Sleep

Andie had her 9 month apt. with the Dr. yesterday. I let her sleep as long as possible and when I went to wake her I found her like this. When the stars aline something beautiful like this happens. My heart skipped a couple of beats. In excitement I quickly and ever so quietly ran for my camera. After taking a picture on the phone I realized this was just too perfect to not get a shot on my real deal camera. I didn't care if I was late for her appointment, or missed it all together.
I'm forever in love with this moment. I forever love photography so I will never forget it.
(If you follow me on Instagram you have already seen this, but it had to be put here as well.)

Kids Christmas Pictures

I love to make calendars and books with the pictures I take of our family throughout the year. I print the books through My Publisher and the calendars through Paper Coterie. For 2012 I am going to try out a new company Artifact Uprising. I love the look of their books and I am so excited that I can put up to 200 pages in one book. With My Publisher I had to split the year into two books because I could only put 100 pages into a book. Every December for the past couple of years I've taken Holiday pictures of the kids together, for the book, for myself, for Christmas presents, and most importantly for them to one day be able to look back on. This year I rented Justin Hackworths Studio. I love it. The lighting is amazing. He is incredibly kind and ignored my kids being terrible. I got the cutest headband for Ella and she took it off and left it at home. I got really cute boots for Andie and she kept kicking them off. I thought I would start with Andie, so I set her down and she flipped back hitting her head. So we did group shots together. It went well until Andie scratched Tate and they both started to cry. We took a break. While Tate fed Andie a bottle, I took pictures of Ella. When I tried to take the 2 bandaids off her arm she got upset. So we left them on. Halfway through she decided she really did want them off. I don't know why I got upset about it in the first place. The pictures are so her, making silly faces with bandaids covering her arm because she picks at it relentlessly. I about had a heart attack from the stress of my oldest acting like he didn't know the meaning of obeying while I tried to take pictures of cousins. It took the rest of the day for me to get my pulse back to normal and get over feeling bad for the way I treated my kids for not doing what they were asked. I hate that I can be so patient for other people when I work with them, but with the people it matters most - my family, I let them have it. Anyways I bribed them big time for this shoot, (Ella got Stompez and Tate got to go for Ice Cream) and prepped them over a week in advance that it was coming and they better be good... which they were! It was during the rest of the shoot with the cousins that one of mine couldn't handle sitting in the waiting room quietly. We've now agreed that he never has to let me take his picture again. I'm not too worried about it. I know I can come up with a plan to help change this. Anyway, here they are. The good and the great. And one outtake where Andie hurt Tate and then started to cry because Tate was crying. I love every single one.

9 m o n t h s

She was not happy at all on her 9 month mark, and I'm too lazy (insert impatient) to attempt doing them again. Mix together teething and a cold and you get a sad little baby. She is also crawling a little and scooching a lot. She eats everything she finds on the floors and so I'm all over keeping it clean. That or shutting the doors to keep her contained! She mimics the noises I make, talks when I sing to her,  and let's me rock her to sleep. She will not sit for more then a few seconds before she is off, loves to drop things and watch them fall, and she cries if her feelings are hurt.
The other day she bit me hard and I when I said ouch! she immediately looked at me. I said no, no! don't bite. Her face fell and she started to cry the saddest cry. I forgot that these little ones understand and feel at such a young age.
She continues to be a source of joy, peace, and love in our family.
I'm so thankful she is here with us. I'm so happy that I have a space between her and the older two. Having to start over is true, but having a baby around is so fulfilling. Not only to me, but the family as a whole. Ella loves to help me feed her. Tate loves to hold her. She loves to entertain them.
Every night when I'm in her room getting her ready for bed the kids run into the room, and back out and she laughs and laughs. It's contagious. I love her laugh. I love her.

Camera Girl

I love my little El.
I tried to take Andies 9 months pics today. She wanted in on the job. Every time I almost had a good picture of her she beat me to it with her camera, leaving my pictures with either her flash or a red light on A's face. I was frustrated. It's hard to put time and effort into things only to have them fail. She went out of the room and when I found her she had set this up: Molly dressed up (in the outfit I so badly wanted to get cute pictures of Andie in) holding the chalk board and on it she had written 1 months.
I am a tightly wound Mom.
Everyday, throughout the day, I have to remember to chill out. Little doings like this help me. They remind me that it ultimately doesn't matter that I have big hopes for things that often don't work out. What I do have are three littles that fill me with more joy than all those big hopes and dreams ever will.

Snow

Lots and lots of snow!