Cuter than cute!

 

Oh man.  This little guy was just adorable.  I had so much fun hanging out with his mom (a friend from high school!) and dad, who are SO relaxed for being first time parents.   I could have watched them interact with little L all day.   This wonderful family has been through a lot with L during pregnancy and the first month of his life and he’s perfect and healthy and I’m just so happy for them.

I braved a major snowstorm (at least it felt like it!) to drive out to Castle Rock, and it was SO worth it.   Thanks for having me (and for the delicious lunch) and I sure hope we can see each other in Phoenix sometime???!!!  (hint hint!) 

 ~m

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We’re Back! :)

Our trip to Colorado was phenomenal.  White Christmas, tons of snow, sledding, family time, visiting with friends, playdates, 2 incredible photoshoots (not to mention fun snowy pics of Peach), great meals…

 Just finishing up some editing.  I know some anxious parents are waiting for their sneak peek.  Coming soon, guys (later tonight, I promise)! 

~m

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{Merry Christmas}

Yeah, it’s a little early, but I wanted to get this out there and wish everyone a Merry Christmas.  I’ll be taking a bloggity break for a week while we celebrate, do some traveling and just have fun together.  I’ll be taking lots of pics, of course! 

I took this picture of Peach and Santa yesterday.  It’s my new favorite pic.   He just whisked her up into his arms and all she could do was stare.

I love:

*her gaze — she’s amazed that it’s really Santa!

*Santa’s beard

*their real eye contact

*the lit wagon in the background

*(this one is from my sis) it looks like a posed Norman Rockwell — it’s like Santa’s going to offer her a Coca-Cola 

*Santa’s arms around her

*Santa’s plush suit — looks like the real deal!

Happy Holidays and safe travels to those of you taking off for a bit.   ~m

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“Want to take some pictures of me, Momma?”

[Translation:  Come watch me play in the front yard!] 

I always oblige when she offers to pose for pics!     

We had fun with this blue snow hat (bought in preparation for our winter trip to Colorado to see family and friends).    Since it’s been semi-cold lately, it didn’t feel that silly having Peach flit around the front yard with her hat on.  🙂  It looked cute, warmed her little ears, and was pretty great for a spontaneous game of peek-a-boo with the camera. 

Besides head and finger warmers (we’re hoping to go sledding), I’ve been collecting fuzzy blankets for photo shoots (newborn shoots, especially) so she also had a great time getting snuggly in this soft-as-a teddy-bear blankie, too.   I’m SOOO excited because I get to photograph a one-month-old cutie in Colorado.  Can’t wait to see him and catch up with his Mommy!  Now to decide which blankie to bring…hope there’s some room!   ~m

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Rockin’ Book Review: Tails by Matthew Van Fleet

 

Here’s the thing.

I love children’s books.  Always have — as a kid, teacher, mom, I could/can never get enough.  Books and I have this special relationship 🙂 …I just can’t stop buying them.  SO, I thought…why not review a cool kid book every week or so for those of you that might be interested. 

I’ll say a little about the book and why we like it — have pics of my kiddos reading it.  Maybe branch out to pics of other kiddos reading a book they recommend.  That might be fun! 

So, here’s the first review.

 [click pic if you’d like it bigger]

Book: Tails

Author:  Matthew Van Fleet

Got this book:  from a friend for J’s birth (I was totally shocked I’d never seen it before — it’s great!!!)

Rating:  10 Golden Grahams (that’s good!!!  10 is the best.  🙂 )

About:  This board-like book is great fun for the little ones.   The text rhymes and it talks of tails of various animals.  It certainly appeals to all senses — kids touch furry tails, smell a skunk tail, drag their finger along a bumpy tail, hear the cute text, and move little strips (like a pop-up book, but durable) to see various tails move.  There’s also a fancy sparkly peek-a-boo page for the peacock, which is an absolute hit.   It’s a very interactive, colorful book and would be a great gift for someone’s child or a total hit for your own library. 

*It’s not as thick as a board book, but pages are extremely well made.  Ours has lasted for quite a while and shows no signs of trauma from little hands pulling and prodding all the time.  🙂

Age: Baby-Preschool

Price: $13.95  ($10-something @ amazon right now)

=====> IF any of you have a book we should take a look at, let us know!  We’re always looking for the latest and greatest books.  I hope we can find some new, awesome books out of this, too! 

About the pics…no flash, taken last-minute before bed because the kids were being so cute (couldn’t resist!) Because of the no flash and low light, I had to use an ultra-high ISO — makes pics grainy if it’s too high, but I took care of that with some software I recently purchased.  I did have the kids reading right next to a light, which helped a bit. 

Thanks for reading and here are a couple more pics — just couldn’t narrow them down today!   ~m

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:Scooter Girl:

Peach (nickname for K — I might just stick with that from now on on the blog) is super energetic.  She loves to ride her bike, trike or scooter all the time.  Just a typical afternoon.  🙂

 

Tomorrow starts the first {Kid Book Review} on the blog and boy, do we have a good one to tell you about!  You’ll even get some reading action shots with K and J. 

Hope your holiday shopping is going well.  We’re up to our ears in toys (of the hidden variety) over here (I always go waaaaay overboard) and haven’t wrapped one gift yet.  I see some late nights in my future…grrrreat.     ~m

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*Old Shtuff*

I’m currently working on a little project (might, just MIGHT be related to Christmas  🙂 ) and ran across a bunch of fun & interesting pics.  Here are a couple that stood out to me for the month of April.  Yipes…that’s 8 months ago! 

Our little J was definitely upset about something.  I love his facial expression even though I can’t clearly see his eyes.  His scrunched up face (check out that line between his eyes!) and upset little mouth sure convey some major emotion!  Not a typical pic for this happy guy.

Not a very typical pic for K either because it’s hard for this little lady to sit this still.  I love how I can read her face — I see a very relaxed, confident two-year-old who is loving taking in the outdoors.  Pretty much sums her up. 

**Real emotion can be hard to capture, especially if you have a kiddo that shies away from the camera.  **

Photog Tip #2:  Some ways that have helped me coerce kids to cooperate while showing emotion are having the child:  explore his or her surroundings, sing a song, tell a funny story,  tell jokes, tell a secret to a sibling, tell the child NOT to smile in a fun way, give the kiddo a lollipop :), and have the child perform fun physical activities (soccer, run a lap, go down a slide, etc).   

If any of you out there in Blogland have something that works like a charm, let me know please!! 

I had a photo shoot a while back where the mom brought a balloon and had dad release the air for the kiddos.  They all thought it was hilarious and I got some fun shots of all three kiddos with genuine smiles and laughter.  It is always a challenge — that’s why I like doing this! 

 Have a great day.  ~m  

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[be back tomorrow]

Late night out — sang at the Phoenix Children’s Hospital and had dinner with choir.  Fun, but I need my bed.  🙂    ~m

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.: Zebra Light :.

It’s 1am.  Little guy  just woke up and is chillin’ on my lap as I type with my free hand.  Guess I’m pretty used to this — typing one-handed, that is.  Sorry in advance for any typos!  🙂

About the pic…the two kiddos were playing yesterday morning and I just happened to catch J as he pondered something.   Those moments are rare because he now spends all his free time going around and around and around our house on his two legs.  We have a 99% walker over here! 

I love how the light looks like zebra stripes on and around J.  Color was nice, but the conversion to black and white really made it a more dramatic image.  If you look closely, you can see his eyelashes curling upward.  What a cutie.

 Have a great day.  ~m

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Gingerbread Goodness

Gum drops + sweet tarts + more colorful sweet goodies +

frosting +gingerbread =

Recipe for FUN for a three year old, her mom & grandma

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