Capturing the Moment

Maternity photos are one of those moments that can either turn out really well or end up quite awkward. Thankfully our maternity photos turned out well, and I purposefully avoided shots that had the potential to be awkward. ;) These were taken on July 20 when I was 35 weeks pregnant with you. Uncle Micah did quite a good job. I cannot wait to watch him hone and grow his skills over the next few years. Your daddy took a few, but since I required him to be in most of them, we left most of the photographing to Uncle Micah. Pictures were taken at Rancho Los Alamitos, which we will be taking you to visit at some point, and a random bench I spotted in a quiet neighborhood walkway. The day was perfect, even if I was sweating too much by the time we were done. Your daddy and uncle were quite exhausted by the end, but they were troopers in making sure we got all the pictures momma was asking for before we called it quits. It was all for you though baby girl, so it was totally worth it! :)

So walk with me as we capture the moment, have some laughs, and make some memories...

"Will she look like this!?" Mommy asked.
"Eh, I hope not. I prefer less stone and more human." Daddy said.

Daddy thinks this captures both of us quite well. Do you agree? :)

One of mommy's favorites. :)
I know, you can't see you, but Uncle Micah captured the joy I feel at finally getting to see you real soon!

A good shot of the three of us. ;)

Taking a short break from pictures to feel you express your joy at having your picture taken, at least that is how I like to think of it. ;)

Love.

<3 <3 <3

Can you tell we're excited yet? =)

Funny story. I got sap on my dress to take this picture and tripped over a couple tree roots.
Well worth the shot though! Great picture of the three of us.

Yes, mommy fails at forming hearts, but that doesn't mean I love you any less.

Daddy needed his tractor picture, haha. It is pretty sweet though!

Antique picture for an antique tractor, quite fitting.

I can't wait until I get a picture of you riding your first tractor. Definitely not this one.
But I am certain Grandpa Roy will hook you up! No worries there!

Just sitting on a hay bale in the middle of California, not strange at all.

"Mind the pitchfork! Don't cross an exhausted, hungry pregnant woman with this in her hand!"
This would be me if I was eight months pregnant with you eons ago during an age where I had to work long hours and did not have the conveniences of today, cranky and threatening to wave my pitchfork at anyone who crossed my path. ;)

Yeah, that's right. A red wagon. Just waiting for us. Legit.

Picturing you sitting in the little, red wagon as we head out for a trip into the fields to pick blackberries for a delicious, homemade blackberry pie. Kind of like Blueberries for Sal, but I would try not to confuse you with a bear. ;)

What song will daddy sing to you tonight as the day comes to a close?
Maybe he'll strum a little diddle and sing a little tune
about a beautiful princess sitting under the moon,

waiting for her brave prince to whisk her away
to a land where she will smile everyday,

and life is peaceful and grand
living as a family together in his land,

for anything can happen in a fairytale song
where laughter rings through the air all day long,

and their family will grow and thrive
as long as her prince stands firmly by her side.

And let us end the day with story time.
"In the great green room there was a telephone and a red balloon and a picture of the cow jumping over the moon..."

For Grandma Pam. She wanted to make sure you had been read Guess How Much I Love You.
And how much is that? "I love you right up to the moon and back."

This journey may be over, but soon a new one will begin.

And in this new journey, you will actually be in the pictures, for real. <3