They asked if I could come over and do an extended family photo session for them as soon as I could… And although May was already looking pretty busy for me on a business and personal level, I would have moved mountains to make this session happen…  Losing my mother to cancer has been a huge influence on how I see the world and a driving motivation in how my photography journey came to be… I truly felt like photographing this session was part of a higher calling and one of those “meant-to-be” moments in life… and I knew just how much these photos would mean to them…

So on Saturday morning I flew into Kangaroo Island for a whirlwind 24 hour stay…  With the timing of the trip occurring just the day before Mother’s Day, it gave another touch of poignancy to the whole day…

I’ve always felt that it’s one of life’s ironies that it takes the most trying of circumstances to make you appreciate what’s truly important …  At the end of the day it’s really about the people who surround you and support you… your relationships with them and the memories you share with them… I was blessed with the opportunity to share a few hours with a family that showed and expressed their love for each other with every look and every gesture … We shared cups of tea and coffee in their home… relaxed and shared a meal on the deck… played ball and ran races like lunatics in the backyard… sat and played board games with the children…  We talked and we just enjoyed being…

It’s been an incredible weekend of mixed emotions these last 48 hours… A combination of sadness and helplessness intertwined with a heart of gratefulness and thankfulness for the blessings of the present moment.  I really felt like I was given an opportunity to really pause and reassess what’s important…  I felt the meaning of life… I felt the true meaning of love… I breathed and I gave thanks for all things…

Thank you to all the Mitchells for welcoming me into their home this weekend…  Thank you for allowing me to share in a day in your lives and to capture some beautiful memories for you…   As important as these photographs are to you, I don’t think you realize just how touching and important this experience has been to me and for that I give you my heartfelt gratitude…

My love and prayers are with you Karen and the whole family, today and everyday… xoxo

Now please go visit Cara Harrison and see what black and white images she has for us this week!  Thanks for dropping by!

So unfortunately, the most glamourous thing I could muster up this week was a bit of “Mummy Glamour”… which is really as unglamourous as it sounds…. LOL… I’m not in the habit of taking self portraits of myself, so I thought I’d try something different and loosely interpret this week’s theme…

Usually I potter about my days in the most comfortable clothes I can find (usually my skinny jeans and a top)… and in the mornings, I try to find some time to put on a touch of bb cream (if anyone is wondering I think Garnier’s BB cream for combination skin is totally awesome!) and a hint of lipgloss… and voila… that’s how you’ll find me most days… in my “everyday glamour”… Ha!

As a random side note – this morning Catherine and I were grocery shopping and as we were wandering down on the aisles, she started shouting “I see Mummy! I see Mummy!” and pointed animatedly at the shelves.  So I had to backtrack and she made me stop in front of one of the shelves with this on it (photo snapped with the iphone):

My crazy two year old totally makes me laugh…. She must think anyone with dark hair and glasses looks like me!  Thanks for thinking I look like an ex-Masterchef contestant though Catherine… I’ll take it as a compliment … Does anyone out there see the resemblance?  And all of you out there, you can start calling me Marion…

Now please hop over and visit Cara Harrison to see what glamour she has in store for us.  Thanks for dropping by!

Now please visit Cara Harrison to see what dreams she’s been conjuring this week … Thanks for dropping by!

So here we have my Little Miss Vintage… the headband was stolen from her older sister… and that smirk on her face is typical of what she’s like at the moment…

Please drop by Linsey Stuckey to see what beautiful vintage images she has for us this week.  Thanks for dropping by!

Now please drop by Cara Harrison and see what relaxing images she has for us this week!  Thanks for dropping by!

For those reading along from other parts of the world… Book Week is a big thing here in Australia… I actually didn’t realise how big it was until this week… but basically it is a celebration of books at the schools all around the country.  Most schools have a day where the children can come to school dressed as their favourite book character and they will do a parade in their outfits…  We had ours this morning and Elizabeth decided to go as Rapunzel… It was a little on the chaotic side as the parade started outside (with sunshine and blue skies) but within 10 minutes of it starting, it all changed rather rapidly and started raining, so it all got moved to a large indoor area instead.  It was great seeing how excited the kids where and some of the great creativity behind some of the the outfits!

So here’s a little shot of a crowd… some of the rather eclectic outfits some of the school children were wearing…

And just a quick little shot of what my girl dressed up as today… (ps – it was FREEZING today, so I made her wear the jacket!  Lucky it goes with her outfit!)

Now please go and visit Linsey Sommers Stuckey and see what crowd photos she has for us this week!  Thanks for dropping by!

I love the character of some of the old buildings in our mall… Funny it’s not until recently that I’ve really started appreciating the beautiful architecture in the city…

Please go and visit Sabrina Koogler | Pearland, TX Child and Family Photographer to find out what lights she’s managed to find at night this week…  Thanks for visiting!

The place where I do most of my grocery shopping often has traffic control in place to keep the traffic flowing on the small street it runs off… And on most Fridays there is always the same lady directing traffic… She is the most enthusiastic woman and greets everyone with a huge smile and a friendly wave as she directs the cars onto the street… She actually makes me break out into a huge grin when I see her, because her energy is so infectious…  As I drove out of the car park today, I glanced into my rear view mirror and the street scene with her standing in it really caught my eye, so I fortunately managed to pullover in a 15 minute zone parking spot, grabbed my camera and switched lenses, and walked 10 steps back down and grabbed a photo.

Traffic control lady – you do a job that many would find mundane and boring… yet they way you make me smile makes a difference to my day and I admire you for your positive attitude to life… Thank you for being my inspiration today!

Now please head over the visit Cara Harrison and see what street scene she’s captured this week!  Thanks for dropping by!

Isn’t this little face just pure joy?!

Now please pop over and visit Linsey Stuckey and see what joy she has for us this week!  Thanks for dropping by!