera down every now and then to socialize, but the setting was to die for so I couldn't help but snap away at what I saw.  Because of this evening, pizza will never be the same for me again.

Red Sox Baseball: An American Tradition at Fenway Park

I wouldn't call myself a "baseball fan."  I enjoy sports but I never really got into the sport of baseball.  There are baseball fans, and then there are Red Sox fans.  You know you are getting close to Boston when most cars have red sox stickers on them and you can't walk down the street without coming across someone wearing Red Sox attire or seeing it on a billboard, on packaging, on signs or overhearing it in conversations that usually go something like, "blah blah, blah...Red Sox, blah, blah, wicked, etc."

Even during the game, there were fans sitting right behind me talking about players, how much money they were getting, their stats and the like.  No, not just for a few minutes....it went on the entire game.

Young and old, fans came out to support the team even though they aren't the best team in the league. I believe a lot of it has to do with tradition.  If you grow up going to the games, you will continue to go when you are older to remember the time you were there when you were younger.  I didn't grow up going to games but I do remember watching the Braves with my grandparents at their house each time I went to visit.  It was a tradition to watch with the TV full blast and when the commercials would come on my grandfather would put it on mute and let out a big, "whew" (being that the TV was so loud) and my grandmother saying, "isn't Andruw Jones the cutest thing?"

As simple as a baseball game is, be prepared to come hungry for junk food and pack extra cash in your wallet.  Everything is at least ten times as expensive as it would be at the store and there are lines to wait in to get just about anything you are craving like a hot dog, pizza, twirling giant pretzels that have been on for hours, ice cream, chowda, popcorn, peanuts and did I mention hot dogs?  I was surprised to see veggie dogs at one stand so I asked to see one and it looked like a dehydrated vienna sausage so I passed.

If anything, it was a sight to see and an experience to have once in a lifetime.  Fenway Park is one of the best stadiums to see a game since it hasn't changed much since it opened April 20, 1912.   The green monster is still run by hand and Pesky's Pole is full of signatures...in fact, one idiot climbed up during the game to get his name on the pole and stood there to wait for security to take him away as fans cheered him on and booed the police.

Thank you Ronnie for taking me to the game so I was able to step on board the Red Sox fan mothership and experience traditions that will live on for years to come.  Next time, I know you will get on the big screen singing "Sweet Caroline."

You can take these photographs home with you by clicking HERE

A Good Bye Gathering And A Family Reunion Portrait

I went for the ride and joined a gathering for a good bye party and a reunion of sorts.  Since I was a passenger, I really had no idea where I was but I believe I was somewhere in the state of Massachusetts.

I thought a going away party would be around 20 people at the most, sitting around chit chatting about the weather or what was going on in everyone's lives.  Well, yes...people were chit chatting but I was taken back on how many people were there.  Then I started asking who everyone was and for the most part, everyone was related!

 I can count all the direct members of my family on one hand.  I am not used to a family gathering that looked like this!  I asked how everyone knew each other and the response typically went like this: "that is my cousin and those are her kids and that guy next to her is my cousin's husband and that kid is his son but the other kid next to his belongs to my cousin's aunt who is over there talking to my other cousin's sister in law."

As complicated as it sounded, I think questions would have added to the mix of complications so I nodded as my brain tried to mix and match kids with parents with siblings with parents.

I met Anne Maxon last year while I was in Boston and she has such a beautiful family so I wanted to take a portrait of her, her husband and their four beautiful children.  Her kids are naturals.  We walked behind the house and I pointed to the ground on where to stand and as soon as I put the camera to my eye, they were all smiling and posing.

Later in the evening, the entire family started gathering together to take a group portrait.  I heard one woman say, "there is a photographer that is going to take our family picture." Instantly, I was excited to see who was going to take their picture to meet the photographer and talk about pictures but I soon realized that everyone was looking at me.  I was the photographer they were referring to.  I haven't taken many group portraits, especially this size but I was willing to snap away.  I then took a group photo of the kids in the family which was challenging.  Lucky for me, I had the parents behind me snapping their fingers and clapping away to get the attention of their kids to look at them.

Everyone at the event was very kind to me about my photographs.  I was thrilled to be approached by people I've never met before to tell me they enjoy viewing my images. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of the family, if only for a little while.

WestyFest III Gathering In Upstate New York

Max and I were fortunate enough to be invited to this 3rd annual WestyFest event in upstate New York last weekend.  As we arrived, I was a bit wary about camping since the forecast said to expect showers and thunderstorms all weekend.  I pulled into the property just as the owner, Bill and his friends were departing for dinner.  Instead of waving me through, they came back around to show me around and Bill (third from left in the photograph on the left) even offered his Westy for Max and I to call home for the weekend!  We couldn't be happier.



We met thirty nine Westy owners over the weekend and each person had a unique story to tell.  Even though most of the attendees are from the east coast, with the exception of Juju (Who lives in Hawaii), they all had such varied backgrounds.  I was able to chat with bee keepers, retired school teachers, an optometrist, a professor from Yale, several photographers and everything in between.  All sharing the same love for their Airstream Sprinter Westfalia.

I have to say that this is not "roughing it" by any means.  This vehicle is designed perfectly for sleeping, sitting, driving, eating and it even comes with a bathroom.  There are a lot of perfect reasons to own one.  I know that over the weekend I developed a crush on these vehicles.  I think Max did too.  It's the ultimate in comfort and is compact enough that you can take it anywhere, in any weather conditions and be comfortable.  I love my tent, but I have to say that the idea of being able to sleep comfortably in the vehicle you drive is very tempting.

I 

I am so thankful to have the opportunity to meet all of these wonderful people that I hope to keep in touch with and meet on the road in the future!

For all photographs I took at this event, click HERE.

Long Beach Roller Derby Photographs Available To Purchase

Who loves the roller derby?  I know I do!  I am fortunate enough to partner with the Long Beach Roller Derby to take some photographs of these amazing women doing what they love.  It's an exciting time for all and now you can take the action home with you!

My photographs from the roller derby are now available to purchase on my photoshelter photography website. 

I will be adding photographs from my travels to purchase on the site on a regular basis.

You can view and purchase my photographs of the derby by clicking HERE.

Nesting Newbies Magazine

My friend, Kristiana Spaulding has certainly made a name for herself following her passion of designing jewelry, interior design and giving vintage Airstreams her personal makeover.  It's not surprising that she is featured in the newest edition of Nesting Newbies Magazine.

The magazine is loaded with style tips on decorating, entertaining, cooking, and is full of beautiful photographs to inspire you to become your own creative maven.  In this issue, I am fortunate to have my photograph of Kristiana published on a full page next to the start of her 8 page spread in the magazine.

The entire 203 page magazine will be available to view online at Nesting Newbies.com.  Once you browse through all the ideas and articles, don't be surprised it if makes you want to redecorate your home or throw a dinner party.  Thank you Kristiana for the inspiration!