Dead Sea & Jerusalem | Israel

The Dead Sea is the lowest point on earth, approximately 1400 feet below sea level. Though it is a mineral laden body of water, nothing can live in the water and it can not be ingested. In fact I had a paper cut that was ON FIRE as soon as I stepped in the water! And don't you dare drink it --- it tastes like a margarita gone bad. 

I had been dying to go to the Dead Sea since seeing all my friend’s pictures when they traveled back in the day with Birthright Israel. You know the pictures I’m talking about -where everyone is in a swimsuit and covered with mud from head to toe? Well, those were all the inspiration I needed to visit on my family's recent trip to the Holy Land.

Most notable was not the fact that anyone can float in the Dead Sea water without really trying, or that if the water touches a a single open pore you cringe or perhaps even cry.... for days. It was actually the melting pot of visitors from the Hasidic Jews, Americans and Palestines all floating and enjoying the spa - like qualities of the Dead Sea. My personal favorite, however, was the Muslim women in head to toe, black swimsuits smoking the sheesha. 

If you haven’t been, you should plan your trip today. The trek across the desert where you pass the last Bedouin settlements is in itself worth it. That is, of course, after the obligatory trip to Jerusalem and the Wailing Wall. It was a spiritual experience to make a wish on a wall that was built thousands of years ago. 

 Man - made greenspace...

  Alas, {salty} desert oasis.

 That's mud!

Jordan is across the way in the horizon. 

 She's gotta be HOT!

The sheesha is there on the table to the left. Notice I'm on the only obnoxious tourist attempting a picture of it! This would never go down on an American beach!

 On to the Wailing Wall...

Israel has money! They give these away for keeps to all male visitors!

Dubrovnik | Croatia

When my husband, Jorge, and I celebrated our one year anniversary in Maine a couple months ago, I thought I had seen the only storybook coastline in the world. I’m talking about the one with rocky beaches and islands accessible only by travel via boat. Well, I was wrong! 

On a recent family trip to the Holy Land, we stumbled upon the Dalmatian coastal oasis of Dubrovnik, just a two hour ferry ride from Venice. It is Europe’s newest, hottest vacation town. READ: Beware! Lots of tourists. 

Beautiful cliff side resorts with access to the Adriatic Sea only by boat or ladder; crystal clear water and medieval architecture were just the beginning. Since we had just one day, we are already planning our next trip so we can prance around the wooded islands and climb into the crystal clear waters via ladder. Oh... and of course dose ourselves in local grown lavender while drinking brandy.

Ravenna | Italy

A few snaps from Ravenna, Italy. A charming little port town on the Mediterranean where everyone rides bikes and uses "Mamma mia!," the way we use OMG. I'm serious!

Total bike town. 

 During the unexpected rain, we dipped inside the nearest cafe for an obligatory doppio...

 ... and of course, a sweet treat!

 It rained but Italians still get their business done! Check out the chick on the bike!

 The largest sailboat I have personally ever seen. 

Venice | Italy

Though I had been to Venice before, I had forgotten the magic I originally felt when pulling up to the city limits by water taxi on the Grand Canal. I equate that feeling to the first time I went to Disneyland when I was eight; total awe, enamored by the grandeur of the characters and fixtures. 

Venice, despite it’s hordes of tourists, is certainly one of the most romantic cities I’ve ever visited. The absence of vehicles and abundance of shoe stores is all the reason you need to visit. It is the place of prosciutto pizza lunch, washed down by grappa or limoncello, followed by creamy homemade gelato. Shopping for genuine leather products and culinary treats on every corner?! Total heaven if you ask me! 


Venice capped off a 12 day tour of the Holy Land with my family; the first family vacation I've been on since our camping days of the early 90's. More to come!

Vintage Sounds | Houston, TX

Late last month, I traveled to Houston for the Nichols family portrait shoot. While there, I was able to visit some old friends who work in the energy industry by day and run a vintage shop, specializing in phonographs, by night (and weekend). Bob and his wife Kathy, owners of Vintage Sounds, have a most serendipitous story. 


Collecting phonographs and other musical fancies from the turn of the century started while Bob was on a business trip to Waco, Texas about 30 years ago. At a routine gas station stop in the middle of the Texas plain (Heidenheimer, TX, to be exact), Bob glanced out into the horizon and spotted a junk shop. As he approached the counter of the shop, an older fellow in coveralls emerged and greeted Bob with “I have exactly what you need.” Wondering what in the world that could be, Bob’s ears perked up. The man presented Bob with a box filled with a bunch of rusty wires describing it as “...an original Edison phonograph,” and it was experimental. According to Bob, "It showed characteristics of having been a prototype for the second model of the Edison 'Gem' phonograph that came out about 1901."


At the time, Bob purchased the phonograph for $19.60 which is all he had in cash and promised to send the junk shop owner the balance on his $25.00 tab. He packed it into his car and went on his merry way back to his family in the Houston area. Thirty years later, Bob and Kathy run Vintage Sounds which is still in operation Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at Market Place Antiques. You can learn more by visiting their Facebook business page.

Chicago Family Portraits | The Alanis Family

While in Chicago last week, I shot the Alanis Family in Lincoln Park. We originally wanted to shoot at Shed Aquarium, though there was a Manchester United game nearby which made it impossible to find parking on a hot, summer day. So we opted for a quiet corner of Oz Park, nestled between the tree lined, fitted brownstone quadrants of Lincoln Park. 


Rosa and I met in New York while she was studying for her PhD at NYU. Like the rest of us, she fell in love with Jaime, also a PhD student, who lived in Chicago. Naturally, Rosa relocated and bought some new snow boots, since this California girl was about to experience "... the coldest winter of my life!," as Rosa puts it. It wasn't long before Rosa and Jaime were married and now they have two beautiful boys, Antonio "Tonito", 2, and Emilio, 2 months. The Alanis' are a beautiful family with charismatic, electric energy.  Despite the Chicago heat we had a ton of fun and are already planning a winter shoot!