Welcome 2012! A year of Freedom and Peace...

Some years ago when I was still single, I had a wonderful Christian woman, (some years older than me) in my life whom I admired very much. She was, in many ways, like a second mother. I remember sharing with her how every year in January I started out with a list full of resolutions and hope,but by March I had failed and given up! What was I to do? It was then that she shared what she did every year instead of resolutions and since that year, I have been doing the same.
Every year in December, I begin to pray for the Lord to give me a word for the new year. Sometimes, He reveals it to me right away, and sometimes we are well into January before I know it.
Last year the word was "Change". A year of change it was! It's always fun to see what will happen in regards to the word. Since January 2011, we have seen lots of change: after 10 years of being home-owners, we decided to short sell our home and are now renters. After 9 years of staying home full-time,I started this wonderful business and am having so much fun working part-time. My husband finished his Master's degree after 2.5 years of school and working full-time craziness. There are many other small changes, but those are the big ones!
Just this past Sunday, during church, I discovered my words for this year and there are 2!
The words for 2012 are: Rest and Freedom.
While I still have yet to discover what these will mean for me personally this year, I am hopeful that it's gonna be a great year! This weekend I have my first two shoots of the year and I am so grateful. It was nice to have some time off during the holidays after the crazy fall rush but I am looking forward to getting back into the swing of things with SnapCandy and enjoying this gift of photography.
How about you? Do you make resolutions? Do you pick a word? Do tell...

Catching up...

The days have continued to roll on by and we have continued to stay busy,BUSY! Busy as a family and busy with my business. November continues to be the busiest photography season as everyone has family pictures taken to send out with those good ole' Christmas cards. I'll be shooting pretty much every weekend this month and loving it! I love seeing the cutie kids all dolled up in their best.
I promise to catch up with pictures...soon!

Livvie Lou

This little sweetie is 3.5 years old and BIG on personality! Her hair is AMAZINGLY beautiful. Just a doll through and through. What a treat it was to capture her yesterday...

First Birthday

This is my sweet little nephew, Nate.
Nathanael Judah McFarlin to be exact. He looks just like my brother-in-law, only with my sister's eyes. He is my older sister's first and only baby, although I am trying my best to convince her to have another! He has been the sweetest, easiest baby that I have ever encountered. Shortly after he was born, I felt a love for him as if he were my own. It was weird! But after some processing I realized it was because he is my sister's baby-her first. The family bond is so strong! What a blessing he is to all of us.
I prefer to shorten long names or give people nicknames, so at our house, we call him "Nate the Great" or "PorkChop" (don't ask...).
Last Monday, he turned one! We celebrated with them during a family dinner at DiCicco's-super yummy! I snapped these pictures while babysitting him the other day. I am looking forward to his official birthday shoot coming up soon, but I thought these were too cute not to share! Enjoy...
P.S. He loves to suck those fingers.
P.P.S. I could just eat him with a spoon! Love this little man.

A dog well-loved...

I have to be honest about how much I love, LOVE photography. How fun it is for me to dream up props, locate destinations and work with teeny precious newborns, chubby babies, happy kids and loving families. Most of the work I do is happy, fun and positive. Sometimes in life, that is not the case.
Our dear family friends, the Brosius family, just lost their beloved dog, Maverick-to lymphoma. He went from a happy, healthy dog to a weak, sad dog in a matter of weeks. It was both a privilege and an honor to capture their family during his final days. It was a heart-wrenching shoot to do and to edit, because they love him so much and they are like family to me.
These are my favorite images from our evening together. We love and miss you, sweet Maverick...

Mary, Mary, quite contrary...

This sweet dolly lives across the street-can she get any cuter?!?

Beach vacation

We headed to the coast to escape the heat last week and had a great family vacation! Here are my top two favorite pictures from the trip.