Favorite Photo Friday - "A Little Preview"

Is anyone else in complete disbelief that we are about to kick off the holidays next week with Thanksgiving?
I think so many of us were sort of taken back because it is not the last week of November this year.....and we all know that as soon as Thanksgiving arrives, Christmas is close behind.

I will admit, a little bit of panic mode has crept in as I have realized the growing list of things I need to do to prepare. In addition to Thanksgiving, we also have two special birthdays to celebrate next week. Sarah will turn 6 on Tuesday and Reags will turn 3 on Friday. After some thought and input from the girls, we decided that we are going to celebrate by taking both of the girls into NYC for their very first visit to the American Girl store. To say that the girls are excited is an understatement. Two catalogs arrived last week and they are already worn out. Even though they both have a certain doll in mind, I have a feeling when they walk into that store and see the rather large selection, they may not stand so firm on their decisions and that is okay. It is their special day and we will have plenty of time. We are doing the hair appointments for the dolls while there and we are doing the special birthday lunch. To be honest, my Mom and I are almost as excited as the girls. We can't wait to see the look on their faces when they walk in the door.
You can guarantee there will be a lot of photos take that day:)

I have been super busy each weekend taking photos for clients that are trying to get them in before Christmas for holiday cards and we had some fabulous weather last Sunday....almost 70 Degrees.....so I fit in a photoshoot with my kids for our own card this year.

The outfits have been sitting in my closet for what feels like months, but the weather just has been so terrible or I did not have all three of the kids to be able to complete this task. Well Sunday all the stars aligned, perfect weather and three children that totally cooperated and worked it for their Momma.
(PS. A bit of bribery goes a long way...wink wink)

Usually, I will not unveil the Christmas card photos until the cards hit the mail, but I thought I would give everyone a preview of some of the behind the scenes photos I shot in between the ones that I will be using for our card this year.



No faces just yet, but you can get a sense of the vibe we went for and the way I stylized the shoot.
We tried out a new location and it was SUPERB. The light was out of this world and just added to the overall feel of the photos.


The children's old world traveled vintage suitcase was a last minute find at a local antique dealer and I believe it helped set the mood for this series. Reagan loved it and if that suitcase was in her hands, then there was a smile pasted on her face. Unfortunately, you are going to need to wait just a few weeks to see this series in it's entirety......

But do you want to see just one??

See, I was not lying about that big smile on her face!!!

Hope you all have a great Friday and a wonderful weekend.
I am off to go visit some teachers today....parent teacher conferences.
Oh and just one more quick reminder, if you have not checked out our first "Fill Their Stockings" giveaway bundle, you might want to do so before midnight tonight. You can still enter to win and at the same time give back and help the orphans in China by supporting a foundation that is near and dear to my heart, Half the Sky.
For all of you photography fans, this is a bundle you will not want to miss.
Click HERE to view and consider making a small donation.
Thank you.

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