Eloise by Lindsay Skeans Photography

My best friend, Lindsay, is not only one of my favourite people, she also is a super talented relationship photographer.

Linds often packs her camera along when we she visits from Calgary and even if we're just hanging out casually at home she manages to capture the most beautiful photos of Eloise every single time.

Lindsay's most recent masterpiece of our gorgeous girl blew me away.

 

I love seeing how Eloise has changed through Lindsay's photographs from the past three years. 

{six weeks}

{one year}

{summer 2013}

{christmas 2013}

We are so lucky to have you in our lives, Linds, thank you for all the memories you've captured.

And lucky for you, Lindsay Skeans Photography will be in Vancouver a few times during the summer, a perfect opportunity to book a session for your family (or wedding, or maternity session, or headshot ... she does it all!). 

Me at 29 Weeks

A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of modeling for a photographer I love to work with, Christie Graham. Christie had asked me months ago if she could do a maternity boudoir shoot with me for hopeful publication and I had no reason but to say yes. Her work is spectacular - so ethereal and clean - and her plan to photograph the shoot with film was pretty special.

As planners do, Devon and I decided to make more of a thing out of this little shoot and pulled together some of our favourite vendors (aka Celsia Floral & Denise Elliott Makeup Artistry) as well as an amazing lingerie contributor. Eloise took part in the shoot too and although I haven't seen all of the photos, the sneak peek Christie shared is pretty darn gorgeous, if I do say so myself (I do).

What a beautiful memento of me at 29 weeks.

School Photo

We received Eloise's very first school photo and it is adorable. In fact, it's pretty much cuteness overload.

 

How the photographer got her to look at the camera, smile AND cross her little hands, I will never know.

A Year in Photos

As December comes to a close I've been looking back at year we've had through photos, and what a year it was.

In January Eloise said her first word - dog -  and finally slept through the night. In February Chris turned 30 and we threw him an excellent World Cup themed surprise party. In March Eloise celebrated her first birthday with a ballerina party and in April Chris and I went to Mexico for Devon & Kris' wedding and a full week of baby-free R&R. In May Eloise had her first swimming lesson and we planted our summer vegetable garden. June was a difficult month with the passing of beloved Grandpa Phil, but we celebrated his full life and spent much time with family on the Island. The summer sun was in full force by July and it was a month of weddings, starting with Julien & Bracken. Eloise finally took her first steps at the end of July, just in time for her debut as a flower girl, and we headed off to Toronto for Gus & Katherine's wedding and two weeks of family fun. By August Eloise was running, perfect for trips to the park and beach in the beautiful weather and Chris and I attended our fourth wedding of the year in Victoria for Ricky & Ruth. On September long weekend we took off to Quadra Island for Ari & Tyler's wedding and a weekend of fun with many of our friends, a perfect way to end the summer. In September Chris and I celebrated three years of marriage and Eloise's lost Piglet returned from 'vacation'. Eloise was a lion for Halloween in October and she began speaking in mini-sentences, much to our amazement. November was a quieter month between the busy fall and Holiday seasons but we did manage to make a trip over to Victoria for Grandma Marg's 80th. And now December. Shopping, crafting, Christmas parties, snow and today, it's Christmas eve.

We're looking forward to the year ahead, Merry Christmas everyone!

Photo challenge

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I'm not much of a photo taker and I am certainly not a good photographer. I leave that up to the professionals (hi Linds!).

This aside, what I would like to challenge myself to do in the New Year is to try and take just one photo, every day, with my iPhone and Instagram. They don't even have to be perfect photos, but by Christmas next year I would like to have enough footage to order a calendar from Printstagram. It would be such a neat way to watch how Eloise changes and a cool memento to remember the year that was.

I also think Printstagram's Tinybook has to be one of the cutest things ever. What a great gift for Grandparents!

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What We Wore for Family Photos

On Sunday we had a family photo session done with Cat Watson, a Vancouver-based photographer who I connected with through work. Cat has a really warm and wonderful way about her (she's a fellow mommy too) and Eloise was instantly comfortable with Cat and her camera. It turned out to be a beautiful - but very chilly - day and in just about half an hour Cat had what she needed. Perfect timing consider this was consequently the same time that Eloise started to meltdown.

I must admit I was rather stumped on how to dress for our family photo shoot without looking too 'matchy matchy'. I wanted us to coordinate of course, but not in the 'everyone wore jeans, white tees and bare feet' kind of way. Yuck. My colour inspiration for all of our outfits came from the wintery jewel tones in a red & navy plaid dress of Eloise's which I topped with a jean jacket to tone down the formality of the taffeta material. I wore an emerald sweater, a short black pleated skirt and a red plaid scarf, Chris wore a navy gingham shirt, a great sweater and dark denim, and Noodle sported his auburn-tinted winter coat (ha ha). I think our colours were perfect for the setting and the season.

Design Mom has some great tips on family photo shoots and I like this guide on Say Yes to Hoboken. Here are a few other colour combos I came up with:

I can't wait to share our photos with you!

Photo Op

Oh you know, just hanging out in the table of contents.

This winter, as Eloise and I were coming out of music class at a nearby rec centre, we were stopped by a photographer who asked to take our photo for potential use in the next issue of the North Van Recreation Leisure Guide. Eloise was overdue for her nap and therefore unwilling to smile, and I had neglected to shower, so I figured the photo would be a no go. Apparently not, we actually made the table of contents! Ha Ha.

Now, isn't it a good thing our outfits coordinate?

Milestone Photos

{inchmark}

I am always so impressed by parents who manage to document their child's milestones from in utero to first steps and through childhood with creative photographs. Sadly this is not me. I love the idea of these photos but I have to be honest, if it wasn't for my iPhone I would struggle to capture any big moments with Eloise. What can I say, I'm a convenience girl (but does this also make me more 'in the moment'?).

Still, I am blown away by the creativity of other parents and have a glimmer of hope that maybe some of this will rub off on me. I have always loved the idea of taking a photo of your kids on the first day of school. I know this idea is nothing new - pretty sure my own parents did it - but it is still such a sweet way to document how much children change with each passing year.

I love the ideas below, especially an annual birthday photo like this one:

{pinterest}

And how sweet is this idea for documenting one of baby's firsts?

{pinterest}

Or, if I want to get really creative, I can document my next pregnancy with month to month progress photos ... 

{simply bloom photography}

Okay, the last one won't happen, but they're all cute ideas, right?