"Twas the Night Before Christmas

And all through the house, not a creature was stirring..."

Just a little Christmas greeting. I wish everyone a safe and happy holiday. I hope you enjoy the time with your families, and cherish the memories you will make together.

Christmas is Coming!

Christmas is just around the corner, and things are finally slowing down around here from our busy holiday portrait season. The photo above is from Christmas Village, which we had the opportunity to visit last month, but I thought Santa Claus Lane was great for getting in the holiday spirit. As I reflect on the past year, I am so grateful to my clients who opened up their lives and homes to me and trusted me to capture their special moments. My portfolio-building was very successful, and I look forward to a new year of twinkling eyes, genuine smiles and loving families. I have some exciting things coming in the next few months, including the launch of a new website, and a new focus on location photography. I have started to accept appointments for the new year, so drop me an email if you're interested in getting on the schedule.

Best wishes for you and yours for the holidays, and a happy new year!

Happy Birthday Little One!

So I can't believe that the very first newborn I took portraits for is turning one, and walking! How time flies. Even though I've closed up the studio for the holidays, I did a special session for her and her family yesterday as a birthday gift to her. As you can see we had a little fun, too.

With a corn cob pipe and a button nose...

My new little friend had a blast with my snowman this morning. Here are a few shots of his playtime with Bob the snowman.

One more from yesterday

I have to admit, I just love newborns. Here's one more share from my fun session yesterday :)

Sugar and Spice

These little girls were "everything nice" for my session this morning. I set up my studio in their house, and then we took some natural light portraits as well. Both big sister and the little 7-week-old were loving their moments to shine.

Long Distance Greetings

These 6 brothers and sisters are spending the holiday season away from their father, who is overseas working. They wanted to send dad a little piece of home with some portraits in their home. I had a great time working with them, and I hope their dad enjoys their long distance smiles!

...hurry down the chimney tonight

Isn't she little angel? Six week olds are not always the easiest age group to photograph, but this little gal was on her best behavior. We even managed to get her to rest on my little chimney. I now feel like all the effort I put into building and painting it is worthwhile!

Family Fun

Don't the little ones look adorable in their holiday best?

Home for the holidays

Despite the wintery chill, we were able to go outside and capture a little of the spirit of the holiday season with this extended family.

Young Photographer

This little gal loved my light meter and just didn't want to let go! Maybe it's a sign that she's going to take up photography when she's a little older... or maybe she's just a toddler who loves pressing buttons ;) She helped me take a lovely photo of her parents, and even let me take a few of her...

Family of 4

I had the opportunity to spend the afternoon with a wonderful family today. They were truly beautiful inside and out! We even had a special surprise visit from some relatives. What a wonderful way to spend a lovely Fall day.

Dancing, dancing, dancing!

I just had to share this little collage I made. It makes me smile :)

On Dasher and Dancer....

What a cutie this little guy is! He definitely kept me on my toes, as most little guys this age do, but despite his best efforts to the contrary, we managed to get some great captures ;) If you click on the images you can see the larger versions.

Going for a Ride in My Little Red Wagon...

I really love babies at this age, and I was excited to take some portraits of this beautiful little girl in my little red wagon. It reminds me of the song we used to sing at Gymboree "Going for a ride in my little red wagon, going to Gymboree...". Isn't she just the cutest?

Beautiful Closeups

This little girl has such beautiful eyes, I couldn't resist cropping in real closely. And what a sweet girl to work with. I had such fun with her and her mom and dad this morning.

Celebrating Adoption

As a photographer, my main goal is to provide people with photos of their children that they will cherish for a lifetime. As part of that goal, I volunteer for a few national charitable photography organizations, offering free services to qualifying clients.

I am honored to be a local photographer for an organization called "Celebrating Adoption", which helps provide portrait sessions for families who have adopted a child in the past year. The clients receive a free session fee, a set of up to 20 printed 4x6 proofs, as well as 20% off any additional prints, all donated by the photographer. While not an adoptive parent myself, I do know the joy of one of my family members when she was finally able to adopt a child after years of waiting. So I am honored that families will give me the opportunity to help capture their joy of celebrating adoption!

For more information about the national organization, you can visit their website:
http://www.celebratingadoption.org/

Sweet Baby in the Woods

This little guy was such a great sport. I had a fun time with him and his mom this morning taking some fall portraits in the park. I love those baby smiles! (You can click on the image to see a larger version)

Tiny feet, sweet angel

Modeling isn't all work ;)

Peek-a-boo!

Four Sisters

Aren't these sisters just the cutest? They were so easy to work with, and their matching dresses were just perfect for photos at the botanical gardens. (Click on the image to see a larger version)

Family Day

I got to spend the morning with this lovely family. The historic watermill and fall foliage made for a lovely setting for some family portraits.

Thank goodness for unseasonable weather

Well since we've been enjoying a little "indian summer" around here, my clients have been inspired to do some outdoor sessions. I had one this morning and I have two more this weekend. Here's a quick preview this morning's session. What adorable kids, and it's fun to be able to photograph them in their own element.

They've been framed!

I had my first holiday session today, and what a fun family. These kids were so great, and we had a lot of fun. Here's a preview of their session. Click on the image to see the larger version.

I've been tagged

I've been tagged by the fun clothing designer, Johnett of sunshine*kisses. So I've been challenged to share a few little tidbits about myself.

Here are the rules which you must abide by if you are tagged:
1. Link to your tagger and post these rules.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself: some random, some weird.
3. Tag a few other people at the end of your post and list their names (linking to them).
4. Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment at their blogs.

Okay, here are 7 things about me:
I handmade a quilt at age 18. I can speak Russian. I was my high school's record-holder in triple jump. I'm left-handed. I have way too many files on my computer desktop. I used to play classical guitar. I have an orange bathroom (on purpose).

And I'm tagging two of my boutique clothing buddies: http://olliegirlboutique.blogspot.com/ and http://themonkeyandme.blogspot.com/.

My photo made the top 5!

I'm so excited that my candy corn pops photo was a finalist in the photo contest. How exciting to be included with some really fabulous photographers! Check out the winner and the other finalists' photos:

http://kimtownsend.typepad.com/simplysplash/

Some Seasonal Fun--Recipe Included!

Well I was challenged by a photography contest to "do something creative with candy corn" and include children in the photo. So I decided to make it a fun activity for the girls. We created these yummy, and 100% edible (except the sticks of course!) pops. The recipe is my own idea, and I thought I'd share, in case anyone else is interested in trying it. Leave me a comment if you do!

Candy Corn Lollipops
(makes 4 lollipops)

8 strips of graham crackers
4 popsicle sticks
1 10 oz bag of candy corn
edible glue (see recipe below)

Place two graham crackers side by side to make a square. Use a circle cookie cutter or biscuit cutter to cut the graham crackers in a circle. (I suggest using two pieces of graham cracker so the circle can be a little larger--you'll want to split the circle between the two crackers) Prepare edible glue (see recipe below). Glue two pieces of the graham cracker circle together, and glue graham crackers to the popsicle stick. Cover graham cracker with glue, and then stick the candy corns to the graham cracker circle. Wait for the glue to dry so that the candy corn are secure, and "paint" the sides and back of the circle with the white glue. Wait for the rest of the glue to dry, and enjoy!

To make edible glue (recipe courtesy of allrecipes.com)
1-1/2 teaspoons meringue powder (powdered egg whites)
2/3 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon water

Beat all ingredients at low speed for 7 to 10 minutes, or until icing forms peaks. Tip: Keep icing covered with a wet kitchen towel at all times. Icing can dry out quickly.

It's Holiday Portrait Time!

I'm excited to announce my holiday portrait packages and LE sessions. I'm having so much fun planning for these sessions, and they are truly "Limited Edition", in that there will only be a handful of session offered with that theme. You can choose from three themes for the LE session. "Holiday Formal", which will be available for families who want to dress their little ones in their holday best, and have a backdrop to match. "Snowride" will be a more casual style, with a simple white background and the children in an old-fashioned style wooden sled. "Cookies for Santa" is the LE shoot for the little ones who are a little more camera shy. We'll have elf hats, cookie-making supplies, and have a little fun with making pretend cookies for Santa.

Contact me to set up an appointment. I have had a lot of inquiries about holiday sessions, so I expect they will fill up quickly, especially the weekend LE sessions.

ETA: My holiday sessions are now fully booked! I am accepting appointments for the new year.

A real sweetheart!

This morning I had a photo shoot for another of my little hat models, but as it turned out his big sister stole the spotlight. Just for fun I snapped a few shots of her, and they turned out to be some of the best of the session. I couldn't resist making a little storyboard with them. If you click on the preview you will see the larger version :)

Just one week old..what a doll!

Meet Little A--our newest model. Only one week old and modeling a charity hat pattern for LullabyLamb Boutique. These are just a few previews from the shoot.