Adelaide has been an absolute dream. She is content and sweet and I’m a smitten Mama. ♥

On February 23rd at 12:08am, my sweet little girl was born at our home. Meet Adelaide Juliet… ♥

We have arrived. Baby is fully cooked. Now we play the waiting game and if this one is anything like Lucas, it may hang out for another week or so. My uterus must be a cozy little place. We’re hoping the appointment we scheduled with the Midwives for next Friday ends up being a postpartum check up instead of another prenatal. Until then, me and the babes are just hanging out.

Apparently, there is a pretty substantial snow storm brewing and headed our way. Not that I ever pay attention to weather forecasts (I have lived in Michigan my whole life – weather prediction is a crap shoot) but that is the buzz on Facebook. Now, THERE is a reliable source of information. My hope is that posting about the storm will make Mother Nature change her mind and give us a big, fat, “Psych!” because now that I am less than two weeks from my due date, a horrible snow storm that could prevent my Midwives and husband from quickly getting home to me when I go into labor is not exactly something I want to worry about. And we all know how wonderful Murphy’s Law works in these situations. So, let’s hope for one of two scenarios: A) The snow storm is really just an average dusting of snow, or B) It comes and I do NOT go into labor until it has cleared. Sounds good to me.

As much as I complain about the winters here in Michigan, fresh snow sure does make for pretty photographs. Tyler and Kimberly were such good sports during this shoot. The day we could get together was of course, one of the coldest days right after ringing in the new year. And I’m not exaggerating – it was 11° and with the windchill factored in, an absolutely frigid -4°. I give so much credit to Kimberly for standing out in those conditions in a thin and strappy little wedding dress. Of course, I also attribute her ability to handle the cold with a smile to her being Canadian! Even though the session was really short (”Coats and scarfs off, *click click*, “Put them back on, let’s go over here!”) we got some beautiful shots of these two gorgeous people. How delicious are those Fujifilm reds against the white and green?! Love.

When I was contacted by this family to take photos before Dad’s deployment (tomorrow), I couldn’t say no. Maternity leave or not. And serious props to Mom, who is going to be caring for those three adorable boys for a whole year on her own. You women are stronger than me. ♥

This was such a sweet and intimate event and it was such a joy to be there documenting the marriage of these two love birds. I’ve known Tom for quite some time now, as he is the older brother of my sister’s high school sweetheart husband. There was no denying how smitten he is with Lisa, his gorgeous bride. Here are a few personal favorites from the evening. Thanks for letting me be a part of your special day, guys. ♥

During high school, I had the choice to either take a foreign language or fine art courses. Take a guess which option I chose.. Well, I did take a basic French class in 7th grade and the obligatory introductory Spanish course the following year, but learning a second language just never clicked with me. Maybe it was more about being a busy kid rather than a matter of capacity. Regardless, when I met with the college counselor to discuss the courses needed to complete a Bachelor’s of Social Work, a foreign language was obviously on the list. Crap. There I was thinking I had managed to duck out of the whole learning another language thing.

So, I flipped through the course book trying to figure out what I was going to do. The counselor told me that with the field specifications I was hoping to work toward (Domestic Violence and Child Protective Services) a great option for foreign language would be American Sign Language. After that first ASL course, I was hooked. So much so that I put my BSW dreams on the back burner to pursue a degree in Sign Language Studies hoping to become an ASL Interpreter. Being involved in the Deaf community and learning the language was amazing. It also opened my eyes to what a GREAT mode of communication ASL can be for babies and young children. We signed with Lucas from the day he was born and by 5 months he was communicating with us using basic signs.

A wonderful friend of mine saw this adorable wooden teether on Etsy (Have you been to that site? Be careful, it’s entirely too easy to spend money there!) from Little Sapling Toys and bought it for the new baby. We absolutely adore it and the meaning behind it and I can’t wait to see my new little baby gnawing on this little “I love you” sign. Thank you again, Dana. ♥