Watch for our work on TV!

Come Monday, Monkey Tree will officially be "AS SEEN ON TV!"

Back in January I posted about being asked to photograph the family for the Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in Kemah. Karen and I headed out there on a super cold, super-windy day and did what we could in a very sweet neighbor's tiny kitchen for individual, small group, and other family portraits. The show's design team had some specific requests and we were more than happy to work with them! I wish sooooo much that we would have had the opportunity to shoot in natural light outdoors, but alas, you do what you have to do when you're on an intensely abbreviated scheduly, people are crazy-excited, and about to be whisked away to Disney World... we were also very second-fiddle tot he camera crew, who was also working with a very tight timeframe to get all their interviews done.

Pounds Labs and Kimbra Studios were absolutely wonderful-- working as quickly as they could (on crazy short notice) and donating their goods and services all for the Beach family. Once the show has aired, I'll be able to show you just what went down : )

BE SURE TO WATCH! The episode will air on ABC, Easter Sunday, 7-9 pm Central. It's a two-hour special, presumably due to the size of the family and the size of the home (and number of rooms needed to accommodate such a large family).

I was able to go back on-set once the home had been all finished... all I can say is WOW! The design team really outdid themselves on this one. I was taken aback to see that my artwork is indeed the central focus of one room, and a big component of a couple of others! The thought of having my images shown on national tv is kind of making me a little queasy, but in a good-excited kind of way.

To answer your questions:

a) No, I did not get to meet Ty. I did see him, though, and he was working really hard.

b) No, I didn't meet Jessica Alba (she was the guest-helper on this episode). I did see the top of her head as I was taking a quick tour of the finished home. She was hard at work, too!

c) No, you will not see ME on tv (God-willing, anyway! It was so rainy, I looked like a drowned rat every time I went on-set). The grand majority of my work took place where it always does, at home in front of my computer, on the phone, and in my car. Karen and I went out to the site to shoot with the family, but the rest of my site-visits were to deliver the hundreds of prints the designers ordered, and drop off the gifts from Kimbra Studios. I was definitely more of a behind-the-scenes volunteer.

d) No, I was not paid for any of my work (Pounds Labs and Kimbra Studios also worked on a strictly volunteer/donation basis). This was strictly donation/volunteer.

Last but not least, despite all of their good fortune and blessing that came with being chosen as a recipient family for this home... the Beach Family is still in need of your thoughts and prayers. Their youngest daughter passed away a couple of weeks ago, just shy of her second birthday.