*{Texas Here I Come...}*

Leaving on a jet plane to shoot a wedding in Texas!! And right after I get back, we have movers at our doorstep...SO...all emails and phone calls will be returned in a couple of weeks. If you have an order pending, I am tracking and you will have it before I drive away!!!

Thanks bunches and stay tuned for photos of our move and this phenominal wedding that I am flying out to!

Much love,
m

*{The Secret}*

Wow...so much has gone on in the past 3 days!!! Let's see if I can sum up real quickly!

First off, this past weekend I went to The Secret Workshop! It was tons of fun and yes, I did learn some secrets! I also have some fun new things in store for the new year!! It is put on by the amazing Cheryl Muhr. And you will NEVER GUESS who the surprise guest speaker was...I about fell over when I heard~ Any guesses?? Lookie here and you will see who I met, and even shot a bit with...
Ah yes, that is the *amazing* Tara Whitney!!! And no need to email me and tell me how out of focus this photo is...does anyone really care?! IT'S TARA!!!!!! She is an amazing person and her heart is full of gold. I am so happy I had the chance to meet her.

Okay...now on to some pics from the workshop. Here is a quick pick of Cheryl Muhr in action...
And here are some shots I got of some of the kiddos that came out to sacrifice their Saturday afternoon! They were such great kiddos and we all had so much fun...






And I *love* this shot!!






So after the exciting weekend at the workshop, it was back to reality and our little one had her skin grafting surgery on Monday morning. Thank you for all your emails and prayers! She did wonderful through the surgery and is back to her good 'ole self! Next week will be the big unveiling of the grafts...let's pray they take!!

Thanks again for all your support!
m

*{GORGEOUS}*

Is she not *stunning*?! I just had to post a few from the session with this gorgeous mom to be. Watch out 'D', if Baby M is anything like her mama, you are going to have your hands full!!!

I can't wait for you two to start your new adventure...kids are just amazing!

Can't wait to hear when your blessed arrival makes her debut this month!





Until next time...
Hope you all have a great weekend!
m

*{Dairy Queen}*

Sort of last minute, but I heard something cool on the radio today. When you buy a blizzard at Dairy Queen today, proceeds will go to your local Children's Miracle Network Hospital.

That is reason enough for me to justify a Blizzard today!!

Yum yum...
m

*{Miss A}*

Just a few from this week...she was a cutie! AND, the great thing about this session is I didn't have to go to the gym afterwards! She gave me a workout chasing her all over! But that makes it fun!! And I love some of these natural expressions captured.

(Special personal note after the photos)...





On a sidenote...As of now, I've worked as many clients off my waiting list as possible. I don't foresee taking any more on because we found out yesterday that my youngest will need a second surgery for her skin grafts from last year. But it is a blessing in disguise. We are so very thankful that this plastic surgeon was able to squeeze her into her schedule for NEXT WEEK! This way we are able to have the phenomenal team at the burn unit at Harborview work on her before our move. A small graft may have to be done again, but we will keep our fingers crossed that they won't need to graft to relieve the scar band that is contracting. So everyone send your little prayers up for my little Kenzie next week! If you want to see the story of Kenzie's burns, go to this blog post...click on the link and it will take you to the video from when she was on the news.

More to follow!
m

*{Aloha PART II}*

Okay, so just a few more pics of the trip...

Here is the one of the submarine ride...forgot to post in the last one! I must still be on vacation!






m

*{A-LOOOOOOOOO-HA}*

Aloha!
Reality is starting to set in after a wonderful 2 weeks in Hawaii. But all good things must come to an end, right?! I can't wait to tell you about all the adventures...but first, I need to give a disclaimer! I am trying a new posting method so my photos are larger in the blog. So that is the reason for the new facelift on the blog...no more pretty template for now, but I'm hoping some rockin' photos will replace the need for that! I'm tired of the photos being so tiny on the web! So let's give this a try! I'm not even sure at this point if I can put the photos with what I'm talking about, so let's give this a try!

As many of you know, my husband just came home from a 14 month deployment...so this was a well deserved vacation! And if you've ever been to Hawaii, you know that your worries feel so far removed when you are there...there is not a care in the world when you are breathing in that tropical air (it literally smells different...I swear)!

The trip started off on a downer-note for my 4 year old. She left her precious luv-E on the plane. I even went to the airport to file a claim for the poor kid! So if you are on any NWA flights, please go to the VERY LAST ROW of the plane and look for a little stuffed elephant pinned between the seat and window! We checked at lost luggage in Honolulu and Seattle when we returned, but no luck. It looks like Ellie has now decided to travel the world. Now I know most of you think this is probably not a big deal, but the fact of the matter is, when my daughter sees airplanes flying in the sky she gets all choked up because my youngest blurts out, "There goes Ellie!" It is very tragic! However, here are a couple of shots from the plane...one of my oldest during happier times!


One of the things we did while in Oahu was climb Diamondhead (think volcano)! And it occured to me when we got on the plane to come home that this was one of the few pics we have of me over there...I guess that is what happens when you are a photog. But here is one of the few I have, so I thought I would post it for you. Which is very kind considering this is a photo taken after hiking to the top! It would have been nicer if I was looking nice and refreshed at the bottom, right?! Anyways, the stairs was part of the "hike" to the top. It actually wasn't too bad, but is always fun to be a bit dramatic! So anyways, the view was worth it at the top...and we got a reward of a rainbow at the top as well! Check this out! (These three were taking with the point and shoot...there was no way I was lugging camera equipment to the top)!

This first pic is a little bit of "where is waldo"...I'm up there somewhere!



And the last is just a mix-mash of pics from the rest of the trip. The underwater pic is of a submarine ride I took M.P. on. I love sea turtles...and I got to swim with them again when we went snorkeling! That is my favorite thing to do over there. And yes, there were a couple shark sightings...once on the submarine ride (a white-tip) and when snorkeling, the husband claims to have seen a hammerhead~the scary part is apparently it was right in the shallow area with us while I was busy adjusting my mask. Maybe it is a good thing I didn't see it, because I'm sure if I tried running away with my big goofy flippers on, I would have attracted the shark even more to me!

Anyways, enjoy the rest of the pics...and yes, I am back in full swing. However, we are preparing for a move that is in a month...ALABAMA, HERE WE COME!!!




This black and white is of the girls taking hula lessons...






And yes, the youngest even celebrated her 3rd birthday in Hawaii...hope she remembers when she gets older!!


Until next time...
m :)
UPDATED: BIGGER IS SO MUCH BETTER!!!!!!! THANK YOU JOSH!