Which, speaking of, 2011? BANNER YEAR for amazing music. So much good stuff it felt nearly impossible to narrow it down but below are my Top 10 Faves. In the end, these made the cut because truly, I felt each album—start to finish—was pretty amazing. And in a day and age where the single rules, it feels good to play a record straight through, the way an artist intends it to be heard. So happy listening — can’t wait to hear what’s in store for this year! And let me know some of your fave music in the comments!

10) Death Cab for Cutie—”Codes and Keys”: Going back through my list of 2011 music, this one almost slipped by me but I can’t forget how many times I listened to this album all the way through last year. One of my favorite memories of the tunes on this latest collection from Mr. Gibbard and crew was a sunny fall afternoon, Nick and I driving back roads for a hike with this song blaring. Of course I was doing that “hand-wave-in-the-wind” while singing along, windows down. You HAVE to do that. Perfect road trip track, this one:

9) Beirut — “The Riptide”: This album is synonymous with my August 2011 trip to California. I’d just gotten it when I left for the airport, so I’m guessing I listened to it half-dozen times over the course of that week, never once tiring of it. Zach Condon’s voice is just so unique. Throw in the sound that Beirut has made their own — with those horns and that accordion — and well, any new material of theirs is A-OK in my book:

Black Keys’ — “Nova Baby”: Oh these boys! The whole album, start to finish, is amazing in that gritty mash-up that’s become their trademark sound. I’m seeing them in March and I’ll buy myself a black leather jacket before I do so I can look cool while I sing along to this favorite track:

7) Adele — “21″: When I first listened to this album all the way through last winter, I wanted to wrap myself up in Adele’s voice. Like it was a physical thing I could somehow cloak myself in. Come July, when you couldn’t escape “Rollin’ in the Deep” on the airwaves, I’d wished to never hear it again. But putting it away for a while and rediscovering it toward year’s end, I’m reminded again of just how brilliant Adele is. Or maybe what did it was this video (which inspired this HILARIOUS Emma Stone SNL skit). Crimney, she’s amazing:

6) Florence and the Machine—”Ceremonials”: This wasn’t as strong as “Lungs” (her debut album), but man alive, few can put an album out like Florence can, am I right? I listened to this album a lot this fall with all the driving I did for shoots and each time it grew on me. It also had my favorite song of the year on it, too. Yep, if I had to pick one song to have been stuck on a deserted island with in 2011, you best believe this was it:

5) The Civil Wars—”Barton Hollow”: If you didn’t hear of Joy Williams and John Paul White in 2011, you must have been living under a rock. I kid, I kid, but truth be told, if you haven’t already, you owe it to yourself to purchase this album. These two can harmonize like nobody’s business. One listen and it’s no wonder why they became one of the biggest “It” bands of the year. And this video? STILL gives me goosebumps:

4) The Head and the Heart: “The Head and the Heart”: Each year it seems like there’s one band that goes from obscurity to mega-fandom seemingly overnight. Last year, I’d say it was Mumford & Sons. This year, my vote goes for this Seattle crew. One of those albums that, upon listening to it first way through, I immediately went back and started all over. Clearly they’ve been put on this Earth to sing together like this (that harmony 2:00 in? Brillz.):

3) Ryan Adams: “Ashes and Fire”: There will always always always be a soft spot in my heart for this prolific crooner and one of my favorite songwriters. His music was the soundtrack of my college years and this new album of his (his first in some time) put me right back into that sweet spot in my life (when I first met Nick and was living cozy with my best friend in our tiny dorm). My favorite track on the album is the title track. Sometimes I’d find myself just randomly singing a lyric from it (that has henceforth become one of my favorite lyrics ever), “Her eyes were indigo and the cats was all calico.” It just, it comes at the perfect spot in the song and..will you purdy please listen? (it’s at 2:30):

2) Coldplay—”Mylo Xyloto”: There are so many people I know who are quick to sh*t on Coldplay. How they’ve become too popular, how they’ve sold out, blah blah blah. Haters can hate ’cause for me? They are the one band for which I own every album. Know every song. And have a major crush on the lead singer. No exaggeration, I probably listened to Mylo Xyloto straight through no fewer than 20 times this year (and the album came out in October!) If you’ve ever seen them live, you know the passion they bring to the stage. Oh, and no matter how many times I’ve heard this song, I can’t keep my foot from tapping along to it. Hope to see them again in 2012!!!:

1) Bon Iver— “Bon Iver”: Because this was the album that, every time I listened to it, I loved more. Because it played softly on the laptop too many nights to remember as I cooked dozens of meals for my husband. Because Justin Vernon put me in a trance as we watched him perform live last summer. Because any way you look at it, Bon Iver’s sounds pervaded so many memories of my 2011 there was no way it couldn’t be my favorite album of the year. This track was not only my favorite off it, but, in my opinion, Justin’s best effort yet:

And because I couldn’t end without a few runner-ups, here were the handful of other bands that put out new music so good it gave my Top 10 a run for its money. If you’re looking to use up some holiday iTune cards, any of the tunes from this post would be well spent!

Foster the People—”Torches”

The Belle Brigade—”The Belle Brigade”

Bombay Bicycle Club—”A Different Kind of Fix”

Dale Earnhart Jr. Jr.—”It’s a Corporate World”

Wilco—”The Whole Love”

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

This time around—for the first time in years—I was “I want my mom” sick. I called her Friday and joked how I wished she lived closer so she could come envelop me in a hug because I really needed one. Thankfully I have a wonderful hubby who took care of me (from a distance) – and this during his BIRTHDAY week no less! He cooked up a batch of our favorite homemade chicken noodle soup for me and I treated those leftovers like nectar from the gods.

I’m finally feeling on the other side of this thing and looking forward to catching up with some new (errr…held over!) 2011 content — so I’ll have December’s book review, my fave music of 2011 and a look back at the year in personal photos coming up. Just as soon as I, you know, stop coughing up a lung over here…..Thanks for being patient with me if you’re waiting on an email or phone call. I’m getting to it!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

Take a few minutes this season to hit that sweet spot of remaining humble yet grateful and full of wonder at what you’ve done this year. You—and me—have come a long way in 2011. It’s when we take a breather like this that such a realization comes full circle.

And without further ado, a resharing of some of my favorite images of 2011, in no particular order:Thank you to ALL my clients in 2011 who made this year such an incredible one! I appreciate your trust and faith in my work more than you could ever know!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

*This was our Christmas card we sent out this year — after not doing cards last year, I’m so glad I went for it this year! I’ve LOVED getting them in return in the mail from friends (what can I say, I’m a girl who loves the post office and all things mail-related ). A HUGE thank you goes out to our friends Nate and Amanda at Turtle Pond for the holiday mini-sessions they did. We were excited to get in front of their camera again (that hadn’t happened since our wedding day!)

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

No sooner did we get into town in the late afternoon than we sought out the last “Seattle Underground” tour of the day. One of my students at Ball State, Kait, had told me this was a must-stop and she was right…The history buff in me is ALWAYS fascinated to learn more about a place — discovering that, after a fire in the 1880s, Seattle decided to build over again ABOVE sea level this time (darn tides!), essentially creating a city on top of a city. The tour guide was great too — very tongue-in-cheek.

My girl, Tira, had tipped me off to Kerry Park, letting me know it had the best views of Seattle. Before we checked into our hotel nearby, we stopped over and OOHHH was she right! So glad we did this at night (and that I had a tripod for proper exposure!) Nick and I stood there mesmerized by both the view and watching all the planes coming for a good 15 minutes. GORGEOUS cityscape! We stayed at The Maxwell and I can’t say enough wonderful things about the hotel. Cool and ecletic and close to so much, especially the Space Needle. And I can I just say I love that moment I see in person a monument or sculpture or painting I’ve seen a zillion times on TV or in other people’s photos? Still special, no matter how much I already recognize it. We meandered our way down to the famous Pike Place Market ….Rachel the Pig!!! The market’s mascot …Nick teased me about my compulsion to hunt down the original Starbucks and take a picture of it. Amazing to think of what this company has become in the 40 years since it opened this first small store. We picked up some yummy piroshkies and headed for the waterfront for breakfast… I was a woman on a mission to find the infamous Gum Wall. I know, I know..eewwwww. It’s gross and yet, I was strangely fascinated by it. Funny enough, I could actually SMELL it before we got there. The whole alley smells like one giant piece of Wrigley’s DoubleMint…. Is it weird I want to turn this shot into some kind of notecard? That little gum heart gets me every time. You didn’t think I’d go all the way to Seattle and NOT try to find McDreamy, did you? We hopped on a ferry to see more of Puget Sound. All I could think about for a while was that one episode of Grey’s Anatomy where the ferries collide (also known as that plotline where Meredith “drowns” and the show jumps the shark). And leave it to Nick to instead be thinking about how he could do his best Jack Dawson impersonation. Man…what a VIEW. Can you see Mt. Rainier in the background? Yet another day where the weather held for us to be able to take in the beauty of Mother Nature in all her majesty. Countless are the times where Nick will tell me he’d rather not have his picture taken. And then, a tacky tourist shop comes along and he’s suddenly a camera hog. Lunch in the market at Lowell’s Restaurant. YUM! We finished off the afternoon heading back toward our hotel and setting our sights on the Experience Music Project. What an unbelievably awesome museum, both inside and out. The way the light reflected off this building made me feel like a bug heading straight for it ’cause I just couldn’t look away. The massive guitar sculpture in the entry. An awesome exhibit on Nirvana and the birth of the grunge movement meant I had the beat of “Smells Like Teen Spirit” stuck in my head for the rest of the afternoon. I was a 7th grader standing in front of a jukebox at a pizza parlor when I first heard that song. An exhibit on the lure of horror films had us giving our best “Scream” faces. I don’t watch scary flicks much these days, but still found the layout of this curation fascinating. We dressed up and headed 60 stories up the Space Needle to have dinner with one of the most spectacular views I’ve ever experienced. Our sweet waitress asked if we wanted our picture taken, then snapped this with my 5D. When she hesitantly asked me, “How did I do?” and I saw this on my viewfinder, I smiled and said, “You did great!” Out of focus though it is, I still love it. For sentimental reasons, of course. One last request for the night was made and my husband indulged me in getting a night snap of the market. What a great way to end this trip!

To read the first two parts of this vacation recap, visit: San Francisco, Mendocino & the Oregon Coast and 48 Hours of Fun in Portland

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

First off, let me just say THANK YOU to any and all friends who helped me in planning this trip, from emails to Facebook notes to texts sent. I thought I’d be more spontaneous on this vacation and have us just book a hotel when we made it to our next destination. But when you’re in the throes of traveling, you realize the last thing you want to do after driving all day is drive around some more to find a place with rooms available. So, my best recommendation for a vacation is keep your activities schedule flexible but find cool places ahead of time to stay so you make the vacation itself less stressful.

With that in mind, I have the lovely Anda to thank for SO many Portland recommendations! She gave me a heads-up about one of Portland’s up-and-coming neighborhoods (the NE Alberta area) and recommended we stay at McMenamins’ Kennedy School. SO glad we did as Nick and I were just smitten with this place! It’s an old historic elementary school turned into a hotel, complete with restaurants, a movie theater, and a great soaking pool that made for an awesome way to relax our first night in the city. Very affordable too!

The rooms are old classrooms and most still retain the look and feel of ‘em, right down to the blackboards. Before we checked out, Nick and I had a little fun doodling but soon enough, Nick let me know he was ready for breakfast One last thing to say about the school, and that was how much I loved all the art inside it. Murals on every wall and, as Nick was paying our bill, I looked up to see this quirky painted face on one of the pipes. No detail too small for this place! The Alberta Arts District was so fun to explore and, just as Anda said, it had a feel to it that was both up-and-coming and yet, completely authentic, as this is definitely a neighborhood where people live, not just come to visit as tourists. I love this. That’s all. My husband is a biscuits-and-gravy connoisseur, so it was a given we eat at Pine State Biscuits. We took one look at this cat, promptly declared he was Ron Swanson in feline form, and then burst into laughter. (And if you’re NOT watching Parks & Rec, truly you are missing out on one of the best sitcoms out there. This season, I have been ALL about the Leslie Knope-Ben Wyatt lovefest).  We headed downtown after our morning adventures and found ourselves falling in love with the Lan Su Chinese Garden. A beautiful spot of tranquility amid city life. Thanks to Ravyn for the heads-up on this must-see! My pal, Kelly, told me that if we ventured over to the Laurelhurst neighborhood of Portland, we’d find it impossible not to fall hopelessly in love with its tranquil parks and abundance of adorable bungalows. Oh Kelly, when can we move there? When? When? If there’s a line-up of food trucks, you KNOW you must be in Portland! We checked in to Portland’s Ace Hotel that afternoon and can I just say, if Portland is Hipster Central, the Ace Hotel is its Mecca. Like, whoa. As we waited for the elevator with people who looked something like this, Nick looked at me and whispered, “Uhhh, yeah….are you sure we’re ironic enough to be staying here for the night?” For me, the best thing about staying at the Ace (beside all the hipster gazing and in-house access to yummy Stumptown coffee) was being ONE BLOCK AWAY from my version of heaven on earth, aka, Powell’s Bookstore. I had heart palpitations in this place because I loved it so much but was so overwhelmed by the selection and what books to take home with me (Settled on: I Capture the Castle and A Moveable Feast). Book lover’s paradise….. Marrying a man who loves a bookstore as much as I do? Swoon. (And if you notice, Nick’s arm is full of books about the outdoors…this is how it goes when we go inside a bookstore….I head straight for ‘Contemporary Fiction’ while he meanders around the ‘Nature’ aisle…) We had more than one person tell us to eat dinner at Pok Pok and ohhh man, just seeing those Thai chicken wings with the sticky rice is making me salivate all over again! I also tried one of their drinking vinegars (raspberry flavored) and it was so yum! Would love to relive this night just to eat there again! The next morning we got up, had another cup of coffee and read in the Ace lounge for a bit. I tried to play it cool like I didn’t want my picture taken with their badass “Hotel” sign but it’s pretty much a token shot you have to take if you stay here. Love that Nick captured me with my nose in my favorite book of the year, The Art of Fielding. Our final stop before hitting the road again? VooDoo Doughnut. And yes, I DID eat the doughnut with the bacon on top and it was the perfect combo for a gal who loves herself something salty along with something sweet. And before we headed for Seattle, we HAD to detour it out to Cannon Beach. So so beautiful…. (and lots of references to Chunk and the rest of the Goonies clan were made while stopping there ) After I took this photo, I posted a peek of it on Instagram with a caption that read something along the lines of, “This is one of those days where I feel really really lucky to call this man my husband.” New favorite shot of Nick, for sure….Yeowza!! And, last but not least, on to Seattle for my last trip recap next!!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

I’m glad this time of reflection came when it did, nearing year’s end as I think about goals for 2012. Coincidence or not, in the past week, my attention was drawn to features in several magazines on the very topic of social media. From Real Simple’s “Social Disgraces” to GQ’s “18 People You’re Scared of on Facebook,” everywhere I turned I was reminded of what annoys me most about social media and the ways I no longer want social media to control me.

Which leads me to my pledge for 2012 in all areas of social media:That’s right….if it’s not an affirmation of someone, a bit of praise or good will, or a link to something fun or informative I want to share (the reasons I most found myself missing social media last week), then I’m NOT posting it.

I know this is just my own bit of personal advice, but I would love if some of my readers decided to “borrow” it and make this their own social media mantra for 2012. What tires me most are the tweets about Mondays (of which I’ve had a few myself, no lie), the “Why me?” attitudes so prevalent in social networking and the vague and off-putting messages so many people post on their Facebook walls (or as Real Simple describes it, “vaguebooking”).

I encourage you to give this a lot of thought in 2012 as I plan to do the same. Social media is here to stay—no ‘if’s about it. But let’s not allow these vehicles to negatively shape the way friends and followers see us, yeah? (A great exercise to gauge this: Take a few minutes to read back through your Facebook walls and Twitter feeds…it’ll say a lot about your character and how you’re spending your time online).

What about all of you? What’s YOUR most annoying social disgrace? How do YOU think you could use social media more effectively in your life? I know I still want to maintain a presence on both Facebook and Twitter because there is a lot I love about both platforms, especially popping in to “share” stuff or say hi with so many of my friends there. I just don’t want to let those presences control me! So I’ll be “fasting” again a few times in 2012 to keep this up and doing my best to live by the words above. If you aim to take a similar pledge or goal for yourself, let me know in the comments!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.

At the time, I found it so beneficial to let go of that self-imposed set of habits, I told myself, “I’m going to do this twice a year.” And here it is, three weeks left in the year and I’ve yet to pull the plug for a second time in 2011. Which is why I’ve decided, for this week, I’m pulling it now.

I spent the weekend away from my life with Nick (one that involves constant access to computers in my house) and headed up to stay with my parents, going Xmas shopping, enjoying one another’s company, relaxing. It reminded me of what my life was like before all these gadgets came into existence, before I felt like I had this….this “Web presence” I needed to maintain, before I decided that a life lived at breakneck speed was the one for me.

I’m not saying that, most of the time, I don’t love that pace or that I don’t appreciate the blessings heaped upon me in any given year. Just that, for all of us, there comes a season in life where we need to slow down. For me, that season is marked by the winter months now upon us. And it begins with this post telling you I’ll be back again next week. See you then and, stay tuned, because I still have a few fun vacation recaps to come and—a personal fave—highlights of my 2011 in pictures! Have a blessed week!

See more of Gail’s work at www.gailwernerphoto.com. Become a fan of Gail’s work on Facebook. Follow Gail on Twitter.