I get a new Cousin!!

My cousin Tony is getting married to this lovely girl whose name is Rebecca {please don’t be cross if I spelled that wrong}.  I’m so excited to get a new cousin.  Cousin’s are the best and I’m lucky that I have a ton of them and that they are all fabulous {did you catch that, Jeppsons?}.  As far as the ones that marry into my family I consider them automatically cousins too which may be confusing to the outside world but it’s all good.  Having boatloads of cousins is super handy because chances are a perfect stranger knows one of them and then, Voilà, we instantly have something in common.  Don’t scoff, it happens All.The.Time.

Rebecca is a total trooper.  She was recovering from food poisoning the day we took these but you would never have guessed it.  More importantly Tony brought her to the last Jeppson Family Fiesta and she survived.  Way to go Rebecca!  Of course you still have Christmas Eve to get through but you can always take a break in the T.V. room with my hubby if the cacophony becomes too deafening. 😉

I had fun with these images because I just picked the ones that struck my fancy and then did whatever the heck effects I felt like.  I’ve been up since 5:30 am so I’m on a roll.  The only problem will be remembering what I did if I need to re-create, especially this last one…I’m sure I can manage.

Happy April 1st to you all!

Sidenote:  I just realized this is April Fools day, right?  Just fyi nothing in this post is a joke.  Tony really is getting married…haha…that could have been a really elaborate prank!

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Ye Olde Tyme Truck(e)

It has been a long while since I have played with this old truck.  I kinda love it.  I love the color of it and the textures of the peeling paint, front grill, headlights, and broken window.  I also love how the late afternoon light comes in from the back to light the leaves and add hair/edge light.  This image just makes me happy.

The families wardrobe was based on this adorable little girl’s boots and to me that makes perfect sense!  I love the color scheme this family chose.  It works perfectly with the colors of the truck and the golden leaves.  We did this image later than the family image and you can tell how fast the light changed….sigh.

Just fyi for my fellow shooters.  The truck is still here by Eden park but the old blacksmith shop is currently under construction so it’s not available.  Plus they tore down the South half.  That was a sad, sad, day…I took a picture.

p.s. If you want to see more images from this shoot they are on my families album on my facebook business page.  Here’s the link.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150981937913727.417929.111853783726&type=1

The Scarlet Pimpernel

I am the luckiest person on the planet!  I get to be in my dream show The Scarlet Pimpernel at CenterPoint Legacy Theatre in Centerville UT.  I don’t say I am the luckiest because it’s been an easy show.  Oh no, it’s been a beast!  Blood, sweat, tears, occasionally wanting to quit(not really….but), and my favorite; bizarre phantom show bruises that pop up in the weirdest places!  But it goes along with all those clichés about things that are hard being worth it.  Through seemingly endless rehearsals and hours spent on things like how to work those da@# storybook ribbons our cast, crew, and production team have come together to create something truly extraordinary.

This show has been life-changing for me and while I don’t want to get into uber-personal melodrama I will mention three lessons a la pimpernel.

1.  How to truly get outside of myself.

I mainly think ofthe Madame Guillotine number in regards to this.  We have a brilliant director, Scott Montgomery, who kept pushing and pushing us to move out of our comfort zone.  I remember thinking “Okay, well you asked for it”  and just threw myself into that number.  Best rehearsal ever!  Forget that you are acting psychotically demented, forget that your fellow actors are watching from about two feet away.  Just take all the rage and anger you can sum up and throw it out there.  Then to get feedback about that scene being “the creepiest scene I’ve ever scene in musical theatre” and that you were “terrifying”.  Done and done!  I tend to worry incessantly about what people think of me and to be able to get past that has been hugely inspiring for me.

2.  How to let go of things that you can’t control.

Doing shows I get to see friends and have late-night parking lot chats or balcony chats or dressing room chats with my fellow actors and I consider these people some of my dearest and closest friends.  I am often surprised with how people are sent to tell you exactly what you needed to hear exactly when you needed to hear it.  Special thanks to Todd Wente for listening and having the perfect words.  I love this show but being a perfectionist and well, just the way I am, there were things I struggled with.  I had to learn to let go of some things and it has been a clouds opening sunbeam streaming down moment at times…still have to work on it. 😉

Here’s the most personal part so please if you don’t want to hear about it STOP reading. 😉

3.  How to stop hiding.

So the past four years ….yadda yadda yadda…and in the spring things came to a head and I decided to cut ties and walk away but I ended up just walking into a cave.  Human nature perhaps.  Anyway, I feel like I have been awol for the last seven months and it is just so annoying.  We had a rehearsal where our director was telling us how proud he was of us for working so hard when so many members of the cast where dealing with really difficult things.  Now I know about a few but not all.  I wish I did.  It would be nice to help if I could.  I know that two of our ladies have had their husbands deployed and it is all sorts of scary.  I think of another of our ladies who is expecting her first child and was so terribly “morning sick” during our preview that we were afraid for her and she would NOT quit.  In the legend of the Blarney stone you can leave your troubles behind as long as you take someone else’s.  The point being that you end up walking away with your own.  I’ll take mine.  I may not be completely free but I check facebook more than once a week, I actually walk into the green room sometimes and most importantly {though you may not understand why this is such a big deal} I brought my camera to the show.

Here’s is a link to my photo essay “Backstage at the Pimpernel”

website:  http://www.illuminephotography.com/scarletpimpernel

facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151115321083727.438338.111853783726&type=1

The facebook one won’t let me put them in order yet so my website is the better link.  Anyway, these are images taken mostly on October 10, 2012  with a few from October 17 to round out the story.  This is the Monday/Wednesday/Friday cast with a couple of exceptions.  These are images of things/people that make me laugh, that I want to remember, and just what goes on.  I love this show, this cast, crew, and production team.  I will never, ever, ever, forget any of you.  Much love!

The Full Monte {Huntsville Utah Marathon}

Between training for this marathon and opening a show {The Scarlet Pimpernel}  I am way behind on my blogging but fear not, it is time to {sorta} catch up!

On September 29th I ran the first ever Huntsville Marathon delightfully titled the Full Monte because well, it starts up on Monte Cristo.  I suppose marathons are like childbirth where they are miserably horrible and you swear that you will never do it again but after the awhile you start thinking hmmm maybe….  besides it was the first EVER Huntsville marathon and what kind of fifth-generation Valley girl would I be if I didn’t run it??

Now for my review.  As far as breath-taking beauty this race gets all the stars possible to give.  The full started about six miles past the gates on Monte Cristo that they close during the winter.  Far enough up the mountain that the busses were doing “I think I can” to get there.  The fall colors were in full glory and the views were breath-taking.  So beautiful you had to sing, and I did, just a bit.  We got there at about 8:40 (the busses left Huntsville park at 8:00) and luckily we were allowed to stay on the busses until they left at 9:10 because there were no fire barrels provided.  Then if you were smart and not a guy {because they just headed for the bushes} you joined the restroom line.  Check it out, this pic makes me giggle.

That line kept us busy until the race started and it wasn’t as cold as I thought it would be which at the time I thought was good but I ended up being warm enough to lose my jacket within a few minutes of starting and then it got a little toasty for my taste.  This race is all sorts of downhill and I hadn’t trained for that at all which led to my undoing.  As I careened down the mountain I thought “I really should slow down”  but it was so fun to run and I was worried about getting to my tech rehearsal so I just went for it. Did awesome for the first half which I finished in under two hours {that’s a really good time for me}  but I hit mile 18.5 and crashed pretty hard.  Also by then it was hot and the traffic was starting to get really bad.  Narrow twisty canyon road and pretty heavy traffic going both ways.  Not little cute cars like my Kia but big trucks and trailers.  I felt like I was being pushed off the road.  I was so glad when we got to the mouth of the canyon and were able to get off 100 South and head over to the Monastery.  My Dad and brother ran the half and my Dad finished his race then got on his bike to come find me.  I didn’t want to make him stay with me but I was glad he did because I was pretty gone by that point.  I ended up walking most of the last six or so miles which I am NOT happy about.  I’ve never walked in a race before but I think the downhill killed me along with the late start.  Gu and gatorade are great and all but at two in the afternoon you need lunch.  We got to Huntsville and with only about a quarter mile to go I was completely gone.  I decided I had to finish running and I truly wasn’t sure I could do it when I heard “MOMMY!!”  and my cute little boys ran out, grabbed my hand, and finished the race with me.  I don’t remember being tired after I saw them at all and I still get teary-eyed thinking about it.

I have to laugh at this pic because of course hubby let them out of the house dressed like this and as always, Noah’s shirt is on backwards.  Good times! 🙂

Anyway final review.

Beautiful terrain:  four stars

Awesomeness of volunteers:  four stars.

The things that bothered me like the heat, traffic, and trying to run through lunch could benefit from an earlier start time.  I’m sorry but ten is just too late.  Anyway, will I run it again?  Probably not.  But will I don a yellow shirt and hand out gu…most definately.  I can’t wait! 🙂

Take Me Out To The BallGame!

My husband has a goal to see {and attend games at} all of the major league baseball stadiums in the U.S. and since I love to travel and I actually really enjoy live sports we are now a baseball family.  He decided on this goal in July of 2011 and I have been to Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox), Yankee Stadium, The Oakland Coliseum, A T & T Park (San Fransisco Giants), Coors Field (Colorado Rockies), Dodger Stadium, Angel Stadium, and Chase Field (Arizona Diamondbacks).  Todd {husband} has this really elaborate routine for each stadium and he recently decided he needed a picture of each field so I’m going to have to go back to the first five … hardship. 😉

In July we went on an awesome family vacation and these are images from the games we went to.

All my boys.

For my two little boys this is their very first major league baseball game.  It should have been their second but my son in the Dodgers gear gave himself a concussion right before we left for the San Diego Padres game which is also why I do not have an image of Petco Park.  I played the role of heroic, long-suffering wife and spent the evening asking my son random questions and trying to keep him from going to sleep until we were sure he was okay.  That was a loooooooong night.

Dodger Stadium.  Traffic in LA was horrendous so even though we gave ourselves PLENTY of time we didn’t get there until the top of the 4th.  Luckily the game went twelve innings, ending with a walk-off home run by Matt Kemp.  Fantastic!

The Angels game was probably my favorite because it was packed!  They were playing their division rivals the Texas Rangers.   I also liked it because I have an Angels hat and I got to wear it.  Yes, I’m a girl.  They won too.

Chase Field was so fascinating because it was indoors.  I was a little worried that it would be too cold because people in Phoenix keep their indoors FREEZING!  But it was just right, thank heavens.  I have a bit of a history of being miserably cold at baseball games and to be cold in Phoenix would have been so ironic.  The Diamondbacks took the win so we ended up 3-1 as far as home teams winning.   The only game the home team lost the boys and I missed because of our concussion party so I call the entire trip a win.  We had an absolute blast!

Here is the link to my boutique where I will be putting the images of all the stadiums I visit.  So far there are only three but you can count on there shortly being more! 🙂

http://www.illuminephotography.com/baseballstadiums

“For it’s one, two, three strikes you’re out at the old ball gaaaaaaaaame!”

p.s.  So I had husband proofread this post to make sure I didn’t mess up any names etc. and he informs me that it’s not a goal, it’s a QUEST.  I asked him if he wanted me to change it and he said no…but I thought it was funny. 🙂