Once Upon a Time...

Once upon a time, it was the night before kindergarten.  (It wasn't last night, but it did really happen).

I think I've confessed recently about not taking enough or editing enough pictures of my own children, so I'll spare you the whiny details (you're welcome), but I love these sweet pictures of my Anna the night before her very first day of kindergarten ever.

We had just come home from her "meet the teacher" event at her new school, and she had hugged her teacher, seen her classroom, sat in her desk - even put away her school supplies - but she still wasn't quite a *real* kindergartner.  And I had gotten her this adorable book The Night Before Kindergarten to get her excited about her first day.  So I decided to salvage those last hours before it really was real, let her read her new book, and make some memories. . .

Back to School

All summer long I was counting down the days with dread, knowing that my sweet baby girl would soon be starting kindergarten.  Yes, I work full time, which means that I have long been accustomed to sending her off every day with a smile on my face and a little pang of sadness in my heart, but there was just something that felt so big and different about this new change - big new school, backpack, lunchbox, uniform, school supplies.  My little girl was going to be taking the first real step in the long journey that is her school years, and that reality was so much more than my heart could handle.  Not that I could ever stop her from growing up so quickly, but it just feels so much more out of my control now!

As a kid, I always loved the fall and going back to school, so I knew that I wanted to do a little styled session for her to mark the milestone - with her first little uniform and her brand new backpack and lunchbox.  But when the time came, it just rained and rained.  So I waited until the next weekend, and it rained again.  Finally, just as I was starting to wonder if she would be in first grade before I pulled this session off - over two weeks after she actually started school (and three times of "borrowing" that big bulky chalkboard) - it happened.  And I'm so thankful that we'll always have these memories. . .

I haven't been shooting my own kids as much as I'd like to or feel like I should lately, and even when I do, the images just sit on my computer unedited and unprinted.  So it felt really good to actually finish and edit a personal session. Maybe now would be a good time to actually go back and edit Parker's cake smash session - now that he's...um...almost 16 months?!  :)

Kindergarten

After getting shut out by the weather several weekends in a row, finally did this overdue "back to school" themed shoot for the brand spankin' new kindergartener in my life. . .

Can't wait to share more soon!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day from Sweet Everythings Photography!

To celebrate, thought I'd share a few pictures of my own little valentines from the minis I did a couple of weeks ago. . .

Hope you all have a great day filled with the ones you love!

Glimpses {Week 4}

There are a lot of things I could say about the image I chose for this week's Glimpses project on the Chic Critique Forum, but I think it says a lot on its own! lol.



Every day when Anna gets home from school, she does one of two things: strips and puts on a pair of jammies, or strips and puts on a dress-up outfit. So she spends *a lot* of time in costumes, which is why it wasn't a total shock to find her this way.

This was actually a Saturday morning (hence the crazy hair). Anna picked the outfit head-to-toe including accessories, came up with that fabulous hairdo, and setup her "office" in our living room. I fought the urge to clean up the mess, and grabbed my camera instead. Definitely one of those moments I want to remember forever of my little hairdresser, superhero, mardi gras princess.

Glimpses {Week 3}

It's time for week 3 of the Glimpses project over on the Chic Critique Forum. I've already posted this picture on my personal facebook page, so a lot of you may have already seen it. But I honestly could not pick any other picture over this one for this week.

I have a full time job, and I also have a photography business on the side. They both keep me very busy. But the job I am the most proud of and value the most is the job as mommy to these two amazing little people. And there is nothing on this earth that makes my heart melt more than seeing them together so sweetly.

He had just woken up from his nap and was playing quietly in his crib. I went in to check on him, and found them like this. I know what you're thinking. They won't *always* be this sweet together. And I know this is likely true. . .especially since we're mere months away from Parker being completely mobile and tearing into all of Anna's treasures. But she loves him so, and I know that we'll always have at least some of these moments in between the chaos.

Glimpses {Week 2}

I started my photography business last year, not too long before I had baby #2. And I had heard stories from people about how they have so many more pictures of their first child than their second, but I promised I would never do that. Guess what? He's only 8 months old now, and I'm already doing it! Obviously not because I love my son any less than my daughter, but life is just a lot busier now than it was when she was his age. And I find that now that I've officially started my business, I'm reluctant to share pictures unless they are something I would put in a client gallery. But that's all wrong. And I'm ready to fix it!

That's why I've decided to participate in a great little project on the Chic Critique Forum called "Glimpses" that encourages photographers to take a little break from documenting other peoples' lives and remember to document their own. So each week, I'll share a glimpse into my life with you here on my blog. And I love that they call it "Glimpses" - because it will be exactly that. Not a technically perfect portrait.


Although it's my first week because I'm a little late to the party (anyone who knows me personally won't be surprised by that!), it's actually week 2 for the project. So here is my image for week 2:

My little man got his very first haircut this past weekend at Pigtails and Crewcuts. I have to admit that I was kind of sad to see his wispy little curls go, but I love his nice clean cut. And although he was a little wiggly, he was very well-behaved. No tears at all. HUGE difference from Anna's first haircut -which she got from my lap because she freaked out about sitting in the chair. lol.

Hopefully, I can keep this up. I know I'll love looking back at it at the end of the year! Wish me luck (I'll need it!)

Elf on the Shelf

We adopted our Elf on the Shelf "Tickles" 2 Christmases ago when my daughter was only 2 years old, and she has been such a fun addition to our family. Since it's almost time for her to make her annual appearance (on December 1st), I figured I would share a little bit of what she was up to last year!

She started out simple - sitting on the shoulders of the angel that tops Anna's little tree - a prime spot for scouting out naughty and nice behavior. . .

And hanging out on the Christmas tree. . .


Then she started to get a little more creative (and mischievous). Playing with the Little People castle and carriage. . .

Getting a little lovey dovey. . .

Messily wrapping presents (this one was a new ornament for my daughter's tree). . .

Embracing her inner Picasso with a little elf self portrait. . .

Catching up on her holiday reading. . .

Getting a little homesick for the cold North Pole temperatures (it's HOT in Texas, even in December!). . .

Taking a little break from all of her hard work (don't worry, my daughter didn't see this one!). . .

Starring as the Sugarplum Fairy in her very own production of The Nutcracker. . .

Sneaking a sample of the test batch we made of the cookie mix Anna gave as teachers gifts. . .

Fishin' for our pet fish "Memo" (my daughter couldn't say "Nemo"). . .

Plotting to steal Santa's job. . .

And satisfying her sweet tooth on our gingerbread house. . .

My daughter loves Tickles so much and was so sad last year when it was time for her to go back to the North Pole. I'm not sure who is more excited about her return in a couple of days - her or me!

Can't wait to share her new adventures!

Mine

I've been absent from the blog for a few weeks, and I'd like to share why - I've been very busy with this little guy and enjoying my new family of four!

Introducing Parker Scott. . .

I had tons of plans for all of the newborn pictures I was going to take once Parker was born. I just forgot to take into account how tired and preoccupied I would be with becoming a new mom again! It's amazing how quickly you forget!

Luckily, I did make time for these, but he got off really easy compared to what I had planned.

He's such a sweet little guy with such a good nature, and he's fitting in just perfectly to our little family. His big sister is so proud of him, and I can't imagine life any other way.

When I had my daughter 4 years ago, a very talented photographer friend of mine came to visit and did this shot of her in her nursery. I decided to recreate it with Parker, and I'm so happy with how it turned out. If I can find the digital of Anna's shot, I'm going to post them together...

I'm still on maternity leave, so if you've emailed me and I've been slow to reply I apologize. I will likely start booking a limited number of sessions again sometime in July, so let me know if you're interested in planning a session for that timeframe and we can put something on the calendar!

Bluebonnets (Or Lack Thereof)

My daughter and I went for a drive down 290 on Saturday looking for some bluebonnets. We tried our usual spot right inside Washington County, but there just wasn't much to be found. So we decided to have some fun anyway. . . Maybe we'll have better luck next year with the bluebonnets, but at least we have these memories for now!

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!

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!