Before we left I had been going back and forth on what camera to take with me. This of course went hand in had with the idea of hiring a model in Mexico for a photoshoot as I have done in the past. My first camera choice would have been to only bring my smaller pocket sized Sigma DP2. It takes up next to no room and I've used the camera for little personal projects, even a few weddings over the past year, and love this little machine. In the end, I had extra room in my bag and brought way too much gear (underwater housing?) but still I was on vacation and no shoots were scheduled.

The flight there was the most difficult part of the trip. Just as we taxied to the runway, the pilot came on to notify us that there was problem with the plane. Instead of taking off on time, we had the chance to entertain our little ones on the plane for an extra hour - thankfully everyone nearby us seemed to love little kids.

Once in Mexico we stayed at the Grand Luxxe, a lavish luxury hotel. It was wonderful to be pampered all week, with dedicated workers offering to clean my sunglasses at any time. We spent the majority of the week chasing Tyler and Sophie through the pools and waterslides. They were on a strict schedule of playing all day and crashing out from exhaustion only to wake up early the next morning for another round.

One morning my brother in law John and I woke up early to head up to Sayulita for a little surf trip. When we go there, the water was warm and the waves were waist high, which made for a good long boarding session followed by tacos and beer on the beach.

Despite these great conditions, the highlight of the day was when the rest of the family showed up; as soon as they got there, I paddled Sophie out into the lineup on the nose of my board to catch her first wave. It was a very cool moment to be able to share with my daughter, and she handled it like a pro. Not bad for a girl that isn't even two yet.

All week long we enjoyed excellent food where ever we went. From excellent ceviche to home made tacos and margaritas that are just too big it was truly vacation. In one restaurant, the waiter even remembered my my sister in law Shannon and John from their honeymoon there one year before and gave them their anniversary tequila shot!

The last night there, the kids went to bed early and Katie and I enjoyed dessert on the deck as the sun slipped below the horizon. They sky was simply gorgeous and I happened to bring a camera out to snap a shot of the colorful sky. It wasn't until few hours later that the weather turned and lightning crashed. Luckily my camera was still outside and I was able to capture a few strikes.

It was a much needed family vacation. Is it any wonder that on multiple occasions during the trip, Katie looked at me and said "I think we should move here"?

I've been working lately on on my landscape technique. It's an area of photography that doesn't come easily to me. I find I just don't have the patience that it requires. But I have come to realize that these pictures are not for sale or for any clients, they are for me. Suddenly I am learning to slow down and enjoy the process. They are pictures to remind me of my life and who I am. They are pictures that will hang in my house.

I've often wondered what everyone does with all of these photographs.  It seems like with the inexpensive price of digital photography, cameras are everywhere and the cost to take a single photograph is practically nothing.  When we used to shoot film, every exposure had a cost.  Things have changed, now everyone is a photographer (many with great equipment) and is able to afford to take lots of photographs.  But as the cost of a single photograph has diminished, its value has as well.  What is everyone doing with all of these photographs?  Does anyone make prints anymore?  Is Facebook the final resting place for our shared moments?

Last weekend, as I was preparing to have guests visit, I was cleaning out the guest bedroom and found a stack of brand new frames that I had purchased at least six months ago (some older than that) intending to put pictures in them and display throughout our house.  I bought them on sale, planning on taking some new photographs of our family to put in the frames.  But life moved on and that never happened.  The frames sat untouched, between the guest bed an it the nightstand for months.