It happens every. single. January.

There are not shoots to photograph or weddings left to edit, and by the middle of January I would have already done all of the maintenance and changes on my website and blog, and looked through any inspiration I can find to refresh for the Spring. Then there is nothing but crickets and cold weather for about another month before I start getting calls for spring family sessions and weddings.

I love to be busy with projects and work, and then when I’m slammed with work, I long for a break. My ambivelance is quite a problem with my personality, I have yet to find that perfect balance.  I can tell you though, that in January I’m bored out of my mind. I don’t want to do things like sweep cobwebs out of the basement, but I long for meaningful projects that will make me feel like I’m “gaining ground” somehow. Today was one of those days when I realized how I photograph my own memories as mere casual snapshots and don’t put as much effort into them as I would a client’s memories. Today I tried to capture more than my normal snapshot of my kids.

I was inspired to shoot some real life images of my kids after they woke up from their naps with a lens that I don’t normally use. I chose the 50mm 1.2 lens, it’s been a tad bit soft for a while now, but I wanted to really test it and try shooting at lower apertures and see what happened. I was pleasantly surprised with it’s performance. My aperture ranged from 1.4-2.0 in these images.

Silas was very interested in the camera and probably gave me the best “faces” I’ve seen in a while. Solomon was not so sure, eventually he broke down into tears for some unapparent reason. I think he was scared of the camera, or maybe it was just to close to waking up from his nap.

This Christmas we drove down to Lubbock, Texas for a week and then off to Scroggins, Texas to this beautiful place where Josh’s parents rented cabins for all of his family. Lubbock was a welcome sight for me and the boys! We were spoiled rotten and came home fully refreshed thanks to all of my family (especially Mom and Tim).

Our first outing was to the Barnard’s house for cousin’s christmas present exchange. We were keeping it a secret that we were coming to the cabins with Josh’s family and so the kids got extra time with their cousins.

The next day it was going to be a balmy 65 degrees (and windy, it is Lubbock of course) and I knew that it was the perfect opportunity for a photoshoot of the boys in Tim’s pick-n-pull junk yard. The photo shoot did not go as expected. Silas is not into photographs. At all. Solomon is a little easier to coax if I have a pre-bought toy for him, but now I understand how vital it is to hire a stranger to photograph your kids! Momma just can’t get them to behave for one!

My dad and Valerie drove down from Kansas City to see my brother and sister and we all got together for breakfast at Magen’s house and did our first family photo with them in 10 years!

Keeping the babies’ fingers out of these treats was the hardest thing to do. I told Solomon that he could only have three pieces of candy (he had a very interesting dental visit two days before that made me limit him to the extreme!) and Silas was loving the “gum”. My gingerbread house never wins, but it is always interesting to see how my brother and sister put their together. It really shows how different our personalities are!

Grandma came up from New Braunfels to see us on Christmas day.

I did my 5 minute family photo shoot for my brother while he was in town, this is his beautiful family. They live in Seattle, Washington and we get to see them every year or two. Solomon and Jocelyn had a ball and most definitely became best friends.

Mimi and Pops spoiled all of us at the Double S Ranch in Scroggins, Texas. It was so beautiful and fun to see ALL of our family in one week!