Our son Kyle and his girlfriend Stephanie stopped by for a visit. I snapped a quick picture as they were leaving.

I had the opportunity last weekend to be the photographer for Rosemary Children's Services (RCS) 46th Annual "An Evening with Star Chefs" event in Los Angeles.

RCS is committed to helping abused and neglected children in our community, and they have been doing so since 1920. It was a pleasure to be a part of this event. Great food, music, dancing, a silent auction and some special guests too. Pictured left to right: Christine Devine (Fox News), Gina Silva (Fox News), Jane Yamamoto (Fox News), Wendy Burch (KTLA News). Wendy was the MC for the event and her fun personality was a great addition to the evening.

Awesome music at the RCS event!

The group, "Stone Soul" were just fantastic. They performed the best of the 60's Soul & Motown hits.

At the RCS event there was plenty of great food too!

We had a very soggy day at the zoo in San Diego. We were greeted with heavy drizzle in the morning followed by a totally overcast day. The good news -it wasn't hot, but the bad news - the chilly air made the critters less active and less willing to come out into their enclosures. Still, we had a fun day and got the chance to see the newly opened "Elephant Odyssey."

This is not a ferocious meerkat, he was just yawning when I shot this image.

This juvenile giraffe at the zoo was fun to watch as he clumsily made his way around. It made us laugh watching him drink some water. I think the water bowl should be a little higher off the ground!

Sometimes, you just don't need to see the whole picture to understand the danger.

This morning we picked up the newspaper, and there was our granddaughter right on the front page! The picture was taken by a reporter yesteday at the Tiny Tot contest.

The caption under the picture reads:

"Stephanie Cardenaz can hardly contain her daughter's excitment. Isabelle, 4, was crowned Tiny Tot Queen at the 51st Garden Grove Strawberry Festival on Friday."

The 51st Strawberry Festival Parade this morning featured our granddaughter Isabelle (seated in the center next to the Tiny Tot King) riding a parade float. Stephanie walked as chaperone alongside the float.

Our granddaughter was a contestant in the Annual Strawberry Festival Tiny Tot Contest. Isabelle won her category, 4-year old Girl. Then, to our surprise Isabelle was crowed the Tiny Tot Queen. Tomorrow she will ride on a float in the parade! She follows her mommy Stephanie who was Tiny Tot Queen many years ago, and her Uncle Kyle who won title of Tiny Tot King two years in a row. Isabelle was very excited, and she immediately latched on to Miss Garden Grove.

CLICK HERE to see all of the pics from today.

Congratulations Isabelle, we love you,

Papa & Mema
xoxoxo

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened."

- Dr. Seuss

Alisyn, our resident model spent the afternoon with us in the studio. Ali is in a school play and her character is a "hippie" so here she is in character.

Another of Alisyn in character.

The newest in my series of teen posters. Alisyn wanted a poster that implied courage, so this is what we came up with.

Alisyn in her fighting mood!

A busy day in the studio. Here is our little lady Isabelle posing during her time in front of the camera.

It's been a while since Kelly and I visited with my Sister and her husband in Parks, AZ. We absolutely love this place! At about 5,000 feet, they get all four seasons, and the landscape is stunning. They are both such fantastic hosts, and ohhhh the cooking! First class all the way. Thank you Neil & Joyce for making this one of the coolest trips so far! For all the miles you drove and the time you spent slaving in the kitchen. We always have so much fun with you guys. Can't wait for our next trip, maybe to Sedona?

Love you both,

Gary & Kelly

Getting the chance to shoot with my sister is always a real treat. We have so much fun exploring. It's so nice to have a common interest to share with my Sis, and she takes great pictures too!

My brother-in-law has this nature hike thing down to a science - he guards the stuff, while we head on up the trail. Good job Neil finding that recyliner in the woods!

Lots of homesteads (little houses) on the prairie :)

Very limited birds in flight subjects, but there were plenty of frogs to entertain us.