michelle cortez photography

2012-01-05T13:31:00.000-08:00

Ummm...I really have no good excuse why these pictures are up soooo late!!! Here's the rest of 2011 fall and winter "mini sessions"!

I guess since the kids went back to school today I can get some stuff done I've been putting off for like a month! I had so much fun finishing out this years holiday pictures. Thank you to all the families that came out in the beautiful weather and the cold and snowy weather. This year was so amazing and I couldn't enjoy doing what I do without you! I have to take a couple of months off. I have 10 more weeks of pregnancy!!! Yeepie and we will be moving into our new house sometime in February (hopefully). I'm so excited for these new changes but I can't move and be pregnant and be living at my parents house and have my husband working like crazy and try to take pictures all at the same time. Hopefully this summer things will settle down into some sort of routine (ha with 4 kids!!! hahahaha) and I can get my business sorted out. Until then I plan on taking a lot of pictures of my kids and my growing family and my new house! I have so many plans. If you want to schedule a regular session give me a call we might be able to work something out, but mini shoots and anything bigger than a family shoot will have to be on hold for a bit!

Thank you 2011, you were amazing. I'm so looking forward to 2012

Pino family ~ mini shoot

2011-11-07T09:26:00.000-08:00

Here's a cute family to brighten your Monday!!

Love, Love, Love these girls and soon they'll have a little brother. All the delivery rooms better watch out come March. I have a feeling it's going to be a busy month!

Cortez family update

2011-11-05T21:41:00.000-07:00

I have a big secret to tell!

I hate Halloween!!!lol
I hate the pressure of finding my kids costumes (I won't buy them because I feel like it's a waste of money, but I also don't believe in spending all of October making them!) I tried this year. I got about half way before I lost focus.
I grew up putting together quick costumes Halloween night with whatever we found around the house.
I hate candy! I hate that everyone gives my kids candy and my kids think because someone gave it to them it's ok to eat it all.
I hate other kids coming up to me and expecting me to give them candy just because it's Halloween. (without even saying "trick-or-treat" seriously!)
I hate kids (and parents of kids) who stay out until 10 or later "trick-or-treating" on a school night!!!
I hate that when Halloween's over I have to start planning for Christmas and thinking of buying Christmas presents. (I don't like feeling like I have to buy presents for people and the pressure of coming up with the "perfect" gift in my price range is almost unbearable. I don't know how many times I've thought how nice it would be to spend Christmas out of town!)

The best part of Halloween is how excited my kids are. Even with their half finished costumes! I love that my sister has a Halloween party for the kids every year. With face painting, cotton candy, snow cones and lots of games. She's so sweet to do this just for fun. I kind of like the ward Halloween party. I even tried decorating my trunk for the trunk or treat.

Ashleigh is Tinker bell. The tutu turned out great. I tried to dye a shirt to match but it came out more olive, plus it was too big. Poor kid didn't have a plain white long sleeved shirt and it was a little too cold for short sleeves. But she was happy.

When I see pictures of Devyn I laugh out loud!! She's a clown. I learned this year to stay away from face paint that doesn't dry. She had it smeared everywhere 2 seconds after I put it on. My mom was practicing her face painting skills on Devyn. That's a butterfly between her eyes. Everything about her costume is just so Devyn. Messy!!!

Elijah is Harry Potter. I made the robe (about 50% of it, My mom did all the finishing work). I thought I was done with his costume until Tuesday I realized I never got him a tie or glasses and he had to have a wand so I quickly got on Amazon and ordered his stuff. Expected delivery was 10-31. I thought for sure it wouldn't be here on time. It got here on Friday! I love Amazon. Poor Elijah his scar looks awful. I didn't realize how bad it was until I looked at these pictures. And I love that he's wearing his addidas pants with a white button up shirt! hahahaha

I have more big secrets!!

but first here are my adorable kids (all cleaned up after Saturday's Halloween parties)
Last Sunday was our Primary Program. It was awesome! Besides Ashleigh crying during the first song because a little boy took "her spot" and the kids not being able to practice their lines at home because their "oh so together" mom lost their parts like the second they gave them to her.

Ashleigh's getting a little to big for me. Someone please bring back my baby girl!!!

I love Elijah's silly crooked smile in all of his pictures lately.

I absolutely love these kids soooo much. Which brings me to big secret (not so much a secret because I think we've told everyone!) We are expecting number 4 in March!!!
It's kind of more of a surprise to us! We weren't planning it. It's been a stressful time for me. With the house on the market for a year and not knowing when it would sell and where we were going to move to, having a baby was the last thing on my mind. It took me a while to admit that it was going to happen (I didn't take a pregnancy test for 2 weeks, and I didn't call the doctor until I was 12 weeks and I didn't have my first appointment until I was 16 weeks) We just had our ultrasound on Tuesday and found out that the baby is not going to let us know if it's a boy or girl until it arrives!! hurray for surprises!!!

We have more big changes coming in the next few months but I'll let you in on those as time goes!

I love my job!

2011-11-04T13:48:00.000-07:00

My main and most important occupation is my family. I love that I get to stay home with my kids. They keep me very busy, but...

I'm so grateful that my husband, and kids, support me in my desire to take pictures. I couldn't do what I do without them.

I've said this so many times but I get to meet the most amazing families! This is one of those genuine nice, kind, giving families. I felt so welcomed and comfortable in their home and they really let their true selves show in their pictures. Thank you for inviting me over and letting me take your pictures!!!

Hancy Family ~ Mini shoor

2011-11-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

A couple of years ago some friends of ours moved from Albuquerque to Florida, but now they're back!! It's amazing to see how their girls have grown (and how their family has grown, they've added 2 girls while they were gone!) I'm so glad their back. I don't like it when my friends and family move away. I wish I could keep everyone close by forever!

Larsen family

2011-11-02T11:02:00.000-07:00

My sister has always been a wonderful example to me. I hope I am as good of a mother as she is someday. I'm so lucky to have such wonderful brothers and sisters!

Butler's ~ mini shoot

2011-10-10T13:11:00.000-07:00

My first mini shoot of the season. Everyone slot is filled up except for Decemeber. Are you guys afriad to plan that far in advance? hee hee. I'm excited for the rest of the pictures I have booked. It's going to be so much fun!

The last time I took pictures with this family the baby boy was 3 months old!!! Oh My how time flies and kids grow so fast! They are so much fun and cute. I love when kids are comfortable in front of the camera and make funny faces and ninja moves, but my favorite is when they're not afraid to tackly mom and dad!

Rasband family

2011-09-21T09:53:00.000-07:00

I love my brother and his girls so much!

Cami & James

2011-09-21T07:21:00.000-07:00

My cute cousin got married last Saturday. We were so lucky that they decided to get married here in Albuquerque so we could be there!

My kids while we were waiting for her and her new husband to get out of the temple. I'm not sure Devyn left any flowers around the fountain.

Cami and James!!! I was so happy to be able to take a few pictures of them. They were so cute and happy. We had a pretty exciting time since the weather went from sunny and warm to pouring rain back to sunny and warm in less than 40 minutes!

And the rain came down!!!

Then the sun came back out! I love Albuquerque weather.

Congratulations Cami & James! I hope you are always as happy and easy going as you were on your wedding day!

Tanner

2011-08-31T14:21:00.001-07:00

Introducing the happiest, slimiest hahahahha I meant smiliest (but I guess that's not a word!!! gotta love spell check) but i'll leave slimiest because he was kind of slimy too!, strongest 3 month old EVER!! Isn't he so awesome! and I get to take pictures of him, his brother and his mom and dad again in a couple of months!! I can't wait.

By the way my mini shoots are filling up super fast! I've booked half of them in 2 days. Get in now before they're all gone!

The Flicklin's

2011-08-31T13:54:00.000-07:00

My poor neglected blog this summer! I'm finally sharing the last of my shoots from July just in time for all of my mini shoots.

Love these boys! Love the long hair, freckles, and silly faces. They did so good and I hope they enjoyed their Sonic because they deserved it! Good work Ficklin's! Way to take cute pictures. Now that I finally posted their pictures maybe I deserve some Sonic too!

Fall 2011 "Mini shoots"

2011-08-30T19:47:00.000-07:00

Larson family

2011-08-08T12:26:00.000-07:00

I promise when summer is over next week I will be better about updating my blog!! I have so many pictures to share just no time to spend on the computer.

I love families that come back for pictures again, and again, and again! I love watching your kids grow and change. I love being a small part of your family!!

That's why this fall/winter I'm offering a special deal to my repeat families (and their friends, keep an eye out for a special email coming soon)! I'm getting excited for Christmas pictures already! I will be setting up my fall mini shoots starting in September. I will be doing 2 shoots a month until December.

To get everyone else as excited as I am check out this adorable family! The weather was perfect and gave us about 40 minutes before it started pouring rain! But I love me an overcast afternoon. LOVE LOVE LOVE.

baby "n" is 6 months old!!

2011-07-12T13:42:00.000-07:00

I don't think i could function if I was around those cheeks and lips all day long. I would spend every minute kissing, pinching and rasberry-ing those sweet cheeks!! oh my!

How absolutely perfect and adorable is she?!

She's growing up so quickly I can't believe it's already been 6 months!

The Covington's

2011-07-12T12:48:00.000-07:00

Seeing big amazing families like the Covington's makes me think I want at least 6 kids! hahaha. and then I come home!! hahaha

But this mom is amazing! I'm sure her husband and children all agree. With a 1 week old baby she was already ready for new pictures. I have a special fondness for the new baby. She has 2 older sisters and 2 older brothers and is #5 in her family (exactly like me!!!) What a beautiful family!

Weinberger family

2011-06-07T16:25:00.000-07:00

Finally! The 4th family from my last mini shoot. Sorry I was out of town for a couple of days. I'm finally getting back to a couple of things I left undone before I left.

This family is so much fun. I love their beautiful, natural smiles and kind eyes. You can't fake that!! I'm so amazed how their kindness comes through in these photos.

They also had a wonderful 2 year that wanted nothing to do with me. Little boys, they just want to play! But his sister was loving all the attention.

Hawley family

2011-06-07T15:47:00.000-07:00

love, Love, LOVE this family!!!

This amazing mom sets up her own "mini" shoots. She gets a few (3-4) families together and schedules them and finds a place (her house and neighborhood) and tells them when to show up. Then she calls me up, asks when I'm available and all I have to do is show up for a couple of hours with my camera!! So sweet. It totally rocks that her friends and neighbors are the sweetest people ever!

If any readers out there are interested in setting up your own mini shoots send me an email for more information! michequata@gmail.com

2011-06-07T15:31:00.000-07:00

Tips for taking pictures with toddlers... (chirp, chirp, chirp)
Does anyone have any tips!!

Usually I try to just follow them around, It's easier to take pictures of them doing what they want to do rather than what YOU want them to do.

Sometimes that means they don't want to look at the camera. But instead
look at frogs
look at bugs
pull mom and dad away from the picture
eat berries!!!
and mostly just run away from the camera.

I think it's a miracle sometimes when I get a picture with everyone looking at the camera, but I love showing and fun the "action" pictures are too.

Murphy family

2011-06-07T15:12:00.000-07:00

I would love to be neighbors with this family (and the Hawley's, who set up this fun mini shoot) well any of the families i take pictures with really! But these families live in the coolest little neighborhood. Close to Old Town and they have the coolest little yard and other gathering areas. This family is doing some really neat remodeling too! If only I had the time, patience, and MONEY!! Lol. Plus their totally cute daughter babysits!! They were really fun I hope we get to do pictures again!

The Ray's

2011-06-03T20:37:00.000-07:00

It's been a couple of years since I've taken family pictures with the Ray's. They've all grown up (even added a baby) but they are just as cute and funny as ever. I miss having them closer to us and seeing them more often.

They baby is so funny. She scoots on her bottom instead of crawling. It's the cutest thing ever.

I love big happy families.

My little Ballerina

2011-06-03T19:10:00.000-07:00

Will someone please figure out how to keep my little kids from getting any bigger?!

Ashleigh has her first dance recital next Saturday. We are super excited!!! She loves her dance teacher so much (I love her dance teacher so much).

Mostley I think she loves her new dress and the gloves! I was pretty proud of her hair. I did it all by myself, but it is falling out a bit in the pictures. I'll have to use more bobbie pins next time.

Shes pretty cute though!

Make up mini ~mini shoot

2011-06-03T12:28:00.000-07:00

I am having the hardest time choosing which photos to preview on my blog!! This session was so much fun. I had to bring Ashleigh and Devyn along with me and Devyn sat in the stroller while Ashleigh played. Whenever Ashleigh sees these pictures she asks about her "friend" and when will she be able to play with him again. I love little boys and this family is full of them!

The family was blessed with being able to welcome the older two boys to their family and with the younger boy being only 5 months old mom is pregnant for the first time!!! So exciting and stressful, but I think they'll be just fine. They are all so sweet. What a fun house!! Thank you for letting me photograph this very special time in your family.

Gianna ~ High School Senior

2011-05-19T13:56:00.000-07:00

So what's up with these seniors? Seriously I think my mom was still picking out my clothes as a senior! I never have, and never will, be this HOT and gorgeous!!

But I'm glad I get to take pictures of all these beautiful people.

Happy Mother's Day.

2011-05-08T14:26:00.000-07:00

This is why I get to celebrate today!! I feel so lucky that I get to be a mom, I'm not always the best, but nobody loves my kids as much as I do!!!

And because it's my day to celebrate the little wonders that make me a mom, I get to show off as many pictures as I'd like!

My big handsome boy, who would only take a few pictures for me before he was changed out of his church clothes. Oh well, I'll take what I can get!

The girl who loves the camera! She gets prettier every day. I'm so amazed that she is my daughter!

and the baby who wasn't interested in me at all! but everything she does is cute (except when she bites, that's not cute!) She's getting so big, 18 months on the 11th, and I feel like I'm already losing all of her babyness. She's picking up on words so fast, she loves to run and thinks she's big.

So.....

Happy Mother's Day! I love all the wonderful "moms" in my life. My mom and my mother-in-law and all my grandma's and grandma-in-laws. my beautiful sisters (and sister-in-laws, I shouldn't even need to distinguish the difference between sister and sister-in-law I love you all the same) and of course all my friends. You are all such amazing examples to me. Thank you!

The Solis family

2011-05-05T13:29:00.000-07:00

I've never liked getting my picture taken. I have some horrible school pictures that left my belief that I could have a good picture taken of me in the dirt! I think a lot of people feel the same way, right? anyone? One of my goals is to change people's views of having their picture taken. I think it should be fun, and here's the shocking part, NOT perfect! I know, I know everyone should be looking at the camera and smiling and you know what that almost never happens! And when it does it's probably because I switched a head or eyes around! Sorry should I have not said that I do that sometimes? Only when it's necessary. Usually I think it's better to leave the little imperfections.

And this family didn't need any head switching. Not because they were perfectly imperfect but because I love them exactly they way they are!!!

I emailed with mom a couple of times and really that was the only contact we had. I knew her name and her husbands name (because they were both on the email). I kind of like the surprise of meeting new families. The not really knowing what to expect, what they look like or what their style is. Then I get to take pictures of what it's like to meet them for the first time. I love'd how these pictures turned out. Such a fun loving family!

easter 2011

2011-05-05T12:35:00.000-07:00

This was Elijah and Ashleigh 3 years ago (Ashleigh is Devyn's age here, their birthdays are both in November)

I can't believe how much they both have grown!

and here's Devyn Easter morning. She got her bunny opened all by herself and decided it would make a good breakfast. Her left over bunny ended up getting chopped up into little pieces and put in muffins. I also took all the kids twiz and snickers and added them to a brownie mix! Delicious. I had to get rid of a bunch of candy quickly so I didn't spend all day eating it. It was the perfect treat for my FIGG activity days.

Finally after church we got to hunt for eggs. Ashleigh's hair was wild! And Devyn had just woken up from a nap and won't keep her little clips in her hair. I swear I do their hair for church. All my kids need haircuts really bad!

Chavez family

2011-05-02T13:02:00.000-07:00

The biggest compliment I get is when families come back for more pictures. This beautiful family has taken pictures with me 3 times!!! I am so lucky to be able to watch their boys get bigger and to take part in documenting their growth. I love meeting new families and realizing how wonderful this world is! There are so many sweet, caring and loving parents and families out there.

The Turner's

2011-04-25T15:19:00.001-07:00

I love the Turner's. I've loved taking pictures of them the last couple of years and watching the kids grow and change. They are so much fun and just silly! I love silly. And mom and dad are just so adorable and I always think about them when I think how I want my relationship with my husband to be. Thank you for your wonderful example and your beautiful kids!

The Thompson's ~ "mini shoot"

2011-04-06T09:21:00.000-07:00

How to prepare for a "mini shoot"
These shoots are fast and 30 minutes goes by super quick, but We can take some really amazing pictures if you and your family are prepared.

1. Let you're kids know ahead of time what is expected. Bribe them if necessary (McDonalds, DS games, candy, ice cream, etc...)
2. Let them be themselves. I always believe you'll get the best pictures of your kids if your expectations aren't too high. The more you scold and threaten the more pouty kids get. So I like to encourage them to be silly then wait for them to give a natural smile
3. Know what you want. It makes it so much easier for me if you let me know what you want out of the shoot. Like do you want some really good family shots and just a couple of the kids, or do you want more casual pictures and lots of individuals of the kids, etc.
4. Bring your ideas, and your props!!! Please, Please, Please, if you've seen a family picture you love and want to "replicate" (or just out right copy!) let me know! I love copying great pictures!!!

My favorite quote from this session "Don't I have beautiful blue eyes?" Yes, yes you do!!!

Flowers

2011-04-04T11:06:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun at last Saturday's "mini shoots". I'm really looking forward to warmer weather, greener surroundings, and taking lots and lots of pictures! I get busy with "life" stuff and miss taking the time to do something I really love.

I won't ever promise to post more because I don't want to break a promise, but I will try really hard. I want to post more of my kids too. They are chaning so fast and I feel like I need to slow them down somehow. Maybe freezing them on my blog will help, but then I go back and look at past pictures and I'm sad all over again because they've grown so much.

Addison turned 1!

2011-03-08T20:36:00.000-08:00

I can't believe another year has gone by. Why can't babies stay little itty bitty sweet newborns longer???

But I guess 1 year olds are pretty cute too. They just get into more!!

I'm sure little Addi is keeping mom and dad busy, and I'm pretty sure she gets enough attention. My favorite moment of the afternoon was when dad showed up and Addi went crazy smiling and waving at him. Why do dad's get all the fun, excited, smiles and kisses and I feel like all moms get are tantrums and tears?? Oh and Addi's little pouty lip, how cute is that???

Harper ~ newborn

2011-03-08T20:16:00.000-08:00

I already posted a preview of this adorable little girl with my mini shoot dates (which are filling up fast!!!).

I'm falling in love with this little sweet heart. I hope I get to spend a lot of time watching her grow up and let her little personality out.

mini shoot dates

2011-03-03T12:17:00.000-08:00

March 26
Old Town

9:00-9:30am
9:45-10:15am
10:30-11:00am

April 23
Downtown/Nob hill

5:00-5:30pm
5:45-6:15pm
6:30-7:00pm

May 21
Tingley Beach

9:00-9:30am
9:45-10:15am
10:30-11:00am

and because it feels weird posting on my blog without any pictures, here's a pic of my friends new baby girl. she's is so beautiful, but that's no surprise. Her mom is sweet, funny, beautiful and kind. i'm sure her baby girl just absorbed all of her goodness.

baby "j"

2011-01-28T15:20:00.000-08:00

4 pounds, 4 pounds FOUR!!! that's 1/2 of the size of my babies when they were born.

This poor little sweetie kept getting cold and only wanted to be held and swaddled.

I love him! Should I love a baby so much that isn't mine? He's not even family!! But I feel like so much apart of them. I know it's silly, but I took their engagement pictures, wedding pictures, Christmas pictures this last year and now newborn pictures and already we're talking about new family pictures! I love this little guy and his parents and his big sister's. They are the bestest!

baby "n"

2011-01-13T18:45:00.000-08:00

Can life be any sweeter?

I can't believe how wonderful innocent and sweet new babies are. And how fast we fall in love! And how much more "complete" they make us feel. And the purpose they give to cherish every day, every moment.

Is it weird that I want to print some of these pictures and put them up in my own house?? I'm totally kidding (maybe)

baby "I"

2011-01-10T12:11:00.000-08:00

This little sweetie snuck right in before the end of the year. She was my last photo session of 2010 (December 31)
It was such a fantastic year!!! I'm already getting busy this year (so far lots of new babies) and I'm so excited to see what else 2011 will bring.

baby "M"

2011-01-10T12:03:00.000-08:00

I love being able to catch up with old friends a little, but I especially love to meet their families.

How sweet is this little one?! What a lucky momma. And a lucky baby to have an older brother and sister also!!

January 9, 2011

2011-01-10T11:52:00.000-08:00

Highlights of the week:
Elijah got a haircut
Devyn's favorite game is now "peek-a boo"
Ashleigh went back to dance class and didn't get kicked out this time!

I loved having my boys home for Christmas break (Mario took off almost as long as Elijah had off school) but I'm glad to get back into our routine. And I'm glad now we can move onto Spring. I know I still have a couple months before I can really look forward until Spring, but I'm already tired of being cold. What fun things can I do for the next 2 months to enjoy the rest of winter???

The last family shoot of 2010

2011-01-10T11:39:00.000-08:00

Now that it's 2011 I figured I should be done blogging about all my 2010 pictures. I have thought about posting a "top 10 of 2010" but that will require going through a lot of pictures and I don't know if I can pick only 10. I'll try, it may be more of a "top 10+ of 2010".

But my last family...
They were cute, fun and easy to photograph. What else could I ask for?

Batts Family ~ December "mini shoots"

2011-01-10T11:20:00.000-08:00

I've still got some pictures from December to blog!!! Not to mention I've got some babies I get to take pictures of this week! So excited. January will be the month of babies.

I'm excited for this new year. Last year was amazing and it just seems every year keeps getting better. Part of that is due to all the new amazig people I get to meet and it's gets better when I get to take their pictures again and again.

It's been almost 2 years since I've been able to take pictures of this sweet amazing family. They were so much fun. I tried to get the mom to take me in. They are such loving and playful parents. Those kids are so lucky!

sometimes...

2010-12-19T12:31:00.000-08:00

I wonder why I even try!

only 1 of the 3 was willing today. can you guess which one?

Cortez family

2010-12-08T07:18:00.000-08:00

Taking pictures with Devyn 3 months ago was so much easier then it was this morning before church! She is so fast and such a little booger. I don't think I'll get decent family pictures again until the kids are teenagers! Someone is always crying, pouting, making a silly face or trying to run away!!! It's about capturing what life is like. not getting "the perfect picture". right?

McKinley family ~ mini shoot

2010-12-07T12:18:00.001-08:00

oh man this little boy had me rolling. This family is so beautiful!! I hope I have the opportunity to take pictures with them again someday.

Jones family ~ mini shoot

2010-12-07T12:14:00.000-08:00

I thought I was getting close to being caught up with my blog! But I took more pictures last weekend.

We've been so blessed this year, every year just keeps getting better!!!
I'm so grateful for the opportunities I have to get to know the people I know better. I feel like part of the family when I get to take pictures. And I love all these families so much.

Smith family ~ "mini shoot, December 6"

2010-12-07T12:08:00.000-08:00

I don't think I've ever blogged this often!!! I have so much to share. At first I thought I could just do a couple big blogs from each mini shoot, but then I figured I have all the time I want to share these and I want to show off a lot of pictures not just a few!

I've taken so many pictures with the Smith's the last few months I'm sure her husband is sick of me. But these are my favorite!!

Emms family

2010-12-07T11:59:00.001-08:00

This wonderful mom was my young woman leader when I was 12 and 13. Her daughter was 2 then. I got called into young women's a few years ago and was a leader over her daughter and my daughter at the time was 2! So funny. I also teach the younger boys piano and have been for the last two years. I'm so lucky to have such wonderful examples and friends around me!

thanks for family

2010-12-07T11:47:00.000-08:00

With families getting together for Thanksgiving I was busy all weekend!!

It was fun to be apart of my own family's celebration but also be around other families enjoying the holiday!

But I don't think I'll br taking too many more pictures at the bio park. They're kind of rude!!

Kesler family

2010-12-07T11:36:00.000-08:00

My most favorite, favorite thing is families that come back for pictures. Repeatedly!
Honestly I really stuggle with "pricing" myself. I don't want people to think I'm cheap but I have a hard time charging so much that you can only afford to do pictures every couple of years (or even longer). I'd rather families be able to come back twice a year or more!

I'm also very willing to work with those husbands (or wives, or kids) crazy schedules.

This mom tried so hard to get into one of the mini shoot dates but it just wasn't working out. I'm very willing to work with you and your families, with your schedules or any other needs that you have! I love taking pictures and more than my love of taking pictures I love providing families with an affordable opportunity to have family pictures. Plus I feel like there's still so much for me to learn and a million things I need to improve on so the more practice I get the better!!!

And I think these came out pretty cute but that's more the families doing than mine.

Weinberger family ~ "mini shoot"

2010-12-07T11:29:00.000-08:00

and the 3rd family from my weekday, personal "mini shoot".

and they are super cute too!

Harley family ~ "mini shoot"

2010-12-07T11:28:00.000-08:00

So this is the wonderful mom who set up her own "mini shoot". She works on Saturdays and the dates I had selected just weren't working for her family but she had a group of families that also wanted to get pictures taken so they figured out a time, date and location that worked for them (and for me) and we were able to have a fun morning taking pictures!

If you think you have the most wild 2/3 year old little girl I would challenge you with this little monkey! But I love how true to herself she is. I wouldn't change anything about her, and I'm sure it only wheres out mom and dad when they're trying to get a family picture taken. I love how spontaneous and opiniated she is! And brother just is sweet and content (total opposites).

Boutillier family ~ "mini shoot"

2010-12-07T11:24:00.000-08:00

A family I did newborn pictures with back in August had a group of friends that wanted to set up their own "mini shoots". So three families and I got together in their home and took a lot of pictures. It was so much fun! It was fun to watch the kids play together and the parents talk. It was fun because they get together once a week anyways for playdates so it wasn't anything new. I thought it was pretty cool that these three families that get together often each had 2 kids (1 boy and 1 girl) what are the odds?!

I was loving all the curls in this family!!!

If you have a group of friends/families that want to get together and do pictures then give me a call and we can set up a personal "mini shoot"!

Larson family ~ November 20 "mini shoot"

2010-12-07T11:10:00.000-08:00

I have one LAST opening for 2010! This Saturday at 4:00pm at Mariposa Park in Taylor Ranch. Email me if you're interested.

And I want to be a member in this family!! Just so the mom will dress me cute (I could use a lot of help in that department). This has been the best couple of months. I've been able to see so many families that I started taking pictures with the last couple of years. I love watching them grow. It's so much more fun being able to see my friends every few months. This so shouldn't be called a job!

Hamby family ~ November 20 "mini shoot"

2010-12-07T11:05:00.000-08:00

Two years ago I shot their engagement pictures, then their beautiful wedding in Santa Fe and now in the beginning of the year I get to take pictures of their baby boy!!! I can't wait to meet him.

Brooklynn ~ newborn

2010-12-07T10:03:00.001-08:00

Brooklynn was born October 31! That's how far behind I am in blogging! She was such a sweet little girl and loved being the center of attention. She's always the center of attention! Hopefully I'll get to take pictures of her as she continues to grow.

I love the "Goal!" picture, her dad's a big soccer fan (a coach to be exact).

Chavez family ~ November 20 mini shoot

2010-12-06T22:22:00.001-08:00

Ahhh! I am so behind on blog posts!!! Between going out of town, birthdays, Thanksgiving and photo shoots every weekend (and during the week) I've been so busy. But now I think I'm a little caught up and I think I can blog everyday until Christmas and you'll get to look at new pictures!!!

A reminder that I still have 2 openings for my mini shoots next Saturday at Mariposa park in Taylor Ranch. This is my last photoshoot for 2010! and the last chance you'll have to get pictures for Christmas!

I feel so bad for the families I'll be blogging about for the next couple of weeks, they get "mini blogs" to go with their "mini shoots". I pretty much picked these pictures at random, but with a good looking couple it doesn't really matter which pictures I post, they always look good. I love how they are so good at looking at the camera no matter what their two boys are doing. most people (me) are too busy/concerned with the kids. I had so much fun the last couple of months, seeing families again and seeing how much their babies have changed. I love my job!!!

Klennert family ~ mini shoot

2010-11-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

My 2nd time taking pictures with this baby boy!!! I think he liked me a little better this time. He gave me some awesome smiles showing off the cutest dimples. You can't see them too good in these pictures but they dimple right around his lips and they are just so dang cute!!!

I'm so glad mom and dad decided to join in the picture taking fun this time.

Happy Birthday Lawson!! (a little early)

Kadence ~ newborn

2010-11-12T15:39:00.000-08:00

My sweet LONG niece Kadence. Isn't she adorable and so cooperative. She was the nicest little model and fell asleep right on cue. She was born October 5th (one day before my birthday) so I'm claiming her as my birthday twin!! Can't wait to watch her grow and celebrate our birthdays together every year!!

love you baby k.

Happy birthday!!!

2010-11-11T16:25:00.001-08:00

Her first year...in pictures...with a lot of gaps!
We've done so much this year. It's so much fun watching my little itty bitty 7lb baby walk, run and talk. She grew up too fast. She has so much personality and way too much opinion. She's stubborn, determined and as we all like to call her "a stinker". I love my Devy girl so much!!!

Emma and Olivia ~ mini shoot

2010-11-08T15:48:00.000-08:00

I first met Olivia last year when she was turning 1. Then I got to meet her adorable baby sister when she was 5 days old!!

These two sisters couldn't be more different. But they are both sweet, adorable and fun. And I love that Olivia still has all her curls (plus some!) And I love how easily it is to get Emma to smile. I had such a hard time picking which pictures to share.

Frost family ~ mini shoot

2010-11-08T12:19:00.000-08:00

I am so ready for Christmas this year.

Starting my busy season with mini shoots and everyone getting pictures for holiday cards and presents just makes me more excited!! I love everything about these kids. I love that the oldest is a boy followed by 2 girls (the same as me). I love that the oldest girl has the most beautiful thick, blonde bouncy hair and that it totally fits her personality. A little bouncy, wild, and just beautiful. I love that the baby follows around her brother and sister and do exactly what they do. She acts so grown up! And I love that big brother takes care of, and teases, his little sisters. Just like brothers should!

Rugby ~ newborn

2010-10-05T10:28:00.000-07:00

I took pictures of Rugby in August while he was still in his moms belly. He has the sweetest big sister, an amazing mom and a dad that cook so good it should be illigal!

And he's pretty darn cute himself. I love how little baby boys look so boyish! Those little chubby fingers and toes. It amazes me how different boys and girls are even when they're two weeks old. So sweet. but I've gotta go. I'm going to the hospital to see my new niece! She was aiming for my birthday (tomorrow) but came out 22 hours too early for that, but i love her the same.

You enjoy Rugby, I'm going to get me some Kadence (still not sure exactly how to spell her name) love and we will all be happy.

Estrada Family ~ mini shoot

2010-10-02T21:09:00.001-07:00

The last family from last Saturday's mini shoot! See I can get pictures edited rather quickly when I really want to (or when I have a trip coming up and I want to get everyone's pictures to them before we go)

So glad I got to take pictures with this family again. The baby girl is just adorable, even if she's not that interested in me. She's still pretty cute! And the boys are so much fun to talk with. This is one very smart family. Mom does a good job teaching them! She's pretty amazing herself, and just pretty.

Thanks Estrada's for coming all the way down to gardens to get some pictures taken!

Pino family ~ mini shoot

2010-09-30T15:59:00.000-07:00

Yes, all these pictures are from a 30 minute mini shoot!
It always amazes me how many pictures I take in just 30 minutes (this is only 1/3 or so off all the pictures I edited). I had a lot of fun on Saturday and I'm looking forward to more mini shoots! I have a lot of available times right now, but the shoots are quickly coming up and so is the end of the year so schedule your mini shoot now!!!

I wish I was one of the little girls in this family. You can really see how much their mom and dad love them. I espcially love the mom and girls series. It makes me want to go hug and kiss my girls right now!!

The Wilson's ~ mini shoot

2010-09-30T12:33:00.000-07:00

The mini shoots have begun, and my first victims (I mean lucky family) is the Wilson's. I can't believe how beautiful mom is and how many curls her baby boy has! So cute. Loved hanging out Saturday morning. We should do that more often (hang out, not take pictures).

Kori ~ newborn

2010-09-27T13:46:00.000-07:00

It's getting harder and harder to go to a newborn shoot and not come home with the baby. Especially this little guy. He was so sweet and perfect. I tried trading my 3 for him but it didn't work. Plus I'm certain that eventually I'd miss my little rugrats.

"sigh" I guess I'll just look at the pictures and remember what it was like to hold and snuggle a newborn. So sweet and such a lucky mom and dad.

October mini shoot dates

2010-09-15T10:11:00.000-07:00

October 9
location - Old Town

9:30-10:00am
10:15-10:45am
11:00-11:30am

October 16
location - UNM area (campus, duckpond, etc.)

9:30-10:00am
10:15-10:45am
11:00-11:30am

I will be out of town the October 23-30

November dates

November 6
Hispanic Culture center

9:30-10:00am
10:15-10:45 - not available
11:00-11:30

November 20
botanical Gardens (fee to enter park)

9:30-10:00am
10:15-10:45
11:00-11:30

I will also be doing two sessions in December!! They will be early so I can finish editing and get pictures out before Christmas.

baby g and his amazing 2 1/2 year old sister ~ newborn

2010-09-15T09:38:00.000-07:00

I know I'm the slowest photographer ever lately. These pictures are almost 3 weeks old!!! I've never taken so long to finish editing, but... everytime I get on the computer and Devyn's awake she plays with the serge bar or bites on the power button and turns of the computer and I lose all the work I had opened!

So while she's taking a nap and Ashleigh is at preschool I finally get to show off this beautiful family.
They were so much fun I couldn't believe the things this little girl wanted to do. She was fun to play with and watch. I fell in love instantly. Such a laid back, easy going family. That's my kind of a photoshoot!!!

Elly ~ 7 months

2010-08-27T16:07:00.000-07:00

Elly and Devyn will be partners in crime. They are just a little over 2 months apart and they are two wild little girls. Elly just hasn't quite figured out the getting around thing yet. She's very close. And she wiggles too much to stand on her own. That baby is constantly moving!!! But she has the cutest pointy, sticky outy tongue ever and the biggest eyes! She's so smiley and happy (everytime I see her anyway). I don't believe she could possibly be anything but happy all the time right? haha.

Love watching her grow up and I'm so glad she's in my family. I have the best nieces and nephews.

Expecting a new Smith ~ Maternity

2010-08-27T13:36:00.001-07:00

A new baby boy in like 2 weeks!!! I'm so excited to see (and hold) him. It's been too long since I've been able to hold a new new newborn. And his big sister is so sweet (even if she does take an occasional chicken nugget or french fry off of other kids plates, she told me she really likes nuggets and fries). She's going to be so loving and helpful.

And is mom not the most beautiful pregnant woman you've ever seen?! I was imagining that I looked that good pregnant and it almost made me actually WANT to be pregnant. But then I remembered I already have 3, one is only 9 months old, and I DON'T look like that!!! and I changed my mind real fast.

I'm counting down the days until I get to see baby Rugby!

Losili ~ High School Senior

2010-08-25T10:45:00.000-07:00

Visiting her brother and sister-in-law for the last couple of weeks of her summer before she returned home for her senior year of high school. Her sister-in-law thought it would be fun to take some pictures before she went home. It was fun! For me and Losili!!! hahaha

She was so cute and only a little worried about getting smacked in the face with a door or being watched by all the pedistrians (she wasn't too worried about me getting hit by a car!)

It was fun. I hope she has an awesome year and comes back to visit again!

afternoon at grandma's

2010-07-29T15:43:00.000-07:00

First you can't go to grandma's without jumping on the trampoline. It's usually more fun without the "big" kids

and here's the evolution of a Devyn attack.
1.she looks so cute and innocent

2. she gradually gets closer and closer...

3. then she crawls on you! there's no mountain (or lap) to challanging to stop her

4. and last she always ends with a nice slobbery kiss, actually in her case it's usually sucking on your cheek!

other fun things to do at grandmas - watch the hummingbirds fight over food. Devyn just discovered them this last week.

and finally one of our most favorite things at grandma's house is her flowers! these are her hibiscus! and to show how large they really are i asked ashleigh and my niece to sit next to them.

and of course they had their own silly game they were playing. still not sure what it was. but it made me laugh. those two. i asked Ashleigh to come take a picture and she tells me "NO WAY" and my niece, who's a year younger than Ash, copies her exactly "NO WAY". in the end they couldn't resist pretty flowers and i won. i always win!

Baby Addison - 4 1/2 months!

2010-07-27T08:23:00.000-07:00

Early in March I got to take pictures with a new beautiful baby girl Addison. Now she's smiling, drooling and rolling over. She has the most kissable cheeks and the biggest eyes. I think I could look at her all day, which I'm sure is what her parents do! I can't wait to do family pictures with them in the fall and see how much more Addi changes and grows.

rain, rain...

2010-07-26T21:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday as we were leaving church the kids and I stood just in front of the doors looking outside trying to figure out how we were going to get into our car. It was pouring rain outside. Finally we decided just to run to the car and try to avoid the big puddles.

The kids had a blast running to the car and asked if they could run in the rain more when we got home. I couldn't refuse. One of my favorite memories as a kid is running in the rain during summer showers. The water is always so warm and it feels awesome to not care about getting your hair or face wet. In my family we grew up loving the rain. Maybe because my mom always had a garden so we loved the extra watering, or my dad's a farm boy, my mom always pointed out the fresh smell after a shower. But my favorite thing to go with rain...chocolate chip cookies. It's automatic. When it rains we ALWAYS make chocolate chip cookies. My mom always did, she says her mom always did so now without even thinking when it's cloudy outside I want chocolate chip cookies. hmmmm. we've had lots of treats the last couple of days.

I love this time of year. I'm getting excited for a change but at the same time I don't want summer to end. These next couple of weeks are going to packed with fun things for the kids to do. I'm not even worrying about cleaning my house! lol that's just an excuse not to clean. I miss Elijah so much when he's at school I want to spend as much time as I can with him the next little bit.

As of July 24th

2010-07-26T10:17:00.000-07:00

Elijah is 6 and 4 months. He's about 55lbs and 52 inches. And he keeps getting taller. I won't buy him jeans until right before school starts! He starts the 1st grade in 3 weeks!

He loves video games and his sisters. He loves spongebob, fairy god parents, and watching all other kinds of movies and shows on netflix on the wii. He's lost 3 teeth. The first one right before Valentine's day, he ate it at the restaurant. The second one a couple of weeks later. And the third one he knocked out when he hit his mouth on his knee jumping out of the swing. He ate the tooth while eating pizza Friday night. He now talks with a lisp. He is the best big brother in the whole world. He is such an amazing example to Ashleigh and Devyn. He is so helpful and loving. I'm so glad he's the oldest child in our family. I love this little (big) boy.

Ashleigh is 3 and 8 months. She's short and solid (I don't know her lbs and inches, I just know she's not tall enough to ride big rides at Cliff's but Elijah is)

She loves pink and purple. She loves to color and paint and cut and draw and make lots of messes. She got a new tea set that I know she really loves because she actually takes care of it. She wants a puppy. She loves to act and play pretend. She loves to wear her hair down "side to side. like mommy" She's taking ballet classes and is doing so good. she's the cutest one out there. She listens to her teacher and follows directions so good, at dance, not at home. She loves Devyn except when Devyn gets her stuff. She wants to loose a tooth like Elijah. She's super loving and sweet but she's not afraid to say what's on her mind! I love my little Ash

Devyn is 8 months. She's 16ist lbs and 20 somthing inches (she has a doctors appointment next month that we may go to)

She's crawls everywhere. Makes goofy faces and throws tantrums until she gets what she wants (or until you can distract her with something else) She doesn't have any teeth. I love her toothless grin. She's very loving but shows it in a funny way. Like instead of giving kisses she'll suck on your cheek, or leg, or toes, or nose. She loves to clap and play patty cake. She loves food, especially pasta. She'll go to anyone who offers her food. She's spunky and determined. I love watching her little personality unfold. But I wish she would sleep in her own bed. Like I said she's stubborn and usually gets what she wants. But I love waking up to her smiles every morning.

I think I'm the luckiest person in the world. I have beautiful, fun kids. and the best husband in the world.

Komadina kids

2010-07-22T20:28:00.000-07:00

I thought I was going in for a little newborn shoot with a couple of sibling shots. It turned out to be way more awesome than that!

I could've stayed there all day. The kids were so much fun and very cooperative (well as cooperative as a 5 and almost 3 year old are normally)

Such a fun, cute family. I talked to the mom the other day and she said her daughter told her that was fun and wanted to do it again "tomorrow". I love it! I would totally come do it again "tomorrow".

And I know that checkered/argyle armoire!!! totally awesome. I think I'm going to paint the kids drawers like that. Maybe. I'd like to anyways. I can't wait to do pictures with these kids again. I had a lot of fun.

By the way...I'm finally "back" from all my vacations and summer fun and ready to get down to business.

so here's the plan

August (The whole month) back to school special. 1 hour session for $75.00. That includes 10 images you can purchase the entire image package for $50.00
August mini session - the 21st (I would like a new area any one have suggestions?)

here's the special part...October-December double the mini sessions!!! Instead of once a month I will do mini session 2x every month + I'll make sure if you book your mini session in December (because some of us wait until the last minute) I'll make sure you get your pictures by Christmas!

And I know this is planning WAY in advance and some of us can't look past July yet...But for those you can I will be putting a very special deal out on black friday (you know that crazy shopping day the day after Thanksgiving) and it'll be good for 2011. ugh 2011. that's way to far in the future to think about!

Elliot

2010-06-30T07:49:00.001-07:00

WOW has Elliot grown!!! and he's only 3 1/2 months!!! I keep thinking he's older. He took some good pictures. Lots of smiles and laughs and he wasn't trying to grab everything close to him or crawl away (I'm not used to that). I think my Devyn is so big but I'm beginning to realize she's just active I've seen some chunky 3-4 month olds lately! I sure do miss that sweet age.

Good job Elliot being super cute!

girls, girls, girls

2010-06-29T15:49:00.001-07:00

I love repeat families. And I love them even more when they have beautiful nieces!!! I got to photograph the baby when she was less than a week old 4 months ago, and the other little girl I did her 1 year old pics in October. I can't believe how fast time goes by.

and I can't believe how incredibly sweet and beautiful these girls are. No wonder the boys at the park were trying to get a picture taken with them!

Luckily they were a little grossed out and annoyed by that. haha.

So glad we were able to get together!

For my mom

2010-06-29T14:37:00.000-07:00

Ramsay Family Reunion. May 29-June 3, 2010.
We all went to church together then ate lunch, Ashleigh was the only one with a snack before lunch so she made a lot of friends real fast.

It was so awesome to see everyone again (and all the kids they've had that I hadn't even met yet!) I loved seeing my grandpa, I'm sure we wore him out that week. We played some fun picture games like everyone who's birthday is in January...etc. We had birthday's in everyone month!!! my favorite was the everyone over 60, 59-50. 49-40, etc.. when there's 13 (or so) kids under the age of 5 picture taking is real fun and interesting. sorry I didn't post that pic. I just grabbed a few real fast. But here's June birthdays (it has a lot of my favorite people, my mom, grandpa, and my hubby!!!) and the under 30 group (yup! I'm still in the group, sadly my husband leaves me there tomorrow! haha)

the St. George temple

Grandma's birthday lunch

And of course SWIMMING!!! lots and lots and lots of swimming. we swam at least once everyday we were there. i miss having swimming pool just outside my room

then we came home...

things we did that i didn't post pictures of...
games at the park
swimming at the awesome community center
basketball tournament
cafe rio
jeeping
hiking
SHOPPING!
and lots of just hanging out and having fun.
I wish we could do that every year. My mom, aunt and uncle did so much work to put it all together and make sure everyone had food and fun. Thank you all so much!!!

The Nieto's

2010-06-26T14:57:00.000-07:00

I don't think of myself as being very old (espcially when you're number 5 of 6, everyone else around you is always older!). I mean, my kids are little, even though I do have 3 of them! I'm not 30, yet. But when I go on a photo shoot and the oldest was my first piano student when he was in the 1st grade and he's getting ready to start middle school then I kind of take a step back and go "When did that happen?!" When the first time you met the baby he was actually a BABY! seriously, no one is allowed to grow up! But they're such good boys, and they were super cute and easy to take pictuers with. Get them talking about sports and showing me their tricks and we could of stayed out taking pictures all day. Luckily it was blistering hot and we all just wanted to get back in our air-condionted vehicles. Next time! Thanks for going out on such a hot day in the afternoon with me!

The Ficklin's

2010-06-24T16:04:00.000-07:00

Saturday was BUSY and a blast. All these boys have their birthdays during the summer so we always have a family summer shoot. It felt (and looked) like it was a crazy shoot but I knew the pictures would turn out great. Such a fun family! You can see they're fun and full of personality by looking at the pictures. and just for the record I've decided that 3 kids is crazy! I feel like I can't get anything done, someone is always crying or hungry (or is that just having a new baby?) I feel a little lost this summer. But I'm still here if you can catch me.

Madison Abigail

2010-06-18T13:43:00.000-07:00

My kids are fighting, and tearing apart the house as I'm trying to put this blog together. Why is it so hard to get along in the summer? I try wearing them out with basketball camp, soccer camp, swimming, and other errands we run but why can't they just sit on the couch for 10 minutes!

But back to this beautiful baby! I love her big blue eyes, her belly button, and her cheeks (her mom said she rests her cheeks on her chest!)
I love all the different stages of babies. Newborns 0-2 weeks just lay there and fall asleep and make silly faces in their sleep. Then as they get a little older (2-3 months like Madison) they just stare at you and make silly faces while they're awake. I love how their expressions change so quickly. As they get a little older like my Devyn they're a little more interested in me and always trying to grab my camera, climb on my lap, or get away as quickly as possible. I like babies that don't go anywhere. Except Madison DID NOT like her tummy at all!!! Other than that she was a perfect doll!.

This series was fun. I thought she was asleep so I took her pacifier away to get a sweet sleeping picture. She woke up FAST!

Jay and his girls

2010-06-17T06:31:00.000-07:00

You don't want to know where's I've been the last 2 weeks. I'm exhausted just thinking about it. But I can say I haven't had a lot of time to sit at the computer and I've taken a lot of pictures. Summer is hard when you're trying to keep the kids busy. Right now I should be making them breakfast and getting them ready for soccer camp. I finally got all my brother's family pictures edited and ready to post it's only been like 4 weeks! They are so adorable and miss them all so much. I can't wait to see everyone again.

The cortez family

2010-05-26T15:07:00.000-07:00

That's right. The newest picture of the growing Cortez family. Devyn is getting big and I'm trying to take pictures more often of us together. Too bad I pick bad days to do it (Sunday, it was sooooo windy). My lovely sister did these for me. She's pretty awesome. Thanks Jacque.

Chavez family

2010-05-26T14:51:00.000-07:00

Another one of those families that we emailed back and forth, scheduled sessions, rescheduled session and prayed the weather would be nice. Well Saturday the weather was nice, but not as nice as the Chavez's. I'm so happy that I finally got to meet them and their awesome kids. The baby is only 5 months old! He was so happy and both boys were very well behaved. Actually there was no crying or fighting about taking pictures at all. I don't think I've ever had a photo shoot with such cooperative kids! Thank you guys!

Covington's

2010-05-25T16:13:00.000-07:00

I want Elijah to marry one of these girls. The older one is a couple of months older but I don't think that will matter. Unfortunately he probably won't even notice girls until he's 21 (hopefully). What a beautiful family. Thanks for finally letting me take pictures of you guys!

Lawson

2010-05-22T23:10:00.001-07:00

Lawson is just 3 days younger than my Devyn. (6 months old for those who don't know how old my baby girl is). I truly believe that these special little children come to us with these preset personalities. It amazes me that two babies almost exactly the same age are already so different. Lawson is so sweet, quiet and calm. Lawson was only mildly entertained by my attempts to make him smile. He was too busy keeping his eye on his mom to make sure she didn't leave him with the crazy camera lady. I'm sure he would of much rather been hanging out and chilling on the couch with mom.

I love how honest little children are. And one of the most amazing things I've learned since I've been taking pictures of all these amazing people is how beautiful, special and different each of us are. It's easy to see how beautiful people are when you're always trying to find what makes them different and what makes them special. When you're always looking for a fault you miss out on what's really there. That's the best part about taking pictures. Everything is so much more beautiful now. Especially these little babies. I love picking out all their little details and enjoying the miracles that they are.

Devyn - 6 months

2010-05-21T06:59:00.001-07:00

I guess this will have to do as Devyn's 6 month pictures.
Stats as of 5-12-10
weight - 15lbs 5 oz
height - 26 inches (I don't believe this is correct)
head - ? but we finally made it to the 45%, so her head is averaging out with the rest of her body! ha

What mischief is she into...
crawling (which is more like a bear crawl)
pulling herself up on everything
climbing, I swear this girl could climb up a wall. She has such strong legs and is constantly trying to walk up and over anything
She's been cruising a little, but she still falls down often
teeth - none
hair - ehh, it's growing a little
cuteness & tons of personality - definitely

All of my kids have gone to the same doctors office since Elijah was 2 weeks old. I keep meaning to ask them if they would make a copy of their growth charts for me so I can compare them to each other. I love how different they each are!

Field Day

2010-05-21T06:57:00.001-07:00

Wednesday Ashleigh and I got to hang out with Elijah at school. The kids played outside in the water. There were a lot of fun games set up like "squirt each other with squirt bottles", "throw sponges soaked in water at each other", "slip-n-slide", and Ashleigh's favorite "get the marbles out of the pool with your toes." You know real sophisicated games. It was fun and I can't believe next week is already the last week of school and soon my little boy with be in the 1st grade! CRAZY! Time goes by way too fast.

mallory

2010-05-20T21:12:00.000-07:00

If you don't have children (or only have 1 or 2 children) and wonder what it would be like to have 3...

It's tons of fun really. This only happens once in a while (at least once a day). It's so much fun to watch them interact with each other but the constant touching and crying and bugging also can drive any man crazy (that's why women get to stay home with it!)

But babies are so sweet and loved. And Mallory is espcially sweet, and espcially loved. She's the most cuddly baby. As soon as I picked her up and cradled her and she just curled up in my arms I was in heaven. I haven't been able to cradle a baby like that for a while (Devyn is not very cuddly, she's too busy). I just hope my pictures can do her justice. She has the most beautiful big blue eyes and long "piano playing" fingers.

Thanks Mallory and family for letting me into your home!

once upon a time...

2010-05-17T16:15:00.001-07:00

"some" years ago. a handsome prince met a beatiful princess and they got married in a temple.

and they had a beautiful family that they knew would be together forever.

Congratulations Roy and Summer. You guys make it look so easy!

Brianna & David

2010-05-17T13:05:00.000-07:00

A sweet backyard wedding. These are so mixed up in order I'm not even going to try and fix it! just enjoy all the flowers and the cars, and mostly the beautiful bride. It turned out to be such a beautiful day (despite all the little mishaps, at least everything LOOKED good) Congratulations and I wish you both tons of joy and happiness.

baby xander

2010-05-04T08:40:00.001-07:00

i'm sad when all my friends move across town, but it sure does help spread business! i know i keep saying i love baby shoots but i really do. my baby is growing up so fast that every once in a while i get to hold a newborn and try to imagine that she's still that little.

it's so easy to forget little details about them. i've been trying to capture the little fuzz on the shoulder or the hair (and creases) at the back of the neck. the confused/surprised cross eyed look. and the peely fingers and toes. babies are so amazing and beautiful. it's impossible to hold one and not believe that there's a loving Heavenly Father looking over us and protecting our families and especially our little ones.

xander sure was a good subject. (and his sister even got to sneek into a couple of pictures) she was so cute taking care of her baby doll while we were taking pictures with her brother. i hope i'll get the chance to take pictures with xander and his family again someday!

vacation part 2

2010-04-15T11:52:00.000-07:00

mario had some work to do last week in california so we thought we could take a little break from school and everything else we've been doing and make it a little family vacation too. we looked up all the rides and things to do in disneyland and california adventures and decided since we only have one day we'd do the california adventures. it was so awesome i can't wait to go back and spend more than one day at both of the parks.

that was tuesday. the rest of the week is a little of a blur. mario worked while me and the kids saw the dragon movie, went swimming, visited with family, swam some more, attempted shopping (a total disaster), took some good naps at the hotel room, did some homework, watched lots of disney channel (this hotel didn't have nick jr and the kids kept saying they wanted to stay at the other hotel in st. george) and waited for mario to get home so we could go to dinner. it was such a nice break and so nice to be somewhere warm.

finally saturday before we left we went to the beach! it was a little overcast but so beautiful. ashleigh keeps asking to go back. i want to go back!!! i told mario if we ever lived in california i'd be at the beach every day. i love the sound of the water and digging in the sand. if it wasn't for all the people out there i'd love to live in cali.

we left last saturday made it to phoenix, got to spend the night and morning with my brother and his family then we came home. i also really like phoenix and next time i want to spend more time there too. it was a much needed vacation, but now we're back ready to finish up the school year and plan a fun summer.

but it's always good to be home. we missed out friends and family here.

vacation (the utah portion)!

2010-04-14T16:14:00.001-07:00

wednesday - heading out to Lehi, Utah. we drove, and drove, and drove, and i think you get it.
thursday - discovery kids in Salt Lake City (while mario listened to elder bednar talk)

we met up with mario afterwards and headed out to ogden (clinton to be exact) to visit michael, miranda and the girls! they were so cute i wish we could've spent more time there.
friday - aquaium in sandy and then swimming!!! sorry no swimming pics you'll just have to take my word that devyn has the cutest swim suit ever!

so you could actually touch the rays! the sign said you can use two fingers and lightly touch them on their top only as they swim by (someone didn't read the sign until after they touched the rays)

saturday - egg hunt 1, temple square, delish pizza at litza's pizza in downtown SLC, mario went to priesthood session

sunday - kids got awesome easter baskets (they're going to be so disappointed next year when they learn the easter bunny doesn't visit them at their own house), vegged out and watched conference, colored easter eggs, took pictures, easter egg hunt 2

after the hunt we had to leave lehi and mario's wonderful aunt and uncle who took care of us all week. (insert sad face) and we started out to california, but made a stop in st. george for the night.

the kids love LOVE hotel rooms espcially when they have cable and nick jr!!!

monday - i finally got to go shopping. mario stayed in the car while i ran into down east and tried on a gazillion pairs of jeans. and i found a pair i love (pictures to come later!)
then we picked up my grandpa ramsey and he took us to lunch! chuck-a-rama!

then we said goodbye (another sad face) and headed out to cali-for-ni-a!!! 2nd post to come soon, or soonish.

baby elliott

2010-03-26T15:58:00.000-07:00

finally a little boy!!! with cool hair, skinny legs, big boy feet and hands, and wrinkles on his back like a shar pei puppy (gotta love all that extra skin). i only got one picture of him crying because he only cried once, and come to think of it i think he just made a face i don't really remember any sound coming out. he's so perfect and content. such a sweet boy.

a dose of devyn

2010-03-26T15:51:00.001-07:00

my advice for anyone having a bad day, in a bad mood, a little sad or depressed...
spend five minutes (or seconds) with my little angel!!! she brightens up my day.

rail runner

2010-03-20T13:08:00.001-07:00

yesterday we decided to take a quick trip to santa fe on the rail runner. we didn't leave until 4ish so we didn't get to santa fe until after 6 and we had to leave by 8:15 so we didn't have a lot of time there (but that's ok it was too cold to walk around) we did get to stop and hang out at flying star for a couple of hours. i love that place!!! it was so delicious.

ashleigh asked if the train was the polar express. she just can't get over christmas! maybe for christmas we'll take her on the train and pretend like it's the polar express, anybody want to dress up like santa for us?

we had a lot of fun. i can't wait to do it again, but when it's warmer!!! and we'll go on an earlier train so we can actually walk around a little bit.