A Tale of Two Photo Shoots

So if you've been following this lil blog of ours for a while, you might know that we love Hot Metal Studio Photography. Tif is a rock star and over the course of the past few years has taken Porter's newborn pics, Porter's 7 1/2 month pics, and Malone's newborn pics. We've always been incredibly pleased with her work, so I didn't think twice before calling on Tif again. 

I'd originally envisioned getting photos of Malone taken when she reached the half-year mark. We had the sitting-up independently thing down; however, there was also the not-so-small issue of the Pittsburgh weather. I really was hoping to shoot outdoors in spring/summer outfits, but in mid-March it was still far too cold for that to happen. So, we settled upon April 23 for our date. Though I contemplated bringing the boys (and our babysitter, Megan) along in the hopes of getting some pictures of all three of my babies, I eventually decided to abandon that idea and leave them at home with Megan, instead.

After waking from a solid morning nap, Maloney and I met up with Tif at Hartwood Acres, which is where we had Kaiser's 6 month pictures taken with another photographer back in the summer of 2009. We were blessed with a beautiful day, though the breeze did make it a bit chillier than I would have liked, especially considering my girl's wardrobe was better suited for warmer temperatures. I was a little concerned that Malone's slightly runny nose (which had just started the day before) would put a damper on things, but other than that, she seemed just fine, and Tif reminded me that snot was easy to edit out. :)

Anyway, on to the pics. Our first outfit was a darling red polka-dot bubble that was a gift from Miss Kassi, Mr. Joe, and Lincoln shortly after Malone was born. I couldn't wait to get her in it, and was even more excited when Tif spotted some gorgeous yellow forsythia bushes to serve as a backdrop.

After coaxing a few smiles from the reluctant model, we moved to a really cool area near the Hartwood Mansion with a bunch of logs stacked and dead leaves covering the ground. It looked like this little pocket of fall amidst spring all around it. I changed Malone into another number for this setting. She wasn't super thrilled with us when we tried to get her in some different positions to help show off the legs on her romper, but we managed to make her happy enough.

Then we found a small step in front of one of the mansion's old wood doors that we thought would be perfect. Mommy was right there to make sure she didn't get too excited by Miss Tif's key-jingling and launch herself forward onto the concrete. :)

After that, Malone needed a diaper change, and then things kind of started to go downhill. She was obviously not feeling the tiled passageway that we chose as our next location. Bless her heart.

At that point, we took a time out so that I could nurse her. (So thankful to Tif for always being encouraging about that!) Sister perked up a bit for some pics taken in front of an ivy-covered wall, but it was clear she was about to tap out, and then we finished up with a few minutes laying in the vibrant green grass.

Despite the fussiness, tears, and snot toward the end, I left feeling pretty good about our photo shoot. I knew that Malone had given us lots of big smiles (and lots of her silly faces, too!) and couldn't wait to see the CD of edited images. Unfortunately, the following Sunday I got a phone call from Tif letting me know that one of her camera cards had failed, and at least half of the pictures were gone. Well, poop. She felt horrible, and though I was disappointed, I realized that it wasn't the end of the world. She put the CD of the images that did turn out (the best of which are above) in the mail immediately, and I have to say that I did love what I saw! We both knew that there were lots of other cute ones that had disappeared, though. 

Tif said that she knew I had a busy schedule, but if I was willing, she wanted to set up another time to re-shoot Malone's pictures. After looking at the calendar, we decided to do it three weeks later, on May 14. Instead of going back to Hartwood Acres, we opted to meet at the North Park Boathouse, where Porter's 7 1/2 month pictures were taken. I won't beat around the bush: This second attempt was a total flop. Malone was a real train wreck, from beginning to end. In her defense, it was a little colder than we'd expected/hoped it would be, but I honestly was at a loss to explain why my sweetie pie was so darn cranky and started to cry the second I even thought about sitting her down.

Our first spot was on a hillside covered in long grass, with beautiful blooming trees in the background. We ended up having to lay out a blanket for the princess to protect her from some nasty stickers; of course, I was bummed to have not brought along a more neutral-colored one, but what are ya gonna do?

It really does speak to Tif's talent that she got any halfway decent shots on that hill. When we just couldn't take any more tears (really, it was bad), we thought we'd try a slight change of scenery. I was so excited when we saw this wooded area. We picked a couple of small branches off of a dogwood tree for her to hold, and I thought maybe, just maybe, Malone would warm up to the idea of having her picture taken. No. Such. Luck. My precious girl ended up looking sad and lonely, like she'd been completely abandoned in the deep, dark forest. But hey, at least the coral romper pops, right??

After a quick wardrobe change, our final attempt was in a white paneled doorway at the boathouse. Perhaps being away from all the plant life would improve her mood? Ha!

You seriously would have thought we were torturing this child. I'm sure people passing by were wondering what on earth was causing her to holler like that. I sat with her for a minute, thinking that being on Mommy's lap might provide some solace, but the effect I had on her was only minimal.

And then I threw in the towel. We were all ready to wrap this shoot up already. Ultimately, the only thing that kept Miss Malone from total meltdown started with an "m" and ended with an "m".

And even with the comfort of a Mum-Mum, Girl was teetering on the edge. She absolutely did not want us to interact with her, and immediately started to whine if we even made eye contact. I'm not kidding. You could tell we were on her List.

As we parted ways with Tif, I apologized profusely for the difficulty of her subject. She of course was cool and assured me that she'd gotten at least a couple of good photos, in addition to the good ones from the first session. Malone's general unpleasantness continued until we got to the car, and I heard a grunt or two on our drive back. I thought she would definitely pass out before we reached home, but the stinker stayed awake. I'm sure you know what her behavior was like when we got home -- she was happy as a clam. Really, isn't that the way it always goes? 

And that there folks is this momma's way long-winded story of her daughter's 6 7 8 month photo shoot. Thanks to Tif for stickin' with us and capturing my daughter in a very real way. :) As always, I'll treasure these pictures -- and the memories made taking them -- forever. 

Friend Fun

I feel like all I've been doing these days is packing...and thinking about packing...and talking about packing. It's getting kinda old. When I haven't been desperately trying to figure out how to fit items into boxes with as little room to spare as possible (it's like a 24/7 game of Tetris!), I have managed to be somewhat social with the kiddos. For the sake of all of our sanity, we got out of the house for a couple of fun dates with friends last week... 

Last Monday we met up with our Mommy & Me group at Shannon's house. This lady is the hostess with the mostest; she always spoils us with yummy homemade treats and has a wide array of toys set up for all ages. I had a lovely time visiting with her, Kris, and Allison, while our nine munchkins had a ball playing in the backyard and driveway.

Maloney and Levi chillin' in the baby zone.

Meanwhile, her brothers went on a joyride in the Barbie jeep.

Porter held on tight as Luke took the wheel.

"The engine looks good, Ella."

Thanks so much to Shannon, Jessie, and Ella for welcoming us for such a fun morning (and especially to the girls for sharing their awesome toys with all the crazy boys!). Hope to get in one last visit with this sweet group of moms and tots before we say goodbye.

Thursday we were invited to the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium by my friend Kim and her lil man Jackson. It had been ages since we'd been there (well over a year, I believe), and Kaiser and Porter were so excited to see the elephants, gorillas, and polar bears. We met up around 10:30 and enjoyed about 2 1/2 hours walking around together. It was a tad overcast, but rain held off until after we left, which made for pretty perfect weather. We managed to hit up all the animals we wanted, despite the sometimes overwhelming crowds of students on school field trips.

Kim and our boys taking a look at the rhino.

P, K & J loved seeing this leopard up close!

Happy, but ready to move on...

The elephants are his favorite.

Just hangin' around at the giraffe exhibit.

Porter sharing his hat with Sissy.

Jackson loved watching the gorillas, but was ready for lunch.

As was this homeboy.

So glad to be out of that stroller.

Caught me a couple polar bears!

As it turns out, visits to the zoo are slightly busier when you have three children to look after and no Daddy to help, so my camera wasn't clicking as much as it has been on trips past. Besides that, Kim and I were far too busy talking about all that's going on in our lives. We are both so anxious to get down to Atlanta and make these outings with our kiddos a weekly occurrence. We've heard a thing or two about how fantastic the aquarium is down there and can't wait to experience it (and a lot of other things) for ourselves!

Saturday the five of us took a trip down to Washington, PA, to hit up the outlet mall for summer sandals for the boys. On our way home, I got a text message from Kacia asking if our family wanted to hang that night. Umm, that's a no-brainer. Though we would have loved to hit up a park for a picnic dinner, it was a bit chilly to do anything outdoors. So, we landed upon one of our favorite Mexican spots, Verde, instead. Thank goodness we ate there early; I'm not sure they could have handled our party of eight if the restaurant had been busy! Let's just say we definitely gave our waitress a run for her money that night. :)

Sweet boy waiting for his dinner.

It's crazy cute how much Harlow loves Malone.

Say, "I'm chubby."

Special performance of the "duckie dance".

Mr. Andy is quite a funny guy.

I can't say enough about these three and just how much we love them. So much, in fact, that we asked them to come to our house the following night, too! :) I told Kacia that if they could excuse the disaster zone that is currently our house, I would make us all dinner and we could let the kids play and then after bedtime watch Arrested Development, which released on Netflix that day. She and Andy took us up on our offer, and again we had a wonderful time. I kind of wish I'd snapped pics of our three amigos forming a band (always a must), pushing each other around on the tractor in the backyard, and taking a dip in the tub together, but alas, I was preoccupied chatting and laughing and just enjoying the presence of our dear friends. Come to think of it, I'm not sorry. I know I probably definitely should put down the camera and do that more often.

Well, I think I've more than used up my allotted "not packing" time for today. Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's back to the basement I go! Wish me luck...

Preschool Ice Cream Social

So as I shared yesterday, on Kaiser's final day of school we took him down the road to Kelley's Dari Delite for a sweet treat. Four days afterward, we gathered to celebrate the end of the year with the entire preschool community. Imagine how disappointed our family was to learn that this event would involve ice cream, as well.

Kaiser had been talking about the Ice Cream Social nonstop for weeks (eyes on the prize, y'all), so when last Sunday arrived, I was shocked to find out he didn't remember that it was the much-anticipated day! I rolled with it, knowing that if I reminded him, he would be way too amped up to take the afternoon nap he most definitely needed. We got home from church a little before 1:00, immediately ate lunch, and then laid all three of the kiddos down by 1:30, in the hopes that they'd be able to get at least an hour of rest before we left for the social at 2:45. Porter didn't end up falling asleep, but when I came to get Kaiser from our bed he was disoriented and sweaty and had clearly been sleeping hard. At the mention of ice cream, though, he quickly came to, popped out of bed, and was ready to roll!

We arrived right at 3:00, when the event started. All of the students and their families gathered on the lawn right in front of the church for some praise and worship time with Pastor S.

Mommy and Malone hung back to watch.

Kaiser not only did the motions, but tried to teach them to Porter, too.

After the kiddos had sung several songs, the board presented the preschool's director, Mrs. M, with a gift for her 20 years of service. (She's been in her role since the school started in 1993.) Mrs. M really is an incredible leader, and the students, teachers, and parents are blessed to have her!

Beautiful stained glass window.

Finally, it was time for everyone to line up for ice cream! Brett and the boys were near the back of the line, so I visited with some friends of ours and then joined them toward the end of their wait. We each got a cup of vanilla, and the teachers manned the tables and helped serve up our toppings. The boys couldn't have been happier with their chocolate syrup, crushed M&Ms, sprinkles, and cherry on top. We had perfectly pleasant weather, too; last year the day was so hot, our ice cream had practically melted by the time we found a place to sit! 

In heaven.

The social also provided a prime opportunity for people-watching.

A little o' this and a little o' that.

Finished my ice cream quickly and requested a pic with my girl.

The plastic spoons entertained Sister for a while.

By about 4:00, our bowls were clean and everyone was beginning to make their way to the parking lot. As we got loaded into the van, I got a chance to chat with Kaiser's teacher's aide, Mrs. M, who was also leaving. I thanked her for lovin' on our boy this year, and she told me she sure did have fun with him. She said he "kept her on her toes" and that she couldn't get anything by him, because he was too sharp. :) 

On our way home, Kaiser kept saying that he'd had so much fun, but had eaten too much. (Big shocker there.) Meanwhile, the nap that Porter skipped eventually caught up with him.

Ice cream will knock a fella out.

We are so grateful for a lovely afternoon wrapping up a great year at Kaiser's preschool! (And, of course, the Braly crew is always looking for an excuse to eat ice cream.) :)