We held the session at baby E’s home.  She actually lives on a sheep farm!  How perfect is that? We were also so incredibly lucky to actually have a one week old lamb willing to join us for a few pictures!  To top it all off, it was a beautiful and warm spring morning and sweet E was [mostly] full of smiles.  We even ended the session with a good old fashioned cake smash which was a rip-roaring success!!

And now, onto the photos!!  There were too many I absolutely LOVED!

These next two shot of E and her mom I just adore!!!!!  Love me some honest-to-goodness Mama-love!!!!

And if this the most perfect depiction of a little girl celebrating a Happy Birthday…I don’t want what is!

And lastly an outtake that I just love….what happens when Mommy walks away for 1.2 seconds….

Thank you so much Leo and Joe!!!  I love you all and can’t wait until next time!!!!

XOXO!!!!

This last month has been just crazy.  And not crazy in a good way.  Crazy in a very scary way.   Crazy in a way that grounds you and gives you a serious wake up call as to what is really important in this life.

My family has been struggling with the fear and stress of a sick family member, my dad .  For the last four weeks, we have been distraught, terrified, hopeful, annoyed, angry, elated, exhausted and every other emotion in between.  It has definitely been one of the hardest things my family has ever gone through.  And it isn’t over.  Although, for now, we are very hopeful.

We had yet another scare last Friday which resulted in an emergency trip back to the hospital.  And I spent another night away with my mom and away from my own family.  When I returned Saturday afternoon, I was tired but really in need of some serious family time.  I felt like lying on the couch for the day, but I know my husband had wanted to take the girls for walk in the woods to see a huge beaver dam.  So I suggested, in spite of my lack of motivation, that maybe that walk would do us good.

We headed out.  It was cool and cloudy.  And I do have one huge disclaimer……we were dressed for comfort and NOT at all for a photo shoot.  In fact, I don’t think my girls could have chosen a more bizarre set of clothing if they had actually tried.  LOL!

But did that matter.  No.

After a bit of hike through the woods, we found a clearing filled with flowers.  It was just gorgeous!

OK.  Maybe it is technically a field of “weeds”.  But I thought it was quite beautiful and will be a wonderful setting for a mini shoot!   (Must keep in mind!!0

And we eventually made our way to the home of the dam.  Yup, a huge swamp in the middle of a field.   You may not find it very beautiful.  But actually, it is quite interesting…

My husband played his role as teacher showing the girls all the signs in the woods of the deer and the beavers and they hung on every word.  These two are definitely two “Daddy’s girls”.

And when they say busy as a beaver, holy cow are they right!  Those critters must never stop!  My girls were amazed at the beaver’s home and swore there was a little chimney on top.  They had hoped for a glimpse at the owner, but no luck.

I was just amazed at the amount of damage those suckers do!

And damn, what a serious dam they build!!!

After trekking through the mud, we headed through some apple trees where I found a few blossoms (and the husband found a great place for his tree stand).

And we eventually made our way home.

And even though I originally had really no desire to do anything that day but sit on the couch, our little walk in the woods ended up being the exact thing I needed most.  We returned rejuvenated, re-energized and just plain ole happy to be together.

And we don’t need much more than that.  Do we?

Next visit Laura!!

I know.  I know. I know.  That is SUCH a cliche.  But it is a cliche because it is so true!

When my second daughter, who is severely handicapped, was born, we faced a few years of off and on hospital stays and many many scares.  But each time we weathered through a scare, or were finally released home from the hospital, we would feel such incredible ELATION.  We were on a huge high.  We were so much happier after the scare than we were before the scare, when we had nothing to worry about.

We were thrilled to just enjoy an evening home with everyone.  We were over the top excited to finally sit down again, as a family, for a nice dinner.  We appreciated every single otherwise mundane aspect of our life.

And we felt a bit (a LOT) of irritation when we would hear someone complain about things like the weather, or being bored, or just other “woe is me” stuff.

My lengthy to-do lists of the last month are starting to get dusty as I have barely even looked at them.  All I have been able to do is make sure laundry is done, food is in the pantry and bills are paid on time.

These last few weeks, I have barely even touched my camera.  But there were just a couple evenings that I forced myself to grab it.  My photos from those days may not be well planned, stylized, or necessarily portfolio-worthy.  But they are glimpses into some of the “mundane’ beauty found in our every day.  The beauty in the things we already have right inside our homes and right outside our door.  The beauty we too often ignore when things are going great, because we are too busy complaining and focusing on what we think we should have or should be doing.

And we all know, that focusing on what you don’t have is pretty much the key to unhappiness.

So here’s to some crazy kids and some signs of spring!  And a few quotes to inspire us all.

“Rise above the storm and you will find the sunshine.”

Mario Fernandez

“There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.”

Albert Einstein

“Dance as though no one is watching you,
Love as though you have never been hurt before,
Sing as though no one can hear you,
Live as though heaven is on earth.”

Souza

“Realize that true happiness lies within you.”

Lucian

“Start living now. Stop saving the good china for that special occasion.  Stop withholding your love until that special person materializes. Every day you are alive is a special occasion. Every minute, every breath, is a gift from God.”

Mary Manin Morrissey

Until next time!!! XOXO!

I absolutely LOVE doing newborn sessions.  I just can’t get enough of those teeny tiny fingers, toes and everything else!   And dear sweet baby R didn’t disappoint!  He was awake just a little while and then was soon smiling as he drifted into a sweet slumber.

Thank you and congratulations to you all!

Now onto the pictures!!!!

Yes, there is a difference.

It definitely is important to know how to create a photograph that is technically pleasing.  It should be in focus, properly exposed, has correct color balance,  flattering lighting, good composition and a pleasing, non-cluttered background etc etc.

But a portrait goes beyond that.  A portrait is much more than just a good photograph.  A portrait draws the viewer in, captures a moment and provides a glimpse into the subject’s personality.  You look at a portrait, and you see a story.

I had the pleasure of taking 2 year pictures for my sister in law.  Dear sweet Baby D has never been one to enjoy time in front my camera (LOL!).  I guess that crazy big, black box just mystified him and turned me into someone he wasn’t quite sure he should trust.

This time, I thought, let’s try something a little different.  Let’s take our time, let’s let D be D.  No poses, no forced backdrops, no “CHEESE”y smiles.  Instead, let’s play, let’s explore and let’s just have fun.

And it worked!

The first 1/2 hour or so, D got quite reserved and unsure as soon as I picked up my camera.  So I put down my camera and just chatted with my SIL and let him play.  And after a bit, he started to forget about my “black box” and let me take some shots without too much concern.  And I even got some honestly sweet SMILES!

I loved so many of these photos.  I loved capturing D’s expressions as he looked for “fishies” under the bridge.

I got a kick out of watching him find sticks and squeal with joy as he threw them in the creek.

I loved watching him intently study his matchbox cars and then dig them into the dirt.

I thought it was so sweet as he studied Thomas the Train chanting “Cinders and Ashes” over. And over.  And over…..(I guess it is a Thomas thing, with only little girls, I am not up on Thomas lingo.)

Here is a sampling of our session.  We spent about 2 hrs at the park.  And yes, much of the time was spent chatting and letting D do his thing. And here and there I stopped to snap a few moments.

But that turned about to be EXACTLY the perfect recipe for some absolutely adorable photos that (hopefully) lean a bit more towards being a portrait than just a photograph.  I see a little boy who is in awe of the world around him.  I see a boy who loves fishies and cars and trucks and trains and sticks and DIRT and puddles and, well – LIFE!

I will start with my absolute favorite of the day – LOVE everything about this photo!!!!!  Especially the truck and train in his dirty little fist!

Until next time!!  XOXO!!!!!

This is probably my absolute favorite time of year.  When I get all giddy and excited to see just one teeny, tiny piece of green poking out of our drab, dead world.

But I get REALLY excited, when I see a whole bed of spring flowers!!!  And that was exactly what happened this very warm and spring-like day when I went for a walk in the woods with my girls.

And, much to the chagrin of my little munchkins, it become a perfect day for mini photo shoot.  And I found myself, flat on my stomach, camera in hand, loving every second!

I may be covered in mud, but it is days like this that makes the blah days of February just a very distant memory.

Welcome dear spring!!!!  I missed you so!!!

Until next time!! XOXO!!!

I have [just a few!] senior sessions that I have yet to blog from the late summer/fall!  Yikes!

Brooke and Jordan took advantage of my BFF senior sessions.  These are very popular sessions where two seniors can share a session, and share the session fee!  Each senior takes turns getting their portraits taken.  After the session, I choose and edit the best images and create two separate private galleries for each senior.  This session works great for best friends, or even siblings!   And these sessions are really so much fun!!!

I met Brooke and Jordan at Two Mile Run on a beautiful morning.  What a perfect day!!!

Brooke and Jordan – it was such a pleasure meeting and working with you both!  I wish you all the success in your very  bright futures!!!!!!

Until next time!

I was going to focus on one “simple thing” for my February post, but then I realized that for me, February is all about simple things.

There isn’t usually much going on in February.  My husband is crazy busy with his coaching.  My kids are finishing up with their swim team activities.  There are many lazy evenings doing not much of anything except hanging by the wood stove.  And spring is still quite a few weeks away.  I often get a bit antsy during this time of year, looking forward to warmer weather, being outside more, VACATIONS!

But when I take the time to look within my little world, I can see how many wonderfully simple things I have.  And if you add up all those simple things you end with one pretty amazing bunch of STUFF.

There are cold, snowy weekends outdoors!

And afternoons baking [amazing] chocolatey peanut buttery cupcakes!

And even MORE lazy days by the wood stove!

And some days that we all are a bit stir crazy!

There are FREE days at the zoo!

And even an orangutan or two!

But sometimes just a simple and quiet snowy morning at the lake can feed your soul a bit..

Yup, these simple things can be pretty amazing things.

Thanks so much for stopping by!!!!  Now I invite you to visit Nikki and view her February post!

Until next time!  XOXO!!!

don’t happen when you have a week of complete lack of motivation!

Why is it that I feel so “blah” in early February?   I guess it is probably a mish-mash of reasons – the holidays are done, spring is still fairly far away, my husband is very busy with coaching, not around a lot, and has a good month left of crazy time.  And here in mom-land, nothing exciting really going on.  And, at least for me, when I have less urgent items, I tend to do…nothing!  HA!  Well, other than daily mom stuff, mindless TV, catching up on my reading, and just feeling sort of slug-like.  HA!

Or maybe I just need to be jumpstarting my winters by scheduling a yearly tropical vacation this time of year.  Yeah baby!

What I do know is that I have a bunch of crazy munchkins at home and even in the dullest of cold February evenings, they still can keep me very amused!  Yes, this was HER idea for a photo opp!

MWAH!

Happy Friday!!!!

Until next time!  XOXO!

Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine. – Anthony J. D’Angelo

I took advantage of some amazing late afternoon light this week when I took a little walk in our woods with my little one.   It was cold but oh-so-beautiful!  I just love that little munchkin to pieces..

Until next time!  XOXO!