Yesterday our baby girl turned six.  While we tend to go somewhere besides home for the birthday parties (much less work and kids always have fun!), this year we decided to get a little crazy and have Teagan’s birthday at home for a change.  We kept it small and had Kidzart come and do an art project with the kids.  Teagan chose to create ice cream sundaes out of clay (I think the number of fingers she’s holding up below is how many scoops she wanted to make, not how old she is! :-).  The girls had a great time building their creations, followed by a little pizza, cake, & coloring.  Teagan had a blast with her friends and said the art project was the favorite part of her party.  We ended her special day with dinner out at Mikuni Kaizen (mom & dad deserved some fun, too!.  To our sweet, fun, crazy little girl, we hope you had the best birthday and we are so blessed to be your parents!  Love you!

Thought we would share a few photographs from our trip to Orlando.  First stop was the World of Harry Potter.  This small area of Universal Studios gives the best parts of Disneyland a run for the money.  Every attention to detail was just incredible.  There were lots of things to do, but highest on the list for the girls was a trip to Ollivander’s (for a magic wand), and a tall glass of Butterbeer (Reilly managed two glasses).  Low on the list was the food….Hogwarts tavern was without question the worst food I have ever eaten served at a restaurant.  Check out Miss T’s face at the table below…that sums it up.  We of course went lots of other places at Universal, but this area just caught my eye.  Here are some favorites from the day.

Contrary to popular belief, I still photograph our girls.  However, as time goes by, it becomes increasingly on their terms.  This time it took some fancy dresses that we asked them to “model” for us, and they were in…especially Miss T.  I wish I had filmed the whole process, they just were floating about on the logs and in the grass. Here are a few favorites.

We decided to sneak out for a quick vacation to the snow with the girls a couple of weeks back.  And when I say quick, I mean quick.  Stef had pre-purchased a night at the Squaw valley resort some time ago that had to be used before the year was out.  Nothing like waiting till the last minute..

In that 24hr period we did the following:  Lunch in Truckee, sledding, ice skating, drinks by the fire, more sledding, swimming, eating, shopping, more shopping, more shopping, and lunch on the way back down the hill.  Whew!!!  Of course I had the job of documenting the adventure.  Here are a few shots from the trip.

A few weeks ago we held our 2nd annual Santa Portrait Charity Event at the Silver Spoon children’s boutique in an effort to collect Toys 4 Tots.  We had an amazing response and collected over 200 toys!  We are so appreciative of everyone who participated in this event, as well as the Silver Spoon for providing the perfect location and the most amazing Santa.  There are far too many portraits to include in a blog post, so this is really just a teaser (and if case you weren’t aware, the first darling little girls are ours…:-).  To see all 188 portraits visit our Facebook page here.  Enjoy and Merry Christmas–Ho! Ho! Ho!

We were thrilled to get to work with the Fore family this summer on 2 separate occasions–for their maternity session and then baby K’s newborn session, which ended up being closer together since he decided to make his entrance over 3 weeks early!  Since the sessions were so close together we decided to do a fun post with images from both.  The maternity session was a blast and we just loved working with them, and we’re always thrilled when there are awesome tattoos to show! 🙂  Fast forward to sweet baby K…he was seriously one of the cutest newborns ever!  I could have just stared at him all day, especially since he didn’t make a peep during his session (another bonus of getting them when they’re brand-new).  We’re looking forward to seeing the Fore family back for their 2 other Bebe sessions over K’s first year….stay tuned!

Yes, it’s already that time again!  For the first time ever, our girls started school on the same day, at the same school today!  Reilly started 3rd grade and Teagan started kindergarten, and I’m not sure who was more excited–us or them!  Everyone was up and ready for school on time and in great moods.  Both girls had their outfits chosen and laid out well in advance.  Now if only we can stay as prepared, on time, and chipper as we all were this morning….one can have dreams, I suppose!  For today, at least, it fantastic!  As you can see from the photos, Reilly was much more concerned with getting to school and seeing her friends than posing for pictures.  Teagan was more excited about her outfit and shoes.  🙂  They both had a great day to what is sure to be a fantastic school year for both.  Congratulations to all of you parents out there experiencing the joy of back-to-school!

Eight years ago today our oldest, Reilly Elizabeth, was born.  Reilly was always anxious for what was coming next, as she landed me on bedrest at 26 weeks! Eight years later, nothing has changed.  Reilly has been such a great kid; she’s super smart, a talented gymnast, and much to our pleasure, a total foodie!  She has added so much joy to our lives, and even though it doesn’t always show, to her little sister’s as well! 🙂  We are in the midst of her self-imposed 3-day long birthday celebration, so I must run to continue the festivities.  Happy Birthday to our sweet girl!

(James):  After hearing about an exercise program called The Dailey Method from several of our clients, Stef and I decided to give it a try.  Now I can’t speak for Stef, but it has been a long time since the brutal workout routine I used to hurl my body through in my college days.  Back then I would throw crazy amounts of weights around and run…and run…and run.  So when I tried the first class at the Dailey Method, I expected it to be tough, but not “I can’t move my abs” tough.  It is very challenging and I have a long way to go before I can make it through a class without a little bit of “cheating”.

(Stefani):  I have known for a long time that my body wasn’t going to tone and strengthen itself, so when 2 of our clients within the same week informed us of a workout class they absolutely love, we decided to check it out.  The class was originally being held in the home of Stacey & Adam Armijo, owners of the local Dailey Method.  We knew their brand-new studio was opening up close to our home, so we decided to try it out when the studio opened up.  After inquiring about the class, Stacey asked if we’d be interested in photographing the studio and instructors; of course we would!  So last Saturday we began our journey to more fit bodies.  For those of you wondering what exactly The Dailey Method is, in a nutshell, it’s “a unique combination of ballet barre work, core conditioning, stretching, and orthopedic exercise.”  In short, it’s the hardest thing I’ve ever done, I was extremely sore after the first class, and it’s awesome!

This weekend is the grand opening celebration, and free classes are being offered both Saturday and Sunday, so if you’re curious, check it out!  Visit their website for a class schedule.  It will be well worth it!

Today our “baby” turns 5.  It’s hard not to get sappy and sentimental at times like this.  It’s so cliche to say how time flies and in the blink of an eye babies turn into young ladies, but it’s SO true!  Five years ago today we had no idea who this baby girl would become; what her personality would be like, who she would resemble, and the role she would play in our family.  Well, we have learned much about her in five years.  Our Teagan is so full of life, energy, humor, wit and compassion.  She is the funniest kid I’ve ever met, can be so stubborn, but the next minute melts your heart with love.  We keep asking her why she’s growing up so fast, and her reply is always the same: “Because I want to grow up.”  Slow down, sweet Teagan.  Enjoy each day (and she does!).

Here is her actual birth announcement we sent out; the photograph was taken when she was 3 weeks old.  The images below are very recent.  In fact, the ones outside were taken just a couple of days ago.  She was modeling some dresses for the Silver Spoon, so the session also became her five-year portrait session.  She did a great job but was much more concerned about the little ladybug she found and was holding in her hands most of the time we were out.  The last couple in the hat were some fun outtakes from the mommy & me promo session the girls and I did last month.  As much as I love every one of these images of her for different reasons, James and I both agree that the last one pretty much sums up our little girl.  Happy Birthday Teagan!