Babies!!!!!

I got my hands on my first baby of February/March (there's lots more coming, so stay tuned!)

Introducing Noah. Is he not adorable, very sweet and cuddly.

You might remember Jacob - he's a big brother now, and he's telling Noah all his secrets.

Which Noah thinks are pretty funny.

This is what Jacob really looks like. For all you mamas and papas out there who engage in any combination of the following: natural birth, co-sleeping, breastfeed (well, not the dads, but you know what I mean) and delay/don't vaccinate - I have a theory - this is what those boys look like. (I forgot a little, because mine are slighly older and have slowed down a tiny bit.) You're in for a ride!

Jacob is awesome!

And, with the cute, sleeping babies, they trick you into thinking they will be mellow, so you get to relax, a little.

Love, love, love this picture of Jacob.

A little Daddy time. Kent is so good at this dad thing.

And Kristine - looking amazing.

Thank you so much for coming to see me on your way to the east coast, via Saskachewan!

Family Day

Warning! Huge blog post with lots of pictures ahead. I've made composites of some of the pictures because I just couldn't decide what to post, and I'm not sure Blogger will let me do 50 pictures in a post!

This past Family Day, I was privileged to spend the day with Albert, Bertha, and their children, Tom, Brent, Renee, spouses Jesse, Ray and Eva, and the grandchildren, Connor, Ava and Anson.

This is one of my favourite family sessions ever. Renee had contacted me asking if for family pictures for their parent's anniversary. As you can tell from my blog, I'm not a huge fan of the standard family portrait. I'm more interested in documenting the energy, love and interaction between family members, so I asked Renee if her family would be interested and she said they loved the idea.

Pictures in winter in Alberta can be a little challenging, but the weather was absolutely perfect for our plans.

We started off at Bertha and Albert's home. That is everyone dancing in the basement. They do that!


Renee fixing Brent's hair. She's the big sister. And Tom, with the coolest piece of art ever. He made this in grade 9 - I love that his mom still has it hanging in the middle of the kitchen.

After we got a few pictures at the house, we headed off to the park to get a few more.



Beautiful!



I love this picture of Albert and Eva on the swing. They both look so happy. Eva and Brent live in Taipei, and this was Eva's first winter-time in Edmonton.






The babies of the family.

Albert waiting for his kids to gather round. Renee said this is classic Dad.

The whole family.

I am in love with this shot.

Tom and Jesse. They will be adding another member to this awesome family in March.

Anson was hungry with all the cold (for him) weather and picture taking.

My little man, Connor. Its been 18 months since I saw him last. He was 2 1/2 then. He still remembers me! Smart as a whip, this kid. He also remembered that Jesse and Tom had their wedding photos across the river at Hawrelak Park, and his mom and dad were married at the Mayfair Golf and Country Club.

I couldn't believe how big Ava was when I saw her. I guess that's what happens in 18 months!

Jumping pictures are awesome!

I love how Eva is right into the spirit of winter - snow fight!

It was starting to get cooler with the sun going down, so Ason was wrapped up in scarves and blankets.

I love this picture of the three generations - Renee, Ava and Bertha in the background.

Ray and Connor did a lot of tobogganing. Connor was fearless, even after they wiped out on this hill, Ray landing on top of him. You can see he's laughing really hard as soon as he gets our from underneath, and then he burst into tears. A little Daddy-love fixed him up.

This was Eva's first time experiencing the Canadian institution, the winter wiener-roast.

Happy Family Day everyone! Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful family with me.

Birthing

My dear friend Pam Aloisio has officially launched her doula business. Check out her great site here.

For those of you who know me well, you'll know I am passionate about positive, empowering birthing experiences. Both of my boys were born at home with my midwife, Barbara, my doula friend Kimberly and their dad Mike by my side.

I know homebirthing is not for everyone, but I absolutely believe that every woman should have a doula. She will provide you with information about the birthing experience, educate you on your options, hold your hand, rub your back, call you to check up on you many, many times before and after the birth of your baby, provide support to you and the father, advocate on your behalf with medical staff and most importantly become a huge part of your life.

Pam will be an amazing doula. She's loving, compassionate, passionate, adores and respects little people, is super smart, and one cool chick!

Congratulations friend!

Love this

Brilliant Earth has conflict free and ethically sourced diamonds. Pretty, and easy on your conscience!

A Real Mama's body

I don't know about you, but I feel great about myself. Except when I look in the mirror. At that point, my internal image of myself comes face to face with the image of what a woman "should" look like. I don't read a lot of women's magazines, but I see pictures of the Hollywood woman every time I go grocery shopping, and that cultural image is wired into my brain. I try hard not to look at the magazines because I don't like feeling bad about myself.

A friend of mine posted this great article on what magazines do to celebrity bodies on Facebook. I had to share.

Here's a picture of a (semi) celebrity mama who was willing to be normal and real.

This is How its done.

Remember - you made a baby. In that amazing body of yours. Celebrate that.

To Haiti With Love

My fabulous friend, Rene wanted to do a "little something" for Haiti. Her little something turned into a massive art auction, with beautiful (and practical) art donated by artists all across North America.

Go - check it out. There's everything from children's clothing to photography to mentoring to a week in Teluride, Colorado.

http://tohaitiwithlove.squarespace.com/

To Haiti With Love