So here I am survivor of  our third 24 hour Road Trip in less then a year.  This trip was so different for me because I traveled across the US with the eyes of a photographer. The beauty of interstate 30 interrupted  more than one conversation with my husband. Every run down shack was beautiful in my eyes. Every rolling hill took my breath away.  Embracing my passion has opened my eyes to such much beauty that had been passing through my life unnoticed. Now as I sit in the comfort of my in-laws home listening to Grandma and Hayden discuss Star Wars,  I feel overwhelmed with emotion. I am not a religious person – but I feel so blessed! My life is far from perfect – but I have finally gotten to a place in my life where things are just as they should be. Is this what people meant when they said life just gets better with age. I have no idea what 2011 has in store for my family  - but I have a peaceful confidence  (some call that faith) that should storms need to be weathered that we have built a solid foundation that will keep us strong.

What fun I had meeting these two sweet girls. We had so much fun driving around McKinney trying to find a cool spot to jump out and take some Pictures. I was smiling as I was editing the pictures as I saw the girls body language transform from uncomfortable and awkward (since some crazy lady was taking their picture)  to silly and happy… and this is officially my last shoot until 2011!! Thanks girls for being so much fun yesterday!

ok.. yes I think I am so clever that I wrote this same title on my facebook photo album.  I was so excited that Jessica called me up to take some pics of her beautiful kids! With a short amount of time to get our photo shoot in we rearranged schedules,  coordinated outfits and I came up with a game plan. Jordan and Joshua were such good sports and followed me and my camera around as I had us running (Poor Joshua was hobbling with a fractured toe) from here to there. I am absolutely loving the images I captured yesterday ..I love that this is my job.

So this Maternity shoot had me up in the wee hours of the morning..trying to come up with ideas. After talking to Lori and hearing that she didn’t want a typical maternity shoot with her belly showing .. but that she wanted the shoot to be about Sophia with the belly just being part of the action…. got me thinking. I came up with three ideas..but my favorite was painting. So off to hobby lobby to find a big roll of paper and they didn’t have any…but they did have canvas- PERFECT!!!What a cool thing that they can do together and then turn it into something to hang on their walls. I am so happy with how the pictures turned out…. and as with every shoot I walked away with just a little more knowledge of what to do and what not to do.

What to say about Mimi and her beautiful family??  We didn’t really know each other when I screamed out of my car window that  I was starting a photography business and did she want maternity pictures (she was due in a couple of weeks) .  We have become fast friends since then. She has such a zen-ness (is that a word) with the must fabulous sense of humour…. and normally you don’t find that those two personality traits hanging out together. She just gave birth to her 4th beautiful boy and her parents are in town helping out. We did a grandparent mini- shoot at 8 AM on a very cold day and I love the way the photographs turned out. I feel blessed that I got to document her last pregnancy (she had never done a maternity shoot) and  that I was able to capture some sweet moments with the grandkids and grandparents. My job Rocks and so do my friends!

“Girls go to College to get more knowledge…. boys go to jupiter to get more stupider”…This was the song sweet Alex sang throughout our photo shoot… the sad thing is that I remember saying the same thing  when I was her age. These two are in that stage where touching each other is sooo groosssss.. With that said – I still caught some of the most beautiful images – once they got over the idea that touching each other wasn’t so bad. I am still going to my tried and true location… but  I tried stepping outside of the obvious and we explored the construction site nearby…I can’t wait to go there again. Also – Thanks Jenny Rackers for finding the plane – it was exactly what I was looking for!!!

For those who know me,  know that I LOVE pregnancy – I think it might be one of the coolest things I have ever done in my life. So it is no wonder that I love maternity shoots. This was only my second maternity shoot – and I had so  much fun testing new angles and seeing what worked………and learning what didn’t.  I can’t wait to meet this new little bean in 2011.

I LOVE this family!!!! We met during the summer and to be honest… wasn’t sure if Michelle and I would have a lot in common … “what do you mean you don’t have a cell phone”… “what do you mean you don’t have a facebook”….”what do you mean you don’t drink a glass of wine when the kids have been put to bed and your  husband is out of town”…but something clicked and she has becoming one of my closest friends. Here are some of my favorites from our recent impromptu Photo shoot

What a phenomenal family! So filled with enthusiasm and energy!  I had so much fun meeting this family and I can not wait to shoot them again!

This week has been a little insane as I try and suck the life out of the last good days of fall.  I feel so fortunate that my business has taken off like it has. I look at where I started on October 18th and how much I didn’t know about photography. Showing up at the place where all photographers go to take pictures and feeling like such a poser. … and to where I am now…Owning my passion and letting it pave the way. I have 4 more shoots lined up and then I think things will slow down for a while…which makes me sad -… and nervous. I still don’t have a concrete business plan in place and I am not quite sure what to do when holiday season is over. I have some ideas brewing…. just need to figure out how to get them started….ohhh – how this is the time when I wish I had someones coat tails to ride. …guess I am just going to stand on my own two feet and get trekking.