Oh this little girl… three short years ago they placed her in my arms. And as I told her last night; she said “Waaa Waaaa Waaaaaaa”. And she didn’t stop for a long time. Oh, the days seemed long. I felt exhausted. I remember one Doctors visit when she had been screaming, and I had been walking and bouncing and soothing, when the doctor finally walked in and after a good report of “she is healthy!” he asked “does she do this all the time?” My reply: “YES!” Then, he simply said that sometimes the babies who cry and scream so much have big personalities and as babies have no other way of expressing themselves.
Well, now that she is three years old, I am happy to say that this girl does have a big personality. She keeps us laughing all the time. She is feisty and loving and caring (and trouble and stubborn) and so so much more

Goodness we love her so much.

Bristol Lynn Brown ~ 7 pounds, 15 ounces

Going back through these first pictures, I get all sentimental. I have come to love these moments captured right after my babies are born. Stuart is good at grabbing the camera and snapping away. He often gets pictures of me, and honestly, I look rough! I am not one for ’fixing up’ before allowing my picture to be taken, I am too busy soaking in those sweet first moments…and really, I just gave birth so I think it is only fitting to look like I’ve been through it! Ha!
Since this one does not show my face, it isn’t so bad… and I love it

Here she is now…well, back in September:
(I think I’ve shared this picture before, but I love it so I wanted to share it again today)

And here are a few more recent shots, taken this week…

Bristol, we love you sweet girl… so very much!

Thanks for looking and Happy Weekend!

They love their dogs and coke, so we included both in their shoot

This brother/sister pair had these pictures done for their Dad for Christmas ( well, their Mom too… but she knew about it!) These are a few of my fav’s….

I really love this shot in color, b&w and sepia… So I am posting all three!

I feel like a dork posting this…since it is all about me…oh well, here goes

As a Momma and a photographer, I have found that pictures of me are few and far between. I am always the one behind the camera. And when I do see a picture of myself, I am critical (who isn’t?). But, I am probably a little extra critical… you know, looking at angles, and negative space (or lack thereof), background, focus, etc.
But, I do try to get in front of the camera every once in a while, and after finding these two shots of me over the weekend, I am going to try harder

This is me… on Halloween last year, holding one baby and kissing another. (I think Kennedy refused to get in the picture) And truth is, I love it. Yes, I am critical of my hair in it’s half-bun/half-pony-tail state of messiness – but that’s me, it is real and I love real.

this one was also taken back in October… and while my hair may be down, I smiled so big my eyes turned to little slits! Oh well, again, I kinda like it

Thanks for looking and Happy Monday!

I call these ”the Christmas Card shots”. That was the reason for getting these pictures, so they could be put on a Christmas card. We didn’t do full shoots, in fact, one of these I promise lasted all of 2 minutes!

First up, adorable little Brooklyn.

Hairpiece was made by Monica at Lil Twings…

Here is the two-minutes-or-less-shoot… Jesse Ray, he started out looking like this:

but thankfully we got this after about 10 seconds!

My niece Mya… Okay, this girl smiles almost anytime you give her attention, but on this day, she was very serious.

Got one smile!

These three brothers are cuties for sure… first up, Silas:

Canyon was not happy about having his picture taken, but I still love this one shot we got of him… and then baby Branson…

Last up, Claire, Piper and Baine…

Okay, there ya go… some Christmas Card shots in March   Hey, what can I say? I get slack on blogging and just have to play catch-up sometimes.
Thanks for looking!

Happy Monday! Seriously, this time change has got me sleepy and excited! More excited, the sleepiness will improve.  I love love love the fact that it will be light later in the day. It just feels better!

Here goes some more rambling this Monday morn, uh, afternoon…  These ramblings of mine may not always make a lot of sense, or tie in together well (or at all actually), but maybe you’ll get something out of it anyway (a laugh… a new recipe… inspiration…)

One of my fav Pinterest recipes: Sweet and Spicy Bacon Chicken. It’s delicious ya’ll. (do you have a favorite Pinterest recipe? if so, please share in the comments!)

I just started watching Downton Abbey…. only two episodes in and I am hooked!

Speaking of TV shows… I fear that anyone who gets in front of my camera might feel the same way Phil (on Duck Dynasty) felt about his pet photographer: (and I quote) “He acted kinda funny, but he’s a good photographer” Haha! Maybe I should not fear…as long as they think I’m good I guess it’s okay to act “kinda funny”…

After a ‘show’ from Kennedy and Bristol, Bristol took a bow and face-planted. She got up and kept on going…like she had planned it that way! haha! I laughed so hard

Lunch time around here is often crazy. Typically all three girls want something different, well, Tenley does not choose…but Kennedy and Bristol do. Chicken nuggets for one, jelly sandwich for another, and ham and cheese for yet another… Chips or pretzels? Carrots or not?…… Bristol is not a good eater, but she sure does love her some ketchup. And one day back in December I noticed the sun coming in through the window and decided to pull out my camera and capture her…ketchup all over her mouth, and I love it… also, that little hand on her hip? That is so her!

Thanks for looking  Hope you got something out of the ramblings – even if it was simply inspiration to just pull your camera out and capture your kids – as they are. Or, you know, you could always hire me to do it

Short and sweet shoot for this adorable Brother/Sister pair… this was a mini shoot for Christmas cards, and I love what we got in all of 15 minutes

This was totally natural, I could not have ‘posed’ them better! Jax took Genevieve’s hand himself, leaned down and said something too her, then laughed!

Quick outfit change for this pretty girl…

she loved it!

Ginny, thanks for asking me to do these for you! XoXo

I do not shoot weddings myself. But, I do like to second shoot every once in a while.. (so much less stress!) Back in the fall, I helped my friend Mallory Dawn out with a couple of her weddings. The first one was for Shane and Rachel, who had a gorgeous vineyard wedding…

I got some shoes and rings shots while Mallory covered the bride getting ready…

While Mallory stayed front and center getting all the must-have shots of the Bride, Groom, and Wedding Party, I stayed off to the side getting a few different angles for her.

Thanks Mallory…loved working next to ya

Ahhh, another fall family session finally making an appearance here on the blog! This time I bring you Kemp, Katie and their adorable baby girl Willa. She is precious and has the most gorgeous color of hair!

This shot with that adorable smile reminds me of a shot I captured at her Newborn Session…

Katie brought all the props we used; the rocking chair, the quilt, and these babies dolls. Each had a special meaning…these babies used to be Katies when she was a little girl…

Kemp, Katie and Willa…Thank you! XoXo

Diving right in to some random-ness this Monday morn…

My idea of some feel-good-relaxation time is my girls brushing my hair. I love it, it feels wonderful. But, you never know when they might get rough and a brush might land on your head – hard. Or they might twist your hair up in a brush and suddenly decide to yank it out. It could get ugly fast.
I had a facial last week, first one in a few years…and let me tell you, it was fabulous! (thanks to a friend who gave it to me ) Funny how being a busy Momma can make one appreciate things so much more. That steam hitting my face while my arms, hands, neck and feet got massaged….ahh. Seriously I walked out feeling like a new person!

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I went grocery shopping in the rain last week. With all three kiddos. As I was running out the door I noticed my grocery list on the counter and thought to myself “so glad I saw this…I’d be lost without it..” then I opened the door, said “it’s raining girls, RUN! But don’t fall!” as soon as I said it Bristol fell out the door. Sigh. We finally got in the car and made it to Walmart only to realize (thankfully before we got out) that I had left my purse at home. I had my list, but no purse to pay for it all! I wanted to cry, but instead I said to myself “put your big-girl panties on and deal with it.” So I did, after calling my hubs to whine a little. Drove back home, then back to Walmart (about 25 minutes total) and unloaded all three girlies. We were making our slow march through the Walmart parking lot (if you have 3 kids under age four, then you know the kind of slow march I’m talking about) we almost made it to the door when I realized my purse was still in the car. Really. After going all the way back home and getting it, I left it sitting in the car! Augh! Did I mention it was raining a little harder by this time?! Finally the purse made it into Walmart with us and we bought our groceries.
Here is a quick shot I grabbed of Bristol in the buggy with all our groceries

Going through some files over the weekend I found this shot of Kennedy that I love… I had this vision of pictures in a corn field, but never made the time to make it happen. I did manage to get this quick shot though…

oh those dirty bare feet…makes me want summer again…

Tenley is growing like a weed. (that really is a strange phrase….) anyway, I was going through some of her weekly pictures this weekend, and these caught my eye….

Here she is last week…

Happy Monday, and thanks for looking!

Garrett and Megan came prepared with toys (dozers, bobcats and other things little – and big! – boys love) And I came prepared with candy because they had warned me that Tylan was going through a phase of not wanting anyone to take his picture. No way, no how. Not happy about it at all.

And we aren’t above a little bribing.

But this adorable little boy? Wow. He proved to be a determined one. He really did not want anything to do with pictures. And poor Megan, she was in her first trimester (they are expecting baby #2!) and was at that stage of exhaustion. She had fallen asleep that afternoon and overslept and had to rush just to get there on time. Basically she had to jump up, throw everything in the truck and hit the road… and somehow, she looked fantastic!

Needless to say, I am so happy that we got some great shots! Megan, you inspired me really. I probably would’ve just sat down and cried

Location: Dixie Dreams

ahhh, those blue eyes!

Meg, I hope your next shoot is less stressful…but you really did rock this one Thank you!