i love valentine’s day…and, i love making tiny little bits of love to share.  i know the holiday has become too commercialized, but i still love it.  maybe it is the child in me remembering how special the day was.  a party at school and a bag filled with love…candy and cards from our special friends.  as a grown up, i love the beautiful colors, the sayings of love, giving to others, and the feeling that spring is just around the corner.  one of my new year’s resolutions for 2012 is to get back into doing the things i really, really love…things i used to do before i had little ones and life got so busy. and, this would mean actually blocking out time on my calendar to do these types of things.  as i sat and made homemade valentines for max and grace’s classes i felt a bit guilty…”i have so many things i really “need” to be doing right now,” i thought.  but, then they were done and i looked down at them and my heart smiled.  my kids will surely not appreciate these the way i do and that is okay.  because we moms don’t take enough time for ourselves…doing things that make us feel warm inside.  this is the nature of a mother, but i have come to realize that i need to nourish my own heart too even if this means cutting out heart shaped papers and tying a pretty ribbon on top.:)  because i love doing these types of things…happy valentine’s day everyone.  nourish your heart today and count all of the blessings of love in your life.

i will leave you today with sweet baby benji…what a love.  such a smilee baby boy with the most beautiful dark brown eyes…just like his sister who is equally as sweet.:)

anna contacted me well over a year ago to inquire about a photography session for their baby that would be coming home from columbia.  i was thrilled they would consider me this far in advance for their sweet baby that was not yet born…i could hear the excitement in anna’s email words and as i read i wanted to jump through the computer screen and hug her with my excitement for her and brandon.  they patiently waited and waited and received word on july 1, 2011 that their sweet daniela was awaiting her mom and dad’s arms to be swept into…it was a joy to photograph this perfect little angel recently.  sweet daniela, i am so happy you are home safe and sound and in the loving arms of your mom and dad…what a beautiful family you are.

kisses from pup-a-rooooo sally!

this will be the first of two extra special posts for me.  ironically, both of my neighbors who live directly across the street, welcomed their first grandbabies within days of one another.  so, clearly something was in the water wells on nebraska avenue last winter.:)  below is baby callum…such a sweet pea.  he was an angel for our shoot.  congratulations mel and dom…he is so beautiful.  and, a special shout out to grandpa mike and grandma julie…so happy for you both, too.  baby callum is one lucky little baby boy…i am happy that i will get to watch him grow for years to come.

thank you to the k family for allowing me to take photos of your  family before you venture off to Germany!  what a wonderful experience this will be…i wish you the best of luck and hope to see you all again when you return! enjoy your peek at your photo session…you have a lovely family which is very obviously filled with much love.:)