Monthly Archives: May 2010

Four Years?

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My, how time has flown. As of four years ago, Facebook was only available to college and high school students and Twitter hadn’t yet been opened to the public. We were still living in a basement apartment in downtown Beverly, MA, and we were wondering when we were going to have our baby. And then, Catherine came along. Things haven’t been the same since! Here is a photo montage of her first four years:

Watching her grow up has been the most amazing experience. She went from a little tiny thing who didn’t do much more than lay there to a girl who can ride a tricycle like lightning down the sidewalk. She is constantly dazzling us with her observations about the world, her memory of people, events, and places, her ability to read, her wide range of emotions and facial expressions, and her ability to love her friends and family. If you haven’t met Catherine, you’re really missing out on a treat!

We’re glad to be her parents, and we are looking forward to whatever the future holds for her! Happy fourth birthday, Catherine!

Touch a Truck

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On our way home from church today, we noticed that “Touch a Truck” was going on outside of the Cummings Center! We pulled a hard right, parked, and spent a half hour walking around and exploring the various large trucks that were parked for all to see. It’s a fun event for everyone, especially little kids. Catherine may have been the only kid who looked for and buckled the seat belt on every truck she got into.

Catherine in the driver's seat

Catherine in the driver's seat

You can see all of the Touch a Truck photos in our gallery.

Purgatory Chasm

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I wanted to go on an adventure this weekend. Rebecca did some research and came up with Purgatory Chasm State Reservation. It’s just over an hour away from Danvers in Sutton, MA. There is an incredible geological formation, a chasm with walls up to 70 feet high. Its floor is filled with a mish-mash of rocks and boulders. The trail through it is only a half mile long, but you must scramble up and down and around rocks the entire way through.

Chasm

Chasm

Before we hit the Chasm, however, we met our friends Becky and Derek and their kids Sarah and Nathan at the playground which is also a part of the park. We had lunch and the older girls played in the playground. One of the craziest features of this playground was a sort of overgrown merry-go-round, which Catherine dubbed “the roundabout.” It had a huge pole in the middle, and a rope net surrounding it in a cone shape, so that riders could climb up the inside or outside. So basically a few dozen kids would pile inside, a few crazy adults would get the thing going, and the kids would scream their lungs out while enjoying the ride. Catherine loved it, even after a couple of rough falls. Here’s a photo of the contraption:

The "Roundabout"

The "Roundabout"

So we ended up spending a bit more time at the playground than I’d originally expected… but eventually we made it over to the Chasm itself. Esme had the best seat in the house as the other three of us scrambled up and down the rocks.

Mama and Esme

Mama and Esme

Catherine was a wee bit tired and insisted on being carried through various parts of the Chasm. We didn’t end up hiking through the whole length of it, but we did get to see quite a few of the rock formations, and saw several rock climbers rappelling down some of the cliff walls.

Rock Climber

Rock Climber

The park itself was pretty well laid out, with a good visitor center, picnic areas, parking, and trails. I’d recommend it as a good day trip for folks in Massachusetts… roughly an hour drive from the Boston area. Come well rested and ready for the hiking and scrambling, and for the playing in the playground if you have young ones.

You can see all of our photos from Purgatory Chasm in our gallery.

Changes for PRWPHOTO

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A little less than a year ago, I had the idea to start a photography business. I jumped into things enthusiastically, set up a website, contacted prospective clients, and even did a few photo shoots. However, I’ve found that over the past year, I simply haven’t had the time or the energy to build up the business. I have a full time job that requires a lot of energy and creativity, and leaves me feeling mentally exhausted every day when I get home. I have two kids who I spend a lot of time with. I have a wife to love and support. I have work to do around the house and other personal and family matters to tend to. There simply isn’t enough of me left over to engage in a business venture.

It’s unfortunate that it’s taken me this long to figure that out, because I’ve spent too much time worrying about how I could get some more clients, how I was going to have enough time to do marketing, advertising, and planning, and when I was going to fit these photo sessions in, should they come along. So, as of right now, I’ve decided to shut down Peter R. Wood Photography as a business. When I made the decision earlier today, I felt a great sense of relief and freedom, knowing that I could devote more of my thoughts and emotions to the more important things in life.

I am also excited because I now feel free to go back to enjoying photography. I’d love to revive http://prwphoto.net/ as a personal photography site. A place where I can talk about photographic technique and camera gear, show off photos I’ve taken, and share my love for the art. But I’m not going to worry too much about when or how I’ll get that online. You’ll still see my newest photos here on the blog, or on SmugMug, Flickr, or linked on Twitter or Facebook.

And I’ll still be more than happy to take photos for you, but I’m not going to spend any time or money marketing it, and I’m not going to charge anything for it. I’ll do it because you’re my friends or family, or a really cool or interesting person, and because I love taking photos. If you want me to take photos for you, just let me know!