Little Lily is Here!

Finally, sweet Lily girl is here. Liz and I have been talking multiple times a day all week long as we've all been anticipating her arrival. We were SURE she'd come Wednesday and our Fame date would be canceled. Liz and I loved the movie -- no Lily. Then Liz thought for SURE she'd come Friday since her brother and sister had big homecoming plans. No Lily. Daniel, Jim and I made dinner last night and as soon as we walked in the door, the contractions intensified. Let me tell you, Liz is a champ and is my new hero. She CLEANED HOUSE on her due date! I hate to tell ya, I was at home napping while my 9month pregnant friend tried anything and everything to bring her daughter into the world. Around 414 am this morning, Liz let me know she was on her way to the hospital...her contractions were just a few minutes apart. Unfortunately, she didn't progress much for the next 5 or so hours. We took Jim breakfast and a coffee this morning and things kicked up again! Liz's precious family arrived sometime around 1030. The concensus is that Lily was waiting on her grandparents, aunts and uncle. After several rounds of pretty intense contractions, Liz opted for an epidural (YAY!). We all left for lunch so that Mom and Dad could hopefully rest. This was at 130. At 306 Liz was still a 6 and we were about to enjoy some much needed coffee. 20 minutes later, we were flying out the door! Liz was at a 10! Hooray for pitocin and an epidural. At 405 Jim and Liz laid eyes on their BEAUTIFUL daughter. At 416, Dee heard Lily's cries through the cell phone and Ray received her first photo. This child is precious in our sight. We have loved her since we've known about her. We love her even more now and we are OH-SO PROUD for our dearest friends. Congrats Jim & Liz! We love you and we can't wait to watch you be parents to sweet Lily.

The stats:
Born at -- 4:05pm on 9.27.09
Weight -- 6lbs 4.7oz
Height -- 19 1/2 inches

The proud parents waiting for their girl.

Breakfast at the hospital, checking on the Larkins.

Labor Love! Jim was so sweet to Liz.

The Streight Family waiting on Lily.
Love this dude...can't wait for him to be a dad.

Soon to be Mama Liz.

Daddy Jim coming to get everyone.
The Larkin Family, population 3.

Look at this precious face!

I love, love, love this friend! She makes me proud.

Proud grandparents....they're in LOVE!

Aunt Emily

Uncle Michael

Aunt Megan.

The Shalleys love you baby Lily.

Daddy Jim moving into the postpardum wing.

The proud parents looking at their Lily through the nursery window.

Sweet Lily...she was soooo perfect. She hardly even cried. What a good girl!

Lily's first bath.

She is the SWEETEST thing I've ever seen.

Larkin family, I can't wait until you're here to be photographed with your new granddaughter!

Sweet Grandma Sue

Last week, my grandmother was admitted to the hospital. Again. Since her liver transplant over a year ago, she's been in and out of the hospital for a multitude of appointments. I wish that were all. Months after her successful transplant, doctors detected cancer. Chemo and radiation followed, along with a number of its side effects. It's made for a long year. Through it all, Grandma stood strong. She fought hard and remained faithful. Never have I met a woman of such astounding faith. She never doubted in the power of God's ability to heal her. She hoped and prayed for complete health, but rested in the comfort of someday seeing Jesus face to face.
For whatever reason, cancer isn't what took her to Heaven. The rest of her body was tired. For over 30 years, she'd been treated for a liver that wasn't functioning properly. Grandma had broken more bones than any woman I know. Resiliently, she would heal up and be right back at work. After her transplant, she glowed! There were a few months between the surgery and the cancer that seemed like perfection. At 70, she looked as good as she had at 55. I loved seeing her feel so good. Then came the battery of tests, needles, fluids, transfusions, machines...the loss of appetite and energy. Many days and nights were spent away from home, in the hospital, trying to give more life to her body. Early Sunday morning Grandma said a goodbye. Throughout the day, she visited with family. Her sisters left her side, promising to return. Monday evening, Ginger called and frantically asked me to meet her at the hospital. I wasn't sure what awaited me at the hospital. I'd lost count as to how many times I'd made this exact trip to see Grandma.

Now, I'm thankful for every moment I was able to see her smile on the other side of the hospital door. I'm grateful for the quiet conversation and the laughter we exchanged as we sat until she was able to finally go home. Little did we know that those moments would be valuable time we'd spend together. Once Daniel arrived at the hospital and took my hand, I made my way back to the ICU bed where my grandmother lay. For over a year, I'd been pleading with God to restore her to perfect health. We stood over her, whispered of our love to her, cried over her through the night. Around 5am, I watched as she took her last breath and went home to Jesus, perfectly healed. I sobbed as my grandfather professed his undying love for his wife of 43 years and promised her she wouldn't have to wait long for him. It broke my heart to see Ginger lose her mother, her friend. I stood closer to Daniel. I leaned into him for strength. I promised to love him deeper. I kissed my grandmother's face and thanked her for teaching me the love of adoption. I am so grateful to her for loving me as her own and for modeling to me what a christian woman and wife looks like. Grandma, you will be missed dearly. Our hearts will ache for you, but we will find comfort in knowing that we have the opportunity to see you again on our Heaven day. All my love, sweet lady.

Me with my grandparents -- December 2007.

Grandma, radiant -- January 2007.

The Wedding Party. Cassi & Michael.

Look at these beautiful men and women! I loved seeing so many familiar, friendly faces at C&M's wedding.

A Few Things

Spanki with Spanki Mills Photography worked as my 2nd shooter for Cassi & Michael's wedding. She was a GREAT help and I was so thrilled to have her there as my backup. Some of the awesome photos below are hers! Thanks Spanki!
Photos 3, 6, 8, 11 and 14 are Spanki's. Great work, my friend! Love ya.

Cassi and Michael, the bride and groom, opted to see one another BEFORE their wedding. I LOVE a first look. We had a good 30 minute time slot with the bride and groom. The wedding party watched from a distance. We captured the emotion of them seeing each other for the first time, and let them talk, laugh and smile together. This is precious time that may not otherwise fit into a wedding day. I so wish my husband and I had done this! I recommend this to ALL of my brides! There was absolutely NO PRESSURE to squeeze this in between the ceremony and the reception and after a few family photos, we were off to celebrate!

The Bride & Groom. Cassi and Michael.

Cassi is one of my favorite friends and she's definitely my TOP bride! This girl is up for anything. She's totally laid back and just lets me do my thing. She never complains and trusts me on all things photo related. I couldn't ask for an easier, simpler client than Cassi. It's been wonderful! I felt a tiny bit of pressure in preparing for the wedding, but that was only placed upon me by ME. Once I laid eyes on the calm, relaxed, ever-so-ready to get married bride and groom, I felt at ease and was ready to rock some wedding photography. Cassi and Michael nailed every photo! They look GORGEOUS! I'm seriously in love with every single photo. I have handfuls of favorites! Cassi and Michael, thank you for years of friendship. Thank you for trusting me with capturing the evidence of your love, your life.



Love this shot! Thanks for spending the day with me Spanki.



Michael can't wait to see his bride!






I love this close up.


and now, my favorite image from the entire day...


I love you guys! I wish you a lifetime of love.
The posts will keep coming and then everything will be online. Thanks for being so patient.

Navasota Photographer. Houston Photographer. College Station Photographer. Wedding Photographer. Cypress Photographer.