I would like you to meet my friend. He is two. He loves his baby sister. But when it came time to take a picture with her. Hmph. No thanks!

Below is the cute story of trying to change his mind!

You can’t see me!

Jumping is much more fun!

Ohhhh getting closer!

Then alas…

Our will was stronger!

That is a big victory when up against a sweet two year old!

So much fun!

SN

You know sometimes how when you meet someone and you just know you love them from the start. They ooze sweetness from every part. Well over a year ago I was lucky enough to meet Alicia. She was just that type of person. I followed her along her journey with the Biggest Looser competition here locally and every time I saw her I loved her even more. One day she pulled me aside and let me know that she was about to be deployed for a very long time. Even after knowing each other a very short time we exchanged teary eyes as Mothers. My heart broke at the thought of her having to leave her three (four including that husband of hers!) boys. She asked if I would do a session for her before she left and I was honored. So I squeezed her into a family session that I was doing with another photographer and some of the sweetest images came from that session. While shooting the tears were flowing on both sides of the lenses.

The wonderful news is that Alicia is HOME NOW!!! Here is a little from the email I received this week. Pitter Patter.

It was over a year ago, that you took such special photos of my family before I was to deploy. We have loved those special photos over the past year- I just came home 2 days ago and my husband already mentioned that he wants us to have another session to update our photos! I am attaching several photos to this email- the first 2 show me in my “battle rattle” enjoying your photos of my family while deployed to Iraq. Everywhere I went- I put up a collage of your photos on my walls…

I love knowing that these portraits helped to bridge the distance…and feel so blessed that I could be a part of that.

I am so excited to see you soon. Welcome Home Honey!

XO,

SN

This little boy stole my heart when he was just a few days old. With his little chubby cheeks and long eyelashes. It has been so wonderful to watch him grow this year.

He was so cute during his one year session. He was a sleepy boy and shared lots of  the cutest little yawns!

A little tender hearted to see this year pass so quickly. Just in time for a new little brother to arrive!

Happy Birthday to my little Crush!

Lots and lots of hugs,

SN

A few days before this session I received an email from Mom. She mentioned that she was really worried because her little one had stranger anxiety now and she was concerned it may be hard for her session. She wondered if I had any ideas on ways to help. I had an idea that I had used several times and sure seems to do the trick every time! Luckily this Mom is awesome enough not to think I am crazy!!! I told her to print out a picture of me and make it a part her daily activities the day before her session. Bring me to breakfast….bring me to play with toys…have a day with me and be really excited about it!! So the next morning I got the largest smile when I received another email from Mom saying that I was enjoying oatmeal and that she was loving our little game!

It worked like a charm, the next day we only needed a minute or two to warm up and the session went fantastic! Especially by the end, she was a HOOT!

Here is a little of our fun together.

Oh, I should add, as we were moving from area to area we would all pretend to hear a dog and then ask if she wanted to find it. The grown ups were all feeling pretty bad by the end of the sesion because to her dismay we just could not find that dog. We were even saying  that we were going to find her a dog somewhere because we felt so bad! It was the end of our session and out of the blue, a man walking his dog came up through the field! It was like a a walking miracle! And he was the nicest dog. Turns out, he was a therapy dog and he was extra gentle and sweet. I had to snap a shot of our little dream come true!

It was the cutest thing, during the sesion she would call out Ree-Ree do this or do that. Ree – Ree, her little sweet voice would say! I loved it!

Before I go I want to share the cute little series of her with her own little wagon. Complete with her little doll going for a ride!

Thanks you guys for such a sweet session! I am going to miss you when you move all too soon! Oh, and give little J a hug from Ree-Ree!

Until Soon,

SN

Military life usually means a busy life. Then when Mom and Dad are both in the military you can only imagine that life is often even busier. That is one thing that I love about my job. I get to spend time with families when they are getting to enjoy all the little giggles and love. This family, oh this family is so adorable. One afternoon with these kids and you will want three more added to your own family. They are witty, genuinely funny. and great kids to spend time with. Oh and the littlest man – my new HEARTHROB! You are in for a ride with that little guy! Hang on to your hearts…

Thanks you five for such a great afternoon. I love spending time with each of you!

Until Soon,

SN

It is amazing how fast a year can go by! I love that I get to watch my little ones grow!

Here is this little guy one year ago…

six months ago…

and NOW:

Happy Birthday Special Boy! You have grown up so much and you are still my little crush!

More of his one year session to come soon.

Hugs,

SN

I am off to bed for the night but wanted to send out a sneak peek of a sweet little girl!

Good Night Friends,

SN

Do you know those kind of people that you can call anytime and they are always there. You could even call at 2 in the morning and they answer their phone! Well, my friends, these people are those people. Some of my close friends know that my pregnancy with Jackson was a hard one. The kind that puts the test on your friends to see who will be there standing when it is all through. This friend was amazing. I can not count how many times she was there for me. She took such good care of me. Even came in on her day off to be my nurse during my surgery after Jackson was born. Those of you who know the life of an ob nurse may know that they rarely have time off. So that to me, was the ultimate gift. Oh and that husband! He is awesome and quite good behind the camera too!

We met a while ago when I did their daughters pictures. Since then. I have been lucky enough to be capturing their son’s first year of life too. But this time, this time it was all about family!

There are so many I could share with you. I just had to grab a few favorites or this post would have turned into a gallery!! I even got asked to join in the fun! Who can say no to that cute little face! I love this family!

Thanks you all for a wonderful afternoon. Thanks for being those people!

Hugs,

SN

I write to you today with a little boy curled on my lap. As I peck at the keys with my left hand it makes for slow work, but I do not mind. Even as his little body grows at warp speed he has graced me with the ability to slow down. I am a box checker. I like to make lists and with each stroke of the pen check something off the list. Since my little one has arrived my pen has been making less strokes and more doodles. But that ironically is what I love about him. Sometimes life is about coloring outside of your lines. That is when you learn more about yourself, I believe.

So a few days ago, I was having one of those weepy new mommy days. Going through life’s motions with a full on cry on the cusp of erupting, at any second, for no apparent reason. The only thing that would bring me refuge was when I would think about this wheat field down the street from my studio. I would imagine playing with Jackson and cuddling him and I would feel completely normal. Then my mind would go to something else and that weepy feeling would creep back in. I battled with my feelings for most of the day until it dawned on me that I should just go to the field. So I did. And I did one better than that. I packed up the tripod and brought along my old friend, the camera.

I arrived and the adrenaline started to rush. I took out the tripod and turned on my camera and WAIT…it would not work. I fumbled with all of the buttons and dials and it would not appease me. Nope. Nothing. At that moment the tears started to flow. I caught my breath. Said a little prayer. Searched the internet on my phone. Found a fix. Said another prayer and Voila. It worked. Twenty minutes later and we were back in the game. I shot a few test shots to see if my camera was recovered and caught a glimpse of the tripod.

Normally I would trash the shot, but not this time. It tells a story of perseverance to me. A story that sometimes you just have to slow down and take it one step at a time. A chance to use my skill set that my little Jackson is so sweetly sharing with me. (Who by the way has moved off of my lap now and is kicking along next to me, he grew quite wiggly and bored with my story. Now just an occasional squeeze on his toy makes him squeal with delight).

So the stage was set. The camera now fastened onto the tripod. I pushed the button to the timer…beep…beep 10 seconds it warned. So I ran with Jackson to our little spot in the field. Snap. Jumped up. Ran back. Pushed the button…beep, beep, run, run. SNAP. Jump. Jackson thought this new game was so much fun. I thought so too. After a few times though I was out of breath! After another push of the button, Jackson and I both were tired of our game and decided to call it finished! I quickly went through the pictures and saw this in my screen. My heart melted. The tears flowed again, only this time they were the happy kind.

For my part, the story ends there. But when we arrived home I shared with my husband what I was trying to do, and asked if he would be my trigger. He sweetly agreed. So we went back to the field and shot some more. With his shots and mine, I created a movie. A movie to sum up all of my emotion for my boys. You can view it if you would like on the Serena Nicole Studios Facebook Page.

So yesterday. my pen just doodled. But today I made strokes. This blog post. Check.

In time, all things in time.

Until Soon,

SN

The little man came and rocked the studio! He was ready for his big shoot. Just a few days home from vacation and this little guy was the perfect way to jump back in!

He is such a sweetheart and has the best little toes!! Oh and how he loves his hands!

Thanks to you and to your awesome parents for a wonderful shoot!

See you SOON!

SN