When J got in touch for porch portraits, it was early February and deep in the cold heart of winter. How could we been so lucky to have chosen from there the single most lovely day of the spring so far for portraits on the porch?

This may have been one of my easiest photography sessions ever – perfect weather, sweet and agreeable girls, and just about perfect light.

The girls are having portraits done as a gift for Father’s Day. How sweet is that? And they’ve kept the secret since February, so if you recognize them — shhhh, don’t tell Dad! (That’s why I’m blogging these out of order, because we need to get these off to the lab to make sure we make the Father’s Day deadline, but I still haven’t posted the pictures from another fun family session I did last weekend. It’s coming!)

A week or so before the session, J sent me an e-mail asking my opinion on something that I really struggle with myself: what to wear to the session. Asking my fashion advice is like taking boxing lessons from Gandhi. But, I have learned a few tricks over the years, which I shared with her – avoid big, noisy patterns, especially if they clash with each other. Complimentary colours or similar colours usually come off better than matchy-matchy. Bright white can be tough in the sunshine, especially paired with a contrasty black. It’s great if everyone has one bit of the same colour on them somewhere – maybe blue in dad’s jeans, in the piping on junior’s shirt and on mom’s scarf, for example.

J had mentioned dresses in her e-mail, but the kids showed up in t-shirts and capri pants. “You can see we didn’t bother with the dresses,” she said. “I figured this is them how they really are.” I love that! Sure, it’s fun to dress up for portraits and have those special occasions preserved, but don’t forget to capture pictures of the less formal, every-day looks too!

Aren’t they lovely? Thank you so much, girls, for a perfectly lovely day on the porch. I hope Dad loves his Father’s Day gift!

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It’s been one of those weeks when I look at the pictures from earlier in week and think, “No way, that wasn’t this week. Surely that has to have been longer ago than just a few days!”

It’s been so crazy that I have two full blog posts to write about photographic fun, one about a great porch session with a fun family of five-year-old triplets and one about a fantastic walk I want to tell you about – but I haven’t had a chance to write either one yet. And then there was stuff that I didn’t take any pictures of (gasp, scandalous!), like the fabulous Kym Shumsky’s Les Nôtres vernissage, the stuff we did and I will probably never get around to blogging, like the seasonal opening of Watson’s Mill, and the pictures I can’t show you, like an amazing Grade 4 class trip to the National Gallery, the Ottawa School of Art and Sugar Mountain. Phew, what a week!

Here’s a teaser of the pending blog post about a capital walk that you simply must take. I promise I’ll pony up the details next week. This is, in my humble opinion, the best view of the Parliament Buildings, especially in tulip season. I’m standing on the Quebec side, near the Museum of Civilization.

Okay, here’s another teaser, also from the Quebec side a little further down. (These are both iPhone photos.)

When you’re out enjoying the sunshine on a perfect spring day, you might just run into other families out for a walk on the riverbank as well. I am particularly partial to families of five.

Closer to home, the crab apple tree in our front yard has been putting on a spectacular show of its own this week. For some reason, it did not flower like this last year — maybe it was the rainy, wet spring we had? — but this year it has been insane with blossoms. While I was taking this photo, I could hear a low-level buzz like a beehive. I looked around and realized that it wasn’t a hive, but an entire hive worth of bees buzzing from blossom to blossom; there must have been 50 or even 100 honey bees flitting about the tree. It was really something!

I was playing with the Lensbaby and the blossoms, and stopped to sit on the porch while I checked a few of the shots. And that’s how I ended up with this shot of my feet up on the porch rail with a riot of apple blossoms behind them. Wild, eh?

But then when I added the star aperture to my Lensbaby it made this crazy shot. I’m still not entirely sure I like it, but it is definitely, um, unique. This is all done without digital manipulation; the star aperture on the Lensbaby turns the light and dark area into the star shapes.

Of course, the Lensbaby effects can be more, um, subtle, and less like, ahem, animé foot p0rn. I bought these antique medicine bottles at the Bytown Bottle Collector Club (no really!) annual show and sale a few days ago, and got the vintage crate there as well.

As you might guess, with three boys, a dog and a cat, setting up a still life is not always easy. I called this one, “This is why we can’t have nice still lifes.” (I struggled with the plural on that one. “Still lives” really does change the sense a little too much, doesn’t it?)

I really do have a flower thing going on this week, don’t I? Here’s more – Simon picking a dandelion bouquet for me. And no, that’s not our lawn — but it could be!

I had originally called this last one “naked” and I when I took it I was thinking that it conceptualized the end of things, about expended effort and seeds and renewal. I changed the title to the quote that follows for a couple of reasons. First, it perfectly encapsulates the idea that I was trying to express. Second, I love that it’s from Erma Bombeck, an author who has had a huge inspiration on me as a writer and even as a mother.

Third, it’s so true it ought to be a motto: “When I stand before God at the end of my life, I would hope that I would not have a single bit of talent left, and could say, ‘I used everything you gave me.’” ~Erma Bombeck

Amen to that.

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If you’ve been reading for a while, you know one of my favourite events of the summer is the annual Blog Out Loud Ottawa event organized by the irrepressible Lynn. She has managed to make this event better every single year since its inception in 2009, and I can’t wait until this year’s edition.

We won’t have too long to wait, though, because BOLO has been bumped up from July to a new earlier date this year, with a new location, too. Here’s the skinny on BOLO 2012:

What: 20+ bloggers read their favourite post of the year; photo bloggers display their art
Who: Anyone who likes to hear good stories or see amazing images is invited to attend
When: Thursday, June 14, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Where: The Arrow and Loon, 99 Fifth Avenue

Want to be in the BOLO spotlight this year? (It’s way, way fun! Trust me!) Lynn and her crew of acolytes are accepting submissions until May 14. That’s only a couple of days away, no time to dither! C’mon, you know you want to be like these cool kids! (I’m praying the Arrow and the Loon doesn’t have an evil deep red background wall like last year’s location did!)

If you’d like to be considered for a spot on the roster, here’s the deets from the BOLO blog:

Want to read? Here’s what you do:

1.Pick out your favourite post from the past year (May 2011 through April 2012). Note that you must have blogged at least 10 times in this time period.

2.Send the link to your selected reading to lynnturtlehead@gmail.com by Monday, May 14, at midnight.

3.Wait to be notified (via email) on May 21st if you are a selected reader. That’s it!

What kind of post should you pick? We like posts that tell a story, express an opinion, argue a point, capture a moment, inspire passion. All types of topics and subjects are welcome. Just pick something that has meaning for you.

Your selected post should be able to be read out loud in about three to five minutes (I’d suggest no more than 1200 words as a good guideline, but we’re flexible).

How will the readers be decided? Half the spots are selected by a panel of judges (to a maximum of 11 spots). The remainder of the spots are selected by random draw. So don’t be discouraged – everyone has a chance! Everyone is welcome – small bloggers, famous bloggers, new bloggers, bloggers that have been kicking around forever. Come one, come all.

We did a slide show last year, too, with some great shots from our local photography community. If there’s enough interest, we’ll do that again, too, so please let Lynn or me know if you’d like to submit some photos. You’ll have to speak up by May 15 and have your photos to me before May 31 if we’re going to make this work.

In prior year at BOLO, I’ve laughed so hard my sides hurt and wept in empathy and felt every emotion in between. This is a great night out for the Ottawa blogging community and I can’t wait to see what surprises this year’s BOLO might offer.

Will I see you there?

(And speaking of great community events: PS, just a quick reminder that Kym Shumsky’s Les nôtres vernissage for her 100 strangers project is this Wednesday at Irene’s Pub!)

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Spring is a photographer’s dream. Everywhere there is colour, contrast, interesting shapes – and it is SO welcome after months of winter’s monochromatic greys and dirty whites.

Even the dandelions are beautiful!

I like this one of the orange tulips in my garden because I think the orange pops against the green and I like the painterly look of the bokeh (the out of focus parts in the background.) The repeating shapes of the tulip are evocative of an echo, don’t you think?

And then in rained. For days, which seemed like weeks. (And my grass grew about two inches this week!) I love the colour in these tulips I found in a bed downtown, with that weird streak of purple against the orange.

I’d gone looking for a foggy picture early one morning, but the fog wasn’t dense enough to make the dramatic picture I was looking for. It was, however, wet enough to make these amazing, jewel-like dew-drops on a spider web. I took this with my iPhone because I wanted to get as close as possible (my 50mm lens’s minimum focus distance is something like 30 cm or more) and because I like the black and white film look from the app I was using. But, I was trying to hunker down and balance on my toes while holding the camera steady, and a breeze kept making the web dance. All that to say, it’s not nearly as sharp as I wanted it to be — but I love the refraction in the drops. It’s 80% of where it could have been, but still not bad for something I almost walked right past!

This is not what I set out to do with the sea glass. It’s part (a pretty small part, actually) of our collection from Nova Scotia. I don’t know exactly what I was intending to do, but by the time I’d finished this I’d run out of time for playing with the camera, so this ended up as the photo of the day. I heart sea glass!

Sometimes, I just can’t resist the light. Don’t you wish your breakfast tasted this good?

And finally, a bit of a cheat. I was looking for something to submit to a photo challenge on Flickr, and it had to be something I took after April 2. I started playing with the photos from the red balloon session and ended up liking this out-take a lot more than I liked the photos I posted at the time. And then, in classic fashion, I again found I’d run out of my allotment of daily photo time, so this month-old (but admittedly adorable!) picture is yesterday’s photo of the day.

And speaking of re-runs, remember I mentioned a while back that a Flickr contact had seen the use of my infamous puddle jumping picture on a flyer in a grocery store in Scotland? Look what arrived in my mail box from over the puddle, erm, I mean ocean, this week!

How funny is it to know that this picture is in grocery stores all over the UK?

I’ve got two families coming out for porch portraits this week, so it should be a fantastically photogenic week. Hope yours is filled with beauty, too!

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I‘ve been hearing about community supported agriculture (CSA) for quite some time, and meaning to do it for a while. The way it works is that you buy a “share” in a local farm early in the year, and then you get a regular selection of the fruits and/or vegetables harvested from the farm at a lesser price than you’d pay at the farmer’s market or roadside stand.

I am a strong believer in buying local food. I’ve blogged before about how much I like the Manotick Butcher for their local, sustainably-raised meat. I will drive out of my way for SunTech cherry tomatoes (oh my, have you tried them? They’re like candy!) But I have been reluctant to get involved with CSA before now for one reason: we are not adventurous eaters. I really don’t know what I’d do with a box of kale.

I’ve been hearing about Roots and Shoots farm since we moved to Manotick (they’re also behind the new Manotick farmer’s market I mentioned earlier), and a few times I stopped by their weekly farm stand in the village. It was serendipitous clicking that brought me to their website on the weekend, where I finally dispelled the “box of kale” myth by reading the anticipated contents of a weekly share in July: arugula (ok), pak choy (um, what?), beets (Beloved and my mother love ‘em), carrots (check!), Swiss chard (sure, why not?), radish (yes please!), green onions (yum!), zucchini (love it!), peas (see above reference re: candy), lettuce (mmmm) and herbs.

Nothing too intimidating there, and it only gets better in August (add cucumbers, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and beans to the mix) and September (add spinach, potatoes, and mini-watermelons to the mix). Yummity yum yum.

I love this for so many reasons. First and foremost, I love the idea of having a steady supply of fresh, local healthy produce for the summer. There are enough familiar foods to satisfy my comfort level, and enough new foods that I won’t be too intimidated to try something new.

I’ve been struggling with one boy in particular who doesn’t like vegetables, and I think this is a terrific way to engage him. I don’t seem to be quite organized enough to build that backyard vegetable patch I’ve been dreaming of, but this may be the next best thing. How fun is it to be driving past “our” farm regularly, talking about what’s growing and anticipating harvest time? And Roots and Shoots is open to visits, so we can bring the boys to see where and how the vegetables actually grow.

As if fresh, nutritious foods that come with built-in teachable moments is not enough, I have to give props to Roots and Shoots for following organic farming processes: “Certified Organic protects not only the health of the consumer, but also the health of the farmer, the ecosystems that produce the food, the waterways on the farm, and the biodiversity of the farm. It is for this reason that Roots and Shoots Farm supports and adheres to Certified Organic standards.”

Although we’re pretty excited about our farm share, we simply weren’t sure if we’d be able to consume the full weekly share of produce. Lucky for us, there’s also a half-share option. With a full share option, you get a share of produce each week for the 16 week harvest season. We chose the half share, so we get one share every two weeks. At $290 for the summer, I think that’s an amazing deal.

Aside from everything above, I think it’s the idea of co-commitment that most enamours me. From the share contract:

You as the Shareholder, commit to understanding the challenges of growing seasonal vegetables. If the forces of nature make certain crops less available, you will accept that with grace and understanding. We the farmers commit to working with a large variety of vegetables so as to minimize any potential effects of losing a crop or two. We commit to using our many years of experience, good techniques and equipment to provide you with the best quality of vegetables for the duration of the season.

You as the Shareholder, commit to reading all of the CSA information found on this website, to educate yourself about what being part of a CSA is like. We the farmers commit to providing you with information from the farm throughout the season through weekly newsletters. We commit to providing you with opportunities to visit the farm and take part in vegetable growing should you want to.

Together we commit to contributing to a more healthy, safe and sustainable food system that is locally-oriented, and that inspires community interaction around food. We, the farmers, look forward to getting to know you and enjoying the season together.

And very best of all, it provides me with a season worth of blog fodder! Come along for the ride as we answer pressing questions like “what exactly is pak choy and what do you do with it” and “who will win the dinnertime bean battle”? I’m thinking we need a new category for these posts, but my Muse must be out hoeing the back 40. Feeling inspired, bloggy peeps? What can I call a series of posts based reaping the benefits of a CSA harvest?

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It started a few weeks ago when Fitz’s Fries on Bridge Street opened for the season, and I noticed that the deck chairs and lifeguard stands are out at the Long Island Aquatic Club. Now I’m excited! This Saturday, spring officially arrives in Manotick!

First, Watson’s Mill opens for the summer season on Saturday. Throughout the day there will be historical interpreters and milling demonstrations, and a BBQ from 11:45 to 1:30 pm. The Mill is raising funds this summer to replace its leaky roof, so some local politicians will be on hand to support the Raise the Roof campaign.

And when the Mill is open, so is the terrific little used book sale in the carriage house building across the street. We spent a lot of time perusing its stacks last summer and have been waiting patiently through the long winter for it to re-open. If you’ve made the trip out, wander a block or two south on Dickinson to Tighe Street and check out My Toy Shop and maybe get an ice cream at the delightful HodgePodge Shoppe.

Edited to add: Was just out and about and noticed that also on Saturday, the Hodge Podge Shoppe is celebrating their 1st anniversary with door prizes, balloons, Dino Reptiles and the Junkyard Symphony. Fun!

Did you hear that there will be a new farmer’s market in Manotick this summer?

The farmers’ market is sponsored by Watson’s Mill and will be held in Dickinson Square outside the museum from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. every Saturday morning beginning June 23. This year’s market is a pilot project run by volunteers rather than the usual board of directors, and could expand in the future if it goes well.

Although the details haven’t been ironed out, Roots and Shoots Farm proprietor Robin Turner, who spearheaded the idea with several local farmers, said the market will offer a beneficial alternative for residents.

“We’re gearing to make it a market where people can get a good part of their groceries for the week,” including vegetables, fruits, cheese, eggs, meats and baked goods, he said.

It will be a “producer market” meaning the vendors actually produce the food they sell, Turner added.

“There’s no reselling allowed, which means its all going to be local products. There’s an emphasis on finding producers who are as close to Manotick as possible,” he said.

I don’t know whether I’m more excited about this – a two-minute walk from my house, no less! – or the new CSA share I just signed up for from Roots and Shoots farm – which I’ll blog about as soon as I find another minute or two.

It’s shaping up to be a terrific summer in Manotick!

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At the end of last year, I shared what I thought was a clever and snicker-worthy video from Zellers as they wrap up business in Canada. It seems they’ve been on the way out the door for a long time, which may be why this video of the guy – erm, gal? – who can’t get out the door tickled my fancy. Or maybe it’s because this actually happened to my teenage self, waaaay back in the day before cellphones.

Ah Zellers, I will miss you when you’re gone…

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Zellers. As were a lot of my teenage misadventures, in a completely different way.

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Bloggy peeps, I need some advice. There’s a 10 year old boy in my life who is dying for a skateboard.

I am nervous about this whole concept for a couple of reasons. First, I don’t know anything about skateboards. My childhood experience included many trips to the ER due to spills on toboggans, bicycles and falling up the stairs, but I have no experience with skateboards.

Second, we have a very steeply pitched driveway that dumps into the road at a spot well-hidden from oncoming drivers by a giant cedar hedge. I don’t worry so much about the 10 year old here, but I do worry about the four year old who THINKS he’s a 10 year old.

I don’t want to be overprotective. A skateboard is really not that different from a bike. Is it? But how do you get a good one and am I insane if I make him wear elbow, wrist AND knee pads in addition to a helmet? (And, erm, a full suit of bubble wrap?)

I have some serious misgivings, but I want to be convinced. Help me, bloggy peeps. Tell me what I need to know to make Tristan’s dream come true!

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It was only a couple of months ago I happened on an old blog post that I had completely forgotten. With more than 2000 (!) published posts in the archive this happens rather often, and it’s one of my very favourite parts of having the blog. Although I’d forgotten the story and it made me laugh when I re-read it recently, I didn’t mention the story to anyone after I stumbled across it, and so I couldn’t help but laugh when history repeated itself just yesterday.

First, replicated for your ease of clicking, here’s the original post from 2007:

For the most part, potty training Tristan was a breeze. He waited until he was three and a half to be ready for it, but when he was ready, the transition was quick, painless and relatively dry. From the last day of diapers, we’ve had a total of maybe a dozen accidents at most. A year and a half later, however, one hurdle remains.

He refuses to wipe his own butt.

We’ve tried cajoling, reasoning, bribing and ignoring him, but he outwaits us every time. And for reasons I’ll never understand, the vast preponderance of the time, he likes to go when we are sitting at the dinner table.

Tristan, from the bathroom: “I’m done.”

Me, at the table: “Good.”

(pause)

Tristan: “Are you coming?”

Me: “No. Wipe yer own butt.”

Tristan, whining: “I can’t!”

Me: “Yes, you can.”

Tristan: “I don’t want to!”

Me: “Well, that’s probably closer to the truth. You have to learn to wipe your own butt, Tristan. Big boys wipe their own butts.”

(pause)

Tristan: “Is this Monday?”

Me, unfazed at the non-sequiter: “No, it’s Saturday.”

Tristan: “Well, I only wipe my own butt on Mondays.”

How do you argue with logic like that? He may have won again today, but you can bet he’s not getting away with it come Monday!

(Edited to add: and by God if he didn’t wipe his own butt on Monday. By his choice, mind you. He called from the bathroom, I reminded him it was Monday, and he said “Oh, okay” and did it. Who knew??)

Fast forward back to 2012. I’m editing photos in Lightroom just as the kids are getting ready for bed when the call comes from the bathroom, except this time it’s Lucas:

Lucas, from the bathroom: “Mo-om! Come wipe my butt!”

Me: “No way, José. You can do it.”

(pause)

Lucas: “I don’t know how to wipe my bum in the nighttime, only in the daytime.”

I can’t say much for their bathroom hygiene, but at least I know my boys share a strong streak of creativity.

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I seem to be feeling inspired early in the day this week. The majority of this week’s pictures were taken within the first hour or so, some before I’ve even had my first coffee. Early bird gets the photo?

It seems like ages ago now, but it was only Monday that we woke up to heavy, wet snow in Ottawa. The tulips fared better than the daffs. They’ve got strong necks!

I’d actually forgotten I had taken another picture with my camera instead of my iPhone and was pleasantly surprised to find this one a couple of days later. Pleasantly surprised because it’s a much better picture, but also because the snow had completely disappeared by the time I found it.

I kinda thought I’d have another couple of years before I started taking pictures like this of my baby. Sigh. (I loved the window light in this one. Look at the catch-lights in his eyes!)

I was taking pictures of raindrops dripping off a branch with my Lensbaby when Simon walked by on the porch and I snapped this portrait of him. I’ll take smiling boy over drippy branches any day! (You see the faint stars in the background? That’s the star shape in the Lensbaby creative aperture that does that. So hokey, but I love it!)

This isn’t an official “photo of the day” but I’m still bragging about it so I thought I’d slip it in! That’s my pictures of the skaters down there, published in an advertorial in the current issue of Macleans.

It’s been a miserable week weather-wise, but the sunrises have been pretty amazing. I actually doubled back on my way over the way over the Rideau River to take this one. I kept those branches in the foreground intentionally thinking I’d give the shot some depth, but I find they clutter up the shot now that I see it. Oh well, the colours are still pretty, no?

I like this one much better, taken a few minutes down the road at the Long Island Lock a couple of days later. Can I just say that running into a really big flock of geese and sending them honking and panicking into the water is an awesomely fun way to start the day?

And hey, I saw yesterday that they’re officially filling up the Rideau Canal now. There’s no more sure sign of impending summer in Ottawa than that!

I snapped this one with my iPhone. I really like the composition, but didn’t expect it to be so noisy. Not guitar-noisy but photographic noise: that speckly grain, caused by excessively low light. Oh well. I’ll do it in a brighter room next time.

One of the many odd theme groups to which I belong on Flickr is Fenced Fridays. I am drawn to fences, and especially the miles and miles and miles of rural fencing I see out here. I’ve thought of doing a shot like this for a while, and finally got around to it.

The funny part is that last night while I was processing it, Lucas was bouncing around with his “guitar” (not the one I snapped above) and so I asked him to sing me a cow song to go with my picture. Beloved recorded this surefire hit on his iPhone:

You’re welcome!

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Through the month of April I’ve been putting up a series of posts on why I am incredibly impressed with Indigo Kids. The first post talked about how pleasantly surprised I was to find Indigo Kids offers a selection of great pre-wrapped toys to make your birthday-gift-shopping experience as painless as possible. The second post talked about how Indigo Kids saved my butt with awesome loot bag content and free loot bags to boot.

One of the criteria Mom Central Canada set out for this blog tour was that you’d need an upcoming birthday occasion to buy for. With three boys and a steady stream of party invitations, I knew we’d have that part covered. What I didn’t expect was that it would be Lucas’s first party invitation ever (awwwww!) from one of his mates at day care that we would be using as our excuse for an amicable morning spent browsing at Indigo Kids. And better yet? We were buying for a GIRL! (I get seriously excited about buying girl stuff.)

We looked at puzzles and books, games and stuffies, crafts and playsets. The clerk who helped us was awesome, pointing out options and ideas I wouldn’t have otherwise considered, and offering the kind of personal assistance you just don’t see in many stores anymore. (Hell, good luck finding a warm body in most big-box stores lately!)

My heart melted into a puddle of goopy love when I noticed Lucas intently studying a display of Groovy Girl dolls. “I think she needs a dolly,” he said, his brow furrowed in concentration. We looked at a few, and he was particularly enamoured with a blond one. “Why do you like this one, Lucas?” “Because she’s pretty like Marika.” Melt.

So we almost got the pretty-like-Marika blond dolly, until Lucas noticed I was holding a Colour and Cuddle Washable Pony, and he decided that would be what Marika liked best of all. We added in a handful of Robert Munsch mini-books and we were good to go.

The clerk sent us off to pay for our purchases, and told us to come back for the free gift wrap, which we did.

So now you know my go-to resource for the next decade of birthday-party-gift shopping! Would you like to win an Indigo gift card so you can check out the Indigo Kids experience on your own? Contest closes on Monday, so this is your last chance!

Here’s the details:

1. This is a giveaway for a $35 Indigo gift card.
2. To enter the giveaway, simply leave a comment on any post in this series of three telling me why you love Indigo Kids or how you think Indigo Kids could be helpful to you.
3. This giveaway is open only to Canadian residents, excluding residents of Quebec. (sorry!)
4. This giveaway will run until 11:59 pm EDT April 30.
5. One winner will be chosen from all comments posted on any of the three contest posts on this blog.
6. You can comment as many times as you like, but you will only be entered into the giveaway once.
7. You can also enter to win on other blogs, but you can only win once.
8. If you win, you must be willing to provide your full name and address to me, to share with Mom Central Canada, in order to claim your gift card.
9. Gift cards will be sent 4 to 6 weeks after the close of the giveaway.

And if you haven’t get checked out the great new Indigo Kids section of your favourite Chapters/Indigo store, this store locator link will help you find a location near you.

Disclosure: I am participating in the Indigo Kids program by Mom Central Canada. I received compensation for my participation in this campaign, but the opinions on this blog are ALWAYS my own. I only participate in promotional campaigns for products and services I feel I can personally endorse.

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When I got my royalty statement from Getty Images last week, I was pretty excited. Not only was it my highest-grossing month to date with 10 sales, but it had some pretty interesting-sounding buyers: a couple of European ad agencies, Microsoft (!), and Macleans magazine. I was particularly curious about the Macleans one, not only because it paid a pretty penny. Not in my wildest dreams could I picture a more awesome use than this!

See that bottom-centre photograph of the skaters? I took that one on my lunch break on a freezing but brilliant day back in January!

Talk about proud Canadian moments!

And I found this one, too, which isn’t nearly as awesome but interesting nonetheless:

That’s my picture of a caiman, snapped at the boys’ school Halloween party featuring Little Ray’s Reptile Zoo, masquerading as a crocodile on the website for NBC Miami, channel 6.

I tell you, between having a picture of Lucas and Willie used to support the concept of “cutest kid/pet picture ever” and Macleans using this one to define the ultimate Canadian moment, Getty has been doing as much to boost my ego as line my pocketbook!

So you think this qualifies to enter as a “Proudest Canadian” moment?

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Wouldn’t it be great if there was a comprehensive database of information about services, companies, events and other resources relating to raising a family in Ottawa?

Well, thanks to our newest bloggy sponsor Help! We’ve Got Kids, now there is! Help! We’ve Got Kids was founded in 1994 as a print directory and evolved into an online database for parents and caregivers with a comprehensive listing of the products and services for kids and families in the Greater Toronto Area. They’ve since expanded to several Canadian cities, and as of this spring, they are establishing a presence in Ottawa as well.

I’ve been following the Help! We’ve Got Kids twitter stream for quite a while, and I was happy to help promote the Ottawa launch. On the Help! We’ve Got Kids website, you’ll find information and resources about birthday parties, camps, after-school programs, sports, schools, amusement centers, indoor playgrounds, support services, parenting articles, event calendars, parenting resources and more. You can even get a free basic listing for your own business or submit an event.

In addition to the services and parenting resources, there are deals, coupons, events and contests, and even a couple of blogs to follow. And of course you can follow them on Facebook or Google+ as well. Looks great, doesn’t it?

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Help! We’ve Got Kids. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.

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Okay, this? Best parenting advice I’ve read in a long time, and very in line with my ever-strengthening philosophy of giving kids room to be kids. Thank you to my friend and longtime reader Kim for sharing this article in the weekend Globe and Mail: Bucket list for kids: 50 things to do before they’re 12

I love this, because I think each and every one of these is an excellent activity — and yet it makes me sad and kind of tired. Do we as parents really need to make an itemized checklist of experiences our kids must achieve? Meh, maybe the grey Ottawa skies and cold, damp temperatures are making me cantankerous. It actually sounds like a road map to a pretty great summer, if spring ever decides to return.

Here’s the official list, editorialized with my own local spin:

1. Climb a tree

2. Roll down a really big hill (Mooney’s Bay has a great one for this!)

3. Camp out in the wild (did you know there’s a campground on Prince of Wales just north of Hunt Club? Practically downtown!)

4. Build a den

5. Skim a stone (I recommend Britannia Beach for this one!)

6. Run around in the rain (or puddles, maybe?)

7. Fly a kite

8. Catch a fish with a net

9. Eat an apple straight from a tree (we love Kilmarnock and Cannamore orchards)

10. Play conkers

11. Throw some snow (can we wait until December for this one, please?)

12. Hunt for treasure on the beach

13. Make a mud pie

14. Dam a stream

15. Go sledging

16. Bury someone in the sand

17. Set up a snail race

18. Balance on a fallen tree

19. Swing on a rope swing (the rope swing is hands down the kid-favourite feature in our backyard)

20. Make a mud slide

21. Eat blackberries growing in the wild (there are – or were – wild raspberries growing along the boardwalk at the Chapman Mills Conservation Area)

22. Take a look inside a tree

23. Visit an island

24. Feel like you’re flying in the wind

25. Make a grass trumpet

26. Hunt for fossils and bones

27. Watch the sun wake up

28. Climb a huge hill

29. Get behind a waterfall (or maybe go caving?)

30. Feed a bird from your hand (bring some seed to the Lime Kiln Trail or Hogsback Falls for this one!)

31. Hunt for bugs

32. Find some frogspawn

33. Catch a butterfly in a net

34. Track wild animals

35. Discover what’s in a pond (Mud Lake is great for this!)

36. Call an owl

37. Check out the crazy creatures in a rock pool

38. Bring up a butterfly

39. Catch a crab

40. Go on a nature walk at night

41. Plant it, grow it, eat it

42. Go wild swimming

43. Go rafting

44. Light a fire without matches (um, no thanks)

45. Find your way with a map and a compass

46. Try bouldering

47. Cook on a campfire

48. Try abseiling

49. Find a geocache

50. Canoe down a river (although you might want to wait until they’re older than 3 and 5 yrs old!)

I figure the boys have a good half of the items crossed off, and I can tell you for sure I won’t be taking them abseiling any time soon – although the zip-line at a local aerial park is not out of question. What do you think? Is there anything on here a child of 12 can or cannot live without doing? Something you’d add to the list?

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I don’t know why my kids like to play with me. I am not a creative sort of person when it comes to play, especially imaginary play. I like board games because there are rules and processes to be followed (oh, I have been badly damaged by my 20-year civil service career, haven’t I?) and I am happy to supply glue and feathers and beads and let them have at it. But I am just not good at imaginary play. I’m a photographer, not an actor! And the reason I had three kids in the first place is so they’d play with EACH OTHER and leave me out of it.

So whenever Lucas wants me to be grumpy Gordon while he is chipper Thomas winning approval from Sir Topham Hat, I divert us to safer ground. As in, to save my sanity. Since you know I’ve been blogging for Fisher-Price Canada lately, I thought it would be fun to share some off-label uses for our favourite Fisher-Price toys. Fun, and sanity saving, too!

1. Hot and cold Little People
I started doing this one when the big boys were wee, and they’ve always loved it. It’s kind of like an Easter Egg hunt without the sugar rush. We gather up a big pile of Little People (because they’re the perfect size for hiding in places that are not too challenging to find) and the boys leave the room while I “hide” them. Then they take turns looking for them while I giggle and give clues like, “Oooo, getting warmer. Feel that tropical sun, you are so warm now. Uh oh, but of a cool breeze, you might be going in the wrong direction!” The kids can do this for hours, and I can spend large stretches of this game on the couch clutching my coffee. Win-win!

2. Kid-Tough Digital Camera scavenger hunt
I like this one – go figure! Choose a theme – blue or round or leaves or dandelions or whatever, and try to find and take a picture of 10 things that have that quality. Or set a time limit: how many can you photograph in 10 minutes? Beware of obscure kid-generated themes here, though. We don’t have a lot of “things that growl” in our house (once mom and dad have had their first coffee, anyway.) And “things polar bears eat” was a bit of a challenge.

3. What animal am I?
We have a jumbled set of animals from the Little People Musical Zoo and the Animal Sounds Zoo. Lucas has to cover his eyes while I choose one, and hide it in my hands or behind my back, and Lucas asks questions to try to figure out which animal it is. “Does this animal have fur?” or “Where does this animal usually live?” We play this in the car sometimes, too, but having the actual animal in his hand tends to keep him focussed on which animal he chose. I’ve otherwise found myself trying to guess an animal that has fur and scales and eats leaves and fish and has both spots and stripes.

4. Pictionary on the Kid-Tough Magnetic Doodler
It is a sad but true fact that Lucas can now draw figures that are both more accurate and recognizable than those that I am capable of drawing. “That doesn’t look like a bird, Mommy! That looks like a squashed mushroom.” (I like this game less and less as their artistic ability outstrips mine.) I stand a better chance at the 3D version of this game where we try to guess what the other is building with Trio building blocks.

Okay, so that’s a few ideas – can you think of any more? Croquet using Corn Popper mallets, maybe?

Disclosure: I am part of the Fisher-Price Play Panel and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog, however, are always my own.

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I‘ve toyed with changing the name of my “Life in Ottawa’ blog category to “Love letters to Ottawa.” I like to think that a lot of this blog is exactly that. But while my love letters are about the places in Ottawa, the things to see and do and visit, Kym Shumsky’s 100 strangers project is sort of like 100 love letters about the people of Ottawa.

You may remember last year, I wrote a post about being a part of Kym’s project. I was just re-reading my post about it for the first time in a while, and it brought me right back to that night, how much fun it was and how nervous I was and how pleased I was with the final results.

It amazes me to think I was just one per cent of Kym’s crazy project, just one of 100 interactions and photo sessions that Kym has had over the past couple of years in her epic project. In Kym’s own words, her 100 strangers project was “about style, but not just style. It’s also about telling the story of Ottawa’s people right off the streets of Ottawa herself. This town is more than meets the eye. Over the next several months I want to meet, talk to, and photograph 100 strangers. Pictures will tell one story. People will inspire the other.”

But because she is such an inspiring person herself, she has turned this into something more. Now that the photo taking is done, there is a book, and framed prints, all of which will be raising funds for Operation Rainbow Canada.

I think my very favourite part of this is how Kym’s project has gone from “Le Mien” (French for “mine”) to “Les nôtres” (French for “ours”).

I’ll be there, will you?

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I have spent waaaaaay too much time this weekend with my nose pressed to the monitor of my laptop, doing back-ups and upgrades and all the ridiculous site maintenance issues that I should do more frequently but never seem to get around to doing.

First, I updated the banners on my portfolio site, and then made a matching one for the Facebook page for Mothership Photography. (Are you a fan yet? Now would be a good time! *hint hint*) I’ll wait here while you click around and enjoy them. The photo site has rotating banners like this site does, so you get a fresh image when you refresh. (Speaking of refresh, I haven’t updated these ones since 2009. Eek, I suppose that’s next on my list!)

And then I got around to fixing something that’s been bugging me for a while – I changed the ugly navigation menu across the top of this site to more closely match the one I had coded into the photography site, and I dropped the navigation below the blog header. How is it displaying for you? All in one line? Readable? Looks okay in IE and Firefox from here, but that’s about as far as my attention for testing goes. (One of so many reasons I would make a lousy coder. No mind for details and no patience for testing or debugging!) Here’s what it looked like an hour ago, for comparison:

What do you think? The navigation menu doesn’t get lost, does it?

After all this time, I still do my site backups manually. Do you have a favourite plug-in to do yours? I don’t know why I don’t trust a plug-in to do this, but for some reason I don’t.

Now I’m off to back up EVERYTHING – blog files, photo files, Lightroom, client files, the whole she-bang. After we lost a hard-drive full of pictures, I’ve become a fan of redundant backups, so I have online backup through Backblaze and two separate external drives, which I try to rotate between home and office. Sigh. I think I need to hire a digital housekeeper right after I find the funds to hire an actual housekeeper…

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Funny, I’m just now realizing why I am so much more prolific with my photo taking in spring, summer and fall than I am in winter – many of my favourite pictures are taken outside. Just like eating outdoors makes any meal taste a little better, fresh air seems to add something to my photography mojo as well. I suppose that explains why I decided to set up a photo studio on my porch, eh?

This week’s pictures were almost entirely a love song to spring, and what says spring more than silly yellow daffodils bobbing in the breeze?

I love how they grow in banks like that. The ones above were in the park across from Manotick’s Mill, but this guy is growing in my own garden. I slid my iPhone underneath him pointing up to get the yellow to pop against the blue sky.

Speaking of gardens, Lucas and I had a most delightful afternoon examining each dandelion and pansy that have popped up in the grass in front of the house this week. The next day, I had a bit of a surprise when i reached my hand into my jacket pocket and pulled out the damp, wilted lot of them!

Despite the scowly forehead, I can assure you that Tristan was having a great time during our first backyard marshmallow roast last weekend!

This one I’m not sure about. I tinkered with it for quite a while and still couldn’t get it quite where I wanted, but it’s close – and I kinda had to make dinner for the kids, so that also dictated its degree of doneness.

I didn’t realize until just now that apparently hand-holding is also a bit of a theme this week. This one is Lucas and Beloved on a family walk.

And I saved the cutest for last. This is Lucas and the daughter of one of my oldest, dearest friends, who also happens to be a raw food chef and culinary teacher. We were walking from the coffee shop to the park one beautiful spring morning when Catalina spontaneously grabbed Lucas’s hand.

Does it get any cuter than preschoolers holding hands?

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It was a year ago this week that I took one of my favourite pictures of all time, Lucas jumping in the puddle.

We were on our way back to the house, having just walked the big boys to school. Remember how wet and rainy last April was? And I was going to try to keep Lucas out of the puddle as we walked by, but I had my camera with me (as always) and so I figured, what the heck, we’re not going anywhere but home. Let him have at it. And did he ever! I knew the second I clicked the shutter that it was a winner. Sometimes you just *know* when you’ve nailed the shot.

This photo is the closest I’ve ever come to going “viral”. It’s all over Pinterest and Tumblr, largely without my credit. Every now and then I do a google search on it, and recently found a Tumblr post where it has nearly 600 likes and reblogs. Oy! When I posted a comment on another blog that (mis)credited the Tumblr blog as the source, I wrote that in fact I was the original photographer, and the image is not only copyright but for license on Getty, and would she mind please removing it from her blog. To my surprise and utter delight, she asked my permission to buy the rights to the Web size, so she could keep the image in her blog post. How awesome is that?

This was photo was among the first set of images invited for license from Getty Images, and among my first sales, too. It’s sold four times now, as a matter of fact, earning me well over $100 in royalties. In fact, a fellow Getty Images contributor posted this comment on the Flickr photo just yesterday:

I’ve been looking at this image for months every time I’m at the checkout at my local sainsbury’s supermarket in the UK. I knew I’d seen the image on flickr somewhere and only realised it was yours when you posted in this months sales. It’s on a leaflet for some service they are offering. Have you seen the sainsbury’s use? If you haven’t i’ll pick up a leaflet next time I’m in and take a photo of it for you.

How fun is that? He’s just outside of Glasgow, Scotland (where my mom was born) and he’s kindly offered to send me a few copies of the pamplet next time he’s out doing his groceries. Edited to add: And here it is!

But that’s not the most awesome thing that has come out of this silly, happy picture. Check THIS out! Last autumn, I received an e-mail from Brian Seed, a local painter and member of the Manotick Art Association. He had come across the picture I don’t even know how, and wrote me a lovely e-mail asking my permission to create a watercolour painting from it. Really, awesome or what?

But, I wasn’t sure if I could give him that permission. By licensing the picture through Getty, I gave them the right to decide who could or could not create a derivative work. I wrote a very apologetic e-mail, saying I wish I could have given the rights, and explaining the situation. To my delight, he replied that the fee was entirely reasonable and the next month there was the sale on my royalty statement.

Fast forward to today: Mr Seed sent me a quick note to let me know the painting is done, and will be featured in the Ottawa Watercolour Society juried show next week at St Brigids, and in next month’s Manotick Art Association annual show next month, if it doesn’t sell first. And he sent me a photo of the finished painting:

Is that not the most awesomest thing ever? I can’t even begin to express how delightful this is – such an honour, and such a lovely painting!

I have to admit, even though I’m annoyed at the unsourced use of this picture all over Pinterest and Tumblr and the rest of the Internet, I do love that the joyous abandon of the picture has so resonated with people. My lesson from all this? Take your camera with you EVERYWHERE, even on a rainy grey day on a route you’ve walked dozens of times before, because you never know where beauty and joy (and potential royalties!) might be waiting to leap out.

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Did you know it’s just over three weeks until Mother’s Day? And you know what would make a really terrific Mother’s Day gift? Family portraits!

I’m absolutely delighted and really quite excited to offer another year of perfect porch mini-sessions at our home in Manotick. These were a huge success last year, and I’ve got some great new ideas for this year.

So what’s a mini-session? Here’s what you can expect:

• a 30-minute session on my porch and in the yard and gardens
• 10 – 15 custom edited proofs to choose from
• one 8 x 10 or two 5 x 7 prints
• high-resolution digital negatives to match the prints you choose
• Cost is $125
• Gift certificates are available

This is a great package for families, kids, teens, grads, or even engagement photos – and of course, it makes a wonderful Mother’s Day gift. Sessions are available by appointment evenings and weekends, with very limited weekday availability – and it’s first come-first served! Contact me or send an e-mail to danicanada(@)gmail(dot)com to book your appointment today!

Here’s just a few of my favourite Perfect Porch Mini-Session photos from 2011:

Here’s what some of last year’s clients had to say:

“We really had a great time with you, and we just love the photos. Thanks again!”
~ S., October 2011

“Thank you so much!!! We loved working with you and looking forward to working with you again soon!”
~ J., September 2011

“LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!! [We] just looked at the pictures together [...] They are absolutely gorgeous. You did such a great job! I can’t believe how well the family shots turned out…thanks for making us all so comfortable!!”
~ J., July 2011

“Words cannot describe how much we love the pictures. They are amazing! [...] Thank you so, so much. Seriously, we were all blown away by how great a job you did (far exceeding my admittedly high expectations).”
~E., July 2011

Don’t wait, book your Mothership Photography Perfect Porch Mini-Session in Manotick today!

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