Category Archives: FAMILY
MY PEOPLE
I have been rather absent from this blog recently. This has not been my intention….I love blogging and writing. However, I am not good at forcing myself to write if I am not feeling the words or have too many other details going on in my life…thus this blog has been rather quite lately. :) Do you ever feel like hiding from the world? I do. I need quite time to to refresh. To gain perspective. And I am learning when I need that and to listen to that. To go with my heart and not what I think I ‘should’ be doing. Learning that, understanding that, and living that out…is….a….process. :)
Andrea from Andrea Marie Photography is awesome and you will be seeing more of her work on this blog soon…more to come on that!!! She took these photos of me and my people! Ah yes, my people. :) The world may be spinning around 100 miles per hour….but these guys keep me grounded and focused.
Corde is one and a half….how did that happen so fast?? He is at an age I love….so much personality and still little enough to be innocent and adorable even when he is throwing around some attitude. I love that I can just look at him and he breaks into a huge grin.
We had no plans of Andrew being in the photos…it was going to be just me and the boys. But since he was with, Andrea pulled him into some of the photos and I am so glad she did!
Mr. Adler is on the left….he all about snuggling, keeping up with big brother, tadpoles, and roller blades. One minute he us a sweet as honey and the next minute he lets me know in no uncertain terms, ‘I AM MAD.” Ah, yes…the life of a six year old.
Riley is the oldest. He is responsible. Loves quality time, playing games, swims like a fish, and wants to be a soccer player. He notices details and retains details SO much better than me. He is starting to notice things about people and life and asking questions like this…”why do big kids and big people worry and babies don’t worry?” He just graduated from SECOND grade. Jeepers.
Hope you all have a beautiful weekend! :) The sun will be shining….soak it up!
GIRLFRIENDS
There is a famous quote by Jim Rohn…”You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.” I am thinking this is pretty much truth. I am thinking others have more impact on me than I give them credit for. Whether I consider it a good thing or not…others play a huge role in who I am. I believe we were created to need relationships. SO, if the people you are hanging around with are bringing you down…consider an upgrade. Haha. I don’t know about you, but relationships kinda feel like oxygen to me. I need them. In a big way. They help me keep my heart alive and dancing. The impact these girls make on me is well, huge. I am quite certain I am not even aware of the fullness they impact me. I have known both of them for years. We go waaaay back. And you know, there is something that happens when a friendship remains true and strong for many years…it turns to GOLD.
So…a few quick Christmas card photos we pulled off.
Ann with her family. They are a little crazy. In a good way.:) We got one where they were all smiling at the camera…but we still liked this one.
Cheney….;)
Angel and her beautiful family! The little man on the left is Riley’s best bud.
As iron sharpens iron. ;)
These are my girls (and their families:). I am so thankful I can claim these ladies as friends.
FAMILY.
Family. My aaaaah….a place to belong. I am so thankful for family.
When the Stehr family contacted me last spring…I knew I wanted to work with them. For several reasons. One, Stacey contacted me six months in advance. This allowed me to get it on the fall schedule…which tends to be a bit crazy. Second, I worked with them before. They are a delight. Third, they were inviting me to their farm this time. They own and operate a HUGE fruit and vegetable farm north of here. It is beautiful country around their farm. In the sticks….as in no cell phone service. So it sounded like an adventure to me. And last, they were lining up several families from their home town that all wanted photos. All I had to do was show up and photograph. Which I did. All day.(:
It was a warm October day. The apple orchards were bursting at the seams. There was an old red truck, quilts, baskets, wildflowers, even an antique tractor all ready to go. The day started at 7am with coffee and a tour of the farm bumping around in the farm truck. Thanks Katie for working with me! THANK-YOU Stacey, Amy, Annie, and Michelle for being so wonderful to work with and inviting me into your lives for a day. It was an honor. Truly.
OUT WITH THE OLD…IN WITH THE NEW!
Out with the old and in with the new! Yes! This time of the year I stop and step back. Refocus. Look at my priorities. Set goals. Organize schedules. Closets. And details. Simplify again. Study the past year. Ask what worked and what did not work. Where do you want to be in a year from now? Five years from now. What is my motive. What is my ‘Why’? Set everything else aside and ask…who am I? Truly. Apart from the world and it’s expectations. So I do this. And I love doing this. I Think. Contemplate. Dream. And THEN, then it comes full circle and I lay it down. Place it in God’s hands. I am HIS. He is mine. I trust. This is hope. This is life in it’s purest.
My family and the Christmas card photo. Thank-you, Diane for taking it for me. And my little sister for playing peek-a-boo and making baby Corde do his silly smile.
“Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.” Isaiah 43:1
I am so thankful God gives us a fresh start. But even more, I am thankful…we only have to take on one day at a time. Here is to a new year. New life. With fullness. Pureness. Freedom. Today I am hopeful and anticipating.
CLAIRE :: BABY GIRL;)
Just because it makes me Smiiile.(;
And she is so cute. Oh, yes…she came with a stash of gorgeous outfits. Thanks Mom! (: For the perfect outfits and for allowing me to photograph your baby girl again.
It is Friday! Happy Friday, folks.
KING FAMILY
It is always a total honor to photograph another photographer’s family! OK, a little nerve racking. But still so fun.
Rich and Shannon and the kids are so down to earth, kindhearted, spontaneous, crazy…in a good way, and as nice and can be. Big hearts and big dreams. You meet them…you like them. Shannon styled the shoot perfectly. She is one of those wonderful do-it-yourself people! She sewed her and her girls dresses. Loved the red and yellow vintage prints.
Shannon and Rich love to travel. As in, one of their very favorite thing to do. Someday, they hope to spin the globe, see where it stops, and hit the road! And they will do this, I don’t doubt it a bit. These are vintage postcards Shannon strung on ribbon. So pretty. The red book is a dictionary from France.
Thank-you Shannon and Rich for allowing me to photograph you guys!
THE BOYS.
You know the feeling of loving somebody so much your chest feels like it is squeezing?
Riley is seven. He is all about swimming, playing the Nintendo DS, catching crayfish in the creek, chocolate milk, and building forts out of every single blanket and pillow that can be found in the house. He has a soft heart and feels things with his all.
Like all kids, my boys do not love getting their picture taken. It has to be a game…or it will only last a minute and then it is fake smiles that quickly turn to ‘are we done yet?!!’ frowns. So we play Simon Says. When Adler remembered I was taking his picture, I got the fake, picture smile. See the fake smile photo on the left? This is the exact smile he gave me every time. Adler is going to kindergarten is a few weeks. Where does time go? His life is all about whatever his big brother is doing. He is so affectionate….loves to snuggle and sit on my lap. Always pulls me down for a bedtime hug and plants a big kiss on my face. He is also the most mischievous. Right now he is all about sneaking things somewhere…I find all sorts of objects ‘hidden’ everywhere. 
And baby, baby Corde. He was not sure how he felt about sitting in the prickly grass. He is 9 months. I have no idea how that happened. Honestly, love him to pieces. Nothing like having him give me a huge grin. Hearing him laugh. Having him hang onto me like I am his favorite. =) Huge expressive eyes. His baby smell. And baby toes.
Been wanting to get these boys out for ‘official’ photos all summer. =)
WEAVER FAMILY
Hey, it is the Weaver family!
Larry from Weaver Images has been a faithful second shooter for me ever since I began photographing weddings. It has been SUCH an incredible blessing to me. Well, he has three lovely kids and a beautiful wife, Karen. =) This family seems to have hearts of gold. They have a huge passion and excitement for the future and where God is taking them. It is gonna be big…I just know it.
This just makes my heart melt because baby Kiana is about the exact age of my baby Corde. I love this playful age. All I have to do is make a funny face or wrinkle my nose a little…Corde will break into a huge smile, his arms start waving, and his feet start kicking and then I feel like a million bucks. =)
BABY KEAGHAN
Aaaaah, baby, baby.
Baby Keaghan’s five siblings were tickled pink with him. As Baby Keaghan’s mother expressed…he is truly a blessing from God to this beautiful family.
I have been referring all baby inquiries onto my friend, Nicola. But when Keaghan’s mother contacted me, asked to use a gift certificate for the expected new baby, and proceeded to tell me about the props she had in mind…it all sounded like too much fun and I decided to go for it. Yup, all these great props were waiting for me!
He was such a little fellow! I love the way newborn’s faces wrinkle together. Thanks Keaghan’s family! =)
DRESDEN
One of the aspects I love about photography is all the folks it allows me to meet.
This day it was a 13 year old ROCKSTAR. =) He goes by Dresden. He plays the guitar and music is his passion.
Does he look all tough? Really, he was a sweetheart with a shy smile and I had so much fun with him.
Great outfit? Yeah, kudos to his sweet mother who wanted to capture this stage in his music career and dressed him so awesome.
