When you are a baby, a big bum is cute. I loved little Solene’s serious expression as I attempted to photograph her au naturale. She has beautiful, soft blonde hair and very feminine features. And when she smiles, she has a cute little dimple in her cheek. I am looking forward to meeting her older brother during a second session this fall.
Happy Mother’s Day to my AWESOME Mom (Joetta) and my SUPER mother in law Bonnie. I feel so fortunate to be loved and supported by you all year round. Thank you for putting up with me, I love you both (even though I am not sure either of you regularly read this)…. Here’s a few reasons why:
My mom. I love that you:
-Can’t pronounce Mitsubishi
-Love my dog as if she were your own
-Keep up with our two kids when you come for visits. I know they tire you out but you enjoy every minute you have with them.
-Travel out to see us 3 or 4 times a year, EVERY year
-Enjoy our special days together. Antiquing, shopping, eating, wine tasting, and the Garlic Festival just to name a few.
-Are my mom.
Bonnie. I love that you:
-Manage, and often ask for, all of the grandchildren, at one time, in your home, sometimes all day
(For those of you who don’t know there are 9, 75% under the age of 11!)
-Are so proud of your boys and their families
-And Dale are still in love after 30 + years and set a great example as couple and team for our families
Also…I wanted to send a special message this week to the extraordinary moms I meet throughout the year. Moms I enjoy getting to know better with each passing session. This AWESOME video describes how I’m sure many of us feel but couldn’t convey as eloquently. The video is of a mom reading an excerpt from a book she’s written. Having two boys I can relate well! The important takeaway is about the significance of ordinary days.
I hope this video helps remind you that the little things are really the big things and that those ordinary days you’re experiencing today will mean everything to you in the years to come. Now sit back, relax and have a few tissues handy! It’s only 7 and a half minutes, do it now!!
Hugs, Michelle
I always love it when I ask parents about trying specific things in a session and they respond with, “whatever you think is best, you’re the artist….” While I certainly enjoy bouncing creative ideas off parents during portrait sessions, I love it even more when they tell me just to go ahead and do what I think would work best. I appreciate when they put their trust in me to create something unique and meaningful to them. It is fun to incorporate a family member’s passion, such as biking, into an image. I liked this image a lot because it shows the baby’s size against her dad’s road bike tire. It sure helps when they are adorable too!
I’m so excited! For about a year and a half now, I have been wanting to include a smaller ”grandparent” album to supplement my beautiful Butterfly Books. It took that long for me to find a product that really excited me, but it arrived last week and exceeded my expectations! I would love to include an image here of the book, but it flew out of the studio today for display at a local charity auction so I won’t get it back for a week or two. Anyway, I know these will be a popular item from here on out and I’m so happy I didn’t settle for anything less than sublime…..
On another topic, hopefully you caught the US vs. Canada hockey game on Sunday? WOW, that’s all I can say. Since our son Tanner started playing rollerhockey about a year ago, I have come to really enjoy being a spectator of the sport. Whether it’s his team playing at Silvercreek Sportsplex, the SJ Sharks at the Arena or the Winter Olympic games, the time just flies by during a game!
Tanner told Kent and I that he had made a hockey bet with his school buddy Patrick. Tanner bet on the US and Patrick bet on Canada. $5. Which is kind of a lot for a 4th grader. Anyway, Tanner lost the bet and I was curious as to whether he was actually going to make good on it. After all, I did not see $5 comin’ out of that piggy bank last night. When Kent and I asked him at dinner tonight if Patrick tried to collect on the debt today, Tanner told me he had offered Patrick 5 Tic Tacs instead of $5 and Patrick opted for the Tic Tacs! Have I ever mentioned we think Tanner will grow up and practice law or go into politics? The kid negotiates EVERYTHING…..
Happy Birthday my little Max. I love you more than words can express. You completed our family. Here are some of my thoughts about you today.
I lOVE THAT:
-Your dad and I won’t encourage you to stop sucking your thumb because we think you look precious cuddling with Lion as you touch his soft ears. You LOVE everything soft. Sucking your thumb is one of the last visible signs of your babyhood and we are clinging to it like nobody’s business
-That no matter what we do or how many sweets you eat, you won’t budge past the 40 pound mark (oh how i want to move you to the booster seat!) You need to eat little man! At least we didn’t pass on the “fat” gene here….
-Whenever we ask what you’d like for dinner, you respond enthusiastically with “MEAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” You are my red meat buddy.
-You will take anyone on and seriously think you can take them. You are a tough little boy–a little rough, but all boy!
-On the flip side, i fought tooth and nail with Daddy so he’d be o.k. with you getting that kitchen set this Christmas. I bought it before asking of course, but I would have taken it back. Anyway, I knew you’d love it! I especially enjoy the bug soup and the poker chip stew you’ve been cooking up lately and that you go and get the “real” dishes (aka breakable ones) out of the cabinet to serve your creations. The other day I couldn’t find any of our plates and low and behold, I discovered them neatly stacked in the cabinet in your retro red oven.
-You think Riggs is a toy. (Riggs is our black labrador retriever). Although she is 12 years old, she tolerates you tying her by leash to our furniture, dragging her where you want in the house, teasing her with table scraps (you give up more than you think), and on occasion, giving her hugs and kisses. If we are walking down the street, you feel it is your duty to pet everyone’s dogs.
-You constantly steal daddy’s wallet, using his ‘paying card’ everywhere you go, including signing “Max” at the bottom of our dining bill once the waiter brings the check
-I can ALWAYS make you smile. Even when you just got a boo boo. I have my tricks and I’m not afraid to use them. Although oddly enough, these same “smile” tactics don’t usually work with children who aren’t mine inside the studio. Go figure?!!!!!
-Recently, you want to cuddle up in our rocking chair, under the blanket and have me sing to you as you fall asleep. We did that when you were littler and it’s back “in” this month. Who am I to refuse, even though I know it’s just a bedtime stall tactic?
-Daddy doesn’t mind me taking naps on the weekends (with you of course), because you won’t stay in your bed unless I’m there with you. (The sacrifices I have to make, I tell you). By the way, I’m still not ready to give up the nap. Stay with me buddy….
-Your favorite music rocks. I think it’s pretty cool that you request Deep Purple’s “Smoke On The Water” to listen to on your way home from preschool.
-You have all your special ‘boxes’ full of STUFF. You collect the oddest items and hide them in random containers. Keys missing? Check Max’s box. Paying card gone? Check Max’s box.
-For you….DADDY IS IT. You need to go everywhere you can with him. Every errand, every thing he does. When you can’t go with him, you cry. He has a shadow. Sometimes I see Daddy’s eyes roll up in his head when he has to take you with him yet again (I guess you add a little time to each task…) but I know deep down he will always remember and love this about you. He may not think you walk on water forever Kent….
-Even though he doesn’t recognize it, you idolize your big brother. Tanner adores and wants to cuddle you because he’s a cuddle bear. You’re the opposite, the rough and tumble, stingy-with-the-hugs-and-PDA kind of kid. But every once in a while, we catch a sweet moment between the two of you and I quietly put it away in my heart for remembering later when you are about to kill each other.
I could write a lot more, but just know you’re the icing on our cake.
I love you,
Mommy
I’ve photographed Jacob once a year for the past few years, and he has more personality with every passing year. This year we scheduled the portrait session outside at Vasona Park in Los Gatos so Jacob could explore and ‘fish’. Meet Jacob! He loves many boy things….cars, fishing, trucks, and dirt…
When we picked little Max up from preschool yesterday, there was a sheet of paper that was titled “Max’s Day” in his backpack. Max’s teachers decided to write a detailed summary of his day. This isn’t something that happens regularly, but I decided that this written gem is a keeper. It just describes….his life as a boy at 4. Here it is:
8:30-10:00 a.m: Excellent, very attentive, played well with friends.
10:00 a.m: Kicked student walking to sign language class.
10:20-10:45 a.m: Played well in floor activity by himself; worked well on witch project
10:45 a.m: Pulled student’s hair
11:45 a.m. Poked student in eyes while lining up after recess
12:30-2:30 Did good during nap time. He fell asleep for a little bit.
3-4:45: For the most part he played very well with other children. He had one incident (throwing sand in a student’s eyes in the sand box).
This is Max.
I haven’t come across chub like this in a while. Most of the babies I photograph between 5 and 8 months have a good deal of extra padding, but little Lola (first name Amada but she goes by either name) has padding to spare. My favorite things about her are her sunny disposition, sweet curiosity about things in general and her great, soft physique. She’s obviously a good eater! Here are a few of my favorites from our session. Her father enjoys fishing, so we incorporated one of his fishing poles in both her newborn session and this second visit.
Happy Mother’s Day! My family and I are planning on spending part of the day at Gilroy Gardens (or Bonfante Gardens as I still like to call it), then after the sun wears us all out, I will come home and take a nap with my little Max (4). Little Max moved from a crib to a queen sized bed several months ago and I have to tell you….I adore weekend naps with him. I stay up late most nights during the week, so this weekend sleep catch up is a necessity. Max is not much of a snuggler, but I love watching him drift off to sleep.
My gift for Mother’s Day is a complete detail of my car by all three boys. Kent has been intermittently working on this project all day long and with the boys helping, they used way more water than necessary as they enjoy the spraying/rinsing part of the wash. My car was washed, then waxed and I can hear the vacuum going now. He will use that oily stuff on the inside that I love the smell of….forgetting the name now, but it gives it that ‘new car smell.’ This is what I consider the BEST present because it is thoughtful and kind and they all participated. I bet I also get breakfast in bed–that’s become a tradition for my birthday and Mother’s Day. Eggs benedict with extra hollandaise and perhaps an extra egg. (Sometimes I can eat 3!!)
Lastly, I’m waiting for a beautiful bouquet of flowers. That I ordered for myself. Yep, you read that right! I didn’t intend on this happening, but I was online ordering flowers for my mom and saw this really great arrangement. (The same flowers you see above in this post–aren’t they great?) That arrangement was not available in Ohio, and I really, really liked them, so I decided I could enjoy some flowers of my own.
Tanner came up with another humdinger of a question in the car on the way to hockey practice yesterday. (He and I riding alone). The question was….”Where do babies come from?” I have now determined, based on how I responded to that question and the “Is Santa real?” question last month, that I pretty much stink at answering these very important questions. I know for the babies question, I went into way too much detail. After I finished bumbling it, I asked him to explain what I just explained and he didn’t want to, said he was a bit embarassed. Hmm.
Anyhow…that’s it for now. Thanks for reading and have an incredible day with your loved ones tomorrow!!!!!
