Imperfect Perfection

I am trying to make sure I do all the special things I did for Brooklyn, for this new baby.  This not only includes weekly belly photos (which to be honest, I loathe that I have to get "pretty" every week on the same day, take the photo and then edit, but I did it with B:) and also a professional maternity shoot.

Last time, I hired a photographer for $90 (for a 30 minute shoot) and honestly wasn't very happy with the photos.  I did get a few good ones, so it was worth it.  Well, this time I was determined to save my money and use my Nikon D3200. 

We stayed at my mom's this past weekend just for fun and decided to head out the next morning to get some shots.  At first, I was planning on going to Maclay State Gardens, but then changed my mind to Pebble Hill, where we got married, and I am so glad I did!  The scenery there is endless.

My mom came along with us (thank God), so we didn't have to use the tripod.  I am so pleased with how they turned out.  I did do some editing on my free editing software, nothing too drastic, just some cropping and fixing the exposure.  Enjoy!











Side note, I really need to start taking photos "professionally".  I really enjoy it and think I can capture some great memories (for much cheaper than most photographers).  Let me know if you would like me to work with you.

Wow, this Christmas was crazy.  We had planned on being here in Tally to celebrating the day between both families.  Unfortunately, my Grandpa (Papa) passed away at 88 years old.

We had actually been trying to plan a time to travel back to Missouri to visit him, but he couldn't wait any longer.  So, we packed our bags and got on the road to tackle the 14+ hour drive with Brooklyn (9.5 months old) in tow.

The only good thing that comes from a death in the family, is that it brings everyone together.  It was so nice to see all 5 of my mother's siblings and of course all of my cousins. 

After about a week in Missouri, we planned on heading back, until we saw the weather that day.  The entire southeast US was under SERVER tornado threats.  So, we stayed one extra day.  That day was pretty awesome.  AJ, Linz, Brooklyn and I went to Andy's frozen custard and then to Bass Pro Shops.  For those of you who don't know, Springfield, MO. is home to the original Bass Pro and it is HUGE.  It is like a theme park and they are adding on to it! We walked around, took photos and ate at the seafood restaurant Hemingway's (inside Bass Pro).  Later that night, we had dinner with some of my stepsister's family and my sisters.

We drove back (straight through) on Christmas Eve.  We had pretty good weather until about 5 hours out of Tally.  Of course I was driving in blinding rain, but after the stressful 5 hours, we made it home safely! 

Christmas day was busy as well, we spent the morning with AJ's family and the afternoon with mine.  Everyone spoiled lil' B so much! 

 
Prior to actual Christmas, we took Brooklyn (in the RV) to see Santa for the first time.  Afterwards, we got lunch and ate in the RV before heading home for nap time.