Heather, the photographer

We recently went on a trip to Southern California for several reasons:

1. To test my driving stamina
2. To taste of salty water
3. To eat fish that doesn't come from the frozen section of Costco
4. To take as many pictures as a 2 gig, 1 gig, and 512 mb flash card can hold.
5. To spend time with family
6. To re-test my driving stamina

The trip was a ton of fun, We drove through the night in both directions in order to make the trip easier on Audrey, who slept comfortably in her car seat most the trip. The trip included Museums at Balboa Park, Mexico, The San Diego Zoo, a lot of time at the beach, and some great food.

Before the trip, Heather spent hours devising the perfect photo sessions for the family and for Audrey. There were several shopping trips to find the perfect set of clothes for everyone (who knew that some Khaki's are more pink than others), and a search for the perfect balloon.

Now, I was not at home during much of the balloon shopping, but I can imagine it. I would guestimate that approximately 38 phone calls were made to various craft, hobby, and party shops. I feel quite certain that If I searched our home carefully, I would find a small piece of paper with extremely small writing on it that would describe the information gathered from these 38 phone calls. Information like: Sizes of balloons offered, roundness of balloons offered, colors available, thickness of balloon wall, elasticity of balloon material, cost of balloons, availability of balloons, likelyhood that the company would trade balloons for a photo session, and a few other things that I wouldn't be able to decipher if my heart depended on it. You see, my wife is the consummate master of due diligence. I guarantee the balloon that was taken to California for one of the photo sessions was the best balloon available in all the world, and likely cost us nothing. In fact, we will probably get a check in the mail soon from the source of the balloon, and a letter thanking us for using their balloon. This is all a hypothesis, yet in my mind, it smacks of truth.

The end result in my opinion was typical of my wife. She created something great. We now have a picture that is hanging on the wall (well, it will be when I find the motivation to extract myself from the couch and do the actual hanging) that brings back great memories, and is a joy to behold. And so, without further ado, I present---"Audrey at the Beach."

Being the husband of a photographer has many benefits, but it comes with one major concern. Wall space. I thought we would be fine with our current proportion of wall space, until we discovered that Heather was pregnant with our second. Somewhere in the vicinity of December, 25 (yes, that is Christmas) we will have a second little girl that will be photographed from all angles, and in all sorts of attire. But do not fear, I have a plan- ceiling mounted pictures. I'll keep you informed of the successfulness of the plan and many other exciting adventures as adventures Beyond Saran Wrap continue.