Surp
rises… Surprises for birthdays… They can come in many flavors, can’t they?
My 60th birthday Surprise Party was one of them. And now, only a couple of weeks later, here’s another: my son-in-law Josh’s 30th birthday Surprise Trip! My daughter Lori treated her husband with a visit to Chicago, and you can see from the look on his face that it was totally unexpected!
All aboard! They left Toledo by train on a Wednesday night, beginning their journey west. (Before now, I’ll bet you thought that only airplanes got delayed – well guess again, they were an hour late in leaving, and 45 minutes late in coming home!)
That did not dampen their spirits or their adventures, however, and once they got to Chicago, Lori had one adventure after another in store for him! A Segway tour around the museum district – dinner at Fogo de Chao (incredible meal!) – playing on top of the Sears tower – riding on the Ferris wheel at Navy Pier – gawking in wonder at the Shedd Aquarium – seeing Sue at the Natural History Museum – and dozens of other memorable moments!
Besides that, MiMi got to babysit her grandchildren! For three whole days! Oh, joy!
While MiMi was enjoying herself, here’s a quick glimpse of all that Josh and Lori saw and did in the Windy City:
Wow, what a great time! Last week we flew to New Jersey to visit my husband’s sister-in-law Ray, who received her Doctorate of Education earlier this year. We couldn’t attend the party in her honor that was held then, and this visit was to make up for it — and to see everybody and have a fabulous family reunion to boot!
We stayed at a cozy little seashore Bed & Breakfast named the Nathaniel Morris Inn (click here to learn all about the Inn). Below are some photos of the Inn, the people we met there, the charming proprietress, the locale, and little odds and ends of the New Jersey scene:
But it wasn’t all quaint and casual — you can’t imagine how many things we packed into that short trip! There was the famous semi-annual Manasquan Flea Market on the sea shore, and the rousing football game where Matt played both offense and defense, and the boisterous, rowdy, captivating pizza party at KP’s house! I could go on and on, but you’ll get an idea from this:
I am truly a blessed woman.
On September 3, 2011, I was going to a surprise party being held for a very good friend of mine, Irene Hatziantoniou. To my wonderful — and astounding — surprise, I discovered that the surprise was … for me!
When I walked into the room, I was totally blown away. I had friends and family, networking colleagues, old chums, and everyone from A to Z. My wonderful husband, my beautiful daughter, my astonishing son, along with Susie, my dear stepdaughter, and a host of other helpers, found sly and crafty and just totally super ways to pull together this amazing event!
My husband also saw to it that there would be a photographer on hand, so for once, I got a chance to be in all the pictures! Now all those beautiful memories are captured forever, and I just cannot thank everyone enough for all the time and effort they put into it, considering how busy their schedules already are!
Thank you, thank you, thank you, and enjoy the little show below. I will see you all around, and in the meantime, love and hugs from Linda-Mimi-Mom to all of you.
As many of you know from my Facebook page, I had planned to go sky-diving with Bill’s grandson Michael Sturm. He had always wanted to go, but he couldn’t by himself until he was 21, and nobody else wanted to try it.
Well, he just turned 21, and since I have always wanted to sky-dive, too, I said to him “Let’s do it, Michael!”
So we set it all up, and last Wednesday we were out at Forrest Barber’s airport near Alliance, Ohio. Up above you see the plane we were going to jump out of, and on the right is a view from its cockpit (just kidding, of course — that’s one of the fascinating restored airplanes on the field at the airport.) Boy, were we excited!
Unfortunately, by the time we had arrived at the airport (at 11:00 a.m.) the winds aloft were against us. Already at 3000 feet they were 50 mph, and higher above that. On the ground it was very gusty, and gusty is something you don’t want when you and your parachute are about 30 feet up just ready to touch down…
We took a break for lunch at a highly-recommend (but teensy) little diner named Shorty’s just down the road. While we snacked we saw this poem framed on the wall:
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As every one of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Don’t give up, though the pace seems slow,
You may succeed with another blow.
Sometimes the goal is much nearer than
It appears to be to a faltering man.
Often the struggler has given up,
When he might have captured the victor’s cup,
And he learned too late, when the night slipped down,
How close he was to the golden crown.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.
And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit –
It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.
(Bill looked it up on the internet when we got home, and found that it’s quite a well-known poem, although its true author is unknown.)Anyhow, we followed the poem’s advice and did not quit. No, we went back to the airport and stayed until 5:00. But by that time it was clear that the winds would stay gusty until the next day, and we headed home.
We’ll try it again some time. Stay tuned.
Cleveland’s 
Care Alliance is about many things, but one thing is for sure: it is definitely about helping people feel good. That was certainly a part of the theme of this year’s celebration of National Health Center Week.
Technically speaking, of course, the theme was “Serving Locally, Leading Nationally.” And of course they had a panel, comprised of community health center, city health department, and foundation representatives, that discussed the local impact of, and changes to, health reform. And they invited many distinguished leaders in the fields of politics, healthcare, and community activism throughout the state of Ohio to join in commemorating National Health Center Week.
All in all I think it would be fair to say that this was a celebratory event, and I felt privileged to be there in my photographic role. Here’s a brief glimpse of what went on:
To learn more about other upcoming Care Alliance events, click here!
My husband (who normally never touches my camera) was kind enough to capture this moment when Slider and I met again last Sunday, at the wonderful party hosted by Ameriprise at Progressive Field.
Slider and I are old friends, and we run into each other from time to time when I’m on assignment. He always makes me laugh, and this time was no exception! Then I got back to capturing all the fun that people had at the party.
And fun it was — never mind that the rains came, and that the game got delayed, and finally cancelled — everybody had a super time!
When Ameriprise plans a party they REALLY plan it, and this was no exception. Great food, great area for the party, and of course, the one and only Slider. What I noticed most of all is how much fun folks were having. I saw no sign that the rain or game delay was having a negative effect — people were enjoying themselves, and little things like rain or game delays didn’t matter.
We put together a video from the images captured Sunday; take a look:
(To check out all the images from that great rainy Sunday afternoon, just click here.)
I can’t believe how lucky I am: the phone rings, a mommy is calling me, could she and daddy come over and have me photograph their newborn baby?
Could they? Could a cow give milk, or a sky be blue? Of course I could, and have the time of my life doing it!
So mommy and daddy came with little Grayson and I took many pictures. Down below you’ll see a video we made from those pictures. But first, I want to say something to my mommies and daddies.
I am so glad you realize the importance of capturing the memories of your little ones with more than just an occasional snapshot. When I look around at the veritable treasure of photographs I have of my grandchildren, I realize what a lousy job I did of gathering the memories of my own children when I had the chance.
I know, I know, parents raising children are faced with many challenges that grandparents aren’t. But still, when those moments are gone, they are gone forever unless you managed to capture them. That’s one of the reasons I love my work, and why I try to make it all so affordable.
And today we have many ways of presenting photographic images. One of very best, I think, is the gallery wrap: the photograph is printed on canvas and wrapped around a wooden frame, so that it stands out from the wall an inch or so. We have a wonderful gallery wrap of me and my husband with my four little grandchildren, on the windswept shores of a sandy beach! I look at it every day, and I just love it!
So like the Godfather, I’m gonna make you an offer you can’t refuse. When you order your first gallery wrap from Linda’s Lenses, I’ll split the cost with you 50-50! Why would I do that? Because I think you’ll love it, too, and you’ll hang it in your living room and look at it every day, and then you’ll order more gallery wraps, and your friends will want some, too. And later on, when your children grow up, each will want their own copy too. And Linda’s Lenses can give it to them, because we always archive everything! The other thing is, we always give gallery wrap images special treatment, like that shown just above. You’ll want it. All you have to do is print a page from this blog on your home printer and bring it with you when you place your order.
Another reason why I love my work is that it teaches me how small the world really is. Turns out that Grayson’s mommy was my daughter-in-law’s roommate in college for 3 years! And now, here’s the little video I promised you:
Back in November of 2009 I got another Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep call, one of many I handled that month as the NILMDTS Cleveland Area Coordinator. That’s how I met David and Rochelle Friedrich, during that terrible, heartbreaking moment in their lives.
They have moved on since then, but never forgetting the daughter they loved so much. And more than “not forgetting” — they have created a wonderful way to memorialize her in the very best way possible. Below is a letter from David that will tell you what is going on now. Please read it, click on the link near the bottom to cast your vote, and help the Friedrichs carry on their work.
Everyone~
As you know, we (David and Rochelle Friedrich) have started a foundation to benefit terminally ill children, after losing Eleonore 6 days after her birth to a rare congenital heart defect. Rochelle and I struggled on how to carry her legacy forward and thought rocking chairs would be her eternal memory.
We have since created the EleonoreRocks Foundation, where we provide rocking chairs and financial assistance to terminally ill children and their families. Since the inception of Eleonore Rocks we have started a team of Endurance athletes, and their goal is to raise awareness and compete at the highest level. It has become a huge success and the foundation grows because of the success of others! We have been very fortunate to have donated 70 Amish rocking chairs to families who have been able to spend intimate time with their little ones.
The foundation has been picked by one of the most successful athletes in the sport of triathalon: Andy Potts. Andy ( www..andypottsracing.com ) is not only an amazing human being, but also an Olympian and one of the most successful athletes in the sport of triathalon. Andy has choosen us for several reasons, but more importantly, wants to help raise awareness and help us make as much money as possible for this often overlooked demographic.
Andy is also involved with a Janus Charity challenge that matches his foundation with 4 others. The winner with the most votes will get an extra $10,000 for his charity. (please take 30seconds to vote) http://vovici.com/wsb.dll/s/31e1g4b6d8
If you could forward this to friends and family that would be appreciated! Thanks again for spending an extra minute on something near and dear to our hearts. Please feel free to browse the website and read our story.
Keep Rockin…
David Friedrich
The last time these two youngsters saw each other, Abby was about Matthew’s size and Matthew was a LOT smaller!
But here they are, bonding all over again and sitting outside Panera’s in the Great Northern Mall, as a part of the Seattle Ford Family stopped in Cleveland for a quick lunch and get-together before catching a plane back home. Here are some other glimpses from that lunch:
Don’t you just love these impromptu family moments? I sure do! But if you’re carefully watching, there are all KINDS of impromptu family moments you can capture.
Take when my grandchildren Madison and Caden came to town to visit for a few days. After their mommy went back home to Bowling Green, we did all sorts of things! There was the ball game where their cousin Matthew was a catcher, a trip to the Great Lakes Science Center, a visit to the Cleveland Children’s Museum, a trip to Martin Blueberries in Columbia Station where you can pick your own berries, a visit to the North Olmsted Public Library, some swimming in the Olmsted Falls park where we nearly got arrested, and… well, look for yourselves:
