How cool is it that I had two of my friends give birth to beautiful girls on July 1st. …my birthday. Well I finally was able to meet Logan on my trip to NY – and while we have a family shoot booked – I had a free hour to go by and meet Logan and I couldn’t help but bring my camera with me to snap up some shots of this sweet little girl with a precious smile and a head full of hair. With none of my “gear” we improvised  with what we had in the room – the crib mattress and a fluffly blanket.  She is almost 4 weeks old.. so there was no sleeping going on here – just some partying and some poopin’. You could tell her sweet little belly was workin’ things out while I was there – but she let me do my thing – and for only having 1 hour – I love what we captured.

Back in the day – I used to think it would be so cool to have a friend who was a good hairdresser so that I could get blow-outs for a discount.  Or maybe a friend who was a masseuse..(a boyfriend that is -that would be a little weird if it was a girl friend of mine).. anyway –  you get my point. Now that I have a business it has been a little bit of a dilemma for me. Do I give friends and family discounts? Should I feel bad about charging them.  When I started – I swore I would be the cheap photographer for everyone because I believed everyone deserved great photos of their kids. This was before I knew photoshop, before I  knew how expensive good glass was ( back when I just called them lenses), before I knew how much time it would keep me from my kids …my family…my life. So here is what I came up with – and I kinda love it. Yes there are benefits – mainly b.c I carry a camera with me  at all times – any photos that I post to facebook  that was taken during my time off..whether it is a birthday, a school event or just hanging out with our kids. They belong to my friends…it was taken not because I was working .. but because I was inspired….(Now that doesn’t mean you throw a party and you ask if I am bringing my camera) – Sometimes when I am off – I just don’t want to take photos – I need a break from my camera.  Also – if I have a stylized shoot where I need a model – I will first look to my friends children. But if a shoot is booked – and I have to take time from my family and scout out locations… then I have to charge them what I would charge a client. So yes there are perks and benefits – but no discounts unfortunately – mama has some bills to pay. Apparently as my husband like to say… I am still in the RED.. .not quite sure what he means by that though- maybe I should google it????

Here are some photos from a playdate that I had with a dear friend Lisa – We have known each other for 15 + years and despite our weekly phone calls we haven’t seen each other in a few years. I loved seeing her and meeting her beautiful children.

This was the first photo that popped into my mind when I saw the latest challenge on I heart faces. This was the day where I was able to use my new baby – the 70-20 mm. 2.8. I stalked the UPS guy and when it arrived – I gathered up the family  and despite that we have our own pool – I forced them to the community pool so that I could take advantage of the zoom on this big boy.  This thing is a BEAST – but the images are crystal clear and perfect!  My favorite photos turned out to be our friends kids – I love the vibrancy of the photos and that they took a life all their own.

As someone who loves NYC – every time we go there to visit, I feel energized,excited and way cooler then I really am. Since we lived there  in our late twenties – I know my way around. We have our favorite food places, I know where I want to go shopping. So you will be surprised when I say – I think I may forgo our vacation in the city and choose to spend it here in Port Jefferson. I love this place for the exact opposite reason that I love NYC. I love the quaintness of the town. Our Aunt and Uncle own the prettiest house just overlooking the port and they have offered it to us while we are here. It is up for sale – so this might be our only chance to spend time here for a long time. NYC will always be there – so this time I will be kicking my feet up and enjoying  a little peace. Which is just what I need after the hustle and bustle of building L.L.P this year. It has been fun – yet exhausting and I think Port Jefferson is just what the Dr. ordered.

I love this photo of Ms. Em and her dad – she is one lucky girl to have a dad like him. He is one in a million – which is the best gift for a little girl.

So we started our morning out with a sunrise over the Goldern Arches.. the Breakfast for Champions.  After devouring my Egg Mc. Muffin – it was my turn to drive. I started out ok… but I made it about 2 hours before I had to pull over and nap. I am starting to realize that I LOVE road trips as long I don’t have to drive.   I think I made myself carsick which is never a good thing if you are the driver.  For those of you  who are familiar with road trips with kids then you know the rule..if the kids are asleep – you DON’T stop the car. You wait as long as you can to get gas…….AND to go to the bathroom. With that said when the kids were finally waking up at 9:30 (yes they slept until 9:30 this morning)…. I was literally breaking a sweat.  We took the first exit of the freeway which took us 3 miles away…. as we were driving ferociously to the restroom .. I was making a mental note of what was on the other side of the street… maybe I could stop and let the kids play. I was so excited to see a really cool creek – so of course   I made dan promise me 10 minutes to let the kids play.  This was huge that my husband allowed  us to do something other then driving. Normally a nice man – when he is on a road trip he is go, go, go… no survivors left behind. I grabbed my 24-70..and started snapping – Do you think it would be too much to ask clients to drive to VA for our photo shoots. This place is breathtaking!

So when I went to sleep we were in Tennessee and When I woke up 6 hours later… we are in Tennessee.. It looks so small on a map. My husband – being the wildman that he is … (refer back to the Cheap comment from the post before this one) .. Actually I think it is him being more cheap on his time. He doesn’t want to waste good driving time while the kids sleep. I don’t blame him… I just wouldn’t want to do it. In fact – I have to take an Ambien so that I can sleep since I am about to be on drive duty. I get so nervous that he will fall asleep at the wheel. But with a 6 pack of 5 hour energy – he always seems up for the challenge.  So our goal with be that we will be in Washington DC by 2 PM. Since Dan went to Georgetown  and still pines for the days of the bulldog. .. he loves sharing his Alma mater with the kids. So we will be spending the night in DC tonight and then we will make our way up the east coast to see grandma and grandpa.  I love DC and love that I have my photography so that I can savior every second.

So we are on our way – we  are driving to NY to visit family. Why are you driving you ask….plain and simple. We are cheap! I am not afraid to admit it – when  it comes to travel – I have a hard time spending 1600 dollar (+) to go visit family. I like to save our pennies so that maybe we can go on a trip somewhere that takes us to a far away magical place.. like Hawaii,Turks and Caicos, or somplace fantastic…So we packed up the car and have hit the road. We did this last Christmas and here we are pushing the envelope the only way the LaBiancas know how. Have I mentioned that my loving, wonderful husband refuses to stop and sleep. Must be the Sadist in him … but he downs his 5 hour energy drinks and powers it through the night. Drives me crazy that he won’t stop… and I normally have to take an Ambien so that I can sleep b.c I am too freaked out. We are quite the pair. I actually love the time in the car with the family and know that these are memories that our kids will never forget. Driving to go see Grumpy ,Grampy and the rest of our  Italian family.

We were 20 minutes in when all of sudden from the back seat we heard….

This is going to be a long trip….Stay tuned!!