A couple of weeks ago, I had the pleasure of photographing another Louwerse family! We first went out for dinner. My kids were a bit of a gong show. Sadly, their dining out experience is going to remain limited to MickeyDee’s.

Then we headed out to Crescent Beach. Blackie Spit offers some great photo locations. And it’s a place where this family visits regularly.

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She is stunning!

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I can’t believe how high he jumped! The concentrated expression on his face is priceless.

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I totally love this one!

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I think this pretty much sums up the boys and I love how the parents just laugh along.

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A fabulous hill.

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The lovely couple.

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These boys are so full of energy. They are also wonderful cousins to my boys.

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I’ve been wanting to get a shot like this for a long time. Happy dance!!!

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~ K

Sometimes you just have to put family first. And work. And house. And other commitments.

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* Mattias loves to lay his weary head on pillows. Often accompanied by “nigh-nigh”. He sure is letting himself be known lately. He has a loud strong voice which he uses to communicate “No” and “Da-dee” all day long.

* My latest etsy purchase. 6 beautiful handmade, hand painted frames. And the only 8×8 frames I’ve been able to find. Not that I looked very hard. The most difficult part was deciding where to hang them.

* Steak bites. So good.

* Art’s hand. It’s healing quite nicely. And I’m amazed at how much mobility he has. He is still wearing a splint but can take it off for periods of time. It is still quite swollen. One of the pins has punctured through the skin so we’re watching for signs of infection.

* If you were to drop by unexpectedly, this is what you might find in my living room. All my bedding. And Noah’s. And maybe some of the linen closet. Noah’s newest entertainment is building forts. I haven’t shared with him all the possibilities. For now he is content to stack pillows and attempt to cover it with a blanket and crawl in. Then he has a meltdown. Every single time.

* For some odd reason, there were not many photos on my camera this week.

* It was a very big week for Mom & Dad L. They officially have become home owners in BC. We couldn’t be more happy, except for the small detail of selling their house in Edmonton. When that happens, they will officially move to BC. In the meantime, they have a very happy son who gets to live in a beautiful brand new house by himself.

* Mattias. Your little face fills me with joy.

* Oma showing Noah how his bunk beds are perfect for forts.

When they contacted me, they requested photos at the location of their engagement. Jesse had organized the opening of the gate of the private property but the home owners were not home.

Most of these were taken just outside of the gate. At the entrance of the property. I thought that the location was stunning!

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I love how into eachother they are.

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She’s wearing heels and she’s working it.

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They simply turned away. I love this one!

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Jesse’s pose idea. I believe I shouted: keep doing that!

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There was this pitchfork. And a broom. They knew what to do. In the orginal painting it’s the farmer and his daughter, but I like our intrepretation.

Most people (me included) can not pull a straight face when asked. But Julina has some mad skills. Laughing and smiling and then instantly serious. Nothing could crack her either.

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Some wooing going on here.

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Oh I can not WAIT to see them on their wedding day!

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ANTM anyone?

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A little wider. What a fabulous location!

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A change of location. Equally beautiful!

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I have many favorites, but I love this one so much!

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~ K

The Holiday Mini Session is an all-inclusive, flat-rate, limited edition session offered as an alternative to the longer, more personalized full session.

They are perfect for those that need just that one photo for the holiday card or if you need to document a moment in time: maternity, 1 year old or any birthday really, or the end to a wonderful summer.

This mini session would make a fabulous gift for someone special as well.

Date: Saturday, September 25th, 2010
Location: Aldergrove Lake Provincial Park
Times available: 8:00 am | 8:45 am | 9: 30 am | 10:15 am | 11:00 am | 11:45 am | 12:30 pm | 1:15 pm | 2:00 pm

Mini Session: $300

» A session lasts 30 min.
» Up to 5 members of the same immediate family. Additional family members are $25/person.
» 8-10 digital negatives on CD.
» Printing release for your digital negatives. (Files are printable up to 8×10).
» 1 fully retouched 11×14 wall print of the artist’s favorite image. Mounted for durability.
» Options to purchase additional prints, Christmas cards and great gifts for grandparents. I have some really great ideas and samples to share with you.

To book a session, contact me through email: karin(dot)louwerse(at)gmail(dot)com or through my contact form on the website. Please let me know your top 2 preferred time slots.

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* Noah loves to jump of the couch. Ten times or one hundred times per day. He really thinks his moves are spectacular. We cheer him on but really there’s not much air. Pretty much a straight drop to the ground.

* Blanket. This blanket was knit for Noah by an exceptional lady that works at my previous place of employment. It is his comfort when he is hurt. Or disciplined. Or grumpy. Or tired. It is the single item that can calm him when he is upset. At least up until this week. He announced to us earlier this week that “big boys don’t need blankets”. It’s the beginning of letting the blanket go. Makes me nostalgic.

* Mattias discovering how his body works.

* Mattias likes sitting on the potty. More than Noah.

* Mattias is *almost* walking. He took his first steps this week.

* My house is filled with bouquets of flowers. Wonderful. Not for me but I get to enjoy them.

* A grasshopper landed on Noah outside. He spent at least an hour befriending it. Playing with it. Trying to get it to ride his cars. Ever so gentle. And when he almost killed it by driving his truck over it, we placed the grasshopper back in the tree so that he could “go home to his mommy and daddy”. Noah talked about it for 3 days afterward.

* Mom & Dad L. celebrated their 35th anniversary here. I made a black forest cake. Mom’s recipe. Happens to be Art’s favorite too. It definitely looked ‘home-made’.

* Leg chub. I could kiss that chub all day.

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* Car line-ups. A boy thing. A 3-year old thing. Or 2-year old thing (because that’s when it began). The line-ups are getting more and more elaborate. Sometimes even arranged by color. Often all facing the same direction… except the grader because he always thinks the back is the front and the front is the back.

* Lady bugs are welcome in my garden any day. I wish I had a macro lens. I think I would enjoy macro photography.

* Okay, I need to start printing more photos of my kids. I love this one of Mattias. Art spotted this location through the foliage in our yard. There Mattias stood laughing at Noah. Laughing at Art who quickly joined in. And I got to capture it. They say that people who spend their time taking photos don’t enjoy the moment. I disagree. I am always watching for the moment. I seek the moment. I look for opportunities to create the moment. And I DEFINITELY enjoy the moment! Speaking of printing family photos. Willette has inspired me to print and organize my photos. I’m not sure exactly what approach I’m going to take but I need to do something…

* Noah dancing like no one is watching.

* The standard view when I look down. Mattias. Trying to crawl up me. He’s starting to talk now. His first word was “nana” for banana, a couple of months ago. Noah, Daddy, Mum-mum or Mamma, ball and most recently: cracker.

* Broccoli Salad. The typical one with bacon & grapes.

* Crescent Beach for a photo session on Saturday. More on this some other time.

* Potty training. Perhaps, I should leave it at that but I won’t. It’s been a turbulent week. One of many tears. Mostly mine. Please understand, I don’t cry easily, at least not at my own pity party. I knew Noah would be resistant. I also knew that Noah was capable because we’ve tried before. We had some really terrible days: Tuesday. And we had some really good days: Friday. I was elated at his progress and I would even say that it was bonding time. A team effort. Then the weekend came and it didn’t go well. I think it’s going to be a long haul before he is fully trained. And I’m not even counting nights.

* It was hot hot hot this week. Noah enjoyed running through the sprinkler to cool off. I was floored and giddy. You see, Noah hates water. Bathing included. To see him enjoy the sprinkler was precious to me.

Okay a wee bit of warning. If you are squeamish, don’t look at the top right photo. It’s in black & white to soften the blow.

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* I always thought that by default any child of mine would love technology. As if technology-loving is a predisposition. Inherited. And definitely a dominant gene. Not Noah. I know he’s only 3, so yes, there’s plenty of opportunity for the “gene” to develop. It just surprises me: he has no interest in the computer.

* My lone cucumber is ready to be picked. I really hope that more appear.

* Art’s hand. 40 stitches. 8 pins in the ring finger. 2 pins in the middle finger. We went to the doctor on Wednesday to have the dressing changed and so that I could take photos. I know: I have issues. Wanting to document even these things. Then again, it’s an injury that will affect Art for the rest of his life. The knuckle is fused which means that it is stuck in place. We asked about a prosthetic knuckle and the doctor was against it. Too many issues. Art is too young. It would fall apart very quickly with day-to-day use.

* Yummy bbq chicken satay with peanut sauce and nasi goreng. We enjoyed it. The kids didn’t. It wasn’t a big surprise to me since they both don’t really like rice. But we keep on trying. I can see how eventually you just want to cook what the kids will eat. Putting effort into a meal and then fighting all dinner to get them to eat it is not an enjoyable dinner experience.

* Mattias is close-ish to walking. It would be so much easier than his current method of crawling over rough and uncomfortable surfaces. Bum in the air. Feet and hands on the ground. Careful not to let his delicate knees touch the rough concrete.

* Cheese & Potato slow cooker soup. It was really yummy. I forgot to write down how I made it. But the main ingredients were: potatoes (6), water, veggie bouillon, cheddar cheese. Then about 30 minutes before serving: butter & flour & milk to thicken (I think I added this. but it could have been just milk because it was pretty thick to begin with). I added crumbled bacon just before serving. It just adds so much flavor. And fresh parsley.

* Mattias is very interested in playing with the computer. He is SUCH a stinker. Up to no good.

* Yet another bountiful harvest of strawberries.

Usually, I visit 30 minutes. 1 hour tops. Wishing to stay much longer but knowing that the family needs their sleep, their space and that everyone else is clamoring to visit as well. But when you are the photographer, it’s expected and welcomed. And you get to witness the love and joy that has entered this new family. And you try to capture that love so that when the baby gets older, he can also feel that joy through photographs.

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This whole family is completely smitten with the arrival of this little bundle.

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I’m willing to bet that these two are going to cause some trouble together.

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We pretty much hung out in the master bedroom the whole session. Great light and I always love the intimacy of a bedroom. Pretty perfect for family photos.

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That baby laugh just melts me.

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Seriously, what is more adorable than that?

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To the world you may be just one person, but to that one person you may be the whole world.

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Those little feet and that back fuzz. Two very good reasons I love newborns.

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I can’t resist the outdoor basket in grass photo. We discussed that the grass was brown. But it’s mid-summer and this is how the grass looked mid-summer 7 days after Caleb was born. I like that.

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Last but not least… those very kissable cheeks.

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Thanks for looking!

~ K

It has been quite a week. Mattias started the week sick and puking. Noah was sick and puking by Thursday night and all day Friday. For once, I was spared. God knew that I would need my strength for something different.

Art sustained a work injury on Wednesday. He called me on his way to the ER at 9:00 AM. His hand was hurt in a forklift accident. He was calm and coherent so I didn’t think that much of it. He couldn’t tell me anything. Was he in pain? Yes. Did it look bad? Yes. Honestly though, I thought he’d be home in a couple hours. Or at least I could pick him up on my way to Mattias’ doctors appointment.

A couple of hours later he called again. He was on morphine for the pain. He had been sent for X-rays. They were bringing in the hand specialist and he would be booked for surgery at 8 PM. Yikes. Surgery. Two broken fingers and a crushed knuckle. We quickly headed out to see him.

Forty-five minutes for the surgery, they said. And of course, the surgery was delayed. I’m glad we decided that I should go home for a good night’s rest because surgery took 3 1/2 hours and then not back in his room until 2:00 AM.

The prognosis is that the knuckle is shattered. Like cornflakes, the doctor said. He spent 1 hour trying to put back together the knuckle. The other breaks will heal. But he will likely not have use of that one finger.

It could have been worse. Much worse. For that we are so thankful. Praise the Lord for He is good. We continue to rely on Him for all our needs.

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* Art with his club. It’s a pretty soft club. Tensor bandages and gauze. There appears to be some kind of splint to hold his fingers and hand in position.

* Salad for dinner. This one is from the cover of the summer issue of Kraft Canada. I hoard these magazines for the eye candy. Just looking at them makes me drool. Made my own dressing.

* Mattias. Such an easy laugh. He brings us so much joy. He is especially goofy at the dinner table.

* Art modeling the dish brush (pre-injury). De Laval farm dish brush. They last forever. We are doing a fundraiser for the Aldergrove Church kitchen to sell them. You can own one for $13. We are also selling commercial glassware. This stuff is really nice, super durable and really affordable! We got GREAT prices on it! Order some for yourself or as a gift. It will last!

* Parsley. It’s taking over my garden. Not really but it is really lush and thick. Like I wish my grass looked.

* Art’s meds. Every 4 hours.

* Raspberry shortcake and blueberry shortcake. From Krause Berry Farms. I need to know how to make this. Yes, they have a mix for the shortcake but I’d like to make it from scratch. The raspberry one is particularly yummy.

* Dill flowers are so pretty. But letting them bloom kills the dill. Oops.

* Another salad inspiration from Kraft Canada. Except, I just used lemon + olive oil for the dressing. And fresh herbs: parsley + cilantro.

Up next, full post of the newborn session with Caleb.

~ K

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~ K