Foodies....

Pasta, pasta and more pasta....

There is something amazing about fresh pasta.

And even more amazing about making it through your Grandfather's 50+ year old pasta machine...


Is there a such a thing as too much pasta?

Not in our house....

Our family spends most of our time in the kitchen...

Chris, Nicholas and Amanda received a cooking class with a Michelin Star chef for Christmas and made amazing food for Ashlynn's 18th Birthday...

We love Pasta...

I should weigh 250...

Missing my girls.... all over the world...

The most beautiful discovery
best friends can make
is
that they can grow separately
without growing apart...

Baby Bellies...

There is a wonderful feeling when a pregnant woman is around.

I love it.

I liked it so much I did it four times ....

But now I am getting up close and personal with a few bellies. My sweet precious friend Charlene from New Zealand is about to deliver in a few weeks. She has become a great photographer pal and wonderful friend. We did this shoot this weekend and it was so fun.

Love ya Char ...

Happy Birthing....

Sher

My new Favorite Senior

I haven't cried during a photoshoot in a while. Usually it is with young couples and pregnant bellies, but this day was different... This young man played the grand piano so beautifully I got teary eyed and had to stop and wipe my cheeks. Then he played the guitar and then the violin. WOW.

This is a special young man. He was on the swim team, runs track and is just an amazing gentleman. Plus extra bonus, He loves his mother... You know the kind, one like you want to marry your daughter...

Being around these incredible 18 year olds for an hour brings back my high school days. Boy is it different now. I still never grew taller, only wiser and wider...

If I had it to do all over again,

I would take piano lessons...

TWO WORDS ~ BALI BABY

How does she do that?

View from Breakfast...

Rice Fields on Bike tour...

Brushes in China Town...

Bali is not what I expected... It was better...

The real life of the Balinese was simple. The scenery was breathtaking... We took an amazing cycling tour through the rice fields and it was wonderful, even if I did whimp out the last uphill climb. Banyan Tree Cycling Tours...


But the highlight was sitting with the Orangutans at the Singapore Zoo. My favorite animal.


I can't wait to be a Grandma...

13 days until my children show up home away from home...

As you all are preparing the Pumpkin bread, Pecan Tassies and gathering gifts,

leave time for the needy, church, quiet time and starting your own family traditions. The season is only here for a short time, make the best of it, do something nice for someone that is not expecting it. Say "no" to things that aren't important.

Remember the pasts and look forward to the future but for now, enjoy the present.

ho ho ho,

Sher

I am Thankful for....

I am Thankful for waking up every morning.

I am Thankful for my very quiet wonderful gentle husband.

I am Thankful for my four amazing children and the other precious children in my life, some I have known all their lives and a few I have just met!

I am Thankful for the grandchildren I haven't met yet...

I am Thankful for my Family and extended family, especially my precious Momma of 82 years.

I am Thankful for birds that sing, dog that look cute, sun that shines, beautiful flowers and air to breathe.

I am Thankful for faith in God.

I am Thankful for forever Friendships near and far...

I am Thankful for airplanes to bring my children to me.

I am Thankful for Chris' cooking and his family that taught him how.

I am Thankful for Internet, telephones and all the modern conveniences that keep us connected.

I am Thankful for Chevron and the experiences they have given us.

I am Thankful for Health, Happiness, and Chocolate, by all means do not forget chocolate.

I am Thankful for being able to be myself in times when I should try to act differently but don't.

I am Thankful for teachers, schools, doctors and my prayer warriors.

I am Thankful for where I am knowing it is where I am supposed to be.(even if it is in Doha Qatar)

I am Thankful for the chance to dream of the future.

I am Thankful for the God given talents I have been fortunate to use passionately everyday, and the wonderful people I meet through my lens.

I am Thankful for chocolate, Oh, Did I say that already?

...and candles to light daily to remind me of warmth of the home.

I am Thankful of time, and the spirit of the season.

What are you thankful for?

Happy Thanksgiving bloggers and readers.

Enjoy your familes but help clean up the dishes.

Smiles,

Sher

Toddlers... Teens...Events & Seniors...

HOW CAN YOU RESIST THESE CHEEKS?


THE LOVE OF A FATHER...

Angel Faces...

a handsome fellow...

and an evening to kick up your heels...

Patrizi Photography, and "the Photographer" are in full swing!!! The season is here... I feel the clock ticking rapidly, the daily wheel is turning a knotch faster, my head is spinning more than usual...and it is fun...

(although we might have cereal for dinner a few nights this week...)

But today in the midst of it all, I redecorated my table, read in my Christmas journal with my dog in my lap, had coffee with a dear friend and prayed a bit extra.

Dog walks are getting shorter, phone calls and lunches less, and the excitement of the Holiday Season upon us... Families are discussing who is bringing the pumpkin pie, and making Grandma's cornbread dressing and we are headed to Bali.

What is on your Christmas List?

All I want for Christmas is my four kids to be all together.

Until then, I am going to continue to create timeless images to remind us when we are old, of the moment we are in today, where we are now...So we can remember then...

Making time stand still...

If only I could do that in real life.

No matter what ~ make time for yourself.

You are worth it!

Morning funny...

GRAVITY STINKS!

Days are getting shorter....

BOO.....

Bella's Halloween Costume...

Cupcakes for Pumpkin patch...

(Is this the last time I bake for Halloween at school?)

Have you noticed the days are getting shorter? I have... Not enough hours in a day to complete all the things I need to do... Luckily I have been blessed with an assistant lately that has taken the load off a bit and allowed me to have lunch with friends and volunteer at the school now and then and do free shit for people without feeling guilty. Sybil has creativity, attitude and technical suave that is by far way better than mine. Between sport teams and website/blog and marketing ideas, Patrizi Photography is "gettin er done" with Syb... Thanks hun!!! I don't have an intimidating picture of her to post but will take one soon... :)

Halloween was awesome, just like Texas but different. There were fairy princesses, ghosts, goblins, and everything in between. This is my favorite Fairy Maddie Mae...

Here we are handing out the genius idea of painted pumpkin faces on oranges... Healthy and spooky treat...

I did a newborn shoot on Halloween too... Precious Aili pronounced 'Eye lee' Oh was she a beauty and so well behaved... no mustard poop this week...

...then on to softball... another loss, but it was fun and I'm not a sissy! ha..

I made Grandma cry...

ELLA

Baby Ella was the perfect size for my idea...

Although what I didn't know when we were shooting this, is that Grandma was CRYING! She was so worried the baby would fall.

(Ashlynn told me she was praying in the corner...)

Well it worked.

I don't get a chance to shoot or hold naked newborns anymore because I hang out with old people like me with college kids and Seniors. So this was a treat...

What a precious family...

Senior Graduation Invitations 2010

You could order your invitations from a reputable company that's been around, oh say, a hundred years



or




You could even borrow your grandmother's granny panties

BUT, WOULD YOU???


I didn't think so.

Welcome to the Present
Class of 2010!

Say it YOUR Way

With Sherry Patrizi Photography

It's not your grandma's graduation, so why order cards from the company SHE ordered cards from? Come on, seniors!

THINK IT! SAY IT!

I WILL DISPLAY IT.

After all, graduation day is all about YOU! Don't hold back. Show the world who YOU are. Here is a small sampling of what Sherry Patrizi Photography can do for you.

Bella's Bath Day...

OK, If you do not own a dog, you are missing out.

This little ball of fur is my all time sweetest dog ever. Actually she is an almost human dog. The joys she brings to my world ever single day are many... Yes, I do pick up her poop, so I guess it is more like we are her people pets and she is really the boss, and I am perfectly OK with that.

I have never let one of my four children sleep in my bed but Bella well, she is special. This is what happens when all your children are almost grown. It is slightly sickening. I talk to her, hold her in my lap when I work, take her on 3-5 walks a day, give her treats, comb her hair, take her to doctor, doggie beauty salon and her cuts cost about as much as mine! She has special shampoo, drinks bottled water, and has special food you can't buy at the grocery store.

This ain't no dingo....

I paid 4,000 Qatar Riyals for her which is more than some people make in a year over here. My little houseboy Jacko asked me how much? How much? five times and I was too embarrassed to tell the truth, but I finally told him... So he doesn't call her Bella, he calls her "Four thousand!" (That is equal to about $1000 USD the price of all of our dogs in our entire lifetime combined and then some....)

Just call me Paris.

Although I do not own a Louis Vuitton purse to carry her in and I have not bought any Ed Hardy clothing, but have been tempted to see if they make little booties for her feet when the sidewalks are so hot she can't go outside during the daytime.

I can't help myself. Ashlynn is almost 18, I do not have to bathe her, dress her, feed her anymore. She is just about done with me. As I write this, she is in her room filing out College applications, (or facebook):)

A little dog is much better than the alternative, another child...

So until I am a grandma, which I am still working on the cutest word in the dictionary for my grandkids to call me... "hoochie mamma", and "Dude" is what I am thinking now, I am going to spoil my little fur ball rotten...and pretend I am needed as a mommy again...

If I could just teach her how to do Photoshop.....

Kids grow up, I don't think anyone warned me about that part. I've been so preoccupied and overwhelmed on how to raise them that I didn't realized it was only for a short moment of your life. Blink and it's over....

So for now, I will sit on every bleacher at every Volleyball and Tennis game, work the concession stand, be present at every parent function, bake cookies, join Graduation committees, and encourage the college application process, only to know that before long I will be sitting alone at home with my dog on my lap...

Be nice to your furry friends they don't leave home....
Sher

New meaning for "Smarty Pants"

We are in an age when media puts into our heads the idea that only skinny people are beautiful.

But I prefer to enjoy an ice cream with my kids, a good dinner with a man who makes me shiver and a coffee with my friends. With time we gain weight because we accumulate so much information and wisdom in our heads that when there is no more room it distributes out to the rest of our bodies.

So we aren't heavy, we are enormously cultured,educated and happy. Beginning today, when I look at my butt in the mirror I will think, ¨Good gosh, look how smart I am¨



Have a fun day!

Sher

Do angels have wings?

Often I am reminded by real people

that seem to be angels in my life

that maybe,

just maybe,

not all angels have wings...

Some just might be your next door neighbor that knocked at the perfect time, or that amazing teacher that has taken your "new to the school" student by the hand. Angels to me can be real people just placed here on earth to help us through stages in our lives.

We all have them, and believe me

we all need them.

I have a few.

Some are here on earth and some are not.

Some come and some go...

You can tell these so called real life angels are real angels by the way they sincerely and wholeheartedly listen to you, guide you, laugh with you and sometimes allow you to make mistakes and tell you it is all going to be OK. And something about the way they say it, you know they are right. Angels comfort you...

Some are young and some are older, some are female and some are not. Angels come in many colors, shapes and sizes...

I am thankful for all the wingless ~ walking ~ talking angels in my world past and present...

But there are days that... Sometimes you have to be someone's angel too...

Keep those wings ready, even if you have never flown before... :)

Blessings to all...

Sher

Awesome Oaks....

As I wandered through the enormous live oaks at the Houmas House right around the corner from my Mother-in-law's home near New Orleans this summer, I couldn't help but think of all the people who have come and gone under these branches.

To think of all the hurricanes that have hit the Gulf Coast for the past say 200-300 years and these majestic monstrosities are not harmed.

The roots are deep and strong...The way you hope your family will be. The branches reach 50 yards it seems in each direction bowing down to touch the ground in some places. These are some of the most fantastic trees I have ever seen in the world.

I have always said I want a hundred year old live oak to call my own before I die. I want to sit under it and pray, and dream, and reminisce of younger years. I want to play with my grand children and picnic and laugh and have happy hour under one that I can name myself and that will become a legacy in our family... I want it on a place that we never sell. I have secret day dreams about a day in Spring when I am at home with little people again, the ones I can spoil and then give back...

Until then, I will live in Doha, and finish raising the little one left at home... I want to be that live oak for her, branches to protect and hug, and deep roots to weather the storms...

Blue Eyes...

Big Eyes...

This summer I had the honor to be chosen

God Mother of Kelly and Elizabeth Gibson's

second daughter Ava in New Orleans Louisiana.

MORE faces of Summertime....

Reuniting with old friends and making a few new ones....

Now back to Doha...

Faces of Summertime!

Summertime was spent surrounded by those we love....

6,246 miles later.....