Christina's Blog

I am working on some gorgeous images tonight and just had to share this sneak-peek from a recent session.  I was invited to create baby Ryan’s newborn portraits when he was only 3 weeks old.  He was quite alert when I arrived, so I took the opportunity to photograph him with his Mommy and big sister, Isabelle first.  He was a bit resistant to the idea of sleeping at first, but after much encouragement from Mommy he finally drifted off, allowing me to capture all his perfect newness and create a beautiful collection of images.

It’s often hard to remember just how tiny our own babies are when they’re born, especially because we see them everyday and they grow so darn fast.  I still find myself surprised sometimes when I pick up a tiny newborn and realize again how very light they are… and how very, very perfect.  I hope Ryan’s family enjoys this little preview and I cannot wait to share the full collection with you!

Just wanted to quickly share one of the beautiful images I captured last week when I went to Wilmington to visit my new niece – this was her first portrait session with me and I could hardly believe it had been over 3 months since she’d been born.  Those of you with children of your own know just how true the old adage of “time flies” really is!  I still haven’t chosen my favorite image from her session yet, but this one is definitely in the running.

I always try to avoid showering too much attention on babies when I first meet them, as I want to save those sweet smiles and interested expressions for the camera room – this was a very hard rule to abide by this time, as this was my first time seeing her and all I really wanted to do when I got there was put my equipment down on the floor and just be an Aunt!  I set up my “portable studio” in her nursery and had so much fun capturing her big blue eyes, happy smiles and chubby cheeks.  She was such a sweetie!  Afterward I enjoyed getting to hang out and visit with my brother and sis-in-law while Peyton sat contently in my lap – an awesome day!

Check it out – National “Steal Candy from Your Kids” Week is only 5 days away!  For those of you unfamiliar with this brilliantly-conceived holiday, that would be the week following Halloween.  It’s true – parents all across America have been celebrating this holiday in secret for decades (my apologies for going public with the details, but I’m too excited!)

It all started a long, long time ago when a very tired (and chocolate-deprived) Mom decided it was about time her children started paying her back for all the sleepless nights, 3 am feedings, and temper tantrums she had endured over the years.  So she dressed them up creatively in outfits that would best convey her parenting struggles – a devil costume for the most mischievous one, a kangaroo outfit for the one who was always jumping on the furniture, and a scary monster for the one who’s 3-year-old meltdowns could send anyone screaming from the room in fear.

Then she handed them each a small bag and proceeded to march them door to door, asking for candy – no one really remembers if she explicitly stated the candy was for her, but the plan worked!  Parents around the country quickly heard rumors about the truck-load of chocolate these kids hauled in that night and it didn’t take long for a tradition to begin.

So why “trick or treat”?  Theories abound, but the most-popular explanation leans on the following definitions of the words:

trick [trik] -noun

1. 1. a crafty or underhanded device, maneuver, stratagem, or the like, intended to deceive or cheat; artifice; ruse; wile.
   2. a clever or ingenious device or expedient; adroit technique: the tricks of the trade.

It’s actually quite possible that the original phrase was more like “artifice and treat.”  Dictionary.com states that artifice is a synonym of trick and that “like trick , but to a greater degree, artifice  emphasizes the cleverness, ingenuity, or cunning with which the proceeding is devised: an artifice of diabolical ingenuity.”  Sounds just like a Mom to me!  Oh, and the “treat” part is obvious, no?

So enjoy your upcoming special week with your kids’ candy and have a safe and happy Halloween.  (And while you’re enjoying that 4th piece of miniature Snickers®, don’t forget to say a quiet thank you to the brilliant Mom who conceived this crazy idea in the first place!)