christmas cards!

So Christmas is 4 weeks away and it's time to order our cards. We went out last weekend with the Wagenhausers and played in Freedom Park for a bit to get some full family shots (thanks Megan for letting me see the front of the camera some).

I've been ordering my cards, and even Caleb's birth announcement, from Shutterfly and I think we'll do it again this year. But I'm so torn between a few cards! There are so many cute ones!

There's this one and we have several great black and white photos (and the ability to convert others)...

And I also really like this one (I have a thing for vertical cards)...

We're going to use one family shot and then a picture of each of the kids.

But then something like this one looks like fun and then I can include more shots!

I'm sure whatever we choose they'll turn out great but man, this is a tough decision!

I welcome all feedback! Check out Shutterfly's cards and tell me what you think... Shutterfly Holiday Cards.

(Nana, Mimmy - Don't read this next paragraph ;) )

And while you're there, check out the photo books! I made a couple last Christmas for Ainsley's Preschool teachers and I'm definitely doing several this year. They make great presents and what grandparent wouldn't love a book about their grandkids?

pinecone birdfeeder fun

A few weeks ago I was hit with a memory from childhood of making pinecone birdfeeders. I asked my mom to go out on an expedition to locate some pinecones for me. We don't have any pine trees near my house that produce suitable birdfeeder sized pinecones so I had to rely on her trees. She dropped off a bag full last weekend and unfortunately we were out of birdseed.

A trip to Costco and 40 lbs of birdseed later...

We tried hanging it in a small tree by the back patio but a squirrel chewed through our string. I moved it to the Shepard's hook to deter them from destroying it before the birds could enjoy it.

And within an hour of the move, we had our first diner. Ains was very excited when she noticed him (or her) so of course Mommy had to capture the moment. Enjoy little fella! Lots more birdseed where that came from - another 39.9 lbs to be exact.

ainsley's first date

Bradley decided to take his favorite little girl out on a date to the movies. They watched the trailers last night and decided to go see 'Tangled'.

She decided that she wanted to dress up for her date. We even accessorized with bracelets and a new real pearl necklace (made from an old broken necklace). Here she is just before they departed for their matinée show complete with popcorn! (Boots were added of course)

She's a little over the whole Momma with a camera thing. I can, however, get her to dance in front of the camera! Here's a little pirouette for her adoring fans...

As for the movie, she loved it! I got the play-by-play when she returned and she's already requested the Diva-D (DVD).

mini photog

Ainsley wanted to play photographer this morning. She took some time and lined up her subjects and then started snapping away.

Gotta get each angle.

And then Caleb decided that he wanted to be in the pictures too!

Here's a picture of her line up. The Cabbage Patch doll was mine when I was a little girl.

And here are her results! Not bad! She's down on the subject's level, decent composition and great exposure. I'd say she's well on her way to a great photography career.

However she does need to work on her action shots... This little guy can be quite the challenge to catch in focus!

haircut

Back in college, I begged Bradley to let me cut his hair. I have no idea why I was determined to do it, but he eventually gave in. And I often wonder what in the world I was thinking as he has refused to get it cut by anyone else since. On the positive side, we've saved a ton of money!

Well today I put those hair cutting skills to use once again by giving BC his second ever haircut.

Here's a before from this past weekend:

And here he is today:

And this was just after the last picture when Daddy put him down. Looks like my Mama's Boy is turning into a Daddy's Boy. Good thing Ains is turning into a Mama's girl!

photography blog

I've resurrected my old photography blog, Moment Photography. Stop by to check it out and be sure to add it to your RSS feeds. I'll be posting any sessions I do there so as to keep this a family blog.

big helper

For those that don't know, I've started to do a little photography on the side. I'm still looking at it as a hobby but I think my normal subjects are getting a little tired of the camera always in their face.

This morning I had a session bright and early with a family from our neighborhood. As we were wrapping up with a few last shots at my house, Ainsley comes running out with her camera. She was there to help! It was the cutest thing I have ever seen. The family obliged and she snapped away. She second shot for the remainder of the session.

Here are her results.

I think we have a mini photog on our hands...

playing in the yard

Ains mentioned on the way home from school that she wanted to take some pictures. Always happy to oblige, we headed out to the yard this afternoon. Here are a few fun ones from our little mini shoot.

She loves to climb on the rocks in our yard and on the greenway.

Just a cute tree hugger picture, right?

She was really clinging on for dear life - here's the proof... We promptly moved on to another location.

A little jumping fun...

This girl loves her swing!

fun at the park

We're lucky enough to have a nice greenway and park within our neighborhood and often I use it as a bribe. Ains was good yesterday so we took a walk once Daddy came home. And of course I had to take my camera so that I could play too!

She wasn't thrilled with me taking pictures. She wanted me to push her and I couldn't do that when I was on the ground snapping pictures.

So Brad and I switched, and I took off after this little guy. He's a little more receptive to the camera.

We played a little more and then I decided to play with the sun in some pictures.

Who knew that bugs could make pictures better?

This next one captures them to a tee.

The only way to capture anything but a scowl I had to do rapid fire shooting and catch her mid-sentence. Not ideal, but hey, it worked!

And now he's had enough... so we headed home.

too cute...

...for words! Love these guys!

shoe obsessed

One of my kids is absolutely obsessed with shoes. Can you guess which one??

I bet you didn't think I would say my boy! One of his first words was Croc. And nothing excites him like a new pair of shoes!

little mini me

Ainsley came downstairs the other day with her sunglasses on her head. She said that she was a mommy.

And then later that night, she wanted her bath towel put on her head. Again, she said she was a mommy.

A couple of days later, she put on her scarf and then said she was a mommy. It should be interesting to see what the next thing she does that makes her a mommy. It's like looking into a window at my habits...