The Joy of Love - day 4

04 what they wear

One of Sam's first words was "skate"... it sounded more like b***h, but he was definitely referring to his daddy's skateboard.  He still asks almost daily to go outside to skateboard!  Not only are these great shoes (the laces are elastic so there is no tying!) that fit his feet really well, but they suit his personality perfectly.  He may be a momma's boy but his daddy is his hero!

The Joy of Love - day 3

03 then and now

THEN: Our first camping trip - 2004

NOW: Shaun is like wine, better with age!  More handsome each year.

Christmas 2011

THEN: Daddy and his boy only 2 days old.  Tiny and fragile.  We could do nothing but watch him grow.

NOW: Daddy and his boy almost two years old.  Husky and happy.  There is nothing we can do to keep him little, he is turning into the most amazing little man with new tricks and talents each day.

THEN: In love with my brand new boy.  Terrified of my new job as a mommy.

NOW: Less than two years later, even more in love than I ever could have dreamed.

The Joy of Love Day 2

02 how they look

Here is Sam and his buddy Smith.  Our first wintery adventure... the sun was shining and the boys were smiling as we headed out the door to the park.  What usually takes less than a minute to walk to, the park seemed like miles away.  Both boys struggled to walk in their snow gear and boots with snow up to their shins, but loved every minute of it!  We went down the slide once each and then walked home.  A quick stop in the back yard to ruffle the perfect blanket of snow with two of the most adorable snow angels ever.

Tiny angels!

The Joy of Love photography challenge

I saw this photography challenge on my friend's blog and decided it's something right up my alley.  I'm excited to be doing The Joy of Love.  For each day of February there is a new photo assignment.  A topic is emailed to me each day with tips on capturing a photo.  Not only are there ideas listed but also some photography hints.  Super fun.  Really looking forward to celebrating the month of love with a daily picture (or two!)
01: what they do

What does Sam do?  Sam hugs.  Sam loves Elmo.  Sam says cheese.  Sam wears fish jammies.  Sam makes me smile.

Our Sweet Baby S

A few weeks ago I attempted to take some shots of my sister's little girl, Serenity.  I went in thinking it would be easy, but of course baby was born with the will of my sister and chose to fight me the entire time.  Also, like with my sister, in the end I won the battle and caught some sweet moments.  She is a little doll who already in charge!  Serry is a tiny little version of Brielle, both in looks and personality.  Look out Kal, you will have your hands full.  Think you are having sleepless night now... wait until this little monkey becomes a teenager!!!

Love you guys so much.  Here is my favorites of the first (of many to come) photo shoots with Baby S.

Blooper Reel!

Busy day at the ranch, so I never managed to get today's CCC task done.  I decided to use today's blog to post of the photos that didn't make our family Christmas card.  Shaun is such a good sport and Sam is just CRAZY!  Many many many out takes but lots of funny memories!
Enjoy!

My little Drummer Boy!

He had that crazy look in his eye!

Couldn't help but notice that Sam and Monkey have a similar posture here...

BFFs

Like a wild animal.

Classic

My two favorite guys!

A Weekend of Reasons to be Thankful

This weekend we headed home to be with family for the long weekend.  We made a short stop to see Sam's great Gram and have an ice cream party while visiting.  Though I didn't get a picture of the generations, I thought it was so special to see them all together.  Life is a precious thing, that sometimes we forget to appreciate.


We spent two days at Shaun's parents' acreage.  There is something about that part of the country that is good for the soul.  The air is a little cleaner, the sky is a little brighter and life is a little slower... I love it.  Makes me happy, makes Sam happy.  There are no words to explain it why but it just feels like home.


We had an AMAZING brunch at my Auntie's this morning.  I love time with my family.  They make me smile and laugh.  Never a dull moment, lots of crazy facial hair and genuinely good people.


I have so much to be thankful for in this life that I live.  I'm lucky and blessed and truly happy.

A walk with Grandpa

Undeniably one of the most beautiful skies I've seen in a very
long time... breath taking.

Best ride in town! 

Tried quadding and LOVED it!

Sound checked Uncle Chris's baby sized drum set... I have a feeling this is going to end up in my basement soon!

Probably the funniest thing ever... Sam started to toss the dirt clumps into the air and Roxy (Uncle Chris's 100lb dog) started to jump up and snatch them.  Sam thought it was AWESOME.  Full on belly laugh and had all of us laughing too.  So cute and good to see that Sam hasn't inherited my fear of big dogs!

Nothing better in the world than the sound of his voice...

Anth and Allison's Wedding... my shameless plug!!!

I was given the opportunity to photograph my cousin's wedding this summer.  I've never done any work professionally before and thought it was such an honour for them to trust me with this special day.  Approximately 1000 photos later, hours of editing and then waiting for their wedding book to arrive I was able to hand off my work to them.  I'm proud of what I did, definitely learned a lot and have booked my first paying gig from it to do a wedding next summer.  Would love to take photos, family or baby or maternity or wedding or whatever, and see where it all goes.  I love to show the people the way I see the world using my camera.  


Here are a few of my favs from their wedding, I just loved the day so much.  They are extremely special people in our lives and I think I was able to capture how wonderful I think they are.

These following photos were all taken on my Grandparents' farm

Seriously, how awesome are these guys!!!  One of my fav photos, such good sports!

Cutest ring bearer in history... I might be a little biased!

This is the photo I'm most proud of... congrats to both of you.  Keep loving each other as much as you do in this photo and there will be years and years of happiness!

If you are needing a photographer, but you are on a budget (or just like my work), I'd be more than happy to give you a quote and take some photos for you.  Email me at mandi_wolfe@hotmail.com