Darling Langley

I met Alicia & Colton two years ago when they welcomed their precious little boy Harlen into the world. (...For whatever reason my blog wouldn't allow me to make a link, so here's the link to Harlen from '09: http://bethanyfphotography.blogspot.com/2009/11/baby-harlen.html) I loved photographing him and was so excited when Alicia contacted me and told me they were going to have a little girl!

I'm so glad I got to finish out my 2011 shooting season photographing precious Langley! :)



I always forget just how itty-bitty newborns are... there's nothing like those first weeks/months of just cuddling your sweet sleeping baby for hours on end!













We also did a few Christmas photos and I just loved Langley's little hat and outfit!

Harlen is such a sweet big brother!

Congratulations Alicia & Colton! Your family is beautiful.

Beautiful Baby Adalyn

I had such a great time at this newborn session! Allie (my fantastic summer intern) & I drove over to Bryan & Laura's lovely Portland home and got to meet beautiful baby Adalyn. All 8+ lbs of her perfect 3 week early-ness. She did such a great job being the center of activity. At first she didn't want to fall asleep... what, you wouldn't fall asleep if we stripped you down and laid you in front of a big window? :) But Daddy gave her some cuddles and mama fed her and she was out.

I loved shooting in Bryan & Laura's home. It's gorgeous. And I loved getting to know them as we waited for Adalyn to fall into a deep sleep. What a precious family. Congrats you three! :)





Grandma made this special blanket for this special girl...









Laura, you look fantastic!

Welcome to the world Nathaniel!

I was so excited to get to meet little Nathaniel! It's been really neat getting to know Drew & Marisa and their precious family over the years, and an honor to photograph this special season of their lives.

Nathaniel's just as darling as can be, and was such a great sleeper for his session! This first shot of him is a great peek into how he was curled up in his mama's tummy. :)









We pulled out the famous owl hat and he rocked it.

There's something about those little curled up legs that I just LOVE.



I love his little angelic face here on the right...





Congratulations Drew & Marisa! You make such cute kids! :)

He's almost outgrown the hat...

I took Benjamin's 6 week photos in this cute owl hat, and being 3 months now I figured I'd better get a few last shots of him in it before he outgrows it! The kids and I were all hanging out by Jude's bed, doing laundry this afternoon, and the sunshine was pouring into the room, so I decided to embrace the moment and snap some photos of Benjamin in his cute hat. :)





Of course our sweet boy ended up peeing on Jude's bed right at this moment (sorry Jude!), so I had an extra load of laundry to then do, but it was worth it! :)

6 weeks old - Benjamin Gabriel

Our little man is 6 weeks old today. He's been having more awake times, is just beginning to plump up, and he's given me a few really sweet (awake) smiles in the last few days.

Benjamin is such a cuddler and loves nothing more than to be snuggled up in my arms. I love his cuddles.

My friend Mauria stopped by today with a gift for Benjamin and it was this adorable owl hat! I just love it! Because Benjamin is 6 weeks old it's harder to get curled up sleeping shots of him, so I worked quickly to just get a few pictures. At first he kept moving his head and the owl face would shift and not be centered, so I turned it around for the last few pictures and got a few more with the solid blue side. Thank you Mauria for the darling hat! You are so thoughtful.

We love you Benji-boo! Happy 6 weeks.

Today...

Today was one of "those days". :) I got Jude to preschool late, Benjamin wet through a diaper and his clothes while out running errands, Selah dumped a bag of nuts on the kitchen floor, I stood out in the rain trying to get an attachment on my stroller to work and never could... and my house, let's just say has seen cleaner days. You've all had those days too... right?! :)

I'm not complaining, though. I've had sooo many moments lately where I just have to stop and say, "Wow. Thank you Lord. You are so good. We are so blessed." Life adjustment with three kids has been going better than I expected! I think I braced for the worst and instead it's been going realy well. Benjamin is a really easy baby and I just can't put him down. I love to snuggle him and hold him and kiss his big cheeks... he comes by those honestly. ;)

Jude and Selah have been playing well together and welcomed Benjamin into our family without hesitation. They are so loving toward him and interested. Josh has been an all-star husband helping to keep me sane by making dinner many nights, letting me nap when I can, and he took me on a date last week which was wonderful (thanks Mom for watching the kids)!

So yes, my life these days is a bit crazy, and I'm getting less sleep than usual, and I seem to always have someone 3 feet tall asking something of me. :) But I'm savoring this sweet season of life with this little princess, this silly boy, and this snuggly baby and wouldn't trade these days for anything!

(Grandma got the kids cameras for Christmas and we've been surprised at how quickly they've figured out how to use them!)

(There's nothing like those cute skinny newborn legs complete with wrinkles! Or baby's breath. Or that soft head of hair. Or those tiny finger nails... so in love!)

Benjamin Gabriel

Our precious boy arrived on December 20th, weighing 6 lbs. 12 oz. and measuring 19.5" long. He was born at 38 weeks and it was a wonderful delivery.

I've been soaking up every sweet moment of his newness! I can hardly put him down. I just love to snuggle him, kiss him, watch him sleep, stare at his tiny features... he's just as darling as can be! Ahhh... so in love. :) We're all in love with him.

When Josh and I first saw him it only took a couple of seconds for me to spot dimples! I was SO surprised. I hadn't even expected them or even thought of them as a possibility. Josh and I both have dimples and we always assumed our kids would have them. But when neither Jude or Selah were born with them I just quit thinking about them. So I love seeing Benjamin smile in his sleep because those cute little dimples show up. :)



I tried a few days in a row to snap some newborn photos of him, but it wasn't really working out. On Tuesday I gave it another try, but I ran out of good daylight rather quickly, and had kids playing all around me, so it was a little adventurous. :) But we got a couple of these quick shots. I'm going to try to take some more pictures of him this weekend when Josh is home.

Thank you everyone for your sweet Facebook comments! They've been so fun to read. :)







Selah loves to help take care of Benjamin. I just love that she's my little helper. She brings me diapers, helps lotion his skin, loves to hold him, and today helped give him a bath. Jude likes to help too, and is such a loving big brother, giving Benjamin lots of hugs and kisses. :)

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!!