Hi! I'm Libby and I'm an on-location photographer in Austin, Texas specializing in newborns, babies, children, and families. Take a look around my blog and stay awhile. You'll notice that I mix my personal life in with my business around here, and I wouldn't have it any other way! My son, Will, is my inspiration for my photography, so you'll be seeing a lot of him on the blog. Check back often for sneak peeks, announcements, contests, giveaways, and lots of fun, laughter, and love. Thanks for stopping by!
Holiday Mini-Sessions I currently still have availability for holiday mini sessions. Check out the awesome deals in my blog post here and email me to book yours today!
Okay, is this not one of the most gorgeous girls you’ve ever seen? I adore her red hair, freckles, and bright blue eyes! I met up with Amanda and her mom this evening to take some headshots for her. She’s really wanting to get into acting, thus the need for headshots!
Amanda and Sandra, enjoy the sneak peek! It was great to meet you and I wish you the best of luck in your acting career, Amanda!
I met up with the L family this morning and I couldn’t believe how much little Mia has grown! It’s only been a few months since their last session, but she looks so grown up to me! I loved her little piggies and all her adorable teeth. Jacob had a surprise for me too…his first lost tooth! He was so well behaved, even though it was blazing hot and humid (at 9:00 in the morning, no less!)…I was impressed 
L family, enjoy your sneak peek! It was so great to see you guys again this morning! Oh, and Dalia…don’t worry – we got tons of cute family shots! I’m saving those for your gallery
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
I can’t believe it’s already time to plan for holiday sessions! I broke out my calendar over the weekend and blocked off two dates to offer these special mini sessions. I’ll be starting sessions at 8:00 am and taking sessions until 6:00 pm with a break for lunch in there…so there’s LOTS of space for sessions. I also have special mini-session pricing available for these sessions, so it should be budget friendly for all If neither of the dates works for you, please contact me. I have recently started offering mini-sessions (details can be found in the “investment” section of my website) and we can definitely find something to fit your family!
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
Are you a fan on Facebook?** If you’re not, you’re missing out. I reached 400 fans a few weeks ago and I promised a giveaway once I reached that point. I’m now sitting at around 415 fans. I’m so lucky to have made such awesome friends through my business and I wanted to give a little bit back to you guys by offering a giveaway.
I hemmed and hawed over what to offer…a free session? Sweets? One of my favorite products? I ultimately decided against offering anything photo related because that would limit my giveaway. And I have some pretty awesome fans that live far, far away! So I searched Etsy and found a seller that I adore. She makes the most amazing, unique jewelry! I could have offered up her entire Etsy shop as a giveaway, but I finally found one piece that I just love. I love it so much, that I might just have to buy one for myself when I order the giveaway winner’s!
The winner of the giveaway will receive a beautiful personalized necklace like the one pictured above from E. Ria Designs. Entries will close May 23nd at 12:00am CST. You can earn up to four entries to this giveaway -
Winner will be announced on Monday, May 24th! Good luck!
**(yes, I realize it’s no longer “fans”…but I much prefer the term “fan” to the term “like.” It’s very awkward to say, “Do you like me on Facebook?” Incredibly awkward. Incredibly.)
1. I’ve been terrible at keeping up with ToT. By the time I remember, it’s usually Friday and I think, “Oh, I’ll just wait until next week to do it.” And then I never do. So here’s my attempt at it this week Hey, at least it’s Tuesday!
2. I have an official walker! Will’s been taking steps since his first birthday party (3/27), but in the past week or so, he’s really exploded with the walking. He chooses to walk over crawling 90% of the time…crawling only wins if he wants to get somewhere really really fast. I thought it would be this huge change, but it’s really not. He’s been mobile for so long now that it’s really just a little adjustment. I actually like it because his hands and knees aren’t getting dirty constantly and we can go do fun things like play at the park easily now!
3. Speaking of the walker, here’s a picture of him from a few weeks back. It’s the only one I’ve had a chance to open and edit, so I’m sure a lot of you have already seen it on Facebook…but I love it! The expression is so him 
4. Are you a fan on Facebook? If you are, you may have noticed that I recently reached 400 fans! Thank you all for supporting me. In honor of that, I’ll have a special giveaway coming very soon. Stay tuned!
5. My Aunt gave Will a gift card to Toys R Us for his birthday and we decided to buy him a water table. He LOVES the thing. Absolutely loves it. There is usually a tantrum thrown when it’s time to go inside because he loves it so much. And any time he hears the sliding glass door open, he squeals and runs (literally) to the backdoor to see if he can sneak outside to go play with his table. Thanks, Aunt Gena…it’s definitely a hit!
6. Yes, Will is wearing the same shirt in all the pictures in this post. No, they were not taken on the same day…hey, it’s a cute shirt! And if he’s wearing it twice in the month, it means that laundry has actually been done! *gasp!* I’ve been insanely busy lately…2 weddings on the books to proof, plus mini-sessions and regular sessions. I’ve been lucky to get to bed before midnight every night this week. My house is a disaster and I think Greg is feeling a little neglected. But the laundry is done! Success
7. Are you interested in learning how to use your DSLR? I’m putting together some stuff for a workshop this summer. I’m going to be limiting spaces to allow for more one-on-one time, but if you’re interested on being on the contact list for that, send me an email! The workshop will likely be held later this summer and will be in Round Rock on a Saturday afternoon. More details to come soon!
8. Will and I have been doing a lot of running lately…it’s been awesome! We do it in the afternoons after the boys I watch leave my house and it’s kind of our “thing.” I really feel like I’m getting back into great shape. Yesterday I ran 4 miles (while pushing 20 pounds of Will plus 20+ pounds of stroller!) in about 50 minutes. That’s including warm up and cool down. Lance Armstrong even came over my Nike+ system to tell me I’d just set a new personal best for the mile – 11 minutes! I’ll take it! I know in my pre-baby days I was running 8 and 9 minute miles, but I can’t complain about 11 minutes when I’m running in 90ish degree heat with an added 40 pounds to push!
9. Yesterday while I was doing my run, I decided I needed a walk break after about 2 miles of non-stop running. I slowed to a walk and Will started signing “more” over and over and over again. I asked him if he wanted me to run again and I thought his poor little hands were going to fall off from signing more so much! I started running again and he clapped and laughed. So much for my walk break! But I will say that a toddler cheerleader is the best motivation I could ask for!
10. (can’t believe I actually made it to 10!) Another funny Will story from several weeks ago…Greg and I had to pick the Mustang up from the dealership after getting the oil changed and some other work done. It was near dinner time and neither of us was really wanting to fight traffic back to Round Rock with a hungry baby. So we stopped in at a Subway in a, um, not-so-nice part of Austin. We got our sandwiches and realized that they didn’t have any high chairs. Oookay. So I sat Will down on the chair next to me. He thought he was SO cool sitting in a grown-up chair all by himself! He actually did really well eating his meal there too, go figure. Well, I had a napkin in my lap (of course) and he watched me take a bite of my sandwich, wipe my mouth, and put it back. Little stinker reaches over into my lap, grabs the napkin, wipes his mouth, puts the napkin back in my lap and grins at Greg. We about died laughing – it was the funniest thing I’ve experienced in a long time! That’s my little ham, for ya!
This family drove in all the way from Corpus Christi to have their pictures taken by me…I’m so blessed to have such wonderful clients! Mama brought along her two beautiful kids, a 5 year old little boy and an (almost) one year old girl…But this session was all about the women! She had an amazing idea to get pictures of the three generations of women in her family. Such a wonderful excuse to have professional photos done!
Aren’t they just gorgeous? I love how their strength and beauty just radiates from them.
Even though this session was supposed to be just the girls, I couldn’t pass up the chance to take a picture or two of Jacob. He was so fascinated by the Peacocks at Mayfield!
And of course, we had to get one of Miss Mia, who turns ONE in a month! I love her tutu and her infectious smile.
Thanks for coming out and enduring the heat with me, guys! I had so much fun and can’t wait for our session in June!