SummerSummerOMGZSummer

When I was in kindergarten there were multiple recesses and a nap after lunch. There was a lot of playtime at the "stations" and there was definitely no homework. During the summer I played outside and rode my bike. I read books and made up stories. I watched on tv one of the four channels that had the least amount of static. And I got up to change the channel.

And I am a whippersnapper at the tender age of 31!

But Penn likes structure and routines. The very things I don't like. Routine = boooooring. So he's doing summer camp at St. John's this year. They are week long camps of fun. The school takes photos of the kids and posts them for parents to have. Here are a few, all taken by St. John's.

The first week Penn did karate camp.

The second week he did Science Camp. (He's in the background here.)

The third week he did a travel camp called "Oh the places you go!" It ended up being allll girls. Except for him. :)

Currently he's in Apprentice Robotics. His best friend forever is also magically in this class! And two days this week he's doing a gymnastics camp with his other two bff's.

He's a busy guy. We're paying for it, but we're not going crazy with Penn's summer restlessness and want for the endless playdate. Summer is so far so good, but mostly I think Penn misses his friends.

Stephan Pyles

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Last November I had the exciting assignment of shooting Stephan Pyles for his Samar Restaurant opening downtown. He's exciting because I first heard about him on Oprah. Back when I had time to watch Oprah?

It got a mention online here. I like this mention because it also randomly includes my favorite client, Renee Rouleau, and Forty Five Ten, which I shot this year.

Chefs and their food are my new "thing." I'm discussing it. I think it would make a good book. Someone back me up.

Open the doors and let the people come in

We can't get out as much due to Margot's neediness and my inability to find a sitter outside of my father. Who lives in a different state. So we've had a lot more company come to our house where the service is excellent, children can be children and everyone can lounge and drink without that lofty check at the end. (Unless you count my grocery bill.)

I've been so busy with the cooking portion I haven't taken a single real photo! But our table has recently enjoyed talking art with Cone and Lex, babies with Scott, shoes with Dan and houses with Eliot.

Rip and Vanessa came over for a night of gourmet margaritas, fish tacos and rummikub.

Yesterday we hit the motherload of company with Kristen's visit from San Fransisco. She was planning an evening out and I volunteered our house and my cooking. We had about 20 people, including children. We saw old friends and made new ones. And the avocado pound cake met its first audience with thumbs up.

All that love and I only took a handful of measly camera phone shots? Many thanks to everyone who has enjoyed a meal at our new house. We look forward to seeing you again.

Also, I have your red cork screw.

Margot at the Grocery Store

Any repetitive sound that can keep a beat (not limited to music) makes Margot dance. Today she started dancing and I realized it was the dishwasher. I recorded a hilarious show she put on in the grocery store while waiting in a long line. When I pressed the button to stop recording, I discovered I had never started recording. So this is that last bit. This baby is so awesome for so many reasons.

Edamame Salad

I adore edamame in absolutely anything you can put it in. Last night I was going to make an edamame salad to go with our tilapia. I realized I didn't have any of the ingredients to make any variation I had a recipe for or could find on the internet. So I winged it and I think it's my favorite version so far!

• frozen, shelled edamame
• raw zucchini, diced small
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• a handful of crimini, sliced
• 1 carrot peeled into ribbons
• olive oil
• rice wine vinegar
• sea salt and cracked pepper

Noha and Mohamed's Wedding

Congratulations to Noha and Mohamed! It was an amazing night of wedding celebration.

Click here for more photos.

Cabbage Taco

My mother and father are both very good cooks with very different approaches to the cabinet. From my dad I learned how to go in the kitchen and make a meal out of whatever's in there. He has a creative approach to food that doesn't involve recipes. He enjoys the adventure of cooking, I think, and we're all just lucky it turns out so well in the end. My mother's food is always beautiful and vegetarian. She likes recipes, but I see her cook out of her head a lot. Her table is always set neat and clean and you want to take a photo before you sit down. Both of their styles have changed and evolved since I was little, but these are the traits I think about most.

I think I'm a combo of both of them. It's my dad's style that turns out looking like my mom's food.

This is one of those occasions. It's just a flour tortilla (albeit a fresh one made in Dallas) shmeared with mayonnaise and topped with egg and then sautéed cabbage seasoned with salt and cracked pepper. It's a pale colored meal.

But so easy and delicious!

Brix's awesome birthday party

Shortly after moving into the new house I accidentally left the gate open and the dogs got out. We made haste on foot, bike and car and met a lot of our new neighbors in the process. Daniel found the dogs at this fellow's house. There were other neighbors hanging out at his house having a beverage on the front porch and friendships were born.

Everyone loves Brix. There are a million reasons to love Brix. But I'll just start with his 40th birthday party. Brix had a whole block party for his birthday! And despite being the tender age of 40 there were two fire trucks and a bounce house. There was music and catered BBQ and cake and a Margarita machine and Giant Jenga and glow sticks and other games. We wore name tags with taglines specific to us. Mine said, "Carissa Byers- I'll be happy to shoot you, just ask." Daniel's said, "Daniel Miller- Ask me how I met Brix."

It being such a small world, of course we had friends in common. Penn had a blast. Margot danced and covered herself in watermelon.

I'm feeling very connected to my family and community these days for a number of reasons. It's a good and busy and inspiring thing.

*These photos and video were taken on my cell phone.

* Click here for photos not taken by me.

Margot cracks up

Penn found a humongo teddy bear at the library today and brought it over to show Margot. Needless to say, she thought it was hilarious.

She laughed so loud and for so long that the librarians came over to shush us. Watch how Penn eyeballs them behind me and then sort of stops. But the powers of cute calmed the masses into frumpy bookish puddles of "awwwwwwww."

Seriously though, this is a fraction of the time she spent laughing. Only Penn can make her do stuff like this.

I wonder about Penn

This is Penn's self portrait. I wonder, if in between all of the "no's" and "be quiets" and "stop" and "do you want to go to time outs?", Penn can hear that I love him. That I nag him constantly because I love him. I wonder if he knows that I am a practiced rule bender, but before bending any rules, he must understand what they are, and to understand what they are he must have the ability to obey them. I wonder if he knows what an amazing person I see when I look at his face.

This is his picture of the future. I wonder, if amongst the flying cars and jet propelled houses, Penn will forgive me when I said "no" and should have said "yes." I wonder if he will forgive my impatience or hold a grudge against his sister for being such a cute baby. I wonder if he will remember to flush the toilet. I wonder, if in the future, consumer toilets will flush themselves.

It's okay and some things should be automated.

"Sunny Side Up" pastries

I made these this morning and they are SO yummy. It is Brioche topped with vanilla pastry cream and half an apricot. Click here for recipe.

Renee Rouleau New Product Launch Party

Fabulous esthetician to the celebrity and Dallas elite launched a new product recently. Of course there was a rooftop party downtown decorated with male models to celebrate. Look for photos of attendants in an upcoming issue of Paper City.

I've been shooting Renee Rouleau and her skincare line for a long time now and every year everything she does gets bigger and better. All of the photos she uses now are shot just for her. Whether you're aware of it or not, a lot of companies use cheap stock that's not reflective of their actual product or customers. The photos you see on Renee's site and newsletters and press are of her and her clients using her products.

Follow her on Twitter and Facebook.