We added a new member to the family, meet our newest lovable Golden Retriever – Roxy! Sandy (our other golden retriever) is being a very good Momma to the new addition and everyone just loves her to pieces. Take a peek for yourself, can you blame us?!

Olivia (my not-such-a-baby-anymore-little girl) decided to try her hand -or would that be feet?- at Dance Camp over the summer and had a blast! Michelle from the I Love To Dance Studio was absolutely wonderful to her. Olivia is hoping to continue with her dance classes on the weekends now that we’re back in school. I reluctantly admit that even I have been found bouncing along to the Jonah’s Brothers with her. Shameful I know but dang those songs are kinda catchy!

Nick (my middle guy) decided to take up Tae Kwon Do at Tae Kwon Do United over the summer and both of them have elected to pursue this sport after school. Nick is gearing up for his first belt test and very proud of his accomplishments so far. Olivia will be joining him for her first classes soon and well, we’re just kinda hoping she won’t ‘share’ her new found knowledge on her brother at home. That child can be awfully sneaky though! hehe

I said my goodbyes and I love yous to my oldest son who traveled to New York to start college this year. Yes, I cried. LOTS. I’m not ashamed to admit it. In fact, I still get a little teary just thinking about him. We protect them, love them, cherish them…then they learn to speak and we can’t wait for some peace and quiet but when the time comes to say goodbye it’s just never that easy. I’m very proud of my handsome young man though and I am certain he is going to do wonderful things in the great state of New York! In fact, I’m already planning a trip to visit him this fall so he can show ME all the sights for a change.

I’ll share a few snapshots from the day he left, grab myself some tissue, then come back to finish this post.

*sniff*sniff* Okay. Drying my tears again. Let’s get back to the reason you visit this blog, session highlights! I wasn’t kidding when I said “this photographer gets around”, I’ve been to almost every beach between Fort Myers and Marco Island over the summer with several sessions at my favorite beach in Naples and on the beautiful Sanibel and Captiva Islands. When I wasn’t up to my elbows in sand and salt water I was photographing the overwhelming number of newborns that came my way this summer. It certainly has been busy, but tons of fun too. See for yourself!

And that’s a wrap folks! Thanks so much for stopping by!

*thud*

After the year of trials and tribulations we’ve overcome; Rob’s heart scare, my surviving cancer, it just seemed very important to get out there, have a great time and prove that we are fighters. Rock solid and standing strong and determined to live our lives to the fullest! Heather you managed to captured so many wonderful moments for my family; our love for each other, a little romance, some definite sass and even a little of my crazy side that my clients know so well. Who IS that crazy lady chasing her kids through the fountain?! ha-ha Seriously, I can not thank you enough!

Click to watch the whole slideshow…

And a few of my personal favorites…

So, while you patiently wait for your proofs, sneak peeks and featured sessions here are some photos of my children preparing for the upcoming holiday….

Pumpkin carving….

Nick kinda looks like he’s waiting for something to jump out and bite him eh? haha Yeah, can’t say I blame him, they are kinda slimy! heehee But the shot of my oldest helping my youngest carve her pumpkin – PRICELESS. <sigh>

Okay, now some fun photos of my guys all decked out and ready to beg for candy…. Olivia has graduated this year…a mere princess will no longer do. Oh no. She is now the QUEEN. hahaha

Looking at these photos I’m not sure if I should be worried or not, I mean she is truly beautiful and I don’t think that’s just mommy eyes talking!! Still, on the other hand, her big brother does have a certain fascination with automatic weapons that will surely scare away most would-be suitors. So in the end I’m not sure yet which scares me more…the would-be suitors for Olivia or the military minded Nick…

Ah, there’s my guy. I know, he’s going to be TEN soon so sweet looks for Mommy are kind of out of fashion but I just adore that grin!! A big thank you to the U.S.M.C. for Nick’s authentic desert storm uniform provided by the amazing marines at Camp Lejeune, NC. You guys were awesome!!

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Good morning! I hope everyone had a fantastically creepy Halloween! I thought I’d pop back in to share one more Halloween capture with you all. Trevor (my oldest) had the honor of being our treat-passer-outer this year. Our house was the spooky hit of the community! Spooky sound effects playing on the outdoor speakers, fog billowing from the front entry, creepy spiders, unearthed bones and even a psychedelic laser light show playing on the garage door. We had a blast seeing our little scene come to life or would that be death? In any case, we knew we did a pretty good job when our neighbors kept asking if they could take photos in front of our house with Trevor.  Ha-ha!

Secondly, my kids tend to hide run avoid the camera. I don’t know why. Okay, perhaps the years I spent practicing my craft on them might have possibly caused them to become a little camera-phobic.  That’s just a guess though. The little ones aren’t quite as phobic but then, they’re little. I can bribe convince them easier than I can my oldest. With Trevor my photographic access is typically limited to special occasions (and sneak attacks). I lucked out big time this year since his birthday is tomorrow AND he’s graduating high school this year! I was actually able to get a hair cut (yes, it was longer!) and a whole photo session out of him and I didn’t have to remind him of the TWELVE HOURS of labor pains I endured to bring him in to this world more than a couple handfuls of times. Score!

So without getting too mushy I’d like to show off share my completely amazing, talented, generous, compassionate and totally cute son, Trevor!

I love you to the moon and back kiddo. Always have, ALWAYS will.

xoxo

- Your very proud Mommy

And it just wouldn’t be making memories if we didn’t include our golden girl, Sandy.

All calls will be returned after I return to the office on Monday, April 19th. I’ll be working hard to get the proofing galleries online for those who are still waiting just as quickly as possible upon my return. In the mean time Kelly promises to keep the blog hopping with Sneak Peeks from our recent sessions, make sure you give her some comment love because we’ve got some truly wonderful stuff to share with you all!

I have to share a little secret with you all, when I schedule a day of mini sessions like this I get so incredibly nervous before the big day. I worry that I’ll have a major camera malfunction right before the first client shows up or maybe all of the sudden neither of my cameras will turn on! Oh gosh, maybe I’ll run out of funny things to say or worse yet my brain will suddenly stop functioning altogether and I’ll have a creative meltdown with no ideas flowing between my head and my camera. I know, I know, it sounds silly but having so many different little personalities to work with during such a short time, one right after the other… *whew* it’s scary! Of course the moment I pick up my camera and start playing around with the children all of that fades away. I think that’s how I know I’m doing what I was meant to do, being a photographer I mean. I absolutely love being in the moment, making little faces light up and capturing those perfect moments in time.

I’d also like to take a moment to publicly thank Kelly, my wonderful assistant. GIRL, YOU ROCK! Thank you SO much for all your help! She was right beside me the entire time – melting in the heat, grabbing gear as needed, holding massive scrims over her head to keep the sunlight hitting where I wanted it to be and not where I didn’t. Not to mention having to be my comedic side kick for a few of the tougher nuts to crack. <grin>

When I wasn’t barking orders and making her hold large awkward things over her head for extended periods of time I let her play with my back up camera a little bit to capture some of the behind the scenes fun. I thought you might get a kick out of some of the strange spots I end up in trying to get ‘the shot’.

…like in the middle of a stream on a 12 inch rock…

… or peeking out from behind the bushes to surprise you (yeah, I’m tricky like that sometimes) …

… I think the end result is worth it though …

… some little ones just show up to the party full of smiles and ready to go …

Don’t I have the most beautiful clients? <sigh> Stay tuned to the blog, more sneak peeks are coming soon!

We’d like to interrupt your regularly scheduled blog surfing for a little tooting of our own horn…

Lifexpressions Photography has been selected for the 2009 Best of Fort Myers Award in the Photography category by the U.S. Commerce Association (USCA).

The USCA “Best of Local Business” Award Program recognizes outstanding local businesses throughout the country. Each year, the USCA identifies companies that they believe have achieved exceptional marketing success in their local community and business category. These are local companies that enhance the positive image of small business through service to their customers and community.

THANK YOU! I am honored.

I knew the session would be a challenge given the ages of the boys and the lack of duct tape in my camera bag. Luckily this Mom & Dad are two of the most wonderfully patient, calm, take-it-as-it-comes type of parents I have ever met. They don’t need, or necessarily want, some unattainable “perfect” family portrait. You know the kind where everyone sits like little angels and smiles for the camera on cue. That’s fiction! Life with two toddlers (soon to be three) is messy! They’re loud, they don’t stay in one place for more than a millisecond, and <gasp> dare I say it, they’re sometimes whiny. But oh gosh are they ever cute and if you take a deep breath, let them be who they are and let me capture that for you – you might just find yourself with a true portrait of a family in love. I’d like to dedicate the first two shots I’m sharing to wonderfully patient Mommy and those of you who email me thinking I just walk in the room and everything magically comes to order and the scene practically sets itself. Trust me, it ain’t always easy – but it sure is funny!

Mom and Dad seem to understand that with love, laughter and occasionally suffering through The Doodlebops together, they can survive all things.

It was just one week after our session together this family was dealt one of life’s most difficult hands. Their unborn child has been diagnosed with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a very rare type of congenital heart disease which will require several surgeries throughout his young life, the first of which he will undergo at just one week old. Now that you’ve learned a little about this very special family, please take a moment to stop by their blog to offer your prayers and support as they make their way through this very difficult time.

Enough of my moping about. This is a good thing right? Only 13 more years and I can have my husband all to myself again!! Bwahahaha Okay, who am I kidding?! They won’t leave, Trevor (my oldest) graduates from high school in two years and I think we’re going to have to physically escort him out of the house and plop him into a college dorm. He’s in absolutely no hurry to get out on his own. He went to school today cautiously optimistic, he’s a teenager so any optimism at all is always a good thing. He’s taking some college courses this year along with several honors classes so he definitely has his work cut out for him. I’m sure he can do it though!

Nick, charming as ever, enters the 3rd grade this year. When we went to meet his teacher at open house the other night she already knew who he was…why am I not surprised to find that his reputation precedes him, and is this really a good thing? Being a big tough third grader means the only photos I can take of him are at the house before school. I’m no longer allowed to escort him into his classroom on the first day, I barely got a kiss at the door when he went in. It’s okay, I understand. I’m MOM and it’s totally uncool for your Mom to give you a kiss goodbye when you’re 8 and 3/4 years old.

Olivia on the other hand, she’s still young enough to enjoy kisses from her Mommy and pose for pictures. Good thing too because I had a case of Elmer’s glue in my bag and I wasn’t afraid to use it! Just look at her posing up there! Too funny. I tried to get a more natural shot of her but she wasn’t having it. “I wanna stand like a dancer Mommy, like this, see, take my picture now Mommy!” *giggle* Ya gotta love her!

I started to feel those tears coming when Nick took her hand and started to help her to class, that was a very proud Mommy moment for me.  Surprisingly, I didn’t cry when I dropped her off and thankfully neither did she. I really thought I would break out in tears at any second and I think her teacher thought so too because as I was leaving she called out to me, “You can call any time during the day and check on her if you’d like Mom!” Ha, she probably shouldn’t have told me that!!

Olivia made it easy for me though, she sat down in her chair, gave me a little smooch, said “Bye-bye Mommy” and started doing her morning work like she knew the drill and this was no big deal at all. *sigh* Okay, now I think I’m going to cry, only 4 hours, 6 minutes and 37 seconds until I can pick her up.

Trevor, in typical teenager fashion managed to avoid the camera completely. Nick is obviously quite proud of his shell collection as marked by his willingness to ‘pose’ with his prize collection. His only disappointment came from having to return to sea the ones with little buddies living inside them.

Olivia was in love with the little clam shells and convinced she could hear the ocean listening to them too. ha ha So cute! She’s my little love monkey and has a tendency to not want to let go of my side but by the second day she was running wild along the gulf coast.

Peek a boo – come out little crabby and say hi!