GRAD'N! (PART 1)

My youngest sister is graduating this year so her commencement (I'm sorry... 3.5 hour commencement) ceremony was this week. I went early with her to take some pictures of her and her friends with their caps and gowns. Unfotunately, it was pouring so we didn't get to play around in too many locations... for fear of ruined hair. Here are a few of my favorite pictures we took of the girls!

JEFF & KATHRYN

Over the weekend I got to go to a wedding as a guest. It was nice to just be able to enjoy the day with my friends. I grew up with the groom and have known his family for years so it was kind of wierd to see him get married!!! Sometimes I forget that I'm an "adult". Although I didn't really take many pictures, the wedding was on a boat cruise and I couldn't resist taking a few just for fun! The rain was not a welcome guest, but it did make for some really cool pictures (I put my favorite one at the end... for some reason it reminded me of the movie Pearl Harbor...)! Congrats Jeff and Kathryn!

{TAMARA}

I spent the gorgeous Sunday we just had in Vancouver with my good friend Tamara. It was really bright which isn't really ideal photography conditions, but we used it to our advantage and played with the light/shadows and it turned out amazing! We also found some great hidden shaded areas which gave us somewhere to just have fun taking pictures. We laughed a lot and were super tired by the end but it was well worth it. Here are some of the pictures... I'll be honest, it was REALLY hard to choose which ones to pick. I had so many that I loved! Here's a sample from all the locations. Thanks T. :)

JUST FOR FUN: HOW TO BE HIP HOP

Ok. So for those of you who don’t know... I have been going to dance classes for the last 3 months for fitness and fun! Honestly, it’s awesome. For any of you in the Langley area check out iDance (http://www.idance-studios.com/). One of my favourite classes is hip hop so this post is in honour of that! As someone who is so un-hip-hoppy but tries really hard, I am not qualified to write about this, but here it is anyway! Hope you enjoy this lil' joke post!

1. Have a lot of attitude. That's where it has to start. You're great and you know it... and so should everyone else.

2. Wardrobe. This is key... you gotta look it to be it. Consider baggy clothes, ironic graphic-tees, gangsta' hats, and of course loud, obnoxious kicks (that's hip hop for shoes). I know when I put on my XL sweats I go from regular Katee to K-fre$h instantly. I imagine if I stayed in Chicago (where I was born), that's probably what everyone would be calling me today.

3. Punch someone, or a few people... just to get comfortable letting out your rage in a physical act. I know this really helped me.

4. Swag Hands. You have to master this or nobody will see you as a legit hip-hopper. It's really key in creating your hip hop persona. My personal choice is the cross between a gun and a chicken foot.

5. Always listen to loud music with intense beats. This will ensure that hip hop is in your core. To use this tip to even more advantage, I recommend walking to the beat with a slight limp... include a lot of intentional head nods as well.

6. Get low and include bad posture in your daily routine. I can't stress this one enough. You need to look as un-ladylike as possible or you will look like a fool. And I ain't no fool, fool!

7. Be loud. Now that you are comfortable in your hip hop skin, make sure everyone can hear your thoughts and opinions... trust me they will want to when they see how cool you are!

8.Be too legit to quit. That's it.

9. O. and don't spell so good. shortening words is cool...bad spelling n gramma's where it's at in the hiphop comm.

10. Use me as an example. I clearly know what I'm doing. Note the strong swag hands and the intense, confident facial expression, and mysterious hood. This environment with a basketball hoop really compliments the look as well.

THANKS GUYS... SERIOUSLY, CHECK OUT THE YOUTUBE VIDEO BELOW. THE GIRL WITH THE HEADBAND TAUGHT ME ALL I KNOW. HAHA... BUT SERIOUSLY! SHE'S AN AWESOME TEACHER!

FREEDOM WEEK!

This past week I was able to spend time working with Tara Teng (the current Miss Canada) and her team on Freedom Week. This was several events that took place in order to raise awareness about human trafficking in Canada. I was able to go see a play that was written for this as well as a dance/play performance that told a few true stories of people who were victims of human trafficking in Canada. They were both incredibly moving and powerful events that reminded me why this is something I have been so passionate about for so long. Sometimes it takes hearing one person's story to make the 27 million (which is a current estimate of how many people are trapped in modern-day slavery world-wide) seem real. The week ended on Saturday with the Freedom Rally and March where a we all gathered and marched through the streets of Langley to make a stand and bring awareness that 'slavery is bad and we want it to stop'! Those words basically sum up what Tara's goal was when she started planning this event. Right now Canada is both a destination and source of human trafficking and my hope is that one day, Canada will be known as a nation with absolutely no tollerence for this injustice. Here's some pictures from the dance performance and the Freedom March to give you an idea of how great these events were! Thanks for letting me share a little bit more than usual!