One More Little Tease....{Paula & Ron}

Ok, Ok...I know - I'm getting a bit carried away with the teasing from this session - but just want to share another one with ya....

Paula & Ron {Barstow, CA}

How's that one song go....? "Hey, hey, hey Paula....I wanna marry you!"

Well, meet Ron {he's the lucky guy that gets to marry Paula} & Paula. I had a blast with both of them last night watching them together and getting to know them more as a couple while I shot their engagement portraits. What good sports they were...I had them in several different places in Barstow, and they never once flinched or thought, "really?!" - even when we pulled in to a liquor store parking lot or "snuck" into the old Drive-In movie theather!!

Fun bridal shower...fun engagement session...I can't wait for the wedding! Thanks again, you two...you rock. I'm going to proof all these before I finish proofing the shower photos for you so you have time to get images printed before the big day :-)

Paula's Wedding Shower {Ft. Irwin}

Today I shot a wedding shower for a fun Bride-to-be... whom I'm psyched to also be doing the engagement & wedding photography for as well! The shower was an English Tea theme; and since you'll be meeting the Bride & Groom on here soon {we're doing the engagement session tomorrow} I thought I'd share some of the little details with you from today...

{these are the handmade flowers on top of the cake}

This adorable pup is Shiner...throughout the course of the shower he was dressed up to go along with the spirit of the celebration. {he's obviously much better behaved than my dog...Quilla would have had the hat & boa ... and the cake and crumpets ... all devoured within minutes} For being a good sport for everyone today, I figured he deserved a little love on the blog tonight, too!

Balboa Park {San Diego}

My hubby & I had to swing back to San Diego this past week for some more follow-ups on his ankle surgery, so of course I had to make a quick stop into Balboa Park on our way home...it's one of our favorite places; a great place to stop and decompress for a bit. Thought I'd share a few quick pics I grabbed there...

I've always loved Monet's paintings, so I had to get some waterlilly shots. And for some reason the water trickling out of this drain just grabbed my attention....

OpLove Session {Ft. Irwin, CA} Dad's Beauties

Wednesday night I met up with these three beauties {and their fun dog, Daisy!} for some surprise OpLove photos to send downrange to their favorite Soldier...

{hehehe...a little worm decided to join in the fun! See it on her little finger?}
This little one was so shy in front of the camera. I snagged this little moment when she thought
I wasn't noticing! {what's the line the butler says in the one Adam Sandler movie when he inherits a ton of money? "you underestimate my sneakiness!" }

I had to hold back some tears when I got this one- she was hardly saying a peep the whole session, but when we put her Dad's dog tag's on her, she was rubbing them and kept saying quietly, "Daddy..." oooohhhh!!!!!

Big sis was definetly not shy in front of the camera, so I didn't have to be quite as sneaky with her. I love the shots of her we got wearing her Dad's cover...but we don't want him to see all the surprises on the blog, do we?!

...and of course there's some beautiful shots of Mom!!

Thanks, gals, for a fun evening! I'm gonna wrap up the wedding photos, and then I'll get started on your gallery so we can get these pics out to your hero! I hope he enjoys this little tease!

OpLove Session - Daddy's Home! {Ft. Irwin, CA)

Here's a little taste of the second OpLove session I had the honor of doing this weekend...

and for an added bonus in this one...their Dad was HOME on R&R!!!

You guys were so much fun! Thank you!! Love the laughs and smiles...have a FANTASTIC rest of your R&R. It was so great to meet you, stay safe - I look forward to hearing you're home safe & sound soon! Soak up all the hugs & kisses, and remember, "DAD ROCKS!"

{"The photos and other content of this publication do not imply any endorsement or recommendation by the Department of Defense." nametapes have been blurred for privacy}

OpLove Session {Ft. Irwin}

I had the honor of shooting two OpLove sessions this weekend!

For this first one, this beautiful Army Wife is surprising her hubby with the pics of her and their two {adorable!!} dogs...

I know he's gonna LOVE all the gorgeous pics he'll be getting!! It was so fun working with you and hearing about how you two met and his proposal...and seriously, I'll puppy sit anytime!! I'll have your gallery up soon for you...

{now, for the legal part} "The photos and other content of this publication do not constitute or imply any endorsement or recommendation by the Department of Defense."

Red Delicious {jackrabbit park}

Happy Birthday to miss Ava, who turned one just a few days ago! She was having a rough morning with another tooth coming in...but that did make for some good bubbles in a few of the shots :-) We did these apple shots out at Jackrabbit park yesterday morning, and then headed to the studio and got some sweet shots of her with a special blanket from her Great Grandma...

I hope she and her big brother are both feeling better today, Mom! Have a great weekend...I'll have your full gallery up ASAP :-)

"Stewie" {the stables at Ft Irwin}

Meet Stewie! This little guy hangs out with the sheep out at the stables here...he was bottlefed, so the other goats haven't "accepted" him {who knew - even goats have clicks!}. But he's a pretty friendly little guy, and when you head out to the stables on Ft. Irwin they'll actually let him out so you can feed him & give him some love....

Stewie and the other animals {there's donkeys, sheep, horses, and goats} are used by the Army out in "the box" to add even more realism to the training areas in simulating the environnments in Iraq & Afghanistan. The Calvary takes the horses out for rodeos and other special events...I'm definetly gonna head out there one AM to catch 'em training/rehearsing.

LeRoy was the soldier who was showing us around on Tuesday morning...super nice guy, and good with kids. He was telling us they could use some more funding - so if you get a chance, head out there and take a look around. Stop by the commissary and pick up some carrots to bring to feed the animals...and help get the word out that the stables are here for families to enjoy. The more people that head out there, the more funding they'll be able to get! It's such a nice spot, and would be a great way to spend a few hours doing something fun {and free} with your kids without having to drive an hour...

Belly Buttons & Billy Goats

Tuesday morning's session wound up having a cool little twist to it. I was honestly a bit nervous before the session since we weren't meeting up until 11:30...and out here in the Mojave that is just some crazy harsh light to do outdoor pics in!! But where there's a big tree there's some open shade...so thank goodness for the few of those here on post!!

This little guy had such cute expressions...I had a hard time picking one to post here! {Do I go with the laughs, the smiles, the smirks, the pout...??} He was so fun to talk to...

...and how sweet is this little moment? There's a series of shots leading up to this moment that are just so cute and honest. He was { I love this } pouting that I was taking a few pics of just his little sister for a moment, and so Mom was having a quite little talk with him, nose-to-nose. He's such a sweetie, so I could tell the pout wasn't going to last long...and sure enough it started turning into giggles. I just love, love, love capturing the little moments like that!!!

{oh belly buttons are just so fun when you're little!!} If this little cherub looks familiar to you, she was one of the little babies that did the little portfolio session with me a couple of weeks ago. I was so psyched when Mom called me to book a session for her two cuties after we met for that shoot!

So after the park I thought we'd try heading out to the stables here on post. I'd never been out there before, but had always heard about them and thought we'd grab a few quick shots there. Turns out there's actually a designated soldier there to greet you, introduce you to the animals, and answer any questions...so we wound up taking a whole tour! I had so much fun watching the little guy interact with the animals...{little sis just zonked out in Mom's arms and slept almost the entire time!}

He wasn't too sure of the goats at first, but wound up making a friend with "Stewie." His little sis woke up at the end while we were with the horses....she was definetly a bit weary, but so cute to watch. What a fun place to check out!