Bless his little heart, mom had brought him the most beautiful set of balloons to use on his session. I ADORED the colors and they just complimented his bubbly personality so well. But…helium floats. And right in the middle of doing those awesome shots of the whole family walking up the hill, we lost our beloved balloons. Fortunately for all of us, it was probably only me who was the most heartbroken, but I did not cry ;-). Little man, instead, was happiest when he had a cup full of Cheerios. You can see in most of the images toward the end, his little chipmunk cheeks were stuffed full. He was irresistibly cute!!! (Another fun shot HERE).

Each of these families will receive a FREE Pinkle Toes photo session! Congrats to these families and thank you to everyone who participated and voted. I love looking at how these come together year after year. (In no particular order, these are the winners from the popular vote, judge’s choice, and random drawing).

I feel very fortunate that this family moved to Austin not so long ago. I got to document big brother when he was just 9 months old and then at one year. And now, I had the honor of meeting his sweet baby sister (whose name I ADORE). I love watching families who love one another. Everyone is relaxed and happy and content and it’s evident in each of their photo sessions. And Calla fits in so perfectly. Couple more fav’s HERE and HERE.

Just after Christmas, we managed to squeeze in a few maternity pictures out here at the studio. It actually wasn’t as cold as it looked that day, but mama’s accessories totally inspired the wintry feel of this photo session:

We had decided on a particular location for their photo session, but I was yearning to try something new. I’ve been so tired of the dull, lifeless, brown grass thanks to the cold temps and drought conditions. We needed life. We needed color. And so I asked the kind folks at Green ‘n Growing if they would allow us to come in for a few to shoot in their store. They could not have been more kind and accommodating and the greenhouse and plant life were so very beautiful. It’s actually one of my eldest’s favorite garden stores (when he’s shopping for plants and trees to attract butterflies). Definitely worth a visit if you’re in the area!

But, I owe most of this to a beautiful family willing to try something new ;-). That little girl couldn’t have been more joyful and more pleasant to work with. She absolutely sparkles and it’s quite obvious that her parents are enamored with her, too. The bubble pics were my fav, of course. In fact, there’s another one posted HERE if you want to see.

Look at little miss’ pinkies in most of these pics. Everything she did was just so delicate and lady-like, and just so. I have about a bazillion more pics of her with that little pinky sticking out. She just makes you want to take a big sigh because all is right with the world. She is a beautiful, perfect addition to her little family. Two other favs shown HERE and HERE.

I don’t think I ever got a chance to blog her mommy and daddy’s maternity session from last year, either:

Since I literally just finished putting the finishing touches on the prize session for the family that won last year, I figured we ought to go ahead and kick off the 2012 Pinkle’s Pic of the Year contest!!! If you had a session with me at any time during 2012, you should have received an e-mail from me with the contest details and how to enter. If you did not get that e-mail, let me know ASAP as the deadline for entries is Jan 27!! I’ll be posting here and on Facebook once we have the first round of entries all lined up ;-). Meanwhile, enjoy these sneak peaks from their prize for winning last year ;-).

This was my first official photo session of 2013 and I must say, I think we kicked this year off just right. This little guy was a complete angel and watching how easily he has fit into his family was such a blessing. Truthfully, I didn’t want to leave that morning. He was so snuggly and adorable! And the bubble chair? TDF. I definitely need one of those in my house STAT! [My personal fav from this session HERE].

She arrived just in time for the holidays and I would say it’s fairly obvious that she is adored by all in her family. I can see sooooo much of her big brother in her! (Maternity session HERE and my personal fav from the newborn session HERE.

I have been so anxious to finally get the chance to sit down and go through these images. I knew I would love them and indeed, I do. Here’s why:

– Because mom and I had a total connection from the second I walked in for this shoot. I would say something and it was exactly what she was thinking and vice versa.

– Because of the Avatar tree. Oh my word, that tree! The second I pulled into their driveway, I knew we had to find a way to use it. I pretty much ran into the house and told mom, “Look…we’ve got about 15 minutes left of decent light by that tree. Can we make it happen?” I really don’t know how we were able to pull together a toddler + a newborn for those shots to come to fruition, but I think I cried when we did, LOL. Mom e-mailed me a few days later and said all the leaves had fallen off that tree. Just. In. Time!

– Because I adore this family. We’ve been working together ever since big brother was first born. I will always remember the day mom called me trying to get an appointment. I had promised my husband I would take some time off and I said I couldn’t do her newborn photos. But I felt so, so bad telling her no. So we worked it out. I’ll be forever grateful I did. What an absolute joy to watch mr. man grow up and to see the arrival of a baby sister, too.

– Because she couldn’t be more perfect if she tried. Or funny, too.

– Because she let us do this.

– Because it brings me back to a reality outside what is consuming my mind right now. And it makes me smile. Big.

Thank you to this beautiful baby and her family for being so very patient while waiting for me to give you these images. Their understanding about our family situation has been so moving. This holiday season, I feel very, very blessed to know all of these wonderful people.

…I can’t even begin to tell you how refreshing it was to get to work on this session today. That little girl up there is crazy, super loved and her warmth and energy and charm is 100x more palatable in person than even in these pics. She might just take after her mommy  just a wee bit ;-). Two other favs HERE and HERE.

Those of you who follow my blog, facebook, or Instagram know that this past week+ has been very trying for my family. I am getting back into the swing of things with work, but it’s taking some time and will continue to do so. Thank you so much to my clients and friends for being incredibly understanding. Thank you to Kelly here for being so amazingly patient waiting on her images. I’m normally a stickler for deadlines and timeframes, but even the best planning can’t stand up to life’s challenges sometimes. I feel amazingly blessed to have experienced so much love from my clients and the online community and my photographer friends.

Many of you have been asking about how you can help regarding my brother-in-law. We are currently working on a project that I hope to launch on Monday that might give you that opportunity AND you could probably score a last-minute holiday gift if needed. I don’t want to say much more because there are so many facets yet to be worked out, but please, check back Monday afternoon to see what we’ve come up with. And thank  you a million times again.