Some hockey in Kent

:: Click here to view photos ::

I was lucky enough to be invited to a hockey game by a friend who managed to score some tickets from her employer with some nice seats at the arena in Kent, WA.

As a train rider, the Kent station has an old, abandoned grain shack that has some interesting effects as it's remained neglected. Photography stuff, like peeling paint, moss, and even grass. It has fascinated me every time we've stopped there, I took advantage of the location to arrive early to fire off some shots of this location as well as some of the people at the nearby mall.

Sometimes, a camera can be a funny thing. I've learned it can have a tendency to draw people to you unnecessarily. This was the case for me on this day, and unfortunate because I really wanted to be invisible in order to get the most candid shots possible. I let the 30-45 minute conversation I had with a stranger, cause me to retreat from the location earlier than I had wished. I am definitely going to look at strategies to keep me shooting so I can avoid these situations in the future.

The game was great and I really enjoyed it. The people-watching was at a premium, so I was in my glory being there! I will need to attend some more sporting events with the family; it's an experience I think we need to have from time to time when we live in such a closed-in little world as we do.

While in celebration from the goals, I was standing up and accidentally let my camera lens hit the head of an fan below and in front of me, that was sitting down. I was so embarrassed! I learned my lesson there and will make sure to hang onto it at all times!

Today's the first day of Spring and I couldn't be happier for it's arrival! I hope we have an awesome season and Summer as well!

Until next time...

Trying to get back into the swing of things...

For my love of photography, I am going to school at night. I'm currently taking a composition and light class and had the first class this past week. I really enjoyed it! I'm hoping it will get me back in the field out shooting because I've been in somewhat of a block. Just not sure what to take shots of, etc.

The creative ideas started flowing with just attending one class, so that's a great start, right?

One of the things I'm going to start doing first off, is shooting in black and white. In my usual post shoot process, I convert photos I think would look good to black and white within Photoshop. That's going to be a thing of the past now. It should be fun to experiment with since I really like the look of black and white exposure.

As luck would have it though, this morning I was all amped to go shooting and had some good ideas in mind for capturing but the closer I got to my destination, the more and more it was raining. I attempted several times to find another location where I could find cover or where it wasn't raining and it was impossible.

... so I retreated back home. What a disappointing day! I will get out again though. I am certain of that!

Spring is coming, thankfully and I can't wait for the weather to warm up and start cooperating more. Hope you have been enjoying 2011 so far! (c;

It's been way too long, I know!

« Click to view all the photos »

I've taken a sabbatical from blogging... I guess I needed a break. Part of it is because I'm not sure if anyone is even looking at this. If you are, I'm sorry for not keeping it updated with the latest! (c;

At any rate, we're still kicking and it's hard to believe it's almost March already. Yikes! The one positive thing about this is Spring will soon be here, because I certainly don't want my time flying by!

This past weekend, we went out to "the sticks" as they say. At the beginning of 2011, we bought ourselves a present: A permit to some great wilderness near Mount Rainier. We hadn't bought one since 2009 and realized we missed not being able to get out there. We are definitely taking advantage of it every possible way we can now.

As luck had it, the weather took a turn for the better. Albeit cold, it was clear and sunny so we loaded up the three dogs, bundled up and made our way out.

I'll try to get better about my motivation to blog more frequently. In the meantime, here's a quick list of what's occurred between the August post to current:

• We've become dog owners... we went from a family of 3 to a family of 5! Two puppies and an old dog keep us company and our lives crazy.
• Our jobs moved to Seattle and we've been managing the commute fine so far.
• Brett's moved to a different role at work and is enjoying the challenge.
• Connor's 12 now and almost as tall as me. He continues to enjoy playing video games with his friends, online.
• I've continued my quest with photography at every opportunity possible. I would really like to have MORE opportunities to photograph people other than my immediate family members. Contact me if you're interested! (c;

P.S. Happy Birthday wishes to Patty, who's 65 today! We love you! (c;

The Oregon Coast: Revisited...

:: View photos ::

Oh, and don't miss this video!

As a result of Spring Break's poor weather during our trip to the Oregon coast, we thought we'd try it again in August. Regrettably, the weather was still not on our side. It was cold and mostly cloudy.

So, we made the most of it.

This trip was Connor's first time to bring a friend along. Their constant giggling was great to hear! When we weren't at the beach, we were in town going through the tourist attractions. When we were back at camp, we enjoyed the fire and the kids playing tag and other games with the other camping kids.

The boys had their own tent to stay in with the dog, Jake. They were sandy and hairy by the end of the trip but we all had fun nonetheless. We will likely not return to Oregon for a very long time. We've been burned too many times with the weather and this was our last try. Next Spring we'll go to Arizona and who knows where 2011's summer will take us — I invite the opportunity for something new!

Birthdays this month

Happy Birthday, Jerry! -- August 21

Happy Birthday, Mom! -- August 28

♥♥ I love you! ♥♥

The launch of www.jodimorganphotos.com...

:: Visit the site ::

Well, I finally did it. Created my own website to showcase my work as an individual. Take a moment to view it, and if you're so inclined, provide your critique to help me improve on it. Thanks in advance!

An update on what we've been up to...

:: View the slideshow ::

It's been a while since I've posted to the blog and with that, I've become a little rusty... I actually managed to forget some of my steps — hopefully, you can't tell the difference!

A little announcement

Before I dive in to our Spring break adventure, I thought I should announce how proud we are that Connor will be taking his science fair project to district! What this means is the school was impressed enough with his presentation of his project that they have moved him to compete in the district. We'll find out the results of this later this month. His project was on which fruits produce the most volts of electricity and tested it against a grapefruit, lemon, lime and orange.

Our Spring break

Like the past couple of years, we headed to the Oregon coast. Despite the lousy weather, we did manage to get out on a few hikes. The days we weren't able to really get out, we were lucky enough to have internet access, which saved us. We had sleet, rain, hail and lots of wind... to the degree that we did lose internet access for a day.

Heceta Head Lighthouse

We dedicated one day to a picturesque drive to Heceta, and visited their lighthouse. It was a gorgeous day and it's funny how easily our spirits were lifted by just some sunshine being out. Complete mood change, it was great! The ocean waters was like watching fireworks. Waves crashing in, making these huge displays of spray in the air; thick sea foam barreled into the shallower areas... looked just a consistency of thick, soapy lather. We hung out for quite a while just watching it. Mesmerizing!

:: Some video segments ::

I think next year's Spring break will take us to a warmer, sunnier place. We'll plan to visit the Oregon coast in the summertime instead, so we'll have more cooperative weather.

We hope you've been enjoying your Spring! (c:

Happy Birthday to Patty!

Patty's birthday is here (February 21) and so I've gone through our photo archives and made this short video I hope you enjoy.

Happy Birthday, Mom (and Grandma) — We love you!
Brett, Jodi & Connor

♥♥ Happy Valentine's Day ♥♥

:: ♥♥ View the short slideshow ♥♥ ::

It's a long weekend for us with President's Day being on Monday, so we've decided to remain home given the lousy weather we're experiencing. But today, it's Valentine's Day and my sweetheart bought me a lovely flower arrangement that is an art piece in of itself. While these pictures don't do it justice, I can't help but share them with you! I am such a lucky girl to be married to such a wonderful person and ♥♥ I love him ♥♥ dearly! To many more years together and for you as well!

The cute files... from the Morgan Chronicles archive

Over holiday break with the time off I had, I ported all of our old videos to DVD so I could digitize and tweak them. It was so fun for me to reflect back on the earlier years when Connor was little. Here's one I put together today. Brett and I had a hard time understanding what he was saying back then — it was so funny!

A ladylike affair...

:: View the slideshow ::

Today, I met up with some work friends at this great tea house called, The Secret Garden Tea Room & Gift Shop. It's set in a Victorian mansion in Sumner and it sort of felt fancy to be having tea in teacups and be in such a quaint place and setting.

Note: Don't be too judgmental about their poor website. I did at first, but realize they're not in the website business, and they focus on what they're good at—Tea and good food!

I had never been to a place like this before. As you could imagine, they have every kind of tea you can think of. Great sandwiches and soups and salads too. For lunch, I had a vegetarian quiche with Gorgonzola cheese (a recent favorite of mine) and Orzo Pea Salad with a delicious scone, accompanied by caramel toffee tea. It was all delicious. They have a "Frosty Cranberry Salad," which is slightly frozen and is a sweet and tart concoction some of the ladies who ordered it seemed to enjoy. I might have to try it the next time I go. (c:

Dessert (which I didn't need but couldn't resist). I had their Chocolate Tea Cup. As the name implies it's a chocolate teacup filled with coffee mousse—it was decadent.

Good conversation and good company; it was nice to regroup to catch up. The venue was spot-on and I will definitely have to revisit it again!