Making lemons out of lemonade

It's no secret of mine that my least favorite season in Texas is the summer. It's miserable. I'm talking I need a shower after checking the mail at the curb.

I think my true hatred of summer was official after two of my 3 kids were born in September. Having to make it through the brutal summer with double cankles and toes that resembled plump sausages has me a little bitter still.

So when I began my journey into photography full time officially in June, I knew that I needed to come up with a mini session that would be short and sweet because of the heat but would scream summer.

Here's a little video of my little sunshines.

I made lemons out of lemonade and dreamed of doing lemonade stand minis. My friend, Kelly, just replaced her fence and had a yard full of old fence wood that was perfect for the job. Justin amazed me so much by building this stand. It was exactly as I envisioned and I am so so thrilled with how it turned out.

These flowers are actually weeds but perfect for the location and with the sun coming through, it almost made me forget that we were doing a session in 100 degree heat. What you can't tell, is that this field is pretty much in the ghetto, but hey, it works.

We decided at the last minute to do these with my family and I did a trial run first before I did sessions with clients. It's a good thing, I realized which props needed some tweaking and used an inhumane amount of hot glue, super glue and velcro.

 

And wouldn't you know in complete Forced Family Fun fashion that after our session was done, what doesn't start? My car. It's dead...like really dead. Fortunate for us we had a guy who was riding his bike introducing himself that he was straight out of prison ready to help us. Say what? That was a little frightening to say the least.

Luckily, even in the ghetto, you can get a jump and be on your way soon. How is it that our car batteries die at the worst times i.e. bring Landry home from the hospital.

I joked that God was smiling down on me on catching this pic. There is NO head swapping on this pic. Even with props blowing all over this field and the car battery dying. It was worth every single second.

New lens

Two years ago, my husband ran in a race called Capital to Coast where he ran from Austin, TX to Corpus Christi, TX in a relay run. He ran over a 24 hour period in 6 mile shifts. Yes, he's officially crazy.

I, on the other hand, don't run unless someone has a piece of cake in front of me or there's a rabid dog chasing me. But I digress...

Anyway, when his team was finally crossing the finish line in Corpus, someone broke into our minister's car (I call that straight ticket to hell) and stole a van full of stuff. Justin's wallet was stolen and our camera bag with four beautiful lenses. GULP (insert me in a fetal position here). I was so upset because, if you don't know, photography is NOT a cheap hobby.

Our insurance didn't cover much with our high deductible and we were only able to replace one lens. Lesson learned, now all of our camera equipment is insured. Now that I'm starting this photography gig on the side, I just tear up thinking of the things I could've done with all those great lenses.

So this photo gig is more or less a means to fund my photography hobby. Today we got in our 85mm 1.8 that was stolen by a very evil person (can you tell I'm still bitter?) and I now remember why I loved this lens so much.

Exhibit A:

Exhibit B, C & D:

 

And no, the rolls on Landry's legs are not more defined by the lens, they're really that adorable.

Dear 85mm, oh how I've missed you. I'm so excited to use this bad boy again! 

The mamarazzi strikes again!

A new journey

I wanted to share with you some exciting news. After a huge leap of faith and a big heart I am beginning my journey into photography. I have been asked by friends over the years to take pictures of their families and I just kept making excuses about how I wasn't good enough or didn't have the time. Well, time is an ongoing battle and there's no better time to get this thing going than in the summer with my teaching schedule.

I will admit that I do have so much to learn but I've discovered that most people aren't looking to spend $1,000 just to have a decent photo of their family in a frame. So as I'm beginning this journey, I'm terrified and thrilled all at the same time.

I've had the opportunity to build my portfolio with some recent photo shoots and I'm proud and excited that my weekends are filling up. Here are a few of my recent favorites.

I have no idea how I will handle it all once school starts but I just have to have faith that everything will work out as it should. Thankfully most people want sessions done on the weekends so I think I'll still be able to work it out.

My wonderfully talented husband created a logo for me and Rooted in Love photography was born.

I created a website so come take a look at Rooted in Love when you have a chance!

Kairos vs. Chronos

I recently read an article that hit me like a ton of bricks. You know, one of those articles that you think, "If this girl and I lived near each other, she and I could be BFFs." Yep, like that.

Every single word is so perfectly...me. Her article addresses those feelings you feel when sweet older women tell you, "to enjoy every minute and the time is so precious."

Does it make me a deadbeat mom if I don't? Well, according to her, I have at least one other person who feels the same way.

She goes on to write that, "There are two different types of time. Chronos time is what we live in. It's regular time, it's one minute at a time, it's staring down the clock till bedtime time, it's ten excruciating minutes in the Target line time, it's four screaming minutes in time out time, it's two hours till daddy gets home time. Chronos is the hard, slow passing time we parents often live in. 

 Then there's Kairos time. Kairos is God's time. It's time outside of time. It's metaphysical time. It's those magical moments in which time stands still. I have a few of those moments each day. And I cherish them."

Like this...

or this...

  And this? It's like kairos on steroids.

  

"Like when I'm stuck in chronos time in the grocery line and I'm haggard and annoyed and angry at the slow check-out clerk. And then I look at my cart and I'm transported out of chronos. And suddenly I notice the piles and piles of healthy food I'll feed my children to grow their bodies and minds and I remember that most of the world's mamas would kill for this opportunity. This chance to stand in a grocery line with enough money to pay. And I just stare at my cart. At the abundance. The bounty. Thank you, God. Kairos."

 

"Parenting is hard. Just like lots of important jobs are hard. Why is it that the second a mother admits that it's hard, people feel the need to suggest that maybe she's not doing it right? Or that she certainly shouldn't add more to her load. Maybe the fact that it's so hard means she IS doing it right...in her own way...and she happens to be honest."

 

But my favorite quote of the article is what she hopes she's going to say to a young mama in line at Target gritting her teeth when she becomes that "older woman".

"It's helluva hard, isn't it? You're a good mom, I can tell. And I like your kids, especially that one peeing in the corner. She's my favorite. Carry on, warrior. Six hours till bedtime." And hopefully, every once in a while, I'll add -- "Let me pick up that grocery bill for ya, sister. Go put those kids in the van and pull on up -- I'll have them bring your groceries out."

 Amen, Sister.

Top 11 in '11

2011 has been such a wonderful year. Finding the photos to best document our year was near impossible but I think I've got my favorites narrowed down but I could slip in another 30 or maybe even 100 easy.

 

I love this photo for so many reasons. I love how it shows what a hands-on dad my husband, Justin, is and how it perfectly captures how energetic and how much of a dare-devil our second son, Campbell, is.  

 

Love this photo of the final months of my pregnancy with my boys. It was such a hard pregnancy during a record-breaking heat wave in Texas and with it being my third, but I'd say it was well worth it. 

This photo was taken the same day and I just love how my oldest son, without us asking, posed like he's a natural model. This is right before he started kindergarten. He's such a sweet boy and says things that will absolutely melt your heart, especially his mama. 

 

And perhaps the biggest news this year was the addition our one and only baby girl, Landry. She is the sweetest and easiest baby. She was our Labor Day baby...how wild is it that I was in labor ON Labor Day? I love this photo so much and it's one that will definitely be in her baby book. What joy and happiness it shows the day that our family was complete. 

 

This was taken when Landry was only 7 days old. I took it while getting some professional shots done by a good friend. Hers were much better but I still love these that I was able to sneak in. Those lips are just amazing.

Landry is only 3 months now but knowing that she's my last just has me holding, snuggling and staring at her perhaps more than I did with any of them. It just makes me want to soak up every single second. 

The only other person who stares at her as much as me - if not more, would be my husband....who is putty in her hands. 

  

Every year we go to the pumpkin patch and every year I always get a favorite from the photos. The colors, the laughter, the feel of fall all make the perfect recipe for a great photo.

This was a photo tip I tried from Pinterest and I was just excited that it worked! I turned off all the lights in the house, maxed out my ISO, opened the aperture and used a slow shutter speed of 1/30.

 

I took this photo on Christmas Eve morning but this is a normal day. At least once a day I see the boys interacting with Landry in this way. I can't believe that they fight as much as they do but when it comes to her, they are unbelievably sweet. They call her "sweet baby girl" and will do anything to get a smile or laugh out of her. 

And here's our Christmas photo this year. The funny part is that we used a tripod and I had wireless remote shutter release in my hand to take this picture. My husband is insanely talented when it comes to Photoshop (he's a graphic artist) but I looked like I had a man hand so we decided to put a big "M" monogram to cover up my hand. Pretty resourceful, I thought.

Thanks for looking at my favorites this year and I can't wait to see what photos and memories our family will make in 2012!


  

Merry Mail

I can't believe that I didn't put our "official" 2011 card on my last post. Ugh....trying to juggle too much. So how appropriate is this picture to perfectly demonstrate that!

 

 Yes, my daughter is a Christmas firecracker or Christmas vomit (as Justin lovingly calls it). I think Christmas firecracker or the human form of going Griswold sounds much nicer.

And here's the back. I gotta say that I'm pretty darn proud of them. I took the one of Landry in her nursery on a day when she was working that camera like a runway model. 

 

 Of course, none of this is possible without my incredibly talented husband doing all the layout work. 

I think it might be my favorite card we've done so far, but maybe it's just the cute kids. 

Christmas cheer

I dread the family Christmas photo shoot. Normally, it involves meltdowns from both children and adults, snacks, bribery, and exhaustion. But I gotta say, that this year was pretty painless. We went to a park near our house which is more like a hiking trail and were there for 45 minutes...tops. Glorious.

The key? Don't do poses. Just go with it. Go with the silliness, the laughter and try to wrangle them in for a few family shots, but that's it.

I knew that our time was very limited, not only with the boys, but mostly because of Landry. That nursing schedule keeps you on your toes and there's no rest for the weary.

The silliness (and the promise of a beloved lollipop) help make things run smoother. But honestly, just playing around and genuine lovin' instead of posing helped make this one, one of my favorite shoots ever.

 

I've been on this whirlwind to get everything done before the end of my maternity which happened this week. My first official day back as a working mom was Monday. Ugh. So Christmas pictures were done earlier than ever before!

I began to adjust to this fake stay-at-home mom thing very quickly. I gotta say, it was really nice. I felt so refreshed picking up the boys from school even as a sleep-deprived mom with a newborn baby. Because at the end of the day, I had my family...

and had some one-on-one time with Landry that I will forever treasure.

 

The mother's guilt is all-consuming. If I stay home with Landry then I won't be able to see Nolan everyday in the halls and have that special mommy/Nolan time we have after school. 

 

 

And before I know it, Campbell will be right there at school with me too. 

 

 I'm scared about the trouble those two will get in together. 

 

They need to know that mama's just down the hallway to keep them in line. 

 

But if I go back to work, then I'm missing out all my all day snuggles with her and she's my BABY! 

 

So I decided that teaching really is the best of both worlds. It allows me to be a mom and work full time and the perk of the time off helps me sleep better at night. 

 The guilt never seems to go away when it comes to parenting. I seem to second-guess myself all the time.

And they seem to know a thing or two about what faces melt my heart and help them get away with just about anything. These same faces that make me want to quit my job just so I can stare at those adorable eyes all day. 

But as I have this inner war with myself weekly if I'm doing the right thing, I just remind myself that what matters most is that they feel loved, validated, and important to me.

 After that, everything else just falls into place.