Sneak Peek: Brooklynn is 6 months old!

It's hard to believe that Brooklynn is already 6 months old... it seems like just yesterday that I got to meet her & take her newborn portraits!

All too soon it seemed, I headed over to Andrea & Travis's new house to set up and shoot some portraits. We had lots of fun and changed Brooklynn lots of times into all kinds of cute outfits. She wasn't quite in a modeling mood and we had to work hard for every smile - but it was so worth it!

Brooke started out in a pretty good mood...


She really, really wanted to chew on her foot!




She wasn't so sure about her Easter dress...




Maybe a small smile?? Oh, a huge laugh! ADORABLE!

Those are my favorites so far... I have lots more to edit! Thank you for letting me be a part of documenting your memories of Brooklynn growing up, Travis & Andrea!

Bald Eagles on the Mississippi

Every spring, my husband and I make several fishing trips to the Mississippi. Well, he fishes...I just read and take pictures! The area where Paul likes to fish (we launch at Everts Fishing Resort) is chock full of bald eagles. It's amazing to see them all - at least five every trip!

I'll be the first to admit that birds (especially birds in flight) are not my strong suit. But there's no resisting when there are so many! I had tons of fun taking these photos and I think I got at least a few keepers.







There were also, of course, fish & nature pictures!



These two are possibly my favorites of both trips!



Happy Friday!

Hudson Hot Air Affair!

A couple weeks ago was a busy weekend... February 6th - my grandpa's birthday and the Hudson Hot Air Affair! We kept an eye on the Hot Air Affair's facebook page and decided to try to go to the launch on Saturday morning. When we got there, we quickly realized they weren't going to launch. Disappointing, but we figured we'd just try again at 3:00.

Three pm came around, and it didn't seem to be much better - still cloudy and quite a bit of wind. Surprisingly, they still launched! It was such a cool sight! One by one, the balloons were laid out and inflated, and then the balloons took off. We found out later that one of our friends was in a balloon & we had pictures of him!





This balloon looked like it was going to run into the one in front of it!







Later that night, we headed back to the launch field to see either the Field of Fire or Moonglow. Luckily, it was calm enough to put the balloons up and we had the opportunity to see the Moonglow. Again, an amazing sight!

Happy Birthday Grandpa!

Last Saturday, my family got together to celebrate my grandpa's 90th birthday.






My husband, Paul, commented, "Does that mean he was born in 1920?" Yes, yes it does... that evolved into a conversation of what 1920 was like, which made me realize that it's a good thing we aren't history teachers!
















Happy (late now) Birthday Grandpa!

Dead of Winter

Winter is a notoriously slow time for photography. Everything is either brown & dead or covered in ice or snow. And in Wisconsin, winter is COLD! Every once in a while though, winter can be absolutely gorgeous, as evidenced by my recent photo hike through Glen Park in River Falls.




There was so much "black and white" that the little splashes of color had a real impact.




It was so much easier to get to the waterfall than it is in the spring and summer - just walk across the ice!




The ducks wanted to be as far away from me as possible! (too bad I wanted to get pictures, so I kept sneaking closer)




The plants and trees were covered in beautiful frost!




With all of this gorgeous scenery as a backdrop, what reason could anyone have not to want to schedule a portrait session in the winter in Wisconsin??




Two reasons:
1) It's COLD!
2) You may end up like me - wet & covered in snow! (if you don't, I will :c) )

Year in Review: 2009

Wow! I can't believe it's already 2010. (by the way, I will continue saying "two thousand ten" for as long as possible... I'm already disliking "twenty ten," even though I know it's how we said all of the years in the 1900's.)

I looked back through all of my photos from this year and realized how unbelievably lucky I've been. Not only did I have the opportunity to photograph many engagement and family portraits as well as weddings (including my brother's!), I also got to document my friends' and family's babies and lives! PLUS I went on a cruise to the southern Caribbean, two Packer games, two monster truck shows... and countless other fun things!

I've put together an, ahem, short - okay LONG - slideshow of some of my favorites from the year. Sit back, relax, and enjoy. And make sure you have some time if you want to watch the whole thing!

Happy Holidays!

I love winter and the holidays! Great food, friends and family, and (of course) a little break from work! Here in Wisconsin, we were predicted to get 12+ inches of snow, but it pretty much turned over to slushy rain...

Just wanted to take a moment to wish all of you a great holiday season wherever you are. I hope you're having a great winter and safe travels!