Hissyfits Photography Blog

Monday night I met up with Tucker and his parents for a little shoot before they left Arizona and returned home to the east coast! April, here are just a couple to hold you over until I get some more edited!

Thanks so much for making time to do photos while you were in town!!

Last week I had the wonderful opportunity to meet up with sweet Kenley and her mama and daddy. The second I saw her little blue jersey, I knew what I was going to title this post! We met up at the practice fields for the Kansas City Royals for our session. Words cannot express how fun it was to shoot somewhere so fun and different! When Katie mentioned the idea I jumped at it…the creative wheels in my mind spinning! And the thought of ALL that lush green grass? Such a treat for us down here in the desert! Chris was out of town four nights last week, so when the session was booked, I warned Katie that there was a pretty big chance that my own two littles would be tagging along…and they did. They too had a wonderful time and have since been to a Royals spring training game with Chris {I was at a photography workshop all day or I would have gone!} and from what I hear went on and on about Billy! Katie, as I share with you memories and priceless moments forever frozen in time of your precious family, I want to thank you for the ones you in turn have given mine.

Ahhh Kenley. Her mama warned me that it would be tough to get lots of smiles! She was right – but the ones we captured are darling! And her little tongue sticking out? Well that is just a bonus!

No smile here, but I love a serious face just as much as a smiley one!

And then it was time for a wardrobe change. I.LOVE.THIS.OUTFIT!! The photos do not even come close to doing it justice as there are all sorts of rhinestones and bling adorning this little number! If you look really hard you can see them! So, so cute. And glam.

A personal fave of mine. I can totally see this one printed really big! The retro feel I adore. The loose curls. The toddler walk. The bits of dust and dirt on her jeans from sitting on the ground. And the feet. Ohhhh the little bare feet. Mid-step. On her way to do bigger and better things than take pictures! Love this moment!

From her serious face in this photo you can’t really tell, but this little girl LOVES her daddy. We were having the hardest time getting eye contact out of her, let alone any sort of  a smile. And then her daddy made it over. She lit up and was so excited to see him! I love to see those connections. The recognition. The unconditional love. Capturing those moments are what this is all about for me. When I look at this photo I see love. But I also see strength. Look at how big and strong Billy’s arms are in comparison to Kenley’s little body. And his tanned skin next to her pale face. What a story this photo tells…

As a mom, I don’t love being in photos. I love taking them, but being on the other side of the camera isn’t really my thing. Yet, I know with 110% certainty that in 30 years when my kids look back on images from their childhood, they will cherish the ones of us together. I am their mom, their only mom. Katie…the same is true for you. I know you weren’t jumping for joy at the thought of having your photo taken, but think of how much these will mean to your family…now and years down the road.

These next two? Ummm….LOVE. I mean LOVE LOVE. I look at these and tears come to my own eyes. Yes, I am a pregnant and emotional mess, but what sweet, tender moments these are. I love how it feels like Kenley and Billy are the only two around in this image. I love the stadium lights in the background. I love that no matter where life takes this family, they ARE a family. They stick together. They share in each others highs and lows. They love.

Katie, I love this shot of you and your girl. I hope you see it and remember our time together that night on the baseball field. I hope you remember Kenley as she is right now. I hope as life moves you from one state to the next, you cherish the good times and learn a little something from the bad. I hope you cling to each other and your love to carry your family far.

It was so nice to meet you all! I hope that next summer finds my own family in Kansas City and gives us the chance to meet up again!

Today is the last day to sign up for the special I am offering! Just $299 for 25 digital images and 4 x 6 prints of each!! The session must take place sometime in April!

I’ll be back for sure – I have at least two sessions to blog today! Happy Wednesday!

Last night I had the opportunity to meet up with an adorable little family who is in town for Spring Training. I was SO excited when Katie suggested we meet at the practice fields for the baseball teams as this was somewhere completely fun and new for me to shoot! It was so.much.fun!! I am going to be doing a bigger sneak peek in a few days so I’ll wait and share more about it all then, but here are a few that stood out as I was scanning through my captures!

This last one reminds me of an old time magazine cover or something! I had so much fun playing around and editing it to feel retro! And don’t even get me started on what a sweet moment it was! LOVE!

Sorry to keep this one so short, but my mind and body are both exhausted! Funny how that happens when you try to be superwoman and are six and a half months pregnant! I have been working hard to get things done and even though it is still early in the day, everything I type seems to make no sense whatsoever, so I’ll just let the photos do the talking this time around!!

Sunday evening I met up with little doll face Peytra and her gorgeous mama for some photos! Peytra is ten months old and was a total ham for the camera!! She was full of smiles and sweet grins, as well as baby babble and drool! Gentry tagged along with me for this shoot and I think she would have went home with Peytra if I would have let her! She adored her!!

A little retro fun to kick things off with!

Her mama has a background in interior design and loves black and whites so I edited several that way!

Check out those vintage baby blocks! They were MINE when I was a baby!!

And a splash of soft color!

And I saved my personal favorite for last! LOVE LOVE LOVE this one!

Thanks so much for scheduling a shoot while you were in town Lisa!! It was so great to meet you and Peytra! As much as she likes to work it for the camera, you better watch out! I wish you the best of luck as you welcome your new little guy into the world this summer!

Happy HAPPY Tuesday! Spring has sprung down here in the desert and I thought this week I would share some of my oh-so fun, spring-like Etsy finds! FINDS - not purchases! I could spend $500 a day on Etsy for weeks on end and still find things that I wanted! I have been good though, really good, and exerting extreme self control!

{I apologize in advance that the images are going to be tiny and not centered. The whole not centered thing REALLY drives me crazy! Maybe I can get Chris to fix that for me!}

1. This quilt. I adore it. I have the scrapbook paper line that matches the prints on this fabric! It is what I used for Gentry’s second birthday and I have a stash {of paper} I am holding on to just because I like it! You know, I refuse to cut into it because I “might” need it someday? Please tell me I am not the only one who does that!

2. This dress. Ahhh the vintage color combo and prints! I can totally imagine my favorite girl dolled up in this little number. I can picture the perfect photo shoot. Vintage props. Summer time in Kansas. Bare feet. Wheat fields swaying in the background. Blue skies laced with puffy white clouds above. And a headband similar to the Cage Veils found here. Total vintage summer scene playing out in my mind…

And I ordered it. But I’ll be making my own headband because there is NO WAY I am paying as much for a hair accessory as I did for the dress! I am going to save it for her 4 year photos which I PLAN to take in Kansas! I have this “idea” in my mind that we will load up our little fam and travel back to visit everyone shortly after the baby is born! Crazy? Yes, probably. Does anyone in their right mind pack a five and a half year old, an almost four year old and a brand new baby into a mini van and drive 18 hours across the United States? Maybe we should fly. Mom – I think we are definitely going to need that vintage baby bed with some “quilt” type thing ready to be hauled out in the country somewhere! Maybe a piece of chenille that we can dye a light aqua? Can’t you just picture it? I can!

3. The ever cute ruffle pants. I’m addicted. Big time. I am going to learn to sew these if it kills me. Yes, you read that right. I DESPERATELY want to learn to make these on my own!! They make the cutest boutique looking little outfits but also darling pajama pants!! {When my grandparents were visiting last week my Grandma made Gentry some Fancy Nancy capri pajama pants that are too cute for words!} I want to find some cute princess, Strawberry Shortcake and Rainbow Bright fabric to make some more jammie pants out of!

4. This fabric. Current favorite color combo – I think!!

5.  Adorable unique buttons! I am not even really sure what I would do with these if I had them, but they sure are fun to look at!! I admire people who have the talent to do this sort of detailed work!

6. This hat. I LOVE these hats!! I would order one today if I knew if we were having a boy or a girl! I think it would be a fun addition to its newborn photos and birth announcements! But we don’t know and I’m not ordering!

7. These bloomers. Ooooooohhhhh these bloomers. And about ten other uber cute sets! I have got to get some ordered to have on hand for a prop because OH how I adore them! I have had this shop bookmarked for a long time but by the time I found it, Gentry was already what I consider too big for bloomers!

8.  This cute hair clip. Lots of cute funky clips in this shop! This one would be perfect for Gentry’s upcoming penguin party! Since I won’t be paying $8.50 per girl, maybe I can figure out how to make something myself!

9. This print. I have “something” for retro motor bikes like this! I am not really sure why, but I think they are fun!

10. These burp cloths. I love the airy, light feel of the prints and that they could be used for either a boy or a girl!

Yes, I spend FAR too much time browsing Etsy. I will be the first to admit it. It is by far my favorite place to shop!! Well, for Gentry and myself anyway! As you can tell, I don’t find a lot of things that would be cool for a five year old boy! There is so, so much talent out there – it’s amazing! And inspiring and depressing at the same time!

Many years ago I heard a poem that struck a chord and  has stuck with me ever since. I read it from time to time and my mind wanders to those who have come into my life…some of whom are still in it while others have quietly faded into the past.

As I was thinking about this family and what I wanted to say, bits and pieces of that poem danced through my mind. These guys are here for a reason. Arizona isn’t their home, far from it actually, but dad’s work brings them here every spring. I can relate to that part of their story. But while we stay here, they will move on. They’ll travel about and at summer’s end, they will return home. I think of them and their story and I wonder how many friends they have made and connections they have formed. I think of all of the places they have been and the things they have seen and done. But mostly I think about the people – the people who have come into their lives for a reason, a season or a lifetime. I find the whole concept quite fascinating really. {There is the sociology major and psychology minor coming out in me!}

The dynamics of these two littles reminded me so much of that of my own two! Sweet, caring, doting big brother who adores his little sis. Sis, who loves her brother, also loves to assert her independence and opinions and quite possibly may rule the roost as she gets a little older! It was so fun to watch them together – to see the roles they took on as they interacted with each other and their parents.

Meet Caden. Big brother. He is three and a half and was SUCH a trooper! He listened perfectly and did every single thing I asked him to. Maybe he can come hang out with Gentry for a few days and teach her a thing or two?

And Miss Aubrey. Little sister. She’ll be two at the end of the month and I could not believe how well she was talking! At one point Caden sat on her lap and she said, “Caden, get up. You’re too heavy.” So adult-like coming from such a little person! Aubrey made me work. She wasn’t flashing smiles left and right so the ones I did manage to capture took some work!

I absolutely LOVE this next one! The pout. The bare feet. Everything about it!

And of course a few of the kids together. Easier said than done! The image I posted the other night was pure luck! As much as I wish I could claim it was perfectly set up, it wasn’t! I was just shooting away hoping to capture something worthy of a frame!! Kids are so unpredictable and each one has a mind of his own! However, I am loving these next moments as they are real life. That’s me – my style. Real. When you are two and three and a half, you aren’t supposed to look at the camera for every single shot!

Another personal fave is this black and white shot! What a sweet moment!! And a smile from Aubrey!

A few more of Caden! He was such a little explorer, checking everything out!

Sooo loving this shot of him!! So serious, and pouty!!

And a few more of Aubrey…

Couldn’t you just squeal out loud at the cuteness of this little one in this outfit? OH MY! An Etsy purchase by her mama…one complete with the ruffle bottom pants I am currently obsessed with!

And a couple more! Oh how I love siblings sitting beside each other and snapping their legs! And Caden’s prayer hands? Too cute for words!!

When mom scheduled this shoot, she set it up for the kids…Aubrey’s two year photos and Caden at three and a half. They just had family pictures taken before Christmas so the focus was all about the kids. However, I couldn’t resist when I saw this moment. I hope you don’t mind Carrie, but I love it!! And you are gorgeous! As moms, I think we tend to do the vast majority of the picture taking and are rarely on the other side of the camera! Hope this is one you’ll treasure for years to come!

Thanks again for taking the time to meet up with me while you guys are in town! Your family is beautiful and the kids were such a pleasure to photograph! I wish you all only the best of luck in wherever the future takes you!

Here are just a couple from my session last night! This little one was FULL of smiles and so easy to photograph…which was a great thing considering her mom and I are both over six months pregnant and getting around isn’t quite as easy as it was a few months ago! Her full sneak peek will be up later this week!!

I kicked off my first of three sessions in five days this evening and had a wonderful time! It was so nice to be out and about and have sweet littles in front of my camera! In an attempt to make my work flow more efficient, I promised myself I wasn’t going to touch an image in Photoshop until I was done deleting all of the blurry ones, etc… However, I came across this capture and all of that went out the window! A tender moment caught between a loving big brother and his darling little sis! With some sunflare to boot! Love it!

On that note I am back to sifting through the images!

So I went to the doctor this morning for my regular four week check up…although this time it had actually been five weeks. Five weeks already? WOW. Where in the world do the weeks go?

Anyway, it started off as a great morning. I have only gained five pounds in five weeks? What? After pigging out on all the delicious food Chris made last week while my grandparents were visiting? WAHOO!! That’s reason to celebrate right there!

But then it all changed. First of all, I didn’t realize that I would be doing my glucose screening today. They failed to mention that last time I was there and so here I am stuck at the doctor’s office for an hour with two kids. Two very good kids, but two kids nonetheless. I don’t mind taking them – they are super well behaved, but an hour is a little on the long side if you know what I mean! So I choked down my not even chilled nasty drink while waiting on the nurse practicioner to come in. Only she didn’t. Instead someone who is training with her came in to see if I had any questions/concerns, check the baby’s heart rate, measure my ever growing belly, etc… But before she even did any of the fun stuff, she dove right into something being off with the baby’s kidneys. I heard “specialist and rechecking the kidneys” and the rest was all a blur…

You know when you are struck so completely out of left field and caught so off guard that you really don’t even know what is happening? Well, that was me this morning. I have had a rough go of it lately anyway and the tears were instantaneously flowing. I couldn’t even grasp what she was saying. I was trying so hard to pull myself together and get a grip but the whole time she was talking {which was probably only a minute because once she realized I was flipping out on her she said she was going to go get the NP}, all I could think of was that I wished Chris were there and why am I only just now hearing about this when we had our sonogram five weeks ago?

Now that I have it together, it is quite obvious. We are only just now hearing about this because they REALLY aren’t concerned. Apparently when we were there for the sonogram the baby’s kidneys {not sure if it is one or both} were dilated. Not even by that much from what I gathered, but the measurement still fell out of the “normal” range, so it has to be followed up on. They assured me it is quite common…and I know it is. I can think of three people off the top of my head that I know of who have dealt with this…and all three times it has corrected itself and everything has been fine.

So anyway…now we wait. We wait for a phone call to tell us when we will see a specialist for a follow up ultrasound. On the bright side, we DO get to see the baby again, but now we run the risk of someone finding out what it is and spilling the beans! I am much better than I was this morning. I was just in total shock. I’m not going to Google it or do anything that might possibly freak me out, I am really okay with waiting because I honestly feel like everything is going to be just fine.

I am now on the two week schedule so will be headed back in no time! I should also find out next week if I passed my glucose test – cross your fingers for me because I am not sure what in the world I would do if I had to sit there for three hours?! I also have three photo shoots scheduled between tomorrow and Wednesday, a friend arriving Thursday to stay with us for a couple of nights and attend the fabulous Kamee June workshop on Saturday. LOTS of fun things to look forward to this week! All of the chaos will keep me from getting too caught up in my worries!

Until next time…