Please visit Sara’s Blog to see photos of the beautiful Hermione Adison Mercer who was born less than a week after these photos were taken.  Congratulations to the new family!

Sara and Doug’s Birth Coach, Amy

Jaime’s father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease early last year and has decided to undergo brain surgery  to implant a neurostimulation device in his brain which will alleviate – if not eliminate – several of the more difficult-to-deal-with symptoms of the disease.  After the first procedure 2 weeks ago, all seemed well.  When he returned for his follow-up procedure last week to connect the wires leading from his brain to the small, pacemaker-like device to be implanted in his chest, they found an infection and halted the procedure.  They closed him back up but now he must patiently wait to see if the antibiotics kill the infection, if they don’t – the device will be removed and we will have to start all over again.

Meanwhile… during the almost daily trips to the hospital…

Buddy, our 13 year old Labrador Retriever is a lack, fuzzy, juggernaut, that will do anything to sniff the backside of any 4-legged friend that passes by.  He means no harm and it’s actually a bit pathetic, as he’s old and wonky as a result of advanced hip dysplasia.  As usual, we called to him but he didn’t respond;  half pretending to be deaf, half genuinely deaf.  Moments later, we heard the dog’s owner flipping out as if a Dingo had gotten ahold of their baby.  When we got to Buddy, the English Bull Terrier had him by the jowls and his grip slipped just long enough for him to reattach to Buddy’s ear.  Contrary to popular belief and something I just, myself found out, Bull Terrier’s do not have a locking jaw, they just have a very firm grip.  This grip was so tight that when the owner kicked Buddy off his dog (yes, it happened), he tore off a piece of his ear about the size of an eye patch and it fell onto the asphalt.  We took Buddy to our vet immediately and they were able to stitch up his wound but not reattach the severed ear.

Buddy will recover, and Don is being cared for by some of the finest doctor’s and nurses in the world. But this particularly tough week we have been reminded of how delicate the balance of life is.  I, for one, intend to walk away from this week with a heightened appreciation for every fleeting moment and stay focused on what’s truly important in my life.

There are some things that no procedure can fix…

It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of weather and nearly pursued a career in Meteorology early on in my college career.  There are only a few weather scenarios that play out here in San Diego – which can get terribly boring – as it’s either sunny, gloomy, or some mix of the two and occasionally…it rains.  Sunbeams are fairly common but are at their best just before a storm arrives, as seen here from high above Black’s beach in La Jolla over the weekend.

The Los Rios district in San Juan Capistrano,  is a ridiculously charming slice of California heritage.  The main street is dusty and lined with these cute, little buildings – some more than 200 years old – and beautifully established groves of native plants and towering succulents.

Our rendez-vous came at the end of a great day shooting around Los Angeles and Orange County, and what a way to end a brilliant day.  It’s often  hard to know what season it is in Southern California – as it was on this early spring day – and, while much  of the country was getting blanketed in snow and ice, we were awash in the warmth of the Golden State’s most precious resource.

In just a few days, Darren will deploy with the U.S. Navy and head to the Middle East for the next 18 months.  As a fitting send-off, the two walked out as husband and wife beneath an intimidating sword-arch, at which time I came closer than I’d like to ever come again to being impaled.  Whew.  Commitment stacked on top of commitment – and not the most traditional way to begin a marriage – if we’ve ever met two people up  to the task of a bit of time apart from each other, it’s Meaghann and Darren;  they are the best of friends, bring such light to any room they step in to together, and truly complete each other.  Be safe Darren, we’ll all miss you, and remember…at the end of your service, your honeymoon to Southeast Asia will be waiting!

Coordinator: Thomas Bui

Event Design: Concept Event Design

Florist: LaVonne Crawford

Ceremony Venue: The North Chapel at Liberty Station

Reception Venue: The Moniker Warehouse

Make-up: Ann DiNicolo

Hair: Henna Rodriguez

Entertainment: Vynce Pham, DJ Phreek

Officiant: Kevin Crim

Caterer: Bombay Indian Food, Azuki Sushi, Chef Julie, Holy Rice Balls

The past week has been quite a whirlwind for the Viera Photographics family, with sickness, Jaime’s Dad’s brain surgery, home-school, wrapping up a home loan re-fi, the tragedy in Boston, and then when we thought we had enough for the week, on Thursday at 5am, the call came in.  The caller was from Japan and the meeting was to take place in New York City; 24 hours later I was in mid-town Manhattan.

The amazing thing about New York City that I love so much is how you can fit what seems like an impossible list of activities into just a few short days. While in New York, I stayed with some good friends who toured me around Brooklyn and brought me to some great neighborhoods I’d never before visited. I also met up with one of our favorite couples, Sara and Doug who are preparing to have their first child. We did a photo session to capture the final days before their new little one arrives. On Sunday I found myself in the lobby of the Bowery Hotel with three Japanese businessmen and their translator and we discussed the details of a large project.  There is formidable competition and no certainties but I one thing I am sure of is that they are unlikely to find another photographic team as enthusiastic about photography as ours!

It’s great to be home but I do always leave a piece of my heart behind in New York City.

Although the calendar said March, it felt more like a sun-bleached August afternoon and the beach was packed.  There weren’t many places to hide from the intense sunshine so we just decided to fully embrace it instead.  Claire and Kyle weren’t bothered with the abundant sunshine and turbo Vitamin D boost…and neither were we.

If too much sun is the day’s biggest complaint, I think we’re doing alright.