a peek inside the fishbowl

We refer to Piper’s tail, which is usually curled up over her back end, as her mood barometer. Unless she’s been startled by a falling toy or an unexpected appearance of the garbage can, it’s usually upright. 

Dogs have a fantastic range of facial expressions, don’t you think? It’s amazing how well they’re able to communicate with a glance, or a grin. 

p.s. If you’re so inclined, there’s still time to enter the Extra Helping giveaway !

M & C are a very sweet and fun-loving couple. Their photoshoot was one of the most fun I’ve ever done. They had great ideas and were able to let loose and go with the flow. I was thrilled to be able to photograph them at this special time.

Ms. C charmed the pants right off me when, at one point, she exclaimed that I was surely too young to have 11 and 9 year old daughters. (!!)

They are in my good books FOREVER.

I dropped a CD of their photos off at their home on early Tuesday evening. We joked that it might be The Very Thing That Sends Her Into Labour.

Baby L arrived Wednesday. :) I’m not sure if they’ve seen all their photos yet!

I wanted to post a few of my favourite “before” shots, the ones I think best represent this lovely couple (now trio!). My goal, as always, is to portray people as they really are in their natural state – to create an image that will truly endure. It was hard to pick only a handful to post here. These people are seriously adorable, inside and out.

JUST LOOK AT THE LOVIN’.

Congrats M & C, on the arrival of Baby L. You will be awesome parents.

A few of you are already in on the secret but it’s time to come clean. I’ve been working on some special blog-related content which will be available to readers who sign up for it.

SOME people might call what I’m doing an e-newsletter, or heaven forbid … <COMMENCE JARGON> an e-blast. </END JARGON>

I’m calling this little venture an Extra Helping, because that’s what it is. Extra stuff! Fortified with freshness! This content will not be archived here on the site or anywhere else online.

Many of you currently receive Fishbowl posts by email. This is not that.

I’m still ironing out the kinks figuring out how to use the mail program, but that doesn’t mean you can’t sign up RIGHT NOW. You might get a little something if you do!

The kind folks at Ten Thousand Villages are giving a $50.00 gift certificate to one lucky subscriber. (!)

Please note: the gift certificate is only valid in Canadian stores. This means that the giveaway part is only open to Canadians. Non-Canadians, however, are welcome to subscribe to the newsletter regardless. :)

Here’s what you need to do:

1) Leave a comment below, telling me: (a) what kind of content you’d like to see in the not-a-newsletter and (b) what you’d spend your money on if you won the gift certificate. Ten Thousand Villages HQ has an online store at www.tenthousandvillages.ca. Only about 20% of their inventory is online but it will give you a good idea about what’s there. There is a TON more stuff in stores. The Richmond Road location in Ottawa is the one closest to me, and it is chock full of really beautiful and interesting things, all of which are handmade by artisans across the world and support the principals of fair trade. This is the foundation upon which Ten Thousand Villages is built. They are good people.

Do good; feel good… that’s what I say!

There is a full listing of the stores in Canada (in case you want to check to see if there is a store near you) and many of the local stores are on Facebook and Twitter as well. It’s a great way of keeping up with what’s new.

2) Sign up for the Extra Helping!

You need to leave a comment and sign up for the Extra Helping to qualify for this giveaway. That’s it!

I will do a draw using Random.org at noon (EST) on August 11, 2010. The winner will be contacted by email and will need to provide their mailing address. Please make sure you provide a valid email address so I can contact you quickly!

If the winner is not from Canada I’ll have to do another draw. (This has happened, which is why I am mentioning it.)

Anyway, over to you! Good luck!