Snow Day!!!!!

SNOW DAY...this is what I heard screamed at the top of all my children's lung on Tuesday morning! It had been snowing for over half the night ya know and here in central NC the white stuff isnt something we see a lot of! Sooooooooooo, the rumbling of little (and big) feet running down the stairs, doors opening, freezing cold air barreling into the house is what woke us up that morning!

Of course after I walked to the coffee pot not caring about anything happening in this house until that first cup of java was in my hand, I did manage to look out the kitchen window at the beauty of almost (at that time 3 inches) of the white stuff covering everything in site and it was still snowing (believe it or not) which amazed me.

The children got Quads (4 wheelers) for Christmas so of course that was one of the first things out of their mouths "MOM...can we go quading in the snow?" my first answer was....dont you think you should eat something and no one steps one foot outta this house until I can actually get some undesturbed pictures of the snow (if I hadnt said any of that they would've barreled out of the house ruining all the beauty of the white blanket).

So, off I went to my room to put on my layers (remember I knew how cold it really was out there since my house was now almost the same temp as it was outside due to open doors letting in all that fridgid air) grab my camera and out the door I went. Here are some of the shots I got outside all alone in the peaceful beauty of a winter wonderland.

So, after I finished my little adventure into the frozen world of the snowfall of 09, I reluctantly let the clan out for some fun in the snow. Boy oh boy did they have fun too, then again have I mentioned that we dont get snow here very often? I thought I did =)

Oh and look...the Dad even got in on the action. This was the beginning of a snowball fight that lasted oh....ALL DAY LONG!!!

and here is the progression of things.....

Yep, even one of my best friends in the world came over to play! Amazing how a little of the white stuff can make everyone become a kid again!

Yeah, I can definitely say that it was a AWESOME SNOW DAY!!!!

Patience Is A Vertue...

We've all heard that saying right "patience is a vertue" and while that is true it's not a "vertue" I was blessed with! Which, in itself is kinda amazing since I do have 7 children and being a patient person should be a prerequisite in mothering. Now, dont get me wrong I'm not one of those Mom's who's constantly screaming at their kids because I'm impatient over things, no not at all. I do however find myself wishing things would move much faster than they do!

Perfect example...my oldest DD wants maternity pictures done. She's seen some maternity images done of her friends and is always so disappointed in how they turned out. Funny how living with a portrait photographer can rub off on others. She notices lighting and composition, the angles in which the images were shot and how things that should be in focus arent and always says to me "Mom, you could've shot that so much better" or "what was that person thinking" which always makes me feel good she has that much confidence in my work and ability, but also sad that her friends have mediocre maternity photos to document such a special part of being a woman.

Anyway, getting back to my point! So, she wants pictures done, and while she's really starting to show it's really not the right time to shoot these images. I told her we need to wait until she's at least around 32 weeks so the "belly" is really emphasized. She of course agreed and understands, but I however knowing this is the proper thing to do for maternity images am sitting on pins and needles to do this shoot! I keep talking to my Grandson saying "you need to grow for Nana so we can do pictures" which in itself sounds stupid I know, but I cant help it. I want her to have beautiful images to remember carrying him, to look back on in rememberance of the love she held for him before he was ever born. Those are the images I think that maternity shots are all about, and that of course is what I want to give her. I have all these ideas in my head swiming around with no where to go for the moment and it's driving me batty at times.

So with my impatience and artistic vision working hand in hand we decided to give it a shot (love the pun) and shoot a couple of images from the side, just to see my ideas in front of me, not just in my head (we all know things are most wonderful in ones mind, but tend to look completely different in reality) and shooting a bit also calms the "impatient" creative side of me as well.

The images turned out well and have calmed me down as I now know what will work and what wont. I still have all these ideas and visions on what the future images will look like, and will of course still continue to think of more things, but for now I'm happy with what we've gotten so far. Only about 7 more weeks until we can do the full blown shoot, so it's really not that far off and I really am looking forward to doing it. Hopefully others will love the images as much as I will love making them, then again as we all know in the photography world, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What one may consider "beautiful" another may not. Oh well, it's the way of the world and one we must all accept!

I suppose after I shoot the maternity session for her my next work up needs to be newborn images! I have some really great ideas for that session too...see...the wheels in my mind never stop turning!