Friday, May 30, 2008

Beautiful Family

What an adorable family that I met with tonight. Joci is 10 months old and so sweet. Those bright blue eyes are to die for! Thanks so much for taking her in to get her pictures done tonight. You guys were a lot of fun to work with and it helped to have a cooperative model! :) Enjoy your sneak peek!



I told you they were an adorable family!



I'll let you guys know when the rest are done!

Thursday, May 29, 2008

TAG - I'm it!

Thanks Summer for tagging me. If you care to know more about me read the following:

1) Are your parents married or divorced? Married.

2) Are you a vegetarian? No.

3) Do you believe in Heaven? Yep.

4) Have you ever come close to dying? I don't think so!

5) What jewellery do you wear daily? My wedding ring, a new bracelet (I just lost the bracelet that I was wearing every day for the past 8 years!), and earrings. I never ever change my jewelery unless I am going to a special event. I know, I'm pretty boring!

6) Do you eat the stems of broccoli? Oh I love cooked broccoli with melted cheese! Mmm, I'll eat it all!

7) What is your hair style? Pony tail. It's got to be simple with 3 kids! :)

8) Ever have any surgery? Yes.

9) Do you color your hair? I think I have colored it once.

10) What do you wear to bed? Pajamas - what else would I wear?

11) Can you roll your tongue? Yep.

12) Electric razor or blade? Blade.

13) What kind of shoes usually? Bare feet and flip flops. I *heart* flip flops!

14) What is your hair color? Brown.

15) Future child's name? Do you seriously think I will have more? Not happening! I am very content with my 3 wonderful kids!

16) Do you snore? I don't know, I'm sleeping.

17) If you could go anywhere in the world where would it be? Australia. I would love to go there.

18) Do you sleep with stuffed animals? No.

19) If you won the lottery, what would you do first? Pay off debt.

20) Gold or platinum/white gold? Platinum.

21) Hamburger or hot dog? Either as long as they were grilled!! Mmm...

22) If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be? Candy - I love candy!

23) City, beach or country? Anything, as long as the weather was nice!

24) What was the last thing you touched? My keyboard.

25) Where did you eat last? At home. Chips and cheese for lunch (I'm quite the health nut). :)

26) When was the last time you cried? A couple of weeks ago.

27) Do you read blogs? I'm probably reading yours right now!

28) Would you ever go out dressed like the opposite sex? Sure, but not sure why I would want to.

29) Ever been involved with the police? Yep, I like to speed.

30) What's your favorite shampoo and soap? Red ken - All Soft shampoo and conditioner. Love it!

31) Do you talk in your sleep? I don't think so.

32) Ocean or pool? Anything as long as it's really warm!

33) Window seat or aisle? Window.

34) Ever met anyone famous? Never.

35) Do you feel that you've had a truly successful life? Most definitely.

36) Do you twirl your spaghetti or cut it? Twirl.

37) Ricki Lake or Oprah Winfrey? Oprah. Could anyone convince her to air her show during the kids naps?

38) Basketball or Football? Basketball...GO GREEN!

39) How long do your showers last? 5-10 minutes.

40) Automatic or stick shift? Automatic.

41) Cake or ice cream? Ice-cream with fresh peaches and chocolate syrup drizzled on top.

42) Are you self-conscious? No.

43) Have you been in love? Yes.

44) Where do you wish you were? Mexico, on the beach.

45) Do you wear socks with your shoes? Depends on the shoes.

46) Have you ever ridden in an ambulance? Yep and it wasn't fun.

47) Can you tango? I've never tried!

48) Last gift you received? Flowers from my hubby.

49) Last sport you played? Can't remember, it's been a long time!

50) Things you spend a lot of money on? Camera Equipment!

51) Where do you live? Byron Center, Michigan

52) Where were you born? Grand Rapids, Michigan

53) Last wedding attended? I don't remember but I am a guest at one next week.

54) Most hated food(s)? Not a fan of seafood.

55) What's your favourite food? Honestly I have no idea.

56) Can you sing? I actually love to sing. Whether or not anyone else likes to hear me is another story.

57) Last person you instant messaged? No one, I don't think I even have the capability to.

58) Last place you went on vacation? Great Wolf Lodge. The most fabulous place on Earth for kids!

59) Favorite regular drink? McDonald's Coke.

60) Tag 5 friends: How about one LISA LENDERINK of PHOTOS BY LISA. Tag...you're it!! :)

Monday, May 26, 2008

Baby Bump

Our dear friends Justin and Amanda are having a baby! A baby boy that we will have the pleasure to call Jack. I can't wait to meet him and I know his parents are excited too! Hope you like how these turned out Amanda! I can't wait to hold your little buddy.

This one makes me giggle.


You both are going to be fabulous parents! Enjoy these few weeks (Amanda's hoping days) that you have left as a couple. Things won't be so quiet once Jack gets here!! Love you guys!


Sunday, May 25, 2008

Photographer's Family

Yep, there is a first time for everything and today was the first time I have photographed another photographer's family. Talk about pressure!! I did a sitting with the fabulous Summer from SJO Photography. Summer had the wonderful idea to have me take her family pictures and she would soon take pictures of me and my family. I think Summer got the short end of the stick because she needs to try and get my 3 kids to sit still for a picture...yeah right!!





By far my favorite of the afternoon! Love this one below, I might even hang it up on my wall!! :)



I love how these turned out Summer, I hope you are happy with them!

Saturday, May 24, 2008

Familes + Pictures at the Park Day = SUCCESS!

What a fabulous day for family pictures! Today was the day for the "Pictures at the Park" and it was fabulous! I switched things up a little and we ended up using a different park as I got wind that there was a wedding happening at Spring Grove (thanks Beth). We had awesome weather and we got some wonderful pictures during these mini sessions.



I just love this moment between these two. A father son moment - precious

This one made me gasp...I love this one below. There was no way he wanted to get on it, but standing next to the horse was ok.






Now this little guy wasn't shy at all about going for a ride!



A big thanks to the families that came out to have their pictures taken today! I had so much fun and I really hope you guys did too! If there is more interest in doing another "Pictures at the Park" day I definitely would love to do more later this summer. Drop me an email if you would be interested otherwise feel free to contact me for a private one on one session.



Thursday, May 22, 2008

Chloe & Brooks

What cute siblings they are! I spent the evening photographing these two adorable kids. I think these ages are the hardest to photograph. At age 2 they are just starting to learn their independence and they have perfected the word "no". The other age is when they are just learning that they can move by crawling! As soon as you put them down they just start to take off. Thankfully these two did awesome tonight and we have some good ones.


Isn't this color combination to die for? I love these colors together!












Hope you have enjoyed your quick look at a few from tonight's session! Thanks for coming to my side of town tonight!! :)

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Ethan...Age 2

I had the pleasure of going to Saugatuck this afternoon to hang out with this adorable little guy. Ethan turned 2 just a couple of days ago. Happy Birthday to you Ethan!! It's been about a year since I photographed this little guy and boy has he grown up since then!


Does this picture just melt your heart? He loved those little flowers that he found! He's going to be a heart breaker someday!




Thanks for letting me hang out with you guys this afternoon! I will have the rest ready soon!

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Happy or Sad

I was doing some more editing tonight and when I came across this image that I couldn't resist posting. It is just too cute! Poor little buddy, he just can't make up his mind to whether or not he is having fun with this!


Your gallery will be ready soon Lori!

Spots Left!

I still have a couple spots left for the "Pictures at the Park" day this Saturday. You can read more about it here. Feel free to spread the word if you know someone that might be interested, it is supposed to be a beautiful day!

Sunday, May 18, 2008

The Best Apple Crisp Ever...Seriously.

You must try this right now. You won't regret it!

Here is this must have recipe for my favorite apple crisp:

INGREDIENTS:
10C thinly sliced apples (I used Gala apples with the peels removed)
1C white sugar
1T all-purpose flour
1t ground cinnamon
1/4C water

1C quick-cooking oats
1C all-purpose flour
1C packed brown sugar
1/4t baking powder
1/4t baking soda
1/2C butter softened (almost melted)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place apples in a 9x13 inch pan. In a separate bowl mix the white sugar, 1T of flour and cinnamon together and sprinkle over the apples. Pour 1/4C of water evenly over the apples.
3. Combine the oats, 1C flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda and melted butter together to get a crumbled mixture. Crumble evenly over the apple mixture.
4. Bake at 350 degrees for about 55 minutes.

*I doubled the crumble mixture and put half of it on the bottom of the apples and the rest on the top. Yummy!!!


Tonight I cut the recipe in half which was perfect for Joe and I, plus we have leftovers!

I also drizzled caramel on top. Oh sweet glory, this is some good stuff! I'm sure it would be good with vanilla ice cream too.

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Mr. Man

Mr. Caleb came in to visit me today. He is 8 months old and was full of smiles...most of the time! :)


This is such a great age when they can sit up by themselves!


He has already learned to spell his name. He is one genius child!


Caleb is also at the age where he LOVES his mamma! So very much that he just wanted to be right by her! I can't blame him though Lori, you are pretty fun to be around! :)




Thanks for coming in to take pictures today guys! I will have the rest ready for you soon! Hope you enjoyed your preview!

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

New

Introducing Drew. This little buddy is 10 days old and is full of cuteness! Despite the poo, the pee and the spit-up, tonight was a success! Thanks for giving me the opportunity to capture these special moments of your new baby! Congratulations Brad and Nichole! Hope you enjoyed your sneak peek!




Sunday, May 11, 2008

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mamma's out there! Trey wanted to get an early start celebrating Mother's Day with me and he wanted to hang out with me ALL night. I went in with Trey to the E.R. last night at around 11 pm because he was crying uncontrollably for around an hour which is not like him. I just could sense that something was wrong and that something was hurting him. So...finally around 3:30 this morning we got the diagnosis that he in fact has another ear infection except this time his ear drum was about to burst. Poor kid. Thankfully we have the problem figured out, he has his antibiotic and he hopefully should start to feel better soon. Despite being up all night with a crying child, I still love being a mother.


What am I up to today? Is is something glamorous or relaxing? Nope...Joe and I are cleaning. We currently have our house up for sale and a couple wants to come take a look tonight.



Because my Mother's Day was filled up with E.R. visits and cleaning supplies, I want to make sure that I can make someone else's Mother's Day exciting even if mine is not. That's just how I like to roll. The first mama that emails me at kerrys@imagesofessence.com with the subject title labeled Mother's Day will receive a $10 gift card to Bath & Body Works. Happy Mother's Day!

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Pictures at the Park

That's right! I have an awesome opportunity to try out some new equipment and I don't want it to go to waste! Therefore I am offering a "Pictures at the Park" day for all of you. Here are the details. These will be mini sessions that are roughly 20 minutes each (trust me, I am quick and you will be surprised at what I can get in 20 minutes!). Meet me at Spring Grove Park on Saturday, May 24 for one of the following times:

1:30p - RESERVED

2:00p

2:30p

3:00p

3:30p - RESERVED

4:00p - RESERVED

Please go ahead and email me if you are interested in a specific time slot and I will reserve it for you. In the event of rain (which won't happen - this is too important) we could look at rescheduling to the next day, Sunday, May 25. As an extra incentive to reserve your time, any sitting done at the park Saturday the 24th will receive 20% off your total order.

* The free prints offer that ends May 31 does not apply to the "Pictures at the Park".

Thursday, May 1, 2008

My Boys

I just love having two boys! I can't wait to watch them grow up together, play with each other and do boy things! Trey is just fascinated with Gibson. Every time Gibson pays any attention to him he is just all smiles and giggles. It is the best feeling as a mother to watch your children play nicely together and love each other. I just try to forget all the other times they are pulling each others hair and fighting. That rarely happens anyway...