{What_______looks like} Easter Egg Dying!

This weekend was the weekend  the kids have been waiting for.  Ever since we put up some Spring decorations, the kids have been asking when they can dye Easter Eggs.  This is one of the first times we've done Easter Egg dying this early (I know, it's not that early but for us this is a major success).  The kids woke up early and while Jeff golfed on this gorgeous sunny day, we got started on s0me fun!  Brielle takes her time and spent hours thinking and decorating her bowl of eggs.  So when Ty was done decorating his eggs, the silly antics began.  Here's a peak.

Be sure to click through the rest of the photographers and complete the circle.  The next photographer is my dear friend, Sarah Cornish with My Four Hens Photography…her work is truly breath-taking.

{What________ Looks Like} Commercial Photoshoot 'Outtakes'

Yep, we're back with a great group of talented photographers in 2014's 'What_____ Looks Like!  I loved doing this last year.  And although we got super busy and skipped a few months, it's something l look forward to.  It's a project with no rules and no boundaries and I love that!!   I'm thankful to be a part of such a supportive and fun group of fellow photographers.

So this month….I'm a little bummed.  I've been sick and my families been sick this past week.  So rather than posting photos from this week, I decided to dig into my files and find some unusual and silly outtakes from some of my commercial shoots.  I have more outtakes than I know what to do with but I grabbed just a few to share here.  In every shoot, there are outtakes.  Brielle is always excited for our shoots but she yawns, has a silly moment or has a bug fly into her eye.  I love her goofy personality.  She's so full of life and I love seeing every aspect of her personalty  during our shoots.

Complete the circle by clicking through to the next photographer, DeAnna McCasland.  Her photos are worth your time.  Stunning!!  Thanks :)

 

 

{she told me she felt beautiful}

Oh wow, it's been a while since I've posted and I've honestly missed it. It's kind of like a journal for me.   This year I'm going to make efforts to post more.  I feel like this is my place for sharing not just my photography business images but also my life it general.  My photography is shaped by who I am and what I feel so I think it's only fitting to share me, my life, my trials, my journeys, my goals, my failures, my happiness and my sadness here.  My photography is created from emotions that are real, gritty and raw moments in every day life.  And that translates into art…into my art.  Anyway, I just thought I'd warn you, ha.

Last night was pretty chilly here in the desert but the sun was gorgeous so I took Brielle out for some sample shots of light and different properties of light for my 'Finding the Light' workshop in Atlanta next week.  While I was there I coupled the shoot with a commercial session for an amazing designer I've been working with for years - FaithWorks4U.  As I was getting Brielle ready in my bathroom she saw the dress hanging on my closet door and asked excitedly if she could wear her gold sparkly shoes, my gold headband and my gold earrings. How could I say no, she was styling herself and doing a great job at it.  Commercial shoots never get old for her, especially if I allow her to be a part of the styling. Then she spotted a new purchase I made at Sephora.  It was gold glitter.  She excitedly begged for me to put some on her eyes.  "It'll go perfectly with my sparkly shoes Momma'. Again, I was swayed and dabbed a little lightly near her eyes.  After she put on the dress, she looked in the mirror and told me with a smile on her face that she felt beautiful.  I always want her to feel beautiful.  Not necessarily physically but with the person she is.  With who she is on the inside and how she lives her life and projects her spirit onto others.  I truly hope my little girl always feels beautiful.

{What ______ looks like} 'siblings, swimming & sugar'

It's that time again!!  These are so fun and I so look forward to making sure I squeeze these into our busy life.  I usually have my iPhone camera where ever we go but this forces me to get out my big camera and capture every day fun.  This month has been nuts and I wish I could've captured more fun, simple, living in the moment fun.  This month was the opening of 'pool season' (sort of) in the May house.  Brielle was dying to go swimming so she talked her brother into coming out and jumping in with her.  They ended up only getting in to their shoulders since the water was still 70 degrees.  Ty's only a fish when the water is 80 degrees.  Brielle is normally always a fish but she only wanted to get in all the way  if her brother joined her.   Below, is a treat!  We try to really manage the amount of sugar we give our kids (don't laugh) so this was a BIG DEAL!  Cookies!  Girl Scout Cookies!  The kids made me giggle as they got these out, stacked them and then asked me for some cookies.  Yes, guilt trip!  So I made a little shoot out of it and had them wait a little.  I asked them questions and got some silly expressions.  I'm easily entertained by them. After scrolling through this post please click through the circle to see what the other talented ladies in the group have posted. I'm sure Jenny Cruger will have some amazing eye candy.

{What_____ looks like} our Saturday entertainment.

You don't  know how much I look forward to this monthly project.  It gets me used to capturing simple moments at home that I otherwise wouldn't be photographing.  This past month was a crazy busy one but I didn't want that to stop me from capturing my own families moments.  The kids are at such fun ages.  Brielle is adamant that she wears her converse boots daily (except on PE days) and her hair in a bun most every day.  I love the little person she's become.  And Tyler, still not loving to be photographed...just got his braces off!  That's HUGE!!  He looks so handsome with gleaming white teeth and his retro glasses (oh the round nerd glasses pictured further down on this post are NOT his new glasses - we were playing and he got those out).

So what is this month's post all about?  It's what our Saturday entertainment looks like.  Primarily...dressing up August with play clothes.  He doesn't love it but Brielle made sure she had treats on hand for him.  He's such a good sport!  These are the moments I want to remember.

Continue through the circle to see what the other girls posted about this month!   Click here to go the Stephanie Moore of Stephanie Moore Studio and see what she posted for this months project.

{Something's different about him....}

My little man looks a little different these days.   Something has changed...and he can see better in class as a result.  Yes, Tyler got glasses!  He was having trouble seeing the smart board (I keep calling it a chalk board but I'm quickly corrected) from the back of the class, so it was time to take him in for a 'real' eye exam.  It took a long time and Ty was pretty nervous.  I was by his side the whole time watching him struggle to read the letters on the wall from a distance.  I couldn't believe what he couldn't see.  But in the end his vision really wasn't that bad.  He only needs the glasses for distance and his vision is 20/30 and 20/40 so it's pretty minor.  But the new glasses...they're kind of a big deal to my little guy.  He was nervous but excited about this new addition to his face.  :)   He's very careful too, reminding me how to properly care for the glasses (guess I'm not as careful with them as I should be).  Anyway, this 'new look' called for a photo session, so we did just that - then the rain interrupted and we ran for the car.  So this was what we were quickly able to capture.

 

What ______ looks like! December {summarized}

I'm so excited that I was asked to be a part of this amazing group of ladies doing this great monthly project.  So what is this project?  As busy moms and photography business owners we don't take enough time to document our own families lives.  This project is dedicated to our families, our lives, our passions and whatever makes us happy.  So each month we will be posting 'What_____ looks like'.  And in the blank we can fill it with whatever we want, it could be our family, it could be the daily things that make us happy, it could be objects.  The options are endless and with that comes a unique spin on what each photographer shares.  At the end of this post I'll share the link of another talented photographer in this group from there you can click through to complete the circle.

For this first post I decided to recap some of December.  As we all know, December is a very busy month for everyone.  It's full of parties, celebrations, decorations, twinkling lights, family, baking (which I admit right now, I didn't do nearly enough of ...not a single loaf of eggnog bread this year), late nights, trips to the post office, eggnog and other fun libations, etc.  I didn't photograph near what I had hoped to this year but I was needing a breather from my camera after busy season.

Here's a little taste of Christmas at our house:

The kids doing homework by the light of the tree  Instagram pic (below)

A little comp of Christmas from my Instagram feed also

Our very messy Gingerbread houses.  The kids were soooo proud of them.  I laughed (inside) at their final product.  They also made trains and a fire pit.  Can you find the fire pit?    I love their creative mess.  So much fun!!

A little blast from the past mixed with this years photo with Santa when we did the 'North Pole Experience'.  I LOVE looking at old Santa pics. And Brielle was so entertaining in these.  This years Santa was the scariest and she was her happiest. 

Brielle, Grandma May and me at Brielle's class play 'The Gingerbread Man' .  This is the first time B had a gingerbread cookie .  She decided she liked decorating it more than eating it {not her favorite}.

Brielle spent 3 weeks of December sick.  She had strep throat and pneumonia!  Poor girl.

And we had an elf.  Like many of you this little guy stayed at our house for the month.  This was a night off  for me so when I saw what the elf was doing the next morning....I just shook my head.   Jeff.  All I can say is, Jeff.

Our neighborhood is amazing.  Have I mentioned that before?  This is our first time celebrating Christmas in this house and our neighbors invited us to their tradition of having everyone over on Christmas Eve for food, libations, friends, cheer and Santa!  Santa came in with a HUGE red bag full of gifts for the 20+ kids that were there.  Each child got Christmas PJ's from Santa as well as a toy.  Seriously?!!  Yes, it was a blast!  Such a great night and so magical and fun for the kids. We have the most amazing neighborhood!

This year Brielle and Tyler handed out ALL of the presents while Jeff and I sat and soaked it all in, just in aw that our kids were growing up and so mature and sweet about making sure everyone had a gift and watching each other open presents.  

The day after Christmas we headed to Seattle to see my family.   The kids were greeted by excited cousins.  And the playing and bonding lasted the whole trip.  This photo was taken just before saying good-bye.  They had a great time with their cousins, Grandma & Grandpa.  

We arrived home on New Year's Eve. We were a little under the weather so we had to cancel our plans with friends and just laid low at home.  We spent the evening pulling out most every game we had.  Then the kids got this 1,000 piece puzzle out.  The kids helped for about 30 minutes then they realized it was more fun to play under the table than help with the puzzle.  At 9pm we all read books.  The kids wanted to stay up till midnight so bad.  So we told them they could read quietly till midnight knowing they would fall asleep.  At 11 I went to check on them.  Brielle was out and Ty was still reading.  Groggy eyed he said excitedly,' It's almost midnight.'  We all read together for the last hour and tried to get Brielle up but she was out!   We promised Ty we'd toast with eggnogg at midnight if he made it.  And that's just what we did.  He was soooooo sweetly proud of himself for making it to see the ball drop.  Love his sweet spirit.  So this was our December - summarized. 

Now click though to Stacey Woods | Clearwater Family Photographer and see what she's posting about.  I'm excited to see myself.

{'The August Collaboration' - revealed}

I've had to keep this project quiet for months and today it's finally been revealed!  It started with an idea....that of Lexi Vornberg's from Lenses & Lemonade.  It turned into a work of art all surrounding a crown traveling around the country  and into the hands of  15 different photographers, each with a unique and artistic vision. I'm flattered and humbled to be a part of this talented group in presenting this unique, creative project.  Below are some images that I captured and one or two that I didn't include in the magazines' final production.   At the end of this post you'll see a link-image to the magazine, please look through the electronic book to see the vision of everyone included in this amazing project.  Thank you Lexi for asking me to be a part of this amazing compilation of visual art.

http://issuu.com/lexivornberg/docs/the_august_collaboration_upload/3

{So much going on...so little time}

So I feel like I've been neglecting my blog a bit.  I'm keeping up with my 'Project 26' - something I love!  And I'm trying to post when I can on 'Shop Talk' Friday.  Every time I move I have to go through the process of rediscovery.  I'm currently location scouting and it's not been very fruitful since everything that looks remotely cool says 'No Tresspassing' in signs that I can't ignore.  But I'm still searching....and searching...and, well searching.  And I have so many secret projects going on that I'm going to burst.  They're so much fun but it kills me not to be able to share.  In time....LOL  In the meantime - Brielle is enjoying trying on close for an upcoming shoot we have.

{Project 26 - 'I don't want to forget'}

Wow, this has been a crazy nutty busy two weeks!  I wish I had more time for this post since the theme means so much to me and I say this almost on a daily basis about my kids and how fast they're growing.  This would be the longest post ever if I could fit in everything I want to remember and hope to never forget.  But I'll make it short and sweet and save some if it for other posts :)

I don't want to forget home much my kids 'like' one another.  How much they depend on each other as playmates, as helpers, as company.  This is what I woke up to find the other morning.  The two curled up watching TV.  Brielle likes to grab Tyler's hand...sometimes (most of the time) he's okay with this.  Brielle sleeps in Ty's room on the weekends in the full sized lower bunk with Tyler.  I went in the other night and they were asleep holding hands.  I tried to get a picture of it but my camera wouldn't focus in the darkness :(  But went back to get Jeff so he could see.  It melted me.

I don't want to forget their carefree summer evenings.  Riding bikes in the street until dinner time.

And the silly things I see Brielle do when she's bored after being in her room for a little 'time out'.  She doesn't get them much but when she does she's either deep into a book, asleep or has changed her outfit, accessorized, or has dress-up clothes on.  And her time outs aren't very long so she's quick!  I've termed these quiet moments 'creative seclusion'.  Thankfully she doesn't get them very much, but when she does she usually comes out happy ;-)  Love my little bug!

There are so many things I don't want to ever forget.  I'm going to put a 'to be continued' on this post since I have so much more I want to share.  Old pictures, memories, stories, etc.

Continue through the circle and visit the talented Martha Schuster and see what she's posted.