Snow....

I woke up this morning at 4am thanks to DH's alarm clock and noticed how it was a tad brighter in our bedroom.  Then I remembered it was supposed to snow...oh happy day.  I got up and looked out the window and the backyard was covered in snow, love it.  After a a few more hours of sleep I officially got out of bed.  Gracie is usually excited when I get up because well, I'm awake.  But this morning she was very excited...and I knew why.  Snow.  I just wanted to share a few pics. :)

"MOM!!!  IT SNOWED!!!!"....hehe...I love that face... :)

Wait for it......

Happy Dance = Chasing the tail....

Gracie has done this a million times and it cracks me up every time...

Dizzy?

Ten minutes later....someone wanted in...

And 5 minutes later someone wanted to go back out....I can't really blame her.... :)

Have a fabulous day!

Hot Chocolate...

Last night, DH and I went for a walk with Gracie around the neighborhood.  Walking late at night is one of our favorite things to do.  It's peaceful, there are no cars, and most of the time it smells like clean laundry outside (which I love).  Everyone's Christmas lights were in full force, I personally liked the dancing lit up penguins and the The Christmas Story leg lamp.  Oh yes, there is a house in our neighborhood that has the exact same leg lamp from The Christmas Story and yes it stands proudly in their front window.  It cracks me up every time and yes they keep it up year round.  Come on over sometime, I'll show you.  When we got home we decided to break out the hot chocolate (I couldn't feel my face) and watch a movie (Dolores Claiborne, real upbeat holiday kind of movie).  In my world, there is no such thing as too many marshmallows.  That's just nonsense.... :)

Have a fabulous day! :)

Secret Santa....

So yesterday I came home from work to find a little package waiting for me by my front door.  As soon as I saw it was from Lori in California I sqeeeeed!  Very excited!  Some of you ladies (especially if you are engaged or married) may be familiar with the website The Nest or The Knot.  The "ten o niners" are a FABULOUS group of ladies/brides who I now consider very good friends.  Through the process of planning my wedding, I turned to this group to share ideas and to get honest feedback, vent about frustrations and wanting to elope, and I knew I could always count on them for a good laugh.  You ladies are a VERY special group of women and I am very thankful to be a part of the ten o niners.  Basically you all kick ass.....and you know it. ;)  But we decided to do a secret santa ornament exchange this year which I was very excited about.  Here are a few pics of my ornamnet(s) from my awesome secret santa Lori. Enjoy!

Unlike myself, Lori neatly packed and decorated my gift....It was so puuuurty I didn't want to open it. :)

Whoever is getting my ornament, you know what is coming....ghetto bubble wrap envelope that is all wrinkled from me "wrapping" your ornament (I shoved it in there) and covered in tape....
you've been warned...

Cutest Christmas card ever!  Her dog Karma is such a cutie!

"From one naughty knottie to another"....that cracked me up.... ;)

TAH DAH!  My ornament!  Isn't it GORGEOUS????  It was hand painted from the inside!  They take a small brush through the hole in the top of the ornament and paint the image on the inside...How cool is that?!?!?!?  AND of course Lori had to represent.  And I am SO glad she did because I LOVE San Fran and have a little obsession with row houses....perfect! 

LOVE it...

And guess what?  Lori decided to spoil me and give me 2 ornaments... :)

"FRAAAA GEEEELAAAAAY!...It must be Italian!"...A Christmas Story....anyone?

I liked the wine glass.... :)

TAH DAH!  A camera!  CUUUUUUTE! :)

Quickly found homes for my lovely ornaments! :)

SO MUCH Detail!  Gorgeous.... :)

Thank you SOOOOO much Lori!  You are the bomb diggity! ;)  I will probably keep these out on display way past Christmas time....just in case you were wondering.... :)

Belleville Family Photographer - McLean Family

Hi there!  I'm back!  First off, I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  If you tried any of the recipes I posted I would love to hear how they turned out!  Even if you absolutely hated them....let me know. :)  But my surgery went well and after 2 weeks of resting, I am so ready to get back into the mix.  Which means getting caught up on my blog which includes 2 family sessions, a lifestyle session, and a maternity session.  WOOT!  Thanks to everyone for the thoughts, prayers, and kind words.  I really appreciate it. :) 

Okay, so to start things back up, here are a few from the McLean Family session.  I adore this family.  Madison is such a cutie and looks at me like I'm absolutely crazy....which cracks me up.  She's adorable.  Here are a few from their family session, enjoy! :)

See....I told you she was adorable... :)



Oh and their session was on a farm...you know I was excited....

One of my all time favorites right here!



Madi is SO precious...

I secretly wanted to ride around in the wheelbarrow (by the way I did not know how to spell this until now).  The closest I get to this is asking Tim to push me around in the cart at Walmart...jealous...

Such a cute couple. :)

The handsome Luke :)

And the gorgeous punkin puss...  I said that right, right?

After a long session....love those ponytails...

And one gorgeous sunset to wrap up a wonderful family session!  Love it!

Thanks so much McLean Family! :)

"Out of the Office"- Just for a bit....

Hi there!  I was debating on whether or not I wanted to post this, but in the end I decided it was important..  Again, my blog although mainly for my photography is also a way for me to remember things that are important to me.  Wedding anniversaries, birthdays, baking cakes, traveling and surgery....etc.  I am human and not everyday is always rainbows and unicorns for me.  What?  You don't have daily experiences with rainbows and unicorns? :)  But tomorrow I am having surgery.  I will not go into any details, but some of you may remember my little episode back in August.  This surgery is in relation to that and is supposed to make everything better.  That's good right?  That's what I keep telling myself anyways.....  Am I scared?  Yes.  Am I nervous?  Yes.  The whole anesthesia thing bothers me as well as the whole waking up and feeling like absolute crap.  Nobody looks forward to feeling like crap, but it is what it is.  I am just looking forward to feeling better in the long run and not having to worry about this whole thing anymore.  I try to stay as positive as I can, but again...I'm human.  So for now I will be out of the office for a few days.  For those clients who have had recent sessions with me, don't worry!  You will still get your images on time!  And again, feel free to email me if you have any questions.

I am looking forward to cuddling with my dog, watching Forrest Gump a few times, and reading the newest In Style Magazine (love Rachel McAdams) and reading gettyimages of the 1910s.  My friend Laura gave me the reading material above (very sweet of her) and I absolutely love anything dealing with photography and history, so I'm very excited about this book!  Also looking forward to enjoying some of Megan's chicken casserole. :)  Thank you both so much :)

And finally, I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you all have a wonderful holiday and remember to take a moment and remember what you are thankful for.  I am thankful for my AH-mazing family and AH-mazing friends. :) 

Have a great week!

Rochelle & Kevin- Maternity Session SNEAK PEEK

Hi there!  Today I met with Rochelle and Kevin for their maternity session.  I heart maternity sessions.  Rochelle and Kevin are expecting a baby boy in February, and can you guess what his name is going to be? :)  Here's a little sneak peek of their session.  Enjoy!

Such a cute couple :)

Awwww :)

Thank you Rochelle and Kevin! :)