After leafing (pun intended) Asheville, Jamie and I took two days to explore the Blue Ridge Parkway.  The leaves were GORGEOUS and soo very colorful and it was great to just drive with no destination in mind…

My sister-in-law Nicole is a big time hooper, hula-hooping that is.  She has multiple hula-hoops and when we were visiting with her in Asheville she added an LED hoop to her collection.  Before we left, she did all of her tricks for us and Jamie and I played around with some long exposures.  We did get some really cool shots but this one is by far my favorite, talk about really loving what you do…

While waiting for our little one to make his grand entrance I have been trying to update some of my older image galleries; or at least doing what my back will allow me to sit for…

In the fall we took a relaxing road trip through North Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina.  We had a wonderful time and were able to stop in Asheville to visit with Jamie’s sister Nicole and her boyfriend, Nathan.  While we were there they took us rock climbing- don’t worry I didn’t stumble up any rock faces 6 1/2 months pregnant but I did go along for the ride and waited at the bottom camera in hand.  Jamie LOVED it and well so did I- what’s not to love about fresh air, colorful leaves, and time with great people?

love this shot

my hubby, Jamie

Nathan setting the line- really, this was amazing to watch him do

my sister-in-law, Nicole

both Jamie and Nathan climbing

Jamie and Nathan again

view from the top- amazing!

looking down- me, camera in hand and bundled up

one of my favorites of Nicole

MySpace style picture at the top

view from the "bottom"

Nicole and Nathan's friend, Tueday

a long way up

It was COLD the morning that we took these images, I had a jacket on and would have had gloves on too if I owned a pair that you can remove the finger tips.  But not these two, they braved the cold with short sleeves, smiles on their faces and only a few breaks to warm up with a blanket from the back of my car.  Seriously, Kim and Gaby you all are such troopers!!

I love the images that we were able to capture that morning.  Kim’s laugh never stops and you can tell that Gaby really does adore her- making it so much fun to be around them.  Can’t wait until March to celebrate your big day with the two of you!!

Just for posterity’s sake I though that I would post a few of our most recent “family” pictures; me, Jamie and the bump.  Man do I love my boys…

2009 was filled with lots of good memories…

January: We went to the Winter Park Farmers Market, took some “surprise” pictures for my Mom and enjoyed the cooler weather.

February: Jamie and I traveled traveled to St. Augustine to celebrate my Mom’s 50th birthday in style with the help of my brother and sister-in-law.

March: We went canoeing, spent lots of time with Piper outside and in the water and traveled to Chicago to vist our dear friends Aimee and Marc where we ate good food, visited the “bean”, and relished in the joy of good company.

April: We colored eggs, always had fresh flowers in the house, enjoyed time in the hammock, hosted our annual Shrimp Boil and celebrated Pipers 2nd Birthday…

May: We traveled to California, celebrated Kenny’s graduation, and found out that we were expecting!!

June: I finished my last year of teaching, said goodbye to dear school friends and we shared the exciting news with our families.

July: We (I) rested a lot (first tri-mester sleepy style), baked a whole bunch and spent a ton of time pool side!

August: We swam some more, went through old photo albums, organized and cleaned out our once spare rooms in preparation for the baby.

September: We announced officially that we were having a boy, started setting things up in his room, and continued to document the progress of my ever growing bump.

October: We celebrated Jamie’s birthday, said goodbye to my feet, hosted a pumpkin carving party and took a two week road trip that included stops in Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Asheville, the Blue Ridge Parkway, Raleigh and Charleston.

November: We counted our blessings and all that we are thankful for with a large group of Jamie’s family, continued with our baby preparations and I baked some more.

December: We visited friends in Tallahassee, celebrated a very special little boys first birthday, decorated the house for the holidays, attended a shower thrown in our little guys honor and celebrated the holidays with family and friends.

I love to look back and see just how blessed we have been throughout the past year but I am also really looking forward to all that 2010 is going to bring.  Hope your 2009 was as wonderful as ours…

I have a new nephew, his name is Chase.  I think I love him, even if he does chew on my fingers and toes from time to time…

makes me melt

These lovely ladies are family- yup I can claim these three gorgeous things!  During Thanksgiving, Jamie and I got to visit a portion of his Dad’s extended family.  I say “portion” because there were 28 people there for the Holiday but we were still missing two of the Uncles and their families (they were missed).  I really do love getting together with this bunch because when we do there is always laughter shared and old stories to be told- not to mention fabulous food!  Before the weekend was out, Jamie and I were able to get a handful of pictures for his Aunt to use on her Christmas Card this year and they were so precious that I had to share…

the three lovely ladies

just the girls- I am sure they will drive the boys nuts in a few years :-)

There are a lot of 2’s in this household- two adorable twins, a very fun 2 year old brother and 2 loving parents.  Edward and Ginny make handling this bunch look easy.  Although I am not sure how they manage with 3 under the age of two, I think it has a little to do with how much love there is in their home.  I had so much fun catching up with you guys, it is always a pleasure to share the day with you and your family.

little M just hanging out

this is how little M always is, he is such a good natured little boy

the whole family- quite a challenge to get them all in one shot and mostly looking

big brother M

the only girl of the group- little A

little M again- simply precious

little M and little A- seriously, twins are twice as cute!

A few weeks ago I got the pleasure of photographing this wonderful group of 25!  I have known one of the daughters since I was a Freshman in high school; she was my teacher and then SGA sponsor believe it or not, so we go way back.  It is always great seeing her and the rest of her family is just as fun.  It was a challenge to say the least, with the afternoon sun and because there are so many of them but they were great!  I loved, loved, loved working with them.

one of the whole group

how many cousins can we fit into one hammock?

one group of siblings... I was in high school when the youngest of this group was born, not to date myself or anything

four absolute cuties

my former teacher and her beautiful family- she really was one of my favorite teachers- promise