Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday!! Sorry for the lack of posts lately - I've spent the last three months editing client photos (so much awesomeness!) and when I take breaks, I don't want to be on/near/by a computer. But I'm hoping to return soon (I had amazing gift guides that I never posted - so much sadness).

In the meantime, a few weeks ago I photographed a wedding on a farm close to Front Royal, VA (so pretty!!) and before the event I drove out there with T and his friends to preview the venue. The photo above is from our trip, as you can tell the kids had a blast!

Have a great weekend and if you have a chance, check out our newest post on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.

RANDOM LINKS:

* Vogue magazine just published its top 10 books of 2017 (The Idiot was fantastic). And every year I can't wait to check out NPR's Book Concierge (which has great ideas for holiday gifts).

* So excited to see Darcy Troutman Photography on Kidfriendly DC's Gift Guide.

* Speaking of Darcy Troutman Photography - there's a great new family up on my professional website. If you're looking for the perfect Christmas gift - why not think about a photo shoot gift certificate? If you buy now you lock in 2017 pricing.

* This twitter stream regarding badass bitches is pretty amazing.

* Trevor Noah made me cry (but still - you have to watch!)

* 11 year old Meghan Markle made me smile/cheer.

* These photo collages are awesome.

* If you're looking for the perfect kid's gift (for all ages), The Kids Should See This has an amazing gift guide.

* I've already planned summer vacation 2018, but I think 2019 might need one of these.

Things to Do - 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime and Random Links

Happy Friday everyone!! Last weekend we rented a little cottage in the woods outside Meadows of Dan, VA and, if you ask me, it was the perfect family get away. A fireplace. Family boardgames. HGTV. Naps. Homemade cocktails. Walking through the forest with the dogs (no leashes!). A campfire at night.

If you ask the kids, they may say, "um, I'm not sure why we had to drive that far to not really do anything."

So goes my life. I try.

If you have a chance, click here to check out this week's awesome post on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.

RANDOM LINKS:

* 2016's best installation art. Makes me want to travel.

* These "cozy" books sound perfect for winter!

* Putting a face to a comment - the new online crusaders.

* I kind of want to try introvert soap.

* The Adams' Family had a pink living room (who knew?).

* These movie posters are gorgeous.

* I want this calendar.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! Last week the kids and I drove to Storm King scultpure garden in NY (about an hour north of NYC) to see the fall colors and we had a blast. I'll post more photos next week. In the meantime, don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.

RANDOM LINKS:

* Explosure. Love these photos.

* 6 big fall books.

* Passivity.

* Family album - more amazing fine art photography involving children.

* Read this. ("What happens now? Honestly, I’m not sure what the best steps are. Is it to share loudly? “When we share, we unlock other women’s stories, and suddenly secrets don’t seem so necessary,” says Jenni Konner in “Our Voices Are Our Superpower.” Is it for men to speak up? Is it to raise good children? What else? There must be something else.")

* I want to try sheet plan chili.

* This road trip looks AMAZING!

* A secret to a happy marriage. Love this idea (and this couple).

* A few new awesome families are up on my professional blog - click here to check them out.

* I really want to see this new photography exhibit.

* Compelling portraits of people who abandoned civilization to live in the wilderness.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! T's pretty excited for Halloween this year!

If you have a chance, check out our awesome new post on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime!

RANDOM LINKS:

* I'm totally smitten with this playlist.

* 16 films to watch this fall.

* A photo series on the wolf children, who fled the woods in the final months of WWII in order to escape death and exile, as the Red Army swept across eastern Germany.

* I can't stop listening to this song. Over and over.

* I just watched this movie and now I can't stop dreaming about Pantelleria. I must go!! I must go!!

* My friend shot an engagement session at the county fair and the photos are phenomenal. If anyone in the DC area is interested in a fair family session - keep me in mind!!!

* A new family photo shoot is up on my professional blog. We had so much fun!

* The new lego house looks AMAZING.

* Slant rhymes. I'm somewhat obsessed with these photos.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Monday!! The neighbors hired T to start mowing their lawn, usually he uses our push mower but last week Dan helped him with the bigger mower. Corners were tough, but all in all he did a good job.

I hope you all had a great weekend. Here are some random links to get you through Monday. And, if you have a chance, please check out our new post on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime - lots of fantastic images this week!

RANDOM LINKS:

* 100 great works of dystopian fiction. Where to begin?

* YES!!!

* Billboards telling you where to go next - I love this project.

* A new batch of cookbooks for fall.

* The 10 books long listed for the National Book Award for Fiction.

* How do families around the world spend their vacation? LOVED THIS!!!

* I love this shirt.

* I just subscribed to this new magazine, it looks really good. Plus I love reading offline.

* Has anyone tried this shampoo replacement? I'm curious if it will work on my hair.

* Nostalgia overload - the 1979 Sears catalog children's toy section.

Things to Do - 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime & Random Links

Happy Monday! I feel like Labor Day and random links somehow go together, not sure why.

The photo above is from the beach in Sardinia (probably my favorite place we visited this summer, though it's hard to compare, as they were all so different).

If you have a chance, check out our newest post on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime. Lots of fantastic images (as always!).

RANDOM LINKS:

* This photo series on LA is awesome and quirky.

* 10 stories (for adults) for back to school season.

* Suntan ads from the 1960s - 1980s. So bizarre. The weird thing is I can remember seeing the Miss Hawaiian Tropic ads in my Seventeen, which makes me feel old.

* 3 end of summer meals that scream Sunday dinner (even on a weeknight).

* August Sander - people of the 20th century. We saw some of Sander's work in Vienna and I can't get it out of my head. Such a cool project.

* A 300 square foot tiny house in California.

* Aren't these playgrounds beautiful?

* I'm liking this quirky new video.

* A view inside the Houston homes hit by Hurricane Harvey.

* The best movies of 2017 (so far). And the best podcast os 2017 (so far).

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday!! I hope you all are having a great summer! The photo above is from our annual solstice/last day of school block party. Once water enters the picture everything became chaos.

If you have a chance, don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime! Have a great weekend!

RANDOM LINKS:

* 32 Hilton hotel rooms in different countries (oddly fascinating).

* Have you seen these creative architectural portraits? They're so so cool.

* This book sounds really good.

* 11 ways that I, a white man, am not privileged.

* Funny third grade reading list. Bookmarking for T.

* This look yummy.

* I really want to see this female photography exhibit in Chicago.

* Emmy snubs and surprises.

* 10 cool summer date ideas in DC.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy weekend everyone!! We dropped F at camp last Sunday and it feels weird without her in the house. So I keep looking at photos from before she left. One one hand it's so fun to watch them grow. But on the other hand, it's hard when they leave.

Don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.

RANDOM LINKS:

* Accidental Wes Anderson locations. So cool!

* Aren't these posters pretty?

* 11 novels about female artists.

* Follow your heart (DC has the best murals).

* Emmy's 2017 - Top show runners pick their favorite shows.

* 25 essential graphic novels.

* Funny.

* The best books of 2017 (so far).

* Lee Friedlander’s Photos of 1960s T.V. Sets are oddly mesmerizing.

* 10 great "accidental" documentaries about NYC in the 1970s.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

One last photo of our camping trip. Usually I focus on candids when I photograph my own children. But every once in awhile, when there's phenomenal light, I'll say, "please stand here and talk to me for awhile." Often these conversations end up being the highlight of my day.

Have a great weekend everyone! Don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.


RANDOM LINKS:

* This video made me happy.

* Summer reading.

* Aren't these pants adorable?

* Have you seen these water-activated street murals? The perfect cure for a rainy day.

* The 11 best kickstarter-funded products, according to kickstarter employees. I'm thinking of buying this one to celebrate the beginning of summer.

* Have you seen Wonder Women yet? We all loved it. This article sums it up well - “I felt like I was discovering something I didn’t even know I had always wanted. A need that I had boxed up and buried deep.” After watching movie after movie where men saved the day with a well-timed punch while women cleaned up the mess around the edges, Wonder Woman is a goddamn revelation."

* How to raise a feminist son.

* The 25 best films of the 21st century so far. Do you agree? I'm so glad Boyhood made the list.

* Where to go camping in Northern VA.

* I'm a little obsessed with this song lately.

* I would LOVE to do a photo session like this one.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday!!

On Wednesday, we returned home after five days in the Outer Banks and I'm still feeling discombobulated. As always, we filled a beach house with eight families and everyone had a blast. More photos to follow soon.

In the meantime, have a fantastic weekend and don't forget to check out this week's awesome in 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime. (So many fantastic images this week!!)

RANDOM LINKS:

* I want to see this art in the desert.

* Teenagers of the 1970s.

* I can't wait to make this recipe.

* 11 innovative ceramic artists. I love the balloon dinosaur.

* I'm so excited for the return of the old J Crew (preppy, reasonable prices, practical/cool clothes).

* Maybe I need to buy more pepto bismol.

* I can't wait to check out DC's newest interactive art exhibit!

* "33 things I learned from this season's cookbooks."

* I just bought this camera and I'm in love (so much lighter than my bulky Canon Mark III and it takes amazing photos!).

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy weekend everyone! If you have a chance, don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime!


RANDOM LINKS:

* KidFriendly DC's summer fun guide.

* I actually want to see the films in Flavorwire's reasonable, low-expectation summer movie preview.

* Suburbia in photos.

* 6 healthy recipes for when you barely have time to cook.

* Doesn't this dessert look delicious (and easy to make)?

* A science podcast for kids - this sounds awesome!

* 7 new books to read this May.

* Movie scenes influenced by famous paintings - this is pretty cool!

* I keep trying to listen to more podcasts, but I usually end up watching TV instead. Maybe these will inspire me to switch.

* This new pet-sitting site looks awesome if you (like us) love to vacation.

* 50 best high school movies, do you agree? (My favorite will always be Pretty in Pink).

* My friends' moms - I found this the perfect read for Mothers' Day.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

I'm shaking things up and posting random links on a Monday (because Mondays need a boost of fun. Also because taking the 4th grade class to Jamestown, Yorktown, and Great Wolf Lodge makes for an exhausting Thursday, so I didn't get this post done in time).

The photo above was from the second half of our spring break (at Sandbridge beach in Virginia). More photos to come. In the meantime, don't forget to check out this week's awesomeness at 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.

RANDOM LINKS:

* Some of the best signs from the march for science.

* I'm totally obsessed with the work of Eugene Richards.

* I really want to go here. I wish someone could just teletransport me right now. And while I'm vacation planning, this trip looks super fun.

* Probably my favorite fashion shoot ever. If all models looked like this, I'd buy more clothes (way more clothes!)

* Six great swimming holes near DC. We might have to find one of these!

* Eight photographers on their favorite image in Robert Frank's The Americans.

* Oh, Ikea - what year is your favorite?

* These photos (shot by a street photographer) of the Met Gala are AMAZING!

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! I feel like I'm still recovering from spring break. And now with soccer starting on Saturday, the pace just isn't going to slow down. On the upside, we had a great week off - I attended an amazing photography workshop in North Carolina and then I picked up the kids and we headed to Sandbridge beach and spent a few days with a house full of friends.

If you have a chance, a great new post is up on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime - click here to check us out!!


RANDOM LINKS:

* The most underrated places in every state.

* This is the coolest elopement ever. 30% discount if anyone ever wants to elope in the woods with me (that sounds wrong, but hopefully you know what I mean)!

* Is anyone else excited for hives in DC this summer?

* Speaking of DC, Kidfriendly DC has a fantastic post on recreation on the water in the city and surrounding areas.

* Fascinating article - "As I thumbed toward the top of the screen, I had the disconcerting sense of watching a life become a life-style brand."

* 10 shows you should be watching but aren't. I'm looking for a new binge-worthy tv show, any suggestions?

* I want to read this book.

* Have you seen the new commercial about working moms? Truth?

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! Last week we picnicked at Hains Point (under the Cherry Blossoms) and I took the above photo of the kids. F's feminist t-shirts continue to become more creative (love this one in particular). If you have a chance, don't forget to check out this week's awesome in 5 Hours Til' Bedtime!

RANDOM LINKS:

* The Anonymous Women: Picturing Domesticity and Identity.

* Loving the new Bleachers' single.

* Question marks.

* Think like a bronze medalist, not silver.

* Millennials of New York. Funny. (“The Trump campaign has a lot in common with the tattoo of Tila Tequila I got in college – at first it was supposed to be ironic, but everyone stopped finding it funny after a couple of weeks, and now there is nothing I can do to get rid of it.”)

* A day in the life, toddler style.

* 12 great parks around Washington D.C.

* This archive is a little overwhelming.

* A parents' guide to the mysterious teenager.

* The most famous book that takes place is every state.

* I find this fascinating.

* Is anyone else enthralled with S-Town (I binge listened in two days)?

* I love that Cup of Jo featured a trans woman in its Beauty Uniform column.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! I'm shooting a wedding tomorrow and it's supposed to be 70 degrees, making me crazy happy!

Have a great weekend! And if you have a chance, don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime!

RANDOM LINKS:

* I just blogged another one of my favorite fall weddings - a sword arch, money dance, hora, and the best garter toss I've ever witnessed (the bouquet toss was also pretty amazing). Click here to check it out.

* YES!!!!

* I know I'm late to the party on this, but I can't stop listening to this song (and the video is so pretty). I learned about the song and video from this article, which was fascinating in its own right.

* A normal week of food, throughout the world.

* Dear Lorde, please continue to ignore the haters. I love you. Sincerely, Darcy.

* The disturbing origins of 10 famous fairy tales.

* There are a ton of great shows for families coming to DC this spring and Kidfriendly DC has the scoop - check out this list here.

* I've always wanted to do a photo shoot in a house under construction, like this one. I think it would create so many amazing memories.

* I find this salad intriguing (and easy to make)!

* 32 women authors on the life-changing books they read in their 20s (mine would be Of Human Bondage).

* Are these the best US National Parks?

* Loving this shirt.

Things to Do - 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime & Random Links

The photo above is one of T as the Hirschhorn's Kusama exhibit (so cool!).

Have a great weekend everyone! If you have a chance, don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime!

RANDOM LINKS:

* I want to eat these school lunches myself.

* So excited to finally post some photos of this gorgeous country wedding!

* This website is all sorts of awesome (link via Cup of Jo).

* 21 informative maps that will change your worldview.

* Have you tried google fortune-telling?

* Goop's spring reading list (the book about the Infinite Family Project sounds intriguing). I'm also loving this list of 365 books by women.

* I want to live in this old cement factory!!

* I'm a little obsessed withthese disappearing sculptures.

* Wouldn't these make wonderful posters for a little girls' room?

* 41 incredible museums to visit before you die.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! Yet another gorgeous day 70 degree here in Northern VA.

The photo above is another one that I took at the Smithsonian American Art museum - there was something so cool about watching the kids "interact" with the art. I'm hoping to take P to the Hirschhorn's Yayoi Kusama exhibit today, but I'm nervous about the lines. Fingers crossed!

Don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime! Have a great weekend!

RANDOM LINKS:

* Can you spot the women in these photos?

* 73 questions with Lena Dunham.

* 7 mistakes I made as a new photographer. I want to start using flash again (I use it for client sessions (sometimes), but rarely in my personal work).

* This children's book looks AMAZING!!

* I can't stop listening to this album.

* 34 books by women of color to read this year.

* THIS!!!!!!!

* 14 awesome tent camping experiences in VA. Every February I tell myself that we're going to camp all summer, but it never seems to work out that way. Anyways, North Creek Campground looks amazing - Dan could fish, I could hike - a total win.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

These crazy warm February days are confusing me. It does seem like, rather than winter, we're having one long spring. I'm not a huge fan of cold, but I must admit, I miss snow. How odd.

Have a great weekend everyone! And don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime!

RANDOM LINKS:

* Have you read the most popular book from the year you were born?

* 25 famous women on their mentors.

* Stranger Things (totally different from the TV show, but still pretty amazing).

* 8 Empowering middles school novels for kids interested in social justice.

* February tv preview.

* Women Photograph - LOVE LOVE LOVE this website!

* I recently blogged some family photo shoots and weddings over on my professional blog.

* Advice to a younger self.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! We've had a crazy warm week (so lots of afternoons at the dog park), I don't really miss the cold but the kids are bummed, they keep wishing for snow.

Don't forget to check out this week's awesome on 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime.

RANDOM LINKS:

* My goal this summer is to finally take a family backpacking trip - and these hikes look amazing - 10 Best 2-3 Day Virginia Backpacking Trips On The Appalachian Trail.

* 17 books that inspire travel.

* 75 books for the next four years.

* I'm totally obsessed with this Orlando vacation photo shoot.

* Isn't Kim Keever's artwork mesmerizing?

* Blue feed/red feed - whatever your political beliefs, you really need to look at this.

* 12 five ingredient dinners.

* I wanted to see the world.

Things to Do - Random Links & 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime

Happy Friday everyone! I can't believe it was 65 degrees yesterday and snow is on the radar for Saturday. Crazy world. I know I've been short on posts lately, but I promise more is coming soon.

In the meantime, don't forget to check out 5 Hours 'Til Bedtime - lots of great images this week!

RANDOM LINKS:

* The Top 10 Most Spectacular Art Installations of 2016. So so cool.

* Women Who Draw is one of my new favorite websites - a directory of hundreds of female artists.

* Loving these photo mashups.

* A year in dinners.

* Yolanda Baker, last of the disco ball makers.

* 52 places to go in 2017.

* An island made of plastic bottles.

* These photo-like paintings are incredible.

* Has anyone ever tried jade eggs before? I'm surprised/curious/unsure how to categorize my response.