So 27 years ago today my poor mother endured a lot of pain (and hopefully joy) for me to come into this world. She and my dad also endured a lot of pain (and joy) for the next 18 years, but that’s a whole other story.

Today is my birthday. I feel 40 sometimes and yet 15 at other times. Age is irrelevant. I grew up quick and now here I am with three kiddos, and awesome hubby and a pretty good life. I don’t think I’d change anything at the present moment. Guess that means I”m doing okay then, right?

Ten years ago I made a “plan” of my life and what I wanted to do. My plan went through the window many years ago and I’m grateful that life didn’t go according to plan. I’m sure I would have messed things up along the way had it been my choosing.

I still don’t have a plan for the next five years. People are always saying that we should plan things out, but I live on the edge and like to think that in five years I’ll be doing something totally different than what I thought. Besides, I told God that I wanted to live according to His plan anyway. We’ll see what He has up his sleeve for Mrs. Jenica Lemmons. I hope I’m still doing photography and loving every minute of it like I do now.

But today I will celebrate life and the gift of it that was given to me.

Today I’ll probably be doing the same ol thing as I normally do. I’ll be researching lighting techniques and looking at inspirational websites and being a mom as well. No big plans, but that’s cool with me. I for sure WON’T be doing dishes or laundry on my day. Course that’s not far from the norm either. lol.

And because I can’t post a blog without showing pics… here’s one of me when I was a kid….

oh yeah buddy, I had a mullet. Aint it cuuuuuutee??

here’s me and the little button

Have a great day and eat lots of chocolate and drink lots of coffee!!

I met this gorgeous gal out in Woodland for her senior photos. She and I had a blast and she managed to survive the 30 degree weather. Thankfully it didn’t rain till we’d been shooting a little while. We’re going to do another mini session to get the photos that we missed. Sometimes you just can’t count on the weather around here. Oh well, I get to spend some more time with a beautiful model. It’ll be fun!!

Thanks Miss A and I hope you enjoy your preview!

ALOHA!

Announcing the contest for best image of 2008. I wanted to pick one from each session, but there were just so many that I had to narrow it down. I had an unbiased opinion (my hubby) who helped me select my images.

The winner will receive a framed 16X20 of the image. Also, for anyone who votes and books a session you will receive a free 16X20 of an image from your session. You must book your session before the contest ends, though to get the super cool dealy-O.

To vote, please make a comment below in the comment box for whatever number you are voting for. Please no fake email addresses and only one vote per person. My system can track these things, so please no cheaty cheaty or your vote won’t count.

Contest will end on January 10th, 2009 at midnight.

Have fun and get all your friends, family, coworkers and enemies involved. Okay, well maybe not enemies, but you get the idea 😉

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

Edited to add: Please post in the comment box right below here. Some people were commenting on another blog post.

Comments are moderated, so please don’t keep re-posting them.Your comments will appear within 24 hours.

I will only post one vote per person. Comments are moderated to prevent people from spamming my site.

Good luck!! (comment below)

I met this gorgeous gal out in Kalama for her senior photos. We got lucky with the weather and the sky was perfectly overcast (a photographer’s dream). We had fun hanging out on the alley ways of downtown Kalama. She was a dream to photograph. She’s absolutely gorgeous and her eyes are amazing!!!

I hope you enjoy your sneak peek!!

this one is my husband’s favorite. He wanted me to let everyone know that it was his idea to crop it like this. I think he did a pretty good job 🙂

I met this young man in Downtown Kalama for his Senior photos. He’s a Kelso High student (go Highlanders!!). We had a great time wondering around the ally ways and the different areas in downtown Kalama. I hadn’t had a session there before, so it was a lot of fun for me. I really enjoy when seniors choose new locations. It forces me to be creative and I end up glad I didn’t get stuck in a rut.

I had a lot of fun being creative with this session. Even my processing is a bit more edgy. I’m wanting to do more and more “urban” sessions like this.

He was quite the character and the last shot is for his friends at the pool. He’s a lifeguard (and a swimmer) so he wanted to have some goofy photos.

Thanks for letting me photograph you!! It was a blast!!

and finally, my awesome reflector holder/assistant/husband who helped me out with this session. He was a HUGE help. I’m trying to convince him to help me with every session, but he’s not so sure….