Sunday morning my husband and I went to Ace Hardware to pick up some caulk and miscellaneous items.  While my husband was looking over the many options, I became bored and decided to wander the aisles.  While browsing, I overheard an Ace Hardware employee say “somebody call 911!”  I looked in his direction to see what the commotion was but did not see anything that warranted an emergency call.  People were standing in aisles very calming waiting to be checked out and nobody had an overly concerned look on their face.  I thought to myself that maybe something had happened outside of the store so I looked out of the doors to see if I could be of assistance.  I still saw nothing.  Again, I hear the man yell “someone call 911!”  Again I see no concern on customers faces.  At this point, I now see the man dragging a woman’s limp and blue legs from between the checkout aisles. The woman was also an Ace Hardware employee.  I now know that this is a true emergency.  I hurried around the counters and stood a good ways back from the lady and the man because I didn’t want to be intrusive but wanted them to know that I was calling 911 and that help would be on its way.  At this point I hear another woman yell that she is turning blue.  There is now another man sitting beside her and shaking her trying to get her to respond.  This is where something shifts in my head.  I remember a very recent story from a client of mine about her mom having a heart attack in front of the Home Goods store and how nobody would help except for one lady who had the courage to administer CPR.  I have played that scenario in my head so many times and wondered what I would have done.  I was bothered by the fact that she said that NOBODY but this woman had helped her mother and that they all just stared.  Well, now here I was in the same situation that I had played in my head so many times.  Be a bystander or get involved?  I put my phone away and straddled the woman to start administering chest compressions while Joel (the man that had also decided to help) gave her the needed breathes.  I can’t describe to you all of the different thoughts that were going through my head while Joel and I tried to resuscitate the woman that we now know as Marie.  But my head was spinning.  “Don’t stop, am I doing this right, I haven’t taken a CPR class for almost 30 years, please don’t die, what if I do more harm than good”.  The thoughts were racing through my mind! It was the quickest yet the longest 3 minutes of my life.  Just as the police arrived we heard the most amazing sound.  Marie began to cough.  She was alive!  We were successful!  By the time the paramedics had arrived she was breathing on her own.  As she was taken to the ambulance we heard her talking, which was music to our ears.  I have checked in with one of the employees and it sounds like Marie is going to make a full recovery.  She now has a pacemaker and is as good as new.

I’m telling you all this story because I realize that if it hadn’t been for my client/friend Whitney telling me her mother’s story, I might not have acted in this situation and might have been one of the people that felt like they were being intrusive or feared that I didn’t know enough to be of assistance.  Please take away from this story that I had NOT been trained in CPR for nearly 30 years (and trust me the “rules” have changed since then) but it still helped.  I’m not sure why people stand around and just spectate, do we feel intrusive, do we feel like we don’t have enough experience, or we in shock?  I don’t know the reason and trust me I keep playing these questions over and over in my mind.  I am so profoundly disappointed right now that people stayed in the checkout line waiting to be checked out.  That the woman that was being checked out by Marie just stood there not knowing what to do.  I wish had answers as to why people react the way they do.  I ask…no beg, that each and every one of you take a CPR class.  I wonder daily “what if that was me or somebody that I love lying on the floor needing assistance?  Would people just stand and watch?”  PLEASE take the time learn CPR.  If somebody like me with very little knowledge and outdated information can step in to help so can you.  If everybody just took the time…

One of my clients/friends stopped by the studio today.  She had read my sisters post about Sunday’s event, and felt that she wanted to do something.  She gave me a beautiful little silver platter that says “Anything Is Possible”.  She is so right, anything IS possible.  You just have to try.

Please talk about this story, share it on facebook, Twitter and any other social media that I may not know about, maybe it will give somebody  the courage that they need in a time of crisis like Whitney’s story helped me.

‘J’ is a natural beauty and the hair and make up were the icing on the cake. I was so excited to get shooting outside and see some spring flowers, you would even think she had co-ordinated her first outfit especially for the location!

The location was a complete knock out, I love the color tones and the blossoms framing her face, what a beauty you are Miss ‘J’.

‘J’ is currently a senior at Neuqua Valley High School. She is attending the  University of Illinois, Champaign in the fall where she will major in biology. Her career aspirations are to follow in her Dad’s footsteps and become a Doctor. Beauty and brains, now that’s a very powerful combination!

An outfit change can really mix up the look and feel to your portraits, here we showcased a more casual vibe.

‘J’  paints in her spare time and happens to be very good at it.

To finish things up ‘J’ wore a fabulous maxi dress and the oversized flower in her hair completed the look. The elegant staircase was a perfect backdrop and the fragrant smell of the cherry blossom was just heavenly. All in all a great shoot. ‘J’ and her Mom were great fun on location and I think they will have a tough job selecting their favorites. I love them all!

Thank you so much ‘J’ for a great afternoon and best wishes for next year!

See you soon,

Alicia.

The urban backdrop really suits portraits for boys. B’s Grandfather sadly passed away recently and the plaid shirt that ‘B’ is wearing belonged to him. What a touching way to honor his Grandpa.

B’s Mom is from  - can you guess? Yes, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania! You can really personalize your shoot by wearing or bringing personal items along, feel free to try this too. ‘B’ has plans to attend the University of Missouri in the fall.  What a great choice!  You will love it ‘B’.  I just loved spending time with you,  enjoy college!

See you soon,

Alicia.

Animals are another love and ‘A’ regularly volunteers at the Naperville Humane Society.

A change of scene and outfit created a completely different look, this time bold brights and monotone black and white. I love the clean, crisp feel to these.

 Our third look has yet another vibe. I love how the dark background showcases ‘A’ and the colors make her eyes just pop.

Finally some outside shots, a real variety of looks and feels for ‘A’ to choose from.

‘A’ is passionate about soccer and has been playing since she was 5 years old!  She has been a soccer official for 4 years through the Naperville Park District. Come to think of it maybe we should have got a few pictures of her in action too!

Thanks so much for trusting me with your senior pictures, I really enjoyed meeting you and our time together. Wishing you great things next year!

See you soon,

Alicia.

‘O’ was a joy to photograph and the natural lighting that day was just perfect to capture all of those newborn little details. Our Studio Manager Laura has the nickname ‘The Baby Whisperer’ because she has that special knack to sooth and settle any little fusses, we really didn’t require that extra service this day but that’s not to say it doesn’t come in really handy on some other days!

Isn’t he just perfect?

Baby ‘O’ visited from Park Ridge for his very first modeling assignment. What a stunner. We had a lovely time with you ‘O’, please come back and visit again soon.

See you soon,

Alicia.

‘S’ loves to babysit and I can imagine that she is great with kids . She has a strong faith and is a senior leader for YoungLife, she loves to share her faith with others and has been teaching Sunday school to preschoolers for the past three years. That spirit and faith shine really bright. She also loves playing tennis and enjoys painting in her spare time.

I love that ‘S’ chose such a  bright color palette for her set of senior pictures. The old railroad tracks are a favorite senior backdrop and again they do not disappoint. I have my eye on that adorable vintage coat and those boots,  if only I could look as good in them….sigh.

This summer Miss ‘S’ will graduate from Naperville North and will attend Hope College in Holland, MI next year. She will study psychology and her dream career is to counsel children.

 ’S’ what a pleasure it was to take your senior pictures, I wish you the very best for the next exciting chapter in your life.

See you soon,

Alicia.

The hardworking men at the Jefferson Club busy keeping our building dry.

The river at the bottom of the Washington St. bridge.

The old rosebuds.

The river pouring in to what was an empty centennial beach.

Knowing that the damn was going to be opened later that day to relieve flooding upstream made our stress that much greater.  We immediately began removing all of our computers, servers and equipment and knew that we needed to raise everything in the studio off of the floor just in case water were to enter.  The whole idea made me tear up.  It seemed like such a daunting project for just a few people.  Then, as the old saying goes “Ask and you shall receive”…friends, family and the best clients ever all started to arrive to help.  I couldn’t be more grateful!  Getting the studio prepared could possibly have taken us several hours to do by ourselves but with such great friends we were able to do it in less than 30 minutes.   I feel so blessed to be surrounded by such loving and caring people.

Just a small portion of the many angels that came to help us. I wish had a picture that included everyone.

  3 hours later we were informed that we needed to secure the outside of the building because the water may start traveling down Chicago Ave.  That meant sandbagging.  I had never sandbagged in my life and wasn’t sure that the 3 days a week of boot camp that I have been attending was going to be enough training for such hard labor.  Again, the thought crossed my mind, “how will we do this ourselves?”  That’s when my wonderful friend Mark from Room 363 called  insisting that we could do it.  My sweet friend was dealing with a wet and muddy basement at his own store but still insisted that we start sandbagging our studio.  He has a heart of gold!  Once the sandbagging had begun more friends, family and I’ll say it again, the BEST clients ever came down to help with the sandbagging.  Before we knew it we had the studio sandbagged and we started right away on the other businesses in need.  Many business owners were at home dealing with flooding and just couldn’t be in two places at once so we knew we all had to help.  This wonderful group of people all banded together to sandbag, Ootra, It’s a Bling Thing,  Sullivan’s, Einstein’s, Red Mango, Henzel’s Barbershop, Bows & Babes and Egg Harbor.

At 2:00 am the water started to rise in the front of the studio.

Getting ready to close the studio and crossing our fingers.

Everyone was wet and cold yet they worked tirelessly until late in the night.  I couldn’t be more proud to call them my friends.  In a time when the world looks like it’s being taken over by evil, it’s kindness and generosity like this that lifts my spirits and reassures me that the world IS good.  I want to thank each and every one of you from the bottom of my heart!  I will be forever grateful and in your debt.  I’m one lucky lady to have you all in my life.  It’s because of you that I always have a smile on my face and in my heart.

My husband and I smiling just knowing that we have the best friends and community ever!

In the end we are thrilled to say that our studio stayed dry due to the efforts of everyone involved!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!!!!

We started off getting to know each other before the Bears shirts came into play. The ‘G’ kids were perfect for the camera and were a pleasure to photograph. The weather also played fair that day and the natural setting and the light complimented the solid duo-tone color palette beautifully.

Then the fun really began…..

I love how Mom and Dad are right in there in the middle of the action, this really tells a story of a tight knit fun loving family. I think I need to give the light another shout out, it was ideal for the series and the winter sun made it almost bearable to be out in short sleeves, I guess the running around also helped a bit. I know it was a good way for me to keep warm!

Finishing up with some of the other family groupings, what a great looking bunch!

Thank you so much ‘G’ family for a fun shoot and it was a pleasure spending time with you and getting to know you all. Thank you for trusting me with your family portraits.

See you soon,

Alicia.

Are you ready for a cuteness overload? You might have seen some of the sneak peaks on facebook as I edited them because I just couldn’t wait to share them with you all.

See what I mean? Some days I adore my job!

A huge thank you to all of my wonderful clients for making the Easter mini-sessions such fun and a blast to do. Stay turned for our next mini-session coming to an Alicia’s Photography near you very soon!

See you soon,

Alicia.

Dads – I know that it is a huge headache to find the perfect gift to express your thanks for everything that Mom does for the family, well consider this the answer to your prayers

- A Mothers Day mini-session at Alicia’s Photography!

The set for these sessions will be styled by the very talented home decor stylists at Room 363, I cannot wait to see what Mark comes up with this time. His work is so refreshing and unique and provides a perfect backdrop to capture that perfect keepsake photograph. For a mini-session fee of $100 you will receive eight fully edited images to view and an 8×10 print of your choice. If Mom would love a timeless memory of her special relationship with her children, then this is the time to grasp this offer. Sessions will be limited.

Moms – feel free to leave this hint somewhere prominent for Dad to see and act upon. We all know that just sometimes he needs a little help with these decisions!

I am looking forward to celebrating all you wonderful Moms. Thank you for all you do, day in and out, year after year to help those precious children be the very best they can be.

To book your session now, please call the studio on 630 961 5777.

See you soon,

Alicia