voted 4th in Houston - thank you!

wow.  4th is pretty great.  a huge thanks to everyone for making me feel the love :)

ellie!

 i got to photograph beautiful, happy ellie at her home with her mom and dad.  what a joy!  
kim and pete, thank you for having me.  and thank you for being perfectly relaxed and fun to photograph!  i could have stayed all day!

asher's first haircut

i finally broke down and cut baby asher's hair.

the first hair cut seems like such a milestone to me.  i experienced it with greyson - in a snip of the scissors, my baby boy looked like a big boy!  knowing what i am in for,  i have been holding out with asher,  waiting as long as possible to trim the baby hair out of his eyes and off of his neck.  after almost 16 months, his hair was pretty crazy -- but it also seemed to fit his crazy little personality :)

we love lisa at shine in the heights - she makes my whole family look good!  i was excited (and a little sad) to bring asher to her.  the first time lisa met asher he was so tiny he nursed under my smock while lisa cut my hair!

asher was very unsure of the whole event.  he held tight to his daddy.  in the end it was a great success - asher looked very handsome and i did not even cry!  greyson and andy got haircuts too, but andy won't let me photograph his....

greyson, my clown.

this post is just for greyson.  he is funny and smart, and as asher demands attention from everyone, greyson finds his own way to shine.

austin and big brother parker

adorable austin!  i so enjoyed spending time with austin and getting to know his sweet personality.  he is at a perfect smiley stage and is learning to rough and tumble with his big brother already!

angela, what can i say?  your boys are beautiful.  thank you for having me, it is always a pleasure for me to photograph your family.  i hope you love this little sneak peek :)

more of sannam's little man...

growing up already!  i shot a few more photos of arman on my last visit (between hugging and squeezing him!) and i couldn't believe how much he has changed...

sannam told me that she and scott purchased this little strawberry hat in paris, long before they had any children.  it's just been waiting all this time for arman's cute head to fill it!

his mommy is so in love :)

at the park

just for fun.  this is how we've been spending the pretty days...

christina & jeremy

christina and jeremy had a gorgeous wedding and they are a really, genuinely nice couple.  i loved the beautiful fall color scheme and i had a blast at their reception chasing the cute flower girl around to take photos of her.

my favorites, as always, are the black and whites of the ceremony.  i just love it when i feel a lump in my throat when i look at a photograph...

christina and jeremy,  thank you for being sweet to each other and to me!  i cannot wait to start working on your album

happy birthday Sammy & Noah

i have two amazing little friends.

if you have not heard about Sammy & Noah, please read about them and see photos of the first time i met them here.

Sammy & Noah just celebrated their first birthday!  and it was really a year to be celebrated! their families and friends came together for their naming ceremony and birthday party, all in one.

for Sammy, Noah, and those who love them, this year was full of fear and hope, strugle and triumph, worry and faith, sadness and great joy.....and through it all, love.

like so many people this year, i waited for jordan's updates in her online journal and read them while holding my breath.  i didn't even know them before i photographed them the first time, but this family has been part of me this year.

i felt that many of the photos of the party were personal moments or photos of special people.  so i am not sharing too many of those.  but i did want to give everyone who has asked me about the twins this joyful update -- Sammy & Noah are One!

harry, jordan, thank you for again allowing me to photograph your precious family.  i am going to hold you to a session in the spring so i can see how big the twins get between now and then!


Jordan - seeing you with your children, reading your thoughts, listening to your toast to them at their celebration - you have taught me an immeasurable amount about what it means to be a mother.  you are an amazing mother.

Lucy!

i am in love with lucy!  she was so fun to photograph!  so happy and sweet.  i just could not help myself, i posted so many photos of her. i loved every one!    i photographed dana and lucas's wedding a few years ago and i was so lucky to see them again and get to meet lucy.

dana and lucas, thank you for thinking of me for lucy's photos.  i enjoyed it so much and hope to see her (and you!) again soon.

Sannam's little man

ladies and gentlemen, i'd like to introduce you to the world's most anticipated baby.  welcome Arman Duncan.  you are one very loved little man.

most of you remember Sannam, she was my first studio manager.  she left us with the hopes of adopting a child.  i could not be happier that her hopes were fulfilled with this beautiful boy.

sannam, you have a son!  welcome to the club.

stirman family

i was so excited when hayley asked me if i would photograph her family.

an aside - if you don't know her, hayley is the amazing creative talent behind hh design house.  she has done lots of beautiful custom wedding invitations, birth announcements, and holiday cards for our clients or using my images.  (i also shot hayley and jason's beautiful wedding and it was featured in the knot!)

i knew we would have fun and get great photos.  hayley and i have similar taste, and i had some ideas right away.  her family is fun and we really did have a good time except for the freezing cold cold cold wind!

hayley, thanks for suggesting this shoot with your family.  i love working with you!

alex grows up...

i got a little sentimental thinking about alex growing up (see post below).  so i dug up one photo from each time i photographed alex. it is fun to see how much she's grown, but that expression sure stays the same!  :)

3 months old

beautiful alex

i have been photographing alex since she was three months old.  she just turned two.  i can't believe it!  no matter how many times it happens, it doesn't get less amazing to watch a little person grow up so quickly!  i still had her pictured in my mind as a baby, but i was greeted by this beautiful girl with long hair and long legs!

i always have fun and simple shoots with alex.  we stay home.  we play with toys.  we play in the yard. it doesn't take much more than a happy little girl to get great photos.

alex's mom told me that alex insisted on wearing this pink doggy shirt for her photos because it is her favorite and she wears it all the time. perfect.  these are things you will want to remember.

tracy, todd, it was a pleasure, as always.  thank you for choosing me to photograph your beautiful daughter.

olivia (and emmi too!)

i was lucky enough to photograph olivia's family before she was born, for her sister emmi's two year old photos....

 

not long after that, olivia arrived and i got to spend another fun session with the family.  i love the interactions in these - between mom and olivia and between olivia and new big sister especially.  one of my favorite shots from the day was taken when brandon was leaving to go back to work.  he leaned over to kiss vanessa good bye, it's a simple family moment that happens every day.  love it.
vanessa, brandon, thank you for having me.  your daughters are both beautiful.  emmi, let's play again soon! be sweet to baby olivia :)

"mommy, take our picture"...

...said my oldest, trying hard to get my attention off of my computer.  

"you haven't taken ANY pictures of us in such a really long time."

 glad i grabbed the camera. 

jackson. 3 months old.

meet jackson.
i witnessed (and photographed) the moment he was born.  amazing.
he is 3 months old already!  lucky for me, i will get to photograph jackson a few more times this year.  so i will get to watch as he grows and learns.
thanks for a great session, little man.

asher's first day

asher went to school today for the first time.  (okay, he went once last week, but he only lasted one hour.  that doesn't count).

the blessing (and curse) of parenting is feeling opposing emotions all the time and with paralyzing power.  i am tearful and sad that my baby is at school today without me.  i am also relieved to have a few hours to myself and i feel 'light' in a way i haven't in 14 months.

here are photos of before school at our house this morning.

facebook

after long believing that it was not my stlye, i joined facebook.
and now you know what i did all day.

you can find me on facebook  
or become a fan of goodlight photography!

me and my boys

i love this photo.  genevieve (my sort-of-sister-in-law) caught this great moment at the park while she and mike were home for the holidays.  i am thrilled with it.  there are never any photos of me with my family.  this one feels the way i have felt being mom to two little boys for the past 14 months.
thanks for this gift gen!

happy 2009!

 to all who made 2008 wonderful, thank you.  i cannot wait to see what 2009 will bring!