Photographing Adriane

My sister Adriane is seven months pregnant and she entrusted ME to take her maternity pictures.  I've never taken photos like this before (where I plan poses, shoot and retouch) and I definitely have a long way to go to get to professional photographer status.  First things first; shadows are a problem.  I need to figure out how to capture light correctly on my Canon Rebel.

Enjoy these pictures of my beautiful sister and her boyfriend Adam. 

This is my favorite.  Minus the huge shadow!

I like how the color turned out in this photo.  Plus the look on their faces is classic Adriane and Smitty!

 

I used some texturing here.



Millie with her Aunt Adriane.  The sun was shining BRIGHT!



Another one where the sun from the window was a little too bright.  I gotta work on that.

I can't wait to meet my niece Charlee Sue in August!

Nine Months Old

At nine months old Millie:

• is talking up a storm!
• is so close to walking it's scary
• can sit up by herself now
• can recognize repetition.  We play different games and she wants to do it over and over and over
• loves the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse
• likes to feed herself
• loves the water.  We go to Schlitterbahn all the time and she loves splashing around everywhere
• can pull up on most things but still struggles a bit
• can not get enough of her daddy.  She cries everytime he leaves for work in the morning.  :(
• wants to be mobile soooo bad!
• gets into EVERYTHING!
• loves her nap time
• dances!  She hears music and starts bouncing and smiling.  It's the most precious thing to watch.

Millie's 8 month photo shoot

We had a wonderful photo session with Caressa of Caressa Captures a couple of weeks ago and this morning I received a precious slideshow in my inbox.  I thought I would share it here and then post the actual pictures when I receive them smometime soon.


http://www.caressacaptures.com/slideshow/june2011_Millie/

A Place of Yes

I absolutely love book stores.  I love the smell of the paper mixed with the hint of fresh brewing coffee from the adjoining cafe.  I love the rows upon rows of every kind of book you could ever imagine.  I love the bonus section that carries all the calendars and planners and journals.  I always want to buy at least two or three different ones although I know I'll never use them as frequently as I used to.  Growing up I always had a journal that I would write in every night.  It's been really interesting reading them as an adult.  It definitely helps me remember my childhood! 

Anyhoo, I took Millie on a small journey through the bookstore today trying to find my next reading adventure and then I saw it.  Bethenny Frankel's A Place of Yes.  I absolutely love Bethenny.  I watch her show religiously and think she is the funniest woman on the planet.  She has a very strong entreprenurial drive which is so fresh to witness on TV.  Plus she has a beautiful family which she puts first, and that's a number one in my book as well.  So, when I saw this book on display in the inspirational section, I knew I had to have it.  Along with two other books that looked like fun. I can't wait to see what Bethenny will inspire me to do. 

I can't wait until Millie is a little older and can start appreciating books.  I'll take her to the bookstore and we will sit in the children's section and I'll let her pick out all kinds of stories for us to read together.  It's going to be so fun!!

Budgeting

Budgets.  Totally necessary but not very fun for two people who aren't used to having budgets.  BUT we are turning over a new leaf and I have taken up the task of planning a monthly family budget.  However, I have no idea where to start!  So, blog readers, how do you and your family budget?  Are there any cool Internet tools that help make it easy?  How do you begin to organize your spending?  As you can see, I need help.  Any advice is appreciated!  And yes, I have heard of Dave Ramsey, but I do not have the time (nor the patience) to read a boring book about financial responsibility.  We are responsible.  We just need an organized layout of our spending.
Thanks.

Rockport/Trevor's Birthday

This past Friday, May 20, was Trevor's 34th birthday and for the perfect gift, we decided we needed to get away.  So, early Friday morning we packed up the Tahoe for a two day weekend vacation to Rockport.  If you saw our car you would have thought we were packing for a month's getaway!  Babies really do need a lot of junk!

We started Trevor's birthday with pancakes in bed.  Millie  and I really put a lot of love into them.  Then Millie got Trevor the sweetest card and I gave him some new swim trunks and a Reef t-shirt to rock down at the coast. 

We arrived at The Little Bay Club which is located right on the bay and is private little cottages with one really cool pool.  We checked in and relaxed for a bit and then went and ate at Moondog's on the water which was really nice.  After Millie's bath we decided to go walk down the pier and watch the sun set.



Notice the huge mansion in the background?  That's George Strait's house!

Saturday we went over to the beach and got to introduce Millie to the ocean for the first time!

I love this shot.  She was checking out the water but wasn't quite sure what it was.

My absolute favorite picture ever.  Melt my heart one thousand times!

Flying over the ocean

We then took Millie back to the cottage to take a nap and then we headed to the pool.  She loved swimming in the pool!

She wasn't crazy about the float because mommy and daddy weren't holding her but she was brave!

Time out for a little lunch!

Millie absolutely loves the water!  She would kick her legs so fast and splash water into her face and then laugh.  It was so precious to watch.   We had the greatest time watching her laugh and just have so much fun being with her mommy and daddy for three whole days uninterrupted.  I'm not sure if this was a birthday gift for Trevor or for me!  This family time was so special and so memorable that I think we may make this an annual trip for Trevor's birthday.  What a great memory!

Little Moments

At Kelsey's Texas State graduation lunch

I had the most beautiful moment with Millie on Saturday.  We had been to my cousin's graduation lunch at Adobe Verde in Gruene and had a great time and Millie was on her best behavior and being so sweet.  But in my mind I knew she was exhausted since the lunch took place during her naptime.  When we left the lunch (two hours after Millie should have gone down) and went home to take a nap, I fixed a bottle (I'm no longer nursing...different story for a different post) and we sat in her glider in the dark and had our wind-down time.  After her bottle she so sweetly put her head on my shoulder and was so still (this barely ever happens anymore) and I just held her for the longest time.  It was pure bliss and I started tearing up and I thanked God for that special moment; for this most amazing gift of having a daughter.  I wanted time to stand still.  I made sure that I took that moment and stored it in my memory.

It's those little moments that I am so thankful for.  I'm thankful for her big grin that perfectly shows off her two little bottom teeth, the way she babbles to herself in her crib like she's having a conversation with God, I'm even thankful for her poop face (I know, but it's so cute!).  Being a mother brings so many new feelings and emotions that I never had before.  It's amazing how much love you can have for something so small.  I thank God everyday for my precious gift and for the ability to be here for her every smile, cry, laugh and all the little moments.  Here's to all of life's "little moments."