Keller Roadtrips always include coffee stops.

So, question:  color or b/w???  I kinda like the chairs picture in b/w, and if those chairs were white or gray, I'd go b/w without ever looking back.  But those reds and oranges simply scream “Color!”.  And thus, I’m conflicted.

Freedom ...

on a big, empty beach ...













... with a little bit of fog thrown into the mixture for some added ambiance.

a little sand …

a little bit of hugging and kissing ...




some gorgeous, glowy, golden evening light ...



time to snooze and time to smile ...





a whole lot of squealing & giggling ...





an abundance of love and laughter in this family ...





Canada is lucky to be getting you all, eh? And California is going to miss you. And so am I. Who else at the gym is going to understand my Hans & Franz references?!?

Orange County Newborn, Child & Family Photographer

Swept Away & Scattered. Like the Mist.

“But now, listen to me, Jacob my servant,
Israel my chosen one.
The Lord who made you and helps you says:
Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant,
O dear Israel, my chosen one.
For I will pour out water to quench your thirst
and to irrigate your parched fields.
And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants,
and my blessing on your children.
They will thrive like watered grass,
like willows on a riverbank.
Some will proudly claim, ‘I belong to the Lord.’
Others will say, ‘I am a descendant of Jacob.’
Some will write the Lord’s name on their hands
and will take the name of Israel as their own.”

This is what the Lord says —Israel’s King and Redeemer, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies:
“I am the First and the Last;
there is no other God.
Who is like me?
Let him step forward and prove to you his power.
Let him do as I have done since ancient times
when I established a people and explained its future.
Do not tremble; do not be afraid.
Did I not proclaim my purposes for you long ago?
You are my witnesses—is there any other God?
No! There is no other Rock—not one!”



How foolish are those who manufacture idols.
These prized objects are really worthless.
The people who worship idols don’t know this,
so they are all put to shame.
Who but a fool would make his own god—
an idol that cannot help him one bit?
All who worship idols will be disgraced
along with all these craftsmen—mere humans—
who claim they can make a god.
They may all stand together,
but they will stand in terror and shame.

The blacksmith stands at his forge to make a sharp tool,
pounding and shaping it with all his might.
His work makes him hungry and weak.
It makes him thirsty and faint.
Then the wood-carver measures a block of wood
and draws a pattern on it.
He works with chisel and plane
and carves it into a human figure.
He gives it human beauty
and puts it in a little shrine.
He cuts down cedars;
he selects the cypress and the oak;
he plants the pine in the forest
to be nourished by the rain.
Then he uses part of the wood to make a fire.
With it he warms himself and bakes his bread.
Then—yes, it’s true—he takes the rest of it
and makes himself a god to worship!
He makes an idol
and bows down in front of it!
He burns part of the tree to roast his meat
and to keep himself warm.
He says, “Ah, that fire feels good.”
Then he takes what’s left
and makes his god: a carved idol!
He falls down in front of it,
worshiping and praying to it.
“Rescue me!” he says.
“You are my god!”

Such stupidity and ignorance!
Their eyes are closed, and they cannot see.
Their minds are shut, and they cannot think.
The person who made the idol never stops to reflect,
“Why, it’s just a block of wood!
I burned half of it for heat
and used it to bake my bread and roast my meat.
How can the rest of it be a god?
Should I bow down to worship a piece of wood?”
The poor, deluded fool feeds on ashes.
He trusts something that can’t help him at all.
Yet he cannot bring himself to ask,
“Is this idol that I’m holding in my hand a lie?”

“Pay attention, O Jacob,
for you are my servant, O Israel.
I, the Lord, made you,
and I will not forget you.
I have swept away your sins like a cloud.
I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist.
Oh, return to me,
for I have paid the price to set you free.”
Sing, O heavens, for the Lord has done this wondrous thing.
Shout for joy, O depths of the earth!
Break into song,
O mountains and forests and every tree!
For the Lord has redeemed Jacob
and is glorified in Israel.



This is what the Lord says—
your Redeemer and Creator:
“I am the Lord, who made all things.
I alone stretched out the heavens.
Who was with me
when I made the earth?
I expose the false prophets as liars
and make fools of fortune-tellers.
I cause the wise to give bad advice,
thus proving them to be fools.
But I carry out the predictions of my prophets!
By them I say to Jerusalem, ‘People will live here again,’
and to the towns of Judah, ‘You will be rebuilt;
I will restore all your ruins!’
When I speak to the rivers and say, ‘Dry up!’
they will be dry.
When I say of Cyrus, ‘He is my shepherd,’
he will certainly do as I say.
He will command, ‘Rebuild Jerusalem’;
he will say, ‘Restore the Temple.’”

Isaiah 44

We needed a little something to wear for summer.

So we got busy and got our “craft” on …

How we spent Father's Day ...

In a fog. Literally. In a deep, pea-soup FOG in the Santa Barbara Hills ...



Head on over to I Heart Faces for some of this week's best pictures of dads and boys!

Lifestyle Selfies!

I am the queen of arms-length self-portraits. Don’t believe me? Here’s but one example from a short 3-month period of time.

But I was recently given a sweet gift from dear friends: a wireless remote shutter. And I’m now trying to leave my long arms out of the equation [grin], and catch more natural, lifestyle images that include me with my family. My youngest son and I read together every day. The story on this particular day was especially cute and funny, and I wanted pictures of us cuddling and reading and giggling. So I plugged in my remote shutter and set up my camera on the arm of the couch (opposite us) – I loved the window light spilling onto my little guy. I set the exposure and the focus (tip: I then turned autofocus off in order to make sure the focus didn’t change, even if we moved). Here is the resulting photo:



And then I hopped into the picture, tucking my end of the remote out of sight. Please ignore my fuzzy sweats and slippers and the spotty couch – this is authentic lifestyle, people!



This picture didn’t pack the “punch” I wanted; my little guy kinda gets lost behind me. So I switched the camera to the couch arm closest to us and repeated my set-up steps. Despite the trickier, less bright light (thus a longer shutter speed, thus blurrier pictures), I L.O.V.E. the resulting images:



And then, for kicks, I moved the camera to the table in front of us (stacked up books to get the camera at the right height), and I handed the remote to my son and told him to take a picture whenever he wanted. It completely cracked me up that he would laugh and look directly AT the camera and then click! (btw, you can see the remote antenna in his hand).



Oooh, look! Now he’s getting all sophisticated on me and looking AWAY from the camera and snapping simultaneously. Fun times! Fun for me; fun for my son.



The further good news is…the remote shutter is a cheap little camera toy/tool/accessory (mine cost $20ish). And it’s a super fun way to help put yourself in the picture.

My Father, the Rock of My Salvation.

He shall cry unto Me,
"Thou [art] my Father,
my God,
and the rock of my salvation."
Psalm 89:26

Daddies are THE BEST.

They can help you get your loose teeth out.

And, if necessary, this particular Daddy will use dental floss, tweezers, a door, and a dog for an audience.

Happy Father’s Day, Big Dude!!  We all love you mucho!

Photo of the Day…

…because it totally made me laugh. 

This next one made me smile with sweet serenity,  mirroring Littlest Dude’s expression:And that’s how the younger dudes celebrated this summer vacation June-gloomy morning …

The Teen, of course, was still in bed.