Elizabeth Knox's Thoughts

Frosty winter, warmed hearts

Elizabeth knox — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:02:16 +0000

When we told people we were moving to New England, the first reaction was always, “WHY?! You’re going to freeze yourselves!”

It’s been a month and a half, and guess what? We didn’t!

Instead, I learned that I love the quick snap of cold air that sneaks in through cracks of old windows. I love indulging on the occasional hot chocolate. I love sweaters, all things wool, boots, and especially snuggly pups who selflessly serve as body warmers.

I even love the direct heat of my radiant heater on my face as I write.

We’ve only had one true snowy day, but my heart sang as I looked out the window to all of those flakes. That’s not something I’ve ever had the privilege of seeing on a regular basis.

The cold wakes me up, energizes me, and gets me out the door in a way that the hot summer days of Texas never could. I’m thrilled to be feeling the first wisps of spring, but the thought of a new winter does not give me a heavy heart.

I took this picture on a cold, damp day, and I just love the life and beauty that springs from it in spite of (or because of?) the bitter winds.

Braving the Night: Big Spoon Cuddling

Elizabeth knox — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 06:58:47 +0000

He saw Disney’s Pocahontas. He had just been pulled out of school to start homeschooling—he was getting sick too often. John Ratcliffe was this fat, bearded guy who wanted to attack the Pocahontas’s tribe. Then that same creepy, bearded, fat guy showed up in his dreams that night. He thought his eyes were open, staring toward the open doorway leading to the laundry, and in the doorway the John Ratcliffe. He screamed for the guy to go away.

Each nightmare-filled night ended with his parents pushed apart down the middle as he climbed in for protection where his mother would cuddle him. Once in his mom’s arms he fell asleep.

Eventually, the parents needed to sleep better and there was a sidebar event in their lives which helped with the issue. They got a beagle.

He insisted the beagle sleep with him. He could sleep alone so long as he had his dog with him. He cuddled her telling himself he now had to protect her from evil John Ratcliffe.

My husband was one of those kids who couldn’t sleep on his own until he was 11. He had to be extra diligent around any horror story, horror show, or even simple bad guys in Disney movies.

It wasn’t until he had someone to cuddle that he could step out on his own.

Imagine life as a series of cuddling partners. At first your mom cuddles you as a baby and a young child to calm you down and make you feel loved. Then some of you may cuddle a dog, cat, teddy bear, or some other stuffed animal. You’re doing with them what your mom did with you. Then you get older, you cuddle your love. Then a kid of your own.

In cuddling the dominant two roles you can play are the little spoon or the big spoon. One of you holds the other with your back to the cold, arms clasped around the little spoon. Meanwhile the little spoon gets pretty much all the benefits of the cuddle—except for one.

Our parents are the big spoons. You’re always the little spoon. But when you get to be the big spoon, you find a strength in you to be the one with your back to the cold. The entire time your purpose for doing so is right there in front of you, showing you exactly what good you’re doing.

The benefit of being the big spoon is finding in yourself the strength to deal with discomfort for benefit of others. The discomfort can be coldness, vulnerability knowing you can’t see what’s behind you, or having hair shoved up in your face so you have to turn your head to an uncomfortable position to breathe comfortably.

When a kid cuddles a teddy bear or pet, they’re learning what it is to be a parent or sacrifice personal comfort for the good of another.

Seniors, round one

Elizabeth knox — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 04:25:51 +0000

I’ll be honest—I tend to avoid senior sessions, and run toward families and kids.

This year is different though. This year, two of my favorite kids are graduating. This post is about my cousin Ryan, who I just cannot believe is already a senior. When I think of him, I picture him among a group of little kids running around at family holidays, not a grown guy!

Anyway, time has flown, and he and his sisters are definitely not those kids anymore.

He loves music, so I asked him to bring his guitar along.

I snuck in a couple shots of my cousin Makensie. Every time I see her, she looks so much older—she’ll be in middle school next year, which is wild to me because she’s the youngest kid in the family!

They’re good looking kids, huh? I didn’t get a chance to get more pictures of Chelsea, so she’d better watch out next time I’m in town!

And the whole bunch…just because I can.

Some of my (old school) favorites

Elizabeth knox — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 15:21:11 +0000

I’ve obviously stopped doing session recaps, because I’ve been sending galleries directly to clients rather than starting them off here, but I do want to share just a few of my favorites from three completely different sessions over the last few months.

I’m on my laptop again, so these images are not resized.

We're moving to Boston!

Elizabeth knox — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 21:32:54 +0000

I’m here! Things have been so busy for us that the blog has just been on the back burner. That’s a terrible metaphor, isn’t it?

But anyway, since I last posted (more than a month ago!) a lot has changed. A lot.

We’re still busy figuring things out, so I’ll put some of the changes in a bulleted list:

We moved out of our wonderful Austin apartment a few weeks ago, and we’re shuttling back and forth between our parents’ houses in the San Antonio area.
We have flight tickets to Boston for us and the pups for February 15th, and we’re currently apartment shopping over the net.
And yes, that’s Boston, not Portland. After a lot of reflection, we decided that the Boston area would be a better fit for what we need right now.
We’re not taking the car! We’re planning to live in a highly walkable area and use Zipcars when necessary.
We sold all of our furniture and will be starting over once we settle in. I think we’ll be going bohemian/shabby chic for a good while!
I’m planning to jump right into the photography swing, so if you’re in the area and want a session, let me know.

I’m going to be experimenting a bit with a few sessions, so I’ll be having a casting call of sorts when I arrive there. I’ll be looking for a couple, a toddler, and possibly a sibling group and a couple of individual adults for complementary (and complimentary!) sessions and some pretty awesome specials. Keep that in mind if you know anyone in the area.

Anyway, I hope all is well with you! I’m anxious to get back in the flow of things, but we’re obviously in a highly transitional state, so posting will be a bit sparse. I’ve been doing my best to keep up with emails, so feel free to reach me that way too!

Just really quick!

Elizabeth knox — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 20:34:49 +0000

Eric and I are heading out the door to San Antonio for the night, but I wanted to share some pictures from yesterday’s session really quickly, because I’ve been remiss in sharing sneak peaks, and want to change that. I didn’t resize the pictures either, so I apologize for that, and thanks for scrolling.

I love doing sessions of people who have become friends—it’s a lot of fun. I’m so excited for Melanie. She’s starting her very own photography business, and when her site gets up and going, I’ll share the link here. You’d never know it, but her son was with her in all of these pictures, just barely out of the frame.

That’s how flexible sessions can be!

Anyway, her eyes just blow me away. I think it’s pretty obvious that she is a warm, wonderful person.

When there is a kid around I can’t resist taking pictures. He was a great sport, and waited (mostly) patiently for us to be done, although he was kind of scared of the tall grass. I think I would be too if I were shorter than the grass!

This is probably one of my favorite mom and baby images—just look at all that warmth and love. She was tickling him with the grass to show him that it was nothing to fear.

I think I can see what he’ll look like in a few years in this one, but for now, aren’t those eye lashes just precious?

We’ll be back tomorrow, and I should be posting more throughout the weeks to come.

Beachy peace

Elizabeth knox — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 02:56:28 +0000

I feel so grounded when I am near the ocean (well, technically Destin is on the Gulf, but still). That’s one of the reasons we are moving to New England. I’ve always wanted to live near the water, and now we will.

Here I am, in all of my no makeup goofy gloriousness in Seaside, Florida, near Destin and Grayton Beach. Eric was playing around with our new 20mm 1.8, which is where some of that fun distortion comes from.

Standing on the water’s edge brings me peace like nothing else can. I don’t like swimming, so it is more than enough for me to simply breathe in the salty air and listen to the rush of the waves. The impending storm made the day that much more powerful, because there is nothing like an isolated coastline to make you feel like you’re on the edge of the earth. That feeling of aloneness calms me in a fundamental way.

Where do you go to find peace?

Destin

Elizabeth knox — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 03:38:39 +0000

We’re heading to Destin, Florida, the week after Thanksgiving to visit my grandfather. This is terribly last minute, but I’m open to doing a couple mini-sessions while we’re there—Gramps has to nap, you know?

Anyway, if you’re anywhere in that area, or heck, even anywhere between Panama City and Pensacola, shoot me an email, and I’ll send some details your way. We’re also going to Athens, Georgia, and Hattiesburg, Mississippi, but I don’t think we’ll have any time for shoots there. Suppose you could be a pit stop?

It’s been a busy weekend, and the week is looking even busier, but I’m ready for it! And, just think, NaBloPoMo is nearly over, so I can get back to a normalized posting schedule! I didn’t believe I’d really stick through the whole post every day bit, but I have, so woohoo!

I’m going to go guzzle some cough syrup and take a steamy shower, because that’s apparently the cool thing to do in my apartment this week. Allergies are fun, no?

__________________________________

Follow me on Twitter, here. @ me so I know who you are!

When you leave a comment, please leave your email or website! I love keeping in touch with readers.

A semblance of autumn

Elizabeth knox — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 04:07:56 +0000

This is a short one, perfect for Sunday. People posts will be back before long!

Hands down, autumn is my favorite season. We don’t get much of it in Austin, but this is a view off of our balcony, taken by Eric, during the beloved golden hour.

It was a beautiful day, the kind that makes you believe that everything is possible and that your destiny is a sublime, if not secure, one.

I love those days—they’re dry and crisp, and my lungs seem to exclaim ecstatically after every breath.

What’s your favorite kind of day?

__________________________________

Follow me on Twitter, here. @ me so I know who you are!

When you leave a comment, please leave your email or website! I love keeping in touch with readers.

Cupcakes are NOT a trend

Elizabeth knox — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 02:28:13 +0000

Now, I don’t mean to stir up any controversy here. That’s just not my style—on the blog anyhow.

But.

About a year ago, my dad* said that cupcakes were merely a trend, and that they were bound to go the way of other trendy foods.

I beg to differ.

That was a year ago, but the cupcakes up there are four hours old, and no less pleasing to me than they would have been ages ago. It seems like the cupcake shops in Austin (those are from Delish) are still going strong.

This is Texas, however, so I am open to the possibility of us being behind the trend. If we’re really, truly behind, I’ll remain behind happily, as my taste buds sing songs of bliss.

What are the sweets of high desire where you live?

*Love you, dad! You can have a cupcake tomorrow—I bought them for everyone helping our friend move!

__________________________________

Follow me on Twitter, here. @ me so I know who you are!

When you leave a comment, please leave your email or website! I love keeping in touch with readers.