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!

************

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!

I was scrubbing bathrooms this morning when Kennedy came out of her room and asked “Momma, what all goes in a cake? I have already put milk, sugar and banilla” (that would be vanilla in case your wondering!) so I rattled off a few other ingredients and then decided the bathrooms could wait. I grabbed my camera and captured her doing her thing. And it made me all sappy happy and sentimental. She really pays attention to what I do and how I do it. Watching her in her little kitchen I felt like I saw bits of myself in so much that she did. It made me think of how much children watch and learn, and how I want to set the best example I can for her… and her sisters

At this point I had to put my camera down and be a part of the tea party… Thanks for looking

Another family shoot on a gorgeous fall day. I don’t have favorite clients or anything like that…but if I did… well this family would be right up at the top

Chris and Jennifer with their adorable little boys…

Last time I saw Sullivan was when I did his newborn shoot, I could hardly believe how much he had grown. He went from tiny sleeping baby to crawling-everywhere-full-of-personality-baby-boy. Including jeans and shoes. What?! How did that happen so fast?! He is precious.

I love it when real life happens in front of my camera.

I love how little boys play and pretend to do whatever their Daddy does. Chris works on a NASCAR race team, so Logan was racing his cars and pulling them in for a pit stop, changing tires, and getting them back out on the track. It was so cute. From what I understand, these cars are pretty special to him, so of course we had to get a few pictures

Chris and Jennifer…Thank you for being you in front of my camera. And for your trust and total calm when we pull up to our loction to find a fence all around it! (yikes!)

This post is late, it’s been a long time coming. In fact, I found this draft that I had started and saved back in October, I got this far, then never finished:

So hard to believe it’s been 5 years since we said “I do”! These past few years have gone by fast. It happens doesn’t it? Seems like just a short time ago that we were really getting to know each other. Dating, eating out and going on spur of the moment trips whenever we pleased. 
Now we are a family of five (in just five years!) Crazy busy, hardly have time to think as we pass each other in the hallway giving baths and swapping babies. We are blessed.

As I mentioned, ‘crazy busy’ kept me from finishing it. And today I am going through my folder of pictures that haven’t made it to the blog yet and decided it was time to finish this blog post

You can read a little about how we first met HERE if your interested…

We found ourselves at the beach on our anniversary this last year. Just the two of us with our three girls. And honestly, it felt just right.

Once we got there we hurried down to the beach before it got dark… Kennedy and Bristol were SO excited!

Kennedy was fearless..

Bristol was a little fearful, here she is doing her Happy Dance…

But if the water got to close, she ran!

making sure not to get that skirt wet

Our room had floor-to-ceiling glass, and while the view was amazing (we could see all this, and then the ocean just to the right of this shot) it was also a little discomforting at first..I felt kinda dizzy when I walked in, but we got used to it!

I love the beach in the fall… warm enough for bathing suits and swimming during the day, and cool enough for long walks and light jackets later. And, the best part, it is not crowded

I never want to forget the feel of her little hand gripping mine, and how she looks up at me…

I took this last shot the last night we were there..we were at a nearby campground where some of our family were staying…

Thank you for looking

Julie’s house always inspires me. So when I arrived a few minutes before they were ready, I meandered around and captured things that caught my eye. I love being able to do this, since it always makes the shoot feel more personal, to just add in a few random things that are in the home.

Emerson came running in the kitchen to hang out with me, and at first wanted to just hide out under the table…

I talked him out of that idea, and seriously adore these images I got of him…I feel like they are so real life, in the best way…

ohhh, how I love this.

His ‘monster face’ is awesome! … color and b&w because of course I couldn’t choose…

Emerson insisted on driving his Momma around on his tractor…he tried a few different ways!

Sean, Julie, Emerson and Liam….thank you

And in case you’ve missed seeing Julie on here before, she is a friend of mine, and an artist… if you are in need of any custom art, be sure to check out her blog

My middle child. My little blondie. Bristol Bee. She dances to the beat of her own drum, and goodness, she keeps us laughing! And for the record, her name is not actually Bristol Bee, it is Bristol Lynn. I started calling her Bristol Bee when she was a baby, and it kinda stuck

Going through a few files on my desktop today I found these images (taken back in the fall) and since I love them, I want to share them (there are more where these came from, so look for more random/personal posts coming soon)….

She found a ladybug…

Fake smile.

Words cannot even describe how much I love this next one…

Ahhh, bare feet…summer dresses…I miss it! And I just built a fire in the fireplace…cozy night in tonight

Have a fabulous weekend everyone!