Better in Bulk - Family photographer with a large family
Daily thoughts on living with a large family. I often share the tips I've learned as a photographer on how to get better pictures.
I asked my husband, lovingly referred to as CandyMan in these parts, to share the story of how we learned how to grill the most delicious meats on the block. “It doesn’t take a master chef to grill a good steak.” ~CandyMan When Lolli and I got married, neither one of us was an amazing [...]
A few weeks ago, when my brother and sister in law were in town, we spent a day at the National Zoo in nearby Washington DC. The day was perfect, the animals cooperated, and we had a blast. And there were 9 very tired Franklins at the end of the day. What are your favorite [...]
A few years ago, I had no idea how to use Skype or why I would want to learn. My husband swore by it, but as a mother of then very young children, it simply sounded like something that would take more of my non-existent time. How wrong I was! CandyMan was finally able to [...]
My husband wrote this “poem” last night as he prepared to speak at church on Mother’s Day. He was surprised that so many women approached him and said that his poem really touched them. I was not so surprised. I think each of us can find ourselves in this list. I think it’s particularly interesting [...]
Mother’s Day is coming in just a few days, and this year my husband has even more pressure to make the day special as he’ll be spending the day with TWO of the mothers in his life: me, the mother of his children, and his own mother. I think I’ve talked about the fact that [...]
As a mother of kids who have been on soccer, flag football, and swim/dive teams in just this past year, I know injuries. Luckily, we’ve been pretty fortunate and haven’t had too many serious injuries. Just lots of bumps, bruises, and other pains. But mostly, happy faces, tired bodies, and plenty of bandages. This year, [...]
When we graduated from college and made the trek across the country to settle on the East Coast, we left all of my extended family back in the West. I loved growing up with my grandparents and aunts and uncles and dozens and dozens of cousins. Holiday meals together, vacations in Tahoe together, and plenty [...]
With me as their mother, it’s not a surprise that my kids are not star athletes. However, they have each tried a few sports – from soccer to football to swim/dive to basketball to track. And they are naturally active like kids should be. Add in a few injuries and pre-dispositions (a broken or a [...]
One of my favorite parts of my recent trip to the Orlando/Kissimmee, Florida area was where we stayed. Although we were kept VERY busy all day long, having a comfortable, homey place to return to every night was an unexpected blessing. Two of my house mates and I took advantage of the hot tub each [...]
I instantly felt a connection with these three beautiful sisters – Sierra (18), Lauryn (15), and China (13) McClain – better known as the McClain Sisters. There was something about their interaction with one another that endeared them to me and let me know right off the bat that they would fit in with my [...]
.
