One Happy Visit!

This weekend my sister-in-law Danielle and my niece Joie came to Boise for a visit! I love this little girl so much, and it's so fun to see her personality setting in. She is always so happy, and I love it! Mom came up for the weekend to see us all too, and we all just had a super fun girls weekend.
Joie isn't quite walking on her own yet, but she sure wants to! She gets down on the ground every chance she gets, and would much rather be walking (with our hands, or holding on to furniture) then be carried. She'll let you carry her, but if you stop and stand still for too long, she definitely wants to get down and play.She entertains herself so easily, and is just all around happy. I think it runs in the family :)

Mom (Nana to Joie) gave her a squishy book that has all our pictures in it. It's the cutest thing! She can have us with her all the time, and it works as a teething ring too!

Joie got to come hang out with me in my apartment. Don't be fooled by this picture, she is so little that she makes my apartment look pretty big, but it's not! Lol... it's pretty small, but the perfect size for Niece and Auntie to hang out and have fun in!
Mom found Joie the greatest snack bowl. It's made of soft plastic and Joie can reach in and get a treat, but when she pulls her hand back out, a flap comes down and prevents the other treats from spilling out. She figured out quickly how it worked, and loved getting her snacks out of it.
Mom was playing peek-a-boo with Joie, and she got a kick out of it. So cute!
We took a trip to the pumpkin patch and Joie wore her super cute bumble bee costume.
Haha... she's such a ham! She smiling for Danielle's camera and "showing her teeth."
We were getting ready for the picture and she put her hands up on her cheeks, so I had to too.
My sis-in-law Danielle and the babe.

Our Adorable Bumble Bee

I will be making a longer post with all of our fun pics from the Pumpkin Patch this weekend later, but I wanted to enter this picture of J in the I ♥ Faces contest. Check out all their entries, there are some real cuties!

Working on a new Concept

I have been working on a few new ways to get my studio name out there, and find an expanded client base. I am excited to say that there are a few events coming up that just might have a hand in that. *knock on wood

This coming Saturday (Halloween) is the 1st annual 8 Man Mayhem dodgeball tournament benefiting the Boys & Girls Club. I will be on hand to take team photos and action shots of the event. Each player will receive a goodie bag with loads of cool stuff from local vendors. I will be one of those lucky vendors!! *Fist pump!

I am going to be including my card, along with a special offer for discount portraits for friends and family. The picture below is the start of this card.I have a few other irons in the fire, but I will get to them later. Until then I am excited at the prospect of meeting new people and building a strong clientele.

Stay Tuned!
Huzzah

Things Are Happening

Oh man, it's been awhile since I've updated! It seems like so much is going on right now too.

I will probably be posting more in the near future to get all caught up, but in the meantime, I just have to list out the things that I am thankful for, and remind myself of all that is happening.

~My niece is going to be here in 2 days!
~My family is, and always will be, there for each other, no matter what, no questions asked. (This has been shown in many ways the past few weeks!)
~Friends (true friends that is) are irreplaceable
~God is always there, whether He's at the forefront of your mind or not, you are always on His
~There are some things we face as adults that we hoped we never would have to, and there's no way we approach them the way we would have thought

and just because this picture makes me smile... it's almost Halloween!

Wild Side of the Library

I created Max from the storybook "Where the Wild Things Are" in order to promote our upcoming Wild Things party at the Library. I'm rather proud of how well he turned out. He's water colored and outlined in permanent marker on white butcher paper. I am currently working on one of the wild things, and he should be up tomorrow.

Nothing But Blue Skies...

...for my drive back from Kennewick. The drive gets a bit monotonous, but it's really not that bad when the sun is shining and the clouds are so white and fluffy.

Reasons To be Thankful

~Fall weather is perfect right now... not too cold, but crisp and still sunny.
~I am surrounded by happy people
~Many good things lie ahead (more to come in the following days on this!)
~Relationships with family growing stronger every day
~The possibility of my niece being in Boise in just a few weeks!

Bridal Shots

This weekend in Kennewick, WA, my cousin Jill and I decided to take some pretty killer photos of her in her wedding gown. She was an awesome model and worked it!! We started out at a winery and vineyard, and the location was amazing!
I love that she was willing to lay down in the dirt! Her wedding was 2 months ago, so she was willing to get a little dirty, and that made my day!

We were setting up this shot (seriously the most beautiful location and doorway I have ever seen!) and I was so excited to get creative with that door when it opened and this guy came walking toward us. I decided to take one picture to test the lighting while he was in the way. He was walking way too slow and not trying to get out of our way, so I knew something must have been up. He introduced himself to me, then let me know that I couldn't shoot bridal photos on their property unless it is set up with their events coordinator ahead of time. Oops! I'm just glad he didn't ask to either see or keep the pictures we had taken. I don't think he would have been too happy to find out that we had been traipsing through the vineyard! I'm just glad I was able to photoshop him out, and we at least got this shot!
I think this is my favorite shot ever! I have been wanting to to experiment with lighting and sun for awhile, and the day was perfect for it! The wind was a little annoying, but everything came together in this shot. I feel like it should be on the front of a magazine.I LOVE that she was willing to get in the water! More of these amazing water shots (and vineyards too!) to come!

Looking Forward...

...to a weekend in Kennewick with my cousin Jill! She used to live in Seattle, but now she lives in Kennewick, which is less than half the distance! Now we can visit each other more often!

What I Am Thankful For Today
~the weekend!
~fall weather
~BSU game day, so I can wear a hoodie to work!
~opportunities for photo shoots
~jeans that fit now when they didn't this summer!