Ten on Tuesday!

 

I can't believe I am actually doing a Ten on Tuesday list.  I think my last one was before summer!  Life has definitely been busy!  My list is really random which explains the state of my life these days. I'm running in a thousand different directions it seems.  Okay, here goes:

1.  Our Rachel is graduating from college in less than 7 weeks!  7  Weeks!  Wow! She is graduating an entire semester early.  We are so very proud of her!

2.  Hannah's last year of high school basketball officially started last week.  We cannot wait to see her on the court again. Praying they all have a wonderful year and act like the team that they can be!

3.  Speaking of Hannah.  She is the Drum Major for the band, 2nd year in a row, and they earned a Division 1 at Marching Contest!  There was much pressure this year as they have earned Division 1 Ratings every year that she has been in high school. Lots of practices, Saturday preliminary band competitions, late nights, and a lot of sweat, tears, and a few moments of pure joy.  We are so very proud of her leadership and her determination.

4.  My favorite coffee right now is dark French Roast with Pumpkin Spice creamer.  Yum!  Have you seen the new Keurigs?  They now make pots of coffee.  Hmmmm

5.  Only three more weeks until my new Iphone arrives.  My old iphone daily dies at 40% battery.  Why?!

6.  I am so thankful for my new Studio!  I cannot believe I haven't shared pictures yet.  What a blessing it is!

7.  Baylor Homecoming is this weekend and I am so excited!  They are trying to stripe the stadium.  Our section is wearing gold.  Fun!

8.  I am ready to decorate for Christmas now.  I know!  Only a few more weeks and it's time!

9.  I've heard that we are bound to have a rough winter.  Well, rough-for-Texas kind of weather.  I'm thinking I may need these boots.  Okay, not need, but maybe want.  But, what color?  Decisions, decisions.

10.  I made it to 10 things.  I actually had time to stop and type for a few minutes.  I impressed myself.  Ha! Back to editing pictures.   Ya'll have a blessed day!

Kikis Corner Senior Sessions {Class of 2015}

We are completely booked this year and have already begun scheduling Class of 2015 VIP Spring Sessions.  Seriously, there are only 10 sessions remaining!  Wow!  Please, don't wait to schedule your Spring Session.  It would be our great joy to capture your Senior year!

Brooke~SHS Class of 2015 Senior

I am so behind in my blogging! The wonderful Fall busy season is here and I am running from one thing to the next and hopefully catching a few moments to breath in between. I was so excited when Brooke's mom set up her VIP Senior Session.  The ideas began flooding my mind and I couldn't wait to photograph this beauty!  We had an absolute blast!  What a blessing to capture beautiful Brooke!

"T" Family {A Sneak Peek}

What a sweet, sweet family!  Their daddy is one of our new coaches in town and we are so glad to have all of them in our schools, community, and church.  What a blessing to capture them and their love for each other!

Sweet P is a Big Sister {A Sneak Peek}

Sweet P is a Big Sister!  And what a wonderful big sister she is.  These beauties are going to have the most wonderful time growing up together!  What a blessing to get to capture these two.  Loved these sessions!!!

Blood Moon

Did you see the Blood Moon this month?  I nearly had forgotten to look!  Thankfully, I saw an early morning post on Facebook and quickly grabbed my camera and headed outside before it was too late....in my robe!  It was a little cloudy with some wind.  Imagine me trying to make sure my robe kept me covered, trying to steady my 20lb camera and lens, and hoping to capture the Blood Moon.  I'm sure that I was quite a sight if any of my neighbors happen to catch a glimpse of me that morning.  My hair was perfectly frizzed and standing on edge by the time I was finished.  Thankfully, I had enough time to tame the mane before heading to school. I didn't capture as many images as I intended because I slept right through most of it.  But, I'm thankful for the ones that I was able to capture.  God is so awesome and absolutely so creative!

Mammogram Monday {Sigh!}

One week ago today we celebrated Columbus Day and finally had a much needed day off from school.  Yay!! Rachel was home for the three day weekend and we were all happily back together under one roof.  How about that Baylor/TCU game.  Wow!   That was the Big 12 Championship Game, I am convinced.  What a game!!! Anyway, being the good teacher that I am {sigh!}, I scheduled my annual mammogram on our day off instead of having to take a day off during the school week.  Yay me (hear the sarcasm in my typing?).  I won't go into any kind of details, but thankfully everything looked great and I don't have to come back for another year.  Yay!

A sweet friend of mine sent me this image to encourage me.  It cracked me up!!

So, so funny!  {Sorry Dad if you are reading my blog today}.

After the torture chamber, I met my girls for a delicious lunch and a little shopping.  We visited Miss Casey's Christmas store.  So, so fun!  Now this is a fun way to spend a day off from school! Hannah took our selfie.  Love these girls of mine so very much!

We found a few special gifts but I can't share them here (love you, Mom).  And we may have rearranged the TCU ornaments that were on the top shelf and the Baylor ornaments were on the bottom.  Seriously?!  I don't think the Baylor ornaments are on the bottom any longer....just saying.  :-)  And then we had some more fun at Starbucks.  I even made a new friend. Ha!

Queen of Our Hearts

Whew! Homecoming came and went just as quickly as the calendar pages seem to be turned.  How are we already in the middle of October?  Hannah was absolutely stunning in her dress.  Speaking of the dress, oh God was so, so good!  We had her dress flown in from New York (it's not at all expensive as that sounds.  There were no red dresses anywhere in Texas that were both beautiful and modest) and the dress arrived two day, TWO DAYS before homecoming!  Thankfully, the dress fit and looked as if it were made just for her.  In my book, it really was.  Nothing is impossible with God....even dresses and all of the details matter to Him because it matters to His child.  I love that! Hannah and three of her friends were Homecoming Queen Nominees.  As always, I was there both as a mom and the school photographer to capture pictures of the "crowning."  What I didn't know was that Hannah had written an incredible letter to me....and they read it over the PA system.  Each daughter had written a note to their mom and the announcer carefully read each one while our girls took their places on the track.

I sobbed!  SOBBED!  I hardly captured any images but I took in every word our precious daughter said to me.  What a precious, precious memory!  Brooke was crowned the Homecoming Queen but Hannah will forever be Queen of our Hearts...and we could not be more proud of the beautiful young lady she is becoming.  This momma bird isn't ready for her baby bird to fly the nest just yet even though she is already soaring!

The images where Hannah is in the polka dot dress were during the Homecoming Pep Rally.  The guy on her left is Nathan, um...her boyfriend.  He is also a senior and plays varsity football.  Not only did he give Hannah the most beautiful Homecoming Mum, he also sent her white daisies (her favorite) with a card telling her that regardless of the outcome of the vote, she would always be his queen. So sweet!

And the other images are of Hannah being escorted by her daddy.  Doesn't she look stunning?  And her daddy looks so proud.

And then Hannah with her sweaty football boyfriend.  Ha!  He played a great game but sadly, they lost.

The Queen nominees with Brooke for a fun image.  Have I shared Hannah's mum pictures with you yet?  I'm not sure that I have, so I'll add a few here.  Her mum was gorgeous!

And her cousin wanted a picture with Hannah too.  It was wear Red for Spirit Day.  His morph suit was epic!

Sam~Midland High School (A Sneak Peek}

I was so excited when Sam's mom mentioned that her son loved airplanes and would very much like a Senior VIP Session at the CAF in Midland, Texas.  Oh what an awesome location!!!  The CAF was so gracious to allow us to take pictures while they were busy getting ready for the Air Show.  Sam seemed right at home both at the CAF and in our favorite field.  What a blessing to meet Sam and his mom.  I am counting the days until they can see all of his images!  There are so many to share!

Powder Puff Champion

Last week our baby girl and her fellow seniors along with the sophomore girls took on the Freshman and Junior girls at the annual Powder Puff game.  The game itself brought back a flood of memories from childhood when Hannah played flag football with they boys.  Back then, she was the only girl playing flag football and we were pretty proud of that fact.

See our little blondie?  We may or may not have paid her by the flags that she captured....just saying.  She was a good player and not intimidated in the least after a little incentive.  Ha!

Ok, I'm back from a little walk down memory lane and back to the recent Powder Puff Game.  The girls got together with the some of the Varsity Football boys as their coaches and practiced the entire week before the big game.  Finally, it was game time!  These Senior Girls have not lost a game that they played in throughout their high school career and they won last Thursday night too.  Way to go Hannah and fellow senior girls!!!

Hannah had an awesome game.  She got a fumble recovery and sacked the quarterback.  She was stellar on defense....yes, I am totally biased.

The conversations we overheard on the sidelines from the coaches were hilarious!  One of the boys kept hollering, "Can you at least try not to run like a girl? Please??"

Another one hollered, "What the heck are you doing?  That is not what we practiced!!!  And after they ran it in for a touch down he hollered, "Way to go!"  Ha!

But one of my favorite memories was watching the girls, after they scored a touch down, stop and take a group selfie.  I never see that on Friday Nights with the football boys, but I loved it.  So much fun!

Landon~Midland Trinity School {A Sneak Peek}

I absolutely loved meeting Landon and his mom.  What a blessing to capture his senior pictures.  He is as handsome on the inside as he is on the outside and I just know God has big plans for his life.  

Shelby {Class of 2015 Sneak Peek}

 

I cannot wait for Shelby and her family to see all of her gorgeous images!!!

A Cousin Session {Sneak Peek}

These two sweet boys simply made my day.  Our oldest daughter was having a really rough day and our baby girl had a lady run right in to the back of her truck.  They are both more than fine, thank you Lord, but this momma's heart was a bit frazzled.  I was spent! I'm thankful God is in control of everything because having these two sweet cousins over for their annual Cousin Session was just what I needed.  They were full of smiles, giggles, cookie breath, and the sweetest hugs.  Mr. C even told me he loved Kiki.  Swoon!    They are both so much fun and so very precious.  What a joy it is to photograph them and to know their beautiful mommies.  God is so good!

See You at the Pole 2014

Seeing our baby girl and some of her fellow students gathering before sunrise to pray together at the High School Flag pole is priceless. Seeking the Lord's guidance and blessing over our school will never fall on deaf ears.  He sees, He hears, and He knows....and He was right there in their midst.  The Great I Am, King of kings, and Lord of lords!  Oh, yes!  He was there! What a blessed morning.  Did your students gather at their flag poles yesterday morning too?  What a blessing!

Photo of the Morning: Let's Go Jump in a Puddle

Oh what a fun session with these two adorable guys!  Not only were they soaked but I was pretty wet too from their sweet hugs.  Loved every minute!  They make me want to put on my cute rain boots and jump in some puddles too.  Pure joy!!!

Our Queen Nominee

Our baby girl is a Homecoming Queen Nominee! We are pretty excited and proud but if you ask our baby girl about it she will simply smile and humbly tell you that it is an honor to be selected as a nominee and nothing more....and that makes us even more proud.  This is quite a special class of guys and girls and I'm thankful for their strong friendships and that they are really embracing their senior year memories together. Homecoming is Friday, so we only have a few days to get her homecoming ensemble together.  Talk about pressure.  Ha!

Sisters

Our Rachel came home from college this weekend and we were all sooooooooooo happy to see her.  Our family of four was reunited and it never felt so good!  We have certainly missed having our girls all to ourselves and it was just what this heart of mine needed.  My cup was full and I treasured every moment. Rachel joined her daddy and I on the sidelines Friday night to capture pictures of the football boys and the band.  Hannah is the Drum Major for the second year in a row. I turned around for a second to see Rachel saying hello to her sister in the stands.   I love this image so much! From a photographer's perspective, it's technically way off, the color balance is off, and it's underexposed big time, but as a mom, it was a moment I didn't want to miss capturing and I treasure it!  It shows the special sister relationship our girls are blessed to have and we are blessed to watch. I love the image but love these two daughters of ours even more.  What joy is ours to be their parents!

Thinking about this image, it makes me think of our Heavenly Father and how He sees us....sees the real us.  We aren't picture perfect all of the time (or even much of the time if we are honest) and our lives certainly aren't picture perfect either, but He loves us and even treasures us.  We are the apple of His eye....what a blessed thought!

Myka~Midland Lee High School Class of 2015 {Sneak Peek}

Myka, you are stunning!  Loved the outfits you chose for your session!  Thanks for the blessing of capturing your Senior year.  So many more images to share at your Session Premiere next week.  I can't wait!

A Stunning Texas Senior Session Among Friends

Our baby girl is a senior in high school this year!  A Senior!!!  How is this even possible?!  I wanted to do a special photo shoot for Hannah and some of her closest friends.  Most of them have been friends since the first day of Kindergarten....and Hannah and her friend Shelby met in the nursery at the hospital only a few hours after taking their first breaths.  They were born on the same day. My mind kept coming back to a Texas theme for their session.  Getting all of them together was a small feat in itself.  They are all busy seniors.  I was thrilled that we finally found the perfect date and we were blessed with the most perfect evening.  We were even able to grab a few sunset pictures and enjoy s'mores around the campfire.  The sounds of joy and laughter made for the sweetest session.

I hope they treasure these images as much as we do.  Who knows, it might be fun to recreate these images for their 10th class reunion....oh that makes me sad!

Beautiful girls.  That's our Hannah with the long blonde hair and the blue scarf.

And the group with Studly, our old Studebaker truck and the Texas flag:

I couldn't decide between black and white, so I added both.

S'mores.  Yes!

A night to remember...delight!

Last 1st Day of School Picture

My baby girl is a senior this year and my oldest is a senior in college who will graduate early!  Be still my heart!  Didn't I just hold them in my arms for the very first time yesterday?! Hannah was sweet to give me a few minutes to grab this picture before we both headed out the door.  She had friends to meet at the high school flag pole so that they could pray together before the new school year began and I needed a few minutes to make sure a presentation worked before sharing it with all of the high school faculty and staff....and to be honest, I needed a few minutes to wipe my tears and take it all in.

Hannah is the Student Council President and gave the best welcome to school speech to the entire high school while  I tried my best to contain my tears.  And my Rachel stepped in to her very first classroom as a student teacher in a room full of young kindergartners this morning.  I just know they are going to love her!

My heart is full and my mind is flooded with precious memories.  From her first day of Kindergarten to the 1st day of her Senior year.  {Sob!}  Jeremiah 29:11, sweet baby girl!  We are so very proud of you!