Completely not intended, but somehow life just got in the way. What exactly have I been up to since mid-November?

I had quite a few Fall Sessions to finish up and get ready for my clients, this took up a lot of my time. I had a hard time finding time for myself last Fall, something I am hoping to correct in 2012, making sure there is time for me.

Then we headed south to Maryland and Delaware for Thanksgiving and a Birthday. We took some extra time at our favorite beach after Thanksgiving. Hubby and the kids had never been to the Beach in the off-season, so we spent three rather warm days strolling around one of our favorite places. As hard as it is to leave in the summertime, it was equally hard to leave in the Fall. There is something to be said for lots of parking spaces, lots of room on the boardwalk and beach and just being able to be. Of course we aren’t millionaires yet so we had to come home so Hubby and I could get back to work.

While we were there, the kids had their visit with Santa and we got in a wee bit of holiday shopping. All in all a perfect Fall getaway.

December rolled in and work was busy, the kids were busy and the holidays were upon us.  Our household fell ill with a stomach virus the week before Christmas and it really wasn’t pleasant at all.  By Christmas day Hubby and I were able to eat solid food again, so although we enjoyed Christmas, we would have enjoyed it more without the getting sick the week before thing.  And I should add how amazing kids are, they both seemed to bounce right back within 24 hours or so whereas Hubby and I took quite a bit longer.

January started off very quickly with a fabulous trip to California! Where I got to visit and photograph the amazing Brenda Ponnay aka. Secret Agent Josephine. We had beautiful weather, fresh citrus fruit and a wonderful, if fast visit. I saw more of California in the four and a half days I was gone from Ottawa than I have on any of my previous visits. Brenda took me to the desert (she calls it the Sticks), Palm Springs, Idllwyld (a very scary drive up a mountain) Orange County (Newport Beach and Laguna Beach).  If I could always photograph people in the gorgeous California sunshine I would be the happiest photographer in the world. We had fresh lemonade, homemade mexican food, sangria and a trip to the beach, some of my most favorite things all in one fast trip.  I slept all the way home on the airplane.

Not that I didn’t love being home, but I was only home for two and a half days when I was already back at the airport heading South again. Whew! I am exhausted just thinking about it. I attended Imaging USA a photography conference that was held in New Orleans this year.  I hate to admit it out loud, but New Orleans scared me just a little bit. I was thankful to meet up with another photographer traveling on her own from Rhode Island, Jen Osojnicki and together we took on New Orleans. Well, as much as two women a little nervous about being out after dark could take on New Orleans. We walked the French Quarter and the Garden District as well as experienced Bourbon Street and walking around with a 150 proof rum Daiquiri (that was me, not Jen as Jen doesn’t drink. There was enough alcohol in that drink for both of us so I took one for the team). I had a pretty amazing time and learned lots of new stuff at the conference.

Although I am happy to be home, I know that in just 35 days I will continue 2012, my year of travel to new places as I attend the Blissdom Conference 2012 in Nashville, Tennessee.  I will give you more details about that exciting experience in another post.

This was supposed to be Apple in 10. Ten shots of Apple painting in her book. Somewhere along the line I dropped a photo, so it is Apple in 9.

She has been asking for paint for so long, all the paints we had for J are done, dried up and gone away. I have never really enjoyed painting in the house. I always find it so messy and I already have so much to clean thanks to the kids. But after watching her paint like a pro, my thoughts have changed a bit.  J was so much more messy and she spent a long time painting everything. She used up all the paint in a matter of hours. So it will be off to the store for more water paints this week.

So here you have Apple in 9.

Despite the unseasonably warm temperatures, it is still Fall. And Fall usually means all things pumpkin around here. I realized yesterday that I hadn’t made some Pumpkin Bread yet, so I had to remedy the situation. With a little help from Apple, we were knee deep in Pumpkin Bread and thankfully she loves it too!

Here is a quick and easy recipe for Pumpkin Bread, best enjoyed with a hot coffee or tea and while enjoying a bit of Fall sunshine.

Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 tbsp baking powder

1 tsp ground cinamon

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/8 tsp ground ginger or cloves (I add both!!)

1 cup canned pumpkin

1/2 cup milk

2 eggs

1/3 cup shortening

1 cup all purpose flour

Directions:

1. Grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan, set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of your mixer) combine 1c. flour, brown sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. Once combined add pumpkin, mild, eggs and shortening. Beat with mixer on low speed until fully blended. Add the other 1 cup of flour; beat until blended.
3. Pour batter into pan. Bake in 350 degree oven for 60 – 65 minutes.  Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes, remove loaf from pan.
4. Enjoy with or without butter

Notes: I normally make a double batch at once in my Kitchen Aid mixer. If you don’t have a large mixer, I would do it one at a time. I usually buy the large can of pumpkin which makes two and a bit loaves, so if you have room in your freezer, and think it will actually last long enough in there, go for it!  Another note, if you like walnuts and raisins both can be added to this recipe and make for a delightful addition. I do use the walnuts once in a while, and raisins if I want Hubby to love it. But to send to school for a snack I keep all the nuts away and just send it with a little butter and an extra heaping of love.

There once was a boy, who lived in Montréal. When he was ten when his father passed away. When he was thirteen he got special permission to leave school and go to work. He started working in a Bank, he was the runner. He went from office to office delivering files and mail. Without this job there would have been no food to eat. This same boy, although thirteen, had no front teeth. He was hit by a car in an alley in Montréal and although money was given from insurance it was better used for food instead of teeth.

One of the biggest reasons I wanted to become a photographer at a young age of twelve is because there were very few photos of my parents,  and then again very few of myself and my eldest sister. You just didn’t spend money on photographs it was deemed frivolous, or for the elite. I chose early on to be the one to document our family. It was a gift I was given and I feel I have used well over the years.  My Dad as one photo of himself and his younger brother when they were quite little and a photograph of his parents when his Mother was pregnant with him and last but not least a photo of his whole family. That is all.

When one of my Dad’s sisters saw J this past July, she commented on how much he looked like my Dad when he was younger. She asked if I wasn’t shocked. I replied, how could I be, Dad has no photos of himself, do you?? She does apparently have photos of him, but has not offered them up.  Another Aunt-in-Law in going through photos found one of my Dad and realized that he should have it and brought it when they met up for a celebration this past summer.

This is my Dad.

This photo was taken in July of 1951, a few months before his thirteenth birthday. His last summer before he had to quit school and go to work.

And this is J. This past summer, August 2011 at the age of eight. He wouldn’t smile for me even though he knew I wanted to try to replicate the photo. I didn’t have a cat or a dog to sit on his lap, in fact we are at Saunders Farm enjoying summer and letting the kids just be kids.

He and my Dad came from the same mold. The same stock. They act alike, they think alike and when things get really crazy, they finish each others sentences.  There are no questions of who J takes after, it is not me or Hubby, it is his Grandfather, through and through.

I couldn’t be more proud that J will grow up to be just like Dad. I know he will and does have his own quirks and traits, but in truth, if he going to take after someone why not someone who has worked hard for 61 years. Someone who has been there for me, no questions asked for 41 years.  I couldn’t be more proud of both of them.

I’ve been syndicated!

Yesterday I wrote a post #NoMoreBullies. BlogHer picked it up in syndication so that we can spread the word about bullies. I feel very blessed that anyone even read my post. My voice at Life is Good …At the Beach has been quiet lately and I was just telling a friend of mine that I hadn’t posted in so long  I felt like I  needed to make it count. I needed to say something that was important to me. #NoMoreBullies is so important to me I lead off with it.  I have a few more related posts in the hopper, but for today, please head over an read yesterday’s post on the BlogHer network.

We need to take a stand and let everyone know that it is not ok to be bullied. It is not ok to be a bully. If my post can reach one person and get them to change, then I am a happy girl. If we all took a moment to talk to children about being bullies, or shared a story from our past about being bullied with others, it is possible to change how kids behave now. It is happening each and every day. I don’t want to have to teach my children how to rise above bullying  but I have to. At the same time my children know that I won’t tolerate bullying from them. They know that others can be hurtful but they also know it is not because of them, it is that other person who is hurting and using words or actions to express their hurt. The bullies are trying to bring you down to lift themselves up, they could be insecure, jealous, ignored. They could be bullied at home by other siblings or their parents. Whatever their reason for being a bully, we need to help it stop and let them know it will no longer be tolerated. Take the time, talk to your children, friends and other parents, spread the word. #NoMoreBullies

I received payment for this post and I can’t see a better way to pay it forward than to donate the money I was paid, along with a matching donation from my own company to Youth Net they are helping Majic 100 with the #NoMoreBullies campaign.

There has been a lot of talk about bullying lately and I feel like I need to chime in and share my experiences in hopes that it can help others. I have spent many years dealing with bullies for one reason or another and I am just so thankful that I have a wonderful loving family that made me realize how valuable I truly am so I didn’t give in to the depression or desperation that can sometimes come with the bullying.

All too often these days you hear stories of a child, yes a CHILD, who has taken their own life because they were bullied. They were hurt so badly by another person with words or actions that they no longer felt the need to be alive. I cannot even imagine what that child had gone through to come to that point. I don’t want to ever imagine that one of my children would ever get to that point. I know that I went through a lot but somehow I was able to rise above it and carry on. I do not want my children to have the same fate as me and I willingly point out bullies and how to not associate with them. I usually leave it up to Hubby to talk to the parents because I would just flip out if I had to discuss it with the parents, the actions of their children. Hubby has a great way with words (yet another reason I love him so much).

As a child I was, and still am, quite shy. I never wanted to rock the boat, I never wanted to be different. But, I was apparently. I was either too blonde or too tall, too chubby or too slim. My parents weren’t divorced or I didn’t get good grades. I loved funky shoes, some things never change, and I loved to be me. Apparently others didn’t quite like me so much and they made a point of taunting me, teasing me, calling me names and pushing me around. I was pretty good at ignoring them at school, but I also had an older, much more popular Sister at school with me so when the going got really tough, I sought her out.

When I look back now at the kids who made my life miserable, I know they were hurting even more than I was. Most of them bullied because they were jealous. I had something they didn’t. I had a loving family, I had a Mom at home after school, I had an older Sister (and two younger), I had food on the table and clothes that fit me. I could go on with my list, but the truth is there are too many reasons why kids do what they do.  And the fact is they need to be taught that it is not ok.

One of my biggest bullies in grade school (I haven’t even gotten to later in life) met up with me again one day, I was 18 he was 19 and dating a coworker of mine. I had laughed and told her how he used to taunt me in class and on the playground. He actually came to my work, embarrassed, hanging his head in shame and apologized to me with all his heart. That act alone made a huge difference in my life. He felt badly for his behavior as a 12 year old. He felt badly that he hurt me. He was going through his own issues at home and acting out at school, he was one of the youngest of many children and there was just not enough time for each of the kids so he acted out. I am not saying what he did was right back when he was 12 but what he did right was own up to it at a young age of 19. He had become the Man his parents had dreamt he would become. And for that I was very thankful.

Somehow, the bullying seemed to escape me in High School. I grew a backbone, and gained a few pounds and my Sister had lots of friends who were willing to look out for me. But, I watched several of my friends be bullied and did whatever I could to stop it or kept them from finding out about it. High School wasn’t too bad, and for that I am thankful.

Then came the working years. You think you are finished with bullies when you leave school. You think that people have grown up and gotten over their own insecurities or jealousy but no, bullying can happen in the work force and I experienced it several times. I have become good at letting things roll and sticking up for myself in these situations, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t go home and have a good cry and ask, “Why me?” over and over again. Again it came down to something about me that people didn’t like. I was again, too tall, too blonde, too fun whatever it was someone found a way to pick on me. I left two jobs because I was bullied so badly I was sick.  As in I went to the doctor for months trying to find out what was wrong with me, only to realize that I was internalizing the bullying and creating a stomach condition that was so painful I finally quit. And guess what, I got better. I looked back and realized that I was being bullied and should have taken it up with Human Resources, but I had to leave to realize what was really going on. I had to realize that it wasn’t ok for my coworker to push me around or call me names. It just wasn’t ok.

Stuntman Stu, a local radio host here in Ottawa has become very vocal about bullying and actually started the hashtag #NoMoreBullies on Twitter. Since his first tweet about it I have told him I would help in anyway I can to eliminate bullying. This post is one way I feel I can help. Our children need to know that it is not ok to be bullied. With all the social media out there and texts that fly around, bullying has taken on a whole new life one that has driven children to take their own lives. I won’t stand for it. No more children need to think they shouldn’t be alive because someone is bullying them. It is time to put a stop to it. And if the parents can’t teach their children not to bully then maybe we need to spread the word and hopefully reach those children before they hurt someone else.

Join Stu, Angie and Trish on their Majic100 Facebook page and support the #NoMoreBullies campaign, if only with your words or talking to your own children about it. We need to put an end to it before another precious life is lost.

With only 23 days left until Blissdom Canada, I am so excited to announce that I will be part of the Blissdom Canada Team this year!  I have had the honour of being asked to participate in Blissdom Canada as a Tribe Leader in the topic of Photography. Oh what an amazing opportunity, I am so excited to be a part of this team.

Now, I am sure you are all going to ask, what is a Tribe Leader?  Very, very good question.  This is a new feature this year, to have Tribe Leaders.  We will be there to welcome you to Blissdom Canada, whether it is your first time or you are a returning participant, there will surely be questions you have and I will be there to answer them as best that I can or direct you to the proper person. In addition to welcoming you to the conference, I will be available to field questions in my area expertise as a photographer.  I will be hosting a round table on Friday morning after the opening session, so come and find me, bring your photography questions or concerns and I will be happy to share with you.

Just in case we haven’t met in person before, here is a photo of me. Even if you don’t know anyone at the conference, you now know me. If you would like to send me photography questions ahead of time, feel free to contact me or send me a tweet. I look forward to meeting you in person in just 23 days!!

J and Apple headed back to school. J last week and Apple this week. So we had two first days to celebrate.

Unfortunately J wasn’t in the mood for photos, I think he was a bit nervous for first day. At his school they have to all cram into the gym and find their name on a list under the teachers name, not the best scenario to start the new year. He has to go not knowing who his teacher is or who is in his class. It can lead for a very disappointed first day. Thankfully, it all worked out and the new Principal is looking to changing things up for next year.  There has to be a better way to start the school year off.

Apple on the other hand knew who her teacher was going to be and went in to meet her last week. So she was ready and primed for the first day.

Off she went without a look back to Mom and Dad who were waiting by the fence.  Then she listened to her instructions from her teacher, with the look of… ok just tell me so I can go and play, thanks.

As Hubby said before we left for school yesterday, ‘this is it, all of our kids are at school and they will never again have the freedom they have had, they will always have to be at school or at work forever.’ Of course I did respond that they could become millionaires and take care of Mom and Dad in their old age and never have to work again… there is hope…

During a recent Twitter party, I got chatting with a new follower about a Chicken Wellington Recipe that is a family favorite. She was wondering how easy it was to make since she is always looking for new recipes to try.  I knew I was making it last night for my Mom’s 65th Birthday, so why not blog the recipe so others can enjoy as well.

The first time is always the hardest with any recipe, but honestly it really is super easy and impresses people makes you look like you slaved all day long. My Mom has been making this recipe for many years so I don’t know where it came from, some fabulous magazine no doubt.

Chicken Wellington

And I had to pick up this wine for supper, I had no idea what it tasted like, but somehow it called out to me from the shelves.  In the end it was quite nice, a Rosé from South Africa. Refreshing on a warm day.

Ingredients (makes 16 according to recipe, however I seem to only get 8 and some for the kids, I must use large Chicken breasts)

• 8 Boneless skinless Chicken Breasts
• 1/2c dry white wine
• 2tbsp vegetable oil
• 1/2 lb mushrooms, very finely chopped
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1/4 c butter
• salt and pepper
• 2 packages (two whole boxes) frozen puffed pastry
• Bearnaise Sauce

Directions:

1. Place chicken breasts in a large cake pan or jelly roll pan. Season with salt and pepper, pour white wine and oil to pan. Cover tightly with foil. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until chickent is firm to touch. Allow chicken to cool or at the very least rest in on a paper towel before wrapping for a few minutes.
2. While the chicken is cooking sauté chopped mushrooms and onion in butter  until soft, in a large skillet. Season with salt. Let cool for a few minutes.

3. Thaw frozen puff pastry. Roll out pastry into long rectangles (I get four rectangles per box) using flour if needed.
4. Place one piece of chicken on the rectangle of pastry, spoon some mushroom mixture on top, wrap the pastry over the chicken and seal with a fork.

5.When all chicken breasts are wrapped, place on a large cookie sheet and bake in the oven at 375 for 40 minutes.
6.Serve with Bearnaise Sauce and Wild Rice.

Wild Rice Almondine

Follow directions on your box of Wild Rice. When the rice is ready stir in sautéd onions and sliced almonds with a 1/4 c of white wine. Let simmer until wine has evaporated and serve.

Always follow with a fabulous dessert, preferably birthday cake, but any dessert will do.

Happy Birthday Mom!!

I know, all my regular readers are wondering what on earth I am doing going to BlogHer again when I barely have time to blog?? Well, I am hoping with Apple starting school in the Fall that life will settle back into a routine, one where I get to write posts in a timely fashion and give my blog the attention it deserves once again.

This summer has been so crazy I haven’t even had time to celebrate my Sixth Anniversary of blogging!!  That will have to wait for the Fall, yet one more thing to wait for.  In the meantime I am hoping to be rejuvinated by my trip to BlogHer.  I am flying out tonight and arriving close to 1am our time so hopefully I can catch a few winks on the plane.  This is the farthest I have been away from my children and the first time flying this far alone… ever… needless to say I am a tad bit nervous.  My eReaders are filled to the brim and if need be I can break out my computer and do a little work as well.

Last year we went to NYC for BlogHer, it was hot and it was amazing.

This year we are headed to San Diego, California. My children are greatly dissappointed that they aren’t coming with me, mostly because I will get to see Miss Brenda and Miss Bethany and they won’t.  There is always Thanksgiving.

If you are attending BlogHer and will be at  Mom Central’s Canadian Embassy Party on Thursday night, be sure to say hi to me, I will be there with my camera to capture all the awesome Canadians. Stop by the photobooth to have your picture taken with a Mountie or just mingle and meet other fabulous Canadians.

I am also doing something a little different this year.  I will be out and about with my camera so I will be loading up a gallery that you are welcome to view as well as purchase digital downloads if you like.  To view the gallery please go to my Anna Epp Photography Photocart and “Create an Account” once you do that and log in, you will be able to see the BlogHer gallery. Just click on the thumbnail to view the gallery.

Be sure to say ‘hi’ if you see, I love meeting fellow bloggers that I have been following along in real life.  And if by chance you are a native of San Diego and you have a surfboard, I would love it if I could surf just once in the Pacific, so I can say that I have surfed both coasts.  Just to let you know, I am not that good though.