Newborn Goodness...

A little ray of sunshine has come into the world,
A little ray of sunshine in the shape of a girl.

Day 3

We had our first little photo shoot today. 

She is such an angel, and in her 3 days of life has been such a good little girl!

Here are a few shots from our first session.  Avah did great and slept 90% of the time just like mommy had hoped she would!  Luckily, the most comfortable "nursing station" in our house that I've found so far is in my office desk chair with the Boppy... so it allows me to edit a picture or two while we accomplish feedings at the same time.  :)  Once a multi-tasker, always a multi-tasker.

(And just so you can see what goes into preparing and carrying out a newborn photo shoot (well, some of it, anyhow!), check out my living room.  :)  I'm so excited to have professional portraits done by another photographer of our little family on Sunday so I don't have to do the work!)

Mama Mondays: Introducing Baby Avah

I am feeling tired, but overwhelmingly, I feel so incredibly blessed.   My sweet baby girl, Avah, was born on Sunday.  She is such a reminder of God's love, and we are already so in love with her.  Labor, delivery, and our hospital stay went perfectly, and we are home safe and sound.

I feel so incredibly blessed.  

Blessed to be married to this wonderful man.

Blessed to get to watch him be a father to this little guy and this baby girl.
Blessed to get to be a mother.  Especially a mother to these two beautiful little souls.

Blessed to have my own mother here from 1,100 miles away (she even got to be there during delivery to witness Avah's birth and meet the granddaughter whose middle name is her own namesake).  And grateful for the help, encouragement, and love that she gives me that is so appreciated.  

Blessed to get to hear this little boy tell his sister (unprompted) that she is "beautiful and sweet."

Blessed to have a job that allows me to use the creativity, color, and things I have in my brain and bring them to life through photographs.  It is such a cool way to freeze special moments in time and the reason I do what I do. 

Blessed to have a God who gave his life for me and who gave me so much to live for.

Thank you all for being part of what makes my life feel like it does.

Austin Child Photographer {Meet Kyle & Curtis}

I had such a fun morning in the park with these two cute little guys!  They were so much fun to work with, and this park in Austin has never looked more stunning for portraits.  And their mama dressed them so cute, didn't she?  Enjoy a few sneak peeks of brotherhood at its finest.

To their mama: Thanks for braving the sprinkles... I'm so glad we were able to get this shoot in, and look forward to working with your cute little family again in the future.  Enjoy!  (Please feel free to use these on your Facebook page, but do not crop the watermark.)

Austin Family Photographer {The O Family}

I had such a fun time photographing this sweet family in the park late last month.  Grandma was in town visiting, so it was a fun time for a photo shoot and to also get her involved.  (And we even got the german shepherd puppy involved, too!)  :)

This was a 30-minute mini-session (the Backyard Package), and I have to say, three of the most photogenic kiddos I've worked with.  We were done in exactly 30-minutes and got so many great shots for them to choose from.  Here are just a few.

Mama Mondays: Countdown to my Cowgirl

On one hand, I cannot believe I am just a matter  days away from meeting my sweet baby girl face to face.  On the other hand, I feel like I have been pregnant for two years.  Do you feel me, mamas?  


My first pregnancy was pretty easy-breezy.  I was able to exercise throughout my pregnancy.  (I ran the fitness/wellness program at the University of Texas, so had a paid lunch break and access to all kinds of fun gym equipment just outside my office door.)  I slept pretty well other than a few weeks here and there.  I was tired, but had the ability to sit down on the couch every now and then and kick my feet up.  And then came the second pregnancy.  :)  (Again, do you feel me, mamas?)  


This time around, I worked part time at UT without a paid lunch break, much more limited workouts, did photography 20+ hours a week at all hours of the day and night and weekends, and had a very cute 2 year old boy to keep up with.  The last time I have slept through the night was 2 weeks after I found out I was pregnant.  That was in August 2011.  Ouch.  When I tell people I am ready to have a baby so that I CAN sleep again, they give me a funny look, but it's true.  When I have her here, at least I can cuddle her and know we're on a path to sleeping again.  :)  I know she will be here before we know it, so I'm trying to savor every sweet moment of pregnancy, as it truly is a miracle and it could possibly be my last one.


My sweet friend, Jessica, was kind enough to come over to my house and studio set up spaces to snap pictures for me.  I prepared some detailed plans, set ups and samples, and she brought them to life through my camera.  So grateful to her, and so looking forward to doing her baby bump (she's having a girl too!) session in a few months. 

Here are some of my favorites... The countdown to our little cowgirl is on!!  (Click here for a cute story about the pink dress.)