the long road to china is now lizzyrose photography

We have officially moved!!!
This site will no longer be updated.
I am kind of sad to say goodbye to this old site because of the fond memories and incredible friendships formed here, but it is time to move on to the next chapter.If you wish to continue following along (and I hope that you do),

click HERE to go to my new site and HERE is the new blog.

Color Me Happy

I am easily amused :)
New colored pencils for Sarah.... our budding artist!
The colors caught my eye, so I pulled out the macro lens.

Have a Happy and Colorful Weekend!

The Dress

I have been eyeing this property for a long time.
I photographed it this winter and posted it on instagram as a future location that I wanted to try and I am just now getting around to it.
This is super close to our home and I drive by it multiple times a day. Each time I pass by, I inspect the light. I knew the light at sunset was going to be magic especially when paired with Reagan's favorite "big dress". That is what she calls this one. Unlike Sarah who is choosing shorts over dresses, this child is all about skirts and dresses.

From the moment she put it on, she was swishing back and forth and spinning herself silly.
Which is why you see more photos of the back of her head than her pretty little face:)

She is getting so tall and leaning out....I really noticed it in this series.
It is bittersweet watching these girls grow up in what feels like the blink of an eye.
Hard to believe that are we are about to celebrate 4 years since Reagan has been home from China!
Time sure flies when you are having fun :)

Speaking of growing up..... Nick got his learners permit at the end of January.
We just scheduled his driving test for the end of August. Fingers crossed we will have a new licensed driver in the house here very soon.

I need to do some new photos of Nick.... It has been a busy summer for him, but he promised I could steal him for an hour.
So you should be seeing him very soon!

Click... Goes the Camera

This past week Sarah and I headed downtown to the laundromat where we did our Christmas card photo-shoot. My king sized comforters were in need of cleaning and when we had visited this winter, the red staircase outside caught my eye, so we loaded the machines, put our money and detergent in, then had a little photo fun while we were waiting for everything to finish.


A few months back, I was lucky enough to win a gift card to the Clickin Moms online Store.....and we picked up this adorable Pink Diana Mini Film Camera, in addition to a few other goodies. I love their storefront and often shop for cute photography related goodies...... especially when I am filling workshop goodie bags:) Both the girls love this little camera and I do too...... so much that I stylized this shoot around it.


We paired it with our favorite Click Satchel and needed some reading material while we waited, so of course what else would a budding photographer read, but Click Magazine!!


Aren't these glasses a scream?
I thought they were the perfect touch to this set up. They are actually 3 D Glasses with the lenses popped out. They work so well and you don't have to worry about getting any glare.


Not only did Sarah totally rock those glasses, but she really got into the role. It was so much fun to watch her.





We eventually headed inside to check on our comforters and when I turned around and saw her on the yellow chairs, I had to snap just a few more. Retro-ish with bright color pops is not my typical photography style, but it sure was fun to kind of venture of the path, not to mention both Sarah and I both had a lot of fun doing this. She helped with the outfit election. She chose the shirt and shorts and I suggested the shoes that matched. Sarah has kind of outgrown the dress phase...... and is now asking for shorts every day. These denim ones are her favorite at the moment. Oh my girl is definitely growing up!!

Seeing Life in Black and White

Just some recent snaps of the girls that I have taken over the last few weeks.
I am not really one to process a lot of black and white photos, but recently I have been gravitating that direction and feeling somewhat inspired.

The head shots of Sarah were to document her new little braid.
She never wants anything in her hair and does not like for me to pull it back, so we settled on this and she loved it.

The series of Reagan in her room was totally candid and caught shortly after she "dressed herself" in a bathing suit top and a ballet skirt. Then paired it with her wonder woman boots from halloween and put on some glitter lip gloss. This was only 1 of 4 outfit changes in about a 6 hour timeframe.

Hope everyone had a Happy 4th of July!
I am feeling a little sad that it is already Sunday..... which means back to work tomorrow:(

Strawberries, Rolling Hills, and Rain Boots

We checked out a new strawberry picking patch on Friday afternoon!
Reags was still at school, so it was just a special trip for Sarah and me.
This is the farm where we go for our pumpkins every fall, it is just up the road from our home.
They have never done strawberries before, it was their first strawberry picking season and I have to say, I was quite impressed.
It was so gorgeous up there on the hill.... just a little too hot.
We did not last too long in thew beating sun, but we picked a few pints to bring home. Reagan was a happy camper when she saw the fruits of our labor. She is a berry loving little lady :)

It was a busy weekend here.... shopping, sleepovers, bday celebrations, pool time, sidewalk chalk, bubbles, and bike riding.
You name it, we did it!! For those adventures, you will have to see instgram as my iPhone has become my go to camera for our day to day.

Have a great week everyone!

Gerber Daisies

Just a little something pretty to share today.
I love gerber daisies.... especially pink ones.
Add some water droplets and beautiful backlight and these were just begging to be photographed.
Have a fabulous Friday and a wonderful weekend!

Down By The Water

Sorry to have disappeared for a while. . .
I was in dire need of a long break. Between keeping up with my family, my job, and my photography, I was feeling a little drained and just could not seem to make the time to post. To be honest, I have been quiet and a bit disengaged on all forms of social media for the last month or so. Sometimes you just have to pull back when you are overextended so that is what I did.

I have also made a rather big decision..... This blog has been up and running since April of 2008 and I think it is time to close her up or maybe a better way to say it, is MOVE. This blog was initially started to document our adoption journey and photography was not even a part of my life at the time. Reagan has been home almost 4 years now. Looking over my posts for the last year or so, they are not really adoption related, they are more about photography. I have tried keeping this site for personal reasons and then doing a business site as well, but that did not work. Keeping up two places was just doable. I am taking the summer to work on a new site, with a new name, and a new purpose. I can write if I want to, or just post pictures. As soon as it is finished, I will update here and provide a link so that everyone who wants to continue to follow along, can do so. I probably need another month or so to get things finished. In the meantime, my posts will probably continue to be sporadic. The best place to keep up with me would be instagram. That seems to be the easiest for me....... I have been posting both iPhone and dslr previews there. I have a backlog of photos to share from the last 6 weeks, I hope to get those up and if not here, I will get them on the new site. For now, I thought I would share the most recent series I shot last weekend. My good friend Shelly recently moved into a beautiful old farmhouse that backs up to the water. It gets incredible light as the sun sets.....so we set out on a little adventure.











The girls are really changing and growing up so quickly. It is mind-blowing to me.
Time is passing much too quickly. One more year and Reagan is off to Kindergarten.
That realization has not quite set in.....

Happy Summer Friends!
I hope to catch up with you all very soon.

Our Very Own Giving Tree

Last Saturday, the girls and I had some errands to do.
They did not realize it, but I had packed the car so that we could stop at the park and have a picnic style lunch after we were done.
We went to a park in Allentown with the most beautiful, big, old trees.


We decided unanimously that this was the prettiest tree around and that this is where we wanted to set up for the afternoon.


We ate our lunch, read the new books compliments of our trip to Target, and we also practiced our soccer skills.
Too bad the rain cut our trip a little short, but we sure did have fun.
The girls can't wait to go back and do this again.

Sarah does not know this, but I am going to be the mystery reader at her school in a few weeks.
I have chosen "The Giving Tree" as the book I am going to read to the class.
Hoping to incorporate these photos of our very own giving tree into a fun activity for her classmates.
Happy Weekend.... It is a beautiful one here in PA!
xoxo

Instagram Favs on Friday - iPhone Style

It has been a long time since I have dumped the old iPhone, so I thought I would catch up today and share some of my daily Instagram favs.
(All photos taken with my iPhone and processed with pic tap go)

For the love of all thinks pink and pretty!!


Easter goodies... fun colored plates, butterfly cookies, and a homemade frozen key lime pie.
Recipe compliments of the Barefoot Contessa :)


The first dose of sugar on Easter Morning.
nothing like a 4 or 5 packs of PEZ to liven things up around here!


Some random cuteness and more pink.... our favorite color!


Weekends with my girlies!!
Shopping, soccer, and snacks make them happy.


Some things that caught my eye.
French toast for breakfast, driving through center city philly, standing in line at starbucks, and beautiful pa farmland.


My girl reags... lots of cute little feet and her messy bun which has been the hairstyle of choice these days.


Last but not least, always on the lookout for interesting light and fun shadows.

So there you go, just some behind the scenes randomness in our every day lives!
Hope you had a wonderful week. We are happy the weekend is just about here.
~Relax and enjoy~

An InLinkz Link-up

Happy Easter

Just popping in (a little late this morning) to wish everyone one a Blessed and Happy Easter!
We are enjoying the Spring weather and the extra family time.
The bluebells are in FULL BLOOM now, so I snuck in a quick shoot with Sarah last night.
We have a neighborhood Easter egg hunt tomorrow and family celebration Sunday.
The girls are just a wee bit excited and the sugar shock is already kicking.
They wish every day could be a holiday :)

An InLinkz Link-up

First Sprouts of Spring

We are just a little excited over here. . .
Yesterday brought temps in the low 70's and beautiful sunshine. The better part of our day was spent outdoors playing and we also took a quick trip to the park to see if there were any signs of Spring beginning to sprout in our favorite field. There were not many, but a few bluebells are beginning to pop up from the ground. I am thinking in the next day or two they will be in full bloom.

It has been a LONG TIME since I have had the opportunity to shoot outdoors in the warm sunlight, so I was in photography heaven. We had planned to paint our Easter Eggs but we wanted to be outdoors. The table is set and all of the dye, glitter, and paint is ready to go. The girls will be doing their egg decorating this morning followed by Sarah's first Spring Soccer game this afternoon.
It will be another beautiful day in PA. Hope you get to enjoy a little sunshine too!
~Happy Palm Sunday~

Sarah and Julie

These were taken almost a month ago on one of the many cold days where we were stuck indoors.
It was a self proclaimed PJ day and as I walked down the hall, I saw Sarah playing with Julie, her fav doll!
Since they were dressed alike in their matching pjs, I decided to pull out the camera!!
It was so sweet to watch her interact with the doll and then things began to get a little rowdy:)
When Mom has the camera the rules seem to go out the window and jumping on the bed is allowed. . . so someone took full advantage!

I have one more post to go and I am officially caught up and it is a good thing because the weather has been beautiful this week and I am just itching to get outdoors with my camera.
The bluebells should be sprouting any day now and all of the locals are waiting to go wild in the park with our kids and cameras!!
I think it is safe to say that Spring has finally arrived in these parts and not a moment too soon. It really does a lot for the mood when it is warm and the sun is shining down.
Hopefully we can enjoy most or our weekend outdoors.
~TGIF~

An InLinkz Link-up

Shadow Dancing

Same dress she was wearing in the previous post, but completely different look and feel.
This is why she loves it so much.... it has the twirl factor!
She could spin herself dizzy in this sweet dress:)
Trying to catch up and get the backlog of pictures posted.
Be back on Friday with some pics of Sarah... Have a wonderful week!

Hi there, Remember Me?

Sorry to have disappeared for a while.
Life has been very "full" and I was beginning to feel like I was spinning in too many different directions.
I was in dire need of a break, so I stepped away from almost all social media outlets for a few weeks.
It did me good and now I am ready to come back and share the backlog of photos that are piling up on my computer.



Due to the crazy winter weather, our kids have not had any scheduled time off from school.
No extended weekends or spring breaks. They have had to make up too many snow days.   They do have off on Holy Thursday and Good Friday, so we are very much looking forward to an extended weekend to celebrate Easter.
We have been spreading some "Easter" touches throughout the house and I told the girls we would do some egg decorating very soon!



Last weekend I was placing new tulips in a vase and photographing them for the daily clickinmoms instagram prompt, when this little one decided to sneak a few of my flowers out of the jar!! The photo shoot sort of changed directions from there and I loved the outcome :)

This dress was given to her by a dear friend a few weeks ago.
It was a hand-me-down that her daughter wore at one time.
Reagan is in LOVE with this dress and if it were up to her, she would wear it EVERY DAY and sleep in it too!!
It is so pretty and it can really "twirl"...... More photos of her spinning the dress coming soon:)

Hope you have all been well!
I have missed all of my blogger friends and look forward to catching up.
~Happy Weekend~

An InLinkz Link-up