I jumped in the car and backed out of the garage this morning, pausing for a few minutes to let the engine warm up and put on some makeup before meeting a friend for coffee. And then it dawned on me, no camera. I almost pulled an I-totally-don’t-care but then the weight of my public DPP announcement made me run back in the house and grab my equipment.

I’m glad I did.

If you don’t have the tools, you can’t create. Whether it’s a notepad and pen for recording ideas or the phrase/sentence/paragraph that keeps churning in your mind, or a camera for capturing that hilarious thing your kid is doing or the beautiful sunset, you’ve got to show up prepared. Doors won’t open if you aren’t even trying.

So I brought my camera. Now I have a small file of images from a coffee shop AND my sister-in-law’s floral shop to play with. Thanks, Chelsea, for letting me snap your picture and walk through your amazing flowers. Me and my camera are happy campers indeed.

Christmas tree in morning light

While folding laundry and listening to last night’s sermon at Redeemer, I glanced up to see incredible colors cast across the sky. The very God who created this world, who sets the sun in place each night, listens to your prayers and cares for you. Wow.

One shot from today’s photo shoot. Miss Elsie is a cutie!

When you’re nine years old and you’ve had a long day of working hard, it’s nice to snuggle with your Nana while you wait for dinner.

Sometimes I just want to bottle up Age Nine and savor it forever because these years seem to be moving by faster and faster. Ten is right around the corner—it’s a big deal because it uses up ALL fingers on BOTH hands. Double digits.

Today she is nine. And cuddly still. And I love her to the moon and back… so does her Nana.

Dairy Queen features a candy cane blizzard in December, so after today’s work was done Livia and I went out for ice cream. We found what we were looking for, right before the dinner hour actually. Dinner tonight will come later, after all that sugar and milk has absorbed into our systems.

With ice cream in hand we went searching for something to photograph. This “we” was really a me scenario; Liv was a captive audience, literally strapped into her seatbelt while I drove all over kingdom come.

I chased after a setting sun in attempts to perhaps catch its rays through a wreath in a parking lot. After that I drove further, capturing the shot that wins for today’s image. Then we slowly made our way home, stopping in a small cemetery to grab a few more shots. (This is where Liv questioned me, “Are we allowed to drive in here?” and then, “When are we going to be home?” Oh the sad life of a photographer’s child.)

My hunt for something deemed photo-worthy is one story out of a few hundred stories in the December Photo Project. The more I hear from you, the more I know that we’re all doing the same thing, for 25 days straight in December—we’re looking for something beautiful or something noteworthy, something worth using up one of our 25 days.

So where did you stop and shoot today? What risks are you taking? What’s your favorite subject and what draws you to it time and time again?

This little guy is the cutest, isn’t he? His mama is a good friend of mine and I saw them both at bible study this morning. We have a ridiculous number of absolutely charming little boys at church. I feel kinda lucky to be able to capture his sweet face for the December Photo Project.

I pulled my little Canon from my purse today and was ready to photograph a soup lunch out in public when I realized the battery had died. Oh well!

This image, a very December-y one if I do say so myself, will suffice. Snowflakes a la Jeannette, my college friend who had halls full of girls making beautiful things back in the day. I think of Jeannette with a smile every time Livia and I make these familiar folds and cuts.

I present to you the beautiful Emily Lovelace in the doorway of Sebastian’s Table in downtown Lincoln. At this point of the day we were very merry indeed after a lunch of stuffed peppers, seared scallops and sangria. I needed a solid nap afterwards but settled for some coffee instead.

Perfect way to make a Monday delightful? Lunch with a friend.