Oh November. We have a bit of a love/hate relationship. Actually, it used to be just hate until Levi was born last November. But this year we saw our little man turn one. It’s hard to believe! Peter and I are enjoying discovering more about his little personality and it is pretty wild how quickly he is learning new things. We had a couple of dicey weeks with his molars coming in and I felt like I was going to lose my mind once or twice, but I am lucky to have the best mother-in-law who took Levi off my hands for a few afternoons so I could regroup (also my mom will want me to mention that she was off saving lives in Ghana otherwise she would have helped me too)! I think we have one more 1-year molar to go and then I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we’ll be done with teething for a while! Anyhow, I am marching along with the project and I think making it through this month was a victory. Hoping I can blaze through Christmas and then January and finish strong!
From the moment Nicole contacted me I knew I was going to love this family. So easygoing, flexible and fun, all ingredients for an enjoyable session! And the cherry on top? Peyton’s amazing hair and the fact that she was constantly yawning, which just might be the cutest thing a baby can do. She is clearly so loved by her big brother and parents. Nicole and Chase made two under two look effortless (don’t worry guys, I know its hard work!) and made me feel so welcome and comfortable in their home. I was honoured to capture these memories for them and hope that these photos will one day transport them back to that wild and beautiful time that they welcomed their baby girl.
In November Courtney and Ren welcomed their beautiful rainbow baby into the world! I had the pleasure of capturing their maternity photos and was counting down the days until I got to meet their newest family member! I trekked out to their cozy country home and got to capture some special memories of their first days together. Of course, when little Fay found out that I was coming she was far too excited to sleep! Luckily Courtney already knows this girl like the back of her hand, worked her mommy-magic and after some cuddles and rocking we had the sweetest sleeping baby on our hands. I’ll let her modelling skills speak for themselves. Courtney and Ren, I wish you many blessings as you embark on this journey of parenthood!
Phew! I wasn't sure this post was going to make it up, because I was SO inconsistent with my daily shooting this month. But when I started this project I told myself that if I missed a day I just had to fill it in with another photo, even though it was taken on another day in that month. Otherwise I'm not sure I would have taken on such a huge project...you need to give yourself a little grace sometimes! October brought the cold weather and a couple of colds with it. Poor Levi got a nasty viral rash from one of them (featured in many photos below!). It was super itchy and we had to smother him in calamine lotion. Luckily it wasn't chicken pox and not contagious, so the worst thing that came of it were a few dirty looks when I took him out in public. For Thanksgiving we went up to the cottage and enjoyed four days with family. This month we also celebrated Levi's first birthday with our families and he took his first steps (at his grandparents while we were out at a wedding, of course)! We had some fun dressing Levi up for Halloween...he was the cutest little lion and really enjoyed trick-or-treating to our next door neighbour's house, as you can see! Now we are just counting down the days until we can put up our Christmas tree :)
Being a mom is a blessing. We are gifted with these precious little lives that become so entwined with our own that it's hard to imagine life before them. It is also sometimes a bit monotonous, not very glamorous and at times frustrating (I'm assuming I'm not alone in this!). The thing I love about photography is that it is an exercise in observation and appreciation of what is right in front of you. As a mom it causes me to stop and think about the little things that I want to capture and looking back on the photos I have of the past year of Levi's life I am so thankful to have captured the little nuances of who he was at each stage.
I had the opportunity to capture Lindsey and her daughter Beth one morning in their home. It was so fun to document Beth and all the little things that make her who she is at this stage of her life. I look forward to watching this sweet girl grow!
I can't think of anything I enjoy photographing more than a brand new baby! So when little Olive joined this already adorable family I was beyond excited to document their first days as a family of four! Her big brother, River, was just the biggest bundle of energy and adorable-ness and her parents were so relaxed, natural and fun in front of the camera that they were an absolute breeze to photograph. This little lady already has a serious case of FOMO (fear of missing out, so those of you who don't keep up with tween slang); she did not want to miss a single thing the entire session, but her mom Alison managed to coax her to sleep at the very end so we could capture her peaceful little face and details. I could probably rant all day about how much I loved this session, but I will let the newborn and family sweetness below speak for itself! Enjoy :)
I have known the J family for many years (15 years to be exact!), and was super excited when they asked me to do some extended family photos for them while their entire family was in town. We met at a beautiful park in Stouffville, and even though it was pouring rain on our way to the session the skies cleared just in time for us to start shooting! As you can see from the photos below there's a lot of love in this family and they were a joy to capture!
I'm not sure how to prepare you for the adorable-ness you're about to see below. Little Elias is just the sweetest little thing. He was almost 24 hours old when I met him and it's easy to see that his parents, Kristin and Jonathan were already head over heels for this little man. It was such a blessing to me to capture the first moments of this sweet family and I hope that one day Elias will be able to look back at these photos and see just how much he was loved, right from the very beginning.
September was a fun month for our little family. We got to enjoy a wonderful long weekend at the cottage, celebrated my husband's 29th birthday, enjoyed our first trip to the Stouffville Food Truck Frenzy (check it out next summer if you missed it!), celebrated a good friend's upcoming wedding by throwing her a bridal shower and I got to shoot my first two Fresh 48 sessions! Oh and there was a pretty awesome harvest moon and some beautiful sunsets thrown in there. September is also one of my favourite months because it brings the cooler weather...this past summer was WAY too hot for my taste and I welcomed the cooler days with open arms!
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