Everyday Moments {December} | Mission Viejo Family Photographer

I've been looking forward to the second installment of the Everyday Moments project I am doing with nine other talented photographers (below you'll find the link to connect to the next blog in the circle); I'd planned, dreamed and designed this post in my head for weeks. And then, all of the sudden, the 14th of December was upon me before I was ready. That's ok, because the moments I had just uploaded on to my computer a few nights before turned out to be perfect for today.

By now, I'm sure you've all heard the tragic news of the elementary school shooting in Connecticut. I cannot begin to wrap my mind around the amount of fear, sorrow and pain that the community is experiencing there, and the mere thought of the entire situation makes something inside of me crave the physical closeness of my children. My children move me. They inspire me. They challenge me and stretch me. I cannot fathom life without them. Newtown, CT- I am flooding the heavens with prayers for you today. Today is a huge reminder to me to be thankful for every moment I am given with those I love, because those moments can be all too fleeting.

Just as last time, please follow this link to visit the blog of Sunshine Lane Photography to read her Everyday Moments and follow the blog circle- these are some talented women with beautiful lives and much to be thankful for.

Hug those you love, forgive those who need forgiving and do your best to smile at every one you meet today.

Everyday Moments... | Mission Viejo Family Photographer

While it's been WAY too long since I've thrown down a post on the ol' bloggity, I am super excited to get back on the band wagon with a fun blogging project with nine other talented lady-photogs!  Our aim is to take our cameras, keep them in hand and capture Everyday Moments.  I hope you'll enjoy our journey and take the time to circle through their blogs, too.  If you follow through the links on each blog, they'll circle back to mine.  Blog circle.  Get it?  Love it!

I truly love doing "day in the life" projects like this, because the truth is, I live a spectacularly ordinary life.  It's so simple, but these moments that I live with my little crew are so fleeting.  So, now that you know what's happening here, I present to you the Everyday Moments of this little family!

 I have to laugh and tell you- this first one is telling about how we roll.  I couldn't even get my camera in hand before I got my oldest off to school.  I had a baby in one hand, coffee in the other and in between switching those things around, I got the three of them fed and my big girl off to school.

All that, and here we are back at home- and mini man is still in his footie jammies.  Ah well, at least diapers got changed and tummies got filled.  Who needs real clothes?

My mini man has this habit of edging his way into my lap.  It's sneaky, slow and calculated.  He walks around me a few times to stake out his spot, then backs into position.  It's one of my favorite things in the world.  I won't lie.

Let me introduce you to an integral corner in my home.  This heavenly corner of my kitchen fuels my day and keeps mama happy.  Hello, lovely.

My big girl is a kindergartener this year (insert sobbing sounds here) and luckily for me, that means she is only at school for three hours, so the time comes quickly to pick her up and head on home.

Such.a.goofball.

Opportunities to eat in our house are plentiful.  My kids are hungry every minute of every day.  I mean that.  Maybe tomorrow I will write down the number of times my big girl says, "Mommy, I'm hungry." It is stunning.  I'm not sure where it all goes...

Let's get real here for a minute.  On this particular day, I was intensely grumpy.  My tiny girl has been sick, and that means very little sleep for mama.  I'm talking "newborn phase is better than this" kind of a night.  So after making messes of epic proportions at the lunch table, I was a little on edge with these sweet faces.  Just being honest.

But then- oh, then- my sweet big girl said in the most PRECIOUS voice ever, "Mommy, would you like to play hide and seek with us?"  I looked at her eager little face, then looked at my son's big, hopeful eyes and my grumpies were just gone.  Gone.  I did want to play hide and seek.  I was all in.

And this, my friends, is why.  How could I possibly be grumpy anymore?  The hilarity of little tinys playing hide and seek was more than my grumpies could stand to be around.  Those ol' grumps were long gone.  These kids are so funny!  

When I asked him, "Where is your sister?!  I can't find her!" he just pretended to look around and said, "Uhhhh, nope!"  Very committed to keeping her hidden, as you can see.  He's a solid teammate.

The two year old hiding spots are my favorite.  He legitimately believes that this is the best hiding spot in the house.  I love him for that.

Tiny as she is, my arms still get tired of hide-and-seeking with her in my arms, so into the bouncer she goes.  Fun fact: I had no idea that the outside layer of the seat was totally falling apart until I got down to take this photo.  You learn something new every day!

Two year olds can only hang with hide and seek for so long, I guess.  Out of the bevy of beautiful toys we have in our home, he couldn't get enough of the little, simple baby toys I got out for tiny girl.  Mini man plays VERY well by himself.  Maybe it's a second child thing- maybe he likes having the quiet time to play with the things he wants to play with instead of having to fight over things?  I don't know.  But it is quite sweet.

Big girl is a kindergartener, as I mentioned, and as such is responsible for homework.  Homework!!  In kindergarten!  How times have changed.  She figured out that pattern like a boss, if I do say so myself.  Smartie pants.

Remember?  Hungry all the time?  Yep.  Chocolate milk and popcorn.  I'll be accepting nominations for mom of the year starting this afternoon, thankyouverymuch.  In my defense, it is reduced guilt popcorn from Trader Joe's.  Bam!

 We are super blessed with great weather in Southern California right now, so outside time is a must!  My spider chasing big girl and my chore-loving little boy.  Take that, sexism!  I'm stoked to have a kid that will squish spiders for me while I squeal in the corner.

Poor sweet sicky face.  Seeing your kids sick is the worst.

After some fun outside time, we heard the front door swing open and screams of, "DADDDDYYYY!!!" moved quickly from the yard and into the house into his arms.  I love that!

The camera rests through dinner and bedtime routine, but I'll leave you with the last few minutes of our night- after tiny girl is snug in her crib.  Big girl and mini man snuggle down in our bed and catch up on a little Curious George on the iPad.

So there you have it.  Moments from our everyday.  Our spectacularly ordinary everyday.  Moments that pass so quickly.  Moments I may forget in the years (or even months) to come.  But moments that I should be consciously treasuring!

Now what?  Well, two things.

1)  I hope that you'll be encouraged to capture YOUR every day!  It doesn't have to be with a fancy camera.  Pick up your phone, flip on the camera and leave it on the camera setting for a while instead of checking your email or Facebook again for the sixth time in an hour (I say it because I live it, friends).

2)  Continue getting inspired by visiting the Everyday Moments of Bamboo Leaf Studios!!  Go see her beautiful life here!  Everyday Moments- Bamboo Leaf Studios

Holiday Sessions- It's Time! | Orange County, California Family Portrait Photography

Phew!  It feels like it has been forever since I worked on the blog, sent newsletters and generally did much photography work at all... mainly because my full time job as a mommy of three has been so very busy!  I've been enjoying my time off very much and loving every minute (well, mostly every minute) with my sweet three.

While it's only the end of July, it is time to start thinking about holiday portrait season!  I decided this year to manage my time a little better than last year to avoid burn out and be able to enjoy the season with my family.  For those reasons, I will only be taking holiday portraits in mini-session format this year.  There are three dates available for mini-sessions in three different locations; hopefully this will help to make it accessible for everyone!

Each location will have a unique "stylized" theme, which I am super excited about!  Sessions will last 30-minutes and may include up to 5 people.  Your mini session will include:

* 30 minutes of shooting

* 8-10 edited images in your gallery

* 5 hi-resolution digital images on disk with print release

* an 8x10 mounted photo calendar

* ...and a really cute surprise gift!

Mini sessions will be held:

Saturday, October 6th at the San Juan Capistrano Train Station

9:00am

9:45am

10:30am

11:15am

Sunday, October 21st at a park near the Orange Circle

3:00pm- BOOKED

3:45pm

4:30pm- BOOKED

5:00pm

Saturday, November 3rd at the Malaga Cove Library (South Bay)

9:00am- BOOKED

9:45am

10:30am- BOOKED

11:15am- BOOKED

Mini-sessions are $275 for the whole package.  Times and dates are first come, first served and will only be reserved with receipt of $100 deposit.

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!

Senior Supermodel! | San Juan Capistrano, Orange County, California Senior Portrait Photography

I seriously love doing senior portrait photography- LOVE.IT! The subjects cooperate with me, I get their humor, and it reminds me of the time I spent working in youth ministry for the church for many years of my life. This session was especially fun, as I've known this gorgeous young woman for quite some time- she was a part of the youth group I worked with! It makes me feel pretty old to be doing her senior portraits, but it was such an honor.

Kaleigh is not only stunning, but smart, athletic, funny and overall just a wonderful young woman with such a sweet soul! I'm so excited for what college holds for her, and I know she is going to move mountains in her lifetime! Look out world- Kaleigh is going places!

We ran around one of my favorite places in the world, San Juan Capistrano, to find lots of great backdrops for her senior portraits... too much fun! The hazy, golden goodness of the sun was almost too much... I had so much trouble narrowing down the images to show her and her family...


Beautiful setting, adorable outfits and lovely girl... could it get any better?!


I mean, really... straight from a magazine, right?!


Thank you SO much, Kaleigh, for trusting me with these special memories! So proud of who you are and where you're going!

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!

Babies are NOT Props. | Mission Viejo, Orange County Newborn Photographer

There has been quite a bit of drama in the newborn photography world today. Images are all over Facebook of babies in very precarious situations- in glass jars, hanging from branches, folded in ways that could very quickly lead to asphyxiation... I'm saddened and frightened by some of the questionable safety practices that I am seeing.

Parents- please, please, please be an advocate for your precious new baby. Many images you see- babies with their heads in their hands, babies hanging from branches, babies on top of high furniture- are composites, pulled together in editing to achieve an effect. I cannot post examples of my own work, as this is not an area I have stepped into, and frankly, will probably refrain from. I prefer the simpler, more natural poses- but that is personal preference. Regardless of your style, your baby should never be a PROP. If your photographer does anything that makes you uncomfortable, never be afraid to follow your gut and speak up.

As a mommy and a photographer, I promise that I value the safety of your family. I promise to always take the utmost care in handling your children. My blankets, hats and wraps are washed in free & clear detergent to protect their delicate skin; my vaccinations are up to date, including the most current Pertussis booster; I will always wash my hands before touching your little one... I'm a mommy, too, and I know the extent to which you love and worry. I always encourage my clients to speak up if I EVER do anything to make them feel unsure about my interaction with their babies, and I am happy to report that I've never had that issue come up.



I want you to have amazing, natural images of your sweet newborn to look back on with great joy. Whether they come from me or another talented photographer, I simply wish for them to be done with the highest standard of care.

Do you Pinterest? Pin Me with the tag #newbornsafety to spread the word!

The C Family | Torrance, California Family Photographer

I love meeting new people- it's one of my favorite things about what I do! So naturally, I had a blast meeting this beautiful family. They were so sweet and welcoming, their son is absolutely perfect (no, seriously, he is THE cutest guy with the sweetest smile!)... even their pets made me feel welcome in their home!

We spent a little time at a gorgeous beachside park to capture their family holiday portraits. One thing I love very much about Southern California is the fact that there are countless beautiful places for photography!

Thanks, C family, for letting me capture your holiday images and spend time with your sweet boy! I had so much fun!







I love this one... the love is so evident it melts my heart!

The {lovely} T Family | Laguna Niguel Family Photographer, Orange County, California

So excited to share another set from my holiday sessions! I had so much fun shooting this gorgeous family at Laguna Niguel Regional Park! It was such a perfect day for pictures- no rain, perfect temps and gorgeous golden light... swoon! I love spending time with families like the T's. Mom and Dad are fun and laid back, big bro is goofy and sweet and little sis is perfectly adorable; not to mention they're perfect color choices in outfits: dream clients! :)

Thanks so much, R&D, for bringing the kids and meeting up with me to capture your holiday portraits! Cannot wait to see you guys again!











Are you on Pinterest? Pin Me! Not on Pinterest yet? Email me for an invite!

Handsome Boys | Ladera Ranch Family Photographer, Orange County, California

This was one of many of my holiday sessions at the end of 2011! This was the third time I was able to spend some time shooting this family- first, for mom's maternity portraits; second, for baby bro's newborn portraits. This time, I got to capture the whole family of four!

I love spending time with this family! Mom and dad are laid back and fun to be around... and their boys!! Oh mercy! Big brother, D, is such a charmer and cracks me up! Baby M is mellow, cute and might be worth trying to sneak home with me (though there's no way D wold let me get away with his little bro)!

Thanks, C family, for allowing me to be a part of your holiday images... can't wait to see you again soon!