{The next two looks would be perfect for your maternity session!}

Every day I am reminded of where I came from and how I became the way I am today. Reminders come in all shapes and forms – a glance in a mirror revealing features passed down through the generations, pictures carefully framed throughout my house of those who have passed and of those still with us, a phone call from a loved one,  or simply through the tasks that I do every day that I have learned/inherited  from various family members.

We all take on traits – good and bad – of those who have touched our lives and I am thankful for what I have been given. I may never be 100% happy with who I am or what I look like, but I’m finding more peace with things as I get older and think of how I want to raise my own daughter. After all, when I look in the mirror and see my pale skin and freckles, that I used to be embarrassed by, I know that these are the same features of my mom, dad, sister and grandma. When I look at my reddish hair, I’m reminded of my dad and dear dear grandmother. When I rub lotion on my hands, I see my mom’s hands that I used to study so much in church. When I notice that I’m the shortest person in a room, I remember that I’m actually the tall one in the family. When I bake a pie or sit at the sewing machine making garments or things for our house, I’m reminded of my grandmother who taught me what I know. When I take out the hot glue gun, I remember how my grandmother taught my sister and I crafts over a summer in Arizona. When I hold a camera in my hand, I think of my uncle who gave me my very first SLR – Pentax K1000 – and am so grateful of that gift that shaped my career as a photographer. When I look at old articles that I wrote for various newspapers, I think of my great grandmother who was also a journalist. When people make fun of how I enunciate certain words, I’m proud because it’s how my family talks. When I look at my upward sloped nose, I see my grandmother. When I put on lipstick, I think of how my grandmother always put on her red Avon lipstick whenever she stepped out of the house. When I smell coffee I think of my grandfather with his big tin of Folgers and my grandmother’s pot of coffee peculating throughout the day on the stovetop. The smell of cigars always bring up fond memories of my grandfather who was a such a hard worker, had lots of patience and always gave valuable advice. What’s funny to me, is that a lot of the traits that I admire from my family members are the exact traits that attracted me to my husband, which is a good thing because it means that we’ll be passing those things down to our daughter Lily.

I am so proud of where I came from and those who paved the way for me. I’m not saying that we don’t have faults, because we certainly do, but I embrace it all. It’s all a part of me!  And for that…I’m thankful.

Lily’s Birthday Cupcake Recipe

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 cup self-rising flour

1 – 1/2 tsp finely grated unwaxed lemon peel

to decorate

4 oz cream cheese

1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 – 1/4 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice

pink food coloring

blue food coloring

edible balls

12 cup mini-cupcake pan, lined with petit fours liners

makes 24

Putting it all together!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, then beat in the eggs, one at a time. Sift the flour into the mixture and fold in, then stir in the lemon peel.

Spoon the mixture into the petits fours liners, then bake in the preheated oven for about 15 minutes until risen and golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

To decorate, beat the cream cheese briefly until soft. Gradually beat in the sugar until smooth and creamy, then stir in the lemon juice. Divide the icing between two bowls, add a few drops of food coloring to each one, and stir well to make baby pink and pastel blue. Swirl the icing on top of the cupcakes, then sprinkle over the edible balls.

Recipe from “Cupcake Heaven” cookbook by Susannah Blake.  page 73

Well, today, I decided to capture my lil’ girl right before her birthday so that I can remember her this way for always. This pram is a miniature of the one that I really wanted for Lily when she was a baby, but it just wasn’t practical for my suburban self and let’s not even talk about the price tag. Well, since I’m letting go and watching my li’ one go out into the world, I decided to buy this doll version. It’s for her to play with of course, but also for portrait sessions for you, my clients.  She LOVES it and I couldn’t wait to take some portraits of her with her new lil’ toy. She had a hoot strolling her lambie around and I enjoyed watching and capturing her. These are those moments I cherish and want to remember always. Luckily, I will be able to do that with these images. It’s a benefit of being a children’s photographer!

I drive past this driveway almost daily and I was fortunate to get permission from the owners to have Lily’s lil’ session in their tunnel of trees. When we started the portrait session, the sun was giving me these beautiful rich colors and within 10 minutes of the sun going down, it gave me this pretty light that was bright and heavenly. What a difference a few minutes can make at sunset!