Well, I had the great pleasure of spending my morning out at Evergreen Hospital, where I met the super adorable Caleb Marsh!  Isn't he just the cutest thing you've ever seen!!!

I just don't think there is anything in the world better than a newborn baby!!!

Happy Birthday little man!

I don't shoot boudoir photography (for that I refer to the ultra talented Christina Mallet of Katrinka's Secret).   But every once in a while, I'll get a client who wants to do something more sculptural than what a what a traditional boudoir session would be... and for that, I'm always onboard.

These are a few photos from one such session.  I love these images, and, because they are a little bit saucy, I thought I'd post them now, for Valentines Day!

So, a couple of years ago, we finished our basement to make a play room for the boys and an office for me.  I love this space for many reasons, but mostly because, I can sit in morning and get some of my work done while listening to my boys play.  That's what I'm doing now.  They are building a city with Legos, and having the best conversation.  They are completely unaware of my eavesdropping, and just 100% caught up in their world.  It's so great!  

They are suppose to go to kindergarten in the fall, and I'm sooo going to miss hearing them play together like this.  They are such interesting little people.

 Such a great week of shooting!!  Here are some of the higlights.

Remember Misty Moon from Bria Pilates?  Well, she came in with her adorable baby.  Aren't you just loving these cute little baby accessories!

 Next we have Gavin.  I think he is soooo handsome!  Check out those eyes!!

And here is the lovely Camila.  This little girl just made my day!  She was so super happy and fun to work with... and came dressed in the cutest onesie I've seen in a long time!!

Sadly, I did not sleep like a baby last night.  I'm feeling a little envious of this little one.

A good friend of mine recently shared a link with me from Richard Velazquez's Blog where he talks about trying to find a picture of his late father to display at his funeral  "For the funeral, I began looking through my childhood pictures for shots of me and my father together.  I could not find any.  There were, of course, plenty of pictures of me and plenty of pictures of my siblings.  At my father’s funeral, I was lucky that my aunt just happened to have a picture of me and my dad (shown here).  Of the hundreds of family pictures that my father took in our lifetime, this is probably the one I treasure most.

I then started thinking about all of the parents that I see that take pictures of their kids, but never include themselves in these family pictures (just like the woman I had just passed).  Or the ones that send Holiday greeting cards with pictures of the “family” that are in reality only a picture of their kids.  If this sounds like you, think about the friends that knew you before you had children.  They want to see you too, not just your progeny.

And take it from me, some time in the hopefully distant future, your kids are going to sift through your family pictures, ignoring the thousands of pictures of themselves, searching for the ones that you shared with them.  They’re going to be very sad indeed to find only a handful.  So if a stranger ever asks you if you want to be included in a picture with your kids, just say yes.  Or if you decide to get a family portrait for the holidays, include yourself in that photo.  You’re not doing this for yourselves, or even for your friends, but for the very kids that you obviously treasure so much.  They’ll thank you for it."  

This really struck me.  I do believe that family portraits are an important part of a family's  history.  I think about that every time I take a picture of my boys.  But I have to say, I'm guilty of not wanting to be in the pictures with them.  I'm just not comfortable in front of the camera.  And I can't tell you how many parents say to me in the studio, that they don't want to be in the pictures with their kids... and I usually don't push it.  I get it... the kids are always much cuter than we are anyway.  After reading this however, I'm rethinking my ideas on what a family portrait session should be.  You can bet that from now on I'll be encouraging the parents who come through my door to be in the pictures too.  And I'll be making an effort to do the same!

These handsome little guys are about to turn one!  Aren't they adorable?!

Well, today I did something totally fun, and completely different!  I had the privilege of working on a promotional shoot for Bria Pilates.

Bria Pilates is located off of 15th in Seattle's Interbay neighborhood.  It's beautiful, and light filled inside.  I was thrilled that even on this dark and raining day, I was able to shoot with natural light.

And, you should see what these ladies can do!! It was amazing!  I'm now totally inspired to try out Pilates myself.  I'm signing up... and maybe in a little while, my arms will look this awesome!!

Thanks to owner Misty Moon (fantastic name, I know!), and all the ladies at Bria, for a great afternoon!

So, I've been shooting a lot with this new white backdrop, and I've decided that I just love it!!!  I love how it takes what little light we get on these dark winter days, and bounces it all around the room.  I also love how simple it is.  Love.

Anyway.. here are some pics from my latest session with the lovely Nora.  Her family purchased my "First Year" package, and so I've been able to see her every few months since she was born.  One of my favorite things about that package is getting to watch these adorable little people grow!!  So much changes within that first year...  It's amazing!!

I had such a great time at this family portrait session.  These ladies were a hoot!!  My favorite part was watching Little Miss here rock out to Lady Ga Ga.  If there is anything funnier than little kids dancing, I don't know what it is!!