90's summer.

Reserve a summer session from my June-August Calendar

When I think of summers as a kid, I go to my mid-elementary through middle school years. In high school I worked at Cold Stone Creamery and American Eagle and The Picture People in the mall and read Grapes of Wrath behind the counter for AP summer reading and probably hung out with my boyfriend a lot and cared too much about my "image."

But that golden middle was bliss, though.

My weird friends and I would film parody commercials and news segments on my family's handheld camcorder. We even did a whole horror film series with a perpetrator named Garth who wore a paper bag mask and carried a hockey stick, killing hours of spare time and keeping us in stitches at our own hilarity and perceived talent.

I'd usually spend one week at sleep-away 4-H camp, which I loved and eventually graduated in a junior counselor where I'd help teach canoeing and archery. That is untill I was uninvited from returning because a friend and I got caught daring campers to mix up all the leftovers on their trays and rewarding them for eating it.

One summer I was cast as an orphan in a the university summer theatre production of Annie and spent hours upon hours in rehearsals and performances, opening my eyes to the arts and what it looked like to dedicate to something in a magnificent way.

We'd call our friends from the house phone to see if they could play or we'd just ride our bikes over and ring the doorbell. The screen door was always open and there were usually piles of shoes in the hallway. We'd play four-square in the driveway, eat an endless supply of icy-pops my mom kept in the garage freezer, and drink gallons of CountryTime yellow lemonade.

Eventually we got an above-ground pool and would spend hours jumping off the side and playing basketball and okay, let's be honest, choreographing synchronized swimming routines.

One summer my parents paid my youngest brother and I $100 each to stain our backyard fence on both sides. We worked almost every morning before it got hot and sometimes wrangled friends to assist so we could go faster and get to playing. I proudly spent my earnings immediately on a karaoke machine and set of cassettes to record mixes on.

On the first day of every summer, we would lay on the living room floor and roll coins we'd been collecting all year - everyone's spare pennies and nickels that had been dropped in the big bucket we'd keep in the coloring cupboard since the start of school. The goal was always to have enough that we could go to Kings Dominion for one day.

And at the end of the summer, the school would announce class and teacher assignments by printing them out and taping them to the front windows of the building. We'd organize a neighborhood gaggle of children to ride over to school together on our bikes a mile or so away to check for our names and pick up our school supply lists before riding back.

When I think about my most nostalgic childhood summer memories, it's kindof fascinating how wonderfully boring they are.

All those pennies nobody noticed dropping in, and then one day you pour it out and there's enough.

So much of the story doesn't feel like anything but spare change in the moment.

But wow, it really adds up to something beautiful.

// new + noteworthy //

THINGS I SAVED THIS WEEK//
This is pretty nuts and I'm so glad justice is being pursued in this scenario. Photography is built on honesty and it kills me how muddy that's become.

Could do with all the smily-shaking-food on these reels, but I made these froyo clusters this weekend and CAN CONFIRM - my boys love them and they've been a perfect snack that they think is “dessert” for this hot hot week. My daughter dramatically shared she will NEVER IN HER LIFE eat greek yogurt, but 2 out of 3 is still a win.

NEW TONIC TEMPLATES //

The new Tonic templates are live and they're having a mega sale for the launch. If you have the space, summer's a great time for a website refresh before fall traffic starts flowin'! Tonic was a game changer in both my SEO efforts and leveling up my brand - big huge honest rec for these templates! (Yes, this is an affiliate link AND you can get 25% off this week with my code - leah-tonic so why not)

ON THE PODCAST //
Part 1 and Part 2 of my shorter but weekly series on In-Home family photography have been published and are breaking apart some key elements of this approach. I started with a prep tip, then we talked about how to set the tone in the first 10 minutes. This isn't pie-in-the-sky talk - we're all in on the practical with this series and it's basically my favorite topic overall so I'm hoping it's really helpful for you, too!

Grab the companion resource with all the content in a handy reference guide for photographers right here.

// SUMMER SIGNATURE SESSIONS //

Use the link at the top or right here to choose a date and book your summer session in a few quick steps. There are no payment plans available with direct booking, but I'm extendin $200 off for in-full payment on all signature summer sessions. 🎉

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CREATIVITY | FAMILY | SIMPLE JOYS

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Learn more about: Family sessions | Newborn Sessions | Education