post by leslie

What a week.I have been thrown off and derailed this week, and I am off my game for sure. Two days with a child home (one for a holiday I don't really understand and one for a snow day that I'm not really sure was needed), one day busting my ass on work every minute of the day, another day at a corporate shoot downtown followed by more portraits in the studio... And then today.I had this vision of sitting at my desk all morning catching up on work and email and all the things that I am behind on.But.But instead I crawled out of bed and worked out in the basement as a bit of payback for my delicious, but not so healthy dinner last night. Then I got the boys out the door and was about to sit down and work. And then looked at my dog, and realized this poor girl hadn't had a walk since Sunday and it was sunny out and let's just go do that right quick.And then my phone started ringing off the hook (hello old friends! hello new clients! hello telemarketers!) and I needed to deal with a shipping issue with amazon and THIS IS HOW DAYS DISAPPEAR. Is this too much information? Sorry. My whole week seems to have gotten away from me.But.Right now, I'm heading out the door to pick up a friend from college at the airport, who I get to spend the afternoon with. I am so excited and it will be lovely, but for the love of god, will someone please teach me how to forget about all the work that is waiting for me at my computer? Because I really need this day to reset.Here's hoping next week is more productive. And here's hoping Minneapolis stops cancelling school for weather.

post by leslie

Hello, and thank you for your patience between postings! I had a commercial shoot that took up most of my time last week and yesterday, and only today did I feel like I could take a moment to catch you up on my world.First off, I woke up this morning with a horrendous headache. I've had a few of these lately, but it's not too surprising as my sinuses are deeply affected by weather change, and things are just about to get a whole lot colder in Minnesota (or back to normal, I suppose). Regardless, they can be immobilizing.Anyway, I woke up with this blinding headache that had me nauseous and craving the dark and quiet. The boys left for work/school and I stayed in bed a bit longer with my Magda who always seems to know when I'm in a bad place. She quietly snuggled with me as I attempted to recuperate and prepare for a day in front of the computer, and she was patient when I picked up the camera (good girl).I thought she would make perfect blog fodder as I haven't featured her much lately. You can see the whitening of her face due to age, but you should also know that the white on top of her nose is due to the yogurt containers she gets the final clean on each morning after breakfast. We've started calling her Chobani as a nickname due to the permanence of these speckles on her nose. Isn't dog ownership just about the best? Obviously, I think so.For your internet shares of the day:+ Beautiful murmurations of birds.+ Something sad. Hug those you love.+ I love, love, love these portraits. 

post by leslie

This sweet thing turned six this weekend. Can you even believe it? I sure can't. While she's way more mellow than in those early years, we are still so fortunate that she's healthy. After having Memphis fall ill at this same age and die only three years later, we are knocking on wood like crazy that Magda's health continues.We celebrated her big day with donuts and a new tug-of-war toy, but I think she liked Mother Nature's gift of fresh snow even better. Here are a few images I snapped of her playing on Saturday afternoon. For your internet shares of the day:+ I love notes from small kids.+ Have you forgotten how to read? I fear I have since I now listen to all of my books. I just don't think I'll have the time or concentration until Ezra is a little older. I do hope it comes back to me though.+ Fantastic winter project.

Post by leslie

Did you guys know that today is National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day? And since it is, I want to talk about my own rescue dog up there, Magda. (That photo is from the first month we brought our girl home.)Before this girl, I've always ended up with rescue/shelter dogs. Not really out of conscious choice, but that's just what kept happening. Magda was my fifth dog, and she was a rescue, and I mean she was a R.E.S.C.U.E.We were the fifth family to adopt her, and later I spoke with her foster mom who told me she was just waiting for the call from us to return Magda as well. Why, you ask? Well, Magda was hyper. She barked. She jumped. She was 4 mos. old, and she was strong, and she needed training badly. And she woke us up at 5 am each day by small puppy bites to the face.Instead of giving up on her (which was tempting that first month, let me tell you), we buckled down and worked hard on teaching her to be a good dog. We walked her multiple times a day and socialized her like crazy. We taught her to sit and stay. We taught her to slow down a little with her food. We taught her to approach children slowly (for her).Now, don't get me wrong. She's still a little nuts (especially when company comes over). But outside of that, she's a wonderful dog. She is so patient with Ezra, she's a great walker, and she's an amazing snuggler. She sleeps in like a champ (yay! finally!) and, frankly, she's just sort of hilarious. And I'm so glad we took the time she needed to welcome her to our family. It was 100 percent worth all the work.But, in case you have a very busy life with kids and cats and whatever, there is a rescue dog out there for you. One that might not be as much work as Magda. Maybe you'll end up with a Merlin (the best dog on the planet right out of the gate). But I will tell you that putting that much work into a pup and ending up with a great dog is amazingly satisfying.And that's why today I'm celebrating National Adopt a Shelter Pet Day, and it's why I'm so proud to tell you about this personal project I've been working on. I'm calling it Adopt A Stray In May.For the entire month of May, I'll be blogging only about one thing: dogs that are being fostered and who need to be adopted. I'll be showing you portraits that I've been taking of these dogs (!!!) and sharing their stories and what kind of homes they need. And I'll be sharing the contact info in case for when your heart is melted and you decide you need one of these animals in your family.Some of these dogs have been living on the streets of Puerto Rico. Some have been shot at and still have bullet fragments in their skin. Some are missing ears and have multiple scars from their time as a "bait dog". Some are just sweet dogs who were surrendered for no real reason and who are so funny and sweet. And some are blind or deaf or both. Many are simply black dogs, which are the hardest to adopt (don't get me started). I guarantee there will be several that would be a great match for you. The hardest part of this project so far is not bringing several of them home to my own family!So please come back to this place every day this month and check out the dog I have listed. I promise, it will be a lot of fun. And please share this info with anyone you can think of who might be thinking of welcoming an animal into their home. The more of these dogs that get adopted, the happier I'll be. Cheers.

post by leslie

Lately, I've been working on a dog project that I'll release in the month of May (don't worry, you'll hear all about it soon enough!), and I needed to photograph some beautiful accessories by the amazing Lucy & Co -- a local company that makes gorgeous bandanas, collars, leashes, etc for the canine crowd.So I brought Magda to the studio this weekend and we snapped images for about an hour. I had other ideas in mind for the collar and leash combo, but I need to train the girl a bit more before that's going to happen! I'll try to work on it this week. In t he meantime, here are some shots of her in these adorable bandanas! Enjoy! For your internet shares of the day:+ Jamie and I are completely hooked on this netflix show. + No signatures necessary?+ Cats are liquid.

A few weeks ago, I brought Mags into the studio and Lucy and I worked with her for our holiday card.You guys, this might be one of my favorite things to do each year. SO. MUCH. FUN!Anyway, this top image was my favorite, but I'm including the outtakes below. Having a company mascot is a blast (for us, anyway!).I hope you all have a wonderful holiday this weekend. I'll be posting sporadically this next week before jumping back in full force after January first. Cheers!And for your internet shares of the day:+ The best letters to Santa.+ This list of favorites at Trader Joe's is A+. A few of these are my faves, and a few I need to try asap.+ Annie Leibovitz is teaching a master class and you can take it from home. Ply me with wine and I'll tell you my complicated feelings on this woman. But for now, I'm just pondering the class.

My girl turns five today! I can barely believe it.On the one hand, it feels like last week that she was tackling us in bed with her sharp teeth at 5 am demanding walks and playtime. On the other hand, since she has arrived we've remodeled two bathrooms, a basement, a kitchen and had a kid. So it seems like ages ago.She's still got her spunk, and she still tries to taste every single person's brain with her tongue-up-the-nose greeting, but she's become more of a snuggler and is far better to walk on a leash now. And we won't mention the white whiskers creeping in around her sweet face. For your internet shares of the day:+ On one hand, I don't think I could spend $145 on a pair of pants. On the other, man would these look sexy on.+ I love my analog daybooks. Here are some ideas for others of you who love to take notes with actual pen and paper.+ The surf from above.

I haven't had Magda on the blog in a bit, and she's been such a great coworker this week. I think she's enjoying the lack of construction happening in the kitchen (even though it's driving me bonkers -- we are on hold until early May when the counters are cut and installed). She's also enjoying the brief walks I've been able to take her on lately.I love her position on this chair. Kiss the hand, she says.For your internet share of the day, I love this list of the most underrated spots in each state. I grew up in Kansas and had never even heard of that one!