So November 22nd is always a special day for me because not only is it my birthday (yippee – when you get to be my age having a birthday is SO darn exciting!!  Haha – NOT!) but my parents always come up from NY to visit and we have special traditions we do every year.  This year I didn’t think they were going to make it BUT . . . looks like they are going to come after all.  This means so much to me – my parents have been so supportive of my career, wishes and dreams all my life.  I miss seeing them and am so thankful they can come.  Which brings me to this blog post – that I am so thankful for my family, friends and wonderful customers (who very often become my friends) that I wanted to give something special away on my “special” day.  I want to give one of my ABSOLUTE FAVORITE things away  (I feel like Oprah or something).  A 12×12 cavnas from my favorite canvas place, pixel2canvas.  They are a husband and wife team who has twins,  based out of Las Vegas.  Let me tell you just one reason why I love them (*this is beside the fact that their canvas prints are the BEST around and will last for 100 years).  As Garry (my cousin w/the brain tumor) was given only a few days to live this September, one of his friends called me up and wanted to buy a large print of their family that I had taken over the summer.  We talked about what she was looking  for and I decided I wanted to kick in some money and together we were going to get a canvas.   If you don’t know anything about canvas prints, they are very expensive- but SO gorgeous!  At the time we knew the funeral would be sometime soon (and we were hoping to display this canvas there for everyone to see).  I called P2C because it typically takes a week for them to deliver a canvas all the way to VA (or NY in this case) and I didn’t know if they could print it in a few days, much less ship it that fast (without it costing a fortune).  I explained the situation to the CS rep, who not only said they would get the canvas to NY, but they would pay for the ENTIRE thing (canvas and overnight shipping) for Kristen, Garry’s wife.  I was completely speechless and could only blubber a few thank yous before I got off the phone in total shock at their generosity.  The canvas arrived two days later, in time to be hung in Garry’s hospice room for him to look at, and was absolutely the most gorgeous canvas I have ever seen.  The colors and richness of the canvas blew me away.  I was so thankful to the company for how quick they acted (so Garry could see it) and the generosity and kindness they showed us.

SO, with that being said, I am going to pay it forward and give away a canvas from my favorite company, Pixel2canvas.  This is a random act of kindness giveaway – but has a few rules.  

I love to have the first person who comments on my blog posts win something -but that is not always fair to people who work or have commitments – and for something this fantastic I want everyone to have a chance. 

So, between now and November 22nd, just make a comment on this blog post and you will be registered.  If you are a fan of mine on Facebook, mention that you will get two entries.

On November 22nd at 9pm  I will announce the winner. 

*** This contest is open to anyone who has purchased products from me (at anytime).  This includes fundraisers and portrait parties.  As long as you have purchased something in the last four years, you are eligible to win.

**** Also your name will not show up on the blog, but I will be able to see it on the admin. part of this site – so don’t worry if you don’t see your name.  You will be entered.

Yes, the “K” girls get to have two blog posts because I just don’t have enough time to get all their fantastic pictures from today edited for this post.  The “K” family won a contest I had on facebook a while ago and I was  SO excited to take their pictures.  Mom brought a bunch of clothes, shoes, and hair accessories to play with – how cool is that?  It made me miss the times when my girls were younger and I could pick out their clothes.  Not so much anymore. . . .

So the first day we met it was about 45 degrees and super windy.  After about five minutes we decided to try again the next day.  Thankfully the next day turned out to be awesome – sunny, warmer and not windy.  So a few of these pictures are from the first day – but most are from today.

See where they get their good looks? 

I loved to look at snowglobes as a child – this picture brings back that magical feeling you get as a child after you shake one up . . .

We had a lot of fun on this shoot – can’t wait to show you the rest!

So . . . if you’ve been following me for a while you might know that I love random acts of kindness.  I love to take people by surprise by doing something out of the ordinary because it’s so much fun!   At this moment in my life I am so, SO thankful that I am able to continue doing something I am so passionate about – that brings joy to not only myself but other people (my fantastic, wonderful customers).  What I have decided to do is every now and then during the month of November I will post on Facebook about random acts of kindness which will be linked to this blog.  Each time there will be a different prize.  The first person to comment on the blog post (NOT on Facebook because that is against their rules) will win.  Some of the items will not pertain to everyone (ex. 3×3 albums – you will have to have had a session to win those) – but other things like a free sitting fee will apply to everyone.  Keep your eyeballs open – these will be at all different times of the day during November (so everyone can play – night owls, early risers, working people, stay at home moms – whoever).  Maybe this will insprire you to do something as a random act of kindness -  it is a wonderful feeling to know that a little effort may have made someone’s day!

Mmmmk – go!  Someone post a comment and you will win . . . . . one free digital file (high resolution) that will be emailed to you.  This file can be printed to any size, any amount.

And now for a picture – because I can’t post without one.  My three lovies and Vegas, our funny lab.  What is so funny about this picture is that right after I snapped the shutter Vegas took off running after something and Maggie was running behind him holding on for dear life.  I was laughing so hard I couldn’t even yell at him – it was crazy!  That’s what I get for taking him out in public – haha!

I had the chance to meet these two girls and their very special  mom at the Mines over the weekend.  Are they gorgeous or what?

Ummmm – what?  You don’t want to smile?  Tickle time!!!

Drop dead gorgeous here – and those eyes in the color one  . . .

I wish I had a picture like this of me with my kids  . . .  the Fall colors were beautiful that day!

It was great to see y’all  – I’ll be in touch about your gallery.

Just look at all these cuties who turned up for the WP fundraiser!  This isn’t everyone – just a few  -

Galleries will be up soon – thanks for supporting Walton Park!!

Today I had the pleasure of meeting the very sweet “B” family at Midlothian Mines for a mini shoot.  These guys were so much fun!  They came ready to smile and made my job SO easy!!  Look at how cute they are:

In just a few short years, I think I know where all the neighborhood girls are going to be  . . . . . .

These guys are seriously gorgeous  – and funny!

I had a lot of fun “B” family – hope you did too!

This past weekend I went to Roanoke for a portrait party.  It was overcast and pretty cold but these brave families came out anyways.  Thanks so much for coming – here is your sneak peek . . .

N and M have been coming to me for their pictures for a year and a half maybe?  I’ve taken their pictures three times now and it’s always so much fun to see them and how they have grown!  I’m going to show you pictures from all three shoots because they are so stinkin cute – and you can see how they have grown too!

Shoot #1 – they are adorable!!

This one always makes me smile   . . .

Shoot #2 the next year . . .

Just look at these outfits! 

Now this picture is one of my favorites of all time – because this little one LOVES her daddy!  I mean, at every photoshoot she is always with him and I think that is so special.  Really I don’t see that very often and I think this picture shows how much she loves him.  She was SO tired here – about ready to fall asleep.

And, the most recent session in Roanoke – just look at these sweet outfits again!  These girls are getting so big!  N is in kindergarten already – doesn’t she look like such a big girl here?

Thanks so much for having me back to Roanoke guys!

A whole lot of fun, mud, running, laughing and best of all tired, tired boys!  This shoot was SO much fun!  If you’ve been following my blog for a while, you might know that when I was a little girl I always dreamed of marrying a farmer.  Haha – that makes me laugh now but I loved animals and I figured you could just go hang out with them all day.  Little did I know how much work everything actually was.  So when I had the opportunity to shoot on this farm with these little guys who are creating such wonderful memories of fun, it brought back thoughts of when I was a little girl.  I would have loved to run around on a farm and get dirty!  There were smiles everywhere during this shoot (and a few frowns – but we won’t talk about that) -

cause who wouldn’t want to ride on a tractor?

Or swing a lasso around and rope something?

Or run around like a cowboy?

hold your own pumpkin . . .

Or visit with Shadow the horse . . .

Yup, it was crazy excitement on the farm!  Thanks so much for having me out y’all – we’ll have to do this again sometime!!

Four sweet families came to this portrait party on a very cloudy but nice day in Roanoke.  I was so thankful that it was cloudy because where we were shooting (the Virginia Western Arboretum) tends to have a lot of sunny spots and not very much shade.  It worked out perfectly.  Even more exciting is that three of these families are returning customers so I loved meeting their new additions and seeing how everyone had grown!

First up is smiley Miss M – cute as can be and her brother.

Then Mr. A who I hadn’t met before  – love this shot!

and his sister Miss L.  I told her to sit like a princess and this was what she did . . .

These last two cuties are cousins . . .

Thanks for coming out y’all!