Today was dubbed “Mommy/Brooke” day because big sister, Emma, got to have a sleepover with her cousin.  So, to make Brooke feel equally special & loved, I took her out for a date, just her & me.  We went where every girl goes when she needs something to do – the Mall!  We had a little dinner at Chick-Fil-A & went off to throw coins in the fountain.  After that we ventured through the entire mall down to Build-a-Bear.  There,  Brooke was overwhelmed with a mountain of furry friends looking for homes!  After picking up about 5 friends & then saying, “I changed my mind,” she finally settled on Frosty the Snowman.  What an economical shopper – he was reduced to $15 instead of the normal $23.  Even his accessories were on sale!

She took Frosty to the stuffing station, put his heart in, watched him get puffed up to life, bathed him, & then got his birth certificate.  We later took him out to a quiet corner in the mall & played with him.  Brooke decided he was too tired to walk so she strapped him in her stroller & took him all the way back down where we began.  Sorry to all you shoppers who had to jump out of our way – rookie driver!

Now we’re home & she’s busy coloring his “house” box & letting him watch himself on the Frosty movie.  The perfect end to a perfect day.  (Now if the Ravens can pull off a win against the Colts, my husband will think it’s the perfect day, too!)

Photos I’ve been looking at:  Arce Photography & Fernanda Arce Design.  Fer is a friend – a Facebook Friend – that I “met” through an organization we’re both members of:  Cherubs.  Both of our children (Brooke & Juan Pablo) were born with Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH) & Cherubs is a support group for parents living with children who both survived & didn’t survive this birth defect.  Fer & I share a passion for photography & she also is a wonderful graphic designer.  She made my logo!  I love looking at her work – it’s just so natural, so organic, so “life unscripted.” (sorry, TLC)

Well, I’ve been a busy little bee lately.  And very happy about it, too!  A smile always comes to my face when I get an e-mail from Kelly about taking Clara’s next set of photos.  I just love love love seeing her grow & change each time I visit…and she’s not even mine!  This is why I love my job:  I get to meet new people, invest in their lives, capture meaningful moments for them, & in the end, come out with friends!

You might remember Clara from her Halloween/6-month photos.  Well, she’s gotten even bigger & cuter!  It’s almost Christmas & Clara is as well dressed as ever, plus she is crawling, babbling, saying “uh-oh”, and she smiles at me! (a little)  Besides Clara’s uber cute & stylish outfits, what I really enjoyed this visit was a book she had.  It’s “T’was the Night Before Christmas” and upon turning each page Clara is read the story by her grandpa on a recording!  How cool is that?  So whenever she wants to hear his voice she just opens this book & he’s there, reading to her!  I want one for my girls when I’m away this coming March in Ethiopia.

Thank you again, Kelly, for inviting me in to your home.  And it was good to see you again “Grammy” and wonderful to meet Clara’s daddy too.  The smiles she gave when you came ’round were priceless!  Enjoy Clara’s first Christmas…

Well, today is my birthday.  Here’s how I awoke to my special day:  Emma coming in & me turning on cartoons & drifting back to sleep.  Two phone calls that I didn’t answer…sleep was more important to me.  The dog howling at the phone (because it’s the kind that talks).  Emma – my 4-year-old – going in to my 2-year-old Brooke’s room & letting her “out.”  Me finally wiping the sleep dust out of my tired eyes & checking the weather on my phone.  My surprise & smile at noticing over 50 emails from my Facebook friends wishing me a happy birthday.  A text from my mommy wishing me a great birthday.  A phone message from my sister-in-law wishing me a happy day.  Lunch at McDonald’s with my two lovelies.  And now…probably a nap!  (Oh, and the husband said to expect some packages that I can’t open ’til he gets home!)  What a wonderful day.  Thanks for all the love everyone.  I feel very special.  And, to end this post that is selfishly all about me, I give you a photo of Emma & Brooke!  Happy Tuesday!

This post isn’t meant to get you down, or make you sad.  It’s meant to show you the real-life moments that happen.  Yes, I know you always get to see the best, and most happy, and most lovely of all the images I take.  Did ya think I’d show you the bad ones?  Of course not!  But I did want to share with you some super cute, and super sad faces I got from Kate this past weekend.

We went out on one of the hottest, most humid, most sunny afternoons.  And darn it, Kate wanted some milk!  And she wasn’t going to be persuaded otherwise!  We gave her yogurt bites, Skittles, funny dances, silly songs, and her mommy even gave her kisses…but she would have none of it!  She wasn’t going to smile until she got some milk.

I’m blogging this to show you that life may not always be smiles, and that’s okay.  We all want some milk once in a while and it’s alright not to smile until we get it.  So, go get what you are longing for and then smile.

This is actually my second time photographing Jackson, it’s just that the first time he was still in his momma’s belly.  Sam & Justin participated in my “Bare Bellies” party back in the early Spring.  And now….ta da!  Jackson has arrived!  He is actually 4 weeks old TODAY!  Can you believe it?  He seems like such a big fella, but then when his daddy holds him, he seems so tiny!

Sam & Justin invited me into their home this past Saturday to capture some shots of “Jax” before he got too much out of the sleepy newborn stage.  Well, let’s just say he wasn’t too sleepy.  He ate before I came, ate when I was there, and still was determined to be awake!  He sort of half fell asleep and tried to fake us out for a bit, but his Popeye peeking gave him away.  But oh, he is such a gem!  I could just sit and look at his little boy hands, & feet, & nose, and ears all day!  I thoroughly enjoyed getting to finally meet you, Jackson.  Your mommy & daddy love you very much, I know, and are glad you’ve finally arrived!

Enjoy!

Big yawn!

Having a quiet talk with Daddy.

Finally asleep on Mommy.

Taking his first elephant ride!