A Q&A

I am briefly interrupting this blogging hiatus to direct you HERE for a Q&A I took some time to be a part of.

See you all on Nov 1st :)

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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When I Will Be Back

Hi

Some exciting things are happening that I have to give my complete attention to. So I wanted to make sure instead of just playing ghost with no explanation-- that I would at least pop in here to say that I will be back in full swing on Nov. 1st with the "Do What You Love" series, and "Two and a Half Minutes with Tessa", and all of it. The whole damn thing. I will be back. I promise. The pile on the desk is too high with unrelated work, and it does me no good to let it get any higher.

I didn't want to just slap stuff up in here for the sake of content each week, so please hang tight. Everything is super great. Hopefully not too long from now I can share some good news. Who knows.

If you are brand new here, and are like... "Geez, this sucks! I just got here and this guy takes a break?!" Please enjoy the great links in my blogroll, or perhaps take a visit to the archives. There are still some readers that think Trish from "The Walk to 40 Weeks" is my wife, and they can't figure out why I don't post pictures of Leo :)

And I have to be sure to say that I absolutely appreciate the comments about the "Do What You Love" series so far. It has been so fun to make. I just finished another one yesterday and can't wait to share it when I get back. Thank you so much for the support and the feedback on all of it. I can't wait to branch out and share some stories from people outside of my life that I have been inspired by lately.

Since I won't be blogging before the holiday. Have a great Halloween everyone. We still have no idea what the kids are going to be. LB keeps handing us his old skeleton costume, and Tessa was going to go as "Hit-Girl" but the swords are too long for her to carry :)

If you don't follow me on Twitter. I will be poking around there still from time to time. Come say hello.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Us

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Do What You Love - episode two: Cole

**This is the second in a series of posts that I will be featuring here on Monday mornings that I made for the Gap, you can read HERE for more info about how this series came to be, and the finer details of what it's all about. In short: This is the first in a new series that will be featuring women who Do What They Love for a living. Women who are living their lives on their own terms, and finding success.

One of the reasons I fell in love so very quickly with Cole after just meeting her was how infectious her spirit was, she had this spring in her joints that kind of spun her around when she walked like kart wheels and sunshine-- it had a lot to do with the fact that she was so excited about her work life. She had been busting her butt at hair school, but she also had gotten herself an apprenticeship at the Salon she had set her sights on. She had that ability to picture her dreams, and then chase them down and make them real. She loves the people she works with, and the people she works for, and the way they handle their ongoing education for their stylists. She was just flat out excited about life, she loved becoming a stylist. When we first were married, we were both in that awkward position of not making any money. We were not earners. She was an apprentice, and I was just starting out trying to really pursue photography for the first time in my life, we decided we would just gut it out, neither one of us willing to throw it in and just find jobs that would pay the bills. I could never imagine asking her to quit, and she has always given me the same courtesy, even when we were at our lowest.

She lasted through her apprenticeship, and a maternity leave, and eventually earned her own chair, and has now steadily been building her clientele up ever since, and it's growing fast. We made it through the hard part together. In all of Cole's persistence to get to this point, I think she surprised herself when she got there. What I found interesting and have witnessed her go through was this incredible transformation and realization process she had in the beginning of her styling career. All of the sudden she was nervous to go to work, she was overwhelmed when she would return home. Not because of the hours, but because she had a bigger realization, I asked Cole to talk about those moments for this series: "There had been so much focus on developing the technical and creative skills involved, that I forgot about how heavy the emotional workload could be. Being a stylist you deal with so much emotion. I have no idea what's going on in my clients lives outside of the salon, if their having a good or bad day, if things are tough for them. What I do for them in the chair can make them feel better, or it could make them feel worse emotionally if they hate how they look... bottom line is that they come to me and they need to feel great about how they look when they leave. So every cut I made became this epic decision. The way I shape someones cut, or bring out their face, or give them some security, all of that responsibility hit me all at once, and it took some getting used to. Ultimately this emotional impact and connection to people is what had drawn me into wanting to become a stylist in the first place, so this was a great reminder at the end of a heavy technical process of what I love about my job. What makes it so meaningful to me. It's why I do what I do. It's scary sometimes. I love that."

**Pictured Above: Cropped skinny jeans (black wash) by: Gap


Legging jeans (classic wash) by: Gap

**All of the clothes seen in the still images and video were provided by the Gap for this series, you can check out the entire 1969 collection HERE

The Music was provided as always by the band: Rabbit! - Song: Life is Sweet - This song is available for purchase on their album Connect the Dots which you can grab HERE.

If you missed the first post in the series, please take a look HERE

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

P.S. The girl in the video that is getting her hair done by Cole, is our friend Maureen. She was our matchmaker. Maureen took it upon herself to spill the beans about all of my carrying on about how gorgeous and awesome I thought Cole was. I was at a point in my life where I had no intention of pursuing any kind of relationship and was going to keep all of my infatuation with Cole to myself. Luckily for me, for us, Maureen took Cole aside and sold me out. That little nudge is all it took. Thanks Maureen.

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Face Time

So as I was searching for inspiration around the web I stumbled across this film made by filmmaker and mountain guide Sebastien Montaz-Rosset called "Send It Sistah" If you have time today take this one in. So very worth it.

I gave this one a few views this morning, first marveling at the shot selection, and trying to imagine how insane it must have been to get some of these shots, but then I was sucked into the spirit of this piece of the camaraderie and bonds that these athletes have, and the fearlessness of their passion. If you are a sucker for high adventure and thrill seekers, you should visit Sebmontaz.com and as he says for the sites tagline "watch, be inspired."

The line that grabbed me the most in watching "Send it Sistah" was when one of the Highliners explains what she likes about Highlining, and she says: "It makes me face myself. It's always scary. I want to see how far I can go."

I guess this film came along right when I feel like I have been playing it too safe. I am definitely ready to face myself. To be afraid. It's been awhile.

The more I point my camera at things, the more I am itching to tell stories, I have absolutely been bitten here, and keep day dreaming about making bigger and better films. It is absolutely true when people say-- every single time you shoot something you get a little bit better. So that makes me want to shoot all the time. One of the things that I love about having this blog, is that I know I am going to look back on this period of my life when I first got into making video, and see the growth, and growing pains, and it is a huge motivator to push myself to get better at all of this. Each piece I post needs to be a little better than the next. So I guess in one small way this blog forces me to face myself in that way. It isn't exactly the big terrifying monster I am looking for, but it does keep me motivated.

That post I put out there about my dad making me feel better when I was such a worried stressed out terrified kid that I would faint from stomach aches and go to the ER at 8yrs old for "heart attacks." That same worried kid hasn't gone anywhere. It takes a ton of work to keep all of that fear, and stress, and worry from taking over my life, and I have always felt that I needed to do something extreme to flush it out for good. "It makes me face myself. It's always scary" The more times a person can face themselves in their life, the better I think they will feel. There was a point when I was so agoraphobic that I didn't leave my apartment for months, I would convince myself that it was because I was writing and didn't have time to stop. I didn't want to be distracted. I was writing to stay inside away from the world, not to write. I squashed all of that when I became a tour manager and ended up traveling pretty much non-stop for almost 4 years. I put myself in a situation that I couldn't sneak out of, and make excuses to stay inside. There aren't any days off to stay home. Every day you go. Eventually I stopped worrying about that fear of being in new places and dealing with unfamiliar people. It was a force out.

So yes! I am inspired this morning and thought I would share it here, and keep this post as a reminder of another stepping stone on the path that I am on. I feel my pace picking up, and I can tell that I am getting ready to go somewhere with all of this. I am not sure where yet. Right now I just need to worry about getting better. Always get better.

"I want to see how far I can go."

Have a great weekend!

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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My One Day on Earth

Well despite all of my hunting around and searching, I was not successful in finding a momma to be on 10.10.10. It just didn't pan out, and it was a long shot from the start. Happily I did see on the group page on One Day on Earth that there were several births that occurred, but it is unclear if they were documented and how. So we shall see. I hope they are able to include the story of birth in their film.

I decided that since I would not be able to contribute how I had hoped, that I would do something very simple, and just film Tessa experiencing a first of sorts. So Cole and I took her to this field of thick grass and just had her walk around in it. I shot it in 60fps and well... she looks like a drunk, stumbling around and laughing.

That Sunday was slow and simple, and in my little corner of the earth this is a little dose of the joy that occurs in it.

Song: Little Thoughts BY: Bloc Party

If you ended up filming anything for On Day On Earth drop me a link to your footage when you upload on the One Day On Earth page, I know they are busy archiving everything now. Did you film? Anyone? Even if you haven't it is really interesting to go and explore profiles and see what has been coming in.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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Two and a Half Minutes With Tessa- episode three

Some mornings we're all a little grouchy.

I love how quickly a baby gets vocally pissed and then gets over it within the same second. It's like every range of emotion is on a spin cycle and will make a round within a minute. Rage to a giggle.

I don't have much to say this morning. Last night was a weird night for me. We held a "roast" at the bar that I used to work at for my friend Andy who got himself a big promotion and is moving away to Chicago. So I was surrounded by a bunch of old friends I hadn't seen in a very long time. It was nice. I was made fun of about my blog. It was hilarious & mean. I was given the advice to: "please write more often about boning your wife!" I made fun of some people. Not like I should have. Just a little. There were pictures of us from 10 years ago on a screen. We're all so fat now! We laughed that unhinged wiggle in your seat kind of laugh. We drank. People took their shirts off. Now I am tired. Feel guilty. Slept in. Like I said, this is weird for me. I don't miss many mornings.

Tessa and I are on the same page today. We are both going through our emotional spin cycle. From rage to a giggle and all the in betweens.

Some mornings we're all a little grouchy.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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Do What You Love - episode one: Afton

*This is the first in a series of posts that I will be featuring here on Monday mornings that I made for the Gap, you can read HERE for more info about how this series came to be, and the finer details of what it's all about. In short: This is the first in a new series that will be featuring women who Do What They Love for a living. Women who are living their lives on their own terms, and finding success.

This is Afton. I have known Afton since she was 18 years old, working & living both here in Florida, and in Tokyo, Japan for a dance company. She was the first person that I had ever met that was living her dream. At that age I was mostly surrounded by friends "stuck" in temporary jobs in the service industry, or still fighting it out in school, or they were just starting to figure out how to get to the life they wanted. Some of the friends had already succumbed to the idea that dreams are unrealistic, and had given up on theirs, and encouraged others to do the same. So Afton was an early hero of mine, and a great example that you can manage your life, get your bills paid, and have a social circle while running down your dreams. Over the years I have watched her make her living by doing exactly what she loves, first as an accomplished ballet dancer, then next onto mastering yoga to a staggering degree of skill and precision. In order to protect the connection that she had made while practicing yoga as a student, she pushed forward to complete the training she needed to become a teacher/instructor of Bikram Yoga. In just five years time (because of how dedicated she is to her life) she went from student, to teacher, to just last year winning 3rd place in the National Yoga Competition held in Los Angeles. She is that person that sets her sites on a goal and then runs it down, without running other people over.

Through all of her training and dedication both as a student, a teacher, and an athlete in training, she also still holds down a job as a bartender. Balancing two completely opposite worlds that satisfy both her connections she has with her friends and being social, along with her connection to yoga. She speaks of life as walking a "tight rope" when I pressed her about not being able to ever let loose and have fun with friends or be indulgent in food and drink: "If you want to have a drink, have a drink. If you want to eat birthday cake, eat birthday cake, it's just a matter of flushing that stuff out of you so that it doesn't effect you as harshly. Everyday is a balancing act, your body is constantly changing, chemically, physically, you feel different, you think you look different, and it's about learning to walk that tight rope. Not falling off one side or the other, finding the balance to your own life, and that's what yoga does for you. It helps you learn how your own body works. So that you can keep the balance every day."

I love that the same person that I can sit down and have beers and a laugh with, is the same person that I can look to as a role model for being fit, both in the mind and body. She truly has found her balance, and walking around in her world for the time it took to make this piece was a joy. It isn't often that you really sit your friend down and get the bottom of what they are about, and what they are accomplishing every day. It was incredible to get the chance to really focus on my friend this way, realizing during this process just how influential she is to me. How important it is to me to be surrounded by people that live their life on their own terms, and that is what this entire project was about. When I approached the Gap with this idea for a web series, they very simply said, we love it, go for it, so in turn they have given me the chance to do what I love.

Please enjoy the video below, we ventured out early in the morning to the beach for a sunrise walk and some yoga, and on the way home, we stopped and enjoyed a coffee and a chocolate croissant-- a sunrise, some yoga, and chocolate, a little bit of both worlds that morning. A great example of the balance. Thank you Afton for being a part of this project.

1969 Legging Jeans (Faded Gray Wash) by: Gap

I think this answers the question of whether or not Gap's legging jeans are comfortable or not :) **All of the clothes seen in the images and video were provided by the Gap for this series, you can check out the entire 1969 collection HERE.

The Music was provided as always by the band: Rabbit! - Song: Fireflies & Mercury - This song is not yet available for purchase, but will be soon.

I should also say that if you are in the Central FL area, Afton teaches at a few places, not just here in Orlando, but as far as Merritt Island. Let me know, I'll get you some class info and you can get your butt kicked by Afton in a class. I am actually going to take a class after talking to her so much about it. She is an amazing athlete right? Why isn't this an olympic sport?

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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A Week of Tests

This past week I was doing a ton of prepping to get ready to shoot the Do What You Love series for the Gap (which totally starts this coming Monday btw). So while I was cleaning up my desktop, I noticed a ton of test footage scattered all over it, and figured it would be good to share it here since I have been getting a little build up of "what are using" questions. And also because I did not raid Cole's iPhone for the usual phonetographer post this week, and I have to stop myself from writing about my parents for a couple days.

**Since this is so product heavy-- let me get this out of the way up front: The full disclosure part. Unfortunately NOBODY gave me any of these camera things, or paid me to talk about their camera things, and nobody from camera land got in touch and has influenced me in anyway to say wonderful things about any of these products or services. Truthfully I haven't used any of this stuff long enough to get really critical yet.

Also LB was a big huge help in getting me shoot ready, and so he is totally up in this blog today.

Some people have asked if I ditched the Nikon or not. The answer is no. I kept the D300 and all of my Nikon gear. I kind of put it out there that I wanted to sell it on twitter, and got some DM's about it, and I immediately started to sweat. I know it's dumb but I shot Cole's series on that camera, and it was the first big married people purchase we made. So I can't do it. I had to keep it. Which meant I had to wait a lot longer to be able to finally make the switch to Canon. I have been renting the 7D for months, which was awesome to have it for jobs, but sucked because it takes money away from jobs, but I didn't have a choice at the time. I used The Lens Depot for all the rentals: body, lens, cards, all of it, and they are amazing. Can't be beat. They have everything, killer customer service, I love them. LOVE. I highly recommend services like these. If you don't use The Lens Depot, use somebody-- for a pretty low cost you can ring out a high priced camera body, and test out some lenses you're on the fence about purchasing. Really get a feel for it, and by the time the week is up you will know if you have found a match, and can make a smart informed purchase. I feel like lenses are like wands in Harry Potter, their are just some lenses made for you. Everything clicks and you are in shooting paradise.

So the cats out of the bag, I did finally get the 7D, and below is a test I shot using the Canon EOS 7D mounted with the 24mm 1.4 I normally would not use the 24mm to do portraits like these, but in this case I had not shot with it yet, and wanted to get some time in with it. I do like a wide lens so I can be closer to the subject, but in this setup I would normally use a 50mm or 85mm.

Also...

I have not used lights since I shot Cole's series. The first few weeks of that series I was using reflectors, bouncing the sun onto Cole from the windows, and an off camera flash into an umbrella. I finally had the treat of some strobe lights from my friend Jason, who had a vintage set of studio lights that I borrowed. So since then, lights have been on my list of things I needed to purchase, and it is time for me to really figure out how to use them well. So here are the first cluster of shots I did at the house using a Speedotron 2 light set-up, and the 7D. I forgot how much I love shooting with light. I have a very long way to go before I truly understand how to manipulate the light how I want it, but I am excited to have a 2 light set-up to get things started in the learning dept. I'll keep saving that money and adding to this kit over time. I'll still have to rent if I get into a bigger job situation, but for now it is going to serve me well.

One of my biggest problems I have shooting video is that I have earthquake hands. It always looks like I am shooting B-roll for Saving Private Ryan, when I should be at my smoothest. Shake ruins moments. It just does. And I am shaky. That nervous childhood :) So even though it isn't practical to use a steadicam 100% of the time on everything... I knew I needed to smooth out some of the big scenes. So I made the commitment, and got the Merlin Steadicam, which is a small steadicam rig made for lightweight cameras. It takes hours/days to really fine tune these things and get them trimmed out so they are perfectly balanced. So this test below is terrible... it was simply the first time I put the camera on the unit, so I could see just how bad I was off. I had the 7D mounted with the always fabulous Tokina 11-16mm 2.8 all sitting on top of the Merlin Steadicam. To be really honest I mostly wanted to show you this specific test because Cole makes me laugh so much.


Music by: Noah & The Whale- "Five Years Time"

The Merlin takes tons of time to perfect and get right, and I am excited to get this thing dialed in and really looking good. The more I used it the more epic things got. I was really surprised at the difference in just a week. It really got squirrelly however at the beach with that offshore wind hitting it. A real fight to keep things from getting rocky. They sell an arm and a vest for this rig, but I really wanted to avoid all of that and have been really pleased with the results of keeping it in my hands. Plus it is a great workout :)

And finally,

like a total ding dong, I waited too long till the very end of swimming pool season, and I got Cole that Kodak Playsport camera. They are affordable, small, and well... they go underwater, and I needed to be able to shoot underwater for a job coming up. I didn't want to spend a ton of money on underwater housing for my 7D, and so I thought I would give this a try and see how it looked. I was really impressed. It is the same camera we have been using for the Two and a Half Minutes with Tessa series. I wish I had this thing all summer long. It shoots 1080P and in the right light conditions it makes stunning images. Of course you don't have a ton of control over this thing. It is a real point and shoot on the go camera, but I think it's great. Some drawbacks have been trouble seeing the screen in sunny conditions, and I feel like it doesn't shoot wide enough. So below is the quick water test I did with the camera.


Music by: Mark Mothersbaugh - "Ping Island/ Lightning Strike Rescue Op"

That's it for now. You should start seeing some of this stuff in action more around here. I have a pretty busy fall lined up. I'm really excited to start sharing the Do What You Love series next week. I started out with 4 profiles on women who have been inspiring to me in my daily life, and so it has been really awesome to get to spend time and shoot this stuff so far. Later down the road I will be doing some traveling and meeting up with some new faces that I have found to feature. This has been a life changer for me. This project. Of course getting to work with the Gap is awesome, but carrying out this idea has really put things into perspective for me. When you're around so many positive people the world looks different, not that talky preachy sunshine inspiration, just people that are so busy doing what they love, they don't have time to get dark about all the little things. The little things piling up is what stops hearts.

Have a great weekend everyone.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

P.S. Yes that is the movie Labyrinth on the TV in the Merlin test video. It is the first movie Tessa has ever watched. She usually gets bored with TV after 10 or 15 minutes, but was completely sucked into this. We decided to try a movie night, and let the kids eat in the living room. The lure of Bowie, she couldn't even eat her dinner, she was so drawn into this fantasy. She absolutely loved this movie. which of course made me happy. There might be a little D&D in her yet :)

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Squares

At an early age I would get stressed out. I was a stressed out kid. I was THAT kid, the one that had my mom and dad take me to the ER because I was sure that I was having a heart attack. I was so convincing and scary about it, that I left mom and dad with little choice, and I actually went to the hospital a handful of times. Each time, the Doctor would examine me, and then explain that I was having what is called a panic attack, and to calm the fuck down, I was eight years old, nothing is so bad.

Along with my "heart attacks" whenever stress would really start building in me, I had another reoccurring physical manifestation of that stress. I would wake in the middle of the night with these intensely painful stomach aches. Sharp stabbing pains in my lower abdomen, and the pain would come in waves. It would last a few hours. More than a few times it would hurt so bad, that I would faint on the toilet. So it wasn't rare for me to wake mom and dad up shouting "HELP me!" and moaning about how sick I am.

My dad was almost always the one that would get up in the middle of the night and come to my rescue. He would find me sitting there all wimpy and pathetic, and embarrassed. I mean no kid wants to be sitting all soaked in cold sweats with their pants down trying to poop with their dad standing there. But he always had a way of making me feel better, and that it was all going to be okay.

He assessed the situation, asked me a few questions about the pain, and how long have I been at it, and then he would kind of sum things up in his head, and say: "Hmm, it looks like you got yourself some square ones." and I'm like: "What do you mean, what does that mean? owww this hurts!" and he would say: "Yup. Square ones. Ya see, you have a round butt-hole... and now you have these square-farts that have formed and are trying to wiggle their way out of you, and that doesn't work. The corners are poking you." and you can't say "square farts" to a little kid without them laughing their face off trying to visualize that concept. He would even demonstrate visually, make a small hole with his one hand, and then make a fist with his other hand and try and push it through. "See it doesn't work. Square ones." So he was successful at making me laugh, and then he wisely had me make myself burp as loud as I could. Get that gas out the other way. So he would sit there while I belched and cried and eventually would kick him out so I could finally poop. And then I was all better. Back to bed. Laughing the next day telling my friends I had a bad case of the "square-farts" the night before.

I wonder now about kids going home to their parents and telling them: "Ryan, got the square-farts" the other night, they sound scary."

I realized a few weeks ago, that the reason I can pop up in the middle of the night completely clear-headed and ready to go whenever there is a problem, is because I am programmed to go into rescue mode. Just like my dad did for me. A cry or a thud in the middle of the night will sit me up in bed, and before my feet hit the floor I am wide awake. It just feels like, this is what I'm supposed to do. My dad did this. So I do this. I am the hero at night.

I love my dad for giving me this ability, and this memory. He was funny, comforting, calm, and practical. One day one of the kids will have a bad belly ache and they will learn about these pesky square ones that hurt their bellies.

My dad giving me the ability to be alert right out of a dead sleep has come in handy with The Littlest Buddy, especially since LB has SMS, and a big part of SMS is the inversion of the melatonin circadian rhythm. Which causes LB to be listless and sleepy at points during the day, and wired to be awake at certain points of the night. His body has his own clock.

So thank you dad. This is just one of the little things you did when I was growing up that helped shape me and make me who I am. I imagine he had no idea that when he was standing in a bathroom with his little stressed out cold sweaty son, that was crying from a stomach ache, that he would be teaching me how to take care of my kids someday.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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When Did I Stop Looking Up

While I was doing a lens test, taking this picture of Cole (she looks slightly grouchy because she had just got home from work, like literally just walked in the door, and I had been waiting all day for a subject that would stand still long enough to test out a new lens, and so I made her stand there and I shot like 50 pictures in a row of her... I know, I'm a terrible person)

Well, while I was doing this, Tessa started a new adorable thing.

Lately, whenever I shoot at the house, Tessa crawls between my legs and stands there. Sometimes she will just hold onto my leg, sometimes she will sit on my feet, but most of the time, she will just kind of crawl around and do a little of everything. She laughs wildly. It's amazing. She does it when I am at the sink, if I am cooking, if I stand in one place long enough, she is doing this. It's adorable and makes me feel loved. These bonds we all have in this house are ridiculous.

I used to do this with my mom and dad when I was a kid.



I haven't spoke with my parents in months now.

I have to figure out what keeps going wrong.

How does a little kid who wants to be glued to a parent, grow up and decide that it's easier to not speak to one another for months at a time?! How?

I'm coming off that liberating high of not having to deal with all the fighting and bad feelings that go down when my parents are in my life, and now the guilt is settling in and taking over from not talking to them. That's our pattern. I keep trading feeling bad about the fact we can't get along, with feeling guilty that we don't speak at all. So we try again, and it all starts over. All of it is bad. This should be easier. Of all the things in life that should be effortless shouldn't it be loving your kid?

Back to the drawing board.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

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Two and a Half Minutes With Tessa - episode two

After seeing week two, I think we need to fine tune the process here for this year long Tessa series. This week, we were all eating lunch together, and when Cole turned the camera on, we both got all mouse quiet watching Tessa. Too quiet and enamored with all of her adorableness trying to figure out which part of a watermelon tastes the best. We were so unnaturally quiet that we were trying to suppress laughs when she was clearly being silly. At one point we were both laughing with our hands over our mouths and Tessa was looking at us like we were so very odd. So I think from now on, we will just put the camera on a tripod, and turn it on for 2:30 and grab the scene as natural as possible. Laugh when she is funny, and talk to her like we normally would, or just talk to one another about whatever. So in the case of this episode, you should have heard me eating giant handfuls of salt & vinegar potato chips (YUM), and Cole and I blabbing about the footage I had shot that morning for the Do What You Love series.

I would be a terrible liar if I didn't tell you how very badly I want to hear Tessa talk, and how crazy excited I am to have a conversation with her. I try as hard as I can to keep that anxiousness pushed way down into my belly with all of my other fear and nervous energy. I just want to talk to her. I want her to ask us questions. A million questions in a row, about everything. I feel like she will be asking all kinds of stuff that LB has been thinking about and can't ask us, and in the process of her asking and getting answers-- he will benefit from this kid knowledge. All of you parents out there with a six year old, can you imagine your kid not asking a single question about anything for the last six years?

So yes. I am playing patience around the family and not putting any pressure on anyone to start yapping, but on the inside I am cheering like a lunatic. What was the last question your six year old asked you? Are they wondering about anything super heavy?
Should we be explaining things like why I have so much hair on my face, and why most of it is turning white, but only in certain spots and not others, and how that makes me look old and weird, but some people say "wise" and how some people put color on that hair to trick other people into thinking they are younger, but how I'm not going to because I think that makes you a liar.

Both children pull on my beard all the time. I think I need someone to explain to me what this beard is all about. My mother says people with beards are ashamed and hiding something, and they should not be trusted. Which is weird because for her being such a big super Christian all of her buddies in the bible had beards, so I wonder if she figured out what they were all hiding and ashamed of. They certainly weren't ashamed of all of that begatting!

Where did this post just go?

I'm shaving my beard off today, and it snuck into this post this morning...

All the Love in the Universe ~ Me

P.S. As a little follow up to the last Day of the Beach post, HERE is one really happy kid at the beach this past weekend. One happy kid.

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One More Summer Weekend

I miss my wife. Like in that ridiculous sick teenager way when two kids first fall in love, and they have to spend the weekend away from one another for the first time. Feels like the world is going to end. So many sappy texts. Isn't it insane how long teenagers kiss one another hello and goodbye for? Like every single time they see each other. I can't remember when a full on make out session with heavy groping was a standard greeting. Who has time for that? And what would the kids think? They giggle whenever we hug and give little kisses. Life has picked up the pace for us, and so it's the normal I'm busy, she's busy, thing. It just happens. It's the reason people try and make as much money as possible so they can stop working for large chunks of time and just be in love and enjoy one another. We're all trying to get back to the heavy makeout session.

a rare picture of us together, taken by our chicken farming, adventurer friend Katie.

On Monday I start a new project that is going to suck up all of my free time for the next six weeks. So this weekend is one of the last times we will be able to really spend any of that good old fashioned laying around time together. The weather is supposed to be top-notch so I think we will spend most of it in the water. Kind of the last hoorah of summer. The second that Cole suggested out loud that we go to the beach this weekend. The Littlest Buddy heard her say it, and so now he has been walking around saying "beh, beh, betch," for the last two days, and making the rumble and sign we made up for jet ski, and boat ride. The kid loves the betch. it's bonkers.


So we will head to the beach. One more time this year.

Which reminds me...

Fall is here, and I know that it isn't going to be long before I'm going to be sitting here in sunny Florida, reading all of the miserable blog posts about snow, and freezing, and ice, and wind, and people ready to sell their souls for a little piece of warm sunshine for a few seconds. So I am encouraging you to get outside this weekend while you still can. Make it happen. Think of your cold hands and feet in a month. I know for some of you it is already too late. Your winter arrived. I'm sorry. I really am. I guess I am just dealing with my Florida guilt early this year, getting it out of the way. Because it's about to get really gorgeous around here for awhile.

Hope you all have a great weekend. Judging from the Handmade post, Cole is going to be sitting at her worktable for the next 6 weeks making album covers. What an overwhelming response. All of this is incredible.

All the Love in the Universe ~ Us

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