portrait sessions in review (oh and meatloaf)

i have had the pleasure of snapping away at some verrry precious little faces (and hands and feet - i have a slight obsession with baby feet) in the last few months. below is a smorgasbord of faves from portrait sessions with these fabulous darlings:

(max and makenna)

baby max - what a little prince! this little guy is a natural born heart breaker. i met max when he was just over two weeks old and had the pleasure of seeing him again about 2 months later. what a gorgeous little lovie.

max's big sister makenna is (of course) gorgeous too! and so much fun. i giggled when editing her photos. for every photo of her pretty smile, i had at least five of her sticking her tongue out at me. way to have a strong personality, missy!
i love it.

(caleb, hope and ellis):

i shot these three beauties while in san fran at the me ra koh confidence seminar. precious.

(miss scarlett):

allow me to introduce you to miss scarlett! aka muffin or bean. she is absolutely perfect (and her mama, one of my best belles, isn't bad herself)! scarlett was an itty bitty 5 lb., 9 oz. when she was born. these shots were taken 10 days later. wait until you see her now - cutest chubby little lovie cheeks ever.
i adore her.

(nora jean):

oh my - miss nora jean! she brings a whole new level of cuteness, spunk, and charm to the game. and if they made this tutu in my size, you better believe i would be rockin it. nora has awesome parents. jen and mike - you are fabulous. thanks for letting me shoot your girl. i love her. ;)

(autumn and aaron):

 twins! this little dynamic duo is full of personality! this shoot was a blast. i commend spud and kristen for being so calm and collected with two new babies on their hands! they are oh so sweet, especially with quivering bottom lips sticking out in protest. "we know we are sooo cute but stop pointing that camera at us already!"

(mr. logan):

i could have spent all day with sweet baby logan. no tears from this little guy. he was in front of my lens for a good 3 hours before he made a peep. stacey, jared, big brother trevor and baby logan - it was a pleasure spending this time with you. there is obviously no shortage of love in your family! these photos make my heart smile... and i am sooo looking forward to your next photo session!

(baby jerami and big sis makenzie):

brand newbie baby jerami is an angel! i loved him the second i laid eyes on him. thank you so much brigit and jerami for the vote of confidence in my work. i enjoyed spending a few hours with you and your kiddos. they are perfect. 

big sis makenzie was really into the photo session... for about 10 minutes. after that it was all tea party and doctor's office. (she asked very nicely that i put my camera down while she "checks my fever!" ha! what a sweet little bugaboo). despite her disinterest in the camera, i was still able to snap some really fun shots of kenzie darlin. she is precious!

tea, anyone?

(taylor, maddi and reece):

taylor and madison were the first two apples of my eye. my nieces, lovely in every way possible. although they are certainly not babies anymore, they are still my baby girls. their baby brother reece, aka "bear" is the epitome of sweetness. and he loves the camera! just nine weeks apart, he and cousin oliver are the best of friends. it is so fun watching the two of them grow up together. i adore these kiddos to the moon and back and really love snapping photos of them. cannot wait for the fun, colorful springtime shoot we have planned!

(meatloaf):

ok. the meatloaf. first i have to admit that i was dreading the valentines day meatloaf. a loaf of meat? ugh. one of ryan's favorites and one of my least favorites. i wanted to do something lovely for him on v-day so i decided to give meatloaf one last shot. i planned to do some meatloaf research on foodtv.com but got busy with work and mommying and thus found myself in the kitchen last night totally winging it - i added random ingredients until i thought it looked and smelled like it could be edible. turns out winging it is a grand idea. after two bites of meatloaf, i stopped eating to grab a pen and paper and try to recall what the h i had put in the meatloaf. it was really, really good. maybe, just maybe meatloaf will be more than a once-a-year at the mclaughlin house.

if you are ever in the mood for a loaf of meat, try this:

nik's eclectic meatloaf

1 lb. ground beef

1 lb. ground pork sausage

1/2 a package ritz crackers, crumbled

1/2 cup quick oats

1/4 cup italian bread crumbs

2 medium carrots, grated

1 stick celery, finely chopped

1/4 cup finely chopped sweet onion

1 large garlic clove, finely chopped

1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp thyme

1 tsp dried minced onion

1/2 tsp dijon mustard

1 plus 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil plus 1 tsp for top

2/3 can of tomato paste (reserve remaining for glaze)

glaze:

remaining 1/3 can tomato paste

2/3 cup ketchup
1-2 tsp yellow mustard (depending on how much you like mustard)

1 tbs brown sugar

loaf: mix all ingredients but 1 tsp of olive oil and the egg in a large bowl. whip egg and then add to bowl. bind together and put in greased loaf pan. drizzle 1 tsp of olive oil on top. bake 1 hour at 350. remove, add glaze and then bake for another 10 minutes (longer if temp has not reached 165 degrees).

prepare to be a fan of meatloaf.

p.s. - this is my happy meatloaf-making song. if you have it on repeat long enough it will likely add a bit of a bounce to your step.

;) 

Nikki

"a photograph is like a recipe - a memory the finished dish." - Carrie Latet