Reuse-A-Shoe

On the Today show early this morning they were discussing spring cleaning and giving tips to help get us organized and healthy. They mentioned that Nike has a Reuse A Shoe program that recycles worn out shoes that are too old to donate to charity. They will take any brand of tennis shoe and grind them up and use them to make all sorts of sports equipment for kids including playground mulch and basketball courts. These are typically in areas where they would not have them otherwise and they are largely focusing on the New Orleans area. They have collected over 20 millions shoes and created 250 pieces of equipment.



You can read more about it here
http://www.innovateforabetterworld.net/community/features/reuse-a-shoe.html#
and at www.nike.com
You can send shoes to Nike Recycling Center c/o Reuse A-Shoe 26755 SW 95th Ave. Wilsonville, Or 97070 or call 800-344-6453 to find a pick up location near you.

I love when people/companies actually take the opportunity to create something from nothing that benefits so many. With as much as the shoes cost, they should.
We all have something that we don't need but may be of value to someone else in ways we can only imagine. All we have to do is to take the time and get it to them. Of course for shoes that are in decent shape, we can always drop them off at amvets or goodwill. There are three drop offs within 2 miles of my home that I know of. I try to keep a bag or a box in the basement and when I find something we don't need anymore, I will toss it in there instead of the trash. When the bag is full, we just drop it off.
I think often times we don't understand the importance of a simple helping hand when we do not see the direct effect it can have. Also we need to remember; a gift is a gift because someone receives it. It isn't a true gift if we require to be acknowledged or patted on the back because we did the right thing. I love anonymous gifts just for that reason.

Meet Annie

I had the pleasure of meeting Annie, her big sister Maggie and mom and dad on a very wintery Saturday morning. While the snow covered the ground outside and the icicles clung strong to every nook and cranny possible, we stayed warm and cozy inside getting to know each other. Annie made things pretty easy for us by spending part of our time awake and bright eyed and then snuggling to sleep for the rest. Maggie shared with me her very pink kitchen and all the things she likes to do. To me these images are magical because it's such a fleeting stage. Newborns are my absolute favorite sessions.

Boys

Frogs and snails and puppy dog tails - that's what little boys are made of ; and cars and trucks, and basketball and math homework, and sticky hands and smelly feet, and ornery grins, and lot and lots of hugs, and so on. I'm so happy to be the mom of two boys. They take up most of my time and I wouldn't have it any other way. I love you Drew and Roman.

Ava

Three year olds amaze me in all they have to talk about. They are typically so full of imagination and story telling with a lot of detail that it's hard to believe their age. Ava had many songs, stories, and dance moves to share during our session. Most of them also included many opportunities to observe herself in the mirror doing so - she kept us very entertained and busy. Mom, Dad, and I even had to pretend to be dragons and chase each other through the kitchen until she locked us all in cages. With those big brown eyes, how could we refuse? Her mommy is also a beauty. I hope you like your photos Ava. Look - Evie is smiling too!

Fraser

Baby Fraser came into the world around Thanksgiving and just turned a month old when we got together for our session. The snow the weekend before made us hold off for another week, but it turned out great because Fraser was awake for most of the session. I love it when we get these big beautiful eyes so full of personality. He also has quite a head of hair.
Beth and I did a maternity session awhile back which turned out beautifully. It's a great feeling to be able to give someone something of so much personal value. With newborns it's amazing, because each week they are changing and you just cannot go back.
Beth and Ian have another son as well and they are very sweet parents. Ian was very concerned about Fraser during the session and making sure he was comfortable and warm. He had the great idea of warming up towels in the dryer to lie on the baby inbetween shots. I'm going to use this little trick often. Thanks Ian.

Little Cousins

We had planned to get these three little ones together for this session, but baby Camden has been sick lately and couldn't be around her newborn cousin. Baby Hailey is 3 weeks old and luckily she opened her eyes for us, even if just to give us this look to let us know she wasn't happy that we removed her soft, warm clothing. She even took a little tinkle on Mom! But that is to be expected. Isn't she sweet?










Teagan is just about to turn 3 and I was warned about how much she did not like having her photo taken. True to form, she told me several times not to, and I obliged as much as I could. Luckily I was able to sneak a few here and there that I think really capture her personality. Baby Camdyn has been sick, but you wouldn't have known it with all of her smiles and kisses for her mom.











This is one of Teagan's new ballerina moves!