My sweet Cade mistro!

We were playing outside and I decided to snap some pictures. He is the most photographed kid in the world. I can't help it though...i am learning alot about lighting and he is a great person to practice with (he doesn't have a job and he's not in school)  :0)  Anyway, ENJOY!

Inspiration...

This is a picture I am inspired by for the "For the Love Workshop." If you don't know what I am talking about then you should check it out. (www.fortheloveworkshop.com) It is the first workshop that I have ever seen that encompasses 2 of my favorite passions (Jesus Christ and Photography) They have asked us to submit an inspiring photo and this is the story behind it...

I have recently volunteered with a ministry called Mission Messiah. They are based here in Odessa, TX. They help broken women restore their lives through the love and grace of Jesus Christ. Many of the women they help are overcoming addictions to drugs and alcohol; most of them are either court ordered or come on their own accord.

Pictured here is Brittany (the momma) and Bailee (the baby). Brittany is in her early 20's and has overcome her addiction to drugs and alcohol. She has been learning how to become the Godly mom Bailee needs. She is now in the final 3 months of the Mission Messiah program and has bloomed in to a beautiful woman/mother of God. Praise the Lord for His unfailing love! Lord, help us be the image of Christ to those you put in our path!!

Carl & Ashley

I got a chance to meet these wonderful people about a year ago through mutual friends the Pinkerton's. They are getting married in December and I was able to tag along for their engagement photo shoot...

Thank you Carl and Ashley for letting me be a part of your photo shoot!

Oldies but goodies...

I have been working on getting my blog to reflect more of what I do as a photographer today, and as I was picking out some pictures to edit I came across a few that I took about a 1 1/2 years ago. This is a snap-shot of the photo shoot I did with the Talbot Family...AMAZING people!!

This is Lydia (the current baby)

This is Micah (the 2nd oldest)

Miss Sarah (3rd in line)

and Miller with his two boys (Micah and Caleb - the oldest)

They have 4 amazing kids! You guys are awesome!! We love you and miss you lots!

Get to the goodstuff!

This last Monday I had a really bad headache. I was cleaning the house and Brant noticed that I was feeling really bad. He came over to me and started rubbing some pressure points on my head, neck and shoulders. I was saying, "Ouch...OOO....Ouch.." and Cade noticed something was wrong with mommy. He walked over to where I was sitting on the floor and put his little hand on my shoulder. He started squeezing his little thumb just like daddy was doing to my shoulders...He was giving me a message! It was too precious! A few seconds later he decided to lean over and kiss me then went back to rubbing my shoulders until daddy stopped.
God has truly given Cade a heart that is constantly caring for others...no one told him to rub my shoulder....no one told him to give me a kiss, but out of the goodness of his heart he blessed me! (By the way...he was cranky until that point...meaning...Even if your day is not what you want it to be it is possible to bless others out of the goodness of your heart!) We are made in God's image and it is possible to dig deep and touch the goodness God has given us and then pass it on to someone, put in our path by God, that needs it! Bless someone out of the goodness of your heart today!

Its been a while...

I haven't written in a while...I have been incredibly busy chasing a toddler around the house and picking up everything that doesn't belong on the floor :0) I have also tried to be an encouragement to my sweet husband who is trying so hard to constantly provide for us through real estate. It has been an incredible roller coaster ride! (To say the least) We have had a few things fall through, but at the same time other things have come up....God is truly doing something we can't understand, but we know He is doing something (He is in control) and for that we give Him the glory! It has been hard to be patient but I know in the end it will be worth it! We have been fighting a spiritual battle non-stop. Through all of this I am wishing that I could just punch satan in the FAT HEAD! It seems like he has a way of showing up right when we are praising God for his blessings, only to make us wonder if we were even listening to God in the first place. Lord, help us to know that we are walking with you...I know we are your children and you are looking after us! Help us believe and not doubt for your word says "he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind." We want to be like Cade...we know you are there to take care of us and we aren't afraid of tomorrow or anything else because you are always there to pick us up when we have fallen. May we praise you when we feel like we aren't getting any where and when we are fully and abundantly blessed! We love you Lord and give you the glory for the blessing of security in a time of struggle!

Share with one another!

I love taking Cade shopping with me! I don't know if you believe me but I will say it again in a different way...Thus far I LOVE taking my 1 yr old son shopping with me! Here is why:

Cade and I went to Wal-Mart yesterday to pick up a few things before Nana came into town. We had such a good time...he is such a patient baby and he was just looking at things and talking to me (in his little baby talk lingo) and he helped me keep track of the list. Anyway, we had gathered everything on our list and it was time to check out and go. On the way out there was a sweet lady who was saying bye to people as they were leaving and she was waving at me. She then looked at Cade and said "bye, little guy" and he looked at her and smiled the BIGGEST TOOTHY GRIN I have ever seen!! It was absolutely the funniest thing he has ever done. The lady cracked up laughing. Cade was very sincere in his smile, he was not just smiling to be silly, he genuinely shared his joy with someone else!

I cannot tell you how many times I see someone in a store who looks like they are having a bad day, they are angry or they are just in a hum-drum situation. It's sad! - Cade has an amazing nack for bringing out the smile that is buried within those kind of people. It is so awesome...He has a love for people that speaks to me everytime we go some where. I love to see the joy he brings to others when he smiles at them or reaches for their hand. It is too precious! I pray that he never looses that joy for people and I pray for each of you to share the joy the Lord has placed in your heart. Share a smile with someone, share your love and care for others! People, mean and nice alike, are God's creation and all need your love...even if all you have is a hearing ear or a sweet smile!! Enjoy your day!!