Portland Siren Miss B

A few weeks ago, I announced the opening of my new venture, Portland Sirens. I've since had the pleasure of photographing the lovely, bashful Miss B. She was a bit shy but warmed up as we laughed and had a good time. A little "Wild Thing" on the radio helps kick things up a notch as well!

Don't you just adore her beautiful eyes? I am so privileged to do this work with the wonderful ladies I meet!

Enthralled with You

"Describe your relationship with your spouse."

There are so many wonderful words in the English language that could be used to describe our relationship! If you've read this blog for any length of time, you know two things: I'm madly in love with Matt, and I love making lists.

My marriage to Matt is:

• Encouraging
• Faithful
• Gentle
• Full
• Patient (mostly, we're not saints!)
• Loving
• Peaceful
• Strong
• Adventurous
• Messy
• Beautiful
• Fun
• Exciting
• Supportive
• Kind
• Adoring
• Compassionate
• Mushy
• Breathtaking
• Intoxicating
• Thrilling
• like a fairy tale

In short, I wouldn't trade any part of this relationship for anything in the world. 

 

Love of my life <3

This is question 3 from "30 Things My Child Should Know About Me".

3 Things That Terrify Me

In case you missed it, the other day I announced the launch of Portland Sirens! Please check it out if you're needing a Valentine's Day gift for your partner, or a little self-love :)

 

Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.

I would like to interject here that a fear is a fear - whether someone else considers it "legitimate" has no bearing on how that fear affects your life. My fears may not be reasonable, but they are all legitimate.

1. The dark. I'm not talking just a darkened room, that's generally ok. I'm talking dark enough I can't see anything at all, or just barely make out shapes. It doesn't just make me uncomfortable, it truly terrifies me...my brain goes into overdrive and immediately that bookcase is a serial killer hiding in the corner, just waiting for me to come close enough for him to make his move. My mind doesn't stop there, it goes into gory detail about what would happen, how the end result would look and my family's reaction. Every single shape or shadow turns into an instant threat, and I've taken to carrying my phone with me even when I get up in the night to pee, because it has a flashlight on it, and I can shut down that crazy train.
2. Spiders. As a general rule, bugs don't bother me. I don't particularly like them, but I'm fine with "live and let live" with most bugs, because God created each of them to do some job in the world. Spiders, however, operate on their own agenda. I don't do the whole "scream and run out of the room" deal if a spider is spotted (mostly because I become frozen in fear), and it really depends on the type of spider, but generally, spiders seem to follow me, drop on me, otherwise assault my person and do everything they can to push my panic buttons. I don't appreciate surprise contact from other humans, so spiders why do you think it's ok from you?
3. Losing my job.  While I do want to become self-sufficient, it is not something that is in the cards right now, and we need my job to help us stay financially afloat. This has nothing to do with the economy and how hard the job market is (though that does factor slightly into the fear), and everything to do with how unstable my current position is. It's in a market that is heavily season-dependant, and as I deal with the financial end of things, I personally get to deal with how strapped we are in the off-season. Any time there's a closed-door meeting, I can barely breathe until that door opens again and no one calls me in to join them. One of these days, I will get to leave of my own accord. Until that day, I live in the fear that this security blanket will be ripped out of my hands.

Question 2 of "30 Things My Child Should Know About Me"

About Me

In case you missed it, yesterday I announced the launch of Portland Sirens! Please check it out if you're needing a Valentine's Day gift for your partner, or a little self-love :)

List 20 random facts about yourself.

1. I love butter
2. Small things in life excite me
3. I could drink tea for every drink for the rest of my life
4. I'm allergic to things made mostly of water, such as celery
5. I have always love to go FAST, whether in a car, on a ride, or on foot
6. Gadgets make me happy
7. I often feel I was born in the wrong decade
8. I'm not a strong swimmer, the deep end sometimes triggers panic attacks
9. I have regular, vivid dreams. Nearly all are disturbing.
10. Sometimes a sick day can be the best thing for a weary soul
11. For me, reading a good book, a truly good, well-written book, is just as good as spending an uninterrupted day with my best friend.
12. I am one of those people who drinks alcohol because I actually like the taste of it. If I don't like a drink, I can't finish it, my gag reflex kicks in. 
13. I consider my mom one of my best friends now, and I'm horribly sorry for the way I behaved when I think of my teenage years.
14. Changing the sheets on the bed is one of my least favorite chores.
15. De-cluttering my closet and cleaning out clothing that no longer fits is one of my favorite chores.
16. I'm not very domestic, in the sense of cooking and keeping house...but I sure wish I was.
17. One day, I will have my own photography studio, outside our home.
18. Raising a child is the hardest, most frustrating, fulfilling and amazing adventure I have ever been on.
19. I worry constantly, about everything. I wish I could stop.
20. I am so incredibly proud of you, my daughter. You may never know the depth of my love for you, and how proud I am of the young lady you are becoming, but I will continue to tell you over and over, in the hopes you will one day believe me.

This is Question 1 from 30 Things My Kids Should Know About Me.

Christmas!

Rather than bore you with the minutiae of our Christmas fun, I put together a little slide show for you! If you can't view it here, you can go to the website to see it there.

30 Things My Child Should Know About Me

In case you missed it, yesterday I announced the launch of Portland Sirens! Please check it out if you're needing a Valentine's Day gift for your partner, or a little self-love :)

Yesterday, as I perused BlogLand (that mystical place where time has no bearing or influence), I came across Kelly's post about 30 things her kids should know about her. She's gotten it from somewhere else, but Kelly has created a link-up for this little project. It sounds like fun, and a great set of posts as well. She's doing a post per item, and I love this idea, and will be doing the same, unless they're small things, and I'll combine them.


THE LIST:

1. List 20 random facts about yourself.
2. Describe 3 legitimate fears you have and explain how they became fears.
3. Describe your relationship with your spouse.
4. List 10 things you would tell your 16 year-old self, if you could.
5. What are the 5 things that make you most happy right now?
6. If you could have three wishes, what would you wish for?
7. What is your dream job, and why?
8. What are 5 passions you have?
9. List 10 people who have influenced you and describe how.
10. Describe your most embarrassing moment.
11. Describe 10 pet peeves you have.
12. Describe a typical day in your current life.
13. What’s the hardest part of growing up?
14. Describe 5 and weaknesses strengths you have.
15. Describe when you knew your spouse was the one or how I fell in love.
16. What are your 5 greatest accomplishments?
17. What is the thing you most wish you were great at?
18. What do you think your spouse loves most about you?
19. How did you feel the moment you became a parent?
20. Describe 3 significant memories from your childhood.
21. Describe your relationship with your parents.
22. Where do you see yourself in 5 years? 10 years? 15 years?
23. What’s your favorite holiday and why?
24. What’s your favorite and least favorite thing about parenthood?
25. If you could have dinner with anyone in history, who would it be and what would you eat?
26. What popular notion do you think the world has most wrong?
27. What is your favorite part of your body and why?
28. What’s your favorite quality in your spouse?
29. What are your hopes and dreams for your prosperity?
30. List 10 things you would hope to be remembered for.

While kiddo doesn't read my blog, I think for these things, I may put them together into some kind of nice format, and give them to her when she's a little older. Maybe a small book with some pictures interspersed for fun.

Introducing: Portland Sirens!

Exciting news!!!

I am so proud to announce the launch of Portland Sirens, a boudoir and pinup photography service. From a friendly, intimate atmosphere to sitting down and reviewing your pictures immediately after your session, I want every person I photograph to see the beauty that I see when I look at them.

There is no judgement, sizeism, racisim, sexism, ANY -isms at Portland Sirens - we are all beautiful, and I am here to help you see that beauty in yourself.

The website is here, but you can also contact me directly at 503.866.9775 to book appointments, ask questions, etc.

2012 Look Back

Hoo boy, what a crazy couple of months! 2012 was quite a year, so let's see a little recap of what all went on my neck of the woods:

January: Not much went on, I was preparing for the upcoming Timbers season, trying to find the perfect outfit to wear to the games, and survive the dark winter months. Depression has its claws pretty deep this time of year.



February: More season preparation, some Valentine's Day fun with Matt and the kid, and a tiny bit of sunshine before the March rains began.



March: The MLS season begins! I posted mostly about soccer, and since I wasn't paying close attention when migrating blog posts over from Wordpress, most of the pictures are gone :( I'll see if I can fix that soon.



April: I get inspired to start running, try a race or two, and see where it takes me. Turns out, I LOVE adventure racing!

May: I reminisced about my impulsiveness that tends to lead to not-so-great situations. In this one, I was lucky.

June: My dad and I competed against Matt and his dad in a Cityscape Adventure race, which is like a small-scale version of the Amazing Race. We didn't beat them, not by a long shot, but we had a blast!

July: This month I tried to run my first 5k. I walked one in March, and decided I need to run...I like going fast! So, one of the hottest months of the year is a good time to do a 5k mud run, yes? Yes.

August: August was a big month. Matt and I celebrated 10 years of marriage, I said goodbye to my little brother, and we attended the Wild Goose Festival for the first time.

September: Back to school! Kiddo started 4th grade at a new arts-based school, I share my new found mud run knowledge that I haven't seen others share, and I start learning to cook my own lunches!

October: I learn about asking forgiveness, and being ok when it's not immediately given. I discover that Matt considers me a book abuser, and for some reason that really cuts me deep. Finally, during the adventures of an away Timbers game, I had an uncomfortable encounter, and a wonderful rescuer who has become a good friend along the way.

November: November I kind of dropped off the face of the blogging planet. As with many of us, the holiday season jumped out at me from behind a door and screamed "I'M HERE SUCKAAAAAAAAAA" in my face. However, one of my favorite posts from this last year came during November. The priceless emotion and buoyancy that encouragement from others can provide.

December: December on this blog is barren, a wasteland. December in my life? Most certainly not! I have a TON to share with you guys!! Kiddo turned the big 1-0, we all got to go to Las Vegas, and Matt and I were blessed with a second honeymoon...in Mexico! I will post on all of these very soon, of course with tons of pictures.

2012, you were a good year. We had our ups and downs, but all relationships have those, and we toughed it out. Having said goodbye to you, I welcome 2013 with open arms. I anticipate many grand adventures lie ahead!