A Very Blessed Year

2010 was an absolutely incredible year! I can't tell you how much I truly loved meeting so many wonderful new people. I think I walked away from literally every session thinking to myself, "Wow, what an awesome family."

I feel privileged, honored, and so very grateful to have been chosen to capture those small moments in time for you.

I wish you the very best in 2011 and look forward to seeing you again!!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Waiting for Baby M! {Cypress Family and Maternity Photographer}

It's always wonderful to have the opportunity to work with friends! This mommy and I have known each other since college, and have watched each other's families grow. Now she and her sweet hubby are about to add one more little one to their family. Baby Maddie should be here any day now! What a great Christmas present!

Good luck, Kim and Jim! We can't wait to meet her!

Welcoming Baby Boy (B)! {Cypress Newborn Photographer}

It was almost exactly one month ago that I had the chance to do a maternity session with THIS adorable mama and her sweet family, so I was thrilled when baby R arrived!

Here are some of my faves from our in-home session showcasing their newest addition!!

Christmas Scripture Countdown

This is not at all photography related, but I just love it so much that I wanted to be able to share it and make it as easy as possible for others to use.

In our house, we have a countdown to Christmas thingy. It has little doors you open for each day of December. (Some have pockets, flaps, etc.) Usually I just hide candy in there, and each day, my kids open the door, eat the candy, and know that they're one day closer to Santa coming.

This year, I'm really struggling with my kindergartner to remind her of the true meaning of Christmas. She's obsessed with the idea of presents, Santa Claus, the little Elf on the Shelf, etc.

It's my husband's fault. (OK, OK, it's totally my fault, too!) After all, we're the ones who've been asking her, "What do you want for Christmas?" or, "Be good! Santa's watching!"

Now I'm kicking myself for not instilling in her a better grasp of the knowledge that the greatest gift of all is the one that God gave us.

Anyway, back to the countdown to Christmas thingy:

This year, thanks to two really great friends who inspired the idea, I'm going to put sections of the Christmas story straight from scripture into each day's slot. (Yeah, I'll probably add candy in there, too!)

After some time spent on internet searches, as well as lots of passage look-ups on Bible Gateway, I typed out 24 sections of the Christmas story that I'm going to just cut into strips, fold up, and stuff in. That way, each day as we count down to Christmas, we also will read and talk about its true meaning!

I want to be able to share this with anyone who would like to use it. It's all ready to go, so all you have to do is print and cut!

If I was more technological, I would probably know how to attach a Word document to this blog, but since I don't, here it is below. If you'd like to have the Word doc sent to you (it's nicer looking, I promise), just send me your email address and I'm happy to do it!

Dec. 1

1 John 1:1-5

¹The Word that gives life was from the beginning, and this is the one our message is about. Our ears have heard, our own eyes have seen, and our hands touched this Word. ²The one who gives life appeared! We saw it happen, and we are witnesses to what we have seen. Now we are telling you about this eternal life that was with the Father and appeared to us. ³We are telling you what we have seen and heard, so that you may share in this life with us. And we share in it with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. ⁴We are writing to tell you these things, because this makes us ^[a] truly happy. ⁵Jesus told us that God is light and doesn't have any darkness in him. Now we are telling you.

Dec. 2

Isaiah 9:6-7

⁶A child has been born for us. We have been given a son who will be our ruler. His names will be Wonderful Advisor and Mighty God, Eternal Father and Prince of Peace. ⁷His power will never end; peace will last forever. He will rule David's kingdom and make it grow strong. He will always rule with honesty and justice. The LORD All-Powerful will make certain that all of this is done.

Dec. 3

Isaiah 11:2-3, 9

²The Spirit of the LORD will be with him to give him understanding, wisdom, and insight. He will be powerful, and he will know and honor the LORD. ³His greatest joy will be to obey the LORD. This king won't judge by appearances or listen to rumors. ⁹Nothing harmful will take place on the LORD's holy mountain. Just as water fills the sea, the land will be filled with people who know and honor the LORD.

Dec. 4

Jeremiah 33:14-15

¹⁴The LORD said: I made a wonderful promise to Israel and Judah, ^[a] and the days are coming when I will keep it. ¹⁵I promise that the time will come when I will appoint a king from the family of David, a king who will be honest and rule with justice.

Dec. 5

Luke 1:5-10

⁵When Herod was king of Judea, there was a priest by the name of Zechariah from the priestly group of Abijah. His wife Elizabeth was from the family of Aaron. ^{[a] 6}Both of them were good people and pleased the Lord God by obeying all that he had commanded. ⁷But they did not have children. Elizabeth could not have any, and both Zechariah and Elizabeth were already old. ⁸One day Zechariah's group of priests were on duty, and he was serving God as a priest. ⁹According to the custom of the priests, he had been chosen to go into the Lord's temple that day and to burn incense, ^{[b] 10}while the people stood outside praying.

Dec. 6

Luke 1:11-17

¹¹All at once an angel from the Lord appeared to Zechariah at the right side of the altar. ¹²Zechariah was confused and afraid when he saw the angel. ¹³But the angel told him: Don't be afraid, Zechariah! God has heard your prayers. Your wife Elizabeth will have a son, and you must name him John. ¹⁴His birth will make you very happy, and many people will be glad. ¹⁵Your son will be a great servant of the Lord. He must never drink wine or beer, and the power of the Holy Spirit will be with him from the time he is born. ¹⁶John will lead many people in Israel to turn back to the Lord their God. ¹⁷He will go ahead of the Lord with the same power and spirit that Elijah ^a]">[a] had. And because of John, parents will be more thoughtful of their children. And people who now disobey God will begin to think as they ought to. That is how John will get people ready for the Lord.

Dec. 7

Luke 1:18-25

¹⁸Zechariah said to the angel, "How will I know this is going to happen? My wife and I are both very old." ¹⁹The angel answered, "I am Gabriel, God's servant, and I was sent to tell you this good news. ²⁰You have not believed what I have said. So you will not be able to say a thing until all this happens. But everything will take place when it is supposed to." ²¹The crowd was waiting for Zechariah and kept wondering why he was staying so long in the temple. ²²When he did come out, he could not speak, and they knew he had seen a vision. He motioned to them with his hands, but did not say a thing.

²³When Zechariah's time of service in the temple was over, he went home. ²⁴Soon after that, his wife was expecting a baby, and for five months she did not leave the house. She said to herself, ²⁵"What the Lord has done for me will keep people from looking down on me." ^a]">[a]

Dec. 8

Luke 1:26-38

²⁶One month later God sent the angel Gabriel to the town of Nazareth in Galilee ²⁷with a message for a virgin named Mary. She was engaged to Joseph from the family of King David. ²⁸The angel greeted Mary and said, "You are truly blessed! The Lord is with you."

²⁹Mary was confused by the angel's words and wondered what they meant. ³⁰Then the angel told Mary, "Don't be afraid! God is pleased with you, ³¹and you will have a son. His name will be Jesus. ³²He will be great and will be called the Son of God Most High. The Lord God will make him king, as his ancestor David was. ³³He will rule the people of Israel forever, and his kingdom will never end."

³⁴Mary asked the angel, "How can this happen? I am not married!" ³⁵The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come down to you, and God's power will come over you. So your child will be called the holy Son of God. ³⁶Your relative Elizabeth is also going to have a son, even though she is old. No one thought she could ever have a baby, but in three months she will have a son. ³⁷Nothing is impossible for God!"

³⁸Mary said, "I am the Lord's servant! Let it happen as you have said." And the angel left her.

Dec. 9

Matthew 1:18-21

¹⁸This is how Jesus Christ was born. A young woman named Mary was engaged to Joseph from King David's family. But before they were married, she learned that she was going to have a baby by God's Holy Spirit. ¹⁹Joseph was a good man ^[a] and did not want to embarrass Mary in front of everyone. So he decided to quietly call off the wedding. ²⁰While Joseph was thinking about this, an angel from the Lord came to him in a dream. The angel said, "Joseph, the baby that Mary will have is from the Holy Spirit. Go ahead and marry her. ²¹Then after her baby is born, name him Jesus, ^[b] because he will save his people from their sins."

Dec. 10

Matthew 1:22-26

²²So the Lord's promise came true, just as the prophet had said, ²³"A virgin will have a baby boy, and he will be called Immanuel," which means "God is with us." ²⁴After Joseph woke up, he and Mary were soon married, just as the Lord's angel had told him to do. ²⁵But they did not sleep together before her baby was born. Then Joseph named him Jesus.

Dec. 11

Luke 1:39-45

³⁹A short time later Mary hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea. ⁴⁰She went into Zechariah's home, where she greeted Elizabeth. ⁴¹When Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, her baby moved within her. The Holy Spirit came upon Elizabeth. ⁴²Then in a loud voice she said to Mary: God has blessed you more than any other woman! He has also blessed the child you will have. ⁴³Why should the mother of my Lord come to me? ⁴⁴As soon as I heard your greeting, my baby became happy and moved within me. ⁴⁵The Lord has blessed you because you believed that he will keep his promise.

Dec. 12

Luke 1:46-56

⁴⁶Mary said: With all my heart I praise the Lord, ⁴⁷and I am glad because of God my Savior. ⁴⁸He cares for me, his humble servant. From now on, all people will say God has blessed me. ⁴⁹God All-Powerful has done great things for me, and his name is holy. ⁵⁰He always shows mercy to everyone who worships him. ⁵¹The Lord has used his powerful arm to scatter those who are proud. ⁵²He drags strong rulers from their thrones and puts humble people in places of power. ⁵³God gives the hungry good things to eat, and sends the rich away with nothing. ⁵⁴He helps his servant Israel and is always merciful to his people. ⁵⁵The Lord made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his family forever!

⁵⁶Mary stayed with Elizabeth about three months. Then she went back home.

Dec. 13

Luke 2:1,3-5

¹About that time Emperor Augustus gave orders for the names of all the people to be listed in record books.

³Everyone had to go to their own hometown to be listed. ⁴So Joseph had to leave Nazareth in Galilee and go to Bethlehem in Judea. Long ago Bethlehem had been King David's hometown, and Joseph went there because he was from David's family.

Dec. 14

Luke 2:6-7

⁶and while they were there, ⁷Mary gave birth to her first-born ^a]">[a] son. She dressed him in baby clothes ^b]">[b] and laid him on a bed of hay, because there was no room for them in the inn.

Dec. 15

Luke 2:8-12

⁸That night in the fields near Bethlehem some shepherds were guarding their sheep. ⁹All at once an angel came down to them from the Lord, and the brightness of the Lord's glory flashed around them. The shepherds were frightened. ¹⁰But the angel said, "Don't be afraid! I have good news for you, which will make everyone happy. ¹¹This very day in King David's hometown a Savior was born for you. He is Christ the Lord. ¹²You will know who he is, because you will find him dressed in baby clothes and lying on a bed of hay."

Dec. 16

Luke 2:13-14

¹³Suddenly many other angels came down from heaven and joined in praising God. They said: ¹⁴"Praise God in heaven! Peace on earth to everyone who pleases God."

Dec. 17

Luke 2:15-18

¹⁵After the angels had left and gone back to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, "Let's go to Bethlehem and see what the Lord has told us about." ¹⁶They hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and they saw the baby lying on a bed of hay. ¹⁷When the shepherds saw Jesus, they told his parents what the angel had said about him. ¹⁸Everyone listened and was surprised.

Dec. 18

Luke 2:19-20

¹⁹But Mary kept thinking about all this and wondering what it meant. ²⁰As the shepherds returned to their sheep, they were praising God and saying wonderful things about him. Everything they had seen and heard was just as the angel had said.

Dec. 19

Micah 5:2-5

²Bethlehem Ephrath, you are one of the smallest towns in the nation of Judah. But the LORD will choose one of your people to rule the nation-- someone whose family goes back to ancient times. ^a]">[a] ³The LORD will abandon Israel only until this ruler is born, and the rest of his family returns to Israel. ⁴Like a shepherd taking care of his sheep, this ruler will lead and care for his people by the power and glorious name of the LORD his God. His people will live securely, and the whole earth will know his true greatness, ⁵because he will bring peace.

Dec. 20

Matthew 2:1-2

¹When Jesus was born in the village of Bethlehem in Judea, Herod was king. During this time some wise men ^[a] from the east came to Jerusalem ²and said, "Where is the child born to be king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east ^[b] and have come to worship him."

Dec. 21

Matthew 2:3-6

³When King Herod heard about this, he was worried, and so was everyone else in Jerusalem. ⁴Herod brought together the chief priests and the teachers of the Law of Moses and asked them, "Where will the Messiah be born?" ⁵They told him, "He will be born in Bethlehem, just as the prophet wrote, ⁶'Bethlehem in the land of Judea, you are very important among the towns of Judea. From your town will come a leader, who will be like a shepherd for my people Israel.' "

Dec. 22

Matthew 2:7-8

⁷Herod secretly called in the wise men and asked them when they had first seen the star. ⁸He told them, "Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. As soon as you find him, let me know. I want to go and worship him too."

Dec. 23

Matthew 2:9-12

⁹The wise men listened to what the king said and then left. And the star they had seen in the east went on ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. ¹⁰They were thrilled and excited to see the star. ¹¹When the men went into the house and saw the child with Mary, his mother, they knelt down and worshiped him. They took out their gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh ^a]">[a] and gave them to him. ¹²Later they were warned in a dream not to return to Herod, and they went back home by another road.

Dec. 24

John 1:14

¹⁴The Word became a human being and lived here with us. We saw his true glory, the glory of the only Son of the Father. From him all the kindness and all the truth of God have come down to us.

Oh, Boy! {Cypress, TX Children's Photographer}

I had lots of fun with these three boys! The two big brothers were super active, and just couldn't get enough exploring and running-around time. They were fearless and energetic, and just as cute as can be. Little baby brother was a dream! Less than two weeks old, he was just happy to snooze wherever he was placed.

Dad brought his old Jeep, which the boys love, and had an idea about using it to recreate a vintage family picture. I don't normally process pictures this way, but I thought it was fitting for the idea we were going for.

Thanks for a great session, boys!

The (B) Family {Cypress, TX Family Photographer}

Another weekend, another great session! I just knew I was going to have a good time with this family about a week before we met when Mom was briefing me about them all. She told me the names and ages of her kids, and then told me that she and her husband were just ... well ... old! :)

Oh, I beg to differ! This gorgeous mother and her super-fun, willing-to-try-anything hubby were anything BUT old! They were wonderful, and have clearly raised some fabulous kids!

Enjoy your Sneak Peek!

November Mini-Sessions {Cypress Family and Children's Photographer}

They were fun; they were fast; they were a fabulous! Here's a Sneak Peek for my clients not on Facebook!

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice {Houston, TX Children's Photographer}

One of my favorite little models came back (yay!), bringing her beautiful cousins along this time to get some pics for their grandma. It's always fun for me to work with several kids at a time, because I really get a good sense of their differing personalities while I'm hiding behind my camera. All four of these precious girls were super sweet, and I learned that the best way to get them all together in one picture was to just let them do what they do best: be little girls!

Waiting for (C) {Cypress, TX Maternity and Family Photographer}

It was so awesome getting to work with Little Mr. K again! This time, he brought his mommy and daddy so we could commemorate the upcoming arrival of his new baby brother. This family is fabulous, and we had a great session!

Is it really fair to look this gorgeous so close to your due date? :)

Love it! I can't wait to meet Baby C!

Joy: The (H) Family {Cypress, TX Family Photographer}

I HAVE THE URGE TO BLOG ABOUT THIS FAMILY IN ALL CAPS BECAUSE I WANT TO SHOUT OUT FROM THE ROOFTOPS HOW AWESOME THEY WERE!!!!

But I won't. (You're welcome.)

I will tell you though, that I couldn't think of a better way to spend a Sunday evening than with this incredibly loving, fun, kind (stylish!!) family. I wanted to become part of it, but their only son is already married to that gorgeous redhead. And get this: Their beautiful daughter works nights selflessly taking care of children and their families. Mom is just lovely inside and out, and spends her days in the crazy world of kindergartners. And Dad, well what can I say about him? He is clearly an incredible role model to be the head of such an awesome family.

See why I wanted to adopt them???

OK, enough gushing about their fabulousness .... here's their Sneak Peek!

Introducing Baby (A)! {Cypress Baby and Family Photographer}

This gorgeous little angel joined the world 8 weeks ago, and I was so blessed to be able to meet her and her sweet parents! They were so doting and loving, and it was obvious how much joy she brings to their lives. (Her mommy is the owner of Steppin' Time Performing Arts Center, and her daddy is a theatre arts teacher at a local high school. Isn't she lucky??)

Despite the cool weather, and the way we kept moving her to get just the right shots, Baby A didn't make a peep and was a such a sweetheart!











Thanks, C Family, for introducing me to Little A! She's a doll!

The (B) Family Reunion {Cypress, TX Family Photographer}

Want to see what I was doing this morning? I was BUSY!!!

I was hanging out with this extended family getting some great shots of them all together for Christmas gifts!

In case you were wondering, that's TWELVE children!





Here are the original B kids ...

Thanks for braving the cold with me this morning, and looking so darn great while doing it, y'all!

The (B) Family Mini-Session {Cypress, TX Family Photographer}

What a great session! Since this was a mini, we had lots to cover in a small amount of time: Mom's adorable baby bump, Mr. W turning two, and of course the whole family together. (I also wanted to try out one of my new props - a cute truck I picked up last weekend.)

We got it all in, and once Mom and Dad figured out the secret to making W laugh, it was smooth sailing!!

Little Guy was obsessed with this screen door, so we went with it!

The (L) Family {Cypress Family Photographer}

This was such a precious family, and I'm so thankful they drove all the way out from Pearland to meet up with me! Three-year-old E was such a cutie, with those curls and sweet smile. Little brother J wasn't sure he wanted to sit still and have his picture taken at first. (I can't blame him! After all, there was new territory to explore!) But we figured out what worked for him, and I was able to capture those adorable dimples he has!

Lovin' this daddy/daughter moment!

Enjoy your Sneak Peek, L Family! There will be more to come soon!

The (G) Kids {Cypress, TX Children and Family Photographer}

I've probably said this before, but one of the things I LOVE about my job is getting to meet and work with some of the greatest families! I'm so blessed to be able to have fun while I'm working, and shooting these kids was no exception! It's neat to have the opportunity to get to know a little bit about each person.

This handsome guy was awesome! He was ready with a smile every single time I pointed my camera at him. What a dream!





This beauty is his twin and she was just a doll. It was obvious she loves her brothers and is mama's little helper.





This little guy's mischievious grin was adorable! He is 2 1/2 and was really well-behaved and cooperative (MUCH better than my 2 1/2 year old when we had family pics done!!)





Aren't they cute?

Thanks for a great session, Mom and Dad! We got some really good family shots, too, but you'll have to wait to see those! ;)