I am really digging this Little Travelers Blog.  I have been reading a bit today and have been inspired in many ways.  One entry is on cooperative games.  Imagine playing a game where all players are working together to win the game.  What a concept.  I have always thought competition is overrated.  I actually can’t stand playing competitive games.  Maybe we’ll have to add a few of these games into our collection.

This trip to California was full of catching up. Not only was I able to photograph my nephew, I photographed my sister Teri and Joe… oh, and their monkey babies.
We headed to the beach since Teri has been a surfer forever. Apparently we went to the dog beach… since Jo loves animals, or animals love him. Whichever. It was amazing to see the dogs come and hang with him for a bit then move on. Really obvious that they like him. Me, I just asked that they didn’t sniff or slobber. I’m a wimp.

The monkeys.

I was finally able to photograph my nephew a few days after his 3rd birthday. Can you believe I have never photographed him? It pains me greatly. It pains me more to see the photos my sister will send of him from Sears or with Santa. Kill me now So finally, finally I was able to get a few shots of him.
We headed to the San Juan Mission, not realizing there was a pretty steep entrance fee. So rather than split our group up or fork out the $60 to get us all in we just tooled around town and spent a lot of time watching the train.
The boy truly felt the freedom of a day with his cousins. Much of the time was spent running from the adults, and my camera. This is a work in progress with this little man. You cannot escape Aunt Stacie. Even with an elusive subject I feel I got several really nice portraits of this kid.
I also got a few of my sister. It has been a long time since I had photographed her. In high school she was my favorite model. Once in college I missed being able to photograph her at a whim. It’s good to stretch those creative muscles, but it’s also difficult when you don’t know anyone. I began asking random people if I could photograph them… not a good idea in a dark club. The guy who looked like Matt Damon really didn’t once in the studio. Oh well. Those were the days.