Happy Birthday to my sweet husband and Happy Father's Day too!

It's going to be a double fun weekend! My daughter and I have been very busy the last couple of days making lots of surprises for my husband's birthday and for Father's Day. Lilly LOVES birthdays and was so excited to make something very special for her Daddy. She has even been able to keep a secret (well sort of). Last night she said to him enthusiastically "Daddy- we maked you sumping for your birthday! (whispering now) But it's a seeeecret...and, and we can't tell you what we maked you for your birthday, because, because it's a seeeecret..." So darn cute. She adores her Daddy and he adores her. It melts my heart to see how much they enjoy doing things together and too see Owen's little face light up when he sees him. My kids have an amazing Daddy and I have an amazing husband.

We are all so lucky to have you hun. We love you very much!

A few recent pix of the kiddies (some of them are part of his "surprises")



Looking a lot like her Daddy in this picture I think...






And looking a lot like Mommy in this one- I swear that is me as a child, only she has blonde hair...






This look says "Mommy- I'm all done taking pitchures"



I love this one so ... oh, that face!



Our little blue eyed charmer.









How cute is he in that hat!

Marlena (Michigan Senior Portrait Photographer)

Ok- it's official, I LOVE working with seniors! Not only do I enjoy the creative side and the fact that they sit still and take direction (ha- unlike my sweet little ones!) but it is a genuine pleasure getting to know them a little. They're looking forward to their senior year and future beyond- such an exciting time.

This session was with Marlena- isn't she a beauty? I got super excited when she showed up with lots of clothes on hangers and a couple bags filled with shoes and accessories. I knew it would be a fun session and it was! I wanted to give her a few sneak previews while I finish up the rest of the images. Enjoy!

My first senior session! (Michigan Senior Portrait Photographer)

Over the last couple years I have had a lot of people ask me about doing senior portraits. I finally decided to give it a go and I'm so glad I did! I had a blast working with my first senior- Heidi. She was a complete pro- crawled through and up on to anything I asked her to get the shot. It felt like a shoot on America's Next Top Model! I also learned it might not be a bad idea to put some bug spray in my little photo session emergency box...yikes, the mosquito's love an overgrown field!


I LOVE LOVE LOVE this one...























Isn't she gorgeous!!!



Had to throw in this shot of my trusty assistant who did this whenever I needed Heidi to smile...worked like a charm!

So Itty Bitty: (Michigan Newborn Photographer)

Oh isn't she just the sweetest little thing! I'm so glad Sarah's mom decided to participate in my recent newborn model call. The baby was so itty bitty, I felt like I was holding a bag of potato chips! Here are a few of my favorites from the session.

I would love to get a few more girl models to break in some of my new props. See the post below this one for more details.







Special thanks to my sweet mother-in-law for finding this neat baby scale for me!









Just having fun with some new graphics...I think this would be great on a gallery wrapped canvas.

Call for Models: Newborn Girls (Michigan Newborn Photographer)

Ok- so I have gone a little bananas buying newborn props lately and I am dying to use them! I am lucky enough to have a newborn little boy of my own to test out the boy things, but I need some little girls too! I am putting out a call for newborn girls to model for me. I am offering a complimentary session ($150 value) with the pre-purchase of 50 custom birth announcements.

Requirements are:

- Must be a baby girl less than 2 weeks old
- Must sign Model Release
- Props/posing of my choosing
- Must pre-purchase 50 custom birth announcements

If you are interested please send me an email. If you know anyone who is interested- forward them this post! Can't wait to see those babies :0)

Welcome Baby Bennett

Bennett was born just 5 days after my son- so I was right back in the swing of things pretty quickly! I had the pleasure of doing mom's maternity session as well. You should have seen me, ready to give birth myself, climbing up on chairs and tables to get the shot! My favorites are with big sister- both with the belly and the baby. So very sweet.

It's a Boy- Introducing Owen Raymond DeLano!

I am so excited to finally introduce you to my beautiful new son- Owen Raymond! I can't believe it, but he will be four weeks old tomorrow. He was born February 17, 2009 at 4:39 p.m. weighing 9 lbs 2 oz and measuring 21.5 inches long. He was so much bigger than my daughter when she was born! The doctor's let my husband announce the sex of the baby in the delivery room which was such a thrill for him. I must admit, I was a little surprised when he said it was a boy. My daughter had been so insistent she was getting a sister throughout my pregnancy, I was convinced she must have known something I didn't. We brought her in first to meet the baby, and then let her go out to the waiting room to tell the rest of the family what we had. She ran in and proudly announced "Um, the baby brudder's here!' and then turned and ran back to my room. We actually captured that on video so I will have to post it here too.

Owen's middle name (Raymond) is for my Dad who passed away 5 years ago- to the day - that Owen was born. It was unbelievable to me when my water broke that morning and I knew the baby would be born. I was very emotional about it at first, but then I realized that it was meant to be. I think my Dad and God worked together on this one to give me an incredible gift, and a date on the calendar that can no longer make me sad. I love you Daddy... and I love my sweet baby boy...




Owen's Birth Announcement




























Lilly LOVES her baby brother!!




Isn't this so sweet?