I wish they would sing and dance with reckless abandon forever! Carefree. Confident. Rockstars!
Yes! We rocked it didn’t we?!
Elia – 10 Months
See those fingers? She can SNAP like a grownup!!
She gives the BEST stinkeye on the planet! We get it all the time.
Lael – 4 and 3/4 as she likes to say
2010 was a BUSY year for me and blogging took a back burner to all the exciting shoots, family fun and the biggest news of the year – our ‘new’ baby girl – Elia Chelle! Why it’s taken me 4+ months to introduce her can only be summed up by saying I’ve been soaking up all the delicious moments with my girls and my computer has been collecting dust most days. I knew going into baby number two that the time would fly by and I was determined to slow down to enjoy it all. Once again we have been blessed with a laid back, sweet, sweet baby and I couldn’t be more grateful. I am LOVING my time home with my girls and am looking forward to getting my photog wheels turning for the spring and summer season (available sessions are limited for this year so I can continue to enjoy these two beauties so if you are hoping to book with me catch me early to be sure you get in). I have some fun shoots on the horizon and a ton in the archives from last year and have my fingers crossed and big intentions of getting some blogging time fit in…
In the meantime below are a couple snapshots of the accordion style announcement we sent out and a couple recent candids of the girls from last week.
The November rain was a Godsend for me – all the warmth allowed me to shoot outside in the snow and Lael just had to have a shot of her new sis in her snow cave…
Enjoy my little lovies…
(far right of the second spread is the front panel of the card, the spread below is the inside and the rest of the bottom spread is the back – accordions are confusing).
Her baby blues are so sparkly…
Lael LOVES her little sis and we couldn’t have had an easier transition! Elia gets no fewer than 50 kisses a day, they are so stinkin’ cute together! Elia crosses her feet like this all the time.
What an absolute honor to see my images in Fresh Home Magazine! Ana White of ana-white.com was contacted by the magazine to do a feature interview and to showcase one of her beautiful furniture pieces. When she asked if I was interested in photographing her and the furniture for the spread I was elated! Ana directed the magazine to check out my portraits of her and they liked what they saw and called to work out the logistics. Ana and I had a great time styling the shoot complete with a whirlwind shopping trip and two cars full of prop pieces to make our set complete. I packed up Lael and we headed to Delta for the shoot. After a full day of shooting I raced back to town, edited the images and turned them over for review to the magazine the very next day. They were trilled with the results and picked up three images for the layout. To see the interview and photo spread in full you’ll have to pick up a copy of the magazine or visit the fresh home blog to request your free copy. Fresh Home Magazine is a quarterly publication so it will be on newstands until January.
When Ana initially built the locker piece it ended up being to short for the magazine and when I saw it I thought we should put it to good use by doing a mini shoot of our girls to make the most of the piece. Scroll down to see some of the fun images of her other beautiful locker!
Enjoy!
And a few outtakes…
The mini locker shoot…
This little boy has made a mark on my heart that is difficult to explain…
I think it’s a combination of a few things…sharing in the miracle of pregnancy and birth with my cousin, girl friend and business partner was a treat and blessing beyond what I can express. Savoring the moment of learning a little boy has been born was such an awesome surprise! Capturing Pius’ first images as he came into this world and greeted his Momma with open eyes that stared into her soul was breath taking. And, I think top on my list is the mark this little guy will leave on us and especially the baby in my belly – it’s a joy that melts my heart. For almost 33 years I have cherished my relationship with my sweet cousin and watching our three year olds light up when they see each other brings a pitter patter to my heart. Marek and Lael are 5 months apart and Pius and this little one in my belly will be too and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for them.
It has been awesome watching your family grow, you guys have done an beautiful job raising your babies. The tenderness that Jahnna and Zavier have shown to Lael is so special and it means the world to me that they take time to make her feel so loved, Thank you for letting us share these moments with your incredible family. We are blessed to have you in our lives!
Enjoy!
I have been dreaming of this shot for quite some time and I needed the perfect fit to make it a reality. Kelly’s Tire Station has been apart of our family since my dad was a little boy so having a family baby boy this summer made it perfect.
The smiles he was giving me were to die for!
I mean seriously, look at this smile!
And there’s another one!
…to be able to make such a fun family smile! It’s especially nice to be able to do it all for such a wonderful cause. You might remember the giving is awesome campaign from around Christmas time. You can read my full blog post here. This is one of the families I chose and couldn’t have been more honored to do there shoot. Sharlot, Rachel, Cynthia, Shantel, Kenny & Drew you guys were so much fun to work with, thank you! Sharlot – you are so tender with your kids it warms my heart to see and feel the love you give to them. Raising five kids on your own and working so hard to support them is commendable! I hope my glimpse of your world makes you smile for years to come. Enjoy.
Below is the nomination this special family received.
The nomination for our third family came from Tonya Garnett and here is her story.
Her name is Sharlot Evans. She is such a nice, sweet, hard working person and has gone through a lot. She and her soon to be ex husband have five kids together. She always worked full time while raising her kids. Her kids are all nice, well behaved sweet kids and all of them have such a nice personality. She goes above and beyond for her children even while in a bad relationship with her husband. She took on many of the responsibilities; school, work, practices, bills, etc. She never let anything hold her back when it comes to her kids. She always made rent, car payments, provided for all five children. All her children are so nice and a delight to have around. Even though all these things were going through her life she still made time for family and friends and is always a person you can call on when you need help. Sharlot works at the Cancer Treatment Center here in Fairbanks. Sharlot always thinks of creative ways to make life interesting and fun for her kids with activities and outings! Even though she has five of her own children she still babysat for her cousins and other family members.
I just think that she needs something special, especially during this holiday season. She is such a neat loving smart person and she only deserves the best. She is really an inspiration and we are so glad to know her. If you meet her you can just feel the genuine person she is; loving, nice, and goofy and she is contagious by making others smile and feel good around her.
She’s just had a tough year and I think something special can probably bring up her spirits. Her and her kids are all very beautiful people and they are such a joy to be around.
Thank you Cassy! You too are an awesome person!
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Shots like some of these are a perfect examples of the in between moments I adore. I LOVE it when someone is unaware that I’m still shooting. Or when parents spend an entire shoot coaxing kids to smile and it turns out those aren’t the favorites. I love capturing a genuine look from a little one who is unaware of how perfect the look is. Or the shot that catches a busy toddler just discovering something neat around them. In between is where people let their guard down for just an instant and I can catch who they really are. In between is where real laughter shows. In between is when families are just themselves and I’m able to scoop up that moment and save it for them to see for a lifetime.
I just LOVE the in between. Enjoy.
What is this big thing?
Look at this…he’s just two and he’s trying really hard to shield the sun from his little brother’s eyes to help him stop crying.
Just a quiet moment with dad while mom takes a nursing break…
What a day we had…we woke up that morning and I told Lael we were going to find some puddles to play in and that we would go to the new tea shop to have tea together. Later that morning she grabbed my face and told me “you’re the best momma…we go to the tea shop together momma?” It doesn’t matter what could have come up to change our course – with sweetness like that how could I even change our plans?! So, we went to Fairbanks’ newest treasure Sipping Streams Tea Company to have tea and lunch, then we were off in search of puddles.
If you haven’t visited Sipping Streams Tea Company you’ve got to check it out! It is in the little mall building by Gulliver’s Books on College Road and it is an absolutely adorable shop that features tasty handmade teas, amazing Hong Kong style steam buns, Chinese rice soup, Alaskan Fireweed Honey, homemade baked scones and muffins and many other delightful treats. Jenny, the owner, would love to have you stop in and stay awile. Spread the word and give her new business a try, you will be pleased you stopped in. Enjoy!
