Layla Grace Foundation 1st Annual Charity Golf Tournament

The Layla Grace Children's Cancer Research Foundation had their First Annual Charity Golf Tournament at High Meadow Ranch Golf Club in Magnolia, TX, on Saturday, March 26.

I was lucky to be asked to photograph the event which included not only a golf tournament, but also an after-golf raffle, silent auction, dinner (catered by Chuy's) & concert (by Season 6 American Idol finalist Sundance Head)!The weather could not have been more beautiful, and lots of people came out for the event to have fun & support the cause.

Here are a few of my shots from the day's activities. . .

Go here to find out more about this amazing organization and how you can help!

A Day Well Spent

This past Saturday, I spent the day taking pictures at the Layla Grace Foundation First Annual Charity Golf Tournament.

More pictures soon!

Wild Party at the Zoo!

For Anna's 4th birthday, she requested a party at the zoo. I didn't want the cliche zoo animal decor that you see in all the party stores, so I instead went with a black/white zebra print paired with a fun palette of fuschia, turquoise & lime green for my little girly girl.

After 3 years of parties at home, I have to admit that I was kind of relieved to be off the hook from all of the hassle that comes with preparing for a house party, but I quickly realized that parties outside of the home - while convenient in the cleanup department - have lots of restrictions that make creativity a challenge. We could not hang anything, we could not have anything inflatable (including balloons), and we only had 15 minutes to setup & tear down. Not to mention the fact that we had to haul all of our party supplies to the party area in the back of the chilren's zoo all on our own (4 wagons and lots of arms!)

Some of the families arrived at the party pavillion a little early, and everyone was so nice to pitch in and help with getting things setup (which I felt bad about, but really appreciated!).

Here's a quick shot of the full table all finished. . .

The kids were kept busy with fabulous face painting, foam animal mask crafts, their very own lunch box filled with "animal food", delicous cake/cupcakes, and the grand finale: a group ride on the zoo carousel!

The pavillion was in the children's zoo, so they were also able to take advantage of all of the other fun things the children's zoo offered like a playground and a petting zoo. We chose not to disperse everyone into the main zoo during the party because of the 2 hour time limit, so some families arrived early to check out all of the animals.

The birthday girl had so much fun and was so excited to see all of her friends that made it to the party. There was a bit of a meltdown when the announcement was made that the zoo was closing (we had the last party time slot), but I'll take that as a sign that she loved her party and just didn't want it to end!

* Note: This party was also featured on the Birthday Girl Blog earlier this week! It's a great little site for party inspiration if you want to mosey on over and check it out.

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Vendor Details:

• Photography: Sweet Everythings Photography
  
• Invitations: Custom designed by me
  
• Cake & Cupcakes: Theme Cakes By Traci


• Birthday Girl's Custom Pettiskirt Outfit: Gabi's Bowtique


• Party Favors & Crafts: Oriental Trading


• Favor, Lunch Box & Water Bottle Labels: Online Labels


• Favor Boxes: Hobby Lobby
  
• Zebra Gable Boxes (Lunch Boxes): Under Wraps
  
• Birthday Banner & Centerpiece Toppers: Homemade with my Cricut
• Party Trays: HEB
  
• Face Painting: The Birthday Girl's very talented Grandma!

Portrait Party for Layla

I am so excited to share that I am participating in the 2nd Annual Portait Party for Layla! This event takes place all over the country on Saturday, April 9th, and benefits the Layla Grace Children's Cancer Research Foundation. If you're not familiar with Layla's story, you can read about it here, but be sure to have your tissues ready. (Don't say I didn't warn you!)



Here is how the "portrait party" works. . .

Your donation of $75 made directly to the Layla Grace Children's Cancer Foundation will include:

• A 20 minute mini-session
• An online gallery of 8-10 proofs
• One 8x10 print
• Two 5x7 prints

Here is the link to donate to this amazing organization by snagging one of my sessions:
http://store.laylagrace.org/categories/Portrait-Party-%2711/Cypress%2C-TX/Sweet-Everythings-Photography/

If you're not in Houston, you can check for participating photographers in your area here, or you can make a donation to the foundation (independent of this fundraising event) here.

She's Four!

Four years ago today, this sweet little thing came into my life and changed it forever.

I'm not really sure what to say about that. So proud of her growing up, and all at the same time, so sad that she's not my little baby anymore. And more than anything, so amazed by how quickly it's all happened. I feel like I blinked, and when I opened my eyes, here we were.

So before I blink again and another year has passed, here are some things I want to remember about right now. She loves all things pink and princess. She loves makeup (yes, already!) And she loves nail polish - but she loves picking it off even more than she likes having it on. (I beg her not to, but she insists that it's "so fun" for her. hehe.)

She loves being in control (and can be very persuasive!) She's very social with other kids, but is sometimes painfully shy when meeting new adults. She loves going to the park and being outside. And she can watch the same movie all day every day and never get tired of it.

Sometimes you feel like you're talking to an adult when you speak to her. Then she'll say things like "merember" instead of remember or "lemalade" instead of lemonade, and the world makes sense. I know I should be correcting her and encouraging her to pronounce words correctly, but I have to admit that I kind of like that it reminds me that she's still my little girl.

And as we prepare to invite a new baby into our family in the next couple of months, I realize that things will change, but I cannot wait to see my little girl blossom into the great big sister I know she's going to be.

Happy Birthday, Anna!

You are so very loved, my angel!