I love being a daddy. Even when the photo doesn't come out in focus. Its a beautiful day today, get out there and enjoy your family.
Zoe rocks and it scares the hell out of me that she has already been rockin for a year. That's all that needs to be said.
Yes, It is snowing in Houston Today. Little Man James was the first of three to get out early. He is hanging with us at the studio until it is time to gather the girls at their school. He is super excited about the snow but doesn't like the cold.
We are so lucky when we are able to photograph families as they grow over the years. I have been photographing the Robinsons since little Luke was being expected. If you have come to the studio and seen our album samples, you will recognize Luke and his family from the custom designed Baby's First Year Album in which Luke is shown as he grows up through progression in a cool red chair. He is now the big brother and we have been lucky to photograph his sisters.
The other day we had the whole gang back in for Emily & Abigail's first birthday session. These 2 cuties have thrived over the past year.
Abigail was quite dainty when it came to getting her fingers in the cake, but Emily on the other hand, ate enough cake for the both of them. Luke even got to get in on the sugar high. These birthday cake sessions are really fun and unpredictable. We never know if the kiddos are going to dig in. We always hope for a big mess. It is a good thing we have a big stainless sink for clean up. We hope you guys like the preview. We have had a lot of fun this year with one of our favorite families.
Mommy is out of town this week and left us all alone Saturday afternoon. Since then we have discovered the following thing:
1. Zoe likes to read magazines as long as she gets to eat 1/3 of the cover page.
2. If the dryer is on, you can stick a garden hose in the outside vent and the water will splash back in your face.
3. Kids don't let kids take naps.
4. Its not advised to read a pop-up-book around a 9 month old.
Halloween goodness in the studio is always fun too.
It is hard to believe, but Danny and I are celebrating our tenth anniversary. In case you didn't know, Danny and I met at Lamar High School and are high school sweethearts. We both had Volkswagon bugs, but his was cool and mine was beat up. We have actually been together for 18 years. That means that we are about to hit the point in our relationship that we have known each other longer than we haven't known each other. (yes you can do the math and figure out how old we are) It puts a whole new meaning on the saying, "I can't imagine life without him." It is completely true. I have been so lucky to have Danny. Many of you know this, but Danny is my renaissance man. He, of course, is the best photographer I know, he is an excellent cook (and he bakes a mean cookie), he helps around the house, he can fix household appliances (he fixed our washer just last week), he is an active Dad and now he has taken up the art of screen printing. His creativity is never ending. I wouldn't have been able to be where I am today and make the accomplishments that I have made in my life and career without his support.
I don't think we will ever be able to beat our 3rd year anniversary gift, the birth of our first baby, Whitney. I actually have forgotten our anniversary more often than him because of the hustle bustle of planning the birthdays for Whitney. When Whitney was turning two I had planned a fun party at our house with the Tumble Tykes bus. I could only think about the fact that I was going to have between 10 and 20 two year olds and their families in my house. In all the preparing of the day, Danny brought home a beautiful arrangement of Cala Lillies in an exquisite vase. Me, in my party planning mode, took the flowers and told him, "Oh how nice, they will look perfect on the table for the party."....not realizing the beautiful flowers were for our anniversary. The next morning in bed, I woke up suddenly and realized that Danny had given me the flowers, not for his daughters party decor, but as an anniversary gift. I will never live that one down, but it proves that women can forget that oh so important date too.
Danny, Thanks for 10 wonderful wedded years and many more years to come! I love you forever and always.
Friends and family have been asking for photos of Zoe. We are busy trying to catch up on family time, blogs and images. This weekend me and my little little lady spent some quality time at the studio. Its amazing how easy a baby is to photograph when you are not surrounded by others. It was fun getting to just tickle and play and see Zoe's little shinning face.
I am a little biased but this little star just makes your day bright. She has this little smile that makes you think she knows more than what she is letting on.
She has the sweetest little strawberry blond hair and big blue eyes. Its always tough when I photograph my kids because I want to get the biggest print possible.
Hope everyone has a great week. Hopefully we will have an update on our Art car weekend later tonight!
A few weeks back (yes I know, I am behind in the blogosphere) we took the kids to Uncle Chuck's place to do a little fishing. James was wound up tighter than a golf ball to get on the water and fish with Chad.
Friday night we arrived and Chad took the kids out on the boat to get bait.
Whitney and James were so excited about fishing. Chad got the shrimp ready and the kids got their rods.
They have this beautiful boat dock that has a huge green light for fishing at night. The light attracts smaller shrimp and crabs thus attracting larger tastier fish.
James was all about the casting and couldn't handle just watching a bobber. So chad put a lure on his line so he could practice. Not two casts later he brought in his first red fish. And then the boy along with the fish was hooked.
The next morning the girls got ready for the beach while James, Chad and I got ready for the boat. The kids enjoyed their breakfast on the deck.
Soon after breakfast we were in the water fishing. James looked like a natural and eased into the groove pretty nicely. I was worried he would get bored fast but he was on a hunt and was not going to let go.
It was fun hanging with Chad and watching James get totally focused on fishing. Apparently there is a very specific uniform you should wear while fishing. James got the memo but I did not. Of course shorts like these just make my butt look huge!
We were impressed with the distance James could cast. His only limitation was the size of the rod.
Eventually James snagged himself a fish. He was so excited he couldn't stand still.
Chad was determined to get a big one on for James and the little rod just frustrated him even more.
Eventually Chad made the executive decision to give the boy a real rig to see what he could do.
Soon after that James got himself another fish!
We had a great time with the godfather and decided to make our way back home. It was another great opportunity for corruption and decide to let James command the boat. Thanks Uncle Chuck for letting us borrow your boat. James really knows how to open her up!
This past weekend we headed down to Corpus Christi to visit family and do a little fishing (More on that Later). Saturday the boys went fishing and the girls headed to the beach. The weather was pretty mild but the overcast sky took a toll on Whitney's back. Unfortunately she got herself a little burn.
Fortunately Chad had this drawing salve that soothed her skin immediately on contact. I have had a number of sunburns but I have never seen an ointment sooth a burn like Quret. This stinky little ointment was the savior Saturday night. Now that we are heading into summer it would be wise to grab yourself a little bottle of this stuff. While we should always be careful in the sun, there are also those areas we sometimes forget about. And if you suffer from boils this will also help those too...
My cousin Kari came in from Dallas to bring baby Zoe some hand-me-down goods. While she was in town we also banged out an awesome 1 year portrait of Zach.
Home boy was super giggly and fun to toss around. We played for a while but had to throw down a little cool with the mix. All this guy needs is a rum drink in a big plastic copilot mug at the ranch.
After all the play time we gathered round the art car for a little Goode Co BBQ.
Whitney and James were sooooooo happy to see the Greenway boys. We hope they decide to move to Houston soon.
We love you guys, thanks for everything!
Today is my grandfathers 86th birthday. I think sometimes we forget that without the birth of one, many do not exist. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank my grandfather for being here. Without him I wouldn't have three of the coolest aunts, two of the baddest uncles, twelve of the funniest cousins, two great brothers, a great dad and three of the of the most beautiful children of my own.
Thanks Daddy Clark. Thanks for being my grandfather. Thanks for being my friend and fan. Thanks for being one of the toughest hombres I have ever known.
I love you.
And I will always just tell them who I am because of where I came from.
Danny
God Bless Texas and God Bless Daddy Clark.
Last week we brought Zoe by the studio to take a few portraits of her. She is a real easy going kid but was not real fond of the cold studio. We did manage to capture a few images though.
I am always intrigued to see how the set of a shoot looks and the results. For all those that are curiouse about the behind the scene of one of these types of shoots here is a little sample.
We never got her to fully fall asleep but I think this is my favorite image. She is always squeaking and moving about. Denise and I can tell she is going to be a real pistol.
Have a great week everyone!
On Wednesday January 21st Zoe Clark entered the world and joined the crew.
Mommy is doing great, Daddy is doing great. And big brother James and big sister Whitney are beaming!
Denise was one tough cookie through the whole thing. She was even happy I was there with my camera!
Zoe arrived at 11:32 and hardly even gave us a fight. She was ready to come out!
Mommy didn't have a real big struggle. I was super proud of her for being so brave.
Getting to swaddle the babies is my favorite thing to do. Denise insisted on taking my picture since I do this with a lot of new dads.
Of the three Zoe is the smallest. Whitney was a little over 7 pounds, James was close to 9 and Zoe came in at 6.6
My favorite attribute are the giant claw toes. She takes after her daddy there! They come in handy like an extra set of hands.
Who doesn't like getting pampered.
She looks just like Whitney and James when they were born.
Whitney and James came to the hospital after school. Whitney was so excited I thought she was going to explode. When I picked her up form school she was telling everyone her baby sister was born!
James on the other hand was busy playing it cool. He didn't want to be overwhelmed with anything.
This is the very moment they saw their little sister for the first time. It was very sweet to see their faces light up.
Whitney was full of questions. She wanted to hold the baby soooo badly.
James was was mesmerized that her hair was so soft.
My little crew all lined up.
Once the newness was over they started in with the questions and ideas.
James and Whitney are learning that washing your hands is just going to be a part of this new baby thing.
The baby and Mommy are home today and we are all excited to start having fun with Zoe. We wanted to thank everyone for their support, kind wishes and prayers. Denise and I are fortunate to have such a great family, circle of friends, neighbors and clients. Zoe is a blessing and we know she will make our homes brighter and happier every day.
This weekend we all headed down to Discovery Green for the first ever Magnificent Seven Ice Sculpture competition. This was a really cool event put on by those crazy kids at DLG Ice Factory.
Basically there were 7 world renowned ice sculptors that were given 7 hours to create works of art out of ice. Each artists was busy working on their piece while entertaining the crowd for the peoples choice award. It reminded me of the days when we would compete in BBQ cook offs for showmanship.
Each time we came back to the competition we would see something different.
These guys were quite entertaining. They would use all sorts of tools like chainsaws, drills and even electric irons to work on the ice.
The block that Whitney and James liked the best was the one that was eventually going to be Tinkerbell.
My favorite was the one that looked like a giant fish! Each block is about 300 pounds in weight. They stack them up and seal the seams with dry ice.
Whitney asked if she could take pictures with our little point and shoot camera. Obviousely I was tickled that she wanted to do this. James and mommy went to play on the playground while Whitney and I walked around for photo opportunities. I showed her a few things about the camera and let her decide what to photograph. At one point she climbed into the water tree (that was turned off), laid down on her back and took some photographs inside. When she looked at the images on the camera she was hit by the photo bug. She got so excited about her image that she couldn't stop smiling.
It was cool to see her enjoy the same thing I do. She was proud of herself and appreciated a cool image. There was no stopping her at this point.
You could see the hunt in her images. She wanted that feeling again of taking a picture that makes you smile.
We all had a great time at Discovery Green. Thanks goes out to Gonzo and rev. Butter for putting together such a cool event. You guys make Houston cool!
I know, you thought it was a "real" baby but it is just one of the coolest cars ever built in America! That's right, the all American family wagon!
The same year National Lampoons Vacation came out is the same year that this psycho family ride was built. Our new 1983 Buick LeSabre Estate Wagon is our craziest little family project yet.
The best thing about this new fun ride is that everyone can cruise in it. It has a strong V8 engine that smokes a little less than George Burns. It has a state of the art push button stereo that plays BOTH kinds of music (AM & FM). Of course the speakers are buzzing more than a freshman at a frat house. And best of all the third row seat faces backwards so you can catch everyone checking out your dog dish hubcaps!
We are going to have some real fun with this wagon. I know most would think, "Hey, how could you make a car like this cooler?" Well let me tell you, we are going to make this bad ride a real head turning in the community. The kids are ready to splash a little color to it so Gonzo is going to help me black it out. After that I am going to lay down some flames and possibly give it that Destruction Derby Look!. So keep an eye out for the Wagon and give us a shout if you spot it on the road!
Oh and one last thing, if you see us stranded on the side of the road we will happily give anyone that helps a gift certificate to the studio!
God Bless Texas and God Bless The American Family Truckster!
Christmas Eve Whitney lost her first tooth with much excitement and anticipation. She was so worked up about the possibility of blood and pain, that the whole family was a part of the "extraction!" We were all in the bathroom together trying to convince Whitney to let me pull the tooth while Denise kept James calm. James was so upset, he couldn't stop crying in fear that his sister would be hurt.
After a few words of encouragement Whitney finally let her MOTHER pull the tooth. There was very little effort needed since Whitney had been wiggling it for about a week. She could bend it back and forth to point where if she ran too fast the wind would knock the tooth out.
After the excitement, Whitney was so excited to lose a tooth she couldn't stop looking in the mirror. She decided that she did not want to put the tooth under her pillow because she wanted to keep the tooth. The kid is a bit of a pack rat so we are being patient with her.
A few days later I cooked ribs for the family. Whitney tried to dig into the rib bone when she suddenly started crying because one of the "Big Ones" made a sound and is loose! I think that is about the only thing in the world that would stop this kid from eating a rib.
Whitney is a little confused about the "second set of teeth in my head" thing. I tried to explain to her that it is easier to lose your tooth than watch your first born lose her first tooth. She could care less about my sentimental fatherhood moment. Oh well, on with the new year than.
Today Whitney received some Corpus Christi, Aunt Toni love in the psychedelic form of Christmas socks. Whitney was pumped to rock the holiday swag with her new polky dotty dress. We threw down a little photo shoot just for A.T. out of C.C. Thanks for the love! It made a little girls holidays!
Our son James has been very festive this holiday season due to his pageant training at school. Last night we all piled into the gym at school to watch his big debut. These little shows are hilarious but surprisingly organized. Both James and his good buddy Finn were all smiles on stage.
When James spotted us in the crowed he started to get a little silly.
Our little man is growing up too fast. He knows multiple verses of many different songs. Ms. Amy and the rest of his teachers really know how to train these kids.
After the show James was so excited about his day. We were ultra proud of him for being so good at singing. Mommy didn't even cry!
Finn was excited about his performance as well. His mom dad and grandparents were there to cheer him on.
I don't think the little show was as much a gift as the look of pride and happiness on these kids faces when they were done. That was something that meant more than anything else this holiday season.
Thanks Ms. Amy for being awesome!
During the holidays it seems like I am constantly working. Fortunately I get to see my kids a lot and they hang out with me at the studio in the afternoon some days. Recently Whitney wanted to decorate the studio with Christmas art. I told her to draw me a picture of a tree and decorate it with lots of ornaments.
When she finished drawing, I then scanned the piece and printed it on our large format printer as a 24X36 print. The kids were so excited when they saw the drawing almost as big as James. When we got home the kids immediately got tape and taped the drawing on the wall.
Probably the best part of the whole deal was listening to Whitney explain the process to her mother. She wanted to make sure that Denise saw the red thing at the bottom as a rug and the blue at the top as the ceiling. When asked about the clouds on the wall she said, "It doesn't matter I like the clouds being inside and daddy says its not wrong." I was proud to hear her explanation and artist integrity.
Sunday afternoon St. Paul's United Methodist Church held its Blessing of the Pets service. This was a spectacular service to the Clark's because Whitney was singing for the first time in front of a live audience!
The Blessing of the Pets service is held outdoors in the courtyard. James and I hung out watching all the dogs and cats walking around. Even the Houston Police Department showed up for a Blessing too!
These guys were ultra cool. James just about wet himself so I asked if we could take a picture with the horses. James didn't want to get too close but.
Once the Choir came out I headed over to get a couple images of Whitney. 
She looked a little nervous but we were proud to see that she was front and center!
I told her I wanted her to stop growing but she just turned away like I was embarrassing her.
When the service begins everyone with a mobile pet parades the courtyard. This was pretty funny watching the chaos of dogs, cats and horses.
Some of the pups were enthusiastic about their photos being taken.
I found a pretty good place to stand during the service. It was a beautiful weather and loads of fun.
I caught a blog stalker taking my photo while I was taking photos of Whitney.
Whitney did a great job singing. She was proud of herself and we were too.
The first time I headed over to the Big Bend area I did not go into the park. We had an entire day to play on Sunday so we decided to go through the park then head over to Terlingua. The trip was a pretty cool little preview of the Park and made us all want to go back and go even deeper.
The kids were excited about the mountains. We had to keep James from rock collecting. He kept coming up to me with a handful of rocks and just dumping them in my shorts.
On the road to the headquarters there is this cool lookout with a fossil exhibit. The kids really enjoyed "mountain climbing."
On the road there were these really big colorful grasshoppers. Its strange to see them walking across the road as your driving. when we stopped we grabbed one to get a better look.
There is also this strange looking cactus called a Ocotillo. some stood over 10 feet high. It was like a desert tree and had these gnarly barbs.
The sky was really active all around us. You could see storms miles away. There are a few places where you have to watch for flash flooding due to storms all around us. The ridge in the background is facing the Little Christmas Mountains.
As we were leaving the fossil exhibit a storm came racing across the Black Peaks.
After we made it to the headquarters office we took the road to Terlingua. This is beautiful road that winds and twists all through the park. The next image is when the clouds finally start to break apart and show that awesome Big Bend sky. This is the face of the Emory Peaks.
The trip to Terlingua was fun but we kept hitting spots of rain so the images are limited. Keep tuned here for more form our trip.
I have been a little slow with the blog recently but it is for good reasons. One of those reasons is that we were busy with the kids before school started back up. Whitney is now in First Grade and loving it! She had a great first day.
Early mornings are not too easy though.
I think taking this photo twice a year is going to make me old real quick.
Whitney met up with her good buddy Fronia who was sporting a yummy apple. Sucking up to the teach early I see.
Once in the classroom the air was very thick. There was a sadness that ached from every child's face. It was as if they thought the parents were abandoning their young. Whitney held back her tears and just went with the flow.
However when Whitney came to the studio after school she was silly happy to be in 1st grade and loved meeting all her new friends.
My buddy and photography co-conspirator Farrah, finally made it back to the US after a long vacation. Everyone in the family was missed so we had to throw down some old school Polaroids for them.
Earlier in the day Finn and Sayer came by with Farrah. Sayer was all geared up as the Transformer Optimus Prime. He asked if I would take his picture while he wore his mask.
Sayer's little brother Finn did not want to take a photo but after a little candy bribery he managed to show a little love.
After the boys left Farrah said she was coming back with her husband Steven to get their portraits done. Later that evening they came by on a date night and struck a pose.
Ahhh, the stoic family...
These portraits have been so much fun. It will be sad when there is no more Polaroid to shoot.
This week my brothers came to hang out with us for a few days. My baby brother Stephen turns 15 on the 29th so we had a little Par-T for him. As a little treat I tried to get some "normal" images of them for the house. These two knuckleheads were most UN-cooperative. After a feeble attempt to take a portrait, I let them go nuts for the camera. This is what you get with loud music and two teenage boys that think they are sooooo cool. They think the camera loves them but I think it is more like an online cyber girlfriend kind of love...
Earlier this week I had to roll into Dallas for a little Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep training class. While there I embarked on the Greenways to grab a few images and squeeze on the newest Greenway boy.
Zachary was the happiest little chunky monkey. He was so happy, even vomited on me. Nothing is sweeter than the smell of warm regurgitated milk on your shoulder in the hot humid outdoors of Texas. YUMMY!
Apparently this is the outfit that Zack likes to wear on the golf course. I think the course was somewhere in Tennessee, Arkansas or Mississippi.
Dixie is pregnant with puppies so we threw down a little maternity session. I may be one of the first photographers to ever do a maternity dog portrait. This may be the beginning of an entirely new specialty.
Micheal cracks me up. This little guy has tons of great expressions. The one on the left reminds me of his grandfather Chuck.
Jacob is a sweet little man too. He is a huge Batman fan so we were in good company. He even knows every word to the Batman theme song!
Kari keeps pretty busy with these three boys. I was keeping close attention to how she handled them. Lots of notes were taken...
Cousin Beth chilled with the boys too. Here we have a little game of hide and sneak behind Beth. Very fun but VERY scary for Zack.
James tagged along with me to Dallas to chill with the Greenways. He hung out with them and had a great time while Daddy worked.
A little Beastie Boys Watch'cha Want camera action.
Micheal and James were daring little guys. Getting injured rarely crosses our minds during a shoot.
Thanks for the good times Kari and Beth! We miss you all!
Each day at the studio I am generally busy taking or working on portraits of people. Most of the time they are smiles and laughs. When families look at their photos I hear comments like, "I love that one but its not his real smile." or "Oh I love that one, everyone looks so happy!"
In reality we don't normally walk around constantly posed or have that perfect smile. Commonly we want to see images of our kids happy and smiling or playing and enjoying life. These are all great and meaningful images but there are also times when a child's portrait can be more about their true personality. A portrait that looks at them as individuals that will do something great in the future.
This weekend I wanted to take portraits of my kids in the same style as photographers that influence me and my work. People like Platon and Timothy Greenfield-Sanders. These are artists that create the portraits of people that change our world.
For this type of portrait I didn't want the kids to influence each other so I took them by the studio individually.
Whitney is like a second mom to James. She looks after him and controls her space at home. James on the other hand is always ready to move to the next big thing. He can barely stop talking long enough to breath.
I know we don't want our kids to grow up too fast because it means we get old. Looking at these two images, I am pretty sure they won't look much different when they get older. Two very different personalities. Two totally different people with completely different futures and lives. And soon we will have another shining star in the mix. Our world here at the studio will be changing right around January 29th.
Mommy is doing great and the kids are ultra excited to have a new baby. I don't think they realize that babies grow up and turn into little brothers or sisters that get into your stuff.
So get ready for the ride!
Saturday was my dads birthday so we headed over to his house to party the day away. I stopped by the store and grabbed a couple of underwater disposable cameras for a little fun. I have always wanted to play with these so we took the time to try it out.
My dad's dog Buddy is a big chocolate lab that loves to swim and chase balls, sticks, birds, etc. He also loves to dive. We have tennis balls with a hole so they sink to the bottom for Buddy. He patiently waits for the ball to settle to the deep end and then dives right in. The deep end of my dads pool is about 11 feet so watching this giant dog go to the bottom is crazy funny.
Buddy blows the air out of his nose as he rises to the top.
My little brother Stephen and I were trying to figure out the best way to take a photo deep underwater. These cameras work better with the subject about 8 feet away.
If your too close they fall a little out of focus but the fun isn't lost.
Whitney has become a real water bug this summer. She swims twice a day every day at camp.
I love the way the bubbles and water are moving all around her.
The hardest part was staying underwater. Typically your arms help keep you underwater. When there is a camera in your hand you basically float back to the top.
We had a lot of fun with dad for his birthday. He cooked while we goofed off all day. I have decided that I have a new hobby. Unfortunately it will require a new pool for the back yard. About 30 grand in new underwater equipment, scuba lessons and scuba gear. Denise is not real thrilled with the idea so I guess I better start working harder in the studio...
I got back from the Big Bend area safely and a little more inspired to do what I love. The trip was awesome and I couldn't have done it without the help of Uncle Jimmy.
I think my sides hurt from laughing so much but we gathered up a few great images that I wanted to share. So I hope you enjoy the eye candy. Its 100% fat free.
On the way to the Davis Mountains to see the Star Party at the McDonald's Observatory!
One of the things we wanted to find was an infinity road. I think we found it.
Ranch Fence.
Davis Mountains.
Just outside of the Observatory there is a park to the top of the Davis Mountains. It was quite an "astronomical view"
The other side of the Davis Mountains in color.
Really Really Big Telescope. One of the highlights of the trip was seeing Saturn through a telescope at the star party. It was not just a dot it was the planet, rings and all.
Bambi in the parking lot of the observatory.
The next morning we headed back to the Prada Storefront for a sunrise shot. This way you could see the shoes and bags as well. Opposite the storefront was this view of our great state of Texas.
When the sweet light came out I finally got my Prada portrait. It was a long road but worth every single minute.
All around the sides of the storefront are little notes, gifts and cards. Here is one that I thought was ridiculously romantic.
I hope Todd Allen Stapleton and his beautiful fiance' make the big time!
Saturday we headed back to my families ranch in Mikeska Texas. That is between George West and Beeville. When we got there we were presented with this beautiful image.
It was like the ranch was telling us "See guys, you didn't have to go all that way for a big sky country."
This one is for Uncle Jimmy. Its titled: Big Sky Mesquite.
Ranch sunset. (This is not an altered image - even Chris Newlin can confirm).
The trip was awesome and I can't wait to go back. I just hope the Big Bend Area will always be weired and beautiful. I could do without the 4.25 cent gasoline but oh well. After being in this area for 4 days you really do believe that Texas IS the State of the Arts!
God Bless Texas and God Bless Big Bend!
Today was James' last day of school at Bethany United Methodist School. For his last day we brought cup cakes for the class and they had a little party.
When we arrived James was leading the story time with a giant book of "The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and The Big Hungry Bear" which just happens to be one of our favorite books!
Everyone brought their favorite hat to wear in celebration.
The cupcakes were a big hit and everyone in the room quietly ate.
I don't think I have ever heard that room so quiet with children in it. It was like the eye of a storm...
Then there was the facial aftermath of the cupcakes.
When everyone was done we watched the kids dance around to James' favorite line dancing song The Cupid Shuffle. They all got a little wild and it became a wrestling match. Unfortunately we had to leave and get back to work shortly after. Bethany has always been a loving place for the kids and our family. They will all be missed.
Today was Whitney's last day of school. I took a quick photo of her in front of the school for comparison and found it amazing how fast the year went by. We had a great time with the new teachers, new friends, carnivals and activities.
Whitney told me that her favorite thing about kindergarten was learning to read. She also told me the hardest thing about kindergarten was listening to Ms. Wilson. Summer is here so let the games begin.
When I was a kid I don't recall any ceremony of graduation or promotion but I do remember the school awards ceremony. These were really exciting because there was usually some pretty good entertainment and a few prizes handed out.
Today, Denise and I were giddy to be in the audience of Whitney's Kindergarten promotion. I think I was just as excited as her. The night before, Whitney told me she had to make sure and wash her hair and her face and her nails for the big day. She also told me that Ms. Wilson said they could wear anything they wanted except a costume. I couldn't wait to see what some of the kids were going to wear.
We got to the school and the parents were scrambling for good seats. I don't think there were any bad seats but they probably didn't need them at all. Once the kids entered the area almost every parent jumped up and held their cameras approximately arm lengths away to photograph their child.
When the kids first arrived they sang a couple of songs for the crowd. One was called I Love Mommy. Whitney told me about this song the other day. I asked if she was going to sing one about Daddy and she said no, but she would make one up for me if I liked. After the singing and dancing the kids lined up for the awards. Luckily the kids lined up right next to where I was sitting so I was able to get a quick shot off of Whitney in line for her award.
Each child went to the podium for their award. Whitney was given the honor of "Most Outgoing" which is quite fitting.
Two other classmates, Brandon and Lauren were ready for their awards. Whitney, Lauren and Brandon have been together since their Pre-K days at Bethany. It was exciting to see all these kids growing up.
After the awards were passed out they had a little slide show of the kids. The kids yelled out every one's name as the image was shown (232 pictures to be exact...so 232 names). It was funny, but mommy thought it was hysterical.
Whitney was crazy proud of herself and you could see it just beaming on her face. This was a big day and she was soaking it up.
My little baby girl has just grown up soooooo fast it is scary.
After the ceremony, we were escorted to Whitney's class to view more of her work. She showed us all her awards and some fantastic art.
We had a great time this year at Roberts and we owe a lot of it to Ms. Wilson being an awesome teacher, Stephanie Walton for always watching out for Whitney and the rest of the Roberts family for just being a caring school that loves its kids.
Recently Denise has been doing a lot of traveling so I am pretty sure she misses the kids. Fortunately we have been pretty busy so I have not had a lot of time to get updates on the blog. We just hired a new assistant so things should start smoothing out again.
These smiles are for you mommy. Get home soon.
A little Clark lip biting to start your day.
Yes we are seeing just how long she can go without washing her hair.
Napkins? Why?
Her dirty blond hair never hides her pretty face.
Friday afternoon Whitney's school, Robert's Elementary, had this great carnival. The school asked if I would take some pictures for the local newspaper so I brought along a camera for the occasion.
The afternoon was blazing hot but Coach T wasn't too bothered by it. He needs to work on his heckling though.
There was a big rock crawling wall that looked like a lot of fun. I wasn't too interested in getting that close to the sun though. And I'm sure those harnesses would make me look fat....
This kids button cracked me up. Pretty much the way I and everyone else in my family feels.
Whitney and James were sporting new tats. They saw the tattoo booth and just couldn't resist.
They had all these fun blow up, jumping, crawling, sliding party rigs all over the place. There was this rocket that would lift a kids all the way up like a reverse parachute.
Whitney wanted nothing to do with it so I crawled in with one of the Lynch family to take some pictures of her on the ride.
On the basket ball court there is pizza, chicken sandwiches, ice cream, cotton candy and best of all Snow Cones! The parents of Ms. Wilson's class ran the snow cone booth. Some of the parents (I won't name any names) looked marvelous in their rubber gloves and hair nets. For privacy I added a creepy black bar across the eyes of this parent to conceal her identity.
When I saw this I wanted to either sing Snow Cone man by Adam Carroll or Lunch Lady Land by Adam Sandler. Either way Whitney loved the snow cones. She had an yummylishous green apple bubble gum flavor.
The Charnquist boys met up with us and joined in on the fun. Sayer was working an ice cream freeze headache right out of the gate.
After the sweet treats the boys headed over for a little silly string battle. James handed over his last two tickets for the throw down.
He wasn't sure how to use the cans so I showed him the proper way to be silly with the string.
At this point Sayer was at the ready with his can of string and these boys were bringing the fight.
Now pound for pound Charnquist was all over Clark, but Clark has these cat-like reflexes and sudden moves that would even make Neo of the Matrix proud.
But every now and then he got hit hard with the silliest of strings.
Even the camera man took a shot every now and then.
So when the string dust settled the cans were thrown down and the world of "Too Much" was setting in- we decided to head home. Sayer and James had a rough time leaving but they survived another day. Oh, to fight silly with string is such a wonderful thing.
We had a lot of fun at the carnival and look forward to the party next year!
Without mothers around boys tend to do silly things. Once Denise left the studio my little brother Stephen and I decided to goof off before we left. We thought this was funny. Happy mothers day!
This weekend while mommy was out of town, I took the kids to San Antonio to visit their Godfather, Chad. Because of my crazy schedule we had to plan this well in advance but it was well worth the trip. It was also the first road trip by myself with the kids.
Friday afternoon we got in the car and headed out of town. Just leaving Houston can be a challenge but eventually we got to cruising speed and kicked on the DVD player.
The kids did great until their movie was over. On the way to San Antonio the Buc-ees franchise has a sign about every 3 miles. Personally, I think the signs look awful but the kids wanted to go there because their uncle Stephen has a shirt with the beaver. So we stopped in, went to the bathroom, purchased a pulled pork sandwich (it was awful) and grabbed a couple of shirts. Yep, you guessed it...mass marketing at its finest.
We arrived in San Antonio and got a good night's sleep before a big day at Sea World. The kids were excited to see Chad and play with Nicole.
If you plan to go to Sea World this summer be sure and purchase your tickets online. They are cheaper and you don't have to wait in line to get in. It was a good start to a crowded day. Our other cousin, Bryan, and his son, Noah, met us in San Antonio too. Whitney and Noah were excited to see each other. So life was good at the Dolphin Pool.
We caught (get it) the Shamu show where James and I sat in the "Splash Zone." After the killer whales splashed everyone, James decided he wanted to move higher. Luckily we didn't get too wet. The show was cool but a little anti-climactic. This was the best part (below).
Everyone was hungry, so we had the tradition $350.00 Turkey leg. James and Chad were the best at chowing down.
After the food and shows we headed to the water park so the kids could play. It was pretty nice because the pool was only 2 feet deep and we could see the kids anywhere. We hung out in lawn chairs and watched the kids have fun.
The kids played until they could play no more. They voluntarily wanted to go home so we knew they had fun.
Before we left, I took Noah, James and Whitney into a candy store and told them they could get whatever they wanted but it could only be one thing. Its funny watching them struggle with a decision when there is so much to choose from. Noah and Whitney went with the cotton candy and James likes food on a stick.
We headed home and everyone fell sound asleep. After a couple hours the house came alive again just in time for a little yard fishing and backyard play. Chad has this little fishing rod that James played with all weekend.
Whitney and Nicole got cleaned up and were ready to play in the play house.
Nicole would do everything she could to avoid the camera. Finally I tricked her into looking at me and I grabbed a few quick smiles. She is such a sweet little thing that we don't get to see very often.
We took the beautiful lighting and cool weather as an opportunity for family portraits. We really miss these guys and wish they still lived in Houston.
Nicole was a real stinker and would taunt me with sweet smiles right before I put the camera to my face. So I just ran around her and took as many quick images as I could. We call this a shotgun method. 150 images are taken but only a couple hit the target.
Chad was very interested in modeling as a young man but decided modeling wasn't going to raise a family so he decided to get into real estate. As you can see here he probably made a wise choice.
To marry a Clark male takes a lot of energy and resistance to obnoxious behavior, stupid jokes and every day ballyhoo (I love that word). Stacie has settled in nicely with the Clark crew. I realized she has come full circle when she shot me the ever typical, "My Clark husband is an idiot and you better get that camera out of my face!" look.
And Lastly I grabbed a few images of the sweet puppy, Suerte. He is not real happy with me taking his photo. I think we miss seeing him trample though my backyard the most.
We had an awesome time and got home safely. I survived a trip by myself with the kids and it was great to see the family. Thanks guys for letting us hang with you and chill for a couple of days.
Sunday afternoon we met up with Farrah and her crew to try out the new Discovery Green park in downtown Houston. Of course being a "green" family we decided to all take the Metro Rail to the park. The nice thing about the rail is that the adventure with the kids starts as soon as we get out of the car and get on the train.
We headed to downtown and were excited to play! This is a seriously rag tag group of misfits.
From the train you walk just 5 short blocks to the park. Its not that far of a walk and the kids had fun being downtown. Right up front there is this big water tree. Finn and Whitney were excited to play in the water.
Whitney had a great time running around. The park was full of people but it was a nice crowd and the weather was perfect.
James liked to play in the water but he was a little cold. This face pretty much says it all.
Here is the dynamic duo, otherwise known as Frick and Frack.
On the other side of the water tree there is another big water spout play area. This was pretty much a free for all. Whitney was all about running through the water.
Every now and then a sprinkler would shoot up and tag you right in the nose. Whitney had a great solution for that.
On the other end of the park there is this large art scape called Synchronicity of Color. James and I walked around and took a few pictures of it.
I took a photo of the whole thing just to give you a little perspective. They were quite large. I want to take a High School Senior portrait against this artwork.
I asked James to lean up against the wall and just be real cool. If this isn't a portrait of confidence I don't know what is.
He definitely has a look of impish intolerance to order and authority.
Lastly I took Whitney over to the walls but she was much to energetic for a picture. So I took a bunch of her running around. I wish I had energy like these guys do. It just seems to never end with them.
Yet again we had a perfect Sunday afternoon.
The other day I taught Whitney how to ride her bike without training wheels. Her 3 year old little brother James is a lot like most Clark's when it comes to competition. We will not be outdone in ANY way. So naturally he wanted to take the training wheels off his bike. After a couple of tries this adamant little boy was cruising around without his training wheels.
Sometimes he scares me with his jack rabbit like agility and his high energy intensity. Here is a little video for you to enjoy of the kids riding their bikes.
Sunday morning after a wedding I get to rest while the kids and Denise go to church. Its only fair, I went to church on Saturday right?. Anyhow, when they got back we decided to head out to Hermann Park for a little play time. Apparently the rest of Houston was doing the same thing. The streets were parking lots and we could not find anywhere to park. So I decided to go park at the Metro Rail Station and we would just ride the train! The kids were excited about their first Metro Train ride.
James makes this funny face whenever you ask him a silly question. I don't know what his mother asked but basically he is responding "Naaawww."
James thought it was awesome we were going faster than the cars.
Whitney liked people watching.
It was actually pretty nice to just get on the train and head right to the park. The train stops right near the entrance to the Museum and the big playground. James and Whitney had never been to this playground before. It was like a whole new world to play in.
James Loved all the slides! The next few images are from Denise. She is wanting to learn more about photography so I am helping her out.
Whitney liked playing on the tug boat.
After some play time we got back on the train and headed down to the museum district for a bite to eat at the Museum of Fine Art. There we got to see a bunch of the Houston Art Cars on display.
This car ROCKED!
It was covered with metal and beads and all sorts of strange reflective stuff.
Then there was this other car with all these fish and lobsters singing. The guy in the car controlled some type of actuator to make the sea creatures dance and sing. The kids loved it.
There was even a conductor that got the crowd going.
The baddest car on the lot was this old Lincoln Continental that was patriotically painted.
The kids loved the Lego car too. IT was just their size.
And there was plenty of cool stuff to look at.
Across the street from the museum there were more cars to check out. I think this was my favorite.
Whitney liked the faces on this car.
I loved the bumper sticker.
The rat car was "really cute but yucky" according to Whitney.
One of the last cars we looked at was covered with toys. I thought about all this spare parts of toys we had at home and are now considering creating my own art car.
Farrah's son Sayer is in love with Star Wars. I need to find this toy for his 5th birthday.
Awesome hood ornament.
After the fun at the museum and the park we headed home. James was in need of a hair cut so we stopped to get that done. Whitney also wanted to get her hair cut. We gave her a book of pictures and told her to pick out the hair she liked. Her mother was having a rough time with her selection. Especially when Judy (the stylist) handed her mother this..
My little Punky got it all taken off. She thought she looked pretty good and I had to agree. Now we can bring on the summer.
With all these "big girl" decisions, Whitney was ready to learn to ride her bike without training wheels.
So we got home, grabbed her bike and headed to a parking lot to teach her how to fall ride. She was ready and now that she had this fantastic hair style her hair was not in the way.
I ran along with her for a little while and she was constantly asking me if I was holding on. I could tell she was almost there but just needed to feel it for herself.
Finally she broke loose and felt the freedom. This kid was ultra giddy. She just started giggling uncontrollably while asking me if I was still holding on.
I was so happy to see here having fun riding her bike like a big kid. She was proud of herself and having a great time. I told her she will never forget how to ride a bike and she yelled back, "OK Daddy Thanks!"
Sure she fell a few times but handled it well. I guess knowing she can ride makes up for the unintentional intimacy with concrete. She was proud of herself and so were we.
We ended the day on that note and I let her ride her bike for a while. James was super tired so we had to head home and get them ready for the night. I hope everyone else had as great a day as we did.
Saturday morning I had to run a few errands and we stopped by Roberts to grab a quick photo of Whitney's new street sign. During the school auction I purchased the circle drive sign and we designated it "Whitney Way".
Whitney was really excited about the sign. I'm sure it is going to be something she will let all her friends know about. I can't believe she is almost done with her first year of school. It's amazing how fast she has grown.
The weather was great and the kids were having fun but we couldn't stay. I grabbed this last shot of them looking into the camera with the stunning blue sky. There won't be many weekends like this in Houston for a while.
So I rushed back home and got ready to go work on Megan and Phillips wedding. Farrah and I were jazzed about this one and ended up having a lot of fun.
The wedding was beautiful, the weather was great and the couple was happy. Here is one more quick sneak peak of the happy couple on the roof of the Magnolia Hotel right before sunset.
Great combination. Keep an eye out here we will get more of the happy couples day blogged later this week.
Friday was a light morning with mainly paper work and phone calls but the real fun started at noon. I was asked by the guys over at The Hollywood Frame Gallery to photograph two dogs and a cat for an art piece Jim Tweedy was working on. I headed over to the house and found the funniest little white dog,
the toughest little red dog
and a black cat that could care less I was there.
After the shoot I had to rush off to pick up Whitney at a High School Musical 2 party. Roberts had let out at noon Friday and the Kindergarten Girls were having a little "get together" When I got to the party local Whitney and a bunch of other little girls were all standing in front of the television singing and dancing. It reminded me of the Rocky Horror Picture Show. Whitney and I headed off to get groceries to feed the Charnquist/Braniff crew. Farrah and I were shooting a wedding Saturday so we usually get together the night before to go over stuff. As always, Farrah is a horrible influence and encourages my kids to jump on the furniture. She will be updating her blog with the events that evening but let me share at least one image with you. I title this "Total Loss of Control" by Farrah Braniff.
Everyone left too late, too tired, and too upset but all had fun and were ready for a wedding shoot.
Last Sunday the weather was beautiful so we naturally spent the day outside. The kids wanted to go to the park at Roberts Elementary so we headed over to have some fun. Whitney went to the swings and adamantly wanted to show me something "really cool!" Little did I know she was going to do something completely foolish!
While I realize we all have done this before it is hard to watch your own child risk a broken limb. At first my stomach turned when she did it. Then I decided it was cool and wanted to get it on film. I guess we can't always be responsible.
Easter Sunday was a real blast with the family. We didn't head out of town or do anything wild but we did get to hang out with family and that was fun. After Church we headed over to the Braniff family house and had a little Easter celebration there. The kids hunted eggs and enjoyed the beautiful weather. Whitney is a real pro at hunting the eggs down.
I was able to get them to sit still for one frame. This is it Clark family so enjoy it while it lasts.
After the hunt we had a little lunch and enjoyed the company. I love ham on Easter Sunday. I also love taking photos of cured meats.
Once we were done we went to my dads house and hung with them for the afternoon. My dad made these cookies on a stick that the kids enjoyed.
Before the evening meal we all played outside with scooters and skateboards. James has this little scooter that he loves. My brothers setup their ramp and let him give it a try. He is fearless and did not have any problem trying to catch some air.
The kids all took turns going down the driveway and off the ramp. As usual I decided to get right in the way. James was not thrilled I was in his line.
My dad had to have another operation on his foot so he has to roll around on this leg wheelie scooter deal. The kids loved going down the driveway on it.
Stu was working the baby scooter.
Pickle had this strange little skateboard that he thought was cool (and that is important).
We had a lot of fun and the kids burnt out on the way home.
Sunday, Whitney had a little birthday party to go to at this crazy little place in the Heights called the Pink Polka Dot. Denise said that it was the coolest place. It is actually a party room within a shop called Olive Anne on West 19th. It was a Hannah Montana party so there was plenty of high energy in the house when I got home. I had to work Sunday night, but Whitney was waiting up for me so I could see her green "punked out" hair. She had a lot of fun and the hair was terrific. The only problem was washing out all the glitter.
After the drama with washing it out, we had this neat little conversation while snuggling in her bed.
Whitney: "I love you daddy."
Me: " I love you too."
Whitney: "I love you from home to outer space."
Me: " I love you to the moon and back."
Whitney: "Is the moon farther?"
Me: "Yep."
Whitney: "Well I love you more than my green hair."
Me: " And I love you more than my dirty socks."
Whitney: "You're silly daddy." (with an awesome little giggle)
Then the snoring began.
Kids are cool.
Friday afternoon Whitney's school has a function on Go Texan day called Kindergarten Roundup. This is where all the next year's kindergartners get to come tour the school and learn about the programs. Farrah's son, Sayer will be going to Roberts next year. We are all so excited to have more family in the school.
Part of the kindergarten roundup is a little entertainment by the current kindergarten class. Whitney was very excited to be a part of the festivities!
Everyone in the room was fully dressed for the Go Texan day. I need to get a hat like this.
First event was a little pony race. Whitney was so excited I thought she was going to bust!
Then off she went to round the corners on her little cutting horse.
She was super cute in her pig tails. Someone asked her if her daddy did her hair. She chuckled like it was the funniest thing and said NO HE DOESN'T KNOW HOW! Whitney loves to have her picture taken with her friends. This is her little buddy Nadia.
After the races the kids did a little line dancing. It was too funny watching them get down. Ms. Lane did a great job with the choreography. Here is a little animation for your dancing enjoyment.
After the line dancing the kids sang songs with a little more dancing. The Chicken Dance was a big hit.
Whitney did great and we were tickled that Steven, Farrah and Sayer could be there too.
Today is Go Texan Day and the kids are ready to show their Texas Pride! James was in full regalia this morning. I wonder what the kids in Idaho, Alabama and Main do on their states day? I couldn't imagine what Go Idahoan day is like.
Whitney has a big event later this afternoon that Denise and I are attending. There will be more pictures later. Today also kicks off the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Cook-off. I hope the guys of Planet Texas do great this weekend. Wish I could be there with them!
Recently we had our logo worked on and we finalized it this week. The mark is super slick and cool but we are not fully unveiling it just yet. With the new mark comes new marketing, cards, demo CDs etc etc. I was creating new business cards for myself and decided to use old pictures. Below are four of my favorites. It really shows that the influences of being an easy going BBQ lovin, music dancing leisurely guy started at a very young age.
Hanging by the water, fishing and smoking. Ahhh, good times good times.
Did someone say Rodeo!? Go TEXAN BABY!
Can you hear it "It Must Be Ladies Night"
And lastly me with the BBQ King himself. Paw Paw showing me how its done.
Recently I had the honor of visiting Whitney's class and telling them about my job. I explained to them that my job in the community was to take pictures of what was important to people. As a little project I gave each child a little disposable camera to go home and take photos of what was important to them.
The results are in and I have to say there is some pretty cool art among each child's portfolio. I went through and grabbed an image from each set and made a little black and white art print.
While looking through the images, keep in mind that the kids were asked to photograph what was important to them. I hope you enjoy the tour of Ms. S. Wilson's extremely artistic group of kids.
On Sunday after playing on the hill we headed over to the Railroad museum. I had been told this was a really cool museum so we made sure to visit. We missed Santa by one day but realized we were not at the rail-RAD museum.
In the station there were all these statues to look like the late 20s and 30s. This one statue looked like she was actually watching James and Finn (otherwise known as Frick & Frack).
There was even a photographer working on a very long exposure...
Denise was busy talking on the phone with Santa.
The rail cars outside are not really blocked off like the flight museum. You can pretty much go anywhere on any of the trains. Be careful though there is lots of rusty metal, nails and creepy rooms to wander into. Steven and I decided to do a little ghostly images in the postal car. Some of these cars would just give you such a creepy feeling.
Look for the ghosts in the next two images.
One of the cars was a little more modern but for some reason we didn't want to go through it. The kids were real strange and the hair was standing on my neck. I took this image then got the heck out of there. I didn't even want to look behind me.
There were three big engines on the tracks. This was one of the big Yellow Rose engines.
Then there was the famous 555 engine.
You could walk through the middle of these tracks and just take tons of great images. The size of these machines is awesome.
Whitney and I found a really old caboose. It was super creepy so we treaded lightly. Whitney walked to the end of the car and turned around. She froze in her tracks and just stared at the ceiling. Eventually she ran back to me and we quickly left. This is one of my favorite images
While Denise ran off to find James, I watched Whitney play on the tracks. She loves the movie Polar Express where the kids walk on the tracks in the North Pole.
She had a really good time playing at the railroad museum.
James was all over place. He disappeared for a while but we caught up with him. He was angry because he thought we lost him. He loved climbing into the big engine and pulling the bell rope.
Being cool on the train.
Playing on the trains was a lot of fun but we were ready to get home. This was one of my last images I took of the weekend. Finn was throwing a rock in the air waiting to leave.
We were glad Farrah and her crew joined us this weekend. It was a lot of fun!
At the San Luis hotel there is this huge hill on next to the I-HOP. After breakfast we took the kids to let them run around on this massive hill.
The wind was still pretty strong but fun was had by all. I had each kid show me how loud they could yell G-A-L-V-E-S-T-O-N!
The kids rolled all over the hill and burnt up some serious energy. James couldn't stop screaming!
My little Princess was having a good time rolling down the hill.
Finn was the king of the world at the bottom of the hill.
Mommy was rested and relaxed after her pampering Saturday morning. The kids were ready for the aquarium and I-max. We trucked it over to Moody Gardens and cruised through the aquarium before our movie started.
Mommy and the kids posed for a photo op. Don't ask me what they are doing.
The aquarium was all decorated for Christmas. There was a tree with more of the huge ornaments so we saluted M.C. Escher and took a photo in a sphere.
The IMAX movie we went to see was Santa vs. the Snowman which by no means is good nor worth the money. The movie is 3d so you have to watch it with these stylish glasses.
After the movie we met up with Farrah and her crew for a little Festival of Lights celebration.
The wind had really started to pick up and was almost unbearable. The Festival of Lights was awesome and the kids enjoyed all the light diplay.
My camera ran out of battery power so this was the last image of the night. We had fun and everyone got a good night sleep after all the daily activity.
As usual James was the first to wake up Saturday morning. When we are getting ready for bed I tell him that we need to sleep because we have to "Make a New Day". James gets up with the sun every morning and tells me "Daddy the Sun is out so the new day is ready!"
Our hotel room faced the water and there was this awesome light coming in the room. James wouldn't hold still long enough for me to photograph him though.
Whitney on the other hand was all about showing off her new fine jewelry in the morning sun.
Man that's some fancy jewelry!
We let mommy go enjoy an little pampering in the spa while I took the kids to I-HOP for breakfast. There was a pretty good storm coming so we had to hustle. The kids tried every syrup available and deemed Poison Berry (aka. Boysenberry) their favorite! The wind got really strong and the kids wanted to take "cool" pictures in the parking garage.
Not real sure that is a cool face but he sure is a cool kid.
We got in the car and headed out to the Texas Lone Star Flight Museum to check out all the old War Birds. Below are a few of our favorites from the museum.
It was pretty cool getting to see these war planes up close. It took a lot of sand to get in one of these planes back in WWII. I would have like to learn more about teh planes but it is not the kids priority to wait for me to finish reading.
James and Whitney enjoyed the museum and we left right after a front blew through the area. The wind was super strong but I had to get the kids picture in front of the sign.
James loves planes, trains and sharks!
Last weekend we decided to take a little time off and get away from Houston for a couple of days. We decided to head down to Galveston and take the kids to Moody Gardens for their big Christmas Celebration of Lights.
On the way we stopped in Friendswood to visit with our buddies Trish and Adam Taylor. They have a super successful studio there and we couldn't wait to let Whitney and James run loose in their shop.
They have this real cool sign at the front door making sure nobody used cameras in the studio. They did let me take one picture inside though.
Trish and Adam are the Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep coordinators in the Freindswood/Galveston area. They have driven all the way into the med center for families a number of times. These guys are top notch! If you live in Friendswood and can't get in to see us be sure and check them out at http://www.imagingstudios.com/
Thanks for the all the hospitality guys and have a great Christmas!
We left Friendswood and headed to Galveston. After we checked into the San Luis Hotel we took the kids to the room to test out the jump-ability of their beds. James was so funny because he kept telling people we were staying at a Show & Tell. Whitney would correct him and say "No James! Its a Hoe & Tell!" Either way it was cool.
James and Whitney wanted to eat so we took the to the Rain forest Cafe. They gave the kids these blinking glasses which added to all the flare in the room. After we ate the kids picked out something fun in the gift shop. Whitney selected some fine jewels and James got a train. Off to bed and ready for a dayof fun!
This month Whitney's class is learning about the community. Part of this comes with the ever popular parent career day. Tuesday I was scheduled to come visit the class and explain to them what I do at my job. Little did Ms. Wilson know that my job is to get kids wound up and silly!
The night before my "presentation" Whitney and I went to Sam's club and purchased a bunch of disposable cameras for her classmates. We wanted each child to take the camera home and photograph what was important to them. In addition, I brought in some of our cool toys equipment for them to see in action.
While we were shopping, Whitney and I had a very interesting conversation about our event. It went like this:
Danny: "So what do I need to talk about tomorrow?"
Whitney: "Your job."
Danny: "But what do I say?"
Whitney: "You tell them what your job is then you talk about your job."
Danny: "But what did the other parents talk about?"
Whitney: "Their job!"
Danny: "But is there something specific I tell them about my job?"
Whitney: "I DON'T KNOW! But I get to sit next to you in the little chair while you sit in the big chair."
Now we know what was important...
We had a lot of fun and it was really cool to see how proud Whitney was of her daddy. The class is supposed to turn in their cameras by the end of the week. We can't wait to see what these images look like.
Thanks goes out to the coolest Kindergarten class in the world! The SUPERKIDS of Ms. Wilson's Kindergarten Class
Since the weather was a balmy 75 today with a 100% humidity I decided to take James to the zoo for a little father son time. James loves the train and that is the highlight of our outings. Going to the zoo with James is super fun because he doesn't mill around. He checks out the animal, says "yeah that's cool" then moves on. Whitney isn't like that. She likes to meander through the zoo and watch the animals.
The zoo is decorated for Christmas with lots of ribbons and ornaments. They had these giant ornaments hanging from the trees. James was fascinated with our reflection.
Since we were there relatively early we were able to see a lot of the animals getting fed. I had never been to the zoo in the morning before. It was completely different because all the animals were moving about and very active. We went to the reptile building and these turtles actually stopped eating and looked at us when we arrived. I told James we needed to leave since it was obvious we were disturbing them.
We cruised through the zoo and headed out to the train. James likes to sit near the back so he can see the whole train in front of him. I love the sticker on the top of the cars. I wonder how many city meetings took place to decide what was going to be put on these trains.
The weather was beginning to get better so we headed over to the Sam Houston statue. I have always wanted to take his picture under this statue. He thought it was a really neat deal but the money in his pocket was more important.
My little man is growing up too fast. He was ready to leave and go home to play with his train. He had enough of the statue.
My little Houstonian. with his pocket full of money and big ideas about trains.
My little brother Stephen hung out with me today at the studio.
In between sessions we worked on a little video for his myspace page. He is amazed at how much work was involved with creating this little 4 minute diddy. So, if you are looking for something to do or just have about 4 minutes to waste (not including download time) please enjoy Stephens video.
(Click The Image Below)
This year was the year I didn't cook anything. Even though I love to cook it just wasn't going to be possible. But never fear! We will share a couple of our family recipes from Thanksgiving here.
Ma'ma's family was in town so we hung out with the Louisiana crew all day. Ba Ba and Pa Pa Louie were busy pillaging Wendy's recipe box.
Pa Pa Louie calls Whitney a Magnolia because she is just sooo pretty. Now when you say this to Whitney you have to pronounce it with a real Cajun accent like MAG-A-NOL-EEE-YA. My dad has a big magnolia tree out front so Whitney went to find a magic magnolia leaf.
After Whitney made her wish with the magnolia leaf the turkey appeared ready to carve.
Here is a little triple turkey if you ask me.
Oh and those of you that don't know my dad. He is in a wheelchair due to foot surgery. It was a real treat having him roll over our feet all day.
Oh and you can't forget the ever popular Clark Family Cranberry Sauce. Click the link to get the recipe.
I was asked to carve the turkey with a dull knife. This is a lot of fun because dull knives go through skin rather easily. I just couldn't help myself while carving so I had to take a small delicate bite of the juicy turkey.
Once we were ready everyone got to getting down with the dinner plate.
I told my bro Stuart I don't really see why we need to eat on plates. They just slow you down and give you more to clean up later. I suggested we skip the plates and eat directly off the stove.
After the first round of thankful gluttony we enjoyed a little light music from James and Stuart. James is learning to beat box. We haven't found a "school of beat boxing" in Houston yet but hopefully someone will start one.
Stuart played a gentle version of Jingle Bells on the drums for us.
Soon after it started it got real ugly and LOUD!
We took the opportunity to take a few portraits. My little man needs a haircut bad!
My sweet babies. They are growing up WAY too fast!
Ba Ba and Pa Pa Louie were snuggling up for the camera too.
Then we got the wide angle toy out and took a bunch of big head portraits. First up my bro Pickle.
Little big man coughing in my face.
The princess showing her dance moves.
Dan with his boot. Poor little Pa Pa.
Oh here is Pa Pa right before he gets sick of the camera being in his face.
Here he is going from 2 to 10. Somebody didn't eat enough turkey...
Stuart with his big eyes and stupid shirt. Also, notice the two children behind him playing in the street. That's right, we were all told to go outside and play in the street.
And finally Ma Ma trying to avoid the camera. At least she smiled.
Before we go I would like to address that my brothers are not right. There is something definitely wrong with two boys that manage to take anything around them and turn it into a game. While Dan watched football my brothers took his wheelchair and started to play with it outside.
I wanted to offer advice that it would be a lot more fun if we had a football or tennis ball so we could make this into a proper sporting event. But then I realized that I too must suffer from the same issues that torment their pathetic minds.
We had a great day and we got right back to the studio first thing Friday morning. We hope your family enjoyed Thanksgiving as much as we did.
My grandfather, Dr. Charles Clark, recently had his novel "Return to Dos Encinos" chosen as a finalist for the Violet Crown Award through the Writers League of Texas. This book is the sequel to "Trails To Dos Encinos" and is a great read. If you dig the old west than grab these two books and have a read. They make great Christmas gifts too!
Congrats Daddy Clark!
My cousin Kari in Dallas sent us some pictures of their boys Michael and Jacob. Kari went all out with robin hood and a pirate.
Dad's costume was my favorite. He really pulled that "Guy at home form work" look real well.
Kari's brother Chad in San Antonio sent me pictures of little Nicole. She was a Texas Tech cheerleader. I think that is one of the scariest pumpkins around.
Those pig tails are too much!
Thanks for the pictures guys! We miss you all.
Man the weather tonight was fantastic! It seems like the last few years it was either really cold, humid or raining. The kids had a blast and before they got started I made them practice one of the following:
Trick - L - Treat (no daddy that's wrong)
Trickle - Treat (No Daddy THAT's wrong)
Trick - R - Treat (NO DADDY)
Trixies - Feet (UGHH! Your a DORK daddy)
The kids had a lot of fun but Whitney got a little scared of the big kids in their scary costumes. I was more scared of the kids that came without any costume on at all.
We came across the coolest site from the great culinary photographers at The Still Life With blog site. If you ever want to see some fantastic food photography and get some great recipes please check out L.
Tastebook is a new site that lets you build your own cookbook. It even puts the recipes in categories with tabs. We have started working on ours and will let everyone know when it is ready.
And yes we will have a section with our ever famous strict family menu.
For those of you that don't know about our family menu we originally got the idea from my grandmother GiGi. Growing up I always heard my uncles and aunts talk about the dinner table rules. While they probably didn't realize it then the concept of a strict dinner plan is quite important. With our hectic days and Denise's travel we had to come up with a standard for our kids. Every night was a challenge to make a good meal they would like and it not take all night to cook. So I developed a menu specific to their likes, health needs and weekly schedule. I can just her them now telling people they know what day of the week it is by what they have for dinner.
Here is the weekly menu:
Sunday: BBQ Chicken, Mac & Cheese, Broccoli
Monday: Meatloaf, potatoes, salad or green beans
Tuesday: Spaghetti and peas.
Wednesday: Free night (we usually eat at church or go out to dinner)
Thursday: Pork Chops (Sorry Daddy Clark) corn, broccoli
Friday: Fajitas, black beans, salad
Saturday: Free night or hot dogs
Desert is available only after baths and the choices are Jello or Yogurt
When I came up with the menu I thought about all the things that my grandmother would have had 50 years ago. There were no microwaves, processed foods or fast food joints so we tried to keep everything simple. The best thing to do is stay on the outside isles of the store. This way you only get whole food that is healthy and easy to cook. You would be surprised at how easy these meals are. Each one only takes about 30 to 45 minutes to get done and there is plenty of time to play with the kids. The other thing we found was that sticking to the menu reduced our weekly grocery bill to about 50 dollars a week. You would be surprised how much you spend on crap at the store.
The menu was built to carry food over the week. Sunday's dinner is lunch for Denise and I for a couple days. Monday's meatloaf actually makes two good size loafs. We freeze one and only eat half on Monday. Tuesday's spaghetti has the leftover meatloaf in the sauce. Pork chops can carry over to Friday's dinner. The only prepackaged food we purchase is the pre marinated fajita meat.
Overall the kids love the meals. James is eating his vegetables and we never get home not knowing what we are having for dinner. Not every week runs as smoothly but since we started this about 3 months ago we have spent very little time dealing with the problems most people have at dinner. Probably the best thing is that we make it a house rule that everyone has to sit together at the dinner table. The kids participate in getting the table set while we cook. And the time we get to chill with our little munchkins is priceless.
Sometimes all this technology and easy living we have now isn't always the best thing for the family. Slowing it down and keeping it simple is just as good as buying something to make it easier. Thanks GiGi for being so awesome!
Friday afternoon was the Roberts International Festival. We were told this was a really big deal at the school so we planned an afternoon off to enjoy the festivities. The school even let out at noon to get ready for the festival. I went and picked up Whitney at noon and took her back to the studio. She was ready for the party and did not like me photogrpahing her while watching Peter Pan.
The day before the festival Whitney had a little passport she needed to decorate for the festival. She had to put her native flag on the front and a photo on the inside.
The first person we ran into was Brandon. He was chowing down on ice cream and Whitney decided that was the destination of the day.
Ice cream was at the American booth so we started looking, but realized this was going to be interesting with all the people in the school.
Our first destination of interest was Russia. They had plenty of treats like this pastry that Denise said tasted not so good and these little round pretzels. Whitney took one bite and said she thought ice cream would be better.
After Russia was Armenia. They had some different fruit juices to taste. A gentleman handed me this little cup with a thick yellow liquid and said "Try it, Try it" so I did and I thought it was pretty good. IT was a peach nectar drink that tasted a lot like peach cobbler.
Next up was Australia. This booth was too funny with the Snugglepot and Cuddlepie dolls. The kindergartners made these little dolls.
The funniest thing was the little green leafs covering the dolls "personal space" or "Private parts." They had these rice treats in little cups but I noticed everyone trying them didn't seem to like them too much.
We headed outside and ran into Nadia. Whitney and Nadia hang out with each other in the morning. They seem to be pretty good buddies.
A little farther down the sidewalk we met up with Frania. She did a great job drawing her version of Old Glory.
We headed around the school and then ran into Korea. This was a very colorful country with some pretty cool clothes and little dolls. Denise had a beef dish that was apparently pretty good.
Japan was across the way and they had all this really cool Origami. The papers were colorful and bright.
This little girl had these rice crackers that you could try. I took a pack and handed one to Whitney. I took a bite and then immediately took the cracker from Whitney. It tasted like salt water. I couldn't even think of something to put on it to make it taste better. Next stop was the water fountain.
We met up with Dylan from Whitney's class. He was excited about being at the festival with his mommy.
Our next stop was Pakistan where Whitney got a Mehndi Tattoo. While we waited we tried these awesome little milk treats. By the look on Whitney's face you could tell she was NOT going to try them.
Whitney's tattoo was very pretty. According to Whitney it is supposed to stay on her hand for A LONG TIME.
Holland was next with this colorful house. No candy or anything though.
Egypt was next and they had all these really neat spices. They are pretty common but they had a neat presentation. It is especially cool when the photographer knocks one of the dishes over.
They also had big crates dates you could try. I love dates but for some reason they remind me of roaches so I typically stay away from them.
Finally we arrived at America with their apples and tails of grandeur.
Across from America was the Republic of Texas! This was the greatest country of them all.
It was also the source of the ever popular ice cream!
They had hot dogs as a symbol of BBQ (I guess). Either way it was much better than those rice crackers.
Next door to Texas was Mexico. They had some pretty good grub and a big ol bowl of chips. Something tells me that wasn't too authentic but that's okay.
Ecuador was next and had some of the best coco treats I have ever tasted. They also had these plantain and bacon balls that I could have done without.
We were done inside and went out to the stage. There was a group of fighters doing a demonstration. This girl kicked a piece of woods butt! If I was a piece of wood, I definitely wouldn't want to piss this girl off.
These two guys were going at it. Whitney and I were sitting right in front of these two guys. I had a hard time not taking bets.
After the guy with the red vest stomped the taller guy in the ground this girl came out of nowhere ready get it on.
I don't know why, but this just seemed like a lose lose situation for the guy. If he beats her he is just a guy that beat up a girl. If he loses he is a pathetic loser that got beat up by a girl. It doesn't take much to realize you shouldn't get yourself into these types of situations.
Frania was sporting this awesome dot on her head that she got inside. I was a little jealous but realized I would look pretty silly with a dot on my forehead.
Whitney's tattoo was ready and we rubbed the crust off to see how well her skin was stained. It looked cool and she was a happy little camper.
We were sad to leave but had a lot of fun. Can't wait for next year!
OK, Before I begin I must say this guy knows how to party. He is definitely a Clark boy. If he wasn't my son and I met him on the street, I would definitely want to hang out with this guy. Happy birthday Super Man!
Today was a real roller coaster ride. The first half of the day was spent getting ready for the big Par-T. James spent most of the day hanging with Mommy while Whitney and I ran errands.
The party theme was Bob The Builder and if you don't know who he is you just might be living under a sink somewhere.
We also had the ever famous Tumble Bus come to the house. Mr. Dirk with Tumble Tykes has the coolest buses. They are setup as a gym on the inside. If you are ever looking for a really cool party idea give us a shout and we can get you in touch with Mr. Dirk!
A bunch of James' buddies came to party. And even a few of Whitney's old classmates came by.
The kids all had a blast jumping around on the bus and playing fun games with Mr. Dirk. Whitney loves jumping around.
Christian was busy sporting the look! He is going to be a real ladies man.
James was all over the place. He couldn't burn the energy fast enough.
Andrew was most careful to keep his hands and arms inside the bus at all times.
Just another example of hysterical excitement. Oh to be a kid again!
I thought it would be fun to take a portrait of each kid in front of the Bus so I brought home some equipment and we had a little photo shoot. These are my favorite types of portraits. I shot these in the bright part of the day but with a little lighting trickery we can make it look like night.
Fist up was Stuart. He wanted to show me how big his beach ball was.
Next up was little big man himself. The party boy was good enough to throw out a point just like a candidate for the Presidency.
Big Christian rolled out next for a taste of the pointing action. He quickly tired with the whole deal and wanted back on the bus.
Whitney was up with a little attitude. She wanted to cross her arms and act kewl.
Sayer came out and joined the forces of kewl kids in the neighborhood. Apparently the arm cross is a big deal. There is definitely a fine line between looking cool and just plain hugging yourself.
Baboo wanted to go out with the ever tight Reservoir Dogs walk off. Nothing is quite this slick and only a kid like that could pull it off.
KEEP YOUR HANDS AND ARMS INSIDE THE BUS AT ALL TIMES! Andrew is a neat kid. And if you are ever looking for his dad Jason, he looks just like Andrew just taller.
I think if I was as quiet and small as Sammy I would be nervous too. Especially when someone asks me to stand in front of this giant bus and smile!
Here is the always cool Pickle. Apparently he is going to start giving workshops on how to be suave and hang with the ladies.
Notice how the Giant bus and odd angle makes Dan look thinner.
Farrah jumped in front of the camera. They say it is good luck for a photographer to be photographed by a photographer. We will see....
Taylor wasn't going to have any of this. She got the task done and quickly moved on.
I asked Mr. Dirk to get in on the fun too. He is one cool cat pointing his finger at the camera and all.
The Myers drove by and asked if we were having a party or taking pictures. I told them we were doing both then asked if they wanted in on the fun. So they did.
And finally we were graced by the joyful laugh of Dorothy and a fairy princess.
After all this we headed indoors for a little Kids Mix that Whitney helped me cook. This is a pretty simple deal. Its a bunch of cereal, candy raisins and pretzels all mixed together.
Next up was a little singing and playing with fire.
Then we all got busy eating cake and ice cream
Kids are so cool. They definitely can get away with more than the adults can. Growing up sucks sometimes.
James got a bunch of awesome new stuff for us to play with and mommy to step on. My favorite was this sweet apron to help Daddy cook.
And last but not least. Don't ever let Stuart or Stephen teach you how to dance. Mr. Roboto is so 1983.
Friday was James, Birthday and a crazy day at that. First up for the day was a quick session with two very cute little ladies. These sisters were a delight to have in the studio and as always I captured some giant baby faces.
This little one was just a hoot. Poor thing was sleepy and had a hard time towards the end but we managed to have a little fun. She got a big kick out of the camera in her face. This is one of my favorites.
Her big sister was super cool and had a great personality. Isn't that the prettiest red hair you have ever seen in your life!
Cutting loose at the studio is always cool on a Friday morning.
After this session I raced off to gather goods for James party on Saturday. In addition we are working on some new packaging and promotional stuff involving our yummy cookies. Clients always ask if we sell the cookies. We tell them the only way we will sell the cookies is if they let me take a picture...
We are working on names for these cookies. Here are three of our top "sellers"
Super Freak Chocolate Chip
You Java Bean Crazy White Chocolicous chocolate Chip
Your gonna Cranberry in your mouth Oatmeal, white chocolate cranberry.
After all this hoopla we managed to order pizza for the kids, make a cake for James and party like a 3 year old. Our good buddy Molly came over and played for a little bit. James got a new umbrella, a Jeep and golf set. He was stoked about the Um-Brel-La-La.
Well for James' last day of vacation we took it easy during the day because we were really going to cut loose that night at Sayer and Finn's house.
The night before I picked up a little Cup Cake Kit for Whitney and James. I explained to them that you never go to a dinner party empty handed and cup cakes would be a nice treat. We gathered all the supplies and the kids chose the Colorful Cake Bouquet.
I made the kids do everything from pouring in the ingredients to filling the cups with batter.
The cup cakes were cooked and ready for the next day. We decided it would be a lot more fun decorating them with our friends than just taking them to the party.
When we got to Finn and Sayers house we first chowed down on Pizza and then got a little play time in. Isn't it cool the way kids like to eat surrounded by their toys.
Whitney showed everyone her new dance moves form Dance class earlier that day. She is very excited about school and Friday was even better when she found out she had dance.
After a little play time we busted out the supercilious yet very unappetising cup cakes. These were more like little sweet muffins than cake.
The kids decorated the cakes with sprinkles, jelly beans and icing. Apparently the icing was much better than the cake.
Finn had Blue icing.
Whitney went nuts over the green.
James took yellow to town.
Sayer showed red a thing or two about a thing or two.
Shortly after this sugar feast we actually did decorate a few cakes. I helped Sayer with his masterpiece.
But I left the eating up to him
Whitney showed off her delicate flower just before she engulfed the little nugget of sugar bliss.
After the kids were good and jacked up on sugar they got back to playing. Whitney enjoyed snuggling with FiFi (actually its Phoebe) but with Whitney's ears ringing from the sugar load I can understand her confusion.
Sayer, James and Finn went off to play with trucks and stuff. Sayer is one of the coolest kids and is a total Spider-Man fan.
Shortly after this, the boys decided kicking each other around on the furniture was a good idea. Good thing photographers were around for encouragement.
And if that wasn't enough Farrah decided to just help the little guys out and throw them around a bit.
We had a really good time but it had to end. James was really tough to deal with when we got home but he managed to work his way into complete slumber.
So this ends the week vacation with James. If you would like to see a little slide show we did of the fun Friday night feel free to click the link below.
After putting this entry together I realized that our children are completely spoiled. What two sets of parents feed their kids unhealthy amounts of sugar and then let them jump on furniture with glass all around them! Oh well, its all game tokens and the ride goes around only once.
Today was a big day for Mr. James but I think he is beginning to wear us out. We headed south this morning to the awesome Moody Gardens to check out the Aquarium.
James was all talk the whole way to the aquarium. He kept telling us about all the animals he was going to see. The funniest thing was that every place we have been this week we have seen those little machines that smash a penny for 50 cents. So I gave him the money and apparently it was a big hit. He chose a shark penny since sharks and lions are his favorite BEASTS OF THE WILD!
We entered the aquarium and James' voice went about three octaves higher. There were not a lot of people there but they all knew James had arrived. Right off the bat James wanted to touch the star fish. The guy at the exhibit was about as exciting as watching paint dry.
So we kept moving through the Aquarium and I was busy photographing fish. Apparently our little Canon S5 has this Aquarium mode that is supposed to assist the user when photographing fish. If you were going to look for a camera that did this I would strongly recommend finding a new hobby. Nothing is more annoying than trying to focus on a fish darting back and forth in an aquarium.
This is a pretty green anemone (spelling) with a fast little blue fish in the middle. Be careful using this type of scientific naming convention. It is typically used only by us deep sea aquarium photographers....
This guy reminds me of the people behind the counter at the post office. I call him Mr. Angry Eyes.
At the base of the Aquarium there is a big shark tank. James was excited about seeing his second most favorite animal int the world.
When we got to the entrance a man told me we better hurry because they were cleaning the tank! Nobody would take a picture with the guys cleaning the tanks so I had to do it.
Mr. Aquarium tank window washer guy was a real sport and waved for the camera. James thought it was the funniest thing next to the seals swimming by the windows.
James climbed in the shark cage and showed us his best dance moves. 
After the sharks we checked out the penguins. We found that James was just about the size of a the King Penguin. Notice the feet and arms in the proper Mary Poppins Penguin Dance style.
We decided to leave and go get a bite to eat but before we left I wanted to take some photos of the palm trees with the S5. Here is a neat little camera trick. This image has a sun flare that is split with 8 lines. This is because I shot this image at an aperture of f8. If I had taken the image at f22 there would be close to 22 flares.
We headed over to the Rain forest Cafe with James thinking this might be fun.
Apparently he doesn't care too much for large mechanical animals that scream and yell every thirty minutes. The Gor-Il-La-La really bothered him at first. So I showed him it was cool and we should be really be sweet to big plastic animals that look like us but aren't real.
So we ate lunch and checked out the store. After all it was supposed to be a wild place to eat and shop... We did manage to find a nice assortment of cups with names on them. Apparently Crystal had been shopping right before us.
We headed home after lunch but stopped off at a FootLocker for some new shoes for mommy. The store had music blaring and James entertained the staff with his sick dance moves. We piled in the car exhausted but did get a big kick out of a shopping center that was home to a Vet Clinic and a Sushi and Steak restaurant. They were literally in the same building. Err, I will take the dog meat and eel roll but please go easy on the wasabi.
Today was a rather low key day for James. We have had him going non stop for almost a week now and he needed a bit of a break. Wednesday nights we eat dinner at Bethany United Methodist for their Prime Time Wednesday. They have pretty good grub. The kids get to go play and watch Veggie Tales and the adults attend classes.
Since these are pretty big nights for the kids we took it easy on James. We caught an IMAX movie at the Houston Museum of Natural Science.
We watched the 3D Imax movie Wild Safari. None of us have actually seen a 3D Imax movie so it was something new for all. The Museum was unusually dark due to the rain and the lights being replaced so we were limited on photography.
We had to wait a little bit before the show so James expressed his discontent by just laying on the floor. Lines are for tourists!
When you enter the movie they give you these really sleek and stylish 3D glasses.
Notice the ever so slight biting of my lower lip. Yet again a genetic cross-over of the Clark DNA.
The movie was great but James was a little concerned about the wild beasts in his face. I think this is one of the best 3D movies I have ever seen. Of course I have only seen two others in my life. One being the ever cool Remo Williams back in 1985 or the completely useless expansion CD of Shrek . Neither had ultra cool classes that made me look younger and thinner.
If you ever get a chance to catch one of these movies I recommend doing so. But be careful with the little kids. They may not fully comprehend that the 30,000 foot drop to the African desert is not real.
Today was Whitney's second day of school and James' third day of vacation. I took Whitney to school and then headed to the studio to get a little work done. Its been a few years since I was moving about when the rest of the world does too. Most days I don't even get to the studio until 10. I was able to get a bunch of stuff done and made it back home in time to chill with little man.
Mommy was busy so we watch Yo Gabba Gabba. This is the absolute strangest show but James just loves it. I think the only thing cool about the show is that I saw The Diabolical Biz Markie for a cameo.
Now if you don't know Biz Markie he is an old school rapper form the 80's. He had a smash hit back in 89 called "Just a Friend."
I personally think he was at his all time best when he tore up one of Elton Johns classics "Bennie and the Jets"
Back to the day with James.
We gathered everything up and headed over to the Houston Children's Museum. This is a really cool spot to hang out for a day. They are renovating the museum so some of the fun outdoor stuff was not available. They are actually building a second facility and upgrading their water park outside.
When you first enter the museum they give you this little sticker after you have paid. Not real sure why they do this but everyone seems to obey and wear the sticker. I have often wondered what they would do if I was to remove the sticker. The best part is what you do with the sticker when you leave.
Because of the construction being done they gave all the kids little yellow hard hats. James went right to work having a good time. They have a big train that seems to immediately slow the kids down. You don't get 5 feet in the museum before everything stops.
After the train we headed over to the grocery store. James had a big time here. My buddy Farrah was testing out high ISO settings the other day so I decided to do the same thing. I shot some of the images at 1250 ISO and others between 1600 and 2500. They were all pretty grainy but it was fine for this purpose.
We moved on to the invention Lego station. They had the really cool blocks that you could build all sorts of things. James thought they were rather tasty too. And people wonder why their children get sick.
Mommy enjoyed the building games too.
After we were done playing with the block things, we went to a new exhibit where we built our own rockets and shoot them in the sky. James never wanted to leave this area. He even requested a second visit before we left. You place them on a launch pad and stomp on a air trigger to make them fly.
This was a really dark area of the museum so I had to bump the ISO way up. The images were super noisy but you still got the full effect. (Tech note: White balance is not easy to control at such a high ISO. I don't think even using a grey card would help.)
After we finished with the rockets we went to the Lego car derby exhibit. The object here was to build your own Lego car and then race it against other kids on a track. James was hitting 5:1 odds on anything in the middle track. He was able to pull in a little extra to buy his mother a sandwich. (I am just kidding.... he bought me a sandwich too).
So after we stomped all the other kids in the museum we headed over to the cafe for a snack. James had his favorites Cheetos and Kool Aid.
Next we were up for a little face painting. James was timid at first but then realized this was a lot of fun.
He was not very good or creative so I managed to clean his face and do the paint job right.
He thought he was super cool and Denise said he looked regal. So we found a kings crown and took his portrait ot the throne.
He can be a pretty sweet kids when he is getting all the attention.
Next up was the telephone world. We played with the TV phones but apparently the only thing James could hear was fuzz and all I heard was "What?"
We were busy making our way out of the museum but we had to check out the gift shop. Luckily we didn't buy anything but they had the super cool Kalidascopes. This one was like a giant fish eye lens that made the area around you get all distorted.
If you look close you will see that this is actually Denise in her pink shirt .
Here is another one that I took. Shortly after that the lady at the counter was watching me closely. I just knew she was looking to see if I had my sticker!
So we headed home but had to dispose of our stickers first. On the way there are stop signs and light poles covered in these little stickers. I guess it is a neat way to decorate the city around the Children's Museum.
We got in the car and headed out to Roberts to pick up Whitney. She had a great day and came home with a green ticket. After she gets ten she gets to visit the treasure chest.
After our ultra exciting morning with Whitney we headed home to get a few things done before taking James to the Houston Zoo. James recently discovered the strangest show on Nck Jr. called Yo Gabba Gabba. This is the strangest show I have encountered but he sure did like it. Here is a little sample I found on U-Tube.
So Denise and I finished our stuff and headed to the Zoo.
Right after we got there is started to pour down raining. We held up in one of the little food courts for about an hour. I don't know if you ave ever been trapped with a wild animal but we definitely were. He was climbing up the walls to go check out the Lions. The rain let up and we headed to the Lions den. We found the big guy laying riht next to the window. James thought this was the coolest thing ever. Up until the lion saw us and gave James a look that pretty much said "I don't know Karate but I know Crazy and I will be happy to use it on your boy."
We gradually made our way over to the carousel and rode it a couple times. I made James ride the tiger but he was not very happy about it. Mommy rode it again with him but they sat in the big chair.
We then went to check out Liberty the bald eagle. James climbed up into the nest and after like he was laying eggs.
It was wet and humid so we decided to call it a day. Of course we had to ride the train. The Diorama in the tunnel was exceptionally cheesy this week.
The Diorama in the tunnel was exceptionally cheesy this week.
Oh and once we got done there we went to pick up Whitney from school. She was completely content and didn't even notice us all standing there waiting for her to come out of school. I don't know where she was headed but she knew what she was doing.
First I want to say that this is going to take some getting used to. It has obviously been a luxury to get the day going a little later than most. However Whitney was up early and ready to get this day started.
Last night we got her book bag ready and her clothes picked out. She was smiles all morning until right before the teachers made us leave.
Mommy put braids in her hair and she was sporting her new purple top with pink camo back pack.
Whitney was very excited and looked like she was going to POP!
Her pink back pack was giant and she kept asking if it was so big it covered her rear.
James was a little disappointed he wasn't going to school but is excited about going to the zoo today.
Mr Wade came outside and wished Whitney good luck. Once we got in the car you could tell the excitement was building even more!
When we got to school we arrived at the same time Brandon and his daddy got there. Brandon is a classmate from Bethany and will be in the same class.
When we got to the crosswalk we must have lost our minds because the crossing guard snapped at us for crossing without her permission.
Brandon was super excited too!
Shortly after we got scolded Lauren arrived too. She is anotehr Bethany classmate that will be in the same class. I made them all stop and let me take their pictures in front of the school and in front of the school door.
We were a little early and the class was not opened yet.
We found Whitney's locker and checked to see if the giant back pack would fit.
Ms. Wilson arrived and the kids ran up to give her big hugs. This was pretty cool and you could tell everyone was pleased to see that.
When we entered the class we had a list of assignments. The parents and children needed to sort all their supplies and get settled in their seats.
This is some serious concentration.
Everything was going good until Whitney realized we were not going to be hanging out much longer.
This is called the long face. And boy let me tell you it was LONG. The tears started when we got ready to leave. Knowing Whitney, I let mommy deal with this since I can be a real sucker in these situations.
So out the door we went. 3:00 couldn't come sooner. We will update everyone later.
Whitney's class had their end of year party at the famous Willow Pool on Saturday evening. There is nothing really super about the pool but everyone had a great time.
My favorite part of the whole deal was seeing all the kids in their goggles. They are just too funny. I think I might start making every kid that comes to the studio get at least one photo done with goggles on.
Molly is sporting the Speedo Dolphin Model.
Alex is 100% serious with the dark tint goggles. I have looked and looked for the Speedo model that come with the logo upside down. If anyone knows where to get them please pass that info on to me.
I think Ethan is Right Eye Dominant. Either that or he really likes to keep that peripheral vision in tack on his left side.
Whitney likes her goggles like she likes her parties. BIG!
Kara was super brave and jumped off the big diving board. I still can't get over her just leaping right off and into the deep end.
And Point and Shoot cameras are not made for fast action shots. Thus the reason you never see anyone on the sidelines with one.
The party was catered by James Coney Island and the kids had little photo albums made for each other.
We had a great time and will miss all our friends and teachers.
So tomorrow is the big day for Whitney but the other big fun is that James is out of school until September 4th. Whitney is not too happy about it but she will forget it all soon enough tomorrow morning.
James has been out of school since last Thursday. Denise took him Friday to Noah Ark at the First United Methodist church on Westpark. This is a really cool pool that is built just for kids like James. Everything is soft and the pool is only 6 or 8 inches deep. Jame and mommy had a big time. Denise has been working on her composition lately so I picked a few of my favorite images from the day.
This is the pool. It has water shooting out everywhere. There are a couple other slides around the other side but this is the main deal. That is James walking around by the base of the mushroom.
The water is super shallow and everything is like a padded pillow.
James likes splashing around under the mushroom. Its super loud!
On the back side of the Ark there is a rope ladder to the slide.
Some of James' classmates joined them on Friday as well. This is one of the twins in his class. They are super cool little girls and always wave and smile when they see you.
The kids climb through the ark and come out a slide on the other side.
There is another smaller slide but apparently it is much faster than the big slide.
James had a big time with his buddies Baboo Caroline and Catherine.
They were all born on August 24th. I know I know, you were probably thinking they are all three fashion conscious people but that wasn't it.
Today is my uncle Jimmy's birthday.
Below is a photo taken at the ranch last Easter with one of the coolest dogs on the planet Webster.
Jimmy is the youngest of 6.
He is now 53 and according to my son James "older than sand like Pa'Pa' "
Today was "Meet The Teacher" day at Robert Elementary. It was also the first time Whitney visited the school. School starts Monday and there is quite a buzz around the Clark house. We are very excited that Whitney is going to be attending Roberts. It is a magnet school for the arts, our first pick for her school, and it is just a couple blocks from my studio.
We had to navigate quite a distance from the school to find a place to park. This is just the way things are in the village area but it was fun watching Whitney anticipate the visit while we drove around the school.
Whitney's Kindergarten teacher is Ms. Wilson. Many parents and friends have told us that she is a great teacher. I am sure they are all great teachers but we are happy to have one of the school favorites. Whitney was introduced to her class and as you can see was beaming from the excitement.
We checked out the classroom and found lots of really cool stuff. Whitney loved all the "big kid" books and is excited about learning to read!
After we were done in the classroom we took a little tour of the rest of the school. The princess is also super excited she is going to have her very own locker!
We went to the dance class and Whitney was about to hit the floor. Ms. Lane, the dance instructor was super cool. She spotted Whitney as a dancer right off and wanted to make sure she signed up for her class. The school has an extended day program where she can take ballet lessons, drill team, music, arts etc. Whitney wants to do ballet now that she saw the room and met Ms. Lane.
Next door to Ms. Lanes class is Mr. T's class. Mr. T is the P.E. instructor. It is actually Mr. Thielke but he wants everyone to call him Mr. T.
His classroom was super cool with the biggest rock climbing wall I have ever seen. Whitney and Lauren are going to be in the same class together. They have been in the same class at Bethany so we are excited she is going to have a familiar face in the school.
At the front door of the school they have this huge cow that is painted. The cows are from the Cow Parade in Houston. One day we may go around town and get a picture with each one. I guess we got the cow inside Roberts covered.
Whitney loved the cow and they have another one in the front yard. The cool thing is that they plant wild flowers around the cow outside so every year it looks like the grounds keepers have missed a spot when mowing.
We finally had to make our way back to the studio but you could tell Whitney was super excited. It made it easier on us knowing she was excited.
Recently during Whitney's preK graduation Pastor Dan told a story about his daughter going off to Kindergarten. He said he had anticipated his daughter not letting go of his hand as they got to her class. He also had a plan for when she would begin to tear up and not want him to leave. However when the time came, he found he was the one that couldn't let go of his little girls hand and his allergies were so bad his eyes wouldn't stop watering.
I'm sure Monday at 8:00 won't be easy for me or Denise but we are so excited Whitney is going to a really great school. It seems like it was just yesterday that we got home from the hospital with our little chunky monkey. And now she is headed off to school with her own little locker, class, and cool ideas.
Oh and one more thing. Denise and I have taken the week off to hang out with James and make sure Whitney's first week goes smoothly. Today was James' last day of school so he and mommy are headed to Noak's Ark tomorrow for a little pool party! He is out of school until September 4th so we will have plenty of time to chill with the little guy.
I had a hankering for nostalgia and shot a couple rolls of film a few weeks back. Notice I said "a few weeks back" this is because in our fast paced world it takes almost a month to get a couple rolls developed and scanned. Also if you ever thought that getting a good scan was easy its not. The images looked great and had that cool saturation that black and white film has. The scans on the other hand were a little flat with a lot of grain. It made for some cool effects but I could have shot this in digital, used a photoshop action and bought the family dinner.
I shot all these with a digital wide angle lens so it has this tunnel effect with a large vignette that I thought was rather cool.
This is Milo. He is the oldest child in our house. This is the look on his face when we read to him about Micheal Vick. He was very annoyed...
Santa Clause brought James a set of drums last year for Christmas. These are very popular with my brother Stephen. Apparently he doesn't realize he is much too large for the set.
James and Stuart played football outside. I love this little pout look he has right before he takes a swing at you.
Stuart has been working out for the ladies this summer.
Napoleon Dynamite is one of our favorite movies. Dan is very talented at tetherball. He too is better at itthan James and makes sure that we all know this.
If you have been following along lately I mentioned James bites his lower lip like his Pa'Pa'. Notice the teeth digging into Dan's lower lip as he attempts to hit the photographer with the ball. Very talented there Dan.
Today was Whitney's birthday party at the ever popular Pump It Up Party Room! Whitney, Lexie and Molly all celebrated their birthday together. It was a lot of fun and we saw a lot of old friends stop by. If you want to see a slide show of the party click here. The file is large so watch out!
Leslie and Daphne came by after their long vacation at Yellowstone National Park.
James was having so much fun I thought he was going to bite his lower lip off. He looks a lot like Pa'Pa' when he is dancing.
Tracie, Brent, Christian and Jack all came up from Friendswood to take part in the festivities. Brent and Jack went down the slide full throttle!
Whitney was playing so hard she ripped her thumb nail off. Once the whole thing came off everything was better. She can be tough when the party is hoppin.
Apparently a few of the party goers were not as amused with the activities. This is Coach Todd's youngest daughter. Todd is coaching the greatest girls soccer team in the world. They are proudly sponsored by Danny Clark Photography!
Here is an image of Coach Todd hysterical with laughter from all the fun!.
As always we had to have a Barbie Cake. This was one tasty cake. And all the guys thought it was cool Whitney , Lexie and Molly had a party cake with a girl in it.
Finn and Sayer came by and partied with us too. Finn and James had cup cakes but Sayer wanted the cake with the chick in it.
After a little singing the girls had their cake, packed it up and headed home. It was a fun evening but we are all happy it is over. Next up. James turns three September 7th!
Oh and the coolest thing about the next image is that there are three girls sitting on a blow up plastic chair with fire in their hands. Oh and Lexies shoes are on the wrong feet too.
Last night was the big night for High School Musical. If you don't know about this summer smash hit than your lucky. I am just happy that there will be new songs to hear now that there are 2 High School Musicals. Apparently having just one wasn't enough.
We setup the big screen tv (This is a sheet on the wall with a projector attached to the TV) and enjoyed the show. Our buddy Farrah, her husband Steven and their two boys Finn and Sayer came by for some pizza and a little movie. We all stayed up way too late. Around 10:00 I grabbed the little point and shoot and got Mr. Finn to show us how he can yell. And boy can this boy yell. You would never know that a little guy this sweet could bellow out so much. Both Finn and Sayer are a couple real cool cats that we just love to see come over and play.
Click on the picture to get a little sample of Finn's talents!
So I recently have started using a new tool that makes on camera lighting a little softer. The tool is a diffuser by Gary Fong. The intent of this diffuser is to broaden the light and wrap it around the subject. I was a little skeptical at first but went ahead and bought one.
A few days later my new toy came in and I took tests of the kids. The diffuser works well and I am excited to use it at my next wedding event. We will probably use it more on our Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep sessions. These sessions are almost always in low to mixed light and a tool like this can really make things work better.
For my test I had the kids bring out Hungry Hungry Hippos.
It is an old time favorite but James tends to get a little over competitive. He told me he was going to whoop up on me. He said "I'm gonna whoop you daddy!" Little did he know I have been banned from playing Hungry Hungry Hippos in 5 different counties. We call it Triple-H down at the club...
James was busy getting his game face on.
I was marked the yellow hippo Harry.
James decided he was going to be two hippos. Henry and Homer.
And of course Whitney was the pink hippo Happy.
The competition was rather heated and I had a little trouble laying on the floor, holding my camera and hitting the hippo tail.
After the first round the kids counted out their balls to see who was the winner.
After the first round I took the lead. Apparently James doesn't think anyone else should so he was rather upset. I know he is only three but this is Hungry Hungry Hippos we are talking about. No rest for the weak. If he wants to run with big dogs he can't pee like a puppy...
James finally decided that crying about it wasn't going to work so he did just like his uncles and started to cheat. He reached over to my pile and grabbed all my balls.
James looked me in the eye and said HE was the winner. Shortly after that he kicked me in the face, looked at me with shock and then grabbed my neck and said he loved me. He is growing up to be a real Clark boy that's for sure.
Tonight after we celebrated Whitney's birthday we headed out for National Night Out. There are designated houses throughout the neighborhood that provide drinks, snacks and a gathering place to visit with neighbors. We tooled around the hood for a little bit and enjoyed the sweltering humidity...
James rides his little tricycle like its a chopper. Here he is displaying a little attitude. Lets just hope that in 20 years he is not striking this pose in front of an ice house intimidating the locals. Click on the image to watch this guy in action.
Whitney was all smiles with the new skates. Right after this photo was taken she quickly introduced her rear end to the concrete.
Whitney quickly realized that she can do much better tricks on her skates when she is standing in the grass. She also felt a little more daring with a helmet.
We stopped by the Rose's house to show everybody the new skates. Mr. Bill gave the kids bags of Cheetos to keep them busy while he sprayed the yard for Mosquitoes.
After a long walk we headed home and went straight to the bath. It was a fun day for everyone.
When we got home the kids were hungry and tired. Denise made dinner while we decorated Whitney's cake. She was excited because the cake had sprinkles and stars for candles.
The little Canon camera has this cool little Super Macro setting. I gave it a try and took a few of the ever so famous sprinkles.
In our house we have a need to have "Too Much." This is a phenomenon my buddy Bill discovered with his three kids. Apparently his kids decided that if you were offered "Too Much" that was a good thing. It comes from those times when you have to tell your kids , "No you don't need more you have already had too much." So by offering up "Too Much" but giving "Just Enough" you end up with a happy family.
Unfortunately though sometimes we really have "Too Much." The end results looks a lot like this:
Somebody got a little too hot, a little too thirsty, and a little too deep in the icing bowl.
After dinner we finally had the cake and Whitney was able to open her gifts. She got a brand new pair of Dora skates. Good thing tonight was National night out. She was ready to ride but had to talk on the phone for a little bit first. Girls!
Later this afternoon I picked the kids up early from school and took them to the Houston Museum of Natural Science. This is one of our favorite places to hang out during the weekday afternoons. James was very upset the last time Whitney and I went so we promised to take him today. He was so excited about going I thought I was going to wet MY pants.
I guess due to the 109 degree heat index half of the city was utilizing the A/C of the museum as well. We had to park at the top of the parking garage due to the crowd. Its funny how just going to the top of a garage is an adventure to a couple of little kids.
The big attraction for the kids is the Cockrell Butterfly Center. Before you enter the butterfly center they give you a map of the different butterflies in the building. James was trying to decide which butterfly he was going to catch. Unfortunately I had to take this from him when he decided to use it as a weapon on the first butterflies he saw.
You start at the top of the center and work your way down. From the bottom the view is quite spectacular.
On the second level there is a meandering path that takes you all over the center. There were a couple of ladies that let the kids feel a butterfly. Whitney enjoyed showing James how you handle a dead butterfly.
Of course Daddy was busy trying to figure out the little Canon S5. This camera has a nice little zoom that came in handy here at the museum. The butterfly eating on a mango was about 10 feet away off the walking path.
We thought this plant had some really cool colors. It was a bright purple with dark green leafs. Unfortunately the web only allows certain number of colors so the photo is not as vibrant as the camera image.
At the base and lower level of the center there is a lagoon area. The waterfall at the top spills into the lagoon where you actually exit. It is pretty neat to go in the caves and watch the water. Whitney was super sweet to make sure her little brother didn't' fall into the water. She knows how to swim now so she is ready FOR ANYTHING!
Once we went back into the main museum we were greeted by students holding a bunch of bugs for the kids to touch. Neither Whitney or James wanted anything to do with the bugs but they did like looking at them. Whitney said , "Just take a picture Daddy." and so I obliged.
We found the biggest mosquito in the world! The kids couldn't stop looking at it. I had to reassure them that the mosquitoes in our backyard won't ever get this big.
After we were done with the museum we ran over to the Houston Zoo to ride the train. The kids love the train but the heat was enough to make even James buckle. I thought he was going to lose his goldfish but we made it without any trouble.
After that we headed home to decorate Whitney's birthday cake. Whitney received a call from her god father and they chatted it up almost the whole way home. Its funny to hear her on the phone with other people. I hear "WHAT!" a lot.
This morning Whitney woke up bright and early ready to celebrate her birthday. The first thing she told us this morning was that she really DID feel different. And then walked around the house pointing out all the things she can see do because she is taller now. We didn't have the heart to tell her otherwise so we went along with the game.
I was supposed to bring cup cakes to her class and they told me I needed to do this at 10:00 AM. I guess morning cake is better than no cake so I hooked it over to the school at 10 and had cake, hats and camera in hand.
Whitney's friends made her a birthday crown and everyone signed their names. She was on cloud nine the whole time.
Whitney was required to serve her friends cup cakes. She was such a delightful host at her own party. I was a very proud daddy. These kids had just spent an hour in chapel so they were ready to party!
Once the cup cakes were polished off and the tables were cleaned we gathered for a group shot. The class has dwindled somewhat due to schools about to start. A lot of these little ones have been together for almost 4 years so its going to be sad to see them separate.
This afternoon James and I played with the Canon camera again. I wanted him to show me how he could skate. Another cool thing about this camera is the way you can get a really low angle. Because of the little flip screen you can practically lay the camera on the ground and still compose the image.
This little feature makes photographing kids playing a lot of fun. Below are a few images and a little slide show.
Recently we decided it would be better to get a little point and shoot camera for our family fun than take along all the expensive equipment we use at the studio. With that said I started researching point and shoot cameras based on some simple needs:
It needs to be small
It needs to have adjustable settings for exposure
It needs to be relatively quick (no slow shutter responses)
It needs to have a true diopter (the screens are cool but not in the sun)
It needs to record video files
It needs to be the color black (not really. I am just seeing if your reading.)
I searched for a few and my buddy Farrah sent me to a blog of another photographer with the same needs. They were using a Canon SD800 for all their fun blog stuff. I looked at this camera and found it to be rather cool but decided to go with the Canon S5 IS because it was a little more like an SLR and less like a point and shoot. The SD800 was pretty much only a point and shoot. The S5 allowed me to shoot manually or even aperture priority. In addition it has this cool flip screen so if you do want to use a screen rather than a diopter you can.
So we bought the camera Saturday night and started Sunday off with a little "new camera fun". Denise and James got up early and went to church. Whitney and I hung back and made breakfast. Whitney enjoys helping me in the kitchen and she loves to make her godfather Chad favorite "piggies in the blanket."
I started out with these images set to a higher resolution without flash. The camera responds well but the images are a bit grainy. For this purpose it is fine. I wouldn't sell anything this grainy but we still had fun.
After Denise and James returned we ate and headed over to PaPa's house. The nice thing about their house is the huge pool and the huge dog that guards the pool. Buddy the big brown dog was waiting for our arrival. James and I played ball with him for a few minutes until he decided to take my finger with the ball. Buddy is sweet and has recently lost about 5 pounds so he is feeling a little macho these days.
My youngest brother Stephen turned 14 so we had a little party for him.
We tried to tell him these glasses didn't fit but he insisted on wearing them. He must think they make him look taller.
Whitney and James got their bathing SOUPS on and headed for the pool.
Whitney was excited to show everyone how much she had learned at swim class. In three weeks she has learned to almost swim all by herself. Below is a little movie file form the camera. The actual file out of the camera was too large for the web. This is a compressed version so don't let the quality bother you.
Dan started the burgers and I managed to take advantage of the new flip screen on the Canon. Apparently Canon found a lot of people that wanted to pictures of themselves so the developed this cool little gadget.
After the burgers were done dad made a few dawgs for the kids. I think hot dogs and chips are one of the best foods to go with little wet bodies and shriveled up fingers.
Apparently the hot dogs and chips are better with dirty fingers.
After lunch we had a cupcake party with Stephen ad all his little buddies were there to enjoy the afternoon. Most of these guys are pure trouble but there are a couple in there that are pretty good.
It was a fun afternoon but it had to come to an end. James was very upset when we left and fell asleep crying and yelling "I WANT TO GO BACK!"
When we got home he slept on the couch for a while then woke up in anger. He continued to scream about going back but eventually found happiness in a Disney Movie and juice.
Overall it was a fun day and we enjoyed our little camera. The images were pretty good but I am sure with a little practice we will be able to make better images.
OK so as soon as Denise and I can get away for a couple hours we are going to see the coolest movie of the year. The Simpsons! Luckily we were able to get involved by becoming simpsonized. When the kids wake up we will make their simpsonization.
Tomorrow after church we head to dads house for a little Par-T with Pickle. He is turning 14 so I am sure we will be spending a lot of time playing with his new toys.
This afternoon mommy and Whitney took off to do girl stuff while James and I played. We invited one of James' buddies over to play. Unfortunately we had to wait until Andrew woke up from his nap. James waited by the front window watching for Andrew to come over. The anticipation was real torture for the little guy.
Finally Andrew made it and they played with their trains and then headed out back for a little Jeep ride and cookie. Whitney made it back home just in time to enjoy a cookie with her brother and Andrew. Nothing better than 100 degrees, 100% humidity and a chocolate chip cookie.
Across the street form me is a designer that I have been working with on some of her marketing pieces for her fall line. One of the dresses she has is super cool. I made a comment during a shoot that I thought that was my favorite dress. She asked if I thought Denise would like one and I responded with, "Well sure but that would mean I have to take her out somewhere nice!"
Needless to say Toni fitted Denise in the dress so we took the opportunity to photograph her for her first Couture fitting. It was a lot of fun ad I will be happy to take my wife out on the town in her beautiful dress. Toni has an intern that is leaving at the end of the month and I am attending a gathering for her this evening at hotel ZaZa. Gina is the girl in the middle of the photo. I'm sure she will be very successful in her future and hope she gets to come back real soon.
Last Friday James went to Kids Night Out at church. He said he was a big boy and could go without crying. and marched is narrow rear end right on in to the church and never looked back. Mommy was super proud of him. Whitney on the other hand acquired a rash so she was not able to attend the event. So what better place to take a kid when she has a rash than to a restaurant!
We took her to 59 Diner for the first time. We all shared a strawberry shake and Whitney learned that dipping her french fries in the shake makes life pretty good. Before we left we had to take a tour of the photo booth. The only bad part of the night was waiting the whole 5 minutes for the prints to develop!
John sent me an email today with a really cool picture of his "host brother" and his "host cousin". Currently Mica and John are in heavy training but seem to really be enjoying their experience. The nicest thing is that they have been able to keep in good communication with us.
Feel free to check out their blog about being Peace Corp Volunteers. I'm sure they would love to hear form you too.
Last Saturday Denise and I photographed Allison for her maternity portrait. She wasn't due for three weeks and we were all set to see them back with the newborn some time in August. Well Tuesday night I was at Hermann Hospital helping a family capture their last few moments with a precious little girl suffering from brittle bone disease. I was at the hospital for a very long time and was finally headed home after a three hour ordeal.
When I came out of the families room I saw Matt (Allison's husband) and he was all excited because Allison had her baby three weeks early. He was shocked to see me there and I was even more concerned why he was on the 7th floor telling me about his baby. Good news is the baby was fine she was just in observation on the 7th floor. I hung out a little while to get a glimpse of the baby and possibly take a few of her first portraits. Well two hours later I couldn't wait any longer so I headed home. Denise and I went back to the hospital today and took a whole bunch of pictures of this beautiful little girl.
It was a nice treat for the family and especially myself. So please welcome Gianna Jolie!
A good buddy of mine and former manager Marty Wells, has three beautiful kids we have had the pleasure of watching grow up. These three little ones (Kenna, Sammy and Marshall) all have beaten the odds. The "trips" were born three months premature and have successfully grown into wonderful happy children.
Denise and I are very involved with an organization called Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep. We help families with remembrance photography when their is an infant loss. I have witnessed and spent time with many families that have lost twins and sometimes triplets. Each time I encounter one of these families I think of the Wells Trips and say a little prayer of thanks.
I have had the pleasure of knowing some pretty neat people and these three little miracles are high on my list. Next Sunday we are going to go to their sixth birthday party and party we will!
Today Denise and I had the honor of being the first to photograph Mr. Matthew Alexander Zepeda. We headed down to The Women's Hospital and gathered in Stephanie's little room for a family photo shoot.
Mom, Dad and big sister are doing well. Mr. Matthew is a big boy with a beautiful round head. He is absolutely perfect. I don't think I have ever seen a baby not more than a day old with such a perfect little round head.
Some of you know that I try to make it a habit of picking up Whitney early once a month to go on a special "Daddy Day." We usually go to a museum, park, zoo or something just fun. It usually ends in ice cream and sometimes she gets her nails done.
At the end of August Whitney will begin kindergarten. She is going to be busy with school and our special little daddy days will not be the same. So in a last ditch effort to hang on to my little girl before she heads off to school I plan on a daddy day each week for the next 8 weeks.
On the 9th she will start swim lessons so we decided to go to the museum and then shop for a new swim suit. Or like her and her brother call them "Fwimin Soup". We went to the museum of science and took our camera to photograph butterflies. Whitney had a big time and she chose each butterfly to photograph.
Whitney had a lot of fun and we were able to watch a butterfly lay eggs on a plant, feel a dead butterfly and have them land on daddy's camera.
The little yellow dot at the end of the leaf is the egg. The plant had eggs all over it. You would never know those were butterfly eggs. It was super cool!
After we went through the butterfly house we decided to go check out the geological exhibit and the special diamond exhibit. Whitney loves this exhibit because she likes to compare the diamonds to mommies diamond.
These were all of Whitney's favorite rocks or jewels.
We finished off the afternoon with bubblegum ice cream and a new fwimming soup. Next week is the 4th of July so we probably won't do anything. Once we showed James the pictures of the butterflies and the stones he was very upset and wanted to go. So the good thing is that he is apparently ready for Daddy Days now. So not all is lost. I will just have to keep on having kids so I have someone to play with while everyone else is at work or school.
Until next time.
Fathers day was a lot of fun for the whole family. Of course today it is not too much fun because we have discovered the Nintendo WII and all of our arms hurt.
I received some great gifts from Whitney and James early Sunday morning. After breakfast we went to PaPa's house for a day of swimming and BBQ. We took the Pork Butt and all the fixins for lunch.
Unfortunately when we got there it stated to poor down rain and the kids could not get in the water. They were disappointed but were able to have fun in the puddles.
Since we were not going to let the rain ruin our fun we decided to have a WII competition. I am proud to say that I am the "King of the Ring" and I'm not talking about the toilet bowl wither. Nintendo has managed to come out with a toy that inflicts unbearable pain if played for a number of hours.
Finally we were able to go back outside and let the swimming begin. It was a fun day had by all especially for me. The King of the Ring.
