Happy New Year from Naples, Florida!

After spending Christmas in Colorado in the single digits, we have been able to spend a wonderful beach week at New Years in Naples Florida. So nice to be able to enjoy both the mountains and the beach. We are blessed! Happy New Years!

The full vacation slideshow here....

Merry Christmas from Keystone Resort!

We were able to spend a little time ice skating on Christmas Eve at Keystone Resort, and it was absolutely BEAUTIFUL! Only 5 degrees, but there were lots of other families out ice skating and enjoying the cold weather.

And Mommy got to spend a little time with her 85mm 1.4 Nikkor Lens - great in low light, but I had a little trouble getting the focus right! And my white balance was a little off with some of the lights on Keystone Pond and the hockey rink lights - but I was able to take some good photos at 3200 ISO.

Hold a Wedding at Keystone Resort - get two free season passes!

I just learned that Keystone is offering a unique incentive to couples booking weddings to be held before November 30, 2010. Two free season passes! More information online at www.keystoneweddings.com.

Details of the offer are on Keystone's Website - or you can email the wedding coordinators in Keystone's Events Office at keystoneweddings@vailresorts.com.

Keystone weddings are really a step above the others.... they have so many different venues to choose from! I have photographed weddings at:

Ski Tip Lodge





Timber Ridge at the Outpost






Keystone Back Ranch


And you can download a great PDF of Keystone Weddings by going to their website www.keystoneweddings.com

Summit County Wedding Vendors

Favorite Summit County Venues
Sapphire Point
Keystone Ski Tip Lodge
Keystone Back Ranch
Griffith Lodge - Breckenridge
Silverthorne Pavilion

Favorite Summit County Florists
Petal and Bean - Breckenridge
Bloom - Breckenridge
Garden of Eden - Frisco

Favorite Summit County Caterers
Hearthstone Catering - Breckenridge
All Seasons Catering - Silverthorne
Gilchrist Catering - Dillon

Favorite Weddings Links
Rocky Mountain Bride - magazine and planning website for Mountain Weddings
Wedding Mapper - started as mapping service for weddings - now planning tool also
Wedding Wire - Online Planning tool and forum for brides
ListPhotographers.com
WedDJ.com - listing of wedding vendors
Blog Catalog

Favorite DJ's
Rockin The Rockies - Denver & Mountains of Colorado

Favorite Wedding Planners:
Custom Weddings of Colorado - Wendee Walter
Bella Design - Emily Campbell
Rocky Mountain Bridal Consultants

Favorite Salons:
Serenity Spa - Keystone
Southern Exposure - Dillon

.

Breakfast with Santa Saturday in Frisco

I had the pleasure of photographing the annual "Breakfast with Santa" at Toscato Restaurant in Frisco Saturday morning.

Click here for a slideshow of the event.

What I love is all those little faces - so curious and innocent.... pointing fingers at Prancer.... all of them just in awe!






Andd these little boys just made me smile - more interested in the beautiful boots and bells on Santa than in the story he was telling.... they kept touching the bells softly... like they were magic! Maybe they are?

Great Pink Glove Video for Breast Cancer Awareness

A friend forwarded this video yesterday that I LOVE! Employees at the Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland created this video called the Pink Glove Dance Video all with staff and to the song Down, by Jay Sean. I think it's brilliant!



Both ABC news and Fox News have more details about the video online. Apparently it was done as a promotion for Medline gloves and Medline was to donate money to the hospital and provide free mammograms if there were over 1 million views. Since the video first aired in mid-November, there are almost 5 million views on Youtube!

What a feel good video! I like the janitor especially!

And what a great opportunity to enlist some more snowshoers for this years Tubbs Romp to Stomp to be held on March 6, 2010 at the Frisco Nordic Center! Registration information online at:

www.tubbsromptostomp.com

Another AMAZING successful fundraiser for CF - Bash at the Basin!

Last night was the 1st Annual Bash at the Basin - a fundraiser for Cystic Fibrosis. Xtreme skiers, Jossi and Byron Wells, and olympic ski champion Jake Fiala were gracious enough to attend the event and donate ski lessons which brought in thousands of dollars for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in the live auction.

The event was a smashing success - you can view the event slideshow by clicking here........

and if you dare you can view all 220 event photos here....

Thanks to Julie Charneskie for dreaming this idea up and making it a reality!
Thanks to Arapahoe Basin for hosting the event and helping us raise funds!
Thanks to Jossi and Byron Wells for all the signatures, photos, smiles, and inspiring so many of us!
Thanks to Jake Fiala for going above and beyond - when his ski lesson was at live auction and two bidders were fighting around the $800 mark, he offered a second lesson so each bidder could have a lesson with him!
Thanks to Rojos Calientes for playing the night away for us!
Thank you to all the volunteers that helped and all the attendees who donated. Thanks to all the businesses and individuals that made this a GREAT event including Peggy Hiller, Chris Rybak, Beth Walters, Cathe Sander, Julie McCluskie, Wild Ernest Sports, Columbine Sports, Podium Sports, CBS4 News, Jared Polis, Nissa Erickson, MaryPat Cropper and Ebert Childrens Clinic.

Join Us Friday Dec 4th at Arapahoe Basin for a CF Fundraiser!

Preparations are in high gear for Friday's big Bash at the Basin to raise funds for Cystic Fibrosis! Freeskiing champions Jossi and Byron Wells from New Zealand will be special guests.

Today Denver CBS News interviewed Megan Andersen and her mom and sister Lizi - you can VIEW THE FOOTAGE HERE.....

It's not too late to attend the event - just call Julie to get tickets! (970)389-0306.

photo copyright www.freeskier.com

1st Annual "Bash at the Basin"for Cystic Fibrosis
Friday December 4th 6 to 10pm
Arapahoe Basin A-frame

tickets are $20 (adults) and $10 (14 and under)

Special Guests:
Jossi and Byron Wells - Freeskiing Champions

Italian Dinner
Music by Rojos Calientes
Live Auction featuring
freeskiing lessons with Jossi & Byron Wells,
ski lessons with Jake Fiala, and lots of other items!

Please call Julie to order tickets
(970) 389-0306