Archive for the ‘my family’ Category

I’ve been really slacking in the picture taking department when it comes to my own kiddo…so we headed out to my favorite field this morning to take some belated fifteen month pictures. He’s getting so big, so quickly! The baby in him is quickly disappearing, being replaced by this rambunctious, adorable little boy. I’m embracing it (or trying to anyway) and loving this stage he’s at. What follows is a long, scattered list of what my little guy has been up to lately…feel free to skim the text and just focus on the pictures ;)

At 15 months, he’s walking everywhere and is very independent. He knows what it means when I say, “Let’s go in the car,” and will run to the front door screaming, “go go go go!” He loves to help me shut the front door and climb off of the porch all by himself. He knows where most of his body parts are and loves to help put on his shoes. He absolutely loves reading books and will snuggle on my lap turning the pages all day long if I let him. His favorite book of the moment is The Dog Who Cried Wolf by Keiko Kasza…he loves the part where the dog and wolves howl and loves to skip ahead to that part and howl with me. When we’re dressing him in the morning, he’ll hold out each foot to help us put his shorts on and tries to help get his shirt over his head as well. When you ask him if he has a dirty diaper, he’ll grab his diaper and run to his room and stand in front of the changing table. He also just learned how to climb up on the couches…time for mommy and daddy to find new hiding spots for the remote controls! He loves to comb his hair and help bathe himself at night. His hair is getting so long and so blond! He has these adorable little blond curls in the back and I’m pretty sure someone’s going to have to force me to cut it when the time comes.

He’s talking up a storm and really starting to repeat what we’re saying to him. His words include, “go,” “baye” (bye), “bi-per” (diaper), “sheeese” (cheese), “stin-key” (stinky), “no,” “bahl” (ball), “shues” (shoes), “gog-gie” (doggie), “bo-bo” (blankie) and tons of others that I can’t think of right now. He really is comprehending what we’re telling him well and I’m constantly amazed at how much he picks up on! We don’t go through the drive through often, but when we do, he starts chanting “na-na” (his word for food), demanding that I give him something yummy to occupy him in his car seat ;) He thinks walking backward is absolutely hilarious and loves to spin in circles. He’s started “helping” me out around the house…he loves to push the buttons on the washing machine, dryer, and dishwasher and will follow me with one of his push toys when I’m vacuuming the house. He loves to talk on the phone and has his own “conversations” with his Grannie frequently. When he can’t find my phone, everything else becomes a phone – the calculator, the TV remote, the hair brush…you name it! He still doesn’t consistently sleep through the night, but he’s getting much better at it. Greg has a little pallet made up in his room that he’ll lay down on when Will wakes up in the middle of the night. Will knows when Daddy comes in that it’s time to lay back down and go to sleep – he just needs the reassurance of having Greg nearby.


He adores going to story time at the library every week. We just recently started going and it always takes him a few minutes to warm up, but once he does there is no stopping him. The librarian stands in the center of the circle and reads books and he walks right up to her to point at the pictures and ask questions in his own little 15-month-old language. He’s really learning about sharing there and has gotten much better about taking toys away from other children. We go to the park and the pool nearly daily and he loves them both. At the park, his favorite activities are climbing up the slide and getting chased across the bridge. At the pool, he loves to play in the baby pool. The water comes up to his armpits and he absolutely loves walking through it. We bring water toys and he’ll throw them across the pool and then go get them. He seemingly has no fear when it comes to water…he loves to put his face under and try to blow bubbles and the few times that he’s slipped and fallen under water when walking he just laughs when I pull him up.

There is not a day that goes by that I don’t thank God for him. Greg and I feel incredibly blessed to be his parents and to share life with him. It’s funny – nothing felt like it was missing from our lives before we had him…and now? I can’t imagine what life was like 15 months ago before he came along! He has totally stolen our hearts and we are head over heels in love with our little man :)

1. Sorry for the complete lack of blog posts this week. I’ve been so busy editing that I haven’t even thought about blog posts during my computer time each day!

2. I’ve also been busy spending lots and lots of time with my little boy…lots of one on one time! And let me tell you, it ROCKS. I really enjoyed watching children, and if we need for me to do it again, I’ll enjoy it again. But you can’t beat being able to give your own child your undivided attention. We’ve worked on his colors, his animal sounds, played in the pool a ton, done lots of shopping, and hung out with Grannie, CP, and Uncle Matt (aka my parents and brother) this week. It’s been awesome. Will has now added the duck sound (gah gah gah gah gah – hey, it works for me!), the polar bear/bear/lion/black panther sound (raaaaaah) and the dog sound (ffh fffh or sticking his tongue out and panting) to his repertoire of animal sounds.

3. Tomorrow I’m headed out of town for a wedding in Houston and I’m way excited about it! The ceremony is tomorrow at sunset on the beach and then the reception will be on Sunday. Word has it that the reception is going to be the party to be at! I’m excited to see all the festivities and of course, capture another couple in love :) I’ll have my laptop with me, but I’m not sure how much I’ll be able to get online. If you really need to get a hold of me this weekend, the best way will probably be to call.

4. Next week, I’m turning our dining room into a playroom. I’ve been bugging Greg to do this since we moved into the house, but he’s always resisted since our dining room is one of the first rooms you see when you walk into the house. I’m so tired of our living room looking like Toys ‘R Us though! I have tons of ideas of what I’d like to do with it (and I’m sure my ideas will be reined in quite a bit by budget), but I’d love to see any links to your favorite playrooms if you have them! Or even pictures of your own. I can’t wait to share pictures of it!

5. I just finished proofing this gallery and it’s full of some of my favorite images ever. Love these two :)

Austin baby photographer Austin baby photographer

My summer officially starts on Monday, but we got a little taste of summer today in the driveway. I’m totally a summer-loving girl. I can take 100*+ temps like a champ. I love them, actually. I long for them in the frigid Texas winters. I love to run in the middle of the day in Texas. I guess I’m a just a little bit crazy ;) My kiddo seems to have inherited my love for being outdoors in Texas summers. So today, he donned his swimsuit and we took the water table to the driveway. To say he loved it would be a huge understatement. I don’t think there was one inch of his body that wasn’t soaked (or one inch of the driveway, for that matter!) I was longing for a longer lens to keep my precious camera dry ;) But I’m so glad I braved the splashing…the pictures I got were so worth it.

And as a sidenote – get your camera out and take pictures of your kids…today. I’ve been SO bad about taking pictures of Will because I already have so much work piled up. But I’m so glad I’ve made a conscious effort to take pictures of him this week. I forgot how much I loved it.

Austin baby photographer

Round Rock baby photographer

Austin baby photographerThere’s something about those dirty, pruny feet in this one that I adore!

Round Rock baby photographerLet the splashing begin! :)

Austin baby photographer
Round Rock baby photographer

Austin baby photographer Austin baby photographer
I love his grin and the way his little belly sticks out. Makes my heart melt!

Round Rock baby photographerSweet, sweet little boy.

Disclaimer: In this post you’re going to find some pretty crappy photography. Some horrible color casts, blown out spots, and some plain out of focus images. But they’re my boy. And I promised to take pictures of him every day this week and share them…I failed miserably at that yesterday, so I’m making up for it today. Embrace the horribleness of the photos. They may be bad, but they’re him and this is what we did today. And for that, I love them.

Disclaimer II: In this post you’re also going to see a whole lot of my unorganized garage. Yep, we’ve lived in this house for nearly a year and the garage is still unorganized. The guest bedroom closet, master bedroom closet, and the office aren’t as organized as I’d like either. I guess that’s what happens when you’re a full time mommy, small business owner, and wife. I could care less how organized my house is anymore as long as it LOOKS clean. Oh, and the green stuff on my kid’s face? It’s definitely not snot. It’s a green highlighter I gave him to draw with to keep him occupied so I could package up an order since he woke up from his nap early. Just keepin’ it real.

Today was a rather ordinary day. The boys I watch came over. Everyone ate breakfast, everyone took naps (well, everyone BUT me), everyone got snack, and everyone went outside. I remembered to grab my camera before we headed out to the front yard in hopes of catching some great shots of Will playing. I didn’t catch so many of those shots. Instead I caught a lot of the back of his head, since he’s stubbornly refusing to look at my camera now-a-days.

Example number one of the not-so-great photography. This is the closest thing to eye contact+smile that I got out of the entire hour or so we were outside. He’s shouting “da!” as a car drives down our street and turns around in the cul-de-sac. No, buddy. I’m so sorry. “Da” is at work right now and can’t come play with you. You’re stuck with boring ‘ol “ma” who has a camera glued to her face.
Austin baby photographer

After shouting “da” 5,286 times, he moved on to shouting “bah.” If you’re not familiar with toddler-speak, “bah” means “ball.” And oh my heavens does my boy LOVE his “bah.” There can be a ball ten houses down and he’ll spot it with his eagle eyes and start chanting. In all actuality, it doesn’t even have to be a true ball. It could be, say, a kiwi sitting on the kitchen table. Said kiwi might just end up squished into pieces from being thrown onto the kitchen floor. So I guess “bah” really means any semi-round object good for throwing. After the 23rd time he shouted “bah” at the top of his lungs, I went in search of a “bah” in the garage. The only thing I could find was an exercise ball, so I figured…it’s round and it bounces. It’ll do. Who would’ve known exercise balls were so good for smacking?
Austin baby photographer
Austin baby photographer

The next one is classic Will. The side-eyed look at me for saying something stupid, I’m sure. I have a feeling I’m going to be seeing a LOT of this look in about 12 years. I’m so not ready.
Austin baby photographer

And finally, probably the WORST example of photography you’ll ever see on this site. It’s totally not even in focus. But my goodness, it’s hilarious. The chubby hands desperately grasping for something to hold onto in the swing. The pulled back mouth that was laughing moments before this shot and is now starting to embrace a look of terror. I call this one, “Whoah, Mom! TOO high!”
Austin baby photographer

So in case you were wondering, just because you are a professional photographer doesn’t mean you’ll always get professional-quality photos of your kid. I have many, many more photos like these stashed away on my hard drive. And sometimes when I really just need a laugh I open them up and chuckle. Hope they were able to do that for you today :)

It’s been just over two months since I did this photo shoot with Will on a rainy day. We recreated it this afternoon (though it wasn’t so rainy at all!) and I’m in awe at how much he’s grown. Two months. 60ish days. And in that time, my baby grew into a toddler. I think part of it is the hair…look how much it’s grown! It’s starting to turn into this adorable curl in the back and it definitely needs to be combed in the morning. The days have passed where a quick towel dry after bath suffices! And then there are the teeth. Oh, the teeth! I love that grin – 8  perfect little baby teeth. The gap in the middle. I love that even though two months have passed, this is still our after nap routine. At least if the boy has grown by leaps and bounds, the routine still stays the same.

Round Rock baby photographers

Austin baby photographer

Austin baby photographers

Round Rock baby photographer

Round Rock baby photographers

1. I haven’t posted a Will update in who knows how long, so this ToT will be a Will-version! Can you believe he’ll be 14-month-old in just over a week? Hello, Father Time? Please slow down. My baby is growing up entirely too fast!

2. Will’s language is exploding. He consistently says “na-na” (comes from banana, but really means food), “moh” (more), “ba-ba” (bottle/milk), “doh” (dog), “ba” (bye), “baa” (bath), “dow” (down) and “baw” (ball). He signs all done, milk, and more pretty well. We’re working on please and thank you, but he really doesn’t do those consistently at all. He also knows what the cow says, “moooooooo” (said with his lips pursed together). His mind is a little sponge and it is incredible to watch him learn!

3. He’s been a full-time walker for about a month now. We take a walk just about every evening before dinner and he walks all the way to the mailbox and all the way home, usually. Tonight we took the dogs on the walk with us and he absolutely loved it! He kept shouting “doh! doh!” and pointing at Riley and Sammy. So cute :)

4. He’s really turned into a picky little thing when it comes to food. He’ll usually eat fruit, bread, and cheese without hesitation. But in the past few days he’s been turning his nose up at blackberries which used to be a huge favorite. In his defense, the ones I bought are a little sour, so I’m hoping that’s the reason and that blackberries aren’t another food to add to the “do not like” list.

5. Will had his first night away from Mommy and Daddy on Saturday night! He stayed with Grannie and CP (aka my parents) while Greg and I went a wedding. He had a blast and came home nice and tired – always a sign of a good time! I think Grannie and CP were a little tired too ;) But Greg and I sure were thankful for the night out. I didn’t even wake up once in the middle of the night wondering about him – I was SO sure I would! Boy was it ever nice to sleep in too…it’s only been, oh, 14-months since we’ve both gotten to sleep in together!

6. The other day I was in the living room cleaning up toys, feeding one of the boys I watch, and just not paying all that close of attention to Will. I knew he was in the kitchen and I knew he was messing around by the trash can. But I figured he couldn’t get it open since the lid was on it, so we were golden. Um, WRONG. Will succeeded in opening up the trash can, taking out an almost-empty bottle of Maple Syrup, flipping open the lid and sucking down syrup like it was water. I screamed when I saw him doing it (a- I’m not a huge fan of maple syrup and b- the thing had been in the TRASH!) and ran over to take it away from him. He proceeded to throw the biggest tantrum he’s ever thrown before. I explained why he couldn’t have the syrup bottle and then walked away to let him have his tantrum. He watched me walk away, stopped crying, got up and followed me into the bedroom and then threw himself down at my feet screaming again. Totally reminded me of this video.

7. Will loves going for runs with me. We do it just about every afternoon (though pretty soon those are going to have to move to morning runs!). Every day around the time we go in the stroller he starts hanging out by the garage door waiting. As soon as I open the garage door he runs (well, fast walks) to the stroller and points up and says “uhhhh”…which is his way of saying he wants to ride! He gets his snack and water in the stroller and is usually content for my 4-5 mile runs. I haven’t tried a longer run with him, but I probably will this summer. I love that he’s learning from my example at being healthy and active. And I love that he looks forward to that time in the stroller every day.

8. Alright, that’s it for now…gotta get back to editing~ Sorry this was a pictureless edition. I promise to take some *new* pictures of Will this week AND post them!

1. Dude, I am tired. I mean, not like *yawn* I could use a few extra hours of sleep tired. I mean completely, utterly drained and exhausted tired. Between burning the candle at both ends to keep up with editing (who am I kidding – I’m not keeping up!) to the fleas we can’t get rid of on the dogs, to Will being up for 2 solid hours in the middle of the night screaming last night, I’m lucky to still be surviving. I went for a run tonight and it was pathetic. I could barely get out one mile before I gave up and walked a mile home. Pathetic, I tell ya!

2. Not too long ago, a two mile run for the day would’ve been considered a great accomplishment. Now it feels like a failure and it feels weak. When did two miles=weak!?

3. Will has been a little bit of a maniac lately. He wants to walk everywhere by himself and he doesn’t need me anymore thankyouverymuch. Today we went outside to play with his newly hung swing (yay, thanks Grandma Ruth!) and he wanted to run on the sidewalk. He was pretty good about only going down to the border between our neighbor’s house and ours and then turning around (I could see him the entire time). Well, after about 5 minutes he decided the sidewalk wasn’t good enough and he wanted to run in the street. Um, no sweetie. We don’t run in the street. Cue meltdown #1. Complete with kicking and screaming and attempted biting. We got that one figured out and I put him back down. He wanted to go up and down the step on the front porch. He did that for another 15 minutes until I decided it was time to go inside for lunch. Cue meltdown #2. I think our neighbor actually came out the front door to see if I was abusing my child or not. I love this age, but the tantrums? Not so much!

4. Perfect example of #3.
Austin Baby Photographer

5. I’ve been doing lots of editing lately. Lots and lots! I’ve got a wedding nearly finished (Steph and Brett, it’s coming your way in the next day or two!!) and I can’t help but work on my newborn from this weekend…He’s just so squishy and cute! See?
Austin newborn photographer

6. I got my passport in the mail late last week and got all the detailed paperwork for the cruise finished online over the weekend…I am SO excited! A little nervous to leave Will for 7 nights, but excited nonetheless. I know he’s going to have a blast with his Grannie and CP (aka my mom and dad) and that makes it a little bit easier to think about not seeing him for that long. The other thing I’m struggling with is weaning him before that time. We’re down to nursing twice a day (in the morning and before bed) and I’m  not sure that I’m ready to give that up. I may be busting out the pump on the trip just so we don’t have to…we’ll see. Only 74 days left!

7. Do you let your child lay down in the bath tub? Will just recently started LOVING laying down on his back in the tub. The water is just high enough to cover his ears, but not his face. He screams and laughs and talks whenever he does this. The funniest part is when he kicks his feet and splashes all around. I’m sure it’s not great for teaching him how to swim, but it sure is amusing! :)

8. Greg and I have a date night this Saturday night to go to a friend from high school’s wedding reception. I’m so excited to have a mini reunion with all the people I’ve lost touch with over the years. I’m excited to dress up, actually blow dry my hair and put on eyeliner. I’m excited to dance with my husband and stay up entirely too late. It’s going to be lots of fun! It’s also our first time leaving Will with my parents over night…kind of a trial run for the cruise. Kind of nervous about being away from him for that long, but I’m dealing ;)

9. That’s all I’ve got. I’ve been staring at the computer screen for a good 5 minutes trying to think up another good one, but I can’t. It’s time for some much needed rest. Happy Tuesday!

Austin baby photographer

Happy Mother’s Day to all the mommies reading this! I hope you all had a fabulous day. I know I did…it was low-key and relaxed and filled with my two favorite people – Greg and Will! I got to sleep in until 8:00 and catch up on some much needed housework this morning. Then my parents came over and gave me the beautiful scarf seen in the pictures above and some dish towels that I just love. I got to have lunch out at Firehouse Subs (no wait!) with my boys, take a trip to Best Buy for a new external hard drive, and then do some shopping by myself. I can’t tell you the last time I was able to go run errands by myself…and as much as I love my husband and my son, it was really nice to have some time to myself. No baby fussing to be let out of the cart so he can go run through the aisles, no pacis and toys being thrown full force onto the ground. I was able to take my time, walk slowly through Barnes and Noble (hands down my favorite store) and enjoy ‘me” time.

Like I said, my day was really low key. But I haven’t had a day off from working in I don’t know how long and it was really really nice to get a break! Plus Greg took one of my new favorite pictures of me and Will, so I’m a happy girl! :)

In honor of Mother’s Day, I wanted to do something special for all my clients. I’m offering 15% off of any canvases ordered in the month of May. Email me if you’d like your gallery re-hosted (free of charge) for you to look through your images again…it doesn’t matter when your session was, the discount applies to everyone!

I hope your Mother’s Day was wonderful and filled with the people you love the most!