I love the National Zoo because you never know what you’re going to see.  It’s a perfect outing for this former Biology teacher turned Photography enthusiast.

Our last visit was this past April during spring break.  When we walked through the bird house we were thrilled to find a nesting pair of Sunbittern birds.  I looked them up on Wikipedia when we got home (you can click here to read too!) and learned that they live in “tropical regions of the Americas” from Mexico down to Peru.  The Wikipedia post states they make open nests in trees and usually lay 2 eggs.

Here are a couple pictures of the happy little family

On our last visit we didn’t get to the Amazonia exhibit.  We tend to find that our little ones get tired (those hills are killer!) so we rarely get through the entire park on one visit.  Tomorrow we’re hoping to catch Amazonia and then maybe touch on a couple other exhibits to seek out desert and rainforest creatures.

Several times a year we visit Wegmeyer Farms, a fantastic local pick-your-own farm, both for the fresh goodness of the fruit and for the family experience.  The kids learn that food comes from the earth – and not just from a grocery store.  They delight in finding the biggest, ripest berries (as well as their favorite “mutant” berries with lots of funny bumps), and we go home for a yummy homemade brunch (this time topped with strawberries!).

Here are a few pictures I snapped during our visit this year.

One of the things that made a huge impression on us compared to other u-pick farms we’ve frequented is how clean these fields are.  Take a look at the rows and the paths in between.  There are very few weeds and the paths are nice and clear.  It’s super-duper easy to reach all of the strawberry plants without any trouble and find just the perfect berries!

When we first arrived we were greeted by the owner of the farm who gave us a bucket and assigned us a row.  Visitors are given a specific row to pick where the owners know there are still ripe strawberries available (so there is no worry that you’ll be aimlessly going down a row that’s been picked clean by someone before you).  When you are done picking you’re given a small red flag (see the center front of the photo above) to place in your row where you stopped.  This way the next picker knows exactly where to start.

The owner then explained to the children exactly how to find the ripe strawberries.  We wanted to look for those that didn’t have any yellow at all on them.  Those would be the sweetest!

This one had just a tiny bit of yellow at the tip – but it was a “mutant.”  The girls were thrilled to find the most unusual looking berries – constantly yelling out to one another with delight when they found a lumpy berry they thought was super cool!

Berries are $3.99 per pound.  The great thing though is that, unlike at the supermarket, you can be sure that there are NO rotten berries in your pound!  Don’t you just hate when you get home and have to trim away half the carton because they’re rotten?  Not with u-pick!  You get ALL that you pay for!  And you know they’re fresh!

And… while I’m not a food photographer in the least… I did snap a quick picture of our brunch.  It was perfect!

Check out some of my previous posts on Wegmeyer Farms from last year’s strawberry season,  from 2010′s pumpkin picking, and from Raspberry Picking last summer!

Happy Mother’s Day to all Moms out there!

Editing yesterday’s session in hopes that I can spend Mother’s Day NOT at the computer…

But I needed a short break so I’m posting my absolute favorite shot from this session.

When I can find a shot that, to me, represents what it “feels” like to be there on the property… in that space… then I feel truly successful with a session.

This is that shot for this home.

And I played with it as a digital painting as well.

It makes my heart smile because I can “see” the peacefulness of this back yard.

This is the gorgeous townhome with garage.  The brick one with the dormers in the center of the photo.

It lies along this huge courtyard complete with a field for playing ball and a picnic area with grills.  I imagine Friday evenings in the summer could be fun!

This is perhaps what I’m most jealous of… they have their own car wash and VACUUM stations!!  I can’t tell you how many times (having little ones myself) that I have driven from gas station to gas station looking for a car vacuum that is in-service!  They have one right next to their parking area!  How convenient!

And of course the neighborhood clubhouse and pool.

And a tot lot as well – you know… as a mom of twins I’m always super impressed when the tot lots are fenced in with a locking gate.  I can’t explain just HOW helpful this is to a mom of toddlers – especially when you have more than one to keep an eye on at a time!  We used to go out of our way to seek out the fenced-in play areas.  Super helpful!

So there are a few of the exteriors and community amenities shots I took for this listing by Leslie Thurman.  For more information and to see the inside visit her page by clicking here.  It’s only a very short walk away from Brambleton Plaza.  Great location!

One such neighborhood that attracts many families in the Ashburn area is Brambleton.  Last month I was in Brambleton photographing a condo for Leslie Thurman and afterwards I took a drive around to snap a few pictures of the greater Brambleton community outside of the condominium complex.  Here are just a couple of the photos I took that day.

And I have to add that my family loves Fox Cinemas in Brambleton… we are regulars there along with Blue Ridge Grill located right next to the theatre… their crab cakes are SO yum!!

Can’t you just “feel” how peaceful and private this setting is?

This is the view from the balcony of the finished apartment above the garage.  The homeowner’s mother kept a beautiful garden below.

A pergola and brick patio separates the house from the garage creating a breezeway.

And standing on the porch above this is your view… I can only say it really, truly is more breathtaking in person.  I just wanted to stop the shoot right then – grab a book and a chair – and stay a while.

And my favorite part of this session – the pond.  I was thrilled to discover the reflections of the house and apartment in the water.

At each session I really try to find some small vignette that I can feature which characterizes how it “feels” to be there in a particular setting… a details image that conveys a feeling vs. the typical real estate shots that show the layout or flow of the property.  For some homes it’s an interior details shot showing a spectacular kitchen or breakfast nook or wine cellar.  For some homes you can just feel what it must be like to wake up in the morning and walk outside amidst the breeze and the birds chirping to enjoy the morning paper.  This home was one of those.  When I saw this bird bath surrounded by the textures of the garden, the garage, the brick patio, looking out towards the woodlands… I knew I’d found my shot.

For more information about this listing visit Gloria Rose Ott’s website.

We walked past the empty tents and followed the sidewalks to the side of the road heading toward the parking garage at the Ronald Reagan building, when my daughters yelled out…

“Mom! Look!!”  

They had spotted something hidden among the grasses of a flower bed along Constitution Avenue.

As we got in closer this is what we discovered hidden there.

Sometimes the best part of our family field trips are the lessons waiting where we least expect them.

How beautiful to stumble upon this simple expression of love and kindness and to share in that discovery with our girls.

To whoever painted this rock – thank you.

When I was in 10th grade and he was in 11th we met each other through band class.  He played Baritone Saxophone and I played Clarinet in the high school musical orchestra pit for “Hello Dolly” that year.  We were also in the indoor colorguard together.  At our school most of the outdoor drumline from marching band joined the winter guard as the rifle line.  Between musical rehearsal and winter guard rehearsal we saw a lot of one another that spring and he was often my ride home from rehearsals.  In April I invited him to my birthday party – a trip to the zoo.  He couldn’t attend but that weekend he showed up unannounced at my house and we headed off to the local elementary school with a basketball for a game of HORSE.  Somewhere during the next month a mutual friend convinced him to ask me to prom (though it took a good deal of back and forth because he was just a little bit shy…).  And finally on May 6… just a few days before prom, he asked me out officially.

In a note.

Did I mention he was shy?

Well I said, “Yes,” and 21 years later here we are.  EACH (our initials) has become EACA and our 2 baby girls are almost 8.  I still can’t believe I’m old enough for any anniversary to be over 20 years but I feel extremely blessed to have found my love so young in life and to have spent the last 21 years growing together.

I had the pleasure of working once again with the Woodgrove High School Theatre Arts Department during their final dress rehearsal for “Once Upon a Mattress,” a musical adaptation of the classic fairytale of “The Princess and the Pea.”  The musical opened tonight and I am excited to take my girls back to see it this weekend.

Actually – they went with me to the dress rehearsal and enjoyed it so much that they’re begging to go back.  They were pretty upset with me this evening for not letting them stay to watch again when we went to drop off the lobby display boards…

I’m just going to share a few sneak peeks today, but I wanted to make sure to get the word out before the show closes!

Queen Aggravain meets Princess Winnifred…

Queen Aggravain and the Sorceress.

Princess Winnifred

For more information about the show including times and ticket prices here’s a link to their website.