It’s been a while since you’ve seen one of these posts, hasn’t it?! I still feel the need to point out how behind I am in blogging my sessions, but I’m sure most of you are tired of hearing that by now…so moving on, this session is probably one of my top 5 favorites for a few reasons. Brittany was one of the very first friends I made here in Alaska and also takes photos on the side. Her husband is currently deployed so when she came to me for pre-deployment photos, I was more than excited to take them. It was the peak of fall here and while most Alaskans say we don’t have seasons, I think this session proves otherwise! The leaves were all sorts of colors and shades and I don’t think these pictures do justice to how beautiful it really was outside. Basically, they were super fun to photograph and while it’s completely understood that most men and husbands (mine included) aren’t into getting their photos taken, her husband Mikal was enthusiastic, totally into it and that just makes it all the more funner for me to document! I can’t wait to do their homecoming photos!

I don’t know if it’s the photographer in me or what, but every so often I have the urge to drag Jimmy away from what he’s doing and take “updated” family photos of us. And it’s easy to do so with a nice view in our backyard, a tripod and remote! Sometimes these urges come very often, maybe too often (or maybe not because I firmly believe that you can never have too many photos with your family and people you love the most). But my husband does not share this belief. To be fair, the snow makes it a little harder to have the motivation to take photos. But even so, he is definitely not into getting his picture taken. I’ve always thought it ironic that he ended up marrying me since photography has been a passion of mine for years.

I do want to give him credit though, he knows how important it is to me and although some days he starts to get antsy to be done with it already (he says it takes a long time and I am indecisive…which I can’t argue with because it’s true ) He always does it. And more often than not, he keeps it positive and makes it fun for both of us. So now there are two reasons for this post. The more important reason being that I am thankful for my sweet husband who learns to have fun doing the things that are important to me…even if it’s not a big deal to him. Sometimes couples don’t have every hobby in common and I appreciate him so much for putting forth the effort for me!

Hope you all enjoy your Valentine’s Day! Ours will consist of snuggling up to a movie on the couch and possibly some chinese takeout. Keepin’ it mellow this year. Oh and a little pregnancy update…here is me and the orange-sized babe at 15 weeks! Feeling good and exciting to be sporting this new little bump

I am a tad behind on blogging my sessions but here is my attempt at stepping it up! Danielle and Tony were some of my first clients that I got to “practice” with. We went to a beautiful creek and had so much fun taking these. I must have tripped about 30 times jumping from rock to rock but hey, I will do almost anything for the sake of good photos. Almost. Danielle has been a huge encouragement to me while I’ve been in the process of starting up my business and I’m thankful for all her kind words and helping spread the word about me!

Does this pretty lady look familiar? I had the pleasure of taking her and her husbands photos. They were one of my first paid clients since I started my business, and one of my biggest supporters. Aimee and her family have been my guinea pigs quite a few times when I wanted to practice different styles of photography (children, boudoir, ect) and I always have so much fun with them. With this shoot, it was pure fun, flirty, and there was quite a bit of laughter involved. I’m surprised these images didn’t come out blurry because I was laughing most of the time! As you will see, not a lot of posing in this shoot. Just being themselves

So as I have decided to consolidate my photography here with my personal posts, I bring you yet another session! Aimee and Bryce are my very good friends. Yes, I am good friends with a 4 year-old. So close, that he has dubbed me the nickname “Wammer Hammer”. When we hung out and took these photos, Aimee was worried that Bryce would be too hyper and not want to “pose” for mommy and son pictures. He was indeed hyper, but we managed to make a game of it and play with him! We picked flowers, threw sticks, had some good ol’ toddler fun. Then when it came time to ask for some smiles and eye contact with the camera…he willingly obliged. See Aimee, I told you it wouldn’t be that hard!

^And THAT, my friends, is how a little boy picks flowers.

Moral of the story is, Aimee is stunning, and Bryce is a handsome young man. And I want that Moose hat for myself.

We watched episodes of Modern Family on the laptop and kept up the fort for a few days longer than planned. These were taken a few weeks ago, but I am foreseeing lots of fort-nights in the months to come, with the darkness and all. A perfect way to bundle up for the long Winter ahead of us and make the most of being indoors. By that time I am suspecting our fort making skills will be excellent

So shortly after moving here, I had some photo shoots scheduled. It was a bit scary at first because although I’ve been into photography for years, I only did it for pleasure and to document my life. Until now. This was my second session, and it was so. much. fun. Kristen is one of my best friends here and when she threw out the idea of having her and her husbands photos taken I was all for it. And honestly? They hardly needed any direction from me. Most of these photos you’re seeing are pure candid moments between them with lots of laughing, playful flirting, and just them being them, totally in love. And after spending oh, about 5 minutes with them, it’s more than obvious that these two are head over heels for each other. So here I present the first of (hopefully) many sessions I’ll be sharing with you lovely people on my blog. Enjoy!

Seriously, though…could they be a more gorgeous couple? I think not.

Pretty simple, yes. But there’s nothing that relaxes me more than sitting down with tea or coffee, reading, writing down thoughts and prayers, and maybe swooping in on some cuddle time when that strapping husband of mine comes home from work (asleep or not, but usually…he falls asleep eventually. See last post).

Simple is never boring for us.

…less than 15 minutes from my house.

The fact that I am lucky enough to be making a home with the love of my life and sharing this journey with him. A journey of unmade beds, piled up dirty dishes, and leaving lights on. But also a journey of slow dancing in the kitchen (yes, we ARE that couple), decorating with what little we have, and quality time in the AM before he goes off to work.

Getting encouraged by some wonderful wives here and my sis-in-law back home to pursue my love for photography further…(not to mention having them be my guinea pigs and pose for me so I can get the experience!)

and last but not least, taking full advantage of it when the sun does decide to pop out and say hello.

By the end of the day, I realized that this won’t be the last time I’ll get the weather blues. But God will remind me once again, how good He is and how much He has blessed my tiny family. So once again I will say, we are blessed. So. Incredibly. Blessed.

Bring it on snow and darkness, I’ll be welcoming you with open arms.

at around 8am I got up and got ready downstairs. I heard Jimmy calling me upstairs so 15 minutes later I came up to a semi annoyed husband..

He doesn’t like when I take too long to get ready Then we were off! Our first stop was an obligatory Starbucks run, then to Costco with our friends Kristen and Guillermo to sign up for a membership!

Jimmy got the vacuum he had his eye on for a few months!

Next up: The furniture store. We were looking for a bedroom set

proof that I got a bit camera happy and Jimmy looks a bit like a stalker in this. I laughed at this picture for a good 5 minutes.

Lunch at Subway!

Then to Sears to look for a lawnmower which came out to be successful.

I left from Sears to do a photoshoot for a family that we had scheduled…it turned out well and for my first family photo shoot, I felt really good about it!

I came home exhausted and ready to start editing photos, spend time with Jimmy, and call it a night.

because i totally just got caught…yes, i accidently left my drink out.

dinner consisted of our Subway leftovers and soup!

And thats it! I might try doing this again, except on a day thats not spent running errands Perhaps this weekend, since there’s some fun things planned. Have a good Saturday!