Sweetest of Gifts | Orange County, CA Newborn Photographer

The last days of a pregnancy can be such a crazy, anxiety filled couple of days.  When there is a due date floating around, but no clear "date" in sight, you feel so out of control; yet, there is this peace.  It's kind of a calm before the storm.

This precious, little guy kept everyone on their toes by hanging in there and staying put well past his actual due date!  It seems to fit his personality- he was a mellow, go with the flow kind of baby.  So sweet and so perfect- a little Christmas dream baby!

He wasn't much interested in sleeping, but he was such a prince while he was awake, that it wasn't a problem in the least.

 See what I mean by mellow?  We had to laugh at the "whatever" expression on his face!

Thank you, S&G for letting me be a part of your baby boy #2's early days!

Everyday Moments | June 2013

It's Everyday Moments time again!  I enjoy this group so much, and I hope you're enjoying looping through our blog circle and seeing the everyday moments of families across the country.

I call this month's moment: Will and the {not so} Giant Peach.  He was so insistent that he wanted to eat a whole peach- not cut up.  Watching him figure out the best way to attack it, with juice running all over the place, was a sweet moment for this mama.  He's just so cute.  And if you could just hear the way he says the word "peach", your heart would swoon.

Now continue on over to Christine's blog to enjoy her Everyday Moment!

Our Littlest Love | Mission Viejo Newborn Photographer, Mission Viejo, California

I peeked at my blog the other day and my stomach dropped when I saw that the last post was from March!  March?!  Where have I been?  Oh, right... I had a baby.  I'd been waiting to post her images until I sent the birth announcements, which, embarrassingly enough, took me two months to get around to sending!

Our littlest love arrived right on her due date, April 1st, at 2:25 in the afternoon.  It was an easy and speedy delivery and she was a dream from the start.  Introducing our beautiful Kennedy Eloise!

Isn't she perfect?!  She looks exactly like her big sister did as a newborn, but has expressions just like her big brother... it always amazes me how siblings can look so much alike, but keep their own unique characteristics.  So cool!

Her big sister loves her so much... I always wanted a sister, for reasons like this:

Her big brother loves her, too, but doesn't love sitting still to have his picture taken.  He'd rather run away.

Can't blame the guy.

So there you have it!  This is what I've been doing with my maternity leave, and I won't lie- I am loving every minute of spending quiet (and usually not so quiet) time with my babies!

Terrifically Two | Rancho Santa Margarita, Laguna Niguel Child Photography, Orange County, California

One of my favorite parts of what I do is following up with families, seeing children grow and building a relationship! I have had the pleasure of spending time with this adorable family twice before- once for little G's 6-month portraits, and again when he turned One! His mommy and daddy are so much fun to be around, and clearly, he is about as cute as they come.

I was thrilled when G's mommy told me it was time for his 2-year portraits! It is amazing how fast the year has passed- he is so grown up! I could have squealed when I saw his little Mr. Man outfit and his adorable face. It was so much fun to catch up with one of my favorite families!

If you know much about 2-year old boys, you know they just never stop moving... so shooting G's two year pics at 38 weeks pregnant was quite the challenge! This was my last session before maternity leave, and it was perfect!

Thanks, C & N, for allowing me to be a little part of your family's memories! I am blessed!

Being Intentional | Mission Viejo, Orange County, CA Baby and Child Photographer

They are the reason this all started. The reason for my camera. My lenses. My studying. Reading. Learning. Obsessing. The very reason I live and breathe. But for some reason, they end up in front of my camera the least. The least uploads from my memory cards.

Maybe it's because I am less patient with them than other children. Maybe it's because I take them for granted. Could be because I'm just exhausted when I'm chasing them all day. But there is no excuse. I need to be more intentional about capturing images of my own babies.

My little girl is not a baby anymore. She is a four year old. Last night, while I was doing her laundry, I was thinking about the things that are gone. The way she used to sing the song from the "Filet-O-Fish" commercial and say "sannich" instead of sandwich. The way her sweet baby hair curled into perfect ringlets right at the base of her neck. Gone! Now she is four- sassy, independent, silly and wonderful. Yes, our children grow. And we certainly want them to grow up to be upstanding, moral members of society. But she will always be my baby, who couldn't pronounce "sm" or "sp" words correctly for a solid year, so that every time she'd say "smart", it came out as "fart".

She thinks she is so funny... cracks herself up. Do you have those moments with your kids where you're trying to be so serious, but they keep making you laugh? The story of my life. In the photo below, I had just received my new camera and was dying for some gorgeous shots of her. And of all the sweet smiles, this is my favorite image from those 5 minutes she let me take some pictures. Can't you just hear her laugh? Well, I can.



I have thousands of pictures of her. Thousands. From about 3 months to 12 months- because that is when she sat still. After that they start to drop off. And then there comes the second baby...

He terrified me from the start. The idea of having a second baby had been so romantic to begin with. Another addition to our family. Three become four. But slowly, I began to fear that I wouldn't be able to love another child as much as I loved my daughter. How could I? How could the amount of love I had for her be doubled? For this new stranger? How could I ever love anything as completely and unconditionally as I loved her?! And then, at 17 weeks during our ultrasound, there it was. I saw it the very second the ultrasound technician moved the wand to where we could get a peek at baby's bits and pieces. It's a boy. I had known it. My husband had known it. So why, for me, did it send a wave of terror? What do I know about boys? Would I be able to love him the same as my girl? As an only child, I was a little haunted by all of this; though, let me be clear- I was as thrilled, excited, in love and joyful as anyone else. Just unsure of myself.

Clearly, the answer to "could I love another, and a boy?" was a resounding YES. I'm still amazed at how easily our hearts double to love another. He was perfect. Tons of fluffy hair, the same dimple as his daddy and big sister... perfect. Of course, being the second child, his baby book is not as well filled out. There are more holes in the photo timeline than his sister's. And he is growing up even faster than his sister did. My tiny baby boy is no longer tiny. He's a year and a half and only two months away from being a big brother. A big brother!! He is a total mama's boy, a hugger, a climber and such.a.boy. Photographing him is exhausting. He doesn't sit still. He doesn't smile for the camera. He isn't cooperative. But, my goodness, if he isn't beautiful.



I guess I didn't mean to make this post a novel... but just a reminder to myself, and to my fellow parents, that this time is fleeting. They're only this little once. It's a reminder to myself that instead of sighing deeply and cleaning up my kids' messes right away and with frustration, sometimes I just need to laugh a little and take a picture of those moments of "trouble" to remember when they're grown and "trouble" is so much less adorable.

It's a reminder to be more intentional about capturing these moments in time, that will soon be distant memories. So go ahead: take a picture- it will last longer!