:: Saving the best for last | Reche Canyon Maternity::

I had asked Nichole to come back to my house so we could finish up some last minute ideas I had from our previous shoot. We were pushed for light and I didn’t want her to miss out. I am so glad she agreed to come back. We rocked out some last pictures in the most perfect lighting. . .  You can also see these pictures and more here.

:: Expecting Mother Nichole | Maternity::

There are some people you meet in life and just know they were meant to be mothers. Nichole is one of those people. She has this soft, sweet spoken voice and when you are around her you also want to be soft and sweet, something that doesn’t come naturally to me. This little boy is one lucky guy to have such an amazing mother who already loves him more than words can describe.

I think pregnancy is so beautiful and amazing.  For ten months you have this little person inside of you that is growing daily, living off the nutrients you digest into your body. Human life is extraordinary and precious. I love being able to capture this marvelous time in a woman's life just weeks before they will be caring for precious new life on the outside of their body.

Nicole made me miss my job in Labor and Delivery. Her anticipation and eagerness for that little boy to arrive gave me excitement and brought back the slew of emotions I had before Logan was born. During her session we talked about how kids will change your life forever, in just a blink of an eye. Every day we wake up living life for ourselves, not worrying about anyone else in the process, until one day you awake and realize you have created life and it doesn’t matter anymore what you like or want, all that matters is if your child is healthy, and happy.

“…But a good mother is much more than just a resident reminder service, cook, cleaning lady, and laundress. A good mother is a launching pad with a soft lap: hardheaded about discipline and soft-hearted about everything else. She motivates her children to help them reach their full potential and praises them whenever she catches them doing something right.

A good mother gives her children more than a balanced diet and a roof over their heads. She teaches them how to feed their souls and gives them a spiritual foundation on which to build. She directs them into the right paths and prays for them when they occasionally wander off onto others.

…A good mother cares how her children turn out. She doesn't just wait for them to get out…” Vicki Huffman

I have no doubt Nicole will be a wonderful mother.

 

 

     

:: Miss M | six months :: .Anaheim Hills Children's photographer.

I love these kids! I have been taking pictures of Mr. M since he was three months old. I have this little guy so trained that he now wants me to take his picture, and even jumped in his sisters shot a couple times. We were scheduled to just take Miss M pictures but I would say their parents lucked out with two happy, smiling, picture loving kids.

I am in love with Oak Canyon Nature Center, in Anaheim Hills,  and knew it would be the perfect mid-way spot for us to meet, all we had to worry about was beating the rain. Luckily, that was all we had to worry about since we had two of the happiest kids. Miss M was all smiles with the occasional hiccups. Any place I would sit her she would look up with a big grin ear to ear instantly. It really doesn’t get much better than that, and that hardly ever happens. If she needed a minute to re-group her brother was ready and eager to step in with his smiles.

I am thankful for meeting such wonderful people three years ago wanting me to capture their brand new little boy. I am even more thankful and honored they have stuck with me for the last three years. It has been amazing watching their little boy grow and meeting their beautiful daughter who I can now capture childhood with.

 

 

::Friday Rants and letting an 80yo punk me::

You know you’re having an emotional day when you leave the gym almost in tears because an 80 year old woman stole your swimming lane! True story, and unfortunately,  it’s my story. ha! At the same time I want to laugh about this dumb story, I also want to cry. Not because she “stole” my lane, not because I left the gym without working out, but because I gave up on myself! I should have stuck it out and waited for another lane, but this would lead to another wonderful story about how I don’t have patience. The little I have is mostly used on my children and husband, therefore everyone else is not in favor.

Do you ever want to kick your own ace!?! Sounds silly, but why can’t we take the advice we give to others? It is so easy to tell others what they should be doing and how to do it, but so hard to get our own selves going and to figure out what we are doing. I used to be so sure of myself and my answers, and never doubted myself. I miss that girl and I am on a mission to get her back.

The last five years of my life have been crrrraaazzy. Wes and I joke saying we count our marriage in dog years but that is truly what it feels like at times. ( dog years: marriage years x7. 5x7=35!) We have been through so much in five years, more that most people deal with in a lifetime. To fast forward through the years this is how it went down:

2006: meet, get engaged. 2007: Feb, while planning wedding Wes gets weird itching illness no one can tell us what is wrong. May: find out im pregnant, (oh crap) July: wes: gets worse, Aug: Wes is diagnosed with Cancer. Hodkins lymphoma stage 2b. we get married at the court house earlier than expected (aug 15)so he could be double insured through my job. Sept: Wes starts chemo, our landlord (my mother) give us a move-out date of Oct 1st ( while were in Hawaii) Sept. 23 2007 Our wedding date. Oct, come home from Hawaii and finish moving to new house. 2008: Jan 30th, my Logan man was born. Feb: wes finished chemo, March: move again because we realized how much cancer cost us.. ( might as well have taken my right arm!) Wes commuted 250 miles to work for three years while living there. (I don’t know how single parents do it) I start my business in July of 2009, that got crazy in 2010 when we also welcomed a new baby girl, Bailey and then we moved again in 2011. Are ya still with me?!?! Holly moley, right!

So that would be why we count our marriage in dog years! Heck, things could have gone a lot worse, a lot! We are so thankful for all of our outcomes, it has made us the people we are today. We are far from perfect on the marriage petal stool, but we love each other and took vows for better or worse, which I am pretty sure we have seen both. Going through everything made me different. It made me look at life different, it made me appreciate what and who I have, but it also made me fearful.

I always thought I was invisible, nothing would ever happen to me or my family. I was slapped in the face with reality on that August morning in 2007. We aren’t invisible. Things do happen when we least expect it. But it is our choice weather we are going to conquer it or let it take us over. Our experience broke me, it made me softer, it changed me. I don’t want to say for better or worse because I don’t think there is such a thing. I sometime struggle with this person I have become, but I am comforted knowing that things happen for a reason and I am not in control. I have struggled lately looking back at the last five years and wondering where the heck they went. Our lives are finally slowing down and dropping back into first gear , I forgot what this felt like. I forgot what it felt like to enjoy life. 

Life is great. My kids are my world and my husband is the best man God could have given me, even though I sometimes have to remind myself of this.

I guess the point of this post for me was: a.) for me to vent, and b.) for you to know that everyone is not perfect, Just because you never see someone struggle doesn’t mean they don’t. Embrace what you have in YOUR life. Pick apart yourself, and what you don’t like, make it BETTER. When bad things happen, look them in the face without fear and know you WILL win! We are the captain of our own ships. Steer that puppy to do awesome things… you can do that!

This morning I failed myself by letting a little 80 year old woman punk me! What I should have done was smiled and waited for another lane ( yes on deck in my bathing suit.. umm, I'm no Cindy Crawford) but instead I gave up and came home. So after I eat my In n Out for lunch, I shall return back to the pool. ( for real)

We only have one life, lets make it a fun ride.

:: Lauren | College Graduate ::

I knew from the minute I met this girl I had met a friend. It instantly felt like we had know each other for years. I met her on the perfect day, she made me appreciate my job and being able to meet such wonderful people along the way.

This girl has is going on, she is super smart, funny, has a wonderful boyfriend and luckily for me, a little wild since I took her on an adventure ride. She will be graduating from Cal Baptist in kinesiology soon, and on the other hand, I can’t even pronounce the word correctly! It is inspiring to talk to people with goals and to be around positive people. Lauren is one of those people. When you are around her you instantly feel comfortable. She has goals and hopes for her future and I can truly see her conquering anything she puts her mind to.

Thank you Lauren for such a fun filled adventure shoot.