a bit of this and that

Is it really the END of December?  The past 2 months have flown by in a blur... which is why I haven't posted here in quite some time!  The photos below are from my final fall session and a variety of family events.  

First off... Merry Christmas 2012!  Last year my sister in law took over as photographer and snapped a great shot of my family.  We decided to do it again and I'm so glad we did!  It's fun to see the 6 of us all grown up... but I still love looking at photos of us when we were little too!

My final 2012 session was with the Bayer family.  I had a great time photographing them at their family farm.  It's always fun to photograph a family in a place that is meaningful to them.   It was easy to see that they all have a deep connection to their family farm.  For me, it was just plain fun!!  

Thanksgiving brought time with family and friends.  Yes, I shop on Black Friday (but I'm more of a sleep late, meet friend for lunch and do a bit of afternoon shopping kind of girl rather than the "stay up all night, wait in long line and fight for great deals" kind of girl).   My husband and I celebrated Turkey day with both of our families (2 separate days thank goodness)!  I really like the photo of my family in the mirror (and yes, you can see me taking the photo in the corner :-).  My husband's family loves football and there was a "big" game on the day we had our Thanksgiving with them.  I snagged my niece for a fun photo session so I could escape the "yelling at the TV" (smile).  We had so much fun even though it was FREEZING outside!

I finished up the Thanksgiving week end by taking my youngest brother's Christmas Card photos.  Not only did they dress up in all their Christmas finery, they had ornaments, lights and strings of popcorn ready to use as props!  I think they look amazing... but I guess I'm a little biased!

...and before I knew it, it was Christmas!  I'm still working on photos from our Christmas celebrations so not many to share yet.  The first one is my husband taken at his family's Christmas... and he is indulging me with that little smile so I could get a picture of him.  The next shot is a collage of 4 photos that I didn't really like (I am not a fan of dealing with indoor lighting, especially in the evening when there is NO natural light at all).  I converted them to black and white and, despite the fact that they are not tack sharp, I kind of like them now.  The final photo is my nephew with a finger paint box.  The box is a little family tradition.  The finger paints were a Christmas gift from long ago... but the box keeps showing up every year!  Now, it's kind of like being the "winner" if you get a gift in the finger paint box!!  The box has to be at least 35 years old... and it's still in good shape!  Maybe I'll be the "winner" next year (smile)!

Thanks for visiting and Happy 2013!