Monday, November 23, 2009

Mike + Jessi - San Diego LDS Temple

I never thought the day would come that I, as a photographer, would be entrusted with someone's wedding day.  From the very moment I bought my first DSLR camera, it was instant love.  BUT, I always said that I would never take pictures for other people.  The mere thought made my stomach churn with nerves.  Then people asked and I couldn't refuse.  (I'm terrible at saying NO)  I found out I actually liked it.  Loved it, really.

When Jessi first e-mailed me about shooting her wedding, I broke out into a cold sweat.  Not because I didn't think I could do it, but the pressure of only having ONE day to take perfect pictures made me jittery.  I said yes.  I am so glad that I did, and I hope she is too!

Congratulations to the new couple!
Aren't they gorgeous?















Thursday, November 19, 2009

ch-ch-ch-change will do you good.

I am such a lazy blogger right now, but that doesn't mean my head isn't swirling with blog ideas and to-do's.  I have so much to say and so little time to say it/blog it.

At any rate, I thought I should document a recent change in our lives.

It's actually been over a month since we moved.  We didn't go far.  We are still in the same neighborhood, in the same city, in the same ward (mormon lingo for congregation), and as happy as ever...though that last one seemed a little unsure for me for a while.

Let me explain.

I loved our house.  Like...really loved!  Not because it was the BEST house, or the cutest house, or in the most awesome location, but because it was our FIRST house.  It had memories.

When we decided to buy a house it was the most exciting thing EVER.  We drove out religiously from Dana Point every Sunday to check on its progress. We took pictures with it.  We walked around and assessed its progress.  We brought friends out to see it.  We just couldn't contain our excitement to be homeowners.  And the day we moved in was almost as exciting as the day our first child arrived.  


Then our first child arrived.  Shortly followed by the second.  And life just kept getting better.  In our house, our first house, we added our own personal touches.  Troy added the most beautiful woodwork to the walls.  We painted our kitchen cupboards white and never looked back!  We put photos on the walls and landscaping in the yard.  We planted a garden.  We decorated the rooms just the way we wanted.  We lived, and played, shared, laughed, grew closer together, built traditions and loved in that house.  But the day came that we knew we had to do something with it.

Troy's job has been in jeopardy for some time.  His company filed for bankruptcy last year and basically all the employees left are riding a sinking titanic.  We have NO idea how long we will be employed.  We have no idea what the company may or may not turn into.  And we have no guarantee for employment once the bankruptcy is settled.  And having seen many friends and family who have lost jobs and been unemployed for months in this economy, we decided we needed to put ourselves in a position where we could look for employment nationwide and have the flexibility to move anywhere if need be.

So, we decided the best way to have more flexibility was to rent until life is more certain.  So with a lot of tears (for me, especially) we said goodbye to our house.  It was very hard for me in the early stages of moving.  Each thing I took down or dismantled represented something to me.  But as the house got more empty and each box was hauled out, I looked around and thought...you know, this house is JUST a house.  What made it a home was US

 So now, without hesitation, I can say that we are enjoying our new HOME with US in it!  
So please come for a visit!  We would love to have you!

I will be sending out our address to my facebook friends, but if you need it otherwise, send me an e-mail at alidegraff@yahoo.com.

I leave you with pictures from our last pizza night in the house on Overboard.


(troy likes to take his shirt off when performing manly tasks such as dough tossing)
(actually he had just gone swimming)

Monday, November 9, 2009

God be with you till we meet again



My grandpa passed away last week in Laguna Beach Hospital.
I feel so blessed to have been able to spend one short hour by his bedside a few days before he passed.
He was heavily sedated and could not respond, but the love and peace felt in his room was overwhelming.  It made me so grateful to know that we will be seeing each other again, and that family members in heaven were most definitely anxiously awaiting his return home.   That is the beautiful thing about God's Plan...we know we can be with our families eternally.


Marc Harvey Sessions

Born: October 3, 1914
Died:  November 2, 2009



Memories of Grandpa:

* His dapper appearance - always wearing a bowtie and beret.
* As a Harvard grad, he put a lot of emphasis on education.
*  His commitment to his religion, but acceptance of others.
*  His love for my grandma.
*  His playfulness with his grandchildren...always having the neatest contraptions (push scooters, a garage hideaway, playhouses)
*  His entrepreneurial spirit - finding a way to squeeze in a business deal with anyone he met.
*  Going to stay with him and my grandma in their Catalina house.  (driving a golf cart around was any kids dream)
*Having dinners with him in his rest home.
*Introducing my kids to him.
*  Singing fun songs and hearing him play the piano.
* His somewhat unorthodox way of saying a prayer at my brother's missionary farewell (very characteristic of his unique personality)
*  His thumb that was cut off as a child.
* His birthday letters that were usually written in some kind of code (u R gr-8...he would have been a texting wizard!)
*  His jovial and cheery disposition.
* Words like, "Carry On"  "marvelous" "A++"


We will miss you Grandpa....until we meet again!








My last goodbye.

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

out with the old, in with the new

Goodbye Halloween.  
and a GOOD bye it is.

We loved every minute of our October festivities...

candy, pumpkins, decorating, costumes, more candy, more costumes, music, more candy, etc. 





But now it's off to Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Yahoo!
(this time of year is the BEST!)

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Christmas photos in the OC

Because we have been so busy with moving (more on that later) and I am scheduled to shoot my first wedding next week (whoo-hoo!), I have turned away so many people for Christmas pictures.

It is KILLING me!

I love doing this and wish I had more time this season. At any rate, I do have a last minute opening for this Friday in ORANGE COUNTY.


Location:
I will be shooting at Soka University.
It's a pretty location with some archways, columns, a gazebo, some natural scenery, etc.

Time:
3:30-4:30 pm

Price:
$100 for the session which includes ONE (1) digital image on CD for printing/Christmas card use.
The entire collection of images from the session is $200 if you choose to buy that, or you can purchase prints individually.

If you are interested, email me at alidegraff@yahoo.com

I will leave you with some photos from a session that never got posted and should have!
There were so many good ones, it's too hard to choose!











Monday, October 26, 2009

Yabba Dabba Doo

who knew Fred could sew?

I didn't.
He didn't.

But he does.
Every last stitch of these costumes (minus dino) was sewn by my man.

The costumes I was going to attempt would have included a lot more hot glue, staples, possibly scotch tape and would have looked prehistoric, for sure!

Great job T-roy!

sleeves, really?
homemade bloomers for Pebbles, seriously?
and pleats and tucks in my dress, who does that?

Yes, I might be a little, just a tad bit, teensy weensy jealous of my spouses skills.


So here we are:
The Flintstone Family

Possibly the last year of our family-themed costumes as some members of our family are starting to develop opinions of their own on Halloween cosutmes. Imagine that!




Pebbles

Dino


Dino in need of a chiropractor.

Happy Halloween!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

post script

Can a set of these be included in the Ragnar fees for next year?

please?

sorry amy, I couldn't resist.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

I paid for that?

There are a lot of things I could do with $100 bucks.  

I could hire a housekeeper (much needed).
I could have a date night with my husband (always wanted).
I could buy myself 1 pinkberry yogurt every month for the next year (delish).
I could get a few pedicures for my hopeless feet (can you say snaggletoes?).

You get the picture.


If you had told me that for $100 bucks I could:

be sleepless for 32-ish hours
run 13.5 miles of a 171 mile course
smell like something ripe with 6 other people crammed in a van
lose a couple toenails
run through the Nevada desert in 90 degree heat
catch "catnaps" in places only a cat could fit
use only toilet paper-less outhouses for two full days
and 
survive off foods with words like Goo, Electrolytes, and Power 
(oh and maybe a few dark chocolate M&M's with peanuts)...

...I would have thought you were CRAZY!



But the truth is...

The Las Vegas Ragnar Relay

was a 100 bucks well-spent!


It bought me all that AND more!



Like the company of 11 amazing people whose determination, optimism and amazing displays of athleticism were inspiring!

Like new goldenrod sweatbands that I have always wanted to sport.


Like beautiful vistas that you may not expect from the Nevada desert.


Like playtime on the redrock.



Like cheering on teammates and feeling like the cheerleader I always knew I could be. 
 Lots of spirit fingers.




Like experiencing running at all times of the day and night.  Never knew a 4 am run could be so invigorating?!?


Like dance parties in the street and trying to look as super cute and groovy as Marsha!


Like running with my old running partner again.  She really is amazing.  
Thanks "team mom".


And finally...learning some new running techniques for my next Ragnar!
This girl has skillz that pay the billz!

You guys were all amazing!

Thanks for the experience.

Monday, October 5, 2009

Final Day in Oregon...sniff, sniff

You need to know that our friends, the Cannons, will always represent a chapter in our lives.

  We were all best friends after we were newly married and starting our lives in sunny So. California.  No kids.  Careers.  Apartment living.  Free weekends.  Long beach days.  BBQ's.

We spent many nights out to dinner and a movie with these guys.  Oh the days...

We were all still working out the kinks of marriage.  We have witnessed each others' marital tiffs and squabbles.  We have celebrated each others' successes.  We have even managed to synchronize pregnancies.

It was so good to reconnect with these guys!

On our last day in Portland, we met Chad at work down in the coolest part of Portland.  Well, there are a lot of cool parts, but the Pearl District definitely ranks high on the list.  In between delicious Mexican food and an urban splashpark, we managed to fit in a family photo shoot.

I love how they turned out!










Immediately after the photo shoot and lunch, we made our way up to Multnomah Falls.  An Oregon landmark that should not be left unseen!

These pics are all out of order, but oh well.


I loved the mossy trees.

Does Jack's head look like it's falling off?

Fern-picker
A cool bridge
the falls

That concludes the Oregon tour.   Our friends are now moving to Utah for a new job, so stay tuned for next year's travelogue in the Beehive State.