This sweet baby girl was 8 days old and already surprisingly alert!  I think Mom and Dad may have a little partier on their hands

About a month ago, I took on the challenge of picking up my camera to document a picture a day.  Sadly, I am most definitely NOT succeeding in doing it every single day, but the benefit is still there – more “everyday” moments of my kids are being captured with something other than my iPhone.  Admittedly, my youngest gets more pictures taken just because my oldest is at preschool three mornings a week, which is when I seem to pick up my camera the most, but I’m working on getting capturing both girls equally.   It’s hard!!

Anyway, I thought I’d share a few snaps that I’ve taken over the past couple of weeks – maybe you, too, will try to take just one picture a day (it’s a fun challenge)!  And if you’d like to follow along with myself and the other pros from Clickin’ Moms, you can find the blog here.

The first installment of the year is here!

Welcome to Life Songs. I am thrilled to be a part of a life stories project with eleven other talented photographers! In this series, we will be documenting our lives with a different theme song each month. The images in the posts will be taken from a less traditional approach, showcasing “real life” in our own ways. This month’s inspiration is “If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out” by Cat Stevens. It might be worth finding it and having a listen as you browse our blog circle!  When you’re done, see the link to the next photographer in the circle at the end of this post

I had never heard the song “If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out” before this month’s assignment, but once I listened to it, I was hooked!!  I love the message.  Here is a snippet of some of the lyrics:

“Well, if you want to sing out, sing out
And if you want to be free, be free
‘Cause there’s a million things to be
You know that there are

And if you want to live high, live high
And if you want to live low, live low
‘Cause there’s a million ways to go
You know that there are

You can do what you want
The opportunity’s on
And if you can find a new way
You can do it today
You can make it all true
And you can make it undo
you see ah ah ah
its easy ah ah ah“

I adore how the song encourages people to be whoever they want and to basically dream big.  It’s something that I hope I’m doing a decently good job of instilling into my girls.  They have the most wonderful imaginations, and I hope that they never lose the ability to dream and carve out their own way… be whoever it is that they want to be and go wherever it is that they want to go.  I just want them to be happy and to remember that they are the navigators of their own destinies!

Sometimes, like the day in which I took these pictures, they come up with crazy and fun ideas and execute them without our help at all.  We encourage these creative endeavors and facilitate them in any way we can.  This particular day, my oldest, Ansley, had decided she wanted to put on a “show”.  It’s a pretty common theme in our house!  She often tells us that she wants to grow up and be a dancer.

(Disclaimer: my house is messy.  But that’s sort of in keeping with the lifestyle approach, right?  That’s what I’m telling myself.  Feel free to look past the mess, please and thank you.)

By around 10am, Ansley had drawn up fliers and taped them all over our house to let us know that her show was to be that morning:

She assembled her audience all by herself, including a couple of chairs for her father and I, in our kitchen/breakfast nook space:

Behind where she was to dance, she put up cue cards as reminders of her dance steps:

And of course, she couldn’t have a show without making admission tickets.  In this case, our “tickets” were stickers that she made herself.

Little sister HK was the “announcer”, as she called it, and introduced Ansley in grand fashion:

And out she came to begin her show!  She danced and sang her heart out.  Notice little sister there behind her, hanging like a monkey on the door knob. 

It must have looked like fun, putting on this fabulous show – so HK decided to take a turn in the spotlight, too.  I love Ansley’s exasperated expression!

They both took turns singing and dancing and playing the guitar:

And then the show wound down, and it was time to end the performace.  Here they are collaborating about how to make their grand exit.

And, DONE.

We clapped and gave them standing ovations, and told them how fabulous they were.  And they WERE fabulous.  I hope they always remember how special and wonderful they are, and how they can be any thing they want to be.  I hope they remember to dream BIG and to love life.

Thank you for viewing my Life Songs post, and please visit Louise Glendon to see her take on this month’s song!

 I’m still playing a bit of catch-up from fall!  Looking at these images makes me remember what a gorgeous fall we had here; so much more color than the stark white and brown that’s all around us now!  Brandi and Jason spent an hour with me one beautiful evening before it got too cold, and we had a fabulous time together.  These two have so much love for each other – and their “kids”.  I don’t normally shoot couples but since they brought their pups, it was really more of a family session

I photographed this sweet baby girl before Christmas, and she was such a doll.  It was a truly enjoyable morning, hanging out with her beautiful mama and adorable big brother.  We got some images that I hope they will treasure for a long time!

Finally, we got some real snow!  I thought my kids were never going to get to really sled or build a snowman!   We got a decent amount a couple of nights ago, and yesterday morning I met up with my awesome photographer friend Dena to take some fun snow photographs of the kids with my lensbaby.  Unfortunately, I underestimated the wind chill factor, which was around 13 degrees.  Needless to say, we didn’t last very long – as in, my youngest got out and promptly got back into the car.  But before we called it a day, I did get these two shots of this cutie!!  I adore him.  Doesn’t he have the sweetest face??

Stay warm out there, everyone!  (Unless you’re in Florida, where all of my friends are gleefully rubbing in their 70-degree weather.)

I’m not complaining, really, but I *am* amazed at the lack of snow that we’re experiencing here in Michigan!  Especially being on the west side of the state, where we get so much lake-effect snow, to not have any on the ground at all in January … it’s pretty crazy!  This morning there was obviously no snow, but there was a thin veil of frost covering everything, and the sun was mostly obscured by hazy, wispy clouds.  There was even a light fog.  I couldn’t resist jumping out of the car, camera in hand,  for two seconds on my way to take my oldest to preschool this morning.  This is my sweet, sassy youngest, who I don’t try and photograph as often as my oldest because she detests the camera.  But I’m so glad I got this sweet look from her.  She said, “Brr, Mama!”, held still for one shot, and then back in the car we went.

I have had to push snow sessions back to late January/early February because of our lack of snow (who knew?!), but I can’t wait to shoot those!  In the meantime, I guess I’ll just enjoy being snow-less for as long as it lasts (which let’s face it, can’t be for long!)

It’s January, which means that it’s time to start scheduling the Spring 2012 FL session!  I truly love coming down for these and I can’t wait to photograph my Florida clients.  Here is the schedule with available dates and times for sessions, and I’ll update it as slots get booked: 

Friday, April 27:

7:30am in downtown Orlando -

6:15pm in Wekiwa Springs State Park -

7:15pm in Wekiwa Springs State Park -

Saturday, April 28:

7:30am in downtown Orlando -

6:15pm in grassy fields (Clermont area) – *filled*

7:15pm in grassy fields (Clermont area) – *filled*

Sunday, April 29:

7:30am in downtown Orlando – *filled*

6:30pm in downtown Orlando – *filled*

Monday, May 7:

6:30am on the beach (Cocoa Beach) -

7pm on the beach (Cocoa Beach) – *filled*

Tuesday, May 8:

6:30am on the beach (Cocoa Beach) -

6:30pm on the beach (Cocoa Beach) – *filled*

7:15pm on the beach (Cocoa Beach) – *filled*

• Please let me know if there is a specific date/time/location aside from these and I’ll do my best to accomodate that (although given time and travel restraints, it may not be possible).
• Sessions are 45min-1hr each and are geared towards kids and/or family units less than five people.  The session fee begins at $100 (please add $20pp for families over 5 members).  The session fee does not include any prints/products; please email me at lila@lilaarmockphotography.com for a full price list.
• Downtown Orlando sessions will be located in the Lake Eola area;  sessions held in the fields will be in the Clermont area (more specific location information to come); Wekiwa Springs is located in Apopka, FL, just north of Orlando.  Beach sessions in Cocoa Beach will likely be near the Cocoa Beach Pier, where parking is accessible.
• To secure your date/time, the $100 session fee will serve as your deposit.  You may pay the session fee by check, paypal, or credit card.
• Florida clients located in Northeast FL, I will be coming your way in the summer! 

From my family to yours, MERRY CHRISTMAS!

image courtesy of Deb Schwedhelm, THANK YOU Deb!!

May your Christmas be full of love, peace, and happiness!  xoxoxo

I had the pleasure of photographing this gorgeous little babe yesterday morning, and what a sweet pea she was.  Just 7 days old and so, so cute – I left completely smitten! 

Here’s just a quick sneak peek but much more to come.  Thanks so much for having me in your home, Sara!  I’ll be in touch soon.