staley wessel

Video of one of 2011 senior sessions...

Staley — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 07:08:13 GMT

It seems the best way for me to embed these videos that I have been struggling with is to upload to facebook or youtube and then embed using the code from there.
Please keep in mind that this is not meant to be played full screen and will not look good if you try.
This is from a fun senior session up in Parkville Mo.

Things aren't always what they seem...

Staley — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 15:50:06 GMT

The is a video of Mike Rowe from the show "Dirty Jobs".
It is good and thought provoking BUT the story at the beginning may make you cringe a bit.
Don't skip it though, it's an important part of the story.

arg....

Staley — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 04:14:45 GMT

I have all these fun videos from portrait sessions on my computer that I want to post to the blog but I can't figure out how to except for using a link. That is visually uninteresting. I thought I had it figured out but no luck

I know I can just upload them to youtube or facebook but it's just not the same.

Wish me luck figuring this stuff out.

My eldest son...

Staley — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 03:38:43 GMT

I was taking pictures at a family Christmas party and did one of those - off the hip tilt the camera and shoot without looking - type things. The focus was shallow and I was lucky to have gotten anything at all.

And.....

I LOVE IT!

This is so him. Unshaven, drinking coffee, and wearing that hat that may, in fact, be permanently attached to his beautiful fluffy head.

I just love him all to pieces :o)

jeans refashion to skinny jeans...

Staley — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 04:41:31 GMT

My most recent contribution to refashion coop.
He!e's the post.
Just narrowed some 25 cent jeans from the knee down so they fit in my boots better. I love these boots that my hubby bought for me last winter but I don't so much the bunching of tucked in pants.

Parkville Mo senior picture fun

Staley — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 03:58:32 GMT

I've said it before and I am sure I will say it a million more times but ...

"I LOVE MY JOB".

Today I had a fun senior session in Parkville, Mo. The whole family was really great and the dog....Oh My Goodness! How Adorable!

Here are a couple from the end of the session.

I'll share more as soon as I can ;o)

Refashion fun...

Staley — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 04:12:01 GMT

I am now a contributor on Refashion Coop.
Those who know me well know that I love to shop the thrift stores. A little less known is that when I can find time I like to dig out the old sewing machine. That doesn't happen often but when it does the combination is great fun. I have only made one contribution to the Coop blog and if you are interested you can find it here. It is actually a shirt that I altered this summer. I don't think I will have time to do any more until senior portrait season is over.
You can find Refashion Coop here:
Refashion Coop

DIY Laundry Detergent

Staley — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 03:30:14 GMT

Sorry, no portraits tonight. I wanted to share something else though. We all know that people are trying to save money anywhere they can and those of us who do a LOT of laundry know how much laundry detergent costs can add up and it seems like we are always running out.

We have a good sized family and go through a lot of laundry so I have been making my family's laundry detergent for several months and have been very happy with it. It rinses out cleanly and leaves our clothes soft without the need for fabric softner. It does not have that freshly washed smell though. Since it rinses so clean the fabric tends to just smell like fabric. That can be changed by adding essential oils but I haven't done that with ours.

I am wondering if a lot of other people are doing the same. In the past I could only find two of the three ingredients at Walmart but now they have all three, nicely lined up side by side.

There are reciepes all over the internet and most of them are similar with different amounts of the three simple ingredients, Borax, Washing Soda, and Fels Naptha (a bar laundry soap product). I believe you could use another bar soap but I am very happy with how well the detergent cleans with these ingredients.

Pardon the grainy phone picture.
Here is how I make mine:

Dissolve the bar of Fels Naptha in hot water.
Add a cup of each Borax and Washing Soda and stir to dissolve.
Pour it all into a 5 gal. bucket and then fill the bucket with hot water.
Let it sit overnight.
The next day when I open it to stir it up it is a big blob of gelatinous goo.
I give it a good stirring to make the consistancy better for pouring in the washer.

I use a generous amount in a wash load because EVERY load in our house is oversized.
It works great! Especially if I let the laundry soak a bit before starting the wash cycle (which is true with any detergent).

Maybe this post will help someone else save some money in an easy way.
If not maybe it will give some folks a giggle knowing that I actually take time to do things like this. ;0)

Senior portraits in Blue Springs

Staley — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 03:28:16 GMT

Here is a quick sneak peek from this evenings session in Blue Springs. I love what I do and I get to meet the most wonderful people. This beautiful young lady and her mother were no exception. Another reminder of why my job is so great. This is from the end of the session and we were losing light quick but I switched back to my favorite lens and it let in every last bit of available light for these wonderful images. I posted the one with both eyes showing especially for mom.
Gorgeous! I can't wait to go through the rest of them.

Awesome family session at Loose Park...

Staley — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 03:17:21 GMT

I met this handsome little fellow last year and just fell in love with his sparkling eyes.
This year we did a family session at Loose Park in Kansas City and played at the park.
The family's dog almost caught a squirrel and it was the first time ever that I have heard a squirrel chatter in anger. Such a funny sound.

A short slideshow for Miss L.

Staley — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 00:38:57 GMT

Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.

A quick peek from a senior session today...

Staley — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 03:13:02 GMT

I really wanted to get something online from this session tonight. The problem is that now I want to stay up and play with more of them. This is so addicting - especially when you have such a beautiful subject! But I must tear myself away from the computer for a while and spend some time with this fantastic family of mine.

This one will have to hold us over for a little while but there will be more soon.

Fun wedding party...

Staley — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 04:14:15 GMT

Last update tonight. Just sharing a few fun wedding party images.

A joy to behold...

Staley — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 03:46:51 GMT

Three beautiful siblings that I am blessed to have in my life. I have enjoyed watching them grow since they were born. You may recognize them from some older posts.

My mother's smile...

Staley — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 03:26:28 GMT

oops

Staley — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 06:03:39 GMT

That last post is actually an old one. I was trying to tidy things up here in blog land (unsuccessfully) and somehow I ended up republishing that one. Oh well, that's OK. I loved those pictures anyhow.

A couple from the latest maternity session

Staley — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 05:30:42 GMT

I got lucky again. I always get the prettiest clients and this "mom to be" is no exception. She's due the end of February but would be glad to have the little guy sooner so everyone send her your good toughts and wishes.

Miss A. you need to tell dad to be to get that tatoo finished before the baby gets here so it will pop in the newborn pictures. I can totally picture that thing full of color with the soft little baby skin next to it.

I am waiting on a call from another young mom who is in the hospital in labor right now.
I can't wait till the little guy makes his arrival!
I hope I have time to go get a cute little newborn boy hat or something. (I am trying to learn how to crochet them myself but it is slow going since my attention span doesn't lend well to that sort of thing).

A few more of the happy couple...

Staley — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 16:22:32 GMT

It was a beautiful ceremony in a lovely church. I can't wait to share the fun wedding party images!

Steve & Jill

Staley — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 02:49:05 GMT

Thank you Steve and Jill for letting us be a part of your big day!
Here are a couple of sneak peeks to hold you over for a few days.
I hope you are having an amazing time on your honeymoon!

Many more to come ;o)

Craig and Rhonda

Staley — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 02:43:31 GMT

It was so wonderful to be a part of your big day!!!!
Wedded Bliss...first kiss. Well, this is actually not the first kiss. You two were standing a couple of feet apart and leaning in like little kids ;0)

The happy family.

First dance...