We recently celebrated the upcoming three year old birthday of an adorable young lady.  This little girl has personality bursting out in every different direction.  I think you’ll be able to see that from the following photos!  Happy Birthday!

A beautiful wedding on a gorgeous day was celebrated recently out at the Hilltop Chalet.  Will, the groom, gave a quick speech after the toasts which reminded me exactly of why I love weddings so much.  He spoke of the great opportunity we have on wedding days to be surrounded by our closest friends and our extended family members and a room full of people who are genuinely happy to be there.  This is one of the great treasures of photographing weddings — the opportunity to be around a couples most  cherished friends on a day filled with anticipation, excitement, unbounded love and endless smiles!

Congratulations to Will and his beautiful bride, Amanda!

Last year about this time I had the opportunity to photograph Amy & Andy for their engagement session.  It’s always fun to spend several hours with a couple prior to the wedding because we get the chance to know each other up front before all the timelines and family responsibilities of the big day.  I knew that these guys were going to enjoy their wedding and nothing, not even posing in a little rain, would lessen their excitement or appreciation of their time together!

Congratulations to such a beautiful and caring couple and best of luck on the big move as well!  It sounds like yet another adventure to add to the many that you’ve already had!

Have you ever had your husband suprise you for your birthday or anniversary? A few weeks ago, a friend of ours received a big surprise when her husband plotted a birthday party complete with a suprise photo session and portrait book of her kids taken a few weeks before. He even secretly enlisted her help with getting outfits for the kids and coming up with locations!

He had the family session scheduled for the night of the surprise birthday party to totally throw her off the trail and the kids clothes were all wrapped back up and waiting in the bags for the big event! I think she was totally surprised! I also think she’s going to get him back good when he least expects it! Can’t wait to see what’s in the cards.

Here are a few of my favorites from the studio session! A lot of action and movement and twirls and tickling were going on that day. If you have never tried to focus on a three year, you should give it a try sometime! And then, you should throw a five year old in the mix and just watch the kinetic energy in action!

Happy Birthday, Kristi!

Suprise!

I went away for a few weeks and came home to these photographs of a beautiful expectant mother. They were just as I remembered them!

I can’t even imagine the anticipation that she and her husband must be feeling right about now. They only have about two more weeks to wait!

We recently added a new member to our family.  He is furry and runs on all fours and sometimes answers to the name of Ivan. On other times he answers to the name Eisen-Howard (when Sid says Ivan it sounds like Izen) and yet other times he chooses not to answer at all.  He is a crazy fur beast with a perpetual smile on his face.  He looks like a Russian Wolf Hound mixed with an Alaskan Husky then crossed with a Golden Retriever.  He is a a nut (did I mention that already?)  The best part, however, is that he adores Solomon and Sid and they love him!

Ivan came from the Alaska Dog & Puppy Rescue from up in Wasilla.  It is a great organization of volunteers who house the dogs themselves until a permanent home can be found for them.  It was great for us, too, because we were able to meet with him in a home environment to really get a better impression of his personality. We were looking for a love sponge who would entirely tolerate two little boys and this silly puppy completely fits the bill.  He is a non-stop barker and the fastest thing on four feet that I have ever seen.  He loves to sleep upsidedown with his paws in the air and he has two ice blue eyes with a hint of brown in one.

This past weekend we took him out for a walk around the lake which is now pretty solidly frozen.  We’ve been dog sitting Mookie for the past week and had him join us for the jaunt.  The boys careened around the lake in the sled and the dogs just played and played and played.  It was a perfect little family adventure on a cold November day.

Amy & Andy are engaged! They will be tying the knot next summer out in the valley. I am excited about photographing their wedding and really enjoyed the opportunity to spend a few hours with them on a gorgeous day prior to the hustle and bustle of the big day!

We traipsed over rocks and outcroppings and played in dirt and water. At one point, Amy even went sliding and splashing into the water as we tried to inch near a waterfall! I fell in a few minutes later as payback for even suggesting such a thing. Luckily it was gorgeous and hot outside. Amy’s jeans never quite dried off but she looked like she was having fun throughout the soak filled latter half of the day.

Congratulations Amy & Andy! I’m looking forward to your wedding next summer.