Bali Part 2: Monkey Forest and Para Luhur Temple

One of my favorite parts about Bali was all of the colors. From the clothes to the food to the art to the flowers (especially the flowers), it’s a world full of color. We got to see breathtaking views of a temple on the cliffs of the ocean, Balinese painters creating gorgeous works of art, and monkeys so close you could touch them. Or feed them bananas. But they were feisty little guys… If you weren’t careful, they’d steal your glasses! And yes, a few more photos of food and orange juice. Because it was THAT good.

roomie - January 24, 2013 - 6:02 am

These photos are so beautiful Carissa!! :) I’m so proud of you.

Heidi Auringer - January 24, 2013 - 1:11 pm

SO pretty – love how you capture colors :)

Bali Part 1: Bambu Indah

A few photos from the first couple days while we stayed at the wonderful Bambu Indah Resort. Amazing foliage, best orange juice and curry I’ve ever tasted, rope swing over a natural pond, and friendly local smiles…

Rob - January 22, 2013 - 11:08 am

These are beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

Linda Benson - January 23, 2013 - 4:46 pm

Thanks for sharing Carissa! The pictures are incredible!

Friday Fun Facts

As I was writing today’s post, I realized this month marks two years of blogging since I started this blog. Crazy how time flies! So I started reading over all my previous Fun Fact posts… Ah yes, it’s been a very random and somewhat informative two years, according to these silly posts. And yet I have to admit it was pretty entertaining to read them all. Which lead me to believe that a “best of” post is in order! After going through all the Friday Fun Facts of the last two years, I picked the best fifteen (in my opinion) to summarize them all for you. (In other words, mostly thoughts about food, sleeping, and very random opinions.) Enjoy the 2011-2012 Best of Friday Fun Facts!

1. Cows give more milk when they listen to music. Which totally makes sense. I mean, I’m waaay more productive when I’ve got music going.

2. If you have a garage that can be opened by a key pad, you might want to take the sticker off of the inside of the key pad that tells anyone who reads it how to change the code. Just a thought.

3. Nap time should be a part of everyone’s work day. Not just when you’re in kindergarten. Can I get an Amen?

4. I’ve never understood why chefs wear white aprons. Cooking in white clothes is just begging to be spilled on, if you ask me.

5. How come wrapping a towel in your hair after the shower never looks as good as it does in the movies?

6. As a general rule, when using a public restroom, always check to make sure there’s toilet paper before you start doing your business…

7. Magic Erasers? ACTUALLY MAGIC. Seriously, those things have cleaned any mark or stain I’ve put them to. Miracle workers.

8. Sugar in the Raw is seriously the best sugar. Ever. For coffee, or tea, or baking, or a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down, etc. It’s the best.

9. Why does the grocery store even bother selling anything but broccoli florets in the freezer section? No one wants the stems.

10. There are few sounds in the world that would rank worse than the sound of an alarm clock. Very few.

11. On the outside, I laugh and shake my head at those radio commercials about laser hair removal. But on the inside, I think about how great it would be to NEVER SHAVE MY ARMPITS AGAIN.

12. The best way to spread Christmas cheer might be singing loud for all to hear, but the second best way is to absolutely deck your house out with Christmas lights.

13. What do bobby pins and pens have in common? There are always a ton of them lying around, yet somehow it’s impossible to find one when you actually need one.

14. If you have an electric toothbrush, forgetting your charger on a trip puts a real damper on the whole brushing your teeth thing.

15. Panda bears can eat up to 16 hours out of the day. I should be a panda bear in another life.

 And because every post is better with a picture, here’s my favorite photo from all the Fun Fact posts:

Happy weekend, folks :)

Anytime Recap: Park City Winter Family Photos

I FINALLY had the chance to sit down and go through the rest of the family sessions I did during the holidays! After this post, you can officially call me caught up on blogging family sessions :) And hopefully it will stay that way. No falling behind this year! (Cross your fingers for me. Ha.) Enjoy a little recap of the families that smiled for my camera in November and December!

The Fine Family:

These guys are pretty much my second family. My uncle Gary and aunt Cheri lived in Illinois while I was in college, and my cousin Alyssa went to the same university in Indiana, so I spent a LOT of time at their house, on weekend getaways and holiday breaks when I couldn’t go home. Made some pretty great memories :) And now Alyssa is living here in Park City, so we spend a lot of time together. Love her like a sister. I don’t want to forget about Alex, though. He’s pretty great, too ;) They came to Park City for Thanksgiving and we were able to squeeze in a quick family shoot!

The Bartz Family:

I went to the Bartz’s home on blustery day, and I had a great time with this family! We stayed warm for a bit and did puzzles and decorating inside before heading outside to play in the fresh snow.

The Christensen Family:

The Christensen’s win the award for coldest shoot! They came into town for the holidays, and on the day of their session the winds were freezing! We only shot for about half an hour because it was so chilly. But that didn’t keep them from smiling and laughing together.

The Eckert Family:

This family is sooo much fun!! You may recognize Jessica and Gavin from their amazing wedding this fall. When they called me for a family shoot, I knew it was going to be just as awesome. The weather was going crazy, but they just went with it and had a great time being together! My favorite is the funny hat photo ;)

The Kimble Family:

The Kimbles are always an awesome family to work with! Crew is one of the cutest kids ever, and now that his little brother Redford is here, it’s double the cuteness. Seriously, can you believe those blue eyes?! Love this fam :)

The Yager Family:

This is yet another family that I love dearly! Abi and McKayla are in my small group from church, and I have seriously enjoyed having them be a part of it. They are hilariously witty and yet so intelligent and excited to learn. Needless to say, we laugh a lot :) And Darren and Cindy are pretty great parents. They’re not so bad to be around either ;)

The Calkins Family:

The last time I saw Valerie and Jaden, they were waiting for adorable miss Penelope to arrive! But she’s here now, and while Valerie’s family was in town for Christmas, I got to meet her in person :) It wasn’t the warmest afternoon, but they were all smiles during the shoot! Then again, it’s impossible not to smile back at Penelope’s sweet face…

The Maddux Family:

Sharon wanted some photos of her boys while her oldest son was home from college, and I was happy to oblige! Devon, Cameron, and Grayson make quite the handsome trio if you ask me. And we had some gorgeous light! I definitely enjoyed hanging out with this family :)

All in all I’d say I got to work with some pretty wonderful families this winter!! :)

Roomie - January 17, 2013 - 6:35 am

Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful Carissa!! I love looking at your photos, you do such good work!! I’m proud of you. <3

Lauren - January 17, 2013 - 9:38 am

I used to babysit those Maddux boys a million years ago – so fun seeing them so grown up! Great pics. We need to book a session soon!!

jamie delaine - January 18, 2013 - 11:37 am

seriously! it takes something special to photograph families like you do. amazing coordination and what a neat collection of winter portraits.

Music Monday

Can we discuss just how cold it’s been the past week?? At least, here in Park City, it has been absolutely FREEZING. Literally. (Is it lame to talk about the weather in a blog post? I’m going to pretend it’s not.)

A few examples… It’s the kind of cold that will freeze your pipes in the middle of the night so you wake up to no water. (No hot shower or coffee? Yeah, not the best morning.) It’s the kind of cold that freezes Frisky’s paws when he goes outside so you have to run out, pick him up, and carry him back inside. (He literally just stops in the middle of the yard and lifts his paws in the air. It’s really sad…) It’s even the kind of cold that freezes your nose hairs when you breathe in. (Which is actually a really interesting and funny sensation, in my opinion.) Yep. Really cold.

In other news, I’ve been loving Joe Purdy lately! His music just makes me feel warm and toasty. (Or maybe that’s the slippers and oversized sweatshirt I’m wearing.) Either way, he’s been on my playlist as of late so I figured I’d share :) And this short but sweet little number is definitely one of my faves. So bundle up out there and enjoy a little Far Away Blues…

Happy Monday, whatever the weather is like in your neck of the woods!