In SEVENTH Heaven

If you have ever flipped through a Pottery Barn catalog and wondered "Whose house really looks like this?", you will need to meet my friend Karen. Karen and her family live a couple miles down the street from me and I have often stopped by unexpectedly with an excuse to drop off small gifts for her children or allergy medicine for herself. But in reality...I just wanted to catch her in a state of clutter. Not the "Hoarders Buried Alive" mess, but good old LIVED in clutter. Shoes at the bottom of the stairs, laundry haphazardly strewn out on the couch, a trail of toys down the front hallway. You know...NORMAL stuff! Well, try as I may, I could never catch her in a moment of weakness. So I just have to reconcile (and secretly hate her for it) that Karen just keeps her home like this all of the time.


Today Karen's daughter Maddie turned 7 years old. And as I read Karen's facebook status honoring her little girl, I could not help but invite myself over to capture the life of Maddie on her first day of being 7. Karen knows me better and she knew that I would not take NO for an answer. And so through a series of instant messages, we planned it and Karen vowed to "whip" something together in the next couple of hours so I could take some images of Maddie celebrating her birthday.
I probably should not have been shocked at the pomp and circumstance that greeted me when I arrived later that afternoon. Karen's last minute, throw it together party was nothing short of an A-List event! Balloons, streamers hanging from the chandelier, a fresh baked cake, personalized confetti sprayed across the table and dozens of presents stylized on the granite countertop.
Madeline wore a permanent grin the entire afternoon knowing that all of the fuss was over her in celebrating the day she entered the world!

We did the token birthday images... blowing out the cake, opening the presents. We even got a change to take some photographs outside. But some of my favorite images came from a 15 minute span when Karen allowed me to take some pictures of Maddie's room. It was fascinating that even though she was playing downstairs, the bedroom was still filled with Maddie. Her favorite toys, her posters, her handwritten notes and doodling...Those tiny details that make this 7 year old uniquel! Sometimes its the little things, like Justin Bieber's pin up on a door, that truly mark the time in someone's life. And I hope I captured that for Karen and Maddie.
Before I left, Maddie agreed to do a video interview with me. As we sat down I asked her what she thought of her birthday so far. She let out a tiny laugh, shrugged her shoulders and sweetly said..."My Mom is kinda crazy." I think that's 7 year old talk for "I am really grateful". And I wanted to tell her that yes her mom is CRAZY! CRAZY in love with her life. CRAZY in love with her family! CRAZY in love with her kids..and especially with her birthday girl!