He's Finally Here!!

Crystal has been waiting, what seems like forever, for her new little man. This is her a day after her due date. Umm... who looks this good at the end? Not a stretch mark in sight.. and she gained NO weight anywhere except her belly. I had to snap a couple shots when she stopped over so she could remember how awesome she looked after her due date.

Mr. Brayden William was 8 days late... and still wasn't ready to come out! I got to go see him on his "birth"-day. What a sweetheart! He has so much hair.. waaaay cute!
Yesterday I got to see this little man again. It is said that once babies stretch their arms out and open their hands that they are becoming comfortable with their surroundings.
Doesn't she look great?! She has the prettiest eyes.

Love it.
I love the light hitting their profiles.
Oh maannn...look at him! Can you even stand it?!
We finally got him to sleep.. love the light here too.
Seriously.. so stinkin cute.
I looovvee this connection.

Today I am thankful for...

I can't tell you how thankful I am to not only do what I love the most everyday, but that I am saved from the craziness of gridlock, rush hour traffic. I love having the flexibility to work until all hours of the night if I please, and make appointments and sessions around the times that I want to be out. (for the most part) There was a point in my life that I did work a typical 9-5 job and had to fight traffic.... and I would go absolutely batty insane in my car. For some reason, I just can't take it.. it makes me want to scream.

Well, last night I ventured out during rush hour while it was snowing and found myself realizing why I NEVER do this. It took me 2 hours to drive a normal 25 min route. This was shot with my iphone.. well because I had nothing better to do than take pictures while I was at a COMPLETE STAND STILL!!!

Please click on this link below... 

Elaine Benese on the subway

This is how I felt sitting trapped in traffic last night. It absolutely cracks me up! I can't even imagine having to take the subway everyday and go this crazy... LOLOL. It's a must see... hopefully it will give you a laugh for the day! :) Make sure to watch it until the end.

Welcome Adrian

Alex & Dani are absolutely in love with their new addition. They are so delicate and careful as most parents are with their first child, and gaze at them with extreme adoration at all times. 

Love
As I looked through the pregnancy portraits they had displayed in their room from our last session together... Alex mentioned how she missed the feeling of being pregnant. But, nothing is better then snuggling up close to your little one. 
Sharing a piece of who daddy is...
I had mentioned to Alex that most newborns do not crack a smile unless they are sleeping.. somehow at the very end of the session... I was able to catch the one and only smile. Mom and Dad didn't see it obviously.. but I caught the quick smile. How cute is that?
I absolutely love this family shot. 

Family

If you follow my blog, you are probably becoming very familiar with this little man. He is growing up so fast! This session was focused on family for the holidays... 

I love the light on this shot.. as well as the connection shown between them.

Naughty or Nice?
Is his little tongue stickin' out cute or what?
Love
Merry Christmas!

A blast from the past

While in Beijing watching my best friend jump in the Olympics, my blog was doing marketing for me. Shani had linked my blog to her Olympian blog (waaayyy cooler since she is a flippin' Olympian) and anyone she knew currently or from her past followed her along her journey. Well.. many people from her past are people from mine as well. Since we spent almost every waking moment in the sweaty gym covered in chalk... you could say our sole purpose in life was to feel the rush after a nailed beam routine, a stuck vault, and a perfect landing on each tumbling pass. Yes.. the life of a gymnast. With Shani's link to my blog, I was able to reconnect with many of those same girls that thrived off of a great day at the gym. 

When Josselyn contacted me and told me she went to the same gym I did.. I strained my brain for months trying to remember her. Was I REALLY that old that those memories were starting to slowly sneak out of my head? NO! Those were some of the best times of my life. I assumed that the fact that I was 27 was not the reason I couldn't remember her.. but that she must have been much much younger than me... yes that's it.. it had to be.

I talked her into capturing herself pregnant and how important it was to remember this time. I was lucky to catch her while she was in town over the holiday weekend. As I drove up, I was a little nervous that I would walk in and not remember her and she would remember me... awkward? I knocked on the door... and was delighted.... "JOSIE!!! I DO KNOW YOU! I'M NOT LOSING MY MIND!" She know goes by Josselyn.. a name that was so foreign for me in relation to her. 

Anyways... she is so dang cute! Her and her husband are going to be great parents. They adore one another and are very caring and considerate towards each other.

Beautiful eyes. (Click on the images to enlarge)

I love the feel of this one. I didn't have to tell him to love on her.. he just did it. 
Loving the antique black and white with the shot above and below. Fits the mood.
The new baby girl's name is going to be Stina Lucille. (His grandma and her grandma's name) So it was very fitting to shoot in this bedroom that was not only Josie's original bed spread, but the whole room had a very old and antique feel to it. LOVED IT!
Oh yes.. this is just them being cute here... 
Radiant?Um yes!




Workin' it in the cold. Gotta grab a shot to remember the winter pregnancy!
So many more to come guys!

It's not what we have, but who we have that counts.

I have known this great looking family for a couple of years now and had the pleasure of watching their little man grow up. Phil managed to pull his whole family together for a great photo shoot over the holiday weekend. We actually lucked out and had a "nice" day outside for MN. The whole group was great and were up for anything. 

Isn't Crystal beautiful? Lucky you, Phil :)
I love this shot! Although Keyon (their little man) is in the shot... it is so much about the love they share for each other.
Phil and his brothers goofing off.

Yea... check her out.
How cute is this little man. I love his height compared to his sister.
A great connection between these ladies.
Love it!!!!!
Ah yes.. the boys looking their best. 
Casual. Fun. Family. Love it.

All about casual families.. they cracked me up.
Keyon and his grandpa and grandma. Timeless. They will love this as he grows up.
These are the moments we have to be thankful for with our families. Keep them close.