Can you handle the cuteness?

Get ready to meet some incredibly cute kiddos! Meg, Ty, and Tara are such great kids. Little Meg reminds me so much of one of my own kids. She spent the evening collecting rocks and sticking them in her mouth. :) I love her quirky personality. Ty was super shy, but by the end of the shoot he had warmed up enough to give me some great big playful smiles.  And Tara- well Tara is a photographer's dream. She smiled beautifully in every picture and she was endlessly patient all night long. We spent the evening at their daddy's farm, which just may be my new favorite place. :) 

Enough talk! Let's see some pictures!

 Carrie (the proud mommy): "Who wants ice cream?"

Kids ... and dog: "MEEEEEEEE!" 

(P.S. I am a huge believer in bribery when it comes to getting great pictures! I always carry fruit snacks with me when I'm doing a family shoot.)

 I felt like this next picture really captured their personalities. 

Ty- finally warming up to me! I think sitting on his favorite tractor did the trick!

 Peek-a-Boo!

 And one more... Just because I can't get over how pretty her eyes are...

Brian and Amy's Engagements

Brian and Amy are such an incredibly fun couple! Never a dull moment with these two I can tell you that much! They wanted to shoot a couple of laid back shots to display at their reception, so we started our photo journey at the park where Brian successfully demonstrated his irresistible flirting skills with "the girl on the other side of the fence."

 I just love their choice of t-shirts. Perfect. 

 I'm a bit of a hopeless romantic.... and arguably cheesier than a Disney after school special, but you know what? I'm grateful for my gushy side because it inspires me to do shots like these next two. I love having my couples write a little note to each other on a post-it... and the rules are they don't get to see each other's note until they receive their pictures. It always makes for a sweet surprise and it's fun to see what each couple writes to each other. 

I'm so excited for Brian and Amy and their upcoming wedding... and I can see I'm not the only one. :)

Congratulations you two!

Like Mother Like Daughter...

Addie & Olivia

We love taking pictures of adorable little children! Which is great, because David happens to have two adorable little nieces that needed their one-year old and three-year old pictures done.

Kids definitely keep photo shoots interesting, and this one was no exception. The girls didn't really want to pose or do what Mom said, but with a few bribes of swedish fish and a little bit of patience we were able to capture their cute personalities as they showed who they were in front of the camera.

Back To School

My little girl had her first day of preschool today. Where does the time go? I can't believe how quickly she has grown up. To say that she was excited would be a huge understatement. She sang all the way there! Here are a "few" snapshots of her first day. YES I am one of those crazy parents that follow their child around with a camera and NO I am not ashamed to admit it!

Baby Kate

Sigh... I love newborns. They are just so... "brand new!" 

This teeny little bundle of joy is just over 7 lbs. Isn't she a doll?

 I really wanted to take her home with me, but I guess her family is kind of attached to her. And who can blame them? 

 I know every mom hopes their little one will sleep soundly during their shoot without the aid of their beloved binkie, but I absolutely love this picture. 

 These next few make me miss the days when my girls were this tiny and delicate

 Don't you just love these teeny wrinkled feet? 

Happy Birthday James!

Some of my favorite things:

Babies

Bright colors

Special occasions

Anything with sugar in it

Put all those things together and you've got yourself a winning recipe for a darling photoshoot!

 James just turned one last week. He was so funny when it came to digging in to the cake... at first he would pick up a polk-a-dot and then look around like he was in trouble, and gently put it back in place. It took him a good 15 minutes to warm up to the idea of actually eating anything! 

He doesn't really have much of a sweet tooth, he would much rather eat watermelon. (Sure wish I could be more like James!) That being said, he still did a great job smashing up this cake! 

 My favorite thing about this shoot was that it was done as a sweet surprise for his parents. What a great keepsake to remember his first birthday!  (And what a great aunt you have!) 

Happy Birthday James!