NEW BLOG UP!

hellllooooo everyone...
Please update my link because I have a brand NEW BLOG!

www.cassandra-m.com/blog

At the end of 2009, I decided to re-brand my business. This led to a new logo, a new blog and also a new website is on the way. This blog will always be a part of me & my business and hold a very special place in my heart. I will miss being here, but I am excited about my new look and new blog site!

Please stop by and check it out...
www.cassandra-m.com/blog

*This blog and all the photos/posts will remain online for continued viewing.

Have a BLESSED day~much appreciation for your support...cassandra-m

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LYDIA

SHE'S THE ONE...
that has been there for me all along.
She picks me up if I fall & encourages me to go on.
She gives me genuine support when I need it most.
She gives me honest advice and freely shares her wisdom.
She's the voice has been there all along.
She is the one who tolerates my quirky little habits.
She accepts my artistic & creative personality
and never judges.

SHE'S THE ONE...
that shares my hopes & my dreams.
I can call on her to laugh with, cry with or complain to.
She gives to me, expecting nothing in return.
She shares her heart fully & completely.
And she always keeps my secrets.

SHE'S THE ONE...
I can always count on no matter what.
She pushes me to be better.
She loves me unconditionally.
She makes me want to be a better person.
She is my inspiration.
She is my lifelong best friend...
SHE IS MY SISTER!

Today I say Thank You to God for putting her in my life and in this world.
Today I am grateful for her birth and today I celebrate it!
Happy Birthday my dear & beautiful sister...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SISTER!!!!!

I love you bunches....

MISSING HAWAII'S WARMTH

After a week of being sick and dealing with the cold weather, I sat at my computer today and tried "imaging" myself somewhere else...somewhere warmer. Immediately I thought of Hawaii. So to perk myself up & motivate me to a happier place, I went through some of the photos I took on my recent trip there and picked one to share.

This particular photo caught my eye because of the beauty of the ocean & rocks, but also because of an emotional connection. I remembered standing there for probably half an hour watching the waves crash against the rocks. I remembered being so overwhelmed with this peaceful feeling. The freshest air I think I've ever inhaled filled my lungs, the bluest skies surrounded me everywhere and the most beautiful water danced below me against the cliff. I stood there with no cares...no worries...no stress...I was in a total state of peace & happiness. Nothing but calmness and warmth wrapped around my body. I especially liked the "warm" feeling I was recalling. So today's post is simply an image that will distract "my mind" from the cold weather we are currently having in Georgia and take me to that sunnier & warmer place I remember in Hawaii. :)

BEING SICK = NOT FUN

Well...a week has passed in the new year and it was definitely not what I had anticipated and not the way I wanted to bring in a bright energetic new year. My week has been filled with coughing, sneezing, fever, headache, runny nose, watery eyes, congestion, aches, chills, sweats & more. Uggggggggggg...a week of being sick. Definitely "NOT" how I wanted to start things off in the new year. With the weather now in the 20s and 30s, it has been hard to kick my cold & more difficult to feel like being productive. I've spent most days dressed like I'm on my way to the North Pole or the extreme opposite, depending on whether I'm hot or cold at the time. I've been extremely tired and at times felt like a bear in hibernation. My "to do" list has multiplied radically in the past 7 days, as I mark one item off, three more quickly appear. Getting work done has been difficult, it is much easier to just watch bad TV and groan about feeling horrible. Being sick has not been fun :( but it has made me appreciate that I rarely get sick & that I have many days of good health. :) For that I am thankful.

I didn't want to bore my internet friends with such a "blah blah blah" post, but I made a "New Year's Resolution" to "blog more often" in 2010! Even if nothing exciting is going on, I still want to share myself, my life & my business. Luckily I am not getting graded on the creativity of this post...ha.ha. LOL.

For now, just a sneak peak of what my bathroom counter looked like this past week...


To anyone in cold weather...stay warm and keep your medicines & hand sanitizers near.

A GOOD FRIEND & A BOOKMARK

My new year has started off with small reminders of what wonderful friends I have. I received this bookmark in the mail yesterday from my very dear & longtime friend, Traci. She told me that she saw it on New Year's Eve, immediately thought of me and then bought it. (She often does things like this that makes me smile.) It is the support of such amazing friends that inspires me and keeps me pushing myself & my business. Little small acts of kindness...make such a BIG difference to me.

I love the message on the bookmark and wanted to share it with everyone. These are my wishes for each of you too...


Wishing everyone a HAPPY & PROSPEROUS 2010!

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010!

Well 2009 has come to a close and another year of awesome-ness! I was so very blessed to have the most amazing clients this year. I am eagerly looking forward to what 2010 will bring. I have lots of new ideas, new products and new services I will be offering to my clients. It is going to rock!


I want to take a quick moment and say THANK YOU to all my past & present clients. I wanted to express my deep gratitude & appreciation for your trust & belief in me.

I put together a short slideshow of some of my favorite images of 2009. Although some of my clients requested that I not blog their photos, I want them to know I had tons of favorites from their shoots also. Here are just a few of my awesome clients from 2009. THANK YOU again EVERYONE!!!!

CLICK HERE for SLIDESHOW...

FAREWELL 2009!

Here are a few of photos of Mocha I wanted to share for the last post in 2009...

This is Mocha's brother...his name is "MEOW" and he never gets his photo taken. So today I had him join us for pictures. He was happy.



He has the most beautiful eyes and an amazing color to his fur. (He is ever bit as spoiled as Mocha too...even though he rarely likes to get in front of my camera.)




Hoping everyone has a WONDERFUL and SAFE NEW YEARS!!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2009

PEACE...LOVE & JOY!

I just wanted to take a minute and wish everyone a very Merry Christmas. My hope is that each one of you get to enjoy time with your family and friends. That your day is a HAPPY one. That there is laughter and smiles...and more laughter.

Here are some of the photos I took last week of Mocha for my Christmas cards. Enjoy! I may be bias, but I do believe he is the most adorable puppy on the planet. :)))))



Mocha got extra treats for sitting so patiently & wonderfully while I took his photo. I am sure he was rolling his eyes at the santa suit and hairbow, but he never once acted like he minded it.





Have a BLESSED day. GOD BLESS and MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!

CHRISTMAS CARDS 2009

That time of year again...Christmas cards...yea yea yea! I couldn't decide on just one photo of Mocha this year, he was just way tooo CUTE CUTE CUTE! So I decided to pick four photos and designed four different cards. I lost track of my time for this month and realized yesterday around noon that I needed my cards mailed asap to arrive on time. I addressed as quickly as possible, but since I write each card by hand it takes a little time. I got half of them done & mailed. The rest went out today and I am hoping for quick delivery, but I apologize in advance if they arrive late. Although e-cards are popular, I still like to send a card that is visually stimulating and that can be held & touched with your hands. I just love cards.

PEACE...LOVE & JOY...



Thank you to the US Postal Service, UPS, FedEx, DHL, etc and all their employees for all their hard work year round, especially this month.

BROOKS

CUTE...CUTE...CUTE times TWO. I love photographing Brooks and Barkley. Thanks to his mom, Brooks is always stylin' some adorable outfit. I seriously want to take his photo and put in a GAP kids magazine ad. He is that cool. (Anna...I love the hat)






These two share such a close bond...





Sara came out for a few photos too and wanted to show off her pretty boots.




Sara and her big blue eyes...




Sara was good at making faces while I was shooting. Her Mom asked her to stop, but I am glad I got these photos. I was laughing at her and I think that just encourages the silliness. I love it.





Ben and his big blue eyes...



Ben & sister, Sara.



I love moments like this...Thanks Sara, this is a keeper for Mom. :))




Just to make note, I did "not" put the kid on top of the car. This was his Mom....ha.ha...but she was only about 2 ft away, ready to jump in if he started sliding. He did not fall off the car and was only up there for a few quick photos.







My friends, Anna & Jeff and baby Brooks.



This is definitely a favorite of mine. I love when kids are laughing and screaming...I think it reflects a more realistic side to how much fun a photo shoot can be when they don't sit still and smile. Brooks, you are awesome. :)

MADYSON : HOLIDAY PART II

This is how Madyson and I started the second part of our shoot. Yes, there was a little screaming, but there was also laughing, running, dancing, rolling around and a short break for some girl talk. Of yea, and there was chocolate chip cookie dough after the shoot. :))



Madyson insisted on wearing her ruby red princess slippers. I LOVED her choice of footwear. She is definitely going to be a shoe girl. I probably should start saving money now for the Manolo Blahniks...



After a change of clothes, Madyson lost interest in me taking more photos of her. She seemed to be bored with me and my camera.



Very bored. She is staring out into space and simply ignoring me....ha.ha.



I imagine she is saying to herself..."Oh my, not more photos"...



This is Madyson's fake smile for me. Notice the hand on her hip. For exaggerated purposes, I'm sure.



In order to get her re-motivated to the cause, I allowed her some "Madyson-time". Some time for her to do anything that would make her happy & smiley. This is what I got.



Shortly thereafter, it was back to being bored with me.



Since she wanted a break, we just lay in the grass and talked. I still snapped a couple awesome images, but mostly I loved the time we spent...just hangin' and chillin'...together.



And there was rolling in the grass, on Madyson's part. I had seen dog poop earlier, so I declined to join in the fun.





Dr Jekyll (on left)...Mr Hyde (on right)...LOL.



More time to just lay and talk.




Madyson loves her ruby red princess slippers and I am glad I caught this moment. She was admiring how beautiful & sparkly they were.



and more admiring...



and finally, Madyson acknowledged my requests and gave me a quickie smile.



and more rolling and rolling...



I'm just glad I'm not responsible for the laundry. LOL. Sorry Anna...but, I think you are very use to grass in the hair and grass stains on the clothes....ha. ha.



This is where it got "almost" too hilarious for me to continue shooting. Madyson threw her hands up and said "I quit". She told me she was done with photos and then reiterated to me louder..."I quit". I just laughed and told her she couldn't quit "my" photo shoot, but she just ignored me. She then rolled her eyes (which she probably gets from me) and she was done. I snapped a couple more last photos and released her. LOL.



Too funny...Madyson acted like I was torturing her. I was NOT, I promise...LOL. She is such a drama queen sometimes, but I love her!




This is Madyson's fake smile, one last time. You can actually see the strain in her neck muscles as she grits her teeth and attempts very hard to give me a happy look.



One last "almost genuine" smile...


Thank You Madyson! Y-O-U always remind me to laugh out loud, to dance like nobody is watching, to enjoy small things like rolling in the grass (even when dog poop may be nearby) and most importantly...YOU remind me to always SMILE big, even if it's a fake one...ha.ha.

love you bunches! =:P