How do I say this honestly… I have been putting off blogging. I have been running myself ragged trying to do everything, but  not being able to enjoy what I am doing because I am anticipating what is coming next. I want to make a confession: I am NOT Superwoman. Surprise!  There I stated the obvious but some how it felt necessary. I have been around amazing woman who seem to do it all, effortlessly and they make me feel like… less than. Ok, they don’t make me feel less than, I do. I look at all they are able to do and juggle and it seems easier for them somehow. I don’t make all my meals from scratch, I can’t make an amazing birthday cake for my kids, my make-up isn’t always perfect (sometimes it is the complete opposite), I am not a size 6, my house is not perfectly styled and clean, my children do not always behave, and the list goes on…. Either I am hanging out with Super Women and I am less than… Or__________________

Why do I say this on a photography website? Because I have been hearing lately that before clients want to get pictures they want to: loose weight, get their hair done, it will take to much time to pick the perfect outfit, they don’t know of any ideal locations, etc. etc. etc. Please don’t misunderstand, I don’t say this to drum up more business. Because my plate is spilling over full these days. It is to say that no time will ever be perfect and sometimes the imperfections of reality are what we are going to want to remember years down the road. The simple truth

Here is a picture from one of my last sessions and I thought it was great. 1) because it is the truth of motherhood and 2)it speaks volumes of love for her child and that is what will be remembered + it is pretty funny! Heidi was so relaxed and stunningly beautiful. The was she loves her son seems to radiate out of her. She moves in such peace and grace. She is fun and makes me laugh but she also encourages me to listen to my inner voice and seek peace. She just had a baby girl and I will be sharing a few of those pictures soon.

And all it takes to make a picture perfect is to be present in the moment and loving the people you are with

I am going to try to blog more. And make more things from scratch,

try not to make inappropriate jokes, pick out jewelry that matches my clothes…

Maybe!

Wrapping, planning, and making more lists than my iPhone can keep up with. I really do LOVE Christmas, I just wish I had more time to accomplish all the things that I want to do during the holidays. Maybe, next year I will set up a christmas tree right after Thanksgiving dinner and get started on my lists….  All that is to explain why I haven’t been blogging. Well, that and I don’t want to reveal anyone’s Christmas card picture prematurely.BUT, here are some pictures from a session I did a while back of the Howell Family.

It was a pleasure to go on an adventure with them for the afternoon. They are a beautiful family!

Fall is upon us!

Time for me to pull out my long johns from storage. There is a nip in the air and the crunchy leaves are all over the ground.(So, if you feel like raking leaves, you are welcome in our yard)  I think Fall is my favorite season, but I am not ready to commit. Spring is a close second, or maybe summer…. Anyway, I love fall. Fall is a time to snuggle close to the people that you love and have some hot apple cider and watch the changing leaves put on a fascinating show. When we were living in California, I really missed fall and all the trimmings that come along with it.

We went for a walk at a local farm and made some new friends. Grandma and Grandpa were in town, which made it an even more special trip. I don’t know who was more excited: the kids about the goats, Grandma watching the kids watching the goats or me, watching Grandma watch the kids who were watching the goats while I took pictures. Or maybe the goats?

 I love having the boys on the farm. LOVE!! I believe it provides an experience that you can’t learn at school. Well, when my Sister-in-Law (AKA-BFF) and brother-in-law told us that they were having a fall festival on Bryden’s 2nd birthday..we were thrilled! So we headed to the farm in Marydel, MD for tractor rides, a chili cook off, pumpkin chucking, a huge bonfire and some gr8 company!

And a little corn hole of course, with his uncle.

Some of the people we met were Amy, Matt & Mia who are expecting their newest family member any day.

And soon we will be welcoming a new member into the family!!! I am beyond excited!

So many blessings this fall to be thankful for! So many! Like my oldest just turned 5 and my “baby” just turned 2! I love my boys!

I am counting the days till this little one arrives on the scene but until then I am enjoying watching Cate be pregnant like a rockstar. Nothing stops her! She is fun to be around and she brings the party with her. When she was 5 months pregnant she was still riding Kai’s big wheel. When she was 6 months along, she insisted that she was put in the rotation with the kids for the swing in our backyard. At almost 7 months, I watched her race her 2 year old around the back yard in a push car and as she stood up, I called her name and snapped this picture.

Pregnant women have a glow about them and Cate is no exception. There is a joy surrounding her and her embracing this stage of life and so excited about the little one coming. I hope her kid knows how cool her Mom was …. IS!

I was so excited to meet Bella. She was just 12 days old. Fresh. New. Pure. Innocent. The first days and weeks as a family can be a roller coaster ride but such a sweet and memorable ride. You know you really lived each day. Because when you finally fall into bed {If you manage to make it to bed} you feel like you really used every ounce of energy possible. Exhausting but incredibly satisfying!

Where to start…

• Should I start at the beginning? When I met Anna & Chris in California right before their wedding and ended up having the pleasure of meeting both families, making new friends and snapping a few pictures?
• Or should I start when Travis (my incredible husband) and Chris went to college together?

Ok, I will start with what I remember. I had only been in California for a short time and Anna was so welcoming. I was 7 months pregnant with our first child (who will be 5 next week) and Anna mentioned that a lot of fun pregnant couples would be at their wedding. She wanted us to come and meet people and have a good time. I will never forget her generosity. It meant so much to me! And it was such a gr8 night. All the preggo women bonded and tried not to eat all the food.

This is them on their wedding day and their ceremony was absolutely memorable and touching. I still get chills thinking about it. The words, the sweet looks, the flowers and them driving away on a motorcycle! I knew that these were my kind of people.

Anna and I have had some gr8 times together. When it was time to cut 12 inches off my hair, Anna was by my side. When, Kai had colic and I needed a friend to come make me laugh, Anna was by my side. She was there on Kai’s first birthday and was always an encouragement. Ok- I am getting mushy!

And, then when Chris wrote a fabulous book called Crave and I had the pleasure to spend the day at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art with him taking pictures for the cover. We had a fabulous day of exploring the museum and getting to know each other better. This is just one of my favorites from that day.

*Just a note-Chris had a full time job and busy life at the time that he wrote the book, but Chris felt passionately about it and got it done. It is so fun to see how God uses him and how he let’s God use him. If you are looking for a very thoughtful book to read, I recommend his *

Then skip ahead a bit and I found out that Chris and Anna were leaving LA and headed to the east coast to so small town in Virginia. We said our goodbyes and I wished them all the best. (But I honestly didn’t know when and if I would have the pleasure to see them again.)

Then a few months before our move to Virginia, I posted a question on Facebook about Virginia. Chris responded and then after a few wall posts later- REALIZED that we would be living very close to each other. I was thrilled!! I really had missed them and LA wasn’t the same without them. Now, we live so close that we bump into each other at the grocery store, can have dinners at each others houses, and are involved with the same small group God is good! I am so blessed by these people!

Oh yeah! Days after we moved to VA they welcomed Miss Avery to their family and she is a SWEETHEART!! So cute! She is almost a year old now. Time goes by so fast! So, when Anna and Chris asked me to do Family pictures of them, I was super excited. It is such a blessing to have them back in my life.

We had a perfect fall day and it was fun to spend time with their adorable family. Even their dog is cute Here are a few favorites:

It is so amazing and look back at the beginning and then come to present day. Friendship is such a fun journey… You just never know what God is going to do next.

The clock was ticking, Rebecca knew that she would be meeting her baby girl very soon. We originally had a date set a week prior but the rainy weather wasn’t agreeable, so we wondered if we would get the chance to do maternity pictures. So, we rescheduled for a day that turned out to be a GORGEOUS fall day! The leaves were bursting with colors that were inspirational. Rebecca looked stunning and hardly a day over 8 months. When I was 8 months pregnant with my first, I looked… Well, let’s just say, I looked “ripe” with baby, so ripe, people would ask me if I was having twins.

Rebecca was full of excitement and joy. She didn’t complain or belly ache at all. She was up for anything and she brought such a fun spirit. Joy! She was radiant and Jonathan was so attentive to her. I am sure they are going to be gr*8 parents to that sweet little girl

So, if you know me then you know that I am a Mom to 2 little tornadoes. I say that with the most affection possible . They are the joy of my life and also my motivation to own a lot of cleaning products. Today I came across a “cute” boy moment so I grabbed my camera. Bryden (my youngest) found a worm and he was delighted with it. Squealing, watching it wiggle and then he would get kinda freaked out and drop it to the ground and then he would get sad that he no longer had it, so he would start looking for it again, and the cycle went that way for a while. And yes the worm did live to tell about his time with my son.

So while I was watching and taking pictures of Bryden and his new little friend, this walked by the corner of my eye…

I should have jumped in but he loves doing this sort of thing and he is a boy. Ok, that is what I was saying to myself.

I don’t want to stand between my boys and what they enjoy. Even if that means I have to schedule more time for laundry.

***But here is the thing. Last night we rented a carpet cleaner and then CLEANED OUR CARPETS. Any person in their right mind that had just hauled that machine around her house, and saw that filthy water- SHOULD HAVE STOPPED HERE!!! But in my mind I was thinking, “Their boys! This is what boys do, Right?”  So I let things keep progressing***

Bryden was playing with the hose, but look where the water is falling. That’s right, you see it coming now. That woman who cleaned her carpets in going to be cleaning them soon AGAIN.

The MUD PIT had been created and they were LOVING IT. I couldn’t stop them. And really it only costs $25 to rent the carpet cleaner

And this is how it turned out…..

But Travis came home and saved the day. He carried the muddy little monkey’s upstairs and let them soak in the tub. So the carpet

was spared, the boys had a blast and got some fun pictures to show at their weddings someday

But till then don’t forget to book your sessions for Christmas cards.

That season will be upon us in no time and getting ahead is the way to go…

A few weeks back, I met back up with the Morris family and got to meet their newest bundle of love. I had meet the family while he was still in the oven, so I was excited to see him on the outside. He was such a good baby. I have to say that what struck me the most was how good his older sister was. She was attentive and caring and very excited about him. Watching her nurture him made it such a sweet and special time to take pictures.

Lauren looked like every little girl dreams to look like on her wedding day. She was GORGEOUS and peaceful. There was a calm about her that was facinating. She was such a gracious bride, no drama and not attention seeking. It was beautiful to watch her transform from casual street clothes to a gorgeous gown, and make it look effortless.  She is a beauty inside and out.

The other things beautiful about her, were they people around her. It was clear that she has been blessed with a life filled with love and tenderness.

This is what they did when Beyonce’s song was on. “If you like it then you should putta ring on it.”