3 Years Undefeated Champs

Our 7 year old girls won 1st place champs in Evangeline Parish Youth Basketball. We are so proud of them. It was a very trying and stressful time at the tournament this year in Grand Prairie! Our girls were undefeated during season ball, and Grand Prairie wanted them to lose at all cost during the tourney. For everyone that doesn't know what happened, I'll make it short. (Everyone in the Village of Pine Prairie has definitely heard! We were the talk of the Village!!!) During the 4th quarter against Sacred Heart, the official scorekeeper said that I did not play one of my girls 2 quarters for the game. She had played in the 1st quarter and she had marked down the wrong player. The referree actually screamed forfeit, you lost, get out of here! I started trying to explain that she had played and that we had it on video. They wouldn't even talk to me. The other coaches tried to tell them she played. Well, I started crying...I know you can't imagine me doing that. LOL! I went to talk to the director and all he would tell me was to get out! They told me to shut my mouth or I was about to get arrested. So, the tears really flowed. Meltdown would not have described what would have happened if I would have been arrested! Well, for those of you that do not know anything about Pine Prairie & sports, people come alive when you try to cheat us. The whole village comes together for our kids & sports. Well, we were all thrown out and escorted to our vehicles. I forfeited our final game because the kids were scared to death. After a sleepless night with tears, work the next day, and some encouraging phone calls, I decided that we needed to show them that we were gonna fight back. We returned Sat. morning and beat Grand Prairie in the final game. I think all of the adults were more excited than the girls. We were so proud of them! It is ashame that some adults would want to scare and cheat some little girls! The girls were saying, "you can cheat us, but you can't beat us!" They have been the tournament champs for the past 3 years! We are so proud of our girls! Thanks to everyone that supported us!

Mardi Gras Madness

We had a busy last week! We started in Alexandria on Sunday for the parade with Karen and Sydney. Abby & Syndey have waited forever to play with each other. We ended the day with a get together at Beef'O'Brady's. We had a lot of laughs! On Monday I threw in a senior shoot. Monday night, we went to Mamou. Good friends of ours, Craig & Karen, got engaged. He actually stopped the music, got down on one knee with a microphone, and popped the question. It was so romantic. Early Tuesday morning, we headed to Lafayette for the day. We made it to 3 parades. A band was playing and I got Abby & Jacie to Zydeco with me. A day of lots of beads & fun. Beads, beads, & more beads! Hope everyone had a good & safe Mardi Gras!

Sweet baby, Corlyn

I haven't been able to blog a lot lately b/c I haven't been able to keep up with my own life! What a couple of weeks that it has been... We finally got around to taking Corlyn's first pics this week. What a sweetheart... It's amazing what we do to the precious little angels to get that perfect shot. Wish we knew what she was thinking during all that creative drama. She performed like a pro, and I was happy with the results. Now, I can't wait to get started on some creations from the shoot. Guess she'll have a couple months off until another shoot. We love you, sweet baby Corlyn!

Embracing moments

Me & Abby spent the weekend in Oakdale and didn't come home until yesterday afternoon. It was so good to get away and spend some time with my Mom & family. We had Madelyn's 5th birthday party in Alex. on Sat. We took Abby & Alyssa. They had a blast & didn't want to leave until that night. Lots of good company. Happy Birthday, Madelyn! Sun. morning we went to my Mom & brother's church, Mt Hope. It was so good getting to see everyone. This was my church years ago and I taught Sunday School for the 4 yr olds. It was such a memorable time. My 4 yr olds are all out of high school now. It's really making me feel my age. LOL. Nancy, my sister-in-law, and Alyssa, Alex, & Jonathon sang a song special. They did so good and it made me so proud. I actually teared up. They sang about beauty from the inside out. It reminded me that God sees our hearts and that's what matters most. Great job kiddos! Abby spent the day at my brother's playing with the kids. Me & my Mom actually got to relax all afternoon together. This never happens! Abby thinks that her MawMaw has to play the whole time we are all together. and.. her MawMaw does! Me & Daddy use to get left watching tv together. I missed him sooo much this past weekend. It doesn't help to have hormones flying... So many memories, so many moments to remind me that he is not with us anymore. For now, I will embrace the moments that remind me of a memory and know that one day I will be able to run into my Daddy's arms again.

Corlyn

Corlyn Gail Johnson entered the world yesterday at 4:14pm. She weighed 5lbs. 10 0z. It was such a special experience to be with Nicki & Corey. Nicki had a "trying" time most of the morning and was finally able to relax because of the good epidural. Of course, the rest of us had some laughs. Chelsey & Corey added humor throughout the day. Chelsey's was innocent and Corey, well was Corey. He really did good during the delivery and actually cut the cord. We had the speaker phone on and Sydia and Landrie actually got to hear some of Corlyn's first cries. Sydia said, "this is the best day of my life." Landrie was shy and full of smiles. All Nicki could say was, Wow... Corlyn is a sweet baby girl that will have lots of love around her. I can't wait to see her again!

Live,Love,Laugh

I was doing a photo shoot the other day and of course Abby went with me. She loves to tag along. While I was waiting for an outfit change, I looked up and was watching Abby play. She was having the best time all by herself and was picking some flowers. She was so cute skipping around with her pink camouflage boots and rolled up pants. I had to take the time to take some candid shots. She reminded me how much I love her and her smile melts my heart. After the shoot, she couldn't wait to give me the flowers that she had picked for me. We should take time from day to day in this busy world to live, love, and laugh.

Rain, Rain go away!

Rain, rain go away... Rain & photography do not go good together, but I was trying. I spent the night with my Mom last Friday and had a shoot to do at 4pm Sat. We decided early Sat. morning to do it early to beat the rain. I left Abby playing with her cousins in Oakdale at my Mom's. I race to Pine & half way there the sky turned black and fell out. I get to the house and I swear it was like hurricane force winds. After the storm, Danyelle & Tammy came over to talk about wedding stuff. Danyelle is so sweet & brings excitement to photography. Can't wait to see what we create together. Congratulations Danyelle & Justin! It will be an amazing journey as we prepare for the wedding. Then, I left and went back to Oakdale. That afternoon, we decide to go ahead and try to do the shoot. Understand, the sun was out in Oakdale and the kids were playing outside. I head back to Pine and....half way there the sky fell out again! I got to Pine and turned around and went right back to Oakdale. I got everyone supper and we visited till late. Then- another trip back to Pine Prairie! I was so tired from what?!!-- Chasing photography & rain all day!!! What a day! Rain, rain stay away... Time to reschedule some shoots.

Abrusley Family

Please remember the Abrusley family from Oakdale. They loss David (far left)

and even though we know he is in a better place, I know their hearts are breaking. I grew up and was best friends with one of David's cousins, Chris. Our prayers are needed to help lessen the pain that they are going through from their loss. They were such a close family and I know they will all feel his loss immensely. My prayers and love go out to all of them. Memories are the glue that holds your heart together and strength from God gets you through each day.

Christmas blessings

I hope everyone had wonderful Christmas with family & friends. Christmas was one of my Daddy's favorite holidays and all of us missed him so much. My Mama came and spent Christmas Eve with us this year. It was the first time that she got to see Abby with Santa gifts on Christmas morning. It was so much fun having her with us. We added a stocking for her on the mantle. Oh, we have a new member in the family- Ella. Yes, I gave into Scott & we got Abby a puppy. She is such the animal lover. We were not sure how Sassy would act, but they have made friends. Uncle Scott got Jackson a ball pit with 100 balls! He can't wait to see the balls flying all over the house. There has been so much loss of loved ones from Pine Prairie & Oakdale during this month. We need to all remember the families in our prayers and lift them up. I just learned of another young guy from Oakdale that died today. I can't imagine what his family is going through right now. It's so hard to think about all the young lives that have been lost. Only God knows His plans, but this does not help the pain that all of their families feel right now. Pictures of my Dad have helped me to cope with the hurt of missing him. Hold close to the memories and capture all the memories that you can in photos because one day that will be all we have left.

The Carson Family

Finally getting around to some thoughts on my shoot with Shallie, Andy, Sylas, Kyler, and Cooper. They behaved sooo well (thanks to threats from their Daddy...LOL) and were absolutely adorable. I think they are just the cutest. Lots of giggles & laughs.... Cooper had enough modeling by the time we finished the family shoot, so we decided to do a 1st birthday session to focus just on him. The word active does not accurately describe how active he really is! At least he was smiling in his "active" shots. Shallie had to take her long sleeve shirt off because he had her sweating. Guess he's gonna play ball like his big brothers. He loved the baseball. Then, he showed me his "attention" position on the floor. He's too cute! His Christmas pics were soooo cute. I'll have to have a large print for my studio wall. What a good looking family & I had so much fun working on their photos.

Nanny's Lil' Tiger

We took Jackson for his 1st haircut yesterday. Their was crying from his Mom & tears from his Nanny. All we kept thinking was that his baby hair was gonna be gone and our baby wouldn't look like a baby anymore. Scott came with us and loved it. Jack almost went to sleep during his haircut. Guess he's gonna like the girls playing with his hair! He is absolutely adorable and yes, he is still our "baby boy". We then took him to the house for a day at Nanny's. We took his Christmas pics and some pics for me. They turned out sooo cute. I've already ordered a big one for me. Last night, Julie took him to take pics with Santa and he cried the whole time. He was not impressed with the man in the red suit. Poor baby... Uncle Scott wanted to get him a ball pit for Christmas and can't wait to see him throwing balls all over his Mom's house! Jack is definitely a gift to all of us and we are having so much fun with him. I love my "Lil' Tiger".

Little Gifts

Wow, Christmas is almost here. I've been doing a lot of Christmas pics of God's little gifts to us. They were all so cute and had many different personalities. They all wanted to "play ball" with the ornaments. It's really been a fun time taking all of their pictures, and I hope the pictures remind their loved ones of the wonderful gift that they have been blessed with in their lives. I actually had to turn a few people away today because I had to put my house back together. I cannot wait for my studio! As I type this, Abby and Mama are making peanut butter balls. It's such a blessing to see how happy that Abby makes my Mama. Daddy would have loved watching "his girls" make candy. I miss him so much and I know that it will be difficult on all of us this Christmas. I know he will be smiling down on us when we are all together because family meant everything to him. Well, I hope you enjoy the pics of this "Sassy" Christmas.

The Johnson "gang"

Wow. I had the pleasure of shooting the Johnson family. I have to admit that the whole time I kept thinking, "I can't imagine raising that many kids!" (Not that Abby is high maintenance or spoiled....) On the other hand I kept thinking how lucky they all are to have each other. I can only imagine the memories that they have from the time that they were growing up together. It had been 18 years (if I remember correctly) since they have ALL been together at one time. The gang's dad was very happy and I could see the happiness in his face. I hope that the pictures remind them how lucky they all are to have each other.

Chapelle Family

I shot pictures of Brad, Lori, Olivia, & Will last night. All I could think of while working on their pics today was how much Olivia & Will have grown. All of our little ones are growing up! Of course, Mr Will kept us laughing. He is the cutest, and I know he is going to give Brad & Lori some memories while he continues to grow. LOL! Olivia is so sweet and quiet with a beautiful smile & personality. Will was so excited for his sister to "lay" on him. He wants a train for Christmas, so his Mom had to "bribe" him with it to finish the shoot. I think the sweetest pics are the ones Olivia & Will took by themselves with their Mom & Dad. You can see Lori's protectiveness and love for them as a mother. Olivia definitely loves her Daddy and you can see the Daddy's girl in their pics. Such a sweet family....