Tag Archives: julie chen photography

My BEST Birthday Gift EVER!

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Do you remember when I met my “rock star” Laura Huliska-Beith?!

Well, as we were walking up to her front door, my awesome hubby turns to me & says, “I think we should commission Laura to paint something for your 40th birthday or as we look through her originals, you can just pick something out!” Umm… YES DEAR!!!! And I already had a plan …Laura Huliska Beith Photo_0001b

I took this photo of my kids about a year ago to commemorate them doing one of their favorite things: reading while surrounded by nature. Immediately I knew I wanted LAURA (!!!) to illustrate my very own kiddos. I sent the above art direction along with other various head shots of my kiddos to Laura & the process began. (OH! & as a book designer myself, being able to art direct such an amazing illustrator was a BONUS! AND, by the way: if there are any publishers out there looking for an illustrator who goes above & beyond, she is your gal)

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Laura kindly documented the process of the painting for us in the above images. How fun is that?!

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And HERE is her interpretation of my photo…. LOVE! LOVE! LOVE!!!!!

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We all did the happy dance when the package arrived. Pumpkin-Poos was running wild. Sunshine Girl could not believe she “EVEN SIGNED IT FOR US!” & my Favorite Little Mister said, “cool.” The above shows some close up shots of the DETAIL & love Laura put into my art: my Favorite Little Mister reads his owl book & an owl reads a book about my Favorite Little Mister! How fun is that?! That dog licking Pumpkin’s toes is Laura’s own dog & Sunshine Girl loves cat woman & she even added a black cat. The most thoughtful detail of all: an origami bird, just for my Favorite Little Mister who made origami for Laura while in her studio!

 

MANY THANKS to my pal Laura!!! We just got the art framed & it is simply amazing. Best birthday present ever.

 

Grace & Peace,

JulieFreeSHIPPING

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9 Years

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My Sunshine Girl turned 9 today! {A few weeks ago, my Favorite Little Mister turned 11, so it is birthday season over here!} Was she not the cutest baby?! Oh, how I miss those cheeks!

 

Being a June baby & a little girl, in the hospital I nicknamed her my sunshine girl. She has brought so much joy to our lives & continues to make us laugh & smile.2014-06-08_0038

She is a great sister. Besties with her big brother & so so so sweet {most of the time} with her little sis. It was early on {like at birth} when we could see her love for food. At age 2 we found her on the counter eating watermelon & in the above photo we had eaten ice cream with cousins the night before & I did not totally clean up the mostly empty containers & she managed to lick out the remains of the ice cream all over her jammies!2014-06-08_0039

She is full of joy & light. She is a mostly free spirit & one thing I greatly admire about her is her self confidence. Example: for the last year she has carried an Avengers lunchbox & when she started using it, some girls at school were horrified & asked her if it was her brother’s lunchbox {which ironically he would NEVER use} & she had no problem with it at all.2014-06-08_0040

She, like the rest of us, is a total nature lover. One thing I love about my kids. And, those deep brown eyes… so beautiful!!!! Here again is a food photo. 🙂 ha!2014-06-08_0041

Her first major haircut came at preschool graduation. She loved the pampering, though at heart she is a total tom-boy like me! She is a night owl. A CRAZY sleeper & very silly at bedtime.

 

She is also one of my best models & I think she is in more of my art than any of my kids. The camera loves her. Here the girls are holding some of the Demdaco plaques they are featured in.2014-06-08_0042

She is strong, brave & courageous in so many ways. The above photos is her daddy piercing her ears with a needle. ughhhhh. He did not trust the teens at Claire’s, so took it upon himself to pierce his own girl’s ears “the right way” & the numbing did not last. It was the longest 5 minutes & he was sweating bullets causing so much pain…. but, there is nothing a little ice cream cannot fix & once she had a mug full, she was all better, showing off her new earrings!

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Her strength also came into play the summer she turned 6 when within 2 weeks of each other she had 2 freak accidents & got 2 sets of  stitches. The ones in her lip the doc could not believe she did not flinch nor cry & even did 2 extra stitches where he had not numbed her!

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She is a natural beauty. She is a natural athlete & shares my love for soccer & her daddy’s love for volleyball. She excels at any sport she tries & loves playing around with the boys at recess.

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I LOVE how unique she is. This past fall, she chopped her hair 6 inches to become Paige from Tron Uprising for Halloween. Totally “became” her : full of attitude & spunk.

I LOVE how she is such a combo of me & Sam. My love of art, nature, soccer & photography; Sam’s love of comics, volleyball, Vespas … if you ask her the best day of her life EVER, she will tell you when daddy took her to Comicon! She went as Cat Woman & was in her glory the entire time. I bet she can answer any comic question someone would give her. She has literally read every comic in the junior section of the library & OH! I cannot forget her insatiable love of books!!! {I asked her who she wants a playdate with this week & she told me she will be too busy reading!} 2014-06-08_0046

This is one of my favorite photos of her ever, as it captures her heart. She is free & full of joy & loves to worship. She is full of compassion & I LOVE how she is my little theologian. Her deep thoughts & questions blow me away & it is so evident what God is rooting in her life.

 

We love you Sunshine Girl!!!! Happy Birthday!!!! May you always know God’s delight over you!

 

Grace & Peace,

JulieFreeSHIPPING

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Red Couch Photo Shoot {Julie Chen Photography : Downers Grove Photography}

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There is nothing better than a beautiful family on a red velvet couch in the middle of a forest for photos! The child lights up when she sees the couch she gets to snuggle her parents on. It is fun & unique & I always love these relaxed & playful shoots.

 

My red velvet couch has officially been retired, BUT I just acquired a CREAM vintage couch which I will be taking outdoors***  for more family fun! It is the same exact shape & design of the red velvet, but it is upholstered with a cream tapestry style material {not velvet, so it will not be so hot}.

 

This coming Father’s Day morning, June 15, I have 2 openings if you are interested in a couch photo shoot! Available at 9:15 & 10:00! Contact me thru the contact page if you are interested!

 

***Please note: I only do the couch photo shoots a couple times a year, so get yours while it is available!

 

Grace & Peace,

Julie
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Ivory Couch Photo Shoot | Life Verse Design Blog - […] red velvet couch out to fields & parks for some fun family photo shoots. Well, as described here, that beloved red couch has been retired & my friend GENEROUSLY GAVE ME a vintage ivory couch to […]

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Behind the Scenes: Children are Like Flowers

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{Art available here}

With tulips growing around my yard & the fact that Sunhine Girl’s 9th birthday is quickly approaching, it made me think back to this piece of art I created 5 years ago now. Sunshine was about 4 years old and we were at one of our favorite local gardens. I was photographing the kiddos & she {in her silly way} decided to do the above. I kept shooting & think the image is so sweet. When Demdaco licensed my art in 2008, they split my collection into 3 categories: Scripture, General Inspiration, & Baby/Child. They provided me with the above quote & I knew right away this image was the perfect match to illustrate this quote:

 

Children are like flowers,

water them daily with love

and watch them bloom.

 

Lately I feel like time is flying faster than ever. My Favorite Little Mister just turned 11, Sunshine Girl is almost 9, school year is almost OUT & I still cannot even believe it’s May!

 

One thing in life is sure: I have LOVED watering my kiddos daily with love & watching them bloom into who God has created them to be. This mommy-journey is the best. Every year I love it more. I love the ages they are at, the fun we have, and most of all, the deep & meaningful conversations. Sunshine Girl is apparently a budding theologian & seriously asks the deepest questions about God & life & humanity. It blows me away what her mind is thinking. It is an honor to be their mama & be a part of their journey.

 

I look forward to seeing how they will continue to grow.

 

Grace & Peace,

Julie
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11 Years

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11 years ago today at 6:17 a.m. my world changed forever. My Favorite Little Mister came in like a lion, though he’s grown up to be more like a lamb. He stole my heart right from the start & being a mom has taught me more about life than probably anything. Here are some photos of him through the years.

The first shows his “crinkly” ear {which is no longer crinkly; I think he was shoved inside the womb, growing so large, as he tried kicking his way out}

His “bird-feather” hair — so wispy & soft {until the first hair cut that is!}

His obsession with Thomas, by which he learned his colors & numbers & could identify any train in the set.

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One of our favorite places to this day: The Morton Arboretum — I put him in a tree we are probably not allowed to climb!

BUGS! This was a ladybug release at the Brookfield Zoo. {I could have shown you the big, juicy cicadas he would rescue & carry to trees for their safety during the swarm of 2005, but I thought I would spare you.}

LEGOS! The obsession began young for this one & if anyone could become a master builder, it could be HIM!

OH & you could see the beginning of his mohawk here at age 4 which actually began with his obsession of cars at the Friday Night Car Show. While walking the route one night, he pointed to a yellow Mustang with a black racing stripe & exclaimed, “I want a racing stripe on my head like THAT!”

I said, “You want a mohawk?!”

He said, “What’s a mohawk? I just want a racing stripe!”

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Botany! He loves nature & began loving botany specifically a few years ago because of the book Bizarre Botanicals, which he checked out so many times from the library, we ended up buying it for Christmas. We also made that summer’s family road trip to go out to North Carolina to meet the authors who are professors at UNC & they graciously gave us a private tour of their greenhouse! {To this day, he will tell you meeting Larry & Paula was the best day of his life!} Please buy the book & support these amazing scientists!

Bubo! His stuffed owl whom he created Owland for. The owl obsession began with his love for reading which led him to the Guardians of Ga’Hoole series which changed our home forever.

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Nature! He loves nature: being outdoors, animals, plants, and will find anything interesting out there.

Reading! I am positive he has already read more books than I have in my entire life. His love for learning is amazing.

Cello & Piano! Watch out Piano Guys! I am raising up your third – & someday you’ll have to become a trio! His fifth grade “Hero” paper was all about their celllist: Stephen Sharp Nelson!

 

Oh, My Favorite Little Mister, I love you so! Happy Birthday my son!

 

Grace & Peace,

Julie

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9 Years | Life Verse Design Blog - […] Sunshine Girl turned 9 today! {A few weeks ago, my Favorite Little Mister turned 11, so it is birthday season over here!} Was she not the cutest baby?! Oh, how I miss those […]

Behnind the Scenes Children Like Flowers | Life Verse Design Blog - […] I feel like time is flying faster than ever. My Favorite Little Mister just turned 11, Sunshine Girl is almost 9, school year is almost OUT & I still cannot even believe it’s […]

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