Little Miss "Kansas"

Little Miss "Kansas"

So a few months ago, I had the honor of doing this amazing and fun shoot with "S & T". "T" was needing her photos done so her mother "S" could put together this photo card to hand out to all the fellow queens at her ceremony that was coming up. "T" was going to be handing down her crown to the next Queen and these pictures had to represent what a great and beautiful Queen she had been over the last year. This shoot had to be special for "T" and "S" asked if I could put together something for her in a quick time frame and get these photos done for her and of course I said yes! Who would pass up on a chance to do this kind of shoot?? NOT ME!!!

"T" came over to the house early the day of the shoot before "S" got off work and we began the shoot off with using her trophy, sash, and crown. Just something fun and simple to begin with because once "S" arrived, we'd be heading off to a location unknown to me, lol. See, at the time I was still pretty new to the area and couldn't put my 2cents in on the location so it was all up to "S & T" on that part. So "T" and myself began and it was just like I said, fun and simple. We laughed together, joked about some of the poses I wanted her to do so that she could get more relaxed and have fun during the shoot, and we wrapped it up after about an hour or so. Those poses ended up coming out "ok" in the end. They weren't my favorites and it wasn't the best of time seeing how it was all done in the studio environment. I personally prefer to work outdoors with my clients when I do a shoot. I just love the colors and surroundings in the photos that are done outdoors so I couldn't wait to get this girl outside for the second portion of the shoot!

Shortly after wrapping the inside portion of the shoot up, "S" arrived and we headed out to the next part of the session. We originally headed off to the location "S" had picked out but once we drove up to the location we noticed that it wasn't going to work, and its a good thing it didn't because the next location we stopped at, turned out to be the perfect place for these photos. Now keep in mind, "T" had just gone from plain street clothes in the first portion, to a full blown beautiful pageant gown for the second portion of the shoot and boy did she look like a beautiful little princess!

We get started with the shoot and everything's going great! "T" is loving it, "S" is loving it, I'm having fun, people are looking at us to see what we're doing, little children are in amazement as they pass by and we're just playing around with different settings, facial expressions, props, and actions. I can't express enough how beautiful and perfect "T" looked at this very moment in time! At one point a family came out of a business near one of the spots we were shooting and they had two small children with them. We kept hearing chitter chatter during the shoot but paid no attention until we all heard the words "mom, dad, look...its a princess"!!! As we turned to acknowledge them and "T" to wave to them, the children starting tugging at the shirts of the parents to get their attention to what they were seeing.  These children thought they were at Disney World or something because this princess was standing right in front of them and even waving to them. "T" may not have realized it at the time or even now, but she made those kids day when she took the time to wave and say hello to them. It was the cutest thing ever! Once all the excitement was done and over with we continued on our way. 

Once we knew we had enough shots, we headed back home to take a peek at the shots we'd just done. OMG.....I never expected to get such great shots from such a short amount of time but I did! I had the perfect model and client working with me the entire time so of course that made my job a ton easier! As you can see from the pics in the blog, I couldn't have asked for a better session! I'm not only proud of myself for the work I did on this session but I'm super proud of "T" for all the things she's accomplished in her life to have gotten to this point. I can't wait to do another session with her once she returns to the action. I had fun, learned about new locations for future sessions, felt honored I was even asked to do these photos and most importantly...I have memories of this day for the rest of my life seeing how this is my baby girl we're talking about! 

The cards were made and everybody loved the photos that were done in a last minutes notice. My work here was done, on to the next session I went. However, I will never forget the moments I shared with "S & T" or the thoughts that went through my head as this beautiful young lady came walking towards me in her gown. This session was new for me and showed me one more thing that I am capable of doing with my photography. I needed this shoot, and even though I never expected this session to have such a positive touch on myself, it did! It made me realize what I had been missing these last several months and made me jumpy to get back into doing my photography. I expressed my gratitude to "S" for making me get out and do photos again and explained that she may not have known it at the time but this was just what my soul had been needing for a long time since the big move. So a huge Thank You to "S & T" for sparking that light in me again and since, everything has been great for my photography! Thank You to "T" for being such a great model during the shoot and of course you looked 

Beautiful....Just absolutely....Beautiful!!!!

Trinity's 5th Grade Graduation 2011

I had the honor of attending Trinity's 5th Grade Graduation at the end of last school year and let me tell ya, very emotional!!! Not because this is my daughter, but because this is my best friend Sara's daughter...MY NIECE!! I know...I know...

This shouldn't have been so emotional for ME but more so for her MOTHER right?? It was, it was emotional for everyone who was there and knows this young lady! However, let me just explain why it was so emotional for me. 

Well, I've known Trinity's mother for over 16yrs now. We've been best friends through all those years and even after my husband joined the military and we moved to a whole different country, we've never lost complete touch with one another. Years would pass and no communication from either of us and then, all of sudden I'd find her or she'd find me and we'd pick up right from where we'd left off the time before. I had to watch all of her daughters Brooklynn, Trinity & Ashton grow up through pictures and she did the same with my three boys. I never dreamed that I would get to see her and her daughters in person seeing how in the military you're all over the world, let alone be stationed right here in the same city she lives in!!! Yeah, after leaving our small home town in Kansas 14yrs ago, here we are stationed in Kansas again and living less than 5min away from my best friend!! I know, some would say its for a reason, others would say its all by chance. I don't know what it is, nor do I care because I get to see her daughters grow up to be amazing young women now and that's all that matters to me.

Since living in Kansas again, I have gotten to know this beautiful young lady and her sister and its been such a pleasure. Trinity is bright, fun, beautiful, loving, silly, and very outgoing. She's very involved in sports, school, and extracurricular activities outside of school and in school. Just from seeing how amazing she is thus far, I can say that I can honestly see her going far in life if she keeps going down the path she's going right now. Already she's done so much in her short life and I am so proud of her and I wish her nothing but the best in life. I hope she knows that her Uncle Clint & Auntie Amy love her so very much and that if she were to ever need anything through life, she could always call on us for help! WE LOVE YOU TRINITY!!

I have to add that Sara has done such an amazing job raising her daughters on her own as a single mother and I couldn't be more proud of her as well. I always look at her and wonder how the H*LL she's done it and continues to do it?? I know I wouldn't be able to do it on my own! I've only had to be without my husband for 6wks at the longest and it was pure H*LL on me each and every single time he went away, lol. I couldn't imagine doing it for all the years that she has done it. One things for sure though...She's done a Damn good job at doing it. I'm sure its been hard for her, I'm sure there are have been lots of low moments in her life, but I hope that she can look at how amazing her daughters are (all 3 of them) and see that all her hard work and sacrifice has paid off (if in no other way, it sure has with her daughters). As long as she continues to be a supportive, involved, loving mother...she and her girls will go far in life and that makes me happy each time I think about it. I tell her the above things all the time, and I truly honestly mean it each time I say it! I need for her to know that no matter what, she has people who are proud of her and what she's done in life. Just look at the pictures below...HOW COULD YOU NOT BE PROUD OF THAT & KNOW YOU'VE DONE SOMETHING GREAT??? We love you Sara!

This day was special to me and will always hold a special place in my mind and heart and I would just like to say "Thank You" to Trinity & Sara for asking me to be a part in their special day! I love you both so very much and hope you will cherish these pictures as much as I will for years to come!

Good Luck Trinity, Life Has Something Special In Store For You!

Our Family Trip To Sedgwick County Zoo

Lions, Tigers & Bears...OH MY!!

Welcome to Kansas! For our family that means finding new things to see and do at our new location. So as we're looking through book after book of fun and exciting things to do here in Wichita, we find the Sedgwick County Zoo and decide that we should give it a go and see if its anything like the other zoo's we've been to. 

We pack our things, and head out on a beautiful Saturday in April not knowing what we're going to see or experience. Upon arriving at the Zoo we go ahead and purchase season passes because already from the looks of the zoo on the outside, its way bigger than the Panama City, Florida zoo we're used to visiting and its way nicer looking. So we figure, not only are the boys going to love everything inside but we're gonna enjoy this place as a family and have so much fun together. Not to mention the location of the zoo is only 15min from our house and that means easy quick trips to the zoo anytime we get bored or the kids feel the urge to go see the animals. 

We walk through the gates and WOW!!!! I think I recall all our mouths dropping to the ground and looking at eachother with a question of "Where do we even begin"? It was absolutely beautiful inside this place! We head off down the path and enjoy each and every single site we can. We seen snakes, penguins, lions, tigers, bears, gorillas, all kinds of birds and so so so so much more! We couldn't believe how much bigger and nicer this zoo was. The boys had never seen anything like it before in their lives and loved each minute of the entire day. 

Along the way, of course you know I had my camera out and snapping pictures nonstop, lol. I couldn't help myself, there were just too many beautiful creatures in one location and I wanted to capture each one of them. As the hours went on, we noticed we'd been inside the zoo for almost 4hrs already and we weren't even half way through the whole zoo. Needless to say, we picked up the pace and carried on so we could see the whole zoo before they kicked us out due to closing. We knew by the time we had reached the end, we were def coming back again sooner than we had ever imagined. We had so much fun together and even with all the walking, heat, and talking...there was no complaining of "Can we go now, I'm tired"!!! That's when I knew, this was going to be money well invested for our family. 

What a great day it was and after that day, we did make a few more trips back, not as many as what we thought we'd make but that's ok. Reasons for not returning to the zoo were not because of not wanting to go because it wasn't fun or good enough, but for reasons of our Eithan having to experience a horrible tragedy while at the zoo on a field trip with his school. The event scared Eithan so bad, he said he never wanted to go back to the zoo again. We knew it had made a horrible impact on him and he was saying he never wanted to return, we just didn't think it would be so long before his fears washed away. Many times through the summer we tried to attempt it so he could see that the zoo isn't a horrible place but the summer came and went and no trips to the zoo were ever made. However, Eithan has recently mentioned how he'd like to visit the zoo once again and give it another try. So we're planning a trip to the zoo once again before it closes and our season passes expire. For now we have our memories and we have the photos from our wonderful trips to the Sedgwick County Zoo and I'm fine with that. If you live in Wichita, Kansas and you've never been to the zoo, you should really think about going! I'm pretty sure that you'll enjoy it just as much as we did. 

The photos above are just a few of the photos I took on our trips to the zoo. I hope you like them as much as I do! Thanks again for reading my blog and I hope you'll come back soon to read more of my posts. Remember to leave some love and become a follower of my blog if you like my photos or even if you just like reading about my adventures in life. If you have experiences from other zoo's you'd like to share with me or places you think we'd enjoy then please leave those in a comment as well. We're always looking for new and exciting things to do here in Kansas. 

Thanks Again!

OK....SO I'VE BEEN GONE FOR AWHILE BUT, I'M BAAACCCKKK!

So, I've been naughty the last few (alright, several months) and needless to say, I've neglected my precious blog for far way too long! So to all my fans, clients (past, present, and future), I would like to apologize for my neglect. However, on a brighter note...I have way too much good stuff to share with you all, that's good right?

Well, so far my new journey here in Kansas has gone in the following directions...

Scary

Great

Good

Great Again

Not So Good

Angry

Bad

Scary Again

Could Be Better

Very Bad

Very Very Bad

Ahhhh Relief

Awesome

Couldn't Be Better

Sad

More Sad

Alright Things Are Looking Up

Not The News I Wanted

Well, This Place Sucks

Alright, I Can Do This

More Sadness

Happy Happy Joy Joy

Wonderful

Even More Happy

Yup Things Are Still Getting Better

OK, Am I Dreaming?

Nope, I'm Not Dreaming...

Things Are Just That Good Right Now!

So, as you can all see...I've been through some major ups and downs over these last few months since I've last updated my special little bloggie blog but at this moment in time, I couldn't ask for more in my life! I have a wonderful husband who has stood beside me throughout each and every single one of the above emotional roller coasters and is still riding right beside me. He's picked me up when I was down, let me vent my frustrations on him when it had nothing to do with him, allowed me to cry on him when needed, sat and laughed over silly things with me, kept me positive when all I could think was negative, reasoned with me when I was being foolish, showed me that no matter what...we'd get through each and every one of those roller coasters above TOGETHER!! 

Not only do I have the worlds best husband, I have three healthy loving boys who have been my reason for staying strong, even when I didn't think I could be a moment longer. Over the last several months those boys have given me so much happiness, sadness, joy and I won't lie...they've given me A TON OF NEW GREY HAIRS, LOL! Most importantly though, they've been my kids (my life) through everything. Not to mention, they have gone through just as much if not more through those months and yet they still just keep showing those beautiful smiles and go on with their days as if nothing ever happened and ya know what...I LOVE THEM EVEN MORE FOR THAT. BECAUSE THEY'VE SHOWN ME WHAT WONDERFUL YOUNG MEN MY HUSBAND AND I HAVE RAISED THUS FAR AND THAT...IS THE BEST REWARD I COULD EVER GET IN MY LIFE. 

I have wonderful supportive caring friends in my life at the moment and everybody needs good friends they can trust right? I have my friends from Florida, my friends from my home town of Neodesha, Kansas, my Air force peeps whom I try to keep up with as best as I can (but it gets hard when they're all spread out across the world) but I do my best at times and other times I could do better! I have my friends here in Wichita, Kansas, some are old life long friends and others are not so old, but I hope that our friendships continue to grow over my time here so that  one day when I'm gone from this place I now call home, I can call them my old friend too! 

Throughout all my experiences these last several months, I've actually managed to take loads of pictures believe it or not, lol. Over the next few posts I'll be showing you some of those photos as well as writing about what made me take each one of those photos at that very moment. Now I'll be honest, some were good...some were great...some not so good...some really bad...and a few were to die for. Most importantly they show where I've been and what I've done over the months I've yet to write about. All I can say now at this moment is this, I'm happy to be back and working on this very important part of my life.....MY BLOGGIE BLOG and I hope I can continue to keep up with it better this time around!! 

So to end this long but honest, true, emotional post I leave you with this....

Never take life for granted, Never go a day without telling those in your life how much they mean to you, Never let anyone come between you and your loved ones, Never let the things people say to you be the final determination of who you are or who you wish to become, and one last thing....Be who you are...who you want to be...who you always will be...

YOU!

If you're reading this, Thank You! Thank You for always supporting me in my adventures to live my dream and making it possible to show my love for Photography to the world through my view!! I love you all for making this possible but most of all, I love my husband and three boys for always believing in me and supporting me 100%. 

I LOVE YOU! 

Hope you all enjoy the new photos! 

Dan's USAF Retirement Ceremony

USAF Retirement Ceremony

Wow....Where do I start with this one?! This whole family means so much to my family and I. Not only was Dan a huge part of Clints career for the last few years, Dan was a role model, friend, fishing buddy, supervisor, and so much more to Clint and everyone else who knows him or has had the honor to work with him in the United States AF. 

I had the honor of taking photos for the Otto Family during a very special time in all their lives....Dan's AF Retirement. I knew the day was going to be hard due to saying goodbye to all our friends in Florida but I never imagined it was going to be as hard as it was to watch this Wonderful Man and his family who have touched so many lives through the years, say goodbye to everything they've known and loved for so many years....the USAF! I'm so thankful for having the chance to know Dan, his wife Jennifer, their son Hunter, and Daughter Hannah. 

This family will never know how much they mean to my family and I but I hope they know we love them and miss them dearly. Dan, Thank you for taking the time to be such a great supervisor and more importantly a great friend to Clint. He looked up to you, respected you more than anyone else, cherished your advice you'd give him, took your guidance you'd give him very serious, and cherished your friendship most of all. I know the day Clint says his goodbyes to the USAF, he'll have just as many people sitting in their seats saying to themselves "That man was the best supervisor a person could ask for, he's made me who I am today, and we're all gonna miss that guy", because he had YOU to guide him! 

Thank you Dan and Jennifer for being everything you are! You're amazing people and we love you! Thank you for allowing me to capture these memories! Love ya