Dannah & Matthew {Leander, TX | Engagement Photographer}

Finally, I have finished the photos from Dannah & Matthew's Engagement Session!  The best part about this session is that Dannah is my step-daughter.  So, I have a bit of a personal attachment here, and I wanted to be sure that she got exactly what she was looking for in her photos. We researched, pinned things (gotta love Pinterest!) and headed out with lots of ideas.  

We made it happen.  I'm so happy with how these turned out!  I hope you enjoy.

Spring, Senior Pics.. this and that {Leander TX, Photographer}

It's been awhile since I've updated but there is a ton of stuff going on in my life right now! I'm back in college to get my degree that I've put off for entirely too long!

Anyway,  I can start off by saying that I really have missed just going out with my camera and shooting nature. So over the past few weekends, I've done just that.  About 3 weeks ago.. give or take, the bluebonnets started blooming.  They are still in bloom, but won't be around for long.  So I thought I'd go out and get some photos. My kids are all teenagers and getting them into the bluebonnets is now like pulling teeth, so the bluebonnets are alone in the photos this year.

Also.. my daughter is nearing the end of her junior year so I thought today would be an excellent day for a few quick shots in the flowers. She was not thrilled. haha!  Anyway.. I got my photos with a little bit of bribing (or do we call it blackmail?) and she only got a little bit scraped up.  It's so hard for me to believe that my only little girl will be starting college next month as dual enrollment along with her last year of high school!  I still see her as a little three year old with chubby cheeks, bossing her little brother around without a care in the world. <3  They really do grow up too fast. 

With all the tragedies happening lately, it's been very hard to deal with emotionally.  I've had Boston and West, TX both in my prayers. So, if anything.. hug your loved ones a little longer tonight and capture those moments with your camera whenever you can. They are priceless! 

I hope you enjoyed these photos and a little glimpse into my life today!

Until next time… 

Christmas traditions.. a reflection of Elf on the Shelf {Leander TX Photographer}

Now that it is the day after Christmas, I have a bit of time on my hands so I thought I'd write a little about holiday traditions.

There are certain things I can always remember about Christmas as a child.  I always got a Lifesavers book of candy in my stocking, for example.  I love traditions and have begun many of my own since starting my own family.  My children always get pajamas on Christmas Eve. Always.  They also get a Lifesavers book in their stockings, just like I did. We always read the story of Jesus' birth from the Bible, because it's very important to me that they do not forget the true meaning behind Christmas.

This year, even though my children are teenagers, we decided to add the fun of an Elf on the Shelf.  I'm sure many of you are tired of seeing these elves on the internet, but we just couldn't resist. My kids decided they'd play along and follow all of the 'rules' of the Elf on the Shelf.. and so "Figgy" came to live with us.

Figgy got into much mischief.  He redecorated a few things, TP'd the tree, took a marshmallow bath in my gravy boat and so on.  I had a wonderful time coming up with new things for him to get into, and the kids loved seeing what silly thing 'Figgy' had done every morning when they got up.  I think a true highlight was when Figgy wrote "Go Blue" all over my husband's large Ohio State University wall hanging. You should've heard the gasps!  It truly kept a little Christmas magic around the house. That is something that I've felt slipping away as my children have grown up before my eyes.

So, in closing.. no matter how silly a tradition seems, it isn't. I've found many of my friends on Facebook looked forward to seeing my posts about our elf, and I really enjoyed everything to do with it.  Traditions are part of family, so embrace them and carry them on year after year. Your children will thank you for it and your heart will be full.

So until Figgy returns next year… here's a few memories of him!

7th Grade Basketball Season has Begun! {Leander TX Event Photographer}

Last night was the first game of my son's 7th grade basketball team.  They didn't come away with a win, but I'm very proud of the way my son played the game. He played harder than I have ever seen him play before!  I'm sure they'll only get better..

If only I had just one more..

Sometimes I think being in the photography business has made me much more aware of the importance of photos. Not from a business standpoint, but from a personal one. As I look through my personal photo collection from my lifetime, I realize more and more that I do not have enough memories captured of my family.  We put it off. We want to wait to lose another 10 lbs, or we simply can't find the time. Excuses.. that's all it really is.  We can make the time, and 10 lbs doesn't matter.

During a nasty divorce, my ex hid/kept all of the photos of my children. It was a malicious attack on me because he knew how much I cherished those, and he made sure I couldn't get a single one by telling the court that I had already taken them, when I hadn't.  He not only took prints, but he took negatives and even my computer and camera to make sure I didn't have any digital images either. Can you imagine not having any photos of your children from birth through 8-12 years? (the ages of my children at the time of the divorce). Not only am I missing important photos from my children's lives, but I look at my parents who are getting older, and I think of my grandparents who are no longer with us.. and I don't have nearly enough photos of any of them. The ones I do have are blurred, some are from the orange 70's film era, many are out of focus and you know what?  Each and every one is priceless.

Photos are important.  What you look like doesn't really matter once you look at the bigger picture (pardon the pun).  If you knew you were going to lose a loved one tomorrow, or next week.. wouldn't you like to have just one more photo with them? Would it matter what they looked like? If they wore make up, or had their hair a certain way?  No.. not really. Those aren't the things that matter. You'd want to capture them forever so you could hold onto their memory a little easier.

I have decided to start following my own advice.  I'm very uncomfortable in front of the camera and I rarely ever see a photo of me that I like, but it's really not about how I look.  It's about my kids.. and their kids.. the ones who will one day look back like I do, and wish they had just one more photo.

So today,  I set my camera up and handed it to my husband.. and lined my children up with me in front of the partly decorated Christmas tree. My hair is a fuzzy mess, I don't have any makeup on, and I'm wearing my pjs.  And I will shamefully admit that this is the first photo I've taken with them in years and I will not allow this much time to pass again. 

So take photos.. but more importantly, be in the photos.  Hire a photographer, or use your point and shoot camera and the timer to do it yourself.  Just take pictures, either way. No one will care if you aren't looking like a model. Because all in all..it's about family and those priceless memories. 

Sweet Berry Farm! {Marble Falls Photographer}

What could be better than an afternoon at Sweet Berry Farm? Pumpkins, Mazes, Ice Cream (yes, it's still really warm here in S Central TX!), Face painting, flower picking, goat petting, and a zillion photo ops!  Here is a peek of some of the great shots I captured today…. along with quite a few pumpkins!

Adventures in Gluten Free Pizza {The Life of a Photographer}

So tonight I decided to let y'all into my personal life and another passion of mine, cooking.  I love to cook. I enjoy it almost if not as much as taking pictures.  The only problem is, when you're me.. it's difficult to find 'good' things to eat.  When I say good.. I mean delectable.  I'm gluten intolerant, and I'm also a pescatarian, which means I'm a vegetarian that eats seafood, but no other type of meat.   I also happen to be on a low carb kick because I want to drop some weight.. which means I pretty much eat like a rabbit, and that gets boring.

Insert new recipe.

Tonight I ran across a recipe for a low carb, gluten free pizza crust that I had saved on my pinterest and decided I would try it. So off we run to HEB to pick up some cauliflower.  Cauliflower, you ask?  Absolutely.  Cauliflower is a go-to for low carb junkies and it just so happens to be delightfully gluten free and good for you.

I rarely share recipes so, this might not happen again anytime soon!  But here goes.

Cook 16oz of frozen cauliflower in the microwave for 8 minutes, covered with no water added.
Drain and allow to cool.  Then 'rice' the cauliflower in a food processor, or run it over a cheese grater. You want it fine like rice.

Measure loosely (do not pack)
1 cup of riced cauliflower
1 cup of mozzarella cheese
1 egg
Italian seasoning to taste

This will make a personal size pizza, so double for a 12 inch.

Mix well and spread thinly and evenly on a greased cookie sheet.
Bake in a 450º oven for 15 minutes for a personal size, 20 minutes for a 12 inch.
Immediately top with your desired toppings (meats must be cooked completely) and put it under the broiler until the cheese is melted and browned as much as you like. Roughly 5 minutes at 500º. Watch it closely.
Cut and serve!

*Note: if you try to rebake the pizza instead of broiling it, your crust will be much softer and not crisp. Broiling is best.
* Note: Make sure to spread the crust thinly and evenly. Otherwise it will be soft. The darker the pan you use, the crisper the crust.

And here is the result!

Riced Cauliflower - Leftovers keep nicely in the fridge for next time!

Crust spread thinly, and sprinkled with italian seasoning. Ready for baking!

20 minutes later! I never expected it to look this great. It almost doesn't need toppings!

Fresh out of the oven. Wow!

Final product. I used veggies on mine, but you can top with whatever you like. It's delicious and you cannot tell it's cauliflower at all!