:: me in action ::

I second shot a wedding for the WONDERFUL Kate Crafton from Tennessee this past weekend in Wisconsin Dells. It was a gorgeous day with a gorgeous bride and groom. I'll share pictures as soon as I get a chance to look through them a bit.

Kate posted the following picture of me on her blog and as I showed it to Ryan tonight I said, "Look at my face? Do I always make that face when I shoot?" To which he responded, "Yeah, ya do." :)

Maybe that's why kids are always looking at me strangely?

:: the baby parts of miss claire ::

Claire's mom and I work across the hall from one another and Claire often comes to work with her so I get to see her often. She's one of the best babies I've ever seen ... hardly ever making a peep. What little peeps she makes is usually in the form of laughter.

I had the joy of creating a baby parts storyboard for Claire and her mom. It's the perfect way to remember all those tiny toes, short fingers and little ears.


















And because he was SUCH a big help in making his sister laugh, I can't leave out big brother!!

:: norah at 7 months ::

You'll probably recognize this little girl. This is Miss Norah at 7 months. I love that I've been able to document her first year. I can't help but smile in her presence ... she's just adorable!

:: welcome to the world, gretta ::

I LOVE babies ... love, love, LOVE them. There is nothing more amazing than a newborn taking in as much as his/her little body will allow!

I have been anxiously waiting to get my hands on, Gretta. She is the 10 day old newborn of neighbors and friends of ours. I was quite impressed with how well she did during our session. She was awake the whole time she was here (which was almost 2 hours), filled her pants twice, ate once, gave us a few little burbs and had the quietest cry I think I've ever heard. I mean, really, she showed me all the skills she's learned in her short life so far. Quite impressive!

Congrats again to Gretta's mom and dad for creating a perfect little miracle!

:: can I have a lollipop? ::

I'm not necessarly above bribery. :) I keep a canister of suckers in my office for a little extra incentive for kids when I'm doing a shoot. My son, Riley, asks me just about every time he's in my office if he can have a sucker ... and he (almost) always gets the same answer, "No Riley ... those are for the kids who come for shoots." He knows this line well.

Today I had the joy of doing a session for Kylie. Kylie lives in our neighborhood, goes to the same daycare as us ... and is about 10 months older than Paige meaning Paige and Kylie "bicker" back and forth quite a bit. We are greeted just about every weekday by Kylie as we drop the kids off and she almost always says something that makes us leave with a smile. She is just a precious little girl.

As Kylie walked in our house today, Riley informed her that if she took pictures she'd get a "lollipop". Well, about 2 flashes into our session, Kylie wanted to know if she could have her "lollipop" now. :) She asked for it a few more times ... and finally I gave in. BUT she'd done such a great job, I offered her a special lollipop. You should have SEEN her eyes. :)















And a couple shots from the inside part of the session.

:: the joy of cousins ::

I had SUCH a blast with this session. I know I say that with every session, but I enjoy becoming a small part of the families I photograph ... even if it's just for an hour or two.

The mother of one of the little boys is a friend of mine. I left this session wishing I was part of their extended family. I realized after I drove away from the session that they remind me of my family. The biggest thing is that I get the feeling the two middle cousins could get into trouble if left unattended for an extended period of time ... and that's the same with my son and HIS cousin who are also just months part.

Thanks again Jen (and family) for allowing me to capture the joy of cousins!

:: for the love of skin .... ::

I love it when people bring items to my house that are near and dear to their children's hearts. Josh and Kim did just that. The most interesting of the items they brought was "Skin" ... a skeleton that sang and danced. It was so cool! Skin has been with their oldest boy since he was quite small ... and it seems like everyone in the family has taken a liking to him.

Thanks again for the session with your family! I had a blast with all of you!