Quiet = Busy

OMG, who knew starting a business would be like this? I'm completely exhausted and there are way too many things to do! Mostly things I've never done before and have to figure out. Some of these things are fun, and some are just confusing, and some are downright irritating. It sure isn't boring! I haven't been this sleep deprived since Niall was a newborn.

Open For Business!

I'm thrilled to announce that Carol Swales Photography is officially open for business!

Let me capture the unique personalities,

the sweet moments,

the adventures,

the memories you'll treasure for a lifetime.

On-location packages start at just $200. For more information or to schedule a session email info@carolswalesphotography.com today.

Big Announcement Coming Soon!

I'm getting very close to making a big announcement, stay tuned!

Ok, I have never been good at suprises because I always get too excited, so here's a hint. Are these the cutest little cards you've ever seen?

Best Dad in the World!

In my life I've known some really great dads, and I'm continually impressed at how well so many of my friends have grown up to become amazing dads. Isn't this a fun part of growing up with your friends? To all my dad friends out there, happy father's day! Know that to your children you are a hero, and the best Dad in the world!

Becoming a parent with Jude has been really fun. I love that we both work part-time so we can both participate equally in parenting, and the close relationship he has with Niall is wonderful to watch. Niall loves spending time with his daddy, and Jude has endless patience to play with cars and trucks, read "Go Dog Go" ten times in a row, or just give a hug and kiss a scraped knee.


My father-in-law is a great dad too. He's also a brilliant grandfather, and possibly the world's best father-in-law. He welcomed me to the family from the beginning, and he's been a big source of fun and support for the last five years. He's also been a big supporter of my photography! Here he is holding Niall at about 6 months old.


Happy Father's Day!

Monster Bites

It's Friday and I'm feeling a bit silly today, so this morning when Niall wasn't interested in his breakfast it seemed like a good idea to start playing with his food to make it more interesting. We made some great monsters out of yogurt and a wide variety of cereal and nuts. Most of these mosters were eaten, so it turned out to be quite a successful strategy in the end. Here are a couple of my breakfast creations:



Yes, I know it's not normal to take pictures of your food. Sometimes I just can't help myself! Have a great weekend!

What is your pDNA?

Dane Sanders has written a book called Fast Track Photographer that is coming out very soon. On his web site he also has a quiz to evaluate your photographer DNA, to help you understand what your potential is, what areas you need to work on, etc. There are over 200 questions. Some were quite easy to answer and others really made me think. At the end it gives you an evaluation that is very interesting to read.

Mine was a lot of what I expected, but there were a few things I apparently have going for me that I hadn't really thought about before, like a high level of self motivation and a low "grumpy factor".

If you're going in the direction of professional photography, it's definitely worth checking out! You can take the test here.

Niall's First Football Match: Canada vs. Brazil

Last week we took Niall to see his first live football match! By football I mean soccer of course, Canada vs. Brazil at Quest Field. Niall had such a good time! He loved taking the bus downtown, and all the people and excitement at the stadium. We were sitting in the section right next to the band, so the music was great and there was a lot to see.

Jude is a big fan of Liverpool, and he sometimes watches games with Niall at home on TV. Niall is quite a fan of Fernando Torres, a Spanish player on the team that scores a lot of goals. When Brazil scored first in the fourth minute of the game everyone got really excited and Niall shouted, "Torres scored a goal!" We tried to explain that Torres wasn't actually there, but he couldn't quite believe it.

Here are some pictures from the evening, taken with our fabulous Canon G9.

The Blender Lives

Good news! Tonight is date night tonight and we really are going out to dinner. For this one night, my appliances are safe. Also, that black thingy on my blender that's in pieces is called a "drive coupling" and it turns out I can order a replacement for $9.95 from The Gourmet Depot. Apparently if I want to destroy my KitchenAid blender I will have to try harder.

Blender Destruction

As I was preparing our healthy dessert, creamed frozen bananas, disaster struck. The blender started making a funny noise, like it was spinning. I kept pushing the bananas down, but it kept making the noise. When I removed the pitcher, I discovered that I had destroyed the blender.

At first this seemed pretty funny. I was disappointed that I wouldn't be having any dessert, but I was taking pictures and laughing. Ha, ha, appliance destroyed by healthy diet. I bet that blender would have been fine if I'd been making margarita's. Ha!

Then Jude came downstairs and ruined everything. He announced that he could tell immediately that the blender wasn't on right when he heard the noise, and that is what happens. I had destroyed the blender by using it improperly.

Honestly, was that really supposed to be helpful? Now I am in a bad mood. I have no dessert and no blender, and apparently it's all my fault.

This healthy diet has gone too far, tomorrow I am going out for dinner.

No Time For Anything

Where did all the time go? Do you ever have one of those weeks?

I blame it on cooking. Our new super healthy, low-cholesterol diet is very work intensive. Who knows, maybe I'm just slow at cooking. Rachel Ray's 30-minute meals rarely take me less than an hour. I just figured she was overly optimistic with her estimates, but I'm starting to think that maybe it IS me after all. For better or worse, I don't like cooking nearly as much as I like eating.

I have so much to post about that I need to catch up on! Kelly and I did a model shoot on Saturday and I have some really fun shots to share from that. Then Saturday night Jude and I took Niall to see his first professional football match, Canada vs. Brazil at Quest Field. It was so much fun! I also received my first business cards in the mail today! More details to come in the next few days!

Meanwhile, I leave you with this thought: