Last month on my visit home to Michigan I was able to photograph my mom.  I’m always fascinated by people’s family dynamics.  No two families seem to have the same set up and collection of personalities.  I’m the oldest of 4 girls raised by my dad and this lady, a strong creative force of nature.  My mom grew up in Seattle and was part of a huge musical family.  Given all that, it’s really no surprise that she’d grow up to be a musician herself (a violinist) and meet & marry another musician (my dad, the cellist).  Together, they brought up me and my sisters into the musical fold (I played violin for about 10 years) and shared their creative talents with all of us.  Even though I don’t play anymore I have such an intense appreciation for music and I can honestly say that it is one of the things I’m most grateful for from my upbringing.  It was very special that she asked me to take these photos of her playing (she needed them for some upcoming programs she was going to be playing on).  She’s intensely proud of the creative path I’ve been working so hard at and I think it gave her joy to participate in it directly.  I had one of my sisters telling her jokes in the background and that certainly helped get the perfect smiles out of her. And with that, the first shoot of the year is in the books.