Last night I was up WAY too late, working on something fun for my website (stay tuned!).
Everyone else in the house was asleep, as they should have been, up in their beds.
Everyone but my cute little fuzzy Molly, that is. She stayed with me, cuddled by my feet,
until I was done working on the computer.

"Rise & Shine" time was coming quickly, since this was the first day of school,
but I still had to get my camera ready for those traditional "first day" pictures.
I got my camera out, checked the batteries & lens, and Molly was so darn cute,
I had to snap a few shots.

It was quite dark in the house, so these were taken at ISO 1600.

Is it just me, or is she just about the most adorable little pooch ever to walk on Earth?



~Carey

Mat and Rory were both awake before the alarm went off this morning.
(I was not.)

Mat was dressed in about 5 seconds flat, and downstairs at lightning speed to get in
some Webkinz time before breakfast.

Rory came into our room to show off her outfit and to get her "up high pigtails" done.
That was the hairstyle she chose last night for her first day of 1st grade.

It's a minor miracle that those pigtails are remotely symmetric,
because I still don't remember brushing her cute blonde hair into those rubber bands!

Once I was awake enough to get down the stairs without killing myself via gravity,
I made their scrambled eggs & toast, we went outside for the traditional photoshoot,
then we were off to school.




On that 2nd image, I used Kevin Kubota's "x-process combo" action
to get a little punchy color. It sure does make Rory's eyes shine!!



I've got a few hours left in this day of mine. Just enough time to get to the bank,
get some lunch in my tummy, pick up some bread & fruit at the store, and get home
in time to pick them up. No bon-bons and soap oprahs around here!

~Carey

Why bother with man-made playgrounds,
when God makes such cool ones for us all by himself?!

I met the Romney family this morning in Balboa Park,
and we wound up in a Monkey Tree on a secluded trail,
where the kids could climb and jump and have a great time!

Check out the MEN:

I've just taken my first look at their pictures,
so this is a "SOOC" (Straight Out Of the Camera") screenshot.

Big Bro doesn't need help from Dad,
and Little Bro is content and happy to play with dad on the lower branches
of this super-cool oak tree. What a fun representation of the Romney Men at
this stage in the family's history -- so much better than a boring posed shot
with all of them looking in the camera!

~Carey

Last week I spent some time on the phone with Ron Dawson of F-stop Beyond


I met Ron in New York last year during PhotoPlus with Dane Sanders.

A few weeks ago, Ron asked if he could interview me for F-stop Beyond
to talk about me, my business, and BBQSmackdown.
How could I pass by an opportunity to brag about my resounding victory!?

The interview took many twists and turns, and at one point I even got asked
one of "THE" big questions of the universe: "Why do bad things happen to good people?"
JEEZE, Ron. Couldn't you just ask me about metering settings or something?!
Next time I'll probably get,
"If God has everything already planned, what's the point of supposed 'free will'?"
Ron doesn't toss softball questions, that's for sure!!

Don't get me wrong: The interview was a lot of fun,
and I got to talk about the beginnings of my business, how my faith in God was, and still is,
instrumental in Barefoot Memories' existence, family, my days as a Math teacher,
and so much more!

So, tune in to the site and listen in on our interview!
My brave BBQ opponent, Skip, even drops in to talk more about charity work,
the photography community, marketing, and how on Earth the two of us have become friends.
You won't want to miss it!

~Carey

The WPPI '09 website launched with a list of speakers announced.
I wasn't on it, but that's OK because I have pretty big plans!
More will be announced later this year, but you'll get to see the beginnings of it
in the upcoming issues of Popular Photography. If you're going to PhotoPlus
in New York City this Fall, GET EXCITED!

As I've made my way further into this world of the "speakers circuit," I've learned
something very important about myself:

I HAVE TO LIMIT HOW MUCH I TAKE ON!

The wonderful MeRa can take on speaking in 4,689 tradeshow booths
AND pull off a major Platform Talk in one tradeshow.
We sure do have different DNA! She's amazing.
I'm not like that. (I learned that the hard way! It wasn't pretty.)

So, I'm focusing on one major commitment per tradeshow, and that's it!
I can't tell you how good it feels to be content and know I'm doing what's best
for me and my family! Cutting out commitments that would have put more notches
in my proverbial belt was a superficial blow to the ego. It's done, and I'm thrilled
with what the future holds for NYC this Fall and Vegas next year!

OH, and I forgot to say:
When WPPI & Skip found out that I'm going to commit to Mpix & Popular Photography
for Vegas & WPPI '09, Skip made me say YES to speaking at WPPI 2010. So, watch out 2010!