Sweet Hello's and Sad Goodbye's

I've looked forward to meeting these two little munchkins for some time now. Their fabulous mommy was pregnant along the way with me so I never got the chance to take their newborn pictures. I finally got to meet up with them for their 6 month shoot. I just love that age... just starting to sit up on their own, a whole big personality developing and lots of drool (what?... it has a magical, glimmery quality to it on camera :O) ). And who can forget little BIG brother, who I had the honor of capturing his whole first year. He was so shy when I arrived, but quickly warmed up and became the best photographer's assistant EVER! In fact, by the end he was so excited to be in front of the camera, Mom had to distract him elsewhere! We had a blast! Little miss took a little more coaxing... (she seems to have a serious side) but I think a fun time was had by all.
I can't believe they have the audacity to move out of state!! You will be missed very much. Thank you for the wonderful memories and the joy of getting to know your family better. All the best to you... with love, T

{Family Ties} South Hills Pittsburgh Family Portraits

Never underestimate the benefit of a good babysitter!!! I am so blessed to have one. I even overhear my kids telling her "I love you". That makes me know I made the right choice of a person to take care of my most prized possessions when I am needed elsewhere. (Plus she's 20 and all the energy that goes along with being 20 so she has the stamina to endure... while I must stop and rest every 2 minutes because this baby in my belly is taking up every available inch of space).
So, I wasn't surprised when I got to meet up with the rest of her family for a "Cousins" session and saw how great they were also. (She is a product of her environment, after all).
I hope I was able to convince you...the boys especially... that family pictures weren't the torture session you thought they were going to be :)

{3 Generations Strong} South Fayette Family Photographer

I love the fact that my job allows me the privilege of being able to get a real-life view of the families I photograph. Knowing someone in a work environment and knowing someone in their family environment is not the same... It's vivid and tender and fun to see how families love each other and interact. I had such a good time capturing this family and getting to know them even better!

{Bluebells and Curly-Q's} South West Pittsburgh Children's Portraits

When I met this little Bluebell, she was just weeks away from becoming a big sister! We had so much fun in her own backyard, picking daisies, singing silly songs, blowing bubbles! Fun, fun, fun! A daddy's girl to the core, I did manage to get a few pictures of her and mommy (and Mommy's belly) before she ran back to her hero, Daddy :) Isn't that always the way? We carry them for 9 months, feed them, bath them, change them... and they still like Daddy better :)
Looking forward to meeting her brand new little sister on Monday! Stay tuned!

{Dressed in White} Holy First Communion South Pittsburgh Portraits

I think there is nothing prettier than a girl dressed in white... no, I am not taking on wedding clients now. But I did get the lucky opportunity to capture this lovely young lady in her Holy First Communion dress. A little coaxing had to go on, and bribery too, from her dad and mom, but we were able to pull some genuinely beautiful smiles from this charmer, even if we had to resort to using "Justin Bieber" as the joke (and no, he is NOT her boyfriend, as we were told) :)

{First Bites...sort of} 1st Birthday Cake Pictures Pittsburgh Photographer

What a sweet smile this little man has. A few gorgeous teeth... but not a one of them a sweet tooth! I think he managed his whole first cake experience without actually taking a bite of the cake. Mom and I were very encouraging though :)
I had such a wonderful night getting to know this sweet soon-to-be 1 year old and his big sis with the amazing eyes! I hope when your birthday finally comes, you'll be in good practice to take a giant bite out of your real cake! Enjoy!

 

{Sweet Strawberries} South Pittsburgh Children's Portraits

I know that May is, according to Eat n' Park, the "Merry, Berry month of May" but these sweet strawberries just have to be included in that because we truly had a merry, berry time at their session. I've been getting to know these sweet sisters over the past year and never tire of playing with them during their sessions. They both have birthdays coming out so a big Birthday shout out to them from their biggest fan... me :)

{Rain, Rain, Go Away...} Pittsburgh Children's Portraiture

I know we've had a lot of rain lately. It certainly puts a damper on outdoor sessions this time of year, but when the weather breaks, we are greeted with such rich, beautiful greens it makes it feel like every raindrop was worth it.
This little enchanting angel's session was almost put in a holding pattern... forecast--rain. Mother Nature had different plans, I'm happy to say and we ended up having to actually hide from the overwhelming sun with no clouds! As long as cherished teddy (which is a teddy from Mom's childhood) was around, we were good to go! Thank you, God, for what turned out to be a wonderful day and beautiful greens, thanks to your "abundant" showers :)

{Blues Brothers} South Hills Pittsburgh Childrens Portaiture

There is nothing like the love between brothers! I only have one brother... and as of right now, my little girls only have one brother, so it's always so intriguing to me to see the interaction between two little boys. Energy is the best word I can use to describe almost every little boy I've come across... and these fit the bill times two! What fun we had rolling around in the grass and playing tigers--a practice I'm going to have to give up now that my pregnant belly is more like a beach ball than a small bump anymore. (and in case you're wondering... I am rooting for that second boy so my little boy can have a brother--stay tuned for Early August when he or she arrives)
It was so wonderful meeting you, R family! Thanks for playing with me :)

{Spring is Here!} South Pittsburgh Children's Photographer

I was stockpiling wood last week to start building my ark... Enough of the rain, already! But finally... a break from the gloom... a perfect day to take some Spring flowers out for a photo session. They were dressed in their Easter finest and we had a blast chasing each other around while capturing some great moments.  These are a few of the calmer ones, but I had to also throw in some evidence of the bribes I gave them... Thanks for a fun day! (as always, with you girls!)

{A Double Take} Peter's Township Children's Portraits

I know they say that the Third time's the charm... but I really think it's the second time that's the best... I had the pleasure of photographing these two beauties back in the summer on their "turf". The younger sister is a natural ham for the camera... big sister needs some coaxing--she's shy and reserved at first, but since we had "played" earlier in the year, she was ready to go this time! We had a great time hiding ourselves in the curtains in the ballroom at the club they belong to. Not sure the static electricity it created was great for the hairdo's, but we had so much fun we just had to roll with it. Santa won't have to check his list twice on these two... they are a lock for the Nice List :)

 

 

 

 

I just had to include this one... I call it {Waiting for Santa}

Thanks for a wonderful morning!