hocus outta focus : the hocus focus blog

I Heart Sparkly Stuff

Most of what I've been blogging lately is stuff I shot last fall, but never got around to posting during the madness of the holidays.  These were shot for Her Life Magazine. 

The jewels from Tivol, Especially Jewelry and The Polished Edge were TO DIE FOR!  And I got to shoot The Fabulous Wannette, from Exposure, Inc.  I'd been wanting to shoot her forever and we had a blast.  Can't wait to shoot her again.  (Call me next time you're in town, lady!)




I told you they were gorgeous!  Now wipe the drool from your chin and get back to what you were doing. 

Until next time,
H

Ice Cream and Firefighters

Who doesn't love ice cream and firefighters? 


The Morrows do!  And come to think of it, I don't think I've ever met a firefighter who doesn't love ice cream.  I'll ask Chris, but I'm pretty sure that's a job requirement.  Must be able to endure deadly temperatures.  Must be able to carry a 200 pound man from a burning building.  Must love ice cream.      
Stop by Baskin-Robbins, for 31 CENT SCOOP NIGHT in honor of America's Firefighters.  On Wednesday, April 29, 2009 from 5pm to 10pm participating stores will reduce prices of small ice cream scoops to 31 cents and Baskin-Robbins will make a $100,000 donation to the NVFC National Junior Firefighter Program.  And at some locations you may also have an opportunity to make a donation to local fire charities.

So, take your family out Wednesday night and support two things I truly love.  Ice cream and firefighters.

Not that anyone would need a reminder to go eat ice cream...but just in case you're not quite as die hard as me, you can text SCOOP to 31310 and they'll send a reminder to your cell phone.  How cool is that? 

Peace, love and mint chocolate chip!
H

Cleaning Up The Coffee

You'll have to excuse me while I wipe my grande non-fat caramel latte from my computer screen.  You'd think I'd know by now.  After reading her blog for so long I should see it coming. 

If you've ever had a conversation with me about blogs you've heard me talk about Heather Armstrong (aka Dooce).  She's got to be one of the funniest people EVER!  And not only is she funny...she's wife, she's a mom, and just like all of us (don't lie, everyone has them) she's got issues.  But she's not afraid to talk about them.  In a hilariously funny spit-your-coffee-on-the-screen kind of way.

I just found out Dooce is working on a new project that I find incredibly entertaining and also quite informative.  Here's one clip from the project called momversation.

For all the moms who read my blog you MUST and I mean MUST (said with at least 14 syllables like they taught me in Texas) leave this blog now and go visit momversation.com.

Then come back here and tell me how freaking funny it is and that you're just as addicted to it as me.  In other words come back here and make me feel better about my issues. 

Happy Saturday!
H

ROCK ON Update : Beth Foraker on Fox 4

For some reason I always miss the Her Life Magazine segments that air on Fox 4 News at noon on Mondays, but I'm so thankful for the genius that is the internet.

Fox 4 put today's segment on their website so check out the interview with Beth Foraker (also known as David Cook's mom).

It's so crazy to see my cover shots on TV!  Beth looked amazing and gave a great interview.  I admire her so much for her dedication to her children.  She's such a loving, supportive mom. 

ROCK ON!

I don't know many people in Kansas City that weren't completely hooked on the last season of American Idol.  And for very, very good reason.  Two words, people.  DAVID. COOK.

My family and I were parked in front of the TV twice a week rooting for Kansas City's own as he sang his heart out to become the next American Idol.  Both Rilee and Lucee were completely smitten with him.  It was not unusual to see them walking around the house jamming with their toy guitar and microphones pretending to be David Cook.

So, naturally when I got the call that I would be shooting David and Andrew Cook and their mom, Beth Foraker for Her Life Magazine the first thing I did was call my kids.  I spoke to Rilee and this was our conversation.

ME:  Hey, Roo!  Guess who I get to take pictures of? 

ROO: (silence)

ME:  I'll give you a hint. He was on a TV show.  On a show that we....

ROO:  Uh, I knooooooooow mom.  David Cook.  

She tried to act all un-impressed, but deep down I knew she was.  In fact, when I picked her up at Grandma's house after the shoot the first thing she said when I walked in the door was, "Mom, can I see the pictures you took of David Cook?"

So, here they are.   This first series was shot right after an enormous wall mural was dedicated to David in downtown Blue Springs.  It was such a cool thing to see - a very emotional day for David and his family.  David took time to talk to so many fans and friends and sign autographs that day.  We had just a few minutes to shoot, but both David and Andrew turned it on for the camera.  They were quite comical and so, so sweet to their mom who is clearly so proud of both of her boys.

 
And a few images from Beth's cover shoot.  Isn't she gorgeous?  And how perfect is this Rock and Roll Mom tee she found at Style and Grace? 


Check out the November issue of Her Life Magazine for the full story on Beth Foraker and her family's American Idol journey. 

And be sure to grab a copy of David Cook's new CD available at Amazon.com. 

ROCK ON!
H

Oh, Crop!

My latest visit to cafepress.com has refueled my obsession with funny t-shirts.  

You all remember the DAMN, IT FEELS GOOD TO BE A GANGSTER shirt, right?  It's totally my favorite and I wear it all the time.  Just ask Jennifer Mullinax.  I showed up to shoot her family having forgotten that I had it on.  Thank goodness we're friends and her kids aren't old enough to read yet!  A couple of my other faves are NO, REALLY. I JUST LOOK LIKE HER and I HAVE ISSUES.

But these are also up there on my list of favorites. 



and last but not least...this one is sooooooo inappropriate, but Good Lord I love it anyway!

The writing is really small, but it says, PHOTOSHOP WHORE.  [insert evil, inappropriate laugh here...]

If I Had a Fairy Godmother...

This is exactly how I would imagine her to be. 

Whimsical.
Eclectic.
Dreamy.
And draped in LUSCIOUS jewels from Tivol.

I recently had the honor of shooting Pam DiCapo, of Lauren Alexandra.  Pam's amazing home was the perfect backdrop for our shoot and I swear if she'd let me I'd move in tomorrow.  Talk about a photographer's dream.  Color, texture and style galore!  And the same goes for her stores.  There's one in Brookside and one in Briarcliff Village - both of which I could spend hours shopping in. 

And Pam...well, she's simply delightful.  And such a creative soul.  I thought I'd died and gone to heaven when I saw the dress she'd found for our shoot.  It had been sitting in a local vintage shop just waiting for the fairy godmother to come and take it home.  It was just perfect for our shoot, which was such a fantastic collaboration between the two of us.   

While I'd love to share more of our photos, I can't give away all the secrets so you'll have to check out the June issue of Her Life Magazine.       

Inspiring Moms

I recently attended a Her Life Magazine cocktail party at Cafe Trio where I was introduced to Amy Davis of Inspiring Moms.

Last week Amy graciously invited me to attend her Inspiring Moms seminar. 

A mother of seven children, Amy realized after having her first child that college prepared her for lots of careers, but motherhood was not one of them.  Amy said she remembers her friends and family telling her she would be a great mother and that she was bound to be "a natural".  Amy also says that good wishes and best intentions only take you so far and that most people's natural instincts don't tell them how to juggle real situations like trying to wrangle a toddler on the go and comfort a baby who screams every time you put her down for a nap.

Amy began to think of motherhood as a profession.  Her practical parenting experience, extensive research and education have led her to what she calls her "eighth child".  Inspiring Moms - Raising Success & Happiness.  Amy says that when you approach motherhood like a profession, you will grow in confidence, control and happiness.  And Heather says, "when Momma's happy, everybody's happy."

Amy points out in her seminar that Starbucks provides something like 3 weeks of training for their baristas.  We're talking about people who make coffee for a living.  And you all know how serious I am about my coffee so I'm NOT knocking that profession AT ALL, but I do think it's a bit easier to screw up a child than my non-fat caramel latte.  Being a mother is THE most important job a woman can have.  And what kind of training do we get?   It's kind of a joke if you really think about it.

What is no joke is the amazing information and motivation I got from the Inspiring Moms seminar.  Amy has an amazing energy with which she approaches life and motherhood and it's contagious.  I walked away from that seminar with a new outlook on motherhood and even more important - practical ways to effect change in my family.  What I love about Inspiring Moms is that isn't not just another motivational speech where you get all hyped up and then do nothing about it.  Before the seminar you take a quick online assessment test.  Those results are given to you at the seminar and based on your personal results Amy works with you to create a plan of action finding simple, effective ways to enjoy your "career" as a mom and raise a happier family.

Whether you have children or you're expecting them Amy's seminar is a MUST!  Once you've attended the seminar you can attend one of Amy's Best Practice Workshops, where you and Amy, along with other moms, discuss simple, yet effective ways to make your job as a mother easier and more enjoyable.  And let me tell you Amy is a GENIUS when it comes to raising children with success and happiness (and not pulling her hair out along the way).  Now that I've taken the seminar I can't wait to participate in one of the workshops. 

Amy, thank you from the bottom of my heart for having me at this seminar.  (My husband and daughters thank you, too!)  I feel blessed to have met you and will definitely see you soon at a Best Practice Workshop.  Success and Happiness, here I come! 

Much love,
H

What the French, Toast?

So, as you know it's been a long, chaotic holiday season for me.  And what do I do to unwind?  I sit on the couch with my husband and laugh my ass off at funny commercials like this one.

We Tivo'd Funniest Commercials of the Year 2007 and  OMG!  We've watched this Orbit Gum commercial about 863 times and haven't gone more than 2.4 minutes without saying, "What the French, Toast?" or calling each other a "Lint Licker".

Ahhhh.  Good times.

And by the way, if you haven't had that Raspberry Mint gum, you MUST try it.  It's one of my faves!

Move Over Betty Jayne!

A couple of months ago Beth came over for my regular manicure.  She pulls in the driveway, comes running, no make that sprinting, into the house and says, "Grab your wallet.  Get in the car.  We gotta go.  NOW!"  Chris just looks at me and says, "Oh, no.  This CAN'T be good."  Beth repeats herself and this time I know SHE AIN'T PLAYIN'.  The situation was urgent...whatever it was.  So I did as she demanded.  I grab my wallet.  I get in the car.  And we go. 

We head down my street and around the corner like we're in turn four of the last lap of the Indy 500.  While I'm holding on for dear life, wondering if I should have told my husband and kids I loved them one last time we make another turn and as Beth begins to pull over I catch a little glimpse of what the hell was just so damn important to her.  I looked at it.  I looked at Beth.  She looked at me and at that moment words were just not necessary.  It was love at first sight.  And when I heard those three little words I thought I'd died and gone to Heaven.  I know what you're thinking, but this was way better than "I love you".  It was even sweeter.  And way more powerful.  Life changing, in fact.  We're talking three little words to stop you in your tracks, take your breath away and melt. your. heart.

TWENTY.  FIVE.  DOLLARS.

SHUT!  UP!  You heard me.  TWENTY!  FIVE!  DOLLARS!  Do you people KNOW how excited I am? 

And how much I love Beth (Her Royal Highness, Queen of the Garage Sale Find) for finding it for me?

And how excited I was to finally use it on a photo shoot?  We're going to chop off the legs and get something a little more funky, but in the mean time I had to give it a whirl. 

You've all seen Betty Jayne (the black leather trunk I love so much).  I got her for $60 at a local thrift shop and don't know how I ever lived without her.  I'm always on the lookout for cool furniture (that will fit in the back of my Jeep) so if you're ever out and about and see something you think I might not be able to live without call me or send me a picture and if I love it I'll hook you up with a sweet deal on your next photo shoot. 

Oh, and in case you're wondering how Betty Jayne got her name I found an old shipping label on the side trunk that was addressed to Miss Betty Jayne Frass.  Doesn't she just sound too sweet for words?   

I guess maybe we should name the zebra chair.  Any suggestions?