“I’m not good in front of the camera,” she said.

“Neither am I,” I replied. “But it’s just me. Just breathe and close your eyes and take in the moment.  The light is beautiful and you’re beautiful. Let me capture it so you can see what I see.”

And she did. She breathed a deep breath and went to that place…you know the one we all must go to in order to truly be present in the moment.

She has a story to tell, but it’s hers and hers alone so I’ll let her share it with the world…

I’m often amazed that people don’t realize the amount of beauty they radiate.  The world spins too fast.  Life gets hectic and chaotic.  We’ve all get schedules and deadlines, dinner to prepare, houses to clean. The daily and mundane settles in and we aren’t left with spare minutes to be in “that moment.”  It really really makes me a happy girl when those moments do unfold and I get to show people exactly how the rest of the world sees them.

This is Kelly. She is a stunning soul and I hope these images let her see just how much…

Much Love,

Krysta xo

(Seriously…is this not the cutest outtake you’ve ever seen?  As you can see, the models were handsomely rewarded.)

The part of my job I love the most?  Making connections. Meeting people and feeling right at home.  Reading about someone.  Writing back and forth gaining snippets of their life.  Having an idea of what they might be like. …and then seeing them face to face and realizing they are just so.much.more.  Kelly and I came across one another awhile ago at Flickr of all places.  I don’t spend much time there anymore at all, but I’m so glad I did for the short while I was there.  We would comment on one another’s photos and send the occasional e-mail. I followed her blog and loved reading about her every day life with her two gorgeous girls, Lucy and Annie.  I told her Texas was in my future.  …and with that we started making plans.   When she picked me up at the airport, we started talking as if we had known one another for years…and it continued on for the rest of my trip. We shopped, ate really really good food (ya’ll know how to cook in Texas. Wow!), chatted over coffee, toured Dallas, spent way too much time in a popcorn shop, spent way too many hours afterwards stringing said popcorn for our shoot (and not using it), and spent many many more hours afterwards laughing about it.  We soaked in the sun, played with the girls, dived deep into photography discussions, laughed until both our stomachs and cheeks hurt, and licked our bowls clean at Yogurtland (again…wow.)  I had the most beautiful time and feel so so blessed that the paths of Kelly and I crossed. This was my first trip to Dallas, but certainly not the last…

…and really? How adorable are her girlllllsss? Seriously. I can’t get over it.  They are even sweeter in real life if you can believe it.

I’m not really sure how many images are allotted before a blog post becomes a novel so I am breaking this shoot up. I have images of Lucy that I’m ga ga over, but they’re from a different light set with different processing and since I’m a freak about continuity, I’ll post them along with the oh so stunning images of her mama.  Oh and we did an urban family shoot too – lots more to come!

Kelly –  until next time…big loves honey. xo

* Images edited with Eye Candy Actions: Toy Camera | Hush | Velveteen *

Michael has been waiting patiently to break out his new Razor scooter he got for his birthday from Brodie.  The snow has been gone for some time now, but the bitter cold has not.  Well, on Sunday  we were given the gift of 80 degree weather. I’m not sure who was happier – me or Michael.  We spent all day outside playing football and soccer, laying in the sun, and cruising up and down our sidewalk on two wheels.   It was seriously heaven for me.  I spend half of the year longing for sun and warm weather so when it finally arrives I feel like a new woman.

…and notice anything different about that sweet boy’s face? That’s right. He is toothless on top…well one tooth anyway.  Just when I thought he couldn’t get any cuter, he loses a tooth.  Swoon x’s 10.

Now, if summer could just hurry up and get here, we have a long list of things we’d like to do.

Summer. My boys. Perfection.

Much Love,

Krysta xo

Dallas has been so kind to me…

Beautiful family.

Beautiful girls.

Beautiful conversation.

Beautiful pitter patter of tiny feet.

Beautiful light.

Beautiful to be here.

Lucky.

I feel so very lucky…

xo