Still catching up from 2009, I was so excited to be asked back by this family to photograph their newest addition! He was such a good baby…especially with all that was going on having his two older siblings bounding around in the house. I guess that’s just how 3rd babies are. Laid back, content, and cute as can be. And I was totally impressed with older bro.  He has matured so much and grown into the sweetest big brother ever!

Baby T’s older sister was a model for Baby Coco back in the days before she had hair. Just look at her now!

[Quick link to choose YOUR fav for Pinkle's Pic of the Year 2009]

Yesterday’s session was really hard. Hard to leave, that is. He was PERFECT newborn sweetness and I couldn’t get enough!

Note: We’ve had more than 800 votes for Pinkle’s Pic of the Year and it is CLOSE, CLOSE, CLOSE! Let your voice be heard if you haven’t already voted.

This is it! This is the last Pic of the Month for 2009 and our last entry for the Pinkle’s Pic of the Year contest!!!!  Drumroll, please….

Chosen because I love the color. And I love the hat. And I love babies that love to rock. Congrats to the V family.  (And mama…would you like to share your other awesome news regarding your rock/superstar son?)

ETA 12.14.09: He is not only a rock star, but he’s soon to be a TV star as well.  I got a notice from one of the casting directors of Friday Night Lights asking if I knew of any cutie patootie newborns to film some scenes. Well this little guy just landed the role and has already begun filming. Congrats on all of these great developments!

The bad thing about blogging sessions is that it can be a little tedious to post images and in the end, there are so many that you don’t ever get to see.  I’ve been showcasing sessions here and there and I would like to try to do that more, starting with this newborn session. When I walked into their home, everything was crisp, clean, and modern. Mom happens to be a photographer herself and I know she must LOVE the absolutely perfect soft light that makes the whole living area glow beautifully. Of course, a perfectly snuggly, perfectly sleepy, and perfectly perfect little baby boy doesn’t hurt either.

And the full session: 

(Dying to see how your book turns out, J…you’ll have to send me some pics!)

P.S. Don’t forget about the FREE Bump Mini’s on Jan. 9th!

What does this mean? Read up here. It also means we’re just ONE pic away from the vote to determine Pinkle’s Pic of the Year for 2009!  I cannot even believe we’re that close and I’m extremely excited to see which image YOU (the blogstalkers) choose!

I selected this image because it was such a new and challenging technique for me, but mostly because she worked so hard, was so patient, and sacrificed this dress, her beautiful curls, and make-up just to get this shot. Congrats, J, and congrats on your upcoming arrival. It won’t be long now… (the rest from her maternity session here).

[P.S. Even though I can't promise any underwater shots, if you're pregnant in the Austin area and would like to have maternity portraits taken, check out the FREE Bump Mini Maternity Sessions coming up on January 9th!]

It’s Thanksgiving Day and I’m thankful beyond words for this wonderful life, this beautiful little girl that we’ve only known for a year.  I can’t even believe it was a year ago today that she was born. She is the light of our lives. She has made our little world so much richer and we love her so very much. Happy Birthday, my sweet little angel!

For each of my kiddos, I’ve created a "The Day You Were Born" book to tell them the story of their Birth Day and then I fill it with images from their first year.  I knew I was in trouble when I saw that I had the images for Amry’s book narrowed down to about 150 or so.  I couldn’t bear to cut images…they’re all so special to me and I don’t want to forget anything. If you want to take a peek at Amry’s first year, I put the book to music below.  Enjoy.  I, unfortunately, can’t watch this without balling like a baby:

 Enjoy it MUCH bigger and better here.

(Also, a very special thanks goes to Lyndsay for the birth images and Margaret for the maternity/family pics.)

 And finally, some images from her little 1 year session where we were almost carried away by mosquitoes:

(This puppy is now a canvas that will hang in her room.)

Sigh. Sometimes, I feel like my heart will burst from the tug-of-war between enjoying the present and clinging to the past. Being a mom is so emotionally exhausting.

We held our last round of the Austin 2009 Xpressions Sessions today and all I can say is, "Wow!" I cannot even begin to tell you how beautiful all of these families were, how wonderfully charming the kiddos were, how kind and patient the parents were, and how absolutely outstanding my baby sis/assistant was. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of you who made these Xpressions sessions FANTASTIC!  As always, the images shown have only received basic edits to enhance contrast/color, but no full retouching.  I’ll show you an example of the difference at the end of the post.  Also, before I forget, if you’re pregnant in the Austin area and want maternity portraits and are due in February, March, or April of 2010, you can get a FREE mini maternity session (kind of like these Xpressions Sessions) in January. And, I *still* have a few spaces open for the Xpressions photo sessions in Washington, DC and Richmond, VA in December.  Meanwhile, to continue these awesome sneaks:

And to illustrate the difference between the digital negatives (the files that are sent on CD with the Xpressions sessions) vs. the files that are fully retouched (prints ordered through me or those that are available as part of a Premium Session):

Oh, I cannot wait to go through all of these images! Today was a great day all around. Thank you all again!  I’m so honored to get to do this for you.

This is gonna be a long one. LOTS of sessions to sneak. First…

I love nursing images. I truly do. And when you’re lucky enough to see a moment like this, that makes my heart so very happy.  Now for more from his and other sessions…

Can you EVEN believe the pic of the three siblings together up there?!!  I seriously about fell over when everything came together and we were able to snag those!  And then baby girl in her beautiful green dress.  Her eyes are divine!

If you’re pregnant in the Austin area and due in February, March, or April 2010, you can receive a FREE mini maternity session when you book your newborn session with Pinkle Toes Photography.  I’m so excited to be partnering again with Austin’s premiere baby boutique, Baby Coco.  What could be better than getting some amazing maternity images added to your newborn CD for FREE? If interested, please contact me ASAP because spaces (as always) fill up very quickly.

And now because I’m bummed that this afternoon’s session is going to be rained out and because I need a quick break from proofing, here are some completely random pics for you (and by random, I mean, 100% random):

1. Wreath-keh at my front door. ;-)

2. Miss November.

3. Catalog Choice – I don’t know how it happened, but overnight, I got on *everyone’s* catalog mailing list.  I abhor junk mail, in any form, but especially in paper form. Every day, my mailbox is stuff with a bunch of stuff that I will never look at and it just ends up in the trash.  Even worse, important mail gets mixed in with it and I have sift through everything oh-so-carefully so as not to accidentally throw away something I might need. So, for the past few weeks, I’ve been collecting these catalogs with the intention of calling/e-mailing each company individually and getting removed from the mailing list.  The pile on my kitchen counter started to get a little ridiculous and finally, I sat down yesterday to make the calls.  Instead, I stumbled upon Catalog Choice.org and hmph, within 1 hour, I had sent requests to 37 different companies.  If it works, it will be totally worth it (I’ve heard back from 6-7 already that I’ve been removed).  Amen!!!

4. However, there are some things I do enjoy getting in my mailbox, like the latest Boden catalog, Rangefinder Mag, and a beautiful necklace from my sweet friend and talented photog, Kristi.

5. This is Snippy.  Snippy is a Brazilian Rainbow Boa and was recently acquired during a "boys only" outing to a reptile show in San Antonio. I was not happy about it, especially considering the zoo that our house is already. But Snippy is sweet and Snippy is pretty and Tristan LOVES him, so I’m putting up with it for now.  Sadly, Snippy had an accident this morning involving duct tape [don't ask--you wouldn't believe me even if I told you] and got hurt pretty badly.  I am embarrassed to admit, I actually cried over the little guy. But if you’re a reptile-lovin’ kind of soul, please pray for a full and speedy recovery for Snippy.

6. My husband and I used to read a book series together by Robert Jordan. The newest book just came out (even though Mr. Jordan has passed) and while I haven’t been able to finish a book that doesn’t involve werewolves and vampires in forever, Virgil has been immersed.  But, we noticed something so funny. Amry was *really* into looking at the pages of the book…she was particularly fond of the symbol.  Every time Virge would sit down to read it, she’d crawl up to him and demand that he show her the symbol. When she’d spot it, she’d point and squeal with delight.  I found that terribly ironic since Amerlyn’s name was derived from The Amyrlin Seat in that very book series. 

Okay. That’s all I have. No brilliant words of wisdom to end this post. Guess I gotta go back to work now. Stay dry!

Thought it was time to feature this oh-so-colorful session. These two were so easy-going and such a blast to work with.  I know that having a baby won’t phase them one bit.

And she’s that stunning in person.  Well, unfortunately, this was another one of those sessions where I had a tough time narrowing down the sneaks, so here it is in full:

And I have a confession: we were in Fort Worth, not Austin. LOTS more fall color there.

Actually, two confessions: the pool was heated.