She's a Senior!

Well, here we are again...the first day of Senior Kindergarten for my oldest, Leah. It seems like yesterday that I dropped her off for her first day of Junior Kindergarten...

We've been chatting on and off all summer about when she goes back to school she'll be in Senior Kindergarten (aka..."a Senior" as they call them at school). She's been excited about little things like new shoes and seeing her friends again. But last night when I got her up to go to the washroom she had a bit of a panic attack. Our little girl is SO nervous that she won't know how to "write like the Seniors do". Scott and I reassured her with big hugs and encouraging words, but wow...so difficult to watch our little girl be scared like that.

This morning she was excited to get up and get ready for school. She talked all through breakfast about school and was anxious to get going. We prayed together and got ready to go out the door. Walking to school was a breeze too, but when we got to the school she wasn't so sure. The clinging to my leg began and her face changed again like it had last night. I feel badly for her as I remember feeling like that too, but I know that once she's in there and doing something she's having a lot of fun and learning SO much!

Just about a half hour to go until pick up. Then I'll get the full report from her as well as a TON of homework for me, I'm sure :)

And of course....a few shots from this morning :) Check out how much she's grown! WOW!!!

Sweeeeeet Anniversary Giveaway Winner!

First let me say thank you SO much to all of you that submitted your wedding pictures on my fan page wall! How much fun was that?!? I loved seeing all the different dresses, styles and how much all of you have changed (those of you that I know)!

So...without further delay...the winner (chosen by Random.org) is...
AMANDA DUFOUR!!



Oh and then there's the oh-so-important detail...the prize! :) I've had so much fun during shoots lately with couples that have recently celebrated anniversaries that I would love to do this for our winner!

The prize consists of:
- 1/2 hour session of the winning couple
- 10 digital images of your choice
- FREE 8x10 print of your choice

Congratulations, Amanda! Please contact me at taracollyer@rogers.com ASAP to chat about your shoot! :)

Just Ducky!

Today's shoot was originally scheduled for tomorrow...and then our crazy friend 'Mr. Weather' decided to change his mind and it was showing that there was rain in the forecast. Soooo...we moved the shoot to this morning. And then what happens? It gets all muggy on us and rains this afternoon. Thankfully all the rain came AFTER our shoot. Juuuuuust ducky!

It is so much fun to watch as my friends start their families and such a priveledge to be asked to photograph these special times. You may remember Sarah and Ian's youngest from his newborn pictures in May. Well, he's not so little now so it was the perfect time to do some updated family shots.


Their kids are all so sweet and did a great job getting some awesome shots for their Mommy and Daddy to hang up on the walls.


And of course, the ducks came out to entertain the kids too. :)


If you would like some updated family shots, see my Outdoor Fall Photos Special for a great deal!

Prairie Bound!

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. - Jeremiah 29:11

In 11 days we'll be saying 'see ya later' to my little sister (yes, I'm allowed to call you 'little' even though you're almost 19) again as she heads off to Prairie Bible College for her 2nd year. You'd think that with this being her 2nd year we'd all be used to the whole thing by now, but having her here for the summer kind of made it feel like she was back for good. When she started doing little countdowns on Facebook and talking about how full her schedule was before she went back I went into panic mode. A photo shoot was absolutely necessary!

For those that aren't familiar with where Prairie is located, think small town hick-ness and then make it even more hick and you're not even close. lol! Actually, I can't even really comment on the location because I've never been to Three Hills, Alberta. I just go based on what my sister tells me - 3,000 people, they have crappy internet service (yeah, that DEFINITELY means small town!) and there are literally 3 hills.

Christine, a friend of Rachel's, is a Prairie grad and is also heading out there again this year to work. Since she lives on a pretty sweet little spot in the country and she's pretty special to Rachel I thought this would be the perfect spot to do some of these pics. And because I'm seriously indecisive about which pics to post, be sure to check out my Facebook fan page for more :)








As sad as it is to see her go away again, I am so proud of her for putting her faith in Christ knowing that He knows all that her future holds!

Down on the Farm

I can't believe it's been a year since we did Andrea's maternity pictures! We had so much fun on the farm that we decided to do it again, but on a different farm.

Isaac (aka my sweet Erika's boyfriend!) is almost a year old and the sweetest little dude. He's not big on the smiles, but he still rocked his shoot! This whole fam is so dear to us and I was so pleased to do these pictures for them. :)

Too many to feature here on the blog, so check out more on the Facebook fan page!

Shooting my Family

You know how it is...a plumber fixes other people's taps, but the one in his house goes on dripping for weeks. While I know this isn't the case with my family's pictures (I still make a point of making sure the camera is out all the time), it gets to be a bit more of a challenge to get big extended family shots.

For Father's Day my Dad asked if I would gift him my photography services and do some family shots of our whole family. I thought that was really nice and of course, I agreed. The initial plan was to do outdoor shots, but the weather today was less than favourable so we moved indoors. After doing a few shots the rain cleared up and we decided to take a chance. I was really pleased with the way these pictures turned out. The first ones show off the dynamic of our crazy bunch and the outdoor shots highlight my parents' mid-life crisis (their motorycles).

Thought I would show these off in good ol' black and white today just for fun :)

Getting Fit....sort of

A few weeks ago my friend Shanna introduced me to a great little app called My Fitness Pal. We've been chatting about how we really want to get rid of the 'baby weight' and change our eating habits. She told me that she had been using this app for a little while and really loved it. I thought "what the heck...can't hurt right?".

I've been pretty good about logging on every day using my phone and keeping within my calorie goal, but yesterday I may or may not have gone slightly over. You see, it was one of those days where I had all 3 kids at home and thought 'how are we going to fill our day?'. I already had Cheeseburger Soup in the crockpot so I felt like I had all the time in the world. Then I remembered it had been a while since I had made some yummy cinnamon buns. Well, that was it. I had to do it now! And when they're as easy as they are to make, how can you not?!? I'll share the recipe below, but for now, have a drool over these pictures...
There may be one missing....
Was snapping this pic of Leah with our completed project as Josh reached up and put his hands on them. haha!
Nothing to do with cinnamon buns....I just can't help but snap shots of my baby girl!

Despite this yummy treat it seems that I'm down 5.5lbs! Don't know how that happened, but I guess I really have been better with my food choices. It's ok to treat yourself once in a while, right? :)

Cinnamon Buns – (Bread maker) - a friend of ours from church gave us this recipe after delivering these sweet treats to us when Erika was born!

1 cup warm water
1 egg (whisk into the water with a fork)
¼ cup sugar
¼ cup oil
1 ½ tsp salt
3 ½ cups white bread flour (or regular works too)
2 tsp yeast

Put bread machine on dough setting.
After the dough is ready in the bread machine – roll it out into a rectangle (about 12 X 18).
Spread softened butter on the dough – ¼ cup or so (whatever you like)
Sprinkle about 1/3 cup of brown sugar over the butter
Shake cinnamon on top of the brown sugar. (you will just get to know how much of all this you like – I never measure it – just put it on depending day)
Roll up dough starting with one of the long ends of the rectangle.
Once it is in a roll – cut into 20 even circles.
Place onto lightly greased cookie sheet(s). I use an 11 X 17 one with a short lip on the edges. Then I can fit 4 across and 5 down and when they rise they fill out to fit the whole pan.
Cover with paper towel.
Let them rise in a warm spot for about an hour. (I turn the oven on to 150 til it is heated then turn it off before putting the buns in to rise.)
Bake at 350 for 12 – 14 minutes.
When they are nearly cool (or whenever you get around to it) drizzle them with 1 cup of icing sugar mixed with about 1 tbsp of milk and a ¼ tsp of vanilla. Just get a good texture for drizzling – not to thick, not to thin.

Secret Shoot

Remember back about a month ago I said that I was going to be doing a 'secret shoot'? Now that the cat is out of the bag (or the gift has been given, rather), I can finally share some of the pics!

These 3 sisters approached me wanting to do some pictures for their Mom's birthday. What a great gift! On Mother's Day weekend they all got ready, dressed in their 'photo clothes' (with other clothes on top so that their Mom wouldn't know what was going on) and went for a "walk". Between breaking out into song a few times, the crazy faces that the youngest sister made and the things they were willing to do to get a picture these girls cracked me up!

Thanks for the opportunity to be a part of this special gift for your Mom, girls!



We snapped some pictures here because their mom loves willow trees - how cute!

Every New Beginning Comes From Some Other New Beginning's End

Yes, it's the words to a popular song and a quote by a Roman philosopher, mid-1st century AD; but the words are so true.

This week I had the pleasure of photographing two beautiful, new babies. For one family, this "new beginning" meant that they were going from a family of 4 to a family of 5. A family with 2 little girls, to a family with 2 girls and a boy. For the family that I visited this afternoon, this "new beginning" meant that they were going from being a couple to a "family". Husband and wife to "Daddy" and "Mommy".

I love being able to share in the joy and excitement that new parents (and grandparents!) have over the addition of a baby to their family. Today I watched as M's Daddy gently wiped her eye, her Mommy lovingly snuggle her and her Grandma 'oooo' and 'ahhh' and her cuteness.

And here she is....8lbs of cuteness!

Thank you A & T for inviting me into your home to capture these moments with your sweet little girl!

Rough Life

Babies have it so rough, don't they?
Sleeping wherever and whenever they want...

not a care in the world...

all the snuggles they want...

and lots of kisses too!

It was such a pleasure to snap work with this little man on Wednesday! He is the 3rd baby of my good friends, Sarah and Ian. While they are experienced in having children, this is their first boy. I'm so happy for them!

Staying Connected

Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like for my grandparents 'back in the day'. Typically they only really saw family that lived a fair distance away on special occassions because it was just impossible to visit often.

It's at times like this that I am SO thankful for the technology that we have! How incredible is it that today I was able to shoot some new pictures of Erika while my sister (who is at school in Alberta...a heck of a long drive away!) watched on Skype. SO amazing! I get a kick out of watching my Grandma talk to my sister on Skype because she is so baffled that it is free. :)

Family is so important and staying connected with family is an important part of those relationships. Every full family/maternity/newborn photo shoot booked before the end of April will receive $25 off. These photo shoots must occur before the end of December 2011.


Nearly 4 months of sweetness :)

Listening intently to Auntie Rache

"Hi Auntie Rache!" *She's going to kill me for this...*

New fave pic of my sweet baby girl!

Good things come in 3's

3 months ago Erika was only hours old.
3 months from now she will be 6 months old! That's half a YEAR people!
She is such a happy baby! She makes all these cute little noises and faces. When you smile at her she smiles back with the biggest toothless smile that makes the world around you stop.

When Josh went down for his nap this afternoon, I did Erika's 3 month pictures. Leah was a big help with this! Of course, it helps to reward her with being allowed to play little games online (using Playhouse Disney) afterwards. :)

Notice anything different about these pictures? *hint - it's blue!*



If you guessed the background, you're totally right! Remember I mentioned at the end of 2010 that there would be big things happening? One of those big things was that I purchased backdrops and flooring! I am SO excited to use them! So if you'd like to be one of the first people to use them with me, let's chat! :) E-mail me at taracollyer@rogers.com

Not so sleepy Miss Charlotte

Another friend of mine had her first baby just over 2 weeks ago. Little Miss Charlotte was overdue, but tipped the scales at just under 7lbs. I had the chance to meet her on Monday and I couldn't believe how tiny she looked compared to Erika who is just over 2 months old!

Charlotte's mommy had warned me that she was not your typical 'super sleepy' baby and liked to eat often. When it came time for her pictures she had just been fed (which is usually the perfect way to get baby to sleep) and should have been ready to go, but instead as soon as her mommy put her down she started to get very upset. Her poor mommy had to feed her several times off and on and she still wasn't too happy about having her pictures taken. Instead of forcing her to sleep we just went with the flow and snapped a few shots of her where she was most comfortable - on mommy. We did manage to get a few shots of her looking peaceful.

In somewhat related news, you may have noticed on my Facebook fan page that I mentioned I'd be doing some 'birth photography' in June. I am SO excited about this opportunity! I've never been in a delivery room (other than obviously when I had my own kids) so that is exciting in itself. But the fact that I'll be capturing a baby's first moments is just cool to me!

Quite a few of you have asked about 'birth photography' since my posting a few days ago. I think one of the best responses was from my sister who said 'what is this digustingness?' or something to that effect. Birth photography, in my opinion, is not a graphic/gorey/weird thing. Instead, I am looking to capture the moments leading up to the birth (the waiting, anticipation and yes, sometimes the uncomfortable faces due to contractions) and babies first moments (mom holding her baby for the first time, etc). There will be absolutely no pictures from the foot of the bed. These are meant to be pictures that you would look back at and remember how beautiful (and yes, sometimes painful) the experience was.

Maybe birth photography isn't your thing, but who doesn't love a squishy, sleepy newborn? I'm always up for a newborn shoot but it's best to do them before the baby is 2 weeks old. If you are pregnant please be sure to contact me right away for your baby's first photos and we'll set up a date (and yes, it's flexible because we all know babies never come on time! lol!).

2 months!

My sweet little Erika is 2 months old today. Can you believe it? I can't! But I'm sure I'll say that about every milestone with each of my kids.

With each of my kids it has been so important to me to take monthly pictures of them during the first year. For example, Leah was born on the 1st of the month so each month on the 1st I would do a mini shoot of her. These little shoots allowed me to capture little features about them that had changed and compare to the month before. They change SO much during that first year and I'm SO glad that I did this for each of them.

Today, after Josh went down for his nap and Erika had been fed I kept her up a little while and snapped these pics of her 2 month old sweetness. I wish she could stay my little baby forever!

Babies, babies, babies!

Maybe it's just me noticing this because I just had a baby myself, but....is everyone having babies or what? I know probably 10 people that have just had babies or are having babies within the next 6 months!

One of those babies belongs to Catherine. Little Miss Alaina Mae (or Lainey as they call her - how cute?!?!) arrived on January 8th and we did her pictures when she was just 2 weeks old, the perfect time for sleepy new baby pics! I've already shared some on my Facebook fan page so I thought I'd share some new ones on here. And if you or someone you know is expecting, what better way to remember those precious first moments than with pictures? The sooner you book, the easier it is to get that perfect time slot booked for 'under 2 week' squishiness :) Contact me at taracollyer@rogers.com to book!

And speaking of babies, new mommies, etc....if you're a new mom or soon-to-be a new mom, I would really encourage you to check out Nummies Nursing Bras! After 2 kids my nursing bras finally kicked the bucket on me when Erika was only a couple of weeks old. I put out a frustrating tweet on Twitter about having to go shopping for new nursing bras and BAM! There was a message from @nummiesbras offering to send me some of theirs to try out! I thought that was SO sweet and of course, took them up on it. I always love trying new things! They sent me 2 different styles, the Everyday Bra and the T-shirt Bra. Let me tell you...at first, I was skeptical about using the Everyday Bra because I thought "there's NO way this thing will 'hold everything in' for me". I gave it a go and after a full day of wear I went to take it off and realized that I hadn't thought about the bra that I was wearing at all that day! For me, that's amazing because usually I'm constantly adjusting something on the bra so that I'm comfortable and nothing is digging into my skin. This bra has honestly become my favorite! And as a mom who has been um....how do I say this........blessed? with a bit more than average in the chest department, I think I can honestly say that I would recommend this bra to a mom of any size! Even if you are like me and are totally skeptical about the lack of underwire...just DO IT! I think you will be pleasantly surprised! After all, if you're not comfortable, how can you of your sweet little baby?

Snow Day SALE!

Alright, how many of you stayed home for a 'Snow Day' today? What are your plans for this rare occassion? Will you stay inside and read a book?

Or go outside in the snow?

I've decided that in honour of our first "real" snow day in this area I'm going to have a Snow Day Sale! The first 5 people to book a full shoot (1 hour) will save $25 off their session fee! If you would like more info, contact me at taracollyer@rogers.com right away as this deal expires when 5 people have booked or at midnight tonight (whichever comes first)!

If you have to go out today, please be careful!


Oh and PS - check out this HUGE icicle!!