{ moments treasured } ~ austin area child photographer

Some of my favorite photographs are just the ones I snap at random moments when the girls are grubby and dressed shabbily...when they are just being happy little girls. The photos I have of them snuggled in bed or playing on the floor are some of my most cherished pictures. Documenting their life by writing and taking still pictures is a gift that I want to give them, to pass along their childhood so that they can recall these days and also inspire them to record things as they grow. It's a brilliant habit to build.



Panties peaking out of little leotards, these days pass too quickly. Having one daughter who is almost 12 helps me appreciate the phases and how quickly they change from one thing to the next. Avery is a good reminder to me to indulge the girls in being young, spontaneous, and uninhibited.



Evelyn loves to sing and most recently has developed an obsession with watching this little girl on YouTube named Eva sing cover music. It's so funny to watch Evy as she stares at the screen and tries to sing along. A tiny moment of her life I never want to forget.



Much is happening in my life that I will hopefully be able to update you all about soon. Big changes and dreams circling through my mind and heart. Please send good luck vibes, I need the positive winds to blow here.

{ deplorable days } ~ austin area photographer

This is the face I've had pretty much all week...it's been a rough go. 11 days ago I got 3 tickets. In my defense, only one was legit. However, even after having two corrected and removed, I still came out of the fiasco $400.00 hurt. Ouch, I'm still feeling the pain of that amount, but I decided after ranting and stressing for a day, I can't let it ruin my life, it's going to pass and I'll arrive on the other end of this with a greater sense of the distance I should maintain between myself and the possible jerk in front of me, also that life is only as bad as we let it be. A little bonus lesson was that I now know about vehicle registration (I didn't know what that was... thanks Dad for always taking care of me, this proved I STILL NEED YOU!!!) and also how to pay a ticket. I realized how sheltered I have always been.



Next week I am hoping to show a happier face because I have good things on the horizon and it's about stinkin' time, the past couple weeks have been challenging my positive spirit, but I am witnessing my own strength and for once I'm kind of impressed by myself. Thank you to my friends who have endured those whiny days while I got my mind in the right place. I LOVE you.

{ appreciable lengths } ~ austin area photographer

Several years ago I had a hair catastrophe. Let me preface this by saying that I learned at the ripe age of 14 to NEVER use box hair color, ever, under any circumstance.

Okay back to my story. I was having my hair done by a local hair dresser and somehow our communication must have had a breakdown, because I asked him to help me get back to my natural color and fill my highlights. He filled my highlights, but my hair ended up tinted green and felt like mushy elastic thread.

Of course I am sort of brazen and I refused to leave with green hair, so I told him to cut it all off. Yes, I let him chop my hair to about a 2" all over boy cut.

I cried for 3 days without stopping and intermittently for months following (sometimes I still lament).

Since that time, I have not had a major haircut. That was about 9 years ago I believe, I stopped counting when I started to cry more. I have also not had major coloring and absolutely NO highlights. About October 2008 or so, I asked my stylist (a female in a different city!) to take me back to my natural color in a slow and healthy process. Through deep conditioning and tinted treatments, she helped the ends of my hair match my roots. My hair has been dark brown (even called black a few times) ever since that time with the exception of summer's sunshine adding some red and lightening it up a little, without the aid of coloring.

Today my need for change had me aching to call and make an appointment to cut it off, to just toss in the years of growing and mix it up. I've tried bangs, layers, ect....I just like change. My goal though, is to keep growing, I want long hair down my back and laying across my pillow. I know it's silly, but I just love how it feels, I mess with my hair all the time and I love when other (clean) people touch my hair...I have connections to my mane, I can't deny it. I took photos to see how long it has grown with the hope I would totally forget the impulse to chop off all the years of patience that it represents.

{ winsome teen } ~ austin area teen photographer

Not much to write today, I feel as though I have been living at the store the last few days. Here are some photos I took of my amazingly cool niece. She lives in another state and I was lucky enough to have her stay with me for a few days. I'm so grateful that I have relationship with my niece where we can talk for hours, laugh until our cheeks hurt, share musical preferences, sunbathe, visit tasty restaurants, and enjoy each other even if we were just sitting and painting our nails.

I have to give some serious credit to my fantastic sister Lyndsey! Lyn, you have done such a great job raising Kayla. She is one of the most interesting people I've met and knows how to be herself. You have given her a great foundation of confidence and assurance that you support her and love her and that you believe she can do anything she sets her mind to. I hope that I raise my girls in the same manner and that one day they can impact someone as Kayla has touched my life. I love you ladies!!!

xo, A

{ disciplined wont } ~ austin area photographer

After a week of of time off work, I am back. My routine resumed yesterday with an opening shift (which means leaving my house by 6:15 am). It was easier to get back into than I anticipated, however everything seemed a little foreign and overwhelming. I came home with an intense desire to sleep. Indeed that would have been nice, and probably even deserved, but I pushed myself to run and workout. I ended my routine with some planks and felt so accomplished that I decided to capture it for a flickr group I have just joined called 52 Weeks Of BAM!




Today I have been fighting the same urge to skip my physical exercise. I'm sad today, for a few reasons, but one thing I have learned for sure, is that if I choose to do the hard but healthy task of getting up and moving, I can surpass the blues and come out in a bright sunshiny mood. I'm going to run right now, and prepare myself for a fantastic day, even though I am still facing the same minor disappointments, I will know that I'm stronger and more fit for the challenges of life.

{circadian happenings} ~ austin area photographer

Each day brings something to cherish. Just take a close look at what goes on around on a daily basis and you will certainly see something worth holding onto in a memory book. The natural rhythm of life can become dull and monotonous if we don't make the effort to move to it and feel the beat in our core.

Just a few pictures of things that happen around my house that could be easily overlooked and forgotten, and sadly I have overlooked them in the past...but it's never too late to start storing away that's treasured times so I can recall them with my little ladies down the road or just when I need a pick-me-up.



Avery and her friend put make-up on Masyn and Evelyn. It's a little scary, kind of Cirque De Soleil looking. Masyn's in particular cracks me up because she's kind of sporting a "Toddler's & Tiaras" smile. Good times.



Love the choke hold, Evelyn has so many pictures where Masyn has her around the neck...poor kid.



Obviously she watches and learns from Masyn, because Evelyn does the exact some chokehold to BetteDavis.



The dog who lived.



I hope that you all had a fantastic 4th of July. Mine was one for my book, that's for sure, possibly a full chapter. For now the girls are climbing the walls and begging to go to the pool. Day starts...now!

{beatifically evy} ~ austin area child photographer

Today was a heavy chore day. My second full day of vacation time, second day in a row to be jolted from my sleep (which was supposed to be sleeping late...) at 6 AM. This morning it was Evelyn to wake me, not an employee. Evy, who I have missed in my bed and though it was early, it felt good to have her waking me with her whines for breakfast. Whining is her specialty, she comes by it naturally on her mother's side (though hopefully I have outgrown most of my whimpering and sullenness). I couldn't possibly not enjoy waking up to this face.....




Or this one....



Would you all believe I took this AFTER the giant 4.5 hour undertaking of cleaning their room?! The girls helped and were troopers all morning while I pulled everything out of their room, drawers, closets, everything was a wreck and I just wanted a clean slate. Today was a DEEP purging and purifying day in the room of my girls. The scariest moment was finding Avery's secret snack stash of open food under her bed. I literally had reflux for 30 minutes and kind of every time I think about it... *gag* You can see clearly under beds and dressers now, and the base boards are all cleaned. Masyn and Evelyn helped toss trash and put up books. It was a productive morning and they came out smiling! Well, it's maybe not quite a smile, but it's pretty darn happy and so stinkin' cute.






Tomorrow I go to retrieve big sister from camp! Avery might not recognize her bedroom when she gets home, or her sisters. I think Evelyn has changed just since the end of school. She seems so grown up lately.

My favorite little dialog from today:

Masyn - "Mama, want to know my favorite part about today?"

*because I frequently ask my girls what they liked most about the day

Me - "Of course I do, what was your favorite part?"

Masyn - "Cleaning our room and you finding my DS!!"

*The DS has been "lost" in the room for a loooong time.

Evelyn - "My favorite part about today was...NOTHING. Hmph."

Me - "Why is that Doo?"

Evelyn - "Because I can't find my Night-Night." (Night-Night = precious lovey toy)

Me - "Well come here, I can give you a favorite part of today, BIG hugs will be a good part!"

Evelyn - "Yes!!!!"

God I love these kids.



There is just something so special to me about this picture...not only the subject of course, it's the raw feel, like maybe I snuck back in time and took her picture with an old Polaroid. I'm for sure going to enlarge and frame this one.