Here are a couple things that have brought happiness to my heart lately!

My son turned 8!!!  Where has the time gone?  Let me tell you a bit about Lucas.  We call him Lukey Duke.  He is very sensitive and shows love at the BEST times.  He has this amazing sense of knowing exactly when I need a hug.  I love that he still thinks it’s cool to give me a big wet kiss and a hug at the front doors of the school when I drop him off everyday.  There is nothing better than that.

I am not good at keeping plants alive.  They must have the tenacity and drive to stay alive if they come home to me.  I have managed to keep this plant alive for 10 years.  It was a gift from an amazingly thoughtful woman, Mrs. Cartwright.   She spends a huge amount of her time handwriting thoughtful notes for many people for each milestone they cross.   I find a stack of her notes for each member of my family each time I visit home.

I hope you take some time today to find joy in the little things!

From my heart to yours,

Christine

She’s going to be a ballerina.  She saw one recital, and now she has the dancing bug.   She spent much of our time together twirling, jumping, and spinning. What a doll!

She is soon going to welcome a brother or a sister and there is no doubt she will entertain her new sibling for hours!

Mom is simply glowing and Dad is one proud Poppa.

Congratulations!  I can’t wait to hear if it’s a boy or a girl!

I took pictures of little R. when she was just weeks old.  She is now two and so full of energy, curiosity, and life (she can also dance it out to Beyonce and The Black Eyed Peas…a girl after my own heart).

Meet Rylie’s little sister Jordyn.  Isn’t she adorable?

Near the end of our session we tried for a quick family shot, but sometimes kids just aren’t in the mood for sitting (especially when they are two years old).  You just have to roll with it!  Personally, it’s these types of pictures like this last one that I enjoy most because it just speaks of true life, and life is so good!

These pictures signify a place that she has come from, but most importantly a future that she is embracing with a spirit of promise and enduring power.  The blanket of clean fresh snow represents the new, the tree represents a time in her past, and the red is all about empowerment .

This is Tawny’s Spirit.

Thank you Tawny for sharing your beautiful spirit with us!  

For more information about Your Spirit sessions, please visit my website and click the “Coming Soon” tab or check out the Spirit Session tab under the Categories menu above.

To see Amy’s capture of Tawny’s Spirit, please visit her post here.

When I returned home, the B. Family’s pictures were calling me just waiting to be edited and blogged!  Check out Part 1 here. 

Again, I have to say this session was a great way to end the year.  I had a blast photographing the fun connection within this family (who happen to be very dear to my heart) even though we couldn’t feel our fingers when we were done.  I see Christmas cards for next year all over these photos

Happy New Year! I’m looking forward to capturing more life and love in 2010!

Here is a quick sneak peek! I will blog a few more after Christmas!  Merry Christmas everyone!

The K. family also wanted some family Christmas photos!

Thanks for coming over and spreading your holiday cheer!  Merry Christmas to you!

Kaylee is 9 months and full of personality…such a fun age!  This will be her first Christmas!  I’m sure she will have fun ripping into all that Christmas wrapping and will most likely prefer playing with the boxes to the gifts inside.

In March she will be a big sister!  So much to be thankful for this Christmas!

Thanks for spending the evening with me!  Merry Christmas

They also happen to be my family   Lee is my hubby’s brother.  I was back to my home-town Vermilion for a family reunion, so I had the opportunity to shoot their family. It’s been 3 years since we last had a family session together, and Koti has sure grown up since then! 

The morning of our session was beautiful.  I have spent so much time this year shooting at sunset, I forgot how much I loved the sweet light of the morning.  Dreamy light filtered in through the trees and created the perfect conditions for some fun with shadows

I love capturing the love between married couples.  Love, Love, Love.

Thanks for spending the morning with me!  Love you!