We’re all tied up this Holiday Season!

After a whirlwind of a busy season at the studio, it’s about time we let you all in on our little secret.  Looking back over the last few months, I wonder at how we survived.  Now that we’ve finally made it to the excitement of sharing our news, it all seems worth it.

For the past 3 years, every time I’ve had an announcement, I’ve had to preface it with “no, I’m not pregnant.”  Now I can finally give an emphatic “YES”, Shaun and I are expecting baby #2!

This may not come as a big surprise to many of you, given the fact that I’m 5 feet tall and somehow begin looking 3 months pregnant before I even see a plus sign on the stick.   I’ve gotten “the look” more often than I can count in the past 14 weeks.  My sweet clients, especially those who have known me for years, would nervously eye my tummy, too polite to ask me if I’m pregnant (just in-case I had put on a few pounds, mainly in my uterus).  Also, because the last 5 pounds I put on before becoming pregnant made zippering my jeans almost impossible, I started wearing maternity pants almost immediately, their unmistakable bands peeking out from under my shirts as I ran around the studio.  No sooner than I saw a plus sign was I was unloading boxes of elastic waistband pants from my garage in a deep sigh of relief.  “Praise the Lord of elastic-bands!”  At least I have a good excuse, right?  Honestly, I think elastic waistbands should be socially acceptable for everyone… especially around the Holidays… and I write this as I polish off an entire bag of Cape Cod Salt and Vinegar potato chips…   but I digress…

Other than our 4 sets of parents and a few girlfriends who knew as soon as, in their words “Heidi didn’t have her wine”, our two employees were the first to know.  We let them in around week 6, after a series of afternoons when I mysteriously disappeared from the studio, too sick to do anything but close my eyes and hope my lunch didn’t come back up.  I felt so bad taking off without an explanation that after our first doctors appointment, we decided to fill them in.  We figured if anything bad should happen, we would have to tell them at that point anyways.  Plus, I feared they thought I was becoming really lazy and high-maintenance every time I made them lug the heavy chairs up and down the studio stairs for me.  I wouldn’t have made it through the last 3 months without them and Meredith even photographed the three of us for this post.  I kind of thought they were going to leave us tied up after dealing with me for the past few months!

Thankfully, my nausea didn’t last too long and I was back to my long days chasing around toddlers, scaling furniture, and rolling around on my tummy to get the perfect shot!  (Just don’t tell my doctor.)  For a while, I forgot I was even pregnant… that is until I returned home and found myself drooling on the couch by 7pm.  So no more late night catching-up on the blog for me, but other than that, I can’t complain.  I was extremely sick for my entire first pregnancy, but this time around, I’m feeling much better.  They say that each pregnancy gets easier, but I’m thinking that after your first, laying around sick is just not an option.  I remember being pregnant with Giuliana, returing home after teaching all day, throwing on Oprah and falling asleep on the couch until Shaun came home.  We ordered pizza almost every night.  I was too sick to cook, too sick to pick up the house, too sick to blow dry my hair.  I was creating human life after all.  Of course, that could never happen now.  We’re juggling running a business with having a normal family life and there isn’t a whole heck of a lot of time to put my feet up.  I look at women who are business owners and have 3 or 4 kids and wonder how they do it want to know what drug they are taking.  “Can I have some and is it safe for pregnancy?!”  After surviving the first trimester, I realize the key to making it through pregnancy while juggling it all: “NEVER SIT DOWN!”   Trust me, the second you sit down, you’re a goner.  So I’m up at 5am, doing my yoga, checking my email, starting my day.  When I finally sit down around 8pm, I better have everything done, because I’ve got approximately 5 minutes until unconsciousness.

Giuliana is privy to our impending arrival and so far, she’s thrilled.  She’s even let a few people in on our secret.  I’m guessing this will be old news for her entire preschool class.  She’s already drawing pictures for her baby, which she lovingly refers to as “my baby in your belly.”  Of course she is 3, so I see this lasting for about 1 week after the baby is born until she starts asking us when the baby goes back to where it came from.  But for now, I’m enjoying all of the adorable, loving, big-sister cuteness.

So now you know why things have been extra crazy around the studio.  As we wrap up our busy season, I’m happy to have the first trimester behind me and look forward to the quiet that comes during the winter months.  We’re keeping our normal schedule through April if you’re thinking of a session with us, but will sadly have to turn away newborns due in May and June as I’ll be on a limited shooting schedule and then a brief maternity leave.  I anticipate May to be a little baby boom after Hurricane Irene left us all without power around here!  We have lots of recommendations we can make for some very talented photographers throughout New England who we know will take good care of you and we’ll be offering a special promotion to all families who are due during those months that we can not accept time sensitive sessions such as newborns, so certainly still give the studio a call if you are due in May or June.

Best wishes for a wonderful Thanksgiving and start to the Holiday season.  I know I have a lot to be thankful for this year!  xoxo

I’ve loved watching little miss I grow over the past 2 years.  I first photographed her when she was just 3 months old.  I still remember how those gorgeous eyes stole the show.  She was as smiley and easy-going then as she is today.  Mom and I chatted before the session and she sent me some swatches of the dress she was making for I.  I was so excited when I saw the colors and by mom’s request for a “woodsy” set.  It was too cold to head outdoors into the real woods, so we brought the outdoors into the studio instead and it worked out perfectly.  Shaun thought I was a little crazy hiking into the woods to cut down branches over the weekend, and wasn’t exactly thrilled when I made him lug them all to the studio, but I think once he sees the finished pictures, he’ll “get” my vision!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

Are these kids adorable, or what?!  My brother and his family visited the studio last week to welcome the newest addition to their family, baby S.  4 year old big brother and 3 year old big sister joined us to play at the end of our session.  They were so good listening to Auntie Heidi that I had to send them off with some treats!  I love all of the portraits of the three of them together.  Mom and dad took all of our pre-session advice and baby S slept like a dream through the whole session.  I could have cuddled him all day!  Enjoy your sneak peek!

Giuliana,

This post is for you because next week you start preschool and I still haven’t filled out your baby book.  This post is for you because I want you to be able to look upon it someday, when our memories of this time begin to fade around the edges, and know that I adore every little thing about you at this moment.  And always will.

This post is also for me because I want to be able to pull it up on your fourth birthday, and your first day of high school, and when you leave for senior prom, and remember all of the little things I have taken joy in along the way.  This post is for me because I have broken countless resolutions to bring my camera home from the studio more so that I can document our every day life.  Thinking I could somehow capture the little details that I love beyond words.  I’m beginning to realize that even if I did bring my camera home more, I could never do it all justice.  And that perhaps I don’t even want to.  I’m beginning to realize that all of the time spent trying to capture it perfectly (and I’m known to be a bit of a perfectionist) would just take away from living it.  So rather than attempting to capture it ALL in photography, let me dust off my writing skills and record a little bit about the beautiful person you are growing to be and already are.

I recently had a client with a toddler remark that she wishes she could bottle up this age.  The wonder.  The personality.  The imagination.  The giggles.  She read my heart.  I suppose this post is my bottle.

How gorgeous are these two sisters?!  3 and 1 can be a pretty tough combo to photograph but I must say, this session flew by.  We breezed through each set so that we could squeeze in family portraits, sibling portraits AND a cake smash – all in one session!  The girls were so good throughout!  They loved playing with all of the different props and my antique typewriter was definitely a favorite.  Here is just a peek mom and dad… your full gallery will be going up today!

I had a blast with 3 year old R last week. She reminded me SO MUCH of my daughter who will be turning 3 in July. I know they would be fast friends. R was smart, full of personality, and loved all things girlie…. oh, and as you can see, totally gorgeous! Turned out to be a really easy session for me because with someone at home just like her, I knew just how to get her to have fun in front of the camera! Enjoy your preview!