by Alana | Jul 6, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family
I’ll be honest, I didn’t have a whole lot of time or motivation to get the camera out this month at home, BUT it remains super important to me that I continue capturing my own family and those little moments that make us, US. So here we go, a little snapshot of our June.
Pancakes
One of our weekly routines is pancakes for breakfast on Sunday. Now that Kohen has football games early on Sunday mornings, we have literally zero ‘relaxing mornings’ anymore – every morning is a super rush to get out of the house. So during football season our new routine is pancakes for Sunday lunch after his game, and it’s actually working out really well!
Alexi and Guitar
One thing I’ve been meaning to capture all year is Alexi learning guitar. She’s been doing a special program at school where the lessons are free (woo hoo!), and she’s been loving it. She takes herself off to her room to practise all the time, and her first report was amazing. I remember learning guitar in Primary School, but I think I only lasted a term at most!
Louie and his Planets and Countries
Louie is one smart cookie. He’s only four yet can read and write fluently – like he’s actually amazing. It doesn’t just stop there though, he also just loves learning and always finds something to focus his learning on. Very early on it started with letters and numbers, then with starting to read, but now that he’s mastered them he’s onto other topics. The first was planets. He knows his planets (and dwarf planets), and I have to admit, we’ve ALL learnt so much about them since he became interested! I mean, who knew there were even Dwarf Planet Candidates?! He even has Alby requesting ‘planet songs’ on the tv all the time, and Alby called his red lollipop ‘Mars’. Now that he’s pretty good at planets, he’s become interested in countries. Geography is NOT my strong point, so when he gives me little tests, I usually fail! Every night he and Kohen give each other 3 countries to find on the map before going to sleep.
Louie’s first disco
Now that Louie’s in kindy he was able to go to his very first disco. He was soooo excited, and more than happy to practise some of his moves for me in photos before going. He danced his way up to the disco, and he danced his little heart out in the disco as well with his girlfriend (yes, girlfriend – he loves her!), and his best friend. Watching him dance and be so free and have so much fun made me so happy!!
Alexi’s final year of disco
Just as Louie starts his disco career, Alexi’s one is coming to a close (at Primary School anyway!). Her and her two best friends went along to their final winter disco – complete with perfume and handbags. It doesn’t seem that long ago that she was Louie’s age going along….Sigh….
Waiting for Nanna
Most days my mum (Nanna) comes here, and Alby often waits by the window. It’s super helpful when she comes as it means I don’t need to take him with me to pick the kids up from school. As most mornings are filled with me chasing him through the school, it’s a relief to not having to worry about the afternoons!
Arts and Crafts
Of course, most of my monthly updates include some kind of images of my kids doing some kind of arts and crafts. I’m so lucky in that they just do all of this themselves – I really don’t have to do anything to get them interested in creating. Their craft table is in the same room as my computer, so often I’m editing and working while they’re busy creating.
Capturing these daily moments and little memories means that they never really leave me. I can always look back and remember when my life looked like this. If you’d like me to capture some memories for you too, Contact me here. You can also view more of my work in my Family Portfolio.
by Alana | Jun 10, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family
I’m not going to lie – May wasn’t the best month for us! Most of it was spent with the kids and I sick with the flu. There are still some moments captured throughout our month though, and being sick is just part of our story!
Mother’s Day
Mother’s Day was spent in a rush going to football for Kohen, chasing Alby off the field multiple times, and then rushing off to breakfast with my mum (and scoffing down our food before Alby lost the plot!). No breakfast in bed, or relaxing sleep ins…but that’s mum life, right?! We still scraped in some time to do presents and cards – the kids had all chosen me a little present from the mother’s day stall at their school, and of course there’s always those home made cards! I saw a post recently with an amazing idea of creating a mother’s day book where each year the kids write their cards in the book so you can keep them all together forever! I love that idea!!
Hot Chocolates
Nothing says winter more than hot chocolates, right? Although it was technically still only May and still warm outside, we had a rare afternoon at home after school so the kids were able to indulge. Sometimes I worry that their life is too busy, so I always want to make sure they get these moments to enjoy some childhood treats!
Blocks
Lately Alby and Louie have been spending a lot of time building with the blocks. Alby is actually so good at it for his age – his towers are always so high! We’ve had these blocks since Alexi was one years old – so over 10 years now! The little trolley they belong in is broken (and Alby thinks it’s perfect for standing in!), but I don’t think we’ve lost any of the blocks which is amazing!!
Sneaky Alby
It’s no secret that Alby loves his food, and now he can reach up on tippy toes (or use the stool) and help himself!!
Every day moments
Sometimes Louie will just be sitting on the couch and I’ll pull out the camera to capture his little face…or Alby will be laying in interesting light so I’ll capture that…or Alby and Daddy will be waving me goodbye as I head off to a shoot so I capture that as well. Just those normal little moments that fit together to tell some of our story.
The dreaded flu
The majority of this month has been spent with the kids and I sick. Temperatures, coughs, snotty noses, aching bodies and constant doses of Panadol and nurofen. A couple of hospital visits thrown in for some extra drama, and this month is one that I’m glad to see the end of.
So there’s our story for May – every day moments captured and preserved…our life paused through photographs to look back and remember. Capturing these memories is so important to me. These daily activities might seem so ‘normal’ today, but they change and they pass, and one day they won’t be our normal anymore. If you’d love for me to capture some of your family memories, Contact me here. You can also look through my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work.
by Alana | May 4, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family, Uncategorized
April has been a BIG month! I’ve also been behind in editing my own photos, but I was determined to get them done. Giving myself a monthly deadline definitely helps me to prioritise keeping up with our own story. And here it is for April – and it’s a big one!!
Alexi and Alby’s Birthday Party
Alexi and Alby’s birthdays are 3 weeks apart, so this year we decided to celebrate with the family on the same day. I’m all about low key events (and yes, even though it was just immediate family – when your husband is one of 6 kids, every get together is an ‘event’!!). This means that we usually just get take away and keep it all simple. Simplicity is my friend in a world of daily chaos!!
Alby’s 2nd birthday
April 12th was Alby’s second birthday. He’s my youngest baby and my last baby, and turning two just brings out a lot of emotions in me, because it really means that he’s not a baby anymore. He’s a real little person with a real personality (a crazy, loud, energetic one at that!). He’s the last of so many things for me. My last pregnancy. My last birth. My last breastfeed. The last crawling baby, and learning to walk baby. The last ‘firsts’ of everything. And it’s gone fast. Crazy, crazy fast. I know in the next year he’s set to grow and change so much yet again. So for now, I’ll just enjoy the way he is and capture him whenever I can. These photos are taken on his birthday as he opened his presents, including a card written by Louie and a watermelon card from Alexi (because he just loves watermelon!). Oh and shh don’t tell him that it’s actually Christmas wrapping paper!
Alexi and Louie
I always love capturing Alexi and Louie together – they have such a beautiful relationship. In these images he’s going to her for cuddles when he’s upset, and then in return he ran to sit next to her on the couch when she hit her head and needed an ice pack. Those two have massive beautiful hearts.
Chocolate face!
So you know how before you have kids you always say you’ll never let them have ‘naughty’ food, and then you know how you do pretty well with the first one….well, there’s pretty much no hope once you get to your 4th kid! I don’t think he’s too unhappy about it either!
Craft table
As usual, there’s always activity on our craft table. Louie of course is there, and now Alby is starting to join in on the fun too! Although to be honest he spends most of his time getting up and down from the chair!!
Easter morning!
Easter bunny was busy in our house and hid soooo many small eggs around the house! They all go into a shared bowl, and we’ll probably spend the rest of the year eating them!!
Easter with the cousins
One of the things the kids love most about special events is being able to spend some time with their cousins! It’s filled with mostly boys – only the older two are girls, and now the youngest as well. All the rest are crazy boys!
Who needs toys?!
Our Easter dinner was held at my Sister in laws house. They’d just moved in and so had a lot of boxes left over – turns out this is all the kids need to have fun! They were entertained for hours in these boxes!!
Jumping on the bed
So one positive to having a photographer mother is that every now and then you get to jump on the bed so she can get some photos! Bonus points for wearing matching pj’s!
Fun and games
Alby in a bucket of soapy water, and bike races in the backyard. These are moments the kids created by themselves, and are the moments I love to capture.
Quiet moments
Does anyone else’s kids set up comfy spots so they can talk to their sibling in the toilet?? Two of these images show just that – cushions set up outside the toilet so that they can keep talking!
Alexi
I love photographing this girl. She’s so beautiful in every way. Whenever I tell people that I have four kids, they always say how much help the oldest one would be. And they’re right. But I don’t know if they realise just how right they actually are. This girl is absolutely amazing.
The washing machine
Lastly, this is another image which features a lot because Alby continue to love the washing machine. Whenever it’s on, he sits and watches it (and sometimes still turns it off!).
If you’d love for me to capture some of your own family memories, Contact me and we can chat about whether you’d like your session to be on location or in your own home! You can also look through my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work.
by Alana | Apr 1, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family
At the start of the year I made a little pact with myself that I’d stick to my own personal 365 project, which meant that I intended to take at least one photo every day of the year. I started off well, as most resolutions start, and then gradually faded away. I think I lasted a month and a half on this plan until I began to fail at this daily project! However, I’m still committed to making sure that I take photos of my own family, and that I continue to edit them and keep up to date with them. So here is our story for March!
School Camp!
My daughter went on her first school camp this month! I have to admit this was terrifying – for me anyway! She was so excited to go, and this definitely made it easier on me, although I do admit to some tears on my end!! She however, has this amazing way of taking everything in her stride, and simply finding the fun in everything. As she’s getting older and becoming more of her own person, I can understand more how parents let their kids go. As much as we want to keep them close and in a little bubble, when you see how much something else makes them happy, you just have to let them do it despite your own worries and fears. This parenting thing is certainly teaching me so many life lessons!!
Two year old tantrums!
Alby is not quite two yet (just a couple of weeks until his birthday), but he’s already showing signs of the Two year old tantrums! Triggers seem to be any time anyone leaves in the car without him, anytime we drop the kids off without going into the school, or anytime he’s not allowed food. Sigh. Fun times ahead.
Kohen’s strawberry
Kohen was excited that his plant grew a strawberry this month – it may have been small, but it was a strawberry nonetheless! Since getting his trees and plants for his birthday last year, he’s been dedicated in watering them everyday, and I’ve even watched him through the window as he’s been talking to them! I think plants are good for him. He has such a nurturing side that he can find difficult to show, so he’s able to let that out with his plants.
Art with Louie
Louie has this beautiful way of focusing on a task. He’ll often go to the craft table and just sit there for ages drawing and creating works of art. He’s made everyone a birthday card – even if it hasn’t been their birthday – and sometimes he makes things for his little kindy friends. I love watching him create. He’s so calm and beautiful.
Alexi’s birthday photo
I took Alexi outside to take some photos to celebrate her 11th birthday. I’d always wanted to try the photo where I hold onto her face as I take the photo. I love how she instinctively held onto my arm as well – it just shows how naturally loving she is. I also love the photos of her laughing – she’s such a happy girl and I love capturing her genuine laughter. I can almost hear it as I look at the photo.
“Let me out!”
As we were taking her photo out the front, we noticed Alby trying to get out by pressing his hand up against the window. I forgot to mention that this is another trigger for his tantrum – not being let outside! He walked away before I could get the photo, so I got Kohen to come over and encourage him to repeat pressing up against the window.
Louie’s smile
One evening Louie randomly said to me ‘Mummy do you want to take a photo of me and I’ll smile?’. I think he was trying to be extra thoughtful and nice, and he knows that’s the way to my heart! Of course I said yes, so outside we went and he turned on the Louie charm!
Alexi’s 11th birthday morning
Birthday’s always make me sentimental – it’s just a reminder of how time is moving on, and it’s another age I have to let go of. I miss all the little Alexi’s along the way – the ‘just born’ Alexi, the ‘two year old Alexi’, the ‘5 year old Alexi’…and now the ’10 year old Alexi’. I’m pretty sure my kids think I’m crazy, although the older two understand it a little more now that they see the younger two growing up. I don’t think you can ever be prepared for how bittersweet it is to watch your kids grow up. This is a big reason why photos are so important to me. I look back on a photo and I can be there in the memory again.
On this morning, Louie sat with Alexi as she opened her presents and he also gave her the card he’d made for her. Those two have a beautiful bond.
Alexi’s Rose
Alexi’s middle name is Rose and her Nanna calls her ‘Roses’. For her birthday, her Nanna and Grandad bought her beautiful roses in a vase with the words ‘Roses’ written on it.
Alexi’s birthday party
Alexi and her friends celebrated her birthday at Cake Tinz ‘n Thingz which is a cake decorating place. She went there last year as well and loved it. She’s always loved baking and cake decorating, so this is the perfect party for her, and also lots of fun. Bonus is they get to take their cakes home with them!
And that’s March over. How FAST is this year going??!! If you’d like to book me for a session before the year is over, contact me here. You can also check out my Family Portfolio.
by Alana | Mar 1, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family
February is the month where routines start again – school goes back as well as after school activities. For me it also makes the juggle that much harder – my days are chopped into pieces and has to revolve around so many different needs and routines of everyone else in this house. Working from home may sound simple and easy, but it definitely comes with a lot of challenges!! Back to school also comes with its challenges, as I get a little emotional thinking that the kids are another year older and that time is passing soooo quickly. This year my daughter is in her last year of Primary school whilst my son starts his first year of Primary School!! Yet it feels like only yesterday that she was only starting too!!
School, School, School
These photos express the general feeling about going back to school – my daughter is happy whilst my son is less than enthusiastic!
This year Louie started kindy. He was so excited as he loves learning and I know that he’s so ready for school. He also has the same teachers Kohen had for kindy which is comforting for me as it’s so hard to let my baby go!! It’s another one of those ‘how fast is time going’ moments, when I take him into the same class room he used to come with me as a tiny baby to drop Kohen off. And now he’s the one being dropped off!
In other school news, Alexi ran for student council which is something they can only do in year 6 and is something she’s been looking forward to. She had to do a speech in front of everyone and be voted in by her peers – that kind of voting system just stresses me out!! There were 21 people trying out and only 6 spots, and whilst I was soooo nervous, she of course took it all in her stride. I just wanted it all to go well for her, because she’s 100% the kind of girl who deserves the best. I heard she did an amazing speech and got the crowd involved (born performer this one!), and then two days later the results were in and I was so elated to find out that she got the role!! Super proud of her as always!!
Hanging around at home
Sometimes just the regular moments hanging at home are important to capture. The kids sprawled on the couch, the way Alby greets Nanna at the window when she arrives, and the kids helping get the letters from the letterbox. This is what life looks like now, but it won’t always look like this.
Water play!
I remember as a kid going underneath the sprinkler on hot days – such a typically fun childhood memory which I don’t think we do enough of!
Louie and his yoghurt
Louie is a terrible eater – like really, really bad. The ONLY fruit he’ll SORT OF eat is apple (and I say ‘sort of’ because he rarely has one), and he won’t eat any vegetables or meats. He’s the fussiest of them all by far and it gives us a constant headache trying to feed him anything other than toast or plain rice or plain pasta for dinner. The healthiest thing he eats is Greek yoghurt. He loves it!! He now makes it for himself and adds a bit of honey to it so I had to capture him doing it!
Alby and the washing machine!
Alby loves watching the washing machine. He also loves pressing the buttons. I frequently have to repeat a cycle over and over and over again because he’s stopped it midway. Sigh.
All dressed up!
This month my sister in laws got married – they’ve been together forever and are finally able to legally get married so it was an extremely special day. And if there’s ever a time to do a quick ‘posed’ photo, it’s when you’re dressed up for a wedding (and rushing out the door because you didn’t realise your son had no shoes to wear and had to be rescued by a friend who lent us her son’s shoes!!).
And that’s it for February. Another month finished, and summer now officially over!! If you’d like to book me to capture some special memories for you this year, Contact me here.
by Alana | Feb 3, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, Family - Location, My Family
January is a month where life is different to any other month. The kids are all home, the weather is warm, and there are way less routines than normal. I’m actually one of those mums who LIKES the school holidays, and I don’t really want them to go back to school! Maybe it’s because for the most part they keep each other entertained, and the older ones are a massive help with the younger ones; maybe it’s because time is less restricted – we don’t need to be out at a certain time every day, and my days aren’t broken into a million pieces (meaning more relaxation but also a lot more opportunity for working with less interruptions); maybe it’s the break from after school activities and all the juggles of school assignments, assemblies and homework; maybe it’s because when they go back it signifies that they’re another year older – that time has really moved on and things will be different. Or maybe it’s just because I actually just like being around them. Most of the time anyway! They can drive me nuts, and I yell way more than I would like, but I have to admit, I do love it most when everyone is here.
Water and Snow
What says summer better than water fights in the backyard? The kids had so much fun getting soaked with the hose! And then in other extremes, Louie and Alby created ‘Snow’ with their sand. They were throwing the sand allllll over the decking “Look! Snow!”
Mornings
School holiday mornings are slower than school mornings and I love this. Although it doesn’t mean I get to sleep in, moving slower is a big change from the hectic school mornings. Often I come out in the morning to see all three boys awake and sitting on the couch together – usually they’ve also stolen a snack from the cupboard. My daughter is usually still asleep – she definitely takes advantage of sleeping in during the holidays!
Nights
Although the mornings are less rushed, the nights are mostly just as rushed. When you have little kids there is often more of a routine where the nightly bath and bed routine needs to be at a particular time, making every thing a little rushed leading to that point. Every night Alby runs off naked towards the bath and then the boys share a bath. These little things happen every day, and are important to me to capture so that I can remember them when they stop happening.
Routines
When I think about photographing my kids, I want to capture all of the routines and daily moments – things that are so ‘normal’ we often forget about capturing them because we don’t necessarily see the beauty in routine. But it’s there! It’s there in the way Louie gets his stool so that he can reach the Greek yoghurt in the fridge, it’s there in the way he cuddles me every morning when he gets changed (I got my husband to take these shots!), it’s there in the way Alby reaches onto the bench for his dummy, and the way he and I always say goodnight to the baby in the mirror before I take him to bed (this is a routine I used to do with Louie as well).
New Skills
Just as I love to capture daily routines, I also love to capture new skills. When you have kids, there are always things they’re learning. These skills which we take for granted are so momentous for them, and the amount of excitement and pride we all get when they achieve them, is just another example of how the ordinary becomes extraordinary when you have kids. This month Alby learnt to jump, and is learning about where items belong (such as shoes on his feet). Louie learnt to undress and dress himself – he is very proud and always wants me to watch him do it!
Food
Alby always has food. He loves to feed himself with the spoon or fork – and sometimes tries to feed us as well! He also loves watermelon. He’s learning how to say it, which is really cute. Until recently he was calling it ‘bapples’ which is what he also calls ‘apples’ so it would get quite confusing. It’s so fun listening to him learning new words and being able to express himself.
Fun
As always, I mostly love just capturing the kids when they’re doing something that they enjoy doing. These are the best memories, and the most real and authentic memories too. I don’t often ask them to look at the camera, and I don’t get them to change what they’re doing (unless it’s to maybe move into the nicer light). One morning Alby was having so much fun putting dice in a cup and watching them all bounce out. He repeated that little activity so many times! Another time Kohen placed Alby in a bucket and took him for a ride down the hallway. Then there is also Alexi tickling Alby, and Louie drawing. All moments of natural childhood fun!
Light
Sometimes I just see light and need one of the kids to stand in that spot so I can grab a photo! I particularly love shadows and directional light – I really love the mood that it brings to an image.
Adelaide
And then of course there was our holiday to Adelaide. I’m not one of those people who looks forward to holidays – I think I get too anxious about it all going well, and I get overwhelmed with all of the packing and planning. It’s not until I’m there that I’m able to enjoy it and truly understand why it’s so important to take little breaks away. This holiday was the best one yet. We go most years with my parents and we all stay together on the beach. This year was hot (one day was 46.6 degrees!) but this meant that the kids were able to go swimming and do other water activities which they love, and we thankfully had air conditioning back at our apartment. This holiday I also focused on just capturing natural moments with my camera. The kids commented that they thought I took a lot less photos. In reality, I took just as many but I wasn’t intrusive. I very rarely got them to stop what they were doing and smile for a photo. Instead I just captured moments as they happened. And I love them. You can see more of our holiday images in the slideshow at the top. It might give you an idea of ways to take photos on your own holidays as well!
If you’d like to book me to capture some memories of your own family, Contact me here. You can also view my Family Portfolio here.
by Alana | Jan 1, 2019 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family
December always feels a little strange to me. I think it’s because it signifies change – the end of the school year, the end of the ‘normal’ we have, and the progression into the ‘new normal’ as a new school year starts and the kids grow up just that little bit more. Add to it that my son has his birthday, and the month in general is just full of business, and it definitely ends up feeling like a month very different to any other. Here is some of our December story.
It starts of course with decorating the Christmas tree. We usually put on Christmas carols while we do it, and my husband is tasked with setting the tree up before we all decorate it. It all sounds lovely and Christmassy, but in reality, it’s always a little chaotic and often feels rushed around a little ones sleep time. My oldest son Kohen is for some reason quite scared of being lifted to put the star on the top of the tree – all kids have a turn in doing it, yet he gets scared and we all laugh at him!! I do love having the tree up – there’s something therapeutic about watching those lights flashing. It reminds me a lot of being a kid – I have a lot of Christmas tradition memories such as colouring in Christmas books, drawing Christmas trees, making baubles with foam balls and sparkles, and decorating pine cones with glitter. I often wonder what my kids will remember about their Christmas – and I often wonder if I’m doing enough to make it magical for them.
There are also many many events on at the school during this time, including Christmas Assemblies (Kohen was a zombie for his assembly), Christmas parties, Awards and Medallions, and the school disco. We were literally at the school every day one week. My daughter and her best friend Millie went to the disco together – I have so many photos of them ready to go to the disco over the years that they’ve been friends. They haven’t been in the same class since year 1 and yet going into year 6 they’re still the best of friends and have a beautiful relationship. My poor son Kohen was sick for the last few days of school, so missed out on his last days with his best friend Alex who will be moving schools next year.
To add to all the craziness, my daughter also had her dance concert. Actually, she had two dance concerts, and a LOT of rehearsals. Looking at these photos I can really see how much she’s grown in the past year. It’s both beautiful and heart breaking.
It’s also my son Louie’s birthday the week before Christmas, and this year he turned 4. I distinctly remember turning 4, and I wonder if he will as well. We had the family over in the afternoon for a pizza dinner – and we have such a large family that it always feels like a party. I can’t believe my beautiful boy is 4 years old. He can be extremely stubborn at times, and he’s a terrible eater, but for the most part he is the most beautiful and loving little boy. He’s always telling me “I L-O-V-E-Y-O-U” and giving me kisses. I just hold on tight and hope that he doesn’t stop too soon.
There are lots of Christmas activities at home leading up to the big day as well – including writing cards, looking at the lights, and baking. I’m so happy that this year my daughter is old enough to pretty much do all the baking herself – and Louie usually joins in with her. She’s so patient with him, much more patient than I am when kids are helping in the kitchen! There are also Christmas pj’s to be worn – and of course photos to be taken in those pj’s and other Christmas attire!!
Christmas eve we usually have fish and chips at home with my parents, then the kids sprinkle reindeer food on the front lawn, and prepare the milk and treats for Santa as well as water and carrots for the reindeers. This year we also had to say goodbye to our elf ‘Freddie Joe’ (named so because I always call the kids ‘Fred’ and ‘Joe’).
Last Christmas I was sick with gastro and the flu, and Jonathon was also unwell, so we were hoping for this Christmas to be better to us. Unfortunately Jonathon was unwell on the day again and had to stay home while the kids and I went to lunch at my mum’s and dinner at his mum’s. He rarely gets sick so it was really frustrating that it happened again on Christmas Day!! At least the kids got to have fun, despite missing their dad. Merry Christmas everyone!
Lastly, one thing I really love to do is just capture the kids when they’re doing something that they enjoy doing, such as drawing, or gardening, or swinging, or playing with water or cuddling together. These are the moments that I pull out my camera and I capture it – because these are real life moments!
And there you have it – part of our crazy busy December story!! If you’d like me to help you tell your story, Contact me here. You can also view my Family Portfolio for more examples of my work.
by Alana | Nov 30, 2018 | My Family
My passion for photography started when I was a kid, and grew when I had my own children. Since starting photography as a business, I’ve found that I take less images of my own children, and get further behind with editing them and printing them (yes, I love to actually PRINT images!). By creating a monthly blog, it gives me that little prompt to make sure that I don’t lose sight of photographing the very people who mean the most in the world to me. So here is our November story!
Sometimes I look at my kids and I’m just inspired to pick up the camera and record what they’re doing. I love capturing what is really happening, and then just take it from different angles. In this case, my two youngest are just sitting next to each other on the couch. Just simple daily events, but one which reminds me that Alby has only just started sitting still for longer than 10 seconds at a time, and has only just discovered sitting on the couch. It also reminds me of how their relationship is evolving now that Alby is less of a ‘baby’ and is able to play with Louie. The
More examples of this is just capturing them as they’re engrossed in play. I noticed Louie playing with dinosaurs, and I also noticed how lovely the light was. This creates the perfect opportunity to take some photos without any complaints. I think in this case I asked him to touch the orange dinosaur, or show me the green dinosaur, but other than that I just took photos as he played. In Alby’s room I had to capture the mess created on the new rug ($20 from Kmart!), and Alby actually READING on the floor!!! This is the kid who wouldn’t sit still for one sentence in a book just a month ago, and now he’s turning pages and is actually interested in them! Those bedtime stories have finally paid off (even if I had to speed read most of them!). Alby has also discovered playdough this month – and he’s finally old enough to sit at the craft table. It’s really quite strange seeing him sit there – how does time fly by so fast?? It feels like he was just born last month….
Louie has always loved the cat and dog. He’ll often ‘walk’ the dog around the backyard, or follow and copy the cat. I’ve actually discovered him in the past drinking from the dog water bowl…I know…so disgusting!!! I heard the noise of water and then walked around the corner to find him on his hands and knees drinking from it. Ewww. These days he just gives them love whether they like it or not!
Louie also loves reading – he’s allllways loved letters and numbers, and at the age of only 3 he can read AND write a lot of words. I’m not just talking ‘cat’ and ‘dog’ here – I’m talking words like ‘house’ and ‘already’ and ‘otherwise’ – like long words! He sounds them out and figures it out. The other day my mum came in with a bag and straight away he read that it said ‘Eat more fish’. I don’t know why I still get surprised when he can read something, but I do! Here he is after reading the dictionary – something he’s been liking to do over dinner time! Sometimes it just gets a little much though when you’re constantly learning and you just gotta rest on your book!! He also loves writing – these are the moments I love capturing my kids the most – when they’re engrossed in an activity and I can just capture them as they are.
Is dinner time a challenge in everyone’s house?! It may look like it’s all healthy here with the fruit being eaten – however Louie is THE worst eater in the entire world. The ONLY fruit he eats is apple, and we’re lucky if he has one of those per month. He eats no vegetables, no meat, just NOTHING. It’s a constant battle, and one that at the moment he is winning. The best thing he eats is greek yoghurt. Sigh. Meanwhile the others are pretty good eaters, although Alby can get a little whingy in his high chair sometimes. I like to capture those moments too!
Lastly, this month our oldest Alexi won a NATIONAL photo competition! She had to submit an entry of 3 images which adhered to the theme ‘What Makes Me Happy’. It’s the perfect theme for her as she’s such a positive person. She took images of her 3 brothers and also had to write a brief to go with her entries. We found out this month that SHE WON! She then made it to the front page of the local paper (well one of her photos of her brother did so he gets all the glory!). Funnily enough, when she was trying to get the photo of him he was being a challenge (as usual), and she told him that if he let her take one then she’d make him famous…and she kinda did!!
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by Alana | Nov 2, 2018 | Family - Lifestyle, My Family
Although I’ve always loved photography, it’s my kids who can be credited with really making it my passion. From the first moment my daughter was born, I wanted to capture every little thing about her so that I could always remember how she was at each stage of our journey together. This continued as the years went on and our family grew, and eventually also encouraged me to learn how to use my camera properly and to take images I truly loved as well as images that captured the moment. Since becoming a photographer and capturing endless memories for other people, I do find that I use my camera less with my own family. It’s still extremely important to me, so I’ve decided to blog my favourite images and memories from each month of my own family. This not only is to keep me accountable and make sure I keep taking photos of my own children, but also to show you all the little moments that are beautiful for you to capture with your own family so that you can tell your story. This being said, here is our story from October.
My son Kohen is a boy of extremes. When he’s naughty, he’s really naughty, but when he’s good, he’s sooo good. He can be so embarrassed to show his emotions (especially in public), yet he has the softest side to him and can be so thoughtful. He’s the type to SHOW you that he loves you, rather than TELL you. I woke up on this particular morning during the school holidays, and he’d started breakfast for everyone. He’s always up quite early, and his role is to empty the dishwasher, but on this morning he took it to another level. He had all the plates lined up, the toast, fruit and juice. He told me to ‘sit on the couch and be a couch potato’ and said that he wanted to do everything himself. And he did. Of course before I was a couch potato, I had to capture this beautiful moment.
My youngest son Alby reminds me a lot of Kohen. He has the same crazy energy, but at the same time, they are the only two of my kids who have attached to comforters and to dummies. Alby loves his bunnies – especially ‘floppy bunny’. He sleeps with them all the time, and carries them everywhere. I’m not even sure who gave them to him, or how he started to attach to them, but he loves them. He also loves the dog water bowl, and in one of these images you can see my daughter in the process of picking it up as Alby is contemplating the idea of either STANDING in the dog bowl, or giving his bunnies a wash in it. Both of which he’s done plenty of times, so the poor dog can rarely drink when Alby is awake as his water bowl is usually placed up high. The other thing Alby loves is food, and one of these images shows his little hand reaching up for some food which is on the table (and unfortunately for him, quite out of his reach!)
In contrast to his brothers, Louie is quite a calm and steady soul. He has an amazing ability to focus, and loves to paint. I love capturing him when he’s ‘in the zone’. He seems to go into his own little world. It’s these moments which are easy to capture with kids, as they’re already happy doing an activity so you don’t need to ask anything of them.
October was Kohen’s 8th birthday. The night before he turned 8 I said goodnight to him before I went to bed, and I cried! Yes – I’m a total sook! All Kohen wanted for his birthday was a fruit tree. This didn’t surprise me at all, as it’s such a ‘Kohen’ thing to want. He likes to nurture and care for things, he likes learning about how things work, and he loves fruit. So he has a green apple tree and a mandarin tree, and he’s happy. He also got a strawberry plant from his best friend. Let’s hope we don’t kill them!
Birthday mornings are always special, and even though this one was a little rushed as we had to get organised for swimming lessons, I still wanted to capture some moments.
Kohen had a birthday party at Darklight, followed by dinner at home with the family. My kids are lucky enough to have lots of cousins who they love spending time with, and lots of aunties and uncles who make family things feel full.
It was also my birthday this month and I got a new lens – which of course means I need to take the kids out to have a little try of it! We had to go in the middle of the day due to swimming and musical rehearsal commitments, which is never best for photos. Here are some we managed to capture. Louie always gives me flowers and kisses and plenty of hugs, so I asked my husband to capture one of our cuddles.
As well as lots of events this month, we found a little time to play. This is one game that the kids love to play – water chasey. They have to sneak past the person with the spray bottle and try not to get wet! Alby’s look of pure joy as the water is spraying him in the face is just the perfect expression of his for me to capture. It makes me smile every time!
This month our school had its Literacy Parade. This is probably not my favourite school event, as creativity with dressing up is not my strong point! I’m definitely not one of those mothers who can create something amazing for their kids to wear! This was our effort this year, with inspiration taken from the book Gangsta Granny – what do you think?!
Halloween! Do your kids celebrate it? Mine like to go trick or treating, and to be honest, although I’m not huge on dressing up, I love being out on this night. Walking through the streets with everyone out and walking as well, bumping into people you know, and everyone having a little bit of a joyful spirit, just feels really nice. Luckily for me, my older two like to create things and so they created some pumpkin and ghost lolly treats which make it look like I actually went to some effort ha ha!
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