Forgetful

So how's that for an excuse? I seriously just forgot to update my blog all week. If it's alright with you I will just blame this on the "pregnancy-induced forgetfulness" that everyone talks about. So here's a quick rundown of my personal life this week (minus any photos, because I forgot to take any).

We passed the 6-month mark of our life in Balto. Not sure what that means, really, just thought it was worth noting. I wouldn't say it has gone quickly or slowly- more like a mixture of both. We still greatly miss all our friends and family down south, but we do really like the city we've moved to. I won't say "love" yet- we don't want to say something too soon and scare it out of what could be a good relationship. Check back with me on our one-year anniversary.

Dylan finally headed back to school after seven days off from the blizzard. I got started on a long-overdue list of changes to the photography business. Big stuff is on the way- so fun! Stick with me. : )

We celebrated Riley's 5th birthday. And by celebrated I mean we did absolutely nothing at all. We are not those people who throw their dog a birthday party or buy him an organic cake from a doggie bakery. We meant to give him a treat, but I really can't remember if we did. I was going to at least take his picture but he made me mad on our afternoon walk so I refused. Dylan serenaded him with a touching rendition of Happy Birthday right before we went to bed which I think he loved.

We had a big day yesterday. We started our baby registry. Might I recommend Babies R Us on a Saturday to anyone looking for a surefire method of birth control? It doesn't help that according to the associate we apparently picked their busiest day of the year- the last day of some coupon or sale or something. Dylan actually kept it together much better than I did, even as the shopping carts and crying babies and spastic woman in the car seat aisle whizzed by. I almost had a heart attack as I looked at a wall of 84,000 types of baby bottles. He's going to be a great father. His wife might need some help.

To reward ourselves we decided it was time for a date and I couldn't stop daydreaming about Olive Garden breadsticks so off we went. I am sure they thought we just wandered out of exile somewhere- we ate like we have never eaten before. What can I say, we were excited. We don't get out much. We repeatedly ordered refills of our salad and breadsticks and I think they hated us for it. I don't really even like salad and I ate four platefuls. Most of our actual appetizer and entrees were packed up and brought home. Can you blame us? If they are going to offer unlimited bread and salad, you might as well get your money's worth.

And in other news, I am absolutely obsessed with the Olympics and have a hard time turning the TV off every night. I really don't care what sport it is, I just get super excited. I might cry when they end next week.

I filled up most spots in SC for my spring photo sessions, but I still have a few left- e-mail me if you're interested!

It's sunny and 45 degrees today and I can't help but think it feels like spring. How odd. Anyway, enjoy the rest of your Sunday afternoon, and I'll be back with pictures soon!

Spring sessions in the sunny south

I've been posting a lot of snow pictures. Because, well, that's all there is to post. It's actually snowing as I type this. We've been home for ten days now and I basically only change out of my pajamas long enough to shower and put on new pajamas. (Though we DID make it to the grocery store, church, and Dunkin Donuts this weekend. Progress! But I digress.)

But look, believe it or not, Spring is on its way!





(As evidenced by these IKEA flowers that may not be quite real- or even realISTIC- but that I love nonetheless. Displayed quite perfectly in the IKEA pitcher that I also love. A gift from my husband whom I love for remembering them as I randomly pointed them out in the store one day. Ok, digressing again...)

So the point is, these flowers go to show that it won't be all snow and winter forever on this blog. If you're in SC, I'll be down at the end of March- the perfect time to get those spring photos of the kids and family! We all know how quickly it gets hot in the Palmetto State, so beat the heat and book your family session early this year. With my impending mid-summer maternity leave this may be the only chance for my southern friends till late fall. Unless you want to throw the kiddos in the car and roadtrip-it-up I-95. Which would actually make me quite happy. I do love visitors.

I'm only booking a very limited number of sessions while I'm in town and they are quickly filling up. Available slots are between March 29-April 1. Email me asap if you are interested!

Staying warm

When it looked like this outside...





...it looked like THIS inside.





Have I mentioned that I really DO love blizzards? And also chocolate chip cookies dipped in hot fudge?

Lesson learned

So today I made a mistake.

You see, the most recent snowstorm dumped another 19 inches on us, which is beautiful no matter what everyone else thinks. I decided to change out of my pajamas long enough to trek into the park with my camera. My goal was to get some jaw-dropping, award-winning shots of the ducks on the sparkling frozen pond in the park. Simple enough.

Except that I decided to kill two birds with one stone (oooh, terrible idiom choice there) and take the dog on his afternoon walk at the same time.

It is a wonder that I did not end up IN the frozen lake. It is a wonder that I did not break my camera. It is a wonder that I did not let the dog free to run away forever.

Knee-deep snow + knee-height dog + lots of flapping birds + photographic dreams = Frustrating waste of time.

I basically snapped blindly as Riley flailed about on his leash and jerked me to and fro. I don't even know what I had my camera set on. A large portion of my shots had two pointy brown ears sticking up in them. I think the kids sledding down the hill nearby were quite amused.

For what it's worth, here's a snapshot of the pond this afternoon. Just know that this could have been AWESOME. Thanks Riley.

Dogs make funny faces when snow is in their eyes

A few more of Riley from Saturday morning














Round two has begun. It's started snowing again and they're calling for 10-20 inches. We're only two inches short of an all-time Maryland winter snow record. What will the new numbers be? To be continued...

The boots are happy

When these boots were first made they had big dreams. After all, doesn't everyone dream big when they're young?

They belong to a girl now. (That girl would be me.) But back when they were first born, before they belonged to anyone, they probably dreamed of Aspen or Buffalo, maybe even Vancouver. They dreamed of icy, snow-filled winters and life-sized snowmen. They may have even been a little disappointed when they were pulled from the warehouse and packed in a shipment to Maryland.

You see Maryland gets some snow, but just a taste. From what I am told most winters around here are cold, icy, and have a few light snows mixed in for fun. They don't usually get small-scale blizzards, much less two in two months.

So when these boots showed up in Baltimore (at my house to be exact) in early January, slightly bummed out but optimistic, they hopped out of the box and looked around, ready for the snow. Their little hopes were crushed, because the first snowstorm of the year had passed and the temperatures were unseasonably warm. The boots went straight from their box to the girl's closet and sulked.

Then lo and behold, it happened. On Friday Baltimore got a snowstorm unlike any it's had since 1922.























Those boots jumped out of the closet, onto the girl's feet and headed out the front door. And what a wonderful treat! Not only was there almost 20 inches of snow on the ground (and more still falling), those feet headed straight for the biggest piles. Those feet chased the dog as he burrowed and flung himself about with joy in all the fluffy snow.











The boots happily kept the feet toasty, warm, and dry, and when the feet got tired, the boots took them home. The boots contentedly lined up next to the heat vent to dry off inside the house. And they heard rumors of a new snowstorm moving into the city on Tuesday.

And they felt happy, and so did the feet and the dog.





The end.

Long overdue

Thankfully it's just these pictures that are three months overdue and not the baby. He did take his good sweet time getting here, but that's a different story.

I've referenced this shoot several times before and posted sneak peeks here and here. I'm excited to finally share them all with you! And as promised, this is a little longer than one of my typical posts. (I'm under the impression that this gets me off the hook for my less-than-stellar blogging schedule as of late.)

So Kati and Stephen are not big fans of being photographed. Stephen actually didn't know Kati had set up a session with me until they started packing clothes for their trip from Georgia to South Carolina. But I explained to Kati early in her pregnancy that part of being best friends is that you are required to let the photographer half of the friendship photograph the pregnant half of the friendship. Duh, it's in the rules. Everyone knows that. Being a good best friend Kati finally agreed, and being a good husband Stephen didn't get mad about the secret photo set-up. (Or the fact that I made him sit in mud that soaked straight through his jeans. But that came later.)

I envisioned a photo session full of laughter and sunshine and lens flare and baby toys and pregnant bellies peeking out of the tall grass. What I got was a session full of clouds and cold mist and quicksand-like mud and a grandma-to-be threatening my life if I got her pregnant daughter sick. Thank goodness Kati and Stephen brought the laughter with them (because they forgot all the cute baby props.)

From the minute we started shooting the two of them couldn't stop laughing. Mainly because they thought they were such terrible subjects. I'll let you be the judge of that.





I wish I could post every single picture. I got such great shots of them laughing together- you have no idea how hard it was to choose for the blog. Even on a mega-post!











Then we moved on to a slight teary moment while we talked to the baby








...and back to laughing








It was no small feat to get serious faces out of them. But totally worth it for shots like this- doesn't Stephen's expression just melt your heart?





The moment was, of course, fleeting














I got a straight face long enough to capture her gorgeous eyes





Then we gave Stephen a break and took some of the glowing mama-to-be














And then brought him back to the mud for the grand finale








We ended on this sweet, serious note. I like it.





So Cole is now two months old and Kati no longer has a big pregnant belly, but there you have it. Whew. Well, I'm exhausted from sharing. Time for bed.

In closing, Kati, I hope this was a fun way for you to remember your pregnancy. Stephen, thanks for being so goofy and cooperative. And Baby Shorty (that would be the nickname of my future child), I hope you're taking notes, because I want to look this good in four months.

I heart the snow

I love driving to work in the snow. Does that make me weird?

I mean, don't get me wrong, if I had woken up this morning to find that the office was closed and I was confined to my warm house with a blanket, hot chocolate, my husband, and a full season of LOST to catch up on online I would have been happy as a clam.

But somehow, just the fact that I got to march through the snow in my boots to take the dog to the park this morning and then drive 30 miles up the interstate through a winter wonderland made me almost as happy. (And yes, for the record, I did intentionally walk through the largest snow drifts possible on my way to the park. It makes the boots happy. And the dog, for that matter.)

I know what everyone will say.

"Yeah, wait a few more days till it's grey and gross and you'll be sick of it."

"Just wait till the end of February, then you'll really be done with it."

"Sure, but this is your first winter in Maryland. You wouldn't say that if you'd lived here for twenty years."

And I can't lie, I was a little annoyed that an ice storm down south messed up my flight last weekend. (Mostly I was just mad at the incredibly unhelpful ticketing agent who wouldn't re-route us.) But still- it's WINTER. It somehow seems ok.

I've spent YEARS whining about winter days where the temps are in the 50's and I can't justify a scarf and mittens. I LIKE the fact that school and work don't get cancelled every time it snows, because in winter it is SUPPOSED to snow and the world shouldn't have to stop. Life goes on even in the snow. It doesn't need to be a news event, even if I get excited about it. It's like winter's version of rain, just so much prettier.

I didn't have much time this morning to snap pictures- because, well, like I said, I did still have to go to work. But I think even the tiniest little tufts of snow caught in the branches outside my door look magical.

And if this weekend turns into the potential blizzard that some are predicting? Well, I'll try to get a few good pictures. But I'll also be happy to enjoy a cozy weekend confined to the house. Sometimes it's nice when the world stops.