About Me

Welcome to Lights and Letters. My name is Leslie and this is my space to share my photographs and stories about family, my experiences and the things that I find magical, beautiful, nostalgic or inspiring. I'm not perfect, or an expert, but I am passionate and I really enjoying connecting with people and talking about the things that I am doing and learning.

View my professional profile on About.Me

My Family

I am married to Chris. He is a musician and a passionate researcher of rock and roll history. He takes good care of me and inspires me to challenge myself and continue trying to make a mark in the world. He's always got something going on and his latest project is a book called 1950s Radio in Color. We have two boys, Milo Jett and Quinn Leo, and they make it alright for us to play video games and buy toys. Milo is four and is such a sweet and empathetic boy. He also loves to know how and why things work. Quinn is two and is naturally strong and athletic. He can also correctly name and pronounce about a dozen dinosaurs including Quetzalcoatlus. I can't even do that. They amaze us and make us laugh every day.

Where I Live

We live in Warwick, New York. It's a small town with a down to earth, metropolitan atmosphere, just 50 miles from New York City. Our mid-century modern home is on 2 acres at the end of a dirt road, next to a lake. The woods are our backyard. It's a unique house that I love, even though it's needed a lot of work since we moved in. We dream one day of building a new modular home, somewhere with a view. We've got the best of both worlds, with wide open natural spaces and farms all around, but we are close enough to New York City to spend a day visiting a museum or seeing a show. We try to go in at least once a month and I dream of having a little crash pad in Brooklyn so we could spend the weekends there. I really do miss the energy and life that the city breathes into me.

My Roots

I grew up in Alberta, Canada and moved to the US over 10 years ago. I still visit Canada often, with all of my family still there, and the distance has certainly made my heart grow fonder. I have an appreciation for the country, my family and my history that I didn't have when I was there. Maybe I grew up, but I think I just really miss my home. 

My Passion

I like to live a creative life. I've always loved art and started borrowing my Dad's camera when I was 14. I attended the Alberta College of Art and Design in Canada and studied photography and graphic design in the communications department. I worked as a web designer for eight years before leaving the work force to have a family. I've been a stay at home Mom for five years and being a parent is the most rewarding and challenging thing I have ever done.

My Future

I am finding myself with more time as the kids get older and I am getting the urge to create art again. I want to become more serious about photography. I want to become a better writer. And this is my place to collect it, document it, share it and get inspired by it. I hope that you can maybe find some inspiration too, or find some common experiences in the stories that I share.

Contact Me

I encourage you to talk back to me! Send me a private email at leslie (at) lightsandletters (dot) com or fill out the form on the Contact Me page of this site. You can also leave a comment on any post and find me on twitter: @lesliedf. It's my favorite part of this process.