Hissyfits Photography Blog

It is safe to say that Huntler is MORE than thrilled about his birthday! He has been counting down for months now!! I just can’t believe he’ll be FIVE tomorrow! In honor of the little man and his big day, I am posting ten thing about him on his last full day of being four!

1. The boy loves school. LOVES it. Pre-K. I am not sure whether he loves the social part or the educational part more, but I really don’t care at this point! He is getting so much out of it from both aspects…and as a mom, that is all I really want! I hope his love of learning only continues to grow with him.

2. He also loves his lil’ sis. Yes, oh yes, they fight like cats and dogs on a regular basis {everything from rolling around on the floor to taking things away from each other to now hitting}, but when push comes to shove, Huntler will protect her no matter what. Say for example that the kids are not picking up their toys after they have been asked numerous times and we tell Gentry that we are going to take away one of her babies…Huntler goes into panic mode. He tears up and freaks out that we are going to crush Gentry by taking her doll away! So then he’ll do all the picking up for her just so she can have her baby! Now that is some serious love going on here peeps! {I’ll just throw in the fact that she does the same thing…if we threaten to take a train away from Huntler, Gentry freaks out, cries and carries on!}

3. At this point in his little life, Huntler could survive on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and fruit. He hates to try new things and sometimes forces himself to gag when he does. Good or bad, he gets that from me.

4. While he may have my simple taste in food, he wants to be just like his Daddy when he grows up. He brought home a little book about our family from school the other other day and he drew Daddy’s work and said that when he grows up he is going to work with Daddy. He also can’t wait until he is big and strong just like Daddy and can lift weights. This whole thing with wanting to be just like Chris is all fairly new but super, super sweet!

5. I LOVE his sense of humor right now! He is always coming up with the funniest little things! They really make no sense whatsoever, but they are hilarious! Like, “That is so funny it makes me want to spit in the pie crust” and other random things. Yes, really, really random, but funny! It is even funnier because he isn’t trying to be funny!

6. I am afraid that Huntler’s obsession of all things Thomas and Friends might just be coming to an end. Yes, he still plays with all of his stuff and wants new trains whenever we go to Toys R Us and even still takes trains along with us from time to time, but I can tell the intensity of the love is fading. Of course it makes me sad…I LIKE Thomas and the fact that all of the stuff is still so young and innocent. But I also recognize that he is a boy and in time {and against my will} he will more than likely grow to love things that aren’t quite as innocent. Such is life…

7. Huntler is also starting to READ! He is spelling and putting words together like nobody’s business!! I can’t believe it! For the most part they are all fairly simple words, but he does know how to spell some long ones!! Elephant, school and banana are ones he spouts out often!

8. I love that this little guy LOVES to snuggle! He’ll squirm his way in and get right up next to us for some lovin’! He loves to be cuddled and held close. He also loves to give HUGE kisses at night!

9. Can you tell he loves the pool? These were all taken Sunday night and despite the fact that the kids were freezing cold little popsicles, they were having a ball!! Hunter loves the slide, loves to kick around, loves to jump off the edge…just loves it!

10. Ahhh Huntler. As much as YOU are looking forward to turning five tomorrow, a little piece of me still wishes you were that tiny little bean we brought home from the hospital. So cute, so innocent, so full of promise. I look at you now and see such a handsome little guy…still cute, still innocent and still full of promise! I look forward to seeing what this next year brings for you sweet boy! So here I am, closing my eyes, holding my breath and taking that little leap of faith right along side you. I love you to the moon and back little man, I love you to the moon and back.

Yes, I am still here. I seemed to be sinking as opposed to floating though!! Like so many of us, I try to cram about a bazillion things into my days and in the end, not everything gets done!

This week it is all about the boy. Ya know…he turns FIVE on Wednesday. Five. What has happened to the last five years? How can he be getting so big?

If you know me, you know I have lots to say, but we are expecting a house full of company in just a bit and Gentry is still running around in her jammies. Yes, you read that correctly, jammies at 5:23 PM. Off to pretend that our house is clean and my kids have been dressed to impress all day long!

I’ll be back tomorrow with Ten on Tuesday…the all about the boy version!

Don’t you just want to scream she is so stinkin’ cute? Or is that just me because she actually belongs to me? HA! SO LOVE this image and have plans to have it printed large and on canvas! Maybe one for her room and one for ours! It is just SO our Gentry girl! Those are my shades she is sporting…pretty fab huh? And see Chris’ and my reflections in them? At first I was a little annoyed and kept wishing Chris would move and get out of the shot, but then I decided that I actually really LIKED him being there! It adds a fun dimension…gives it a story! Now what would have been REALLY cool would have been to have Chris leaning over to talk to Huntler and me to be in the other lens shooting! What a twist on a family photo!!

There are many more where this came from but this week has gotten a little crazy on me somehow! Client orders, dance, hair cuts, cleaning, sorting through Gentry’s fall wardrobe figuring out what colors/sizes of ribbon I need to make her matching hair accessories, school…just life!

Hope everyone is well!

Saturday evening I met up with Rob, Tracy and their beautiful baby girl, Riley. The evening was a recipe for perfection…much cooler temps than we have been seeing, dark and dramatic skies as storms were building to our north and a smiling, happy, adorable nearly one year old!

Meet Riley. This little lovebug will be one on Friday! Can’t you just feel her personality? Such bright eyes and sweet spirit…eager to explore and learn and grow.

Riley’s mama first found me when she was searching for ladybug party ideas online. She came across the post I shared on Gentry’s ladybug party and figured out we were in the same big city! And the rest my friends, is history! Tracy is every bit as into party planning as I am and this little girl is going to have one FAB bash!! I hope years from now when she looks back at the pictures from her first birthday, she will recognize how much time and effort, but most of all love, her mama put into making everything absolutely perfect.

The little miss LOVED these wooden ladybugs her mom brought along!! And her clothing? Don’t even get my started! Darling, darling and more darling! Exactly my style without a doubt! Be sure to take note of her shoes in some of these shots! Mom made them!! Yes, the little lady is a lucky one…she has a crafty mama! And now I am feeling super inspired to try my hand at adding some bling to some cute Converse tennies for my little diva! Tracy, I need to know all your secrets!!

Most of these images screamed color in some way, shape or form but I am loving the classic, “warm” black and white feel of this one. So timeless, so soft.

When Tracy mentioned that Riley’s party was the ladybug theme and what she was going to be bringing for her to wear, my mind immediately went to a few of the decorations I had left from Gentry’s party. What fun, unique props!

Thanks for entertaining my idea on this Tracy…I love the way we were able to use the fence!! Riley not only walks but walks REALLY well so the fence actually came in handy for distracting her and keeping her in one spot!

The picture above and the next two down are quite possibly my favorites from the entire shoot! Something about the setting, the coloring and the magical feel just makes me happy inside. Oh to be one…the innocence, the wonder, the sheer joy found in the simplest of things.

And whoever said that your eyes “have” to be open for a picture to be cute is crazy! I happen to love her closed eyes in this one! Miss Riley was fine with her headbands but the second the hat went on, she started trying to take it off! And speaking of the hat, isn’t it fab? I am telling ya, Tracy knows how to accessorize!!

This is the same image I posted in the sneak peek, I just love it so…

Once I found out Riley was walking so well, I wasn’t sure if we would be able to get her to sit in my little vintage chair! But sit she did!! I think she even kind of liked it! Notice the ladybug again…I am thinking she has the PERFECT theme for her birthday this year!!

Looking at mom or dad and laughing!

I was playing with the light on the next two! Love the artsy feel and the burst of light peeping in through the side!

Happy first birthday Riley!! May you always know the love your parents have for you! In just the hour and a half we spent together it was more than obvious to me that they are over the moon with you!

Rob and Tracy, thanks for making the trek to see me! It was so nice to meet you! I can’t wait to hear all about the party so be sure to email me pictures afterwards! Have a wonderful week!!

Oh my goodness! I had a SUPER fab session tonight with the adorable Miss Riley! I promised her mama a sneak peek before I went to bed, so here you go! Tracy, I hope you love them!

Can you get over the dramatic feel of this one? LOVE it! Love the way I feel like I am in The Wizard of Oz or somewhere majestic when I look at it! The sky tonight was nothing short of ahhh-maz-ing!! And that is just the technical side…look at that beautiful girl and those darling goodies mom brought along! So much more to come!! So much more to come!

Thanks again Rob and Tracy! I really appreciate you guys making the drive out to me! I had a wonderful time tonight! Your family is adorable!

Now before you go and start thinking I am some wonderful mom who whips up all sorts of fab snacks every week, let me set you straight my friends! That is NOT the case at all. In fact, despite the fact that we have had two playdates AND dance this week, I still feel like I have been a “not-so-great” mom and this was my attempt yesterday at having fun and sucking up to my littles! We just so happen to have a boat load of candy from Gentry’s party left and I am trying to find little ways here and there to use some of it! Not that these took much obviously!!

Anyway, just want to say HAPPY WEEKEND and see ya on Monday! Or maybe Sunday…ya just never know!!

When I started blogging a year and a half ago, I am not really sure what I expected to get out of it, if anything at all. I knew I wanted to write – to babble on about the insignificant little details that composed my days as well as those that were actually important. I knew I wanted to post snapshots of my darling kids for friends and family “back home” so they could see what a day in our life was like. But what I didn’t know was what a huge part of my life blogging would evolve to be…the void it would fill and the friendships that would bloom because of it.

Two years ago I was happily oblivious to what “blogging” even was. I distinctly remember asking Chris one evening what exactly a blog was! HA! My how times have changed! I have connected with women all over the United States…some near and some far. We have bonded over chatter about everything from mothering to photography to party planning to crafting. We have shared our ups and downs…our victories and our failures. Everything from potty training secrets to who on Etsy has the cutest dresses to easy crock pot recipes has flashed across my computer screen. Quite simply, our lives have become intertwined in a way that only fellow bloggers can truly understand.

This past weekend I had the wonderful opportunity to meet up with one of my sweet “blog friends turned real life friend” and photograph her adorable family! {Out of respect to her family, I won’t be using their names…but you’ll catch on pretty quickly!} To be perfectly honest, I can’t exactly remember when “Mom” found me! But she did. And she commented. And so begins the circle of blogging. Curious of course, I clicked over to see just who it was that commented! And a connection was born. We continue to stay in touch through our blogs and also emails. Mom is an amazing party planner and our love for attention to detail has had us sending many a late night email with links, ideas and thoughts on upcoming parties!

When she contacted me in regards to taking her daughter’s four year pictures, I was thrilled! After months of this online relationship we had going on, we were finally meeting in person! It was SO nice to actually meet and be able to capture some images of her family.

Meet “Big Sis.” She will be four next month. She is just as cute and bubbly as she looks! It took her just a little bit to warm up, but once she did, it was like we had known each other forever! She was so comfortable in front of the camera and was such a joy to photograph!

Just to warn you, I am posting a ton of images! There were so many fun ones that I just kept editing and editing! Plus, these guys had quite the drive to meet up with me, so they deserve a little extra love on the ‘ole blog!

I am starting off with my traditional vintage retro look! You’ll notice that I processed these in several different styles…the colors and the clothes inspired me to do a lot of different things!

This first one is one of my personal faves…it is truly “my” style in editing! I love the haze and the timelessness of it!

How ADORABLE is this face? Love it!

And the shoes? And toes? Couldn’t you just scream at the cuteness here? Her grandma jazzed up these flip flops to match her dress! And her mama took her in for a pedi before our session! LOVE it!! It is ALL about the details, my friends, all about the details!

And now for a pop of color!! A little bit outside my “box,” but I love them!! She was looking up her mom here.

These next two were inspired by Laci Davis. She has a series called “Favorite Things” in which she takes images of kids and families with their favorite things. Mom thought it would be fun to capture some of her girls with their favorite things right now. Big sis here happens to love zebras! In fact, her upcoming birthday party is this same hot pink/black/white zebra theme! I have seen some of the decor and party favors…it is going to be DARLING!

Grandma made all the hair bows too! Doesn’t she rock?

Ahhh…”Little Sis.” This sweet thing was not loving me. At all. Despite all her protesting though, I did manage to get a few cute ones of her! Mom was worried that we didn’t get anything, but I think we captured some keepers for sure! Is she smiling in all of them? No. Is she giving great eye contact? No. But that really isn’t my style anyway! Freezing moments in real life is more my style, and this is quite simply, real life with a toddler.

Same shot…just wanted to try it in both color and with a little vintage haze! And yes, those are Smarties she is enjoying here!

Quite possibly my favorite shot from the entire shoot! Could that lip be stuck out there ANY further? I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!

A little sisterly love!

And of course a few of the whole fam!

Another fave! I love how they look so relaxed and unaware of me and my camera! Just a family, being.

I want to thank you all once again for making the trek out to see me! It was so nice to finally meet you! I hope you look at these and remember our time together…your family is darling!

Holiday card samples will be showing up in the gallery section of my website over the next couple of weeks! So, if you are wanting to order those, they are on their way!

Happy Tuesday friends!! We are half way through September already! YAY!! Here’s to hoping that October brings some cooler temps and cloudy days!!

Ready for your weekly bits of randomness? If we are friends on Facebook, some of this is “old news,” but I am sharing again anyway! And speaking of Facebook, if I ignored your friend request, it was probably because I didn’t know who you were! Sooo…next time just include a little note letting me know who you are and that you are not some middle aged creepy guy stalking me and my family!

1. Although I am diligent about my kids getting their regular vaccines, I have never been too big on the flu shot. When they were both tiny they had it, but the last couple of years we have opted to skip it. However, with all the chatter about the Swine Flu this year, once there is enough of the vaccine available, we are all four getting the shot. Am I thrilled? No. I about send myself over the edge with anxiety when it comes to needles, but I would much rather endure a flu shot than get super sick. And even if the virus mutates and the vaccine doesn’t work, at least I’ll know I did everything in my power to keep us well!

2. Speaking of vaccines, IF we ever have another baby, I am definitely going to read this book {or one like it} and maybe do things a bit differently. Since having our babies, I have become SOOO much more aware of possible complications and “side effects” of giving your child too many shots at once that it is definitely worth researching more.

3. I probably shouldn’t make this public knowledge, but in the spirit of keeping it real, Huntler knows how to operate our TV remote like a pro! Yes, my children do in fact watch TV. Some days more than others…I am human and at times use the TV to entertain. There…I said it!! Anyway, back to the child at hand. He can now record shows, fast forward, skip forward, rewind and pause whenever he feels so inclined! He is BIG on the pause button. Whenever he is watching something and needs to run to the bathroom or to get a toy, he pauses it! Hilarious!

4. And speaking of Huntler, he almost has this entire song memorized! I had never even heard of the Nifty Fifty until I saw a clip on my friend Lacey’s blog of her just barely three year old reciting this little number! {It is on her personal blog so you won’t see it if you look back!} I of course looked it up and Huntler is hooked! We have since bought it on iTunes and he could {and does} listen to it over and over and over again!

He also got this puzzle for Christmas last year and LOVES it! So we put the song on repeat and bust out the puzzle and Huntler goes to town! The crazy thing is, he can totally recognize the states by their shape and is even getting good at reading their names. In turn, Gentry is also learning her states…and the song as well! I can ASSURE you I did not know my states at 5. So yes, he watches TV, but he is super smart anyway!!

5. More on Huntler! His birthday is coming up in just a couple of weeks and he has been counting down for days now. I am sure he has told his teacher ALL about it! He’ll tell anyone who will listen! He came home on Friday and told us that her birthday was on Monday. He knew hold old she was going to be and everything. And of course he wanted to take her a present! So, because he knew all of this, we just assumed that she had made an announcement and told the class that her birthday was coming up. Sunday night we put together a sweet little gift for her and Huntler took it in yesterday. He was on cloud nine to be giving her a present! Chris most generally takes Huntler and picks him up so I am somewhat out of the loop! Anyway, I emailed Chris at work yesterday to see if Huntler gave her the present. He did. And his teacher was shocked! Apparently she did NOT make an announcement! Huntler somehow overheard her talking to the other teachers about it and totally clued in! So, he may be an eavesdropper, but how sweet was it for him to pick up on this and think of getting her a gift and everything? Moments like that make my heart swell! I am so proud to know that we are raising good, kind, considerate, unselfish little people!! {Her birthday was actually Saturday, but hey, he isn’t quite five…he hasn’t mastered eavesdropping yet!!}

6. Pepsi has released Sierra Mist Cranberry Splash again! WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! For some reason that is beyond me, this drink is seasonal and only out around the holidays!! Bummer because I LOVE it! I don’t drink much pop, but this stuff has me hooked! I just happened to see the small bottles in the cooler by the check out stand at the grocery store Sunday night and bought four!

Bit of randomness…when I was looking for this picture, I saw that there is a Fan Page on Facebook for this stuff! No, I did not become a fan but I do find that hysterical!

If you want to score major points, send me some of this and a bag of tootsie rolls…we will be friends forever!

7. It is getting dark earlier and earlier! It is pretty much dark here by 7:00 now! LOVE that. It means that the “seasons” are indeed changing!

8. Here is my song and video for this week. Not super peppy by any means but still on my workout playlist! I only just heard it for the first time a couple of weeks ago and I love it! The clips on this video are from The Notebook. Would you believe that I have never seen that? Hmm…may need to get that one on Netflix!

9. The kids’ Halloween costumes came last night! They are SOOOOOOOO stinking cute! As in I can’t wait to take them out and get some fab pictures cute. As in they love them and have been wearing them around the house cute!

We had a really hard time coming up with something for Huntler. He is quite simply not into superheroes, Star Wars, Star Trek, Power Rangers or anything of that nature. He nixed pretty much every idea I had. Originally he wasn’t thrilled at the thought of being this cowboy, but the more he looked at it and we talked about it, the more excited he became! And last night when it got here he couldn’t wait to try it on!!

We didn’t get the jacket, but he has the hat, the chaps, the arm things and the little vest. I told Chris that we were going to make him an “urban cowboy” because I am not buying him boots to wear one time!! So…he has some shiny little black shoes and he’ll probably be wearing a short sleeved white polo because of the heat…so urban he will be! Huntler did ask where his boots were, but he is totally fine with wearing his black shoes so that is good!

And what is a cowboy without a little critter running around? I first saw this costume on Kelly’s Korner and KNEW we had to have it! Gentry LOVES pigs…loves them!! I was going to have her be this super cute Cupcake Fairy, but then I saw the pig! And so I let her choose! Without a doubt it was the pig!! And can I tell you how amazingly CUTE this pig is in real life? OH MY GOSH! The tummy is stuffed so it is puffy! The tail is adorable! And the black satin bow TOTALLY makes it! We are both in love with it!

10. Would you believe that I came up with all of these this morning? I usually start days in advance, but time has been scarce the last few days!!

Happy Tuesday blog world!

Because I know the mama of these two little beauties is probably faunching at the bit for a little peek of what we captured last night…I am sharing a couple! I have many, many more to look through and more to post as well, but these two caught my eye right off the bat!

This is big sis. Isn’t she a doll? She is almost four and a total sweetheart! Once she warmed up to me we were total buds! I have tons and tons of shots of her…we were doing her four year portraits and she was totally working it! I love how she is just barely biting her bottom lip in this! It shows so much personality!

Now, her little sister on the other hand was anything BUT loving me or my camera! She wanted absolutely nothing to do with me and if I tried to sneak in to steal a shot, it only made her cry harder! Poor thing. I hope she wasn’t totally traumatized by the time she got home!

Photography is made up of endless rules. Exposure, lighting, coloring, shadows…the list goes on and on as far as what is “technically correct” and what isn’t. But, photography is also an art. I may like Monet but the next person might not be too fond of his style. Same with photos and editing. I obviously have a very distinct style. I love it, but others may not. And that’s cool…that is art.

So take a look at this shot. I LOVE IT. I love everything about it! The lighting on her face is very uneven, but that is what makes it so eye-catching…in my opinion anyway! See that shadow of her sweet little curl on her sweet little face? If the light were even, that wouldn’t be there…and then this image wouldn’t have quite the character that it does! I love the moodiness of this for sure!

Mom, as you know, there are tons more to come! I hope you enjoy these and they can hold you over until I have some more edited and ready to share! Thanks for making the long trek to see me! It was so nice to finally meet you! And I am sure if comes as no surprise that I have TONS more to say as well, but want to save it for the big post!

So for now, Happy Monday!