Happy Birthday

Well my son turned 12 this weekend. It is hard to believe he is already 12- although I must admit he looks much older then 12 considering he is already 5'7" and probably taller now since it has been a few months since we last measured him.

Here are some birthday pics from his day! We started the morning by waking him up and opening presents...A tradition in our house is to decorate the birthday person's door frame with streamers...for his birthday he got what every 12 year old wants...a new cell phone!! Although he has had it for a few weeks I still wrapped it back up!! He did not even realize it was missing.

We decided to go out for breakfast to celebrate his birthday since we were going to officially celebrate later this week. So where did he pick...Sonic for a Route 44 Coke & Breakfast Burrito!

The best part of being 12- he can now ride legally in the front seat of our car!! Trust me old habits were easy to break - he has managed to open the front door each time- that back seat door is history!!

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A big OOPS!!

My neighbors decided to build their fence this week - they had the DSL/phone guys come out and spray the lines but unfortunately they still hit the line, twice and they only made it down the back stretch. It was Sunday night 7pm when our internet went out. I panicked- I was in the middle of uploading several photos from the Baseball game this weekend. It was a holiday week, what if they could not come out and fix it until next week, it is the busiest time of the month for my husband- would he have to stay late at work and miss his son's 12th birthday party in order to get his work done!! I was officially in a tizzy... I started calling my neighbors- everyone else had internet, how come we were the only ones without?? Luckily my sweet neighbors came over and gave me the code to ping off their wireless - I was better now. I called the phone company first thing this morning, as well as several of my neighbors who as the night progressed also lost their phone/internet..They said it would be fixed by Thursday 5pm.

When I arrived home I found this in the neighbors backyard. It started out with just a tiny hole - but they could not find where the lines were- so they kept digging!! By 6pm the hole was big enough for a grown man to stand up and hide in...


They ran us a temporary line so we could have internet while they worked...we went to dinner.... we came back over an hour later to them still digging in the yard. Then they finally found the wires and began the repair. Over 6 hours later they are done...it is late and dark yet they are out there with a single light covering the huge hole that they dug. Thank you Bellsouth for repairing our internet/phone lines so quickly...I am very impressed!!

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Princess in the Park

I found this awesome blue/purple tutu a few months ago and knew it was the perfect prop for a little princess..oh but to find a princess willing to smile in my purple tutu was another thing. I have been working on my natural lighting technique and catchlights in the subject's eyes - so I was so excited when I arrived home to my little girl asking for her photo to be taken in her princess dress!! Off to the park we went to find a shady tree- it was a short trip but I got some great photos.


Once again it's late at night so I have only had time to edit a couple of my favorites- so here you go! Let me know what you think of my little princess!

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Team Posters

This is my latest project- team posters. This allows me to incorporate some of my digital scrapbooking talent with my photography talent. The posters are 10X20 and feature each player doing something a little different- this is not your typical memory mate!!

I figured since these boys were 12 they needed something a little more grungy and cool! I hope you like it. If you are interested in ordering one for your team check out the investment tab on my website. www.winningmomentsphotography.com

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To Be 13

Last night I got the joy of spending 2 1/2 hours with a 13 yr old, not just any 13 yr old but my best friend's daughter. You may think this is no big deal but as I was laying in bed with my 2yr old daughter it dawned on me that I was 13 when I met her mom. Yep we have been best friends now for over 21 years! I just thought of all this great wisdom and advice I wish I had shared with her while we were running around taking photos, like:
1. Choose your friends wisely you may have them for a lifetime.
2. Your first love will always be special no matter how long the relationship lasts.
3. Love your mom for who she is- there is no other like her
4. Don't judge others before you really get to know them.

You would have never guessed her mom and I would have remained friends all these years. Our styles were complete opposite back in jr high - and still are. I was the preppy one she was the grunge one! Although I will say 21 years later her mom has finally moved over to the preppy side and bought her first minivan!! Yet thru marriages, moves, and children we have remained best friends. She is the one I call in the middle of the night when I am upset, she was the first one I told I was pregnant (both times). She is my soul- my best friend and I miss her dearly.

You see another reason why tonight was so special for me is that we only get to see them twice a year - they moved across the country 12 years ago! Yet our relationship has survived thru the miles.

Miss A- choose your friends wisely they will be there for you forever!

And what is a post without some photos so here are a few of the great photos I got tonight of Miss A. It will take me a few days to get them all edited but I will post a few sneak peaks each night.

Hope you like them.

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Faces of Baseball

As the temperature rises to 100 this month the 2009 baseball season comes to a close, and just in time if you ask me- It's hot out there!! I have enjoyed watching the OB Raiders play this year and seeing them grow into a tough and competitive team. From going home after the 2nd game to finishing 2nd twice and 1st once it has been a wonderful journey for the boys. They have learned each others strengths and weaknesses as they became one team - the OB Raiders!

I thought I would share some of the faces of the Raiders team as my final Baseball post of the season. Football season will be starting in just a few weeks so I am going to enjoy the rest of summer, spend some days at the beach and come back ready for some football!!

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Baby J Sneak Peak

Oh..what a cutie... I was able to photograph this little guy today at 2 1/2 weeks old. We had to cancel the session last week so I was so happy he was still squishy enough for me to try some new poses! It always seems the first photo of the session(1st photo below) turns out to be my favorite! Although he did manage to pee on every blanket I had, his mommy and me....we had a great session and I hope his parents will be pleased..I know I was! Jennifer your private gallery and announcements should be up by Friday.

If you know anyone expecting this summer and they would like to schedule a free newborn session let me know- the best time is before they are 10 days old!

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The Storm

So once again I found myself driving home from work with the tornado sirens going off in our area. Why is it that no matter whether I stay late, leave early or on time...I am always halfway home on the worst road to pull over on when the sirens go off. Luckily for us this storm only produced strong wind and rain. There was a point where I was stopped at the intersection and I could see the wind pushing the rain down the street. The trees were blowing over, the cars were shaking from the strong gusts and it was raining so hard you could barely see out your window. Yet I kept driving home- I just kept thinking another couple yards and I will be past it. Well as I crossed over the state line the damage was obvious. Trees snapped and uprooted, power lines blocking subdivisions and fences on the ground. The rain stopped as I pulled into my neighborhood and what do I see as I come down my street but all the men standing out in the yard staring at the storm and clouds passing by.

**Update turned out to be an F2 tornado that touched down in the town next to ours. Glad to be safe but please pray for our friends who lost their home when a BIG tree fell on it. They were all home and are safe but their home will likely have to be demolished and rebuilt.


A few trees down in the big park near our house- I took these out the window of my car because it was still storming.
A couple photos using the macro setting on my camera.

After the storm about 8pm CST. When you looked to the west this is what you saw: These are the real colors of the sky- I promise.

The sky looked like it was on fire as the sun set.

A sepia conversion to the sky.
What you saw when you looked towards the east- the storm clouds moving by. The sky was almost black except the white/gray clouds.

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2nd place finish

It was a scorcher! It was in the mid 90's and the ball fields were in the woods. You had to walk into the woods and over a bridge to get to the fields. There was no breeze and the sun just beat down on the fields which were in a clearing in the middle of all the trees. It was so hot and dry that you could see the dust in the air. The Raiders played 5 games this weekend- by the last game parents were paying $2 for bottled water just to pour on the boys to keep them cool!! They came in 2nd place again..but don't worry they won first place this past weekend so I will post those photos soon.

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New Website

Well the day has come...my website is ready. Check it out and be sure to bookmark it at http://www.winningmomentsphotography.com/



And what would a post be without a photo so here is one of my favorite family photos from the newborn session I did a couple weeks ago- I mean what else do you do with a 1yr old that won't stay still long enough to get a family photo. This family was so much fun to photograph!! I am looking forward to taking their photos again when the boys get a little bigger.

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Play Ball....

I am the team photographer for the OB Raiders so I thought I would post some photos from their season. They have come a long way from the start of the season and have finished 2nd in the last 2 tournaments. They have 2 more tournaments left before the state championship tournament. Go Raiders!!

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