It's all downhill after you turn five!

I don't do a lot of personal posts...mainly because my life seems rather boring - working two jobs and being a mother means the most excitement I usually get is when one of the kids comes down with an unknown virus! Exciting, not so much...therefore personal posts are far and few between...that being said I rarely have time to squeeze in regular posts....sigh....when did life become so busy!?!

Now, I really don't have time to be doing a personal post (it is report card season for this full time teacher) but I just had to share the excitement (yes REAL excitement) that surrounded Lara's (my daughter) 5th birthday.

This kid is no ordinary kid...and after much debating she decided that the theme for her birthday should be BT, as in Breakfast Television. I laughed it off, made a Facebook status update about it and suddenly a BT birthday party was in the works!

A friend from high school recently took a gig at CityTV and saw my post...she liked the idea...shared it at work and offered us the chance to go and be in the BT audience....with a possible chance to have Lara interviewed. When we asked Lara if she wanted to do this she nearly flipped out! So, with a plan in place we celebrated with a BT themed party...and sent the pics in to my friend.

The morning of her birthday we had no idea what we were in for. After a LONG night with little sleep we were all getting ready (with BT on in the background) when suddenly we heard Kevin Frankish announce that coming up shortly they would be meeting a little girl who had a BT themed party. That was the moment when my hubby and I looked at each other and got very excited realizing that our visit was going to be better than we could have imagined. Lara and Owen on the other hand were just excited to see the picture of Lara that they flashed on the screen!

When we got to the studio everyone was amazing and welcoming. They treated Lara (and Owen) with so much kindness. It wasn't long before Lara was invited up to sit with Kevin and Dina...hubby and I were in shock that this was happening! She chatted along side these Toronto icons and grinned the entire time...as if she wasn't happy enough just to be there they surprised her with a bike to top it off. Hubby and I were now gobsmacked! Did this just happen? Then, while on air she got to test it out. I couldn't believe what I was seeing...apparently I wasn't the only one because I promptly got a text that read "holy S*#@!, your kid is riding a bike around the BT studio"! What a whirlwind and such a blast...Lara just beamed! It was an experience she was so thrilled to have...until wait...it got more outrageous!

After the segment with Dina and Kevin, you know the one where she was given a bike (WTF?), we went up to tour the news room. Somehow, while Kevin was showing us around he included the kids in some on air antics. Out of the blue I was watching my daughter do the weather with Frankie Flowers...then Frank had Owen join in and help out...then Lara was throwing to traffic and transit! The moment was so surreal....nothing was planned...everything was off the cuff...and it was amazing.

Lara got to experience something most people never will...and she is only FIVE! The kid has many birthdays ahead...but I fear they may be all downhill after the larger than life one she just experienced. Not only is she still talking about it (she may or may not think she and Dina are new BFF's after Dina told her to come back and go for ice cream) but she relives it daily by saying things like "over to you mom" after she is finished speaking in a conversation. This once in a lifetime experience was nothing short of amazing. I can't thank Apryl enough for even considering sharing the idea of our strange little 5 year olds birthday dream with her colleagues, if it wasn't for her none of this would have happen! Apryl, you are a hero in our house!

So...now to share some photos (some screen shots and photos we managed to snap in the chaos)....and a video link too (only part of Lara's appearance)

Link to video

http://video.citytv.com/video/detail/1628323820001.000000/bt-birthday-party/

 Here are some photos from the BT party....

Our morning begin very early....

...but we were excited to be on the BT set...

OMG...Lara is on BT....

...the view from my seat...

No bigs....just hanging out in the newroom...

...doing some weather....

On the BT couch with Kevin and Dina!

The card for Lara from the BT gang!

And after the show Dina spent a solid 20 minutes just chatting with Lara...she even tweeted a picture!

So there it is....Lara's 5th birthday...a birthday like NO other! :-)

It must be spring...let newborn season begin!

Recently I have had the pleasure of photographing a TON of newborns...and I love it! This sweet thing came to me with mom feeling a little tired (okay, exhausted) and in desperate need to a break. One of the things I love about a newborn session is that I get to snuggle these fresh little bundles and I give mom and dad an opportunity to rest. They get to sit and enjoy their baby without having to do anything. They get to do nothing but watch all this cuteness (and hopefully remember it during a 3 am feeding).

With the number of newborn sessions I have been sharing lately I have also been getting plenty of newborn requests. Not surprisingly, newborn sessions are in high demand, but unfortunately there are some folks who just don't understand the investment. I LOVE photography and the creativity that it allows me (and I sometimes think I would do it for free if people didn't pay me), but it's important for clients to understand that this service is more expensive than a standard session simply due to the amount of time and energy that goes into a newborn session.

Before the session even begins I am pulling blankets, backdrops and props so that I can work as quickly as possible. I often travel to the home of the new parents, which means lugging in a pile of stuff and getting set up. During the session I work my butt off. I push hard to get a variety of shots. I make sure the atmosphere is perfect to get that little darling to sleep. I spend time (lots of time) to get the right shot (some poses can take upwards of 20 minutes). After the session the works continues! I carefully go through all the images and select the best. I custom edit each photo...this can take 4-5 hours for one newborn session.

When you plan to do a newborn session please realize the investment is worth it. The results are something that will last forever. You could spend $100.00 to capture those first images with another photographer, but you just might not get the results you were after. 

This mama decided to make the investment. I think she will be more than happy with the results. We captured some of the very first moments of this little girls life...and she couldn't be any sweeter. 

Happy Mother's Day to this little ones mama and all the mothers out there!