Beautiful Mama | Calgary Maternity Photographer

Is this mom to be not just glowing?? Seriously? I cannot explain what an honor it is to me to be invited into people’s homes to help them remember special times in their lives. For this mom, the journey to motherhood was…well, it wasn’t so straightfoward, but here she is. Full of life. And love. And, oh so beautiful. This baby is going to be showered with love.

Since the baby is going to be showered with love, is there a better place to photograph that belly then in their awesome shower?? I think not…

These last three images are part of a series of images that are amongst my favorite maternity images ever taken. I am so happy the mom said I could share them with you all as I am literally overcome everytime I see them. This family had a beautiful house(as you can see from the images). AND, the mom had all of her clothes on a rolling rack for me to choose from–so yes, I chose the striped dress. AND I love the way it made her belly look…so curvy. FABULOUS. What a wonderful day–sipping tea, chatting, and shooting. I cannot wait to go back for the newborn session! Won’t be long now!!!!

PS–happy birthday to my wonderful mom feel free to leave her birthday wishes. I’ll pass them on to her!!!

Personal Images and A VERY CLOSE CONTEST :)

Here is a collection of some of my favorite images from our trip to Orlando. Some of my favorite things were:

•  Jack buying his old skool Mickey ears and insisting on wearing them everytime he stepped foot on a disney property. I love how his fabulous, wild hair looked sticking out from under those ears
•  Georgia being picked from the audience to participate in the Monsters Inc show and doing so extremely well.
•  Going to Storytime with Belle and literally 30 seconds after Jack announces “I feel so stupid” watching him get picked to play Gaston in the story.
•  My mom willingly going on almost all the rides with the kids. Even “Kali River Rapids” at Animal Kingdom…and then, while we are walking onto that ride seeing the ponchos for sale($7.50) and the sign that says: “You will get wet on this ride. You might get SOAKED.” Mom got soaked. And the water was soooooo cold. And she didn’t complain. Much. And, there is video of it. And, Georgia can be heard screaming through the whole thing despite the fact that you cannot see her as she is wrapped in Bob’s raincoat.
• Seeing that Jack has inherited my love of extreme rides and Bob’s love of speed. Space Mountain, Expedition Everest–you name it, he conquered it With his hands in the air and mouse ears on his head
• Those giant turkey legs you can buy at all the parks for $8. Bob and I shared one for lunch one day. As seen in the final image.
• I LOVE THE ANIMAL KINGDOM. Just saying.
• AND EPCOT. Because I am a nerd.
• Ice Cream everyday. Even when it was cold.
• Alice, the Madhatter and the White Rabbit accompanied by a film crew riding the tea cup ride immediately before us.
• the sandwich line every morning at our suite.
• the smiles, the hugs, the laughter…and the images. All 1435 of them. Seriously people who guessed more than 3000…seriously??? I am crazy, but I am not that crazy. I did take less than I thought I would but I was BUSY!!!! Eating ice cream, talking with Crush(we TOTALLY shared a moment dude), and denying my kids at gift stores.  Soooo, by my calculations–two people came extremely close(4 images seperated the two). Both Canadian photographers. One who I have mentored and one who’s scheduled a session with me and had to reschedule more than once due to CRAZY UNFORSEEN issues like mad snow storms and killer flus. So, Michelle won. I’ll be sending you your parcel of goodies really soon. I promise!!! And, Shannon–I just might have something for you, too!!! Thanks everyone for playing!!! It was fun to see all your guesses. That was a very long point

5 Years Old Today

This is me and my baby girl on a ride last week on our trip. She turns 5 today. How can that be? Seriously? How can 5 years have passed that quickly? This last year has seen her blossom from a shy, quiet girl into an outgoing, sometimes too loud, chatty, determined little thing. Okay, she has always been determined.

This is Georgia on the slowest ride in the Magic Kingdom as you can see by the lack of seatbelts and the look of utter boredom on her thill ride loving father’s face. I love LOVE love that she threw her hands in the air like it was a high speed rollercoaster loving every second of it. Since Bob has become a stay at home dad, she has grown so attached to him. She always wants to ride with him, dance with him, play with him…when she throws her little tantrums he just shakes his head and calls her ‘princess’. One of the things that she INSISTS on ALL THE TIME is that Bob carries her on his shoulders. Who can blame her? It is a wonderful way to see the world. He is, afterall, over 6 feet and she is…well, she isn’t. Bob asked me how many pictures I have of her on his shoulders. Hundreds is the answer, but never enough

I think that this will be the last year she will always be carrying a stuffy with her. She does–everywhere she goes. Her preschool teachers always ask where ‘Ted’ is–her favorite stuffy–if she forgets him. Well, she picked up a few new ones on our trip. Mickey, Minnie and Stitch. After the Stitch ride(which she screamed through–terrified), she declared him to be her new favorite. Most girls love princesses. Not her…little baby aliens suit her fine

Happy Birthday little girl!!! We love you to the moon!! And back