Saying my goodbyes to summer.

 September is always a bittersweet time of year for me. The sunsets are beautiful, the days are still warm but the nights require sweaters. But lurking around the corner is always winter, and I wish that I could hold it off just a little while longer.

We have found a house.

Baby if that's moving up than I'm...

 The past two weeks have been bittersweet for us as we prepare to leave our little stone cottage on the farm. Although in the past year we haven't taken as many photos as you might expect, we've been making a point to capture as many moments as we can since we found out that we are moving.

It is a sad thing for us, feeling as though the expectation of an honest relationship between landlord and tenant is far more difficult to find than it ought to be. We are being wrongfully evicted after we discovered that for the past year, we have been paying for our neighbor's water.

This isn't legal - eviction as a means of retaliation, particularly where a tenant has tried to resolve an issue with utilities, is specifically prohibited in the Landlord Tenant Act of 1951. However, the stress and discomfort of living just a few hundred feet away from people who wouldn't think twice about doing this to a young family with a baby is enough for us to know that we're not welcome here anymore and deplete our desire to stay.

We have had a good year. It was our dream home when we found it and I know that some day we will find another dream home. Right now, we are not sure where we're going. We had hoped to buy a house, but that isn't feasible and we're having a hard time finding an apartment in our price range. It is heartbreaking to leave this beautiful farm in search of the cheapest apartment we can find. We will likely be moving back into a city - something we had hoped to be done with. But throughout all of this, we believe that God knows the plans He has in store for us. Plans to prosper and not to harm us. Plans to give us hope and a future. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers.

Spring.

 Try to take time to stop and enjoy the little things. They're everywhere and they're easy to miss.

Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'...

Into the future.

Design - for Journalists.

I took some family portraits just outside of Philly last week. It was a beautiful day - a barefoot in the grass kind of day. I've missed those so much.

Right now I'm working on a new business card and web design for a solar paneling company. Definitely different from my usual work but it's nice to use my Multimedia training! What do you know, I'm grateful to have taken Design for Journalists, after-all.

Every day I wake up in love with our beautiful little home. It's got its quirks but it is the most inspiring, lovely place I have ever lived. We have an incredible life!

Belly Beauty

            Growing up, I had some really interesting and enriching experiences that helped shape the work I do today. For many years, I would take the bus to East Oak Lane and study fine art in the home of a family from church.

            I loved my art teacher. I argued with her all the time but I learned a lot. When I was in high school, I got there early and cleaned in exchange for lessons. Walking through that perpetually cold and dark house, where every surface had a permanent fine dust and every breath was filtered through a haze of charcoal, I felt like I was in a magical haven. I loved being there early, steam-cleaning floors, vacuuming up debris from the walls that were falling into disrepair. My teacher was eccentric and strange and reclusive but her love for art, her students and teaching was undeniable.

            I remember the day she showed us a documentary on the work of a famous artist who painted nude women during the Renaissance. Again, a member of our church, our teacher had to proceed with trepidation. I feel I owe a great deal of thanks to her for the way she honored the beauty of God's creation in the human body and taught us to do so as well.

            In many ways, that is what appeals to me about mother-centric photography. Pregnancy, birth, motherhood are all part of a celebration of feminine beauty. Our culture is pervaded with an overly-sexualized image of femininity. We've forgotten how to honor bodies as God's beautiful creations without treating them with a measure of shame or perversion.

            It's a question I've had long discussions about. When we admire the great works of DaVinci or Michelangelo, surely we know that they weren't painting from their imaginations. There is a debate of ends justifying means and honestly, I don't know who is right. I know that I am not offended when I look at those paintings. To me, they are beautiful. And that leads me to believe that it is not wrong to use photography to capture that same innate graceful beauty.

            Becoming a mother has made me appreciate this so much more. How our bodies are designed to carry, develop, deliver and sustain life. We are these incredible works of art at every stage. We are fearfully and wonderfully made. And I believe that that is worth celebrating.

What a wonderful week!

Last Tuesday, I had planned to collaborate with a long-time friend on some photos that I've been putting together in my mind for months now. But Tuesday morning I got the text that the birth I had been hired to photograph was in full swing! So I rescheduled with my friend and rushed to the house.

It was such an honor to photograph the birth of Violet Love, a beautiful little girl who was greeted by her parents and her ten siblings! It was the most amazing thing to see this big family welcoming Baby #11 - everyone was helping, encouraging, waiting for the moment of her arrival. I feel blessed to have been able to document the experience for them. What a wonderful Valentine's Day!

SO - yesterday, we went back to shooting these photos for the upcoming gallery at Max Crema's. The photos turned out so fantastically, I can't wait to share them! Here is a sneak peak, but if you'd like to see more of my work, please come to the gallery opening on March

3rd, from 10 am to 1 pm!

Macro Lens!

How could I forget about my beautiful macro lens? My parents bought this lens as a Christmas gift for me several years ago. I wasn't doing much portraiture at the time and never really used it, so it hasn't seen much use. This is a FANTASTIC portrait lens!!! (Neither of these photos have been touched up at all - ok, I lied, I took out some acne in one. But other than that...)

It took me a while to know what about photography I was specifically drawn to. There are so many genres and possibilities. But the one consistency in every career dream I've ever had was a connection to people, a desire to meet and connect with real, honest people.

I'm not interested in fashion, glamour, beauty, although I have seen incredibly well-done and beautiful examples of all. Of course sometimes it's fun to play around with this, but it's not what drives me.

So whatever I am photographing - pregnancy, babies being born, new mothers, portraits, weddings, whatever it is - I am there because I want to connect to people, I want my photography to tell a story for and of them. And if I can accomplish this, I will have fulfilled my goal - to use photography as a means to help people, to capture real moments in their lives and preserve them for years to come.

Extra, Extra!

Please share this photo with your friends and family! Alexis Ryan Photography is offering a whole slew of fantastic discounts right now and I don't want you to miss out!

Also, if you like my page before the end of March or share this photo on facebook, your next hourly session in 2012 is 10% off! Spread the word!

Update

I'm happy to say that another couple wants Alexis Ryan Photography for their wedding in October! What fun!!

The home birth I'm photographing could happen any day now. I am getting more and more excited to document this day and all of the beautiful people involved, especially the new one!

Fresh Starts

I'm looking forward to a lot in 2012! In just a few weeks I am so excited to be photographing the arrival of beautiful new baby just outside of Oley. In a few months, two of my childhood friends are getting married. Two different brand new beginnings and I get to be there for both! I can't wait!

Not your stereotypical portrait.

I want to tell your story.

Part-time photographer; Full-time mama.

Yesterday I bundled my son up and put him in the moby my sister made for me. The entire time I was out taking photos for the gallery in March, he slept curled up against me. It was nice to get out and stretch my photography fingers, so to speak.

My little pear picker.

A friend from Temple showed me the coolest photographs by Adele Enerson, a series called "Mila's Daydreams." Every day for a year, this mother set up scenes around her baby after she'd fallen asleep. They are so creative. Of course now my mind is going off on the possibilities for Constantine and for other new babies. Giving credit where credit is due, I still believe imitation to be the greatest form of flattery!

That's all for now - and again, you can see more photos on my facebook!

Waiting.

Less than two weeks until my due date and every day feels like its own eternity. I can't wait to meet our little man - and on top of that, I can't wait to not be carrying around a beach ball with me everywhere I go! Skinny jeans, I will fit in you again!!!!

While I'm waiting for Constantine's arrival, I did have a lot of fun taking baby pictures a little while ago. What an adorable little girl!!! Have I mentioned I love taking baby pictures?

Well, me and my beach ball belly have been making use of the wireless internet at a diner down the road from the cottage but they're about to close, so it's time for me to head out. It's a lovely day for a walk - maybe I'll give birth on the side of the road next to some cows.... ha!

Baby Portraits, Misty Days and Tiny Hats.

 I am falling completely in love with our new home in Oley. Every morning when I wake up I am blown away by the incredible beauty surrounding us. Yesterday I took some photos of the house and the land around it to show the folks back home - but seriously, it is like this every day. I feel like I'm in a fairy tale.

Today I am very excited to be doing some baby portraits for one of my dad's co-workers. I absolutely love baby portraits - and it'll be fun, so close to the birth of my own son, to get some ideas.

A woman from an online writing community I go to took it upon herself to knit several hats for Constantine. I am constantly amazed at how kind and thoughtful people can be - these hats are so sweet and they're different sizes, so he'll be warm as he grows! I bundled them all up in my arms when I got them and just spent a moment thinking about how adorable he'll be. I'll be 37 weeks on Monday - time is going by so quickly. I can't wait to meet him...

Snapshots from a life that keeps moving.

I promised my mom I would take some photos of progress moving into our new home. There's still a lot of unpacking and cleaning to do but it's all coming along nicely. This is our living room - and yes, it's purple!!! And yes, our kitchen is green! I told Nathaniel that being able to paint is the difference between renting a place and having a home. I am so happy with our new little haven, I can't even express it. Today we drove past horses and cows to get to the main road - it was so beautiful.

I have probably been driving my poor husband up a wall now for weeks, worrying about whether or not I would have the things I need in time for Constantine's birth. You would think with all of the last-minute miracles that have been occurring in our lives I'd be more inclined to relax and trust that things will work out - and of course they did. Today my sister threw the most lovely baby shower at my mom's house. It was really fun to get all of these adorable things for Constantine but honestly, it was just really nice to be with family and some people I hadn't seen in a long, long time.

Nathaniel and I received so many beautiful gifts for our new baby, all of which were precious and which we love. But I have to say, I very nearly started crying after seeing part of my Aunt Lisa's gift - a onesie with little owls printed on it. My grandmother, Omi, collected owls - figurines, artwork, etc. When she was sick and knew that she didn't have much time left, she had everyone in the family choose one of her owls. I chose a little stone carving of one, about 4" - and I've had it for over a decade now. I was eleven when my grandmother died but I loved her very much. That onesie was just so perfect. It's amazing how something so simple can hold such significance!

We are done housesitting on Tuesday and then we are fully transitioning to Oley, PA. I am looking forward to things quieting down and getting settled into our little stone cottage on the farm. Life is going so quickly - I hope I catch it all!