And, the winner is… JONEE!!!  Congratulations!!!   Jeremy drew the name this time around (thanks dear!).  Jonee…Be sure to send me an email with your mailing address and I will get this book to you right away.  Enjoy this fantastic book by Me Ra Koh!  You are going to love it!

Thanks to all of you who participated!!  I look forward to doing more giveaways in the near future.  In the meantime, feel free to send me an email in regards to topics you would like to learn more about when it comes to documenting your every day with your family. 

More to come soon…   

First of all, Happy Valentine’s Day to all of you!  It was a special treat to have a thin layer of snow to enjoy this morning.  I’m not going to lie, I do wish it would stick around for a bit longer than a day.

Well, I’ve been wanting to do this giveaway for some time now and thought today would be the perfect time.  The book you see above is written by Me Ra Koh.  She was one of the first photographers I discovered way back when and I loved reading about her love for photography and life.  She put a book together to guide parents in how to document their growing family.  I realize that this is geared towards new parents, however, she gives incredible tips on how to use your camera, how to use lighting to your advantage and so much more.  I know this book would be perfect for anyone who avoids their camera manual, yet wants to learn how to use their camera better.  You know who you are…

So, with that being said, I’m going to give a copy to one of you.  This is what you will need to do:

1.  I want you to leave a comment on this post telling me why you’d love to have this book. It can be as simple as saying, “I want to document the every day moments with my family better.”

2.  You can leave another comment on this post by clicking ‘like’ on our photography facebook page: Carpenter Photo & Design.  If you already like our page, go to number 3.

3.  You can leave more comments by encouraging your facebook friends to like our page as well.  For every friend you’ve sent to like our page, you get to leave another comment on this post, as well, telling me you sent someone to our page.  Of course, this giveaway applies to them, too.

All of that to say, the more comments you have on this post the more chances you have to win.  So, leave a comment, like our page, tell your friends to do the same, leave another comment, etc.  I will randomly choose a name from the comments to be the winner.  You have until Saturday, Feb 18 to do this!  I will announce the winner this coming Monday!  Start commenting, sharing and liking!

Oh, and just so you know…the ‘like’ button you see below (lower left) will share this post on your facebook wall.  I don’t know who likes this post…I can only see who likes our facebook page.  You must first leave a comment below to be entered into the drawing.  If you would like to have the opportunity to leave extra comments, you have to actually go to our photography facebook page and click ‘like’ in order to leave an additional comment on this post.   Sorry to make this confusing!  Let me know if I’ve lost ya.

Looking forward to sharing this with one of you!

For starters, just a day old here…

This photo was taken in the hospital and she loved to lay like this.  It was then that I understood my discomfort while she was in the womb.

Her big brother fell in love immediately.  His first words were, “Is this my little sister?”  Instant tears from this momma…

Just a week old…

Valentine’s Day 2008

Spring 2008

I have loved seeing their little friendship develop since day one.

Fall 2008: I made the left photo into a gallery wrap a few years ago.  Still one of my favorite photos…

Claire has been busy since she could start moving.   The photo below was Christmas 2008.  She was walking by 10.5 months.  Another favorite photo of our two little loves.

Having a blast at the age of 1!

Loved the photos captured that summer evening in 2009.

She is full of expression.

If you’ve been following this blog for a while then some of these are familiar.  However, I couldn’t help but share some of them again.  So many of these truly depict who are little baby is…

She loves adventure and animals…especially puppies, kittens and horses.

She’s girly in every way.

She’s as happy as can be…

She is ornery…especially with her big brother.

She loves to paint her nails and strawberries are definitely at the top of her list.

She lost her first tooth when jumping into the pool the summer she was 3.

And, here we come to the present day with vivid memories of Disney World, the state fair and Christmas 2011.

These next photos were taken just a day before she turned 4.

She’s our beautiful, baby girl and we have been so blessed to have her in our lives.  I realize that time is only going to go faster…and, not slow down.  However, I hope these memories will continue to grow in my heart and mind as the years continue to pass us by.  I know we all take pictures, but I encourage you to go through them every now and then…whether it be around birthdays or at the beginning of a new year.  It brings the memories to life and is a great reminder how blessed we all truly are.  Happy birthday, sweet girl.

Well, since this blog has not received much attention lately (due to my schedule), I thought I would share my instagram photos from the month of December.  The month flew by with lots of memories in the books.  I hope this finds your year winding down with lots of memories to cherish.  I’m looking forward to sharing more in the coming weeks…including a few give-aways.  So, stay tuned for more to come.  Many blessings!

I’ve discovered the world of PostalPix.  I may be one of the last ones to know about this little app, but oh, how fun it is.  If you’re like me, you have many photos on your phone and while my intentions are good to load them to my computer and print them off…well, let’s just say it hasn’t happened yet.   However, when my good friend, Jenni, mentioned it on her scrappy blog I thought I’d check it out.  First, I ordered a handful of 4×4′s and 4×6′s and I have to admit that for a phone, the quality is pretty decent.  Then, I decided to go ahead and try out the mouse pad.  I’m not one for busy things on my desk (I have enough distractions).  However, my paper pad has emptied (and I can’t seem to find a new one right now), so I thought the photo from California would be a bit more soothing (and a longing to go back .  When I look at this photo I still can’t believe it was printed from my phone.  I have officially dated myself to the point that if you would’ve told me 10 years ago that we could do something like this I would’ve thought you were ridiculous.   Anyway, if you are curious as to what to do with your phone photos then check it out.  You can place the app on your phone and order directly from there.  The process was almost too easy.

I had to include a few photos of Gabe.  I haven’t had the camera on my kids all month.  Gabe is obviously at school, so the photos I’ve taken have been from my phone and primarily consist of Claire.  So, here’s my precious boy…he has developed a love for climbing trees.  He’s so much like his mom and dad, it’s crazy.

And, finally, I thought it would be worth everyone’s while to share this.  If you are on Pinterest then you’ve probably already seen this pass through.  It is a great reminder to have close to you when learning to understand your camera better.  I wish I could’ve had something like this when I was learning.  So, print it off and keep it close by…  

Gabe and Claire are at a fun age right now.  To be honest, I’ve loved every stage and age since they’ve been born, but that’s besides the point.  Gabe is growing right before our eyes and has a special place in his heart for Claire–most of the time…I won’t mention that he has a poster on his door that says, “Claire needs to stay out of my room.” .  Anyway, Claire is very much into the princess stage right now and has actually asked Gabe to marry her…several times.  He, of course, declined, so Claire decided she would settle with Jeremy.

A few weekends back (we didn’t have a wedding), I decided it was time to grab some photos of the kids…since I have only taken candids the majority of 2011.  Bad mom.  Anyway, we went out and I was hoping to walk away with just a few photos.  I guess you could say they surprised me…to a whole new level.  They hammed it up from the beginning.  When I asked them to dance (if you follow our photography blog then you know that I have an obnoxious way of dancing with the kids, so they are quite familiar with how the process works , they obliged and gave me so much more than dancing….smiles, laughter, dipping, twirling.  It was the sweetest thing to watch…I almost forgot to take pictures of it.  Well, the part that stole my heart was when Claire said, “Gabe!  You’re my prince and I’m your princess!”  Oh, how I melted…right there.  I knew then that these photos would capture my heart again and again as they passed through each stage of their sweet lives.  Even though they antagonize each other at times, they really do love to be together.  Our prayer is that their little friendship will continue to grow with each passing year.  I couldn’t be a prouder mom…so very blessed.

This little session only lasted about 15-20 minutes…that was all I needed.  And, I am SO glad that I took a few minutes to stop and capture them where they are right now.  I can’t believe how much they have changed over the summer.  There are many times where I carry guilt about taking time to share personal pictures when there is so much editing/work to do for our clients.  However, I realize that there times when inspiration can be found from within.  Capturing these moments of Gabe and Claire have reminded me how important it is document their lives.  I am beyond thankful for the many that have entrusted us to capture memories of their families that can be remembered for years to come.  Sharing these photos has given me an extra push for all that is on the to-do list.  I can’t wait to share more of our clients in the coming days/weeks on the CPD blog.

Below is a peek at our week.  It went by fast leaving us somewhat tired and exhausted, but the memories will be with us forever.  I now understand why people call it the happiest place on earth.  Jeremy and I had never been there, so we didn’t know what to expect. The kids were beyond excited to be there (only a little hot) and we were amazed at how much there is to offer.  We are so thankful that we took a break during our busy season to make these memories…wouldn’t trade this time for anything.

Gabe was excited to have his picture taken in front of the castle…

Claire, on the other hand, not so much.  She did identify this castle as her castle, though…can you blame her?

We took Claire to meet the princesses. Obviously, she wanted to wear her princess dress.  So, I did her hair and put a touch of makeup on her.  She added a bit more eye shadow.

And, then there was the Disney parade…

Followed with fireworks…quite the display.  I was so impressed by how they did their night time activities: parade, slideshow of the day on the castle, followed with fireworks.

Gabe’s favorite place, by far.  I must say that this restaurant was unbelievable.  However, most things at Disney are unbelievable…the detail that is put into their rides, restaurants, shows, etc is incredible.  I guess most of you know that already…

Claire was in love with her Minnie and Mickey Mouse (bride and groom) that she picked out.  She called them her prince and princess…

Our time by the pool was a must.  We have two water bugs that would live in the pool if we would let them.

I guess you could say this was common during our stay.  We were all worn out which left our kiddos looking like this.  Thankfully, no one caught me sleeping…I’m sure that I looked much more exhausted and not near as cute.

That’s our trip in a nutshell.  It is time to get back into my groove of our season.  Hope your summer is bringing you lots of memories!

This is our busy season (aka. crazy season).  We’ve got weddings and portrait sessions and editing and designing and ordering and emailing and…and…  It’s this time in the summer where I feel as though I may spin out of control.  However, I also realize how important it is to stop and take in a breath.  I don’t do this often enough, but today I did.

I had a newborn session this morning followed with an unexpected lunch date with my dear friend, Jennifer, who happened to be helping me with my session.  We decided to eat lunch outside and sat next to an older couple.  We exchanged a few words and then went on about our meal.  As we were getting ready to leave, I realized how intrigued I was by them.  I have this thing for older people…it’s in my blood.  My mom worked at a retirement home for years, so I’m naturally drawn to them.  I love to hear their hearts while they share their stories.  Well, today I decided to act on my feelings and talk with them.  We heard about their lives in their earlier days, talked about the community we live in, our children and enjoyed some laughs.  After we said our good-byes, my friend, Jennifer, and I headed back to our cars.  During that time we ran into another elderly man who was having a difficult time getting around.  It was obvious he was looking for something, so once again, I stopped.  This dear man was looking for his glasses so that he could drive home.  We went from store to store looking for them and finally found them in the visor of his car.   He told us how much he appreciated our help.  As we were leaving I told him to have a good day.  He smiled and said, “I will now.”

All of this happened within an hour of my busy day.  I realize that this is our crazy, busy season and I’m usually only giving up my time for our kids/family.  But, today…today was different.  I gave up one hour of my day to have lunch with a friend, meet the sweet couple from the restaurant and help a man in need.  It was enough for me to feel inspired…inspired to come back and work, inspired to meet new people that happen to walk by, inspired to make more time for me-my family-my friends, inspired to take my camera around with me more often.  So, whether this inspires my work, my soul or both…it was worth it.  All because I gave up an hour to live life.

Tricks for taking pics:

1. Sing a song:  As parents we sing all the time to our kiddos.  You know what their favorites are…just start singing.

2. Whisper:  This is one I grabbed from my teaching days.  Children feed on high levels of energy.  The more excited we get, the crazier they get.   With that being said, if I’m trying to get their attention I start to whisper.  I might tell them a story or ask them what their favorite things are.  They will start to unwind when you whisper.

3. Sneezing: This is where I can be somewhat ridiculous.   I pretend like I’m sneezing.  It usually involves things being on top of my head while I’m doing it.  I’ll let you visualize that one.

4. Stinky feet:  Who’s got them?  Mommy?  Daddy?  Grandpa?  They get tickled every time.

5. Dance, peek-a-boo, tickling, in-between moments: These are the random go-to’s based on what I’m feeling with each child.  Of course, these depend on the age of your child and the amount of energy that is flowing.  Sometimes you just have to be crazy and go with it.

As we go into the holiday weekend, feel free to try out some of these tricks.  Hopefully, they will bring results that are much different than the photo of Claire above.   Good luck!