Success!

See? I told you I'd be better at blahging and here I am, 12 hours later, living up to my promise.

I have to get on to editing a wedding I shot recently, but I wanted to take the morning to hang with my babies. Thad is still battling some version of the flu, so he's been in bed watching ParaNorman, The Lorax, and now some documentary about chasing tornadoes (he's totally my kid).

Anyways, I told myself I'd wait until Charlotte was 6 months old before we tried solids...I almost managed to wait that long, lol. She will be 6 months next Friday, so why not right?

This afternoon, she tried her hand at carrots.

Later this afternoon we will move on to peas. (Vomit)

I'll get some photos of that as well, of course.

Later, I busted out the one and only toy she got for Christmas. I can't even begin to tell you what a relief it was to commit to buying our 5-month-old baby ONE THING for Christmas. Seriously, why go overboard? The grandparents took care of the rest, lol, and there is just no need. Charlotte will never remember Christmas this year, and we really only bought the one gift because we didn't want to be total scumbag parents.

But she loves it! She played with it quite a bit this afternoon, tugging at the little things that dangle, and making all the weird little sounds that she makes.

And, uh, by the way, Thad was spoiled rotten this Christmas. From Tom and me alone, he got a scooter, a few movies, a couple books, a cap gun, BeyBlades, Matchnox cars, and the punching bag that goes with his socker boppers. I'm sure there's more. He really was spoiled this Christmas.

If I'd had any sense on Christmas morning, I would have taken some pictures. Lol. But I was too busy wishing I was still in bed. ;)

I am such a slacker.

These days, I am more consumed with the photo sessions I have to edit and hanging out with my kids than blahging. I'm a total slacker.

In one month, I had 24 sessions and 2 weddings (one in the Bahamas, yeehaw!).

But Christmas is over, and my busy season is calming down.

And I need to get back to updating this thing.

So here's the start -

I was feeling a bit nostalgic this evening.

 

I can't believe how much she has changed.

She is nearly 13 pounds now, and I can't remember how long she is, lol. 

And she also has her ears pierced. What a big girl. :)

My goal for 2013 is to take lotsssss more photos of my kids. And post them. And blahg them. Maybe I'll even give my 365 another go (I think I stopped my last one at...3. Lol.)

Someone got a new hat.

Happy 4 months, Charlita!

Yesterday was Charlotte's 4-month birthday. I wasn't home all day, since I was practically in Texas doing a newborn photo shoot. But I vowed to take photos of her today, to document the occasion.

The quilt was a gift from my aunt Lori. I absolutely love it. When she asked me what I wanted, I told her something colorful - selfishly knowing that I would use it to take photos of Charlotte. Lol. She knocked it out of the park - it's perfect.

Anyways, back to the bebe...

So I know she's 4 months old, but remember she's 2 months behind. So she is the maturity of a 2 month old:

- Not yet able to hold her head up, but she's getting there!
- She is cooing constantly.
- She loves to blow raspberries.
- She seriously is the gassiest human being on the planet. It's not bothersome to her, thank goodness...but she farts like a grown man. And it's constant. Lol.
- She is officially sleeping thru the night. On the mornings I don't have to wake her, she sleeps from 8pm to 8am. On the mornings I do, she gets up at 7am.
- She naps all morning long. Lol. Then she naps most of the afternoon. What can I say? The kid can sleep.
- She was drinking 4oz of milk for the longest time. Probably over a month, maybe longer. Then suddenly she started to get really cranky after each feed. So we increased her to 5oz...she was still cranky. So we increased her to 6oz. So that was a 2oz increase in pretty much 2 days - unheard of, but she's happy. So whatever.
- She likes her paci when she's tired. This is foreign to me since Thad never took a paci.
- She has two different cries - the first one is a wailing scream. This means, "Feed me or I will seriously kill you." The second one is a long, drawn out sort of wail, with short breaks in between. This means, "Put me to bed before I do something horrible to each of your future children." She's a pretty good little communicator. ;)

End of story -- I love this kid. Like, LOVE her.

She is my light.

And a little video for your viewing pleasure....

Balloon Fiesta 2012

Ever since my parents started coming to Albuquerque on a yearly basis for the balloon festival, I've been itching to go as well.

Imagine my excitement when Tom got the job down here -- and I figured out we would actually be living in ABQ for the Fiesta. Squeeeeeeeee.

The Balloon Festival happens every year, in the first week of October. This year, it started October 6, and goes until October 14. All of the events were cancelled on the very first day due to high winds, so I made plans to visit my Uncle's house on the second day (he lives only a few miles from the park where they launch the balloons, and the wind usually blows them right to and over his house...sometimes even landing in his yard).

Of course, the day I show up at his house at the ass crack of dawn for the balloons, there was no wind. This was the best shot I could get:

As you can see, nothing special. Lol.

I figured if I was going to guarantee myself the opportunity to see 550 balloons take off and land, I needed to be right in the middle of the action.

So I answered a 4:30am wake-up call, got the kids piled into the car, loaded up my camera, and drove to the park.

It was totally worth it.

I'm relieved that I finally got out there for the shots. Every morning since the Festival started, I have felt apprehensive at not getting out there to experience the event -- and allow Thad to experience the same.

Now that we've both seen it with our own two eyes, we can sleep in. Lol.

I probably won't partake in balloon festivities again until 2015...when Charlotte is old enough to realize what it is and get all excited about it. Maybe by then, Thad will be more into it - this year, he was complaining that he was bored about 15 minutes into the whole thing.

Oye.

3 months

I can't believe Charlotte is already 3 months old, today.

Milestone-wise, she's right on par with about a 5-week old. She is really starting to show us her smile, and has started to show a true interest in objects and things that allow for some stimulation.

We put her in her swing for the first time yesterday. At first, she was kind of freaked out--arms spread out, eyes wide--then she got used to it. Then she was cooing and smiling at the little animals on the tray in front of her. It was pretty sweet to witness.

At her appointment last week, she measured 22 inches long and 8lbs 12oz. That's a 5 pound, 5 inch gain since birth. :)  We're pretty pleased with that kind of growth.

Admittedly, though, it makes me sad. Of course I don't wish for her to still be a 3-pounder. But as she approaches 9 pounds, I am quickly reminded of the fact that the next time I turn around, she will be 25 pounds, no longer a great cuddler, and will be working on her independence. Ugh. I haaaaate that feeling.

Anyways, on to the photos. The shoot was pretty last-minute, and she cried...a lot. Lol. But I got quite a few I was pleased with.

I threw one of Thad in at the end because he was begging me to take his photo. I don't really like the look he has in it, but he was so desperate to have his photo taken...how could I not?

Oh! Forgot to add - my Uncle came over yesterday while Tom was at work, and helped me to re-build Thad's old crib (I wanted it to be a surprise for Tom, and it was!). So Charlotte is FINALLY in her own room. :)

Also, the Balloon Festival starts in ABQ on Saturday. OMG, prepare yourselves for the photos. I can't fracking wait.

Rise and shine.

Ten weeks into our journey with Charlotte, and we are still trying to really establish an evening routine. We have the routine part of it down, it's just a matter of timing.

Because she is 10 weeks old, but is technically only 2 weeks old (maturity wise), she still sleeps about 22 hours a day. Lol. She isn't awake very often. Her most "awake" period is in the mornings, right after her 9am(ish) bottle, and then in the evenings between 6 and 9 - that's what I call "the witching hour." She only wants to be held by me, and she has to have her paci in her mouth at all times. You will hate your life if you do not abide by her rules at this time of the night. Lol.

Once we give her the last evening bottle, she gives us two long stretches -- her first stretch is usually about 5 hours (so we are up to feed around 2am), and then her next stretch is anywhere from 4 to 6 hours (usually 4). She is usually up eating at about the time that Tom is getting ready for work.

After that, I pull her into bed with me and we sleep for another 3 hours. Well, she sleeps for another 3 hours. Thad is usually up around 8 now, so I get another hour to hour-and-a-half. Sometimes I can convince Thad that he needs to lay in bed with mommy and Charlotte and watch a movie.

On those mornings, I usually feel pretty well rested.

Today was one of those mornings. We had fun with the camera, both before and after Charlotte ate.

Albuquerque State Fair

We went to the fair today.

I told everyone to wear something flattering and nice because I was going to be bringing my camera and wanted to take some lifestyle family shots.

The truth of the matter is, it was hot as bejeezus outside, and I really didn't want to take my camera out. Lol.

I did, however, catch a break toward the end of our trip. I was hanging out with the baby in the shade while Tom and Thad rode the swings. It felt really good to just sit there and take photos, having fun and trying to be creative.

The very last image we have decided is going to be in print in Charlotte's room, which - we also decided tonight - will probably be painted yellow with polka dots. Love.

And in case you were wondering what we did with Charlotte for the day, she was busy being a nudist. She started out with clothes...but yeah. It was too damn hot for clothes.

Lol.