Kindergarten!

Here are some of my favorites from this session with Jacob the new Kindergartener!! This little one sure had me busy during our photo shoot! We were playing tag in the grass and on the playground. Playing hide and go seek and lots and lots of tickles were involved. He was so fun!

First Day of School

It's come, It's gone! The first day of school for our babies! This year my kiddos started 3rd grade, 1st grade, and Kindergarten. My 3rd and 1st graders started at a new school this year and I was able to take them to school and drop them off. Unfortunately I wasn't able to be there for my Kinder's first day. I dropped her off at Grandma's and Grandma got to enjoy this memory making day! She did send me pictures though, which makes it easier. I teared up leaving my baby at Grandma's but held it together. She is our last baby and therefore our last First day of Kindergarten. So sad in some ways! Our babies are growing up. Seems like no time ago her Daddy was deployed and we were waiting for the Red Cross to bring him home so she could be born while he was here. Now she is in Kindergarten and I have so much to look forward to with her and her brother and sister. I would love to see all your First Day of School Pictures with your babies! Post them in the comments to share!!
Here are my kiddos!

Back to School

So many friends and family have come together to support me in my endeavor of starting my photography business! I needed to give back and say thank you for all they have done with supporting me and sharing my name with others! I gave away a free Back to School photo session and Brianne won! I have known this Chica for a long time! We met in a Mom's Group back when my oldest was still in diapers! We've watched our kids grow and new babies come. It was good to spend time with her and her beautiful family! It has been too long since we have been able to visit! I was able to photograph her fabulous daughters - Cierra & Leah. Cierra was all about having her photograph taken and had a blast. Little Leah was the complete opposite. She wanted absolutely nothing to do with the camera. As soon as we were done, the camera was put away, and we were walking back to the car, this little sunshine became so playful! She was all smiles and giggles galore. They were so fun to photograph and it was so good to see them again! Here are some of my favorites from our session!

Guilty Pleasures

I love this (highly edited) quote about Guilty Pleasures:

“I don’t believe in guilty pleasures. If you like something, like it. That’s what’s wrong with our generation: that residual punk rock guilt, like, “You’re not supposed to like that. That’s not cool.” Don’t think it’s not cool to like Britney Spears’ “Toxic.” It is cool to like Britney Spears’ “Toxic”! Why not? That’s who I am, damn it! That whole guilty pleasure thing is full of ****.”

― Dave Grohl

I love the quote, but decided to edit it for my post to remove all the swear words, just to make my point.  There has been so much controversy lately about moms on phones at the park, I would have to say my Guilty Pleasure fits in here. I shouldn't feel guilty about it, and I don't want to feel guilty about it, so I think I will shed the guilt here.

I catch up on my phone with the adult world while my kids are playing at the park. I call another adult while my kids play at the park just to hear a grown up voice. I read my latest book at the park while my kids play. I catch up on my latest Photo Magazine while my kids play. Phew… I said it!

I consider myself a pretty involved mom. I limit technology time in my house. I attend every single practice, game, lesson that my kids have. I read stories and tuck in every night (except on the few nights my husband is home -- I delegate that duty to him). I plan bucket lists for every school break with my kids where we pick out activities from Pinterest that we want to do. (Plenty of people have told me I am crazy for some of the things we have done.) While I am awake and with my kids, every waking moment is focused around them and my time spent with them.

With that being said, I am not immune to getting cranky, feeling like I need a break, or hiding in the locked bathroom for a few minutes to let my sanity return. When I need a break, the park is my friend. The park provides me with time to de-stress, relax, talk to other actual grown ups, and sit down for a few darn minutes in the day. It provides my children with much needed socialization with other kids. Time for them to make friends, problem solve when they disagree with those friends, yell, scream, run, and play. When my daughter was learning to swing, of course I was there teaching her how to push her legs in and out. Of course I was there when they were young and needed help up and down the steps to the slides. But as they have grown and can socialize on their own, the park is now my little escape.

I shouldn't feel guilty about enjoying a book while my kids play, or sharing a conversation with another grown up, so I won't!

Do you have any Guilty Pleasures that you want to shed the guilt from??

Neon Museum

I was so excited when an old teaching friend contacted me and asked to take family photos before she has to move from Vegas in a few months. She wanted something Vegas-y themed to remember their time here. We were able to squeeze into the Neon Museum and had only 1/2 hour! Talk about pressure! We took family photos, photos with Gramma, and couples pictures for her sister and new brother in law who just got married. I had so many photo ideas but not enough time to do them all. We were hoping to go later in the evening to catch some evening light, but had no such luck. We were assigned our time at 5:00pm and had to fight the sun shining in through every crevice in the Museum. We managed to do pretty well and got some amazing shots for their family. Melissa's husband was home for a brief R&R before finishing his deployment overseas and they will all be moving before his deployment is over. This is his last visit to his home here in Vegas! I hope I was able to offer a few more happy memories to take with them! Here are a few of my favorites!