An Hour In the Life of Lah Cadence

I realized that it's been a while since I've posted more than just a snapshot of Cadence, so here are a few fotos I took on Wednesday. We walked down to our corner Thai/Sushi joint so Cadence could get her favorite (Pad See Ew), and these are shots from that hour. Those of you in Chicago may remember that it felt like spring that day, and we were able to ditch our winter coats for the first time in forever!

Sometimes, you shoot from the hip and you get exactly what you want. This would be one of those times. Cadence is a girl of many and versatile faces, but some of her more serious ones are my favorite. This one is all "serenity now" methinks, with that sunflare in the background.

It was the golden hour, when the shadows are long, and Cadence looks like she's 10 feet tall. It's hard for me to get shots of the two of us together very often (me being behind the camera most of the time), so I'll take what I can get, even if it's just a trace of who we are.

Cadence had been home sick. Wednesdays are my telecommute days, so we hung out like we used to back when she didn't have school to go to.

Poor girl. I've never seen her so tired. Those of you who know her will testify that she is a bundle of pure energy, so this is quite unusual.

Ah, but maybe all she needed was some pad see ew in her tummy! Here she is back to skipping down the street on our way home.

I've been realizing lately just how quickly Cadence is growing. Not just physically, but as her own person. I was telling some friends last night how Cadence has a real sense of dignity and how she should be treated and will not take kindly to being disrespected. It's one of her qualities that I admire and have learned from the most. Are there times when I wish she would just do as I say "because I said so" without my having to explain myself and negotiate the situation? Yes. But then I look at what's going on in Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, etc., not to mention other parts of the world, and I know I want to raise a kid who won't take crap from nobody and whose natural reaction it will be to fight against violations of her dignity and rights as a human being. I want Cadence to question authority and to not let those in power get away with abuse of power. I know it's hard for her to assert herself in school where there is a lot of social pressure to conform, and so I'm trying to balance that out at home. It's hard. I fail a lot. But I'm not giving up.

Shutter Sisters Cross-Post: For No Obvious Reason

A version of this post appears today on Shutter Sisters.

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I can't tell you why exactly, but I love this photo. I don't know much about rules of aesthetics that determine whether a photograph should or shouldn't be pleasing to the eye, and quite frankly, I don't really care about the rules. What I can tell you is that the first time I saw this photo, I was instantly smitten. Perhaps it's because looking at it made me develop a narrative about the woman on her phone. Maybe it has to do with the perspective from which the photo was taken. Or it could be because nothing is really in focus in this picture. There is no specific reason for me to like this photo, but I can't deny that I do find it beautiful, and that to me is more important than if a bunch of rules deem it to be a photo worthy of my admiration.

Dear Spring: Hurry Up. Love, SJ

It's that time of year. The frigid temps have me seeking warmth and comfort and espresso, and my camera sighs from lack of use that matters to me. I am ready for my feet and fingers to finally thaw. I am ready for long walks at night, camera in hand, communing with my nocturnal city. I am ready for picnics on the beach at sunset and spontaneous dance parties in the park. I am ready to paint my toenails blue and forget about socks for months and months.

I am sooooo ready for spring to finally get here.