Katie Mathews Photography

The time has come…to unveil my new blog!!

2010-02-26T13:39:00.001-05:00

I can hardly stand it, I’m so excited. It’s time to finally launch my brand new photography blog!!!

Here’s the new address: www.katiemathews.com

“Run” over there right this second! There are lots of new changes and I’ve also announced a new contest – you could win a prize worth $900!!

Be sure to bookmark the new address!!

Getting Very Close….

2010-02-25T09:51:00.001-05:00

I am almost finished with the blog…almoooooost. With any luck, I can finish it this afternoon. But first, I get to go to the hospital and meet my newest client who was born yesterday, and then I get to go to the doctor…oh lucky me! haha. So keep watchin the blog for all the latest and greatest.

In the meantime….I dare you to look at this collage and not smile :)

Happy 3 month birthday, Lillian!

Monday Musings

2010-02-22T20:08:00.001-05:00

I really do have good intentions of blogging every single day. Yet, somehow the days get away from me!! So I thought I’d do a quick re-cap post.

1. I am still going to do my Fit and Fabulous Friday post on a weekly basis….starting this friday..lol. Seriously. I promise! It wasn’t because I did bad, it was because I couldn’t come up with a halfway decent pic of myself for the day that I said I would post. Guess I’d better work on that. But so far I have lost almost 13 pounds and 13.5 inches in just 3 weeks. My doc wanted me to lose 7 (in 6 weeks), so I am definitely doing good! Can’t wait to share here more about that as my journey continues.

2. My new logo is finished and I love love love it! My new blog is almost finished. I will be unveiling both this week along with all my new pricing and product options. There is also something new (that I know you’re going to like) that will be added on to every session I do!

3. When I unveil the new blog, I will also be announcing a new contest. It’s going to be good and the prize will be worth participating! Keep coming back this week for the big announcement!

4. My sister had to go back to work last week after her Maternity Leave. It has been adjustment for me too, because I now have a new helper in the office. Isn’t she cute?!?

My niece Lillian will be with me 3-4 days a week while her Mommy and Daddy are at work. Her spot will open up at daycare in the beginning of May. So if you talk to me on the phone in the next 2 months and hear a baby…that’s why :)

5. I have lots more to share but will have to do it later….I’ve got a new blog to put the finishing touches on so I can show it to you all!! Have a great week!!

Baby Stella

2010-02-08T14:24:00.001-05:00

As promised, I’m finally sharing some KMP photo sessions again! A couple of weeks ago, a friend of mine sent me an email asking me to pray for this family. A very dear friend of hers had just had a beautiful baby girl on New Year's Eve. Unfortunately, sweet Stella was born with a bone fracture in her skull, and, according to the MRI, had internal bleeding. When I got the email, my friend was asking for prayers as this family was going in for a 2nd MRI to check to see if the bleeding had ceased. So I did as I was asked and the next day I received another email…the prayers had been answered…they saw no sign of continued bleeding so baby Stella got to come home!! This story just touched me and I knew I wanted to meet this little miracle baby. So I had my friend contact her friend about me doing a newborn session for them. Baby Stella was as cute as could be and was amazing during her photos. Mom and I hit it off right off the bat and couldn’t stop talking the whole time..(shocker I know, for me!) We got some beautiful images, that I’m so blessed to be able to give to them.

Hillary, Jack and Stella – thank you for letting me share in this special moment with you as you celebrate(d) your beautiful baby girl!

Fit and Fabulous Friday

2010-02-05T16:24:00.001-05:00

Yes, this is still a photography blog. No, I haven’t blogged anything photography related all week. Yes, I’m trying to get into the new routine of my new healthy lifestyle. Yes, it’s overwhelming. Yes, it’s worth it. Yes, I’m still getting work done. No, this post isn’t going to be long. Yes, I’ll blog more client sessions next week. Yes, I know you can’t wait!

Ok, so I thought I’d start a new feature on the blog each week, called…you guessed it, “Fit and Fabulous Friday!” Totally original right?!? I’ve been planning it all week and had big big ideas and then I went to Pilates today (for the first time ever). Apparently you can get a really bad headache if you don’t breathe the right way?!? Um yea, leave it to me to not know how to breathe and end up with a monster headache. So this post will be short and sweet and much better next Friday cuz my head is throbbing. But I had to post today because, well, I couldn’t come up with a catchy title for Saturday!

I had a great first week. I have been tracking everything I eat and drinking lots of water. I’ve cut out almost all soda. (I had been drinking – gasp – 4 to 6 cans of regular soda daily! Gee, wonder where some of that weight came from?) I walked and/or did the Wii Fit activities and lost a whopping 7 pounds!!

Soooo… here are some of my “Fit” Tips for the week…things that I’ve been doing that I know work…

Drink your water!! At least 8 1-cup glasses a day is the recommended amount. And bonus…you’ll have to walk back and forth to the potty all the time so I’m sure you burn a few extra calories :)
Write down what you’re eating. It’s so easy to grab a handful of something here or there and not think anything of it. Wow…what an eye opener this week when I actually paid attention to this.
Not sure what a serving size is supposed to look like? Get out the measuring cups. I’ve been doing this and um yea…let’s just say I thought 1 serving before was like 2 or 3 servings in actuality.

Finally, here’s what’s on my “Fabulous” radar for this week….

Sparkpeople.com - This website is amaaazing and so helpful. It’s completely free. I can track what I eat, how much I exercise, how many glasses of water I drink etc and it’s super easy and fast. When I input my weight and my goals, it tells me an appropriate range of calories, fat, carbs, fiber, protein etc that I should have each day. So I know that if I eat w/in those ranges, and burn the recommended calories during cardio, I’m going to lose weight. They also have spark points. You earn points by doing things such as tracking your food etc and by posting on message boards, creating your own spark page (like a facebook page), and you earn different trophies. Yes, I’m a dork, because I love to earn my spark points..haha.
Down comforters, blankies, etc etc – It’s been cold here in Wilmington (in case you don’t live here) and I have been loving my new down comforter and throw blankets I got for Christmas – one even has fleece on one side. Awww…heaven! Can’t wait to snuggle up on the couch tonight w/my boys and my cozy blankets!
My I-pod. Since I work from home, if I want to listen to music I just listen to it right on my computer. I’ve had an Ipod for like 6 or 7 years, but it has been collecting dust for the last 3 years because I haven’t been working out. So it’s been really fun to listen to old playlists – especially the good ole 80’s tunes! Got a good workout tune? Share it in the comments!

One last thing I plan to include in this weekly feature is a picture of yours truly. I am always behind the camera rather than in front of it, yet that’s where you all are when you meet me (usually). Yesterday, I did a couple of headshots for Brian’s cousin and then handed over the camera and asked her to take a couple of me. I think she did a great job :) I need to learn to love this lady here in this picture so I need to look at her a little more often.

Thanks for reading and have a wonderful weekend!!

Katie

A Quickie

2010-02-03T21:04:00.001-05:00

Just wanted to post a quick update to say HI! I want to thank everyone for their positive feedback, comments and private emails I received on my last post. Go figure – I actually inspired a few people! :) Sweet! I did it for me, but if I can inspire anybody else, that’s bonus. But enough about that…

It’s my slow time of year, so I’ve had a little bit of much needed downtime. Still getting plenty of work done, but it’s not quite as stressful which is nice after the crazy Nov/Dec I always have. Anyway…not much to say..haha…just hi! Oh and I love this boy! He’s cute. Just sayin!

A Step in the Right Direction…

2010-01-29T13:02:00.001-05:00

One of the things I want to do with my blog this year is share more personal details about me. Sometimes they might be silly, other times, it may be embarassing/humbling etc, but I still want to share. So here goes… Yesterday I had a doctor’s appointment with my family doctor. After Christmas I had some blood work done and I knew it wasn’t going to be good. Sure enough, it wasn’t. It’s no secret…I’m a big girl. I’ve always struggled with my weight, but I have never ever been this big. Soon after Anthony was born, I began a healthy lifestyle…and lost almost 65 pounds. Then I fell down the steps in 2006 and broke my leg in 4 places..had a couple of surgeries and ended up wtih a lot of chronic pain etc etc. Well, when you go from working out 1-2 hours a day, 5-6 days a week, to being completely bed ridden for a month or two…weight comes back on pretty quick. Then the pain kept me from working out and I ate what I wanted. Basically it’s all catching up with me now. So after a rather humiliating doctor’s appointment yesterday (I love my doctor and I’m glad she told me like it is)… I was told if I don’t get this weight off, I’m going to continue to be in pain, diabetes is right around the corner and my fertility is already being affected. Ok…whew… so after some tears on the way home…I knew what I needed to do. I came home and changed clothes…and then dusted these things off…

After some some grunting and groaning…I finally got my shoes on (when you’re big it’s tough), grabbed a bottle of water and dusted off another necessity…

...got in the car…and drove to the park where I proceeded to crank up the music and go for a walk. After 5 minutes (I’m not kidding)… my feet were aching…OMG…what have I done to myself?? So after a few more tears…I kept on going…and you know what happened? I started feeling better with every step. I could feel God (and my Grandma, who died exactly 8 months ago yesterday) with me. With each breath I felt better and better. Yes, it was just a walk to most people, but for me it was a turning point. Instead of going home and eating a big bowl of ice cream and feeling sorry for myself because “the doctor was mean to me,” I took action and it felt great.

The rest of the afternoon consisted of making a shopping list and ridding the kitchen/pantry of allll the junk. Luckily I have an amazing husband who is completely on board and said he needs to get back to eating better too, so he was cool with it. Then Anthony and I went grocery shopping after school and got lots of yummy healthy food! The kitchen is now stocked! (OK a couple of those items below are for Anthony’s lunch..haha) (Also, I already had tons of chicken and other lean meats in the freezer.)

I also spent some time online last night and tracked everything I ate….took some “start” pictures of myself (Oh Lord help me), took measurements etc. I wanted to share here because I think it will help me to have some accountability. To know that I just embarrassed myself and shared this with a lot of people will hopefully keep me headed in the right direction. I would love to hear your comments, tips, etc. On this post especially, please don’t read and not comment..I would love to “hear” your support since I put myself out there :)

This a.m….I’ve already been out for another walk…and it was easier than yesterday! I’ve tracked my food so far and am planning out the rest of the day. It feels good to be headed in the right direction to a healthy lifestyle and hopefully an addition to our family when I am healthy enough. As one of my friends joked…. (and I love it)..just think “Diet to Diapers!” HA!!

Thanks for reading and have a great weekend!

So I was wondering….

2010-01-26T11:48:00.001-05:00

Am I the only one who can’t seem to keep this beast under control?!?!?

In other news, I’ve been hard at work on my brand new blog, logo and website…it’s gonna be awesome and I can’t wait to share!!!

Brandi + Tony = Looooove

2010-01-22T12:15:00.001-05:00

Have you ever met somebody that you just hit it off with right away? That’s what happened with Brandi and I, although I didn’t actually meet her until about 6 weeks later. Back in December, Brandi sent me an email asking me about doing a homecoming session for her and her boyfriend because I volunteer for an organization called “Operation Love Reunited.” (I’ve mentioned it before). Well I wasn’t going to be able to do the homecoming session, but I told her that I’d be happy to do a session here in Wilmington for them in January. So over the next couple of weeks, she and I emailed and chatted on Facebook (a lot!) We couldn’t wait to meet! We got together last Friday for a fantastic photo session which I can’t wait to share with you, but first let me give you some background on how Brandi and Tony met.

Brandi is a flight attendant. Tony is a marine. Last January, Brandi was working on a flight that was dropping some Marines off in Kuwait and long story short…Brandi and Tony met and exchanged email addresses…as he was getting off the plane! They corresponded for months and in late August, he came home for his 2 week R&R and he spent the whole time with her. They are now in loooove and so cute!

It was only appropriate that for their photo session, Brandi wore her flight attendant uniform and Tony wore his Dress Blues.

I made sure to take pics of each of them individually, since Tony is in NC and Brandi splits her time between Texas (her home) and Minnesota (where she flys out of) and around the world. That way they will each have some pics of their honey to stare at..haha.

This next picture was Tony’s idea…I love it!

After our time downtown, we went back to their hotel for them to change clothes and then we headed over to Mayfaire.

So Brandi love love loves to read and there’s a story about a certain book that she sent to Tony in Iraq that he started reading and didn’t realize it was a girly book (OK, it was Twilight..haha)..I thought it would be cute to take a couple of pics incorporating that book, so we went to Barnes and Noble. And promptly got kicked out. They said we couldn’t take pics in there, so we had to settle for pics outside of the store..haha. It wouldn’t have been so bad except the young woman who kicked us out was kinda rude and demeaning, but whatever.

Brandi and Tony.. I had so much fun with you and can’t wait to see you again. I wish you both much love and happiness. And of course, Tony, thank you for your service to our country!

If you want to see more pics from their session, I made a little slideshow here.

Have a great weekend everyone!!

The Toret Family

2010-01-20T20:05:00.001-05:00

I still have just a few sessions left to share from 2009….so hopefully I can wrap them up within the week. I did pics for the Toret family back in October. The kiddos were a lot of fun and very silly. I love the ones of all 3 kids with each parent….they are definitely loved!

(Yes, I’m a woman of few words tonight..lol…just can’t think of much to say..)

Valentines Day Mini Sessions

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WOOPS: Forgot to put on there…you also receive 20%

off additional prints!!!

A Bunch of Randomness

2010-01-16T20:50:00.001-05:00

So I thought I’d share a bunch of random tidbits….because I can…

I have blogged 37 (38 w/this one) times this month already. Last year…I only blogged 82 times total. Pitiful. Glad I’m well on my way to blasting that number out of the water in 2010!
We got a Wii for Christmas. We love it! We play it a lot! But not too much.
This week our heat went out, our internet went out and the car was broken. All in 24 hours.
We have had our puppy, Scooby Doo for a year this month. He was 4 months old when we got home, so technically, he is still a puppy…or a teenager..or something like that.
We had visitors here from Minnesota over the past week. My cousins, Megan (21) and Emily (19)…we had tons of fun. When Megan graduates in May she might move here…we’re trying to talk her into bringing Emily too :)
Last week, we went bowling with the MN visitors (and my Mom). We had a blast and it was the first time my Mom had bowled in over 20 years..she was actually good. I beat everybody in the first game. That never ever happens. My score went steadily downhill over the next 3 games.
Anthony is out of school on Monday, so we’re taking a mini vacation to Myrtle Beach tomorrow. We’re going to stay at a resort with an indoor water park. Anthony doesn’t even know we’re going. It’s not Disney, but he’s going to be pretty surprised. I plan to have a great time..just sayin.
I like to read trashy smut books, so after I publish this post, I’m going to go snuggle up on the couch with my new favorite down blanket and read. I might even get a cute 6 yr old boy to snuggle with me while he watches cartoons. If I’m really lucky, an 80 pound puppy will also snuggle with us. Yea, that’s pretty much a given.

Here’s some pics with regards to the above…

Anthony skateboarding on the Wii/Balance Board…he’s actually pretty good at it…

Anthony & Daddy have been playing the Legos Star Wars Game on the Wii..I thought it was funny the other night to walk in there and see both animals laying with Brian and the 2 of them playing. (I’m trying hard to remember to take personal pics of every day life.)

Wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii…… The day the heat was out, Diana and Lillian were at the house (along with my cousins)…we were playing the (you guessed it) Wii all day and ordered pizza and just bummed out. Since there was no heat, everybody snuggled under blankets including Lillian and Diana…

Here’s little baby Scooby when we got him last January at 4 months old….

And here he is now….Such a big boy! I never thought I’d be an animal person but I sure love my puppy!

Since my sister is still on maternity leave, when the girls (From MN) were here, we hung out at my house a lot during the day to play Wii and I would work in my office while everybody alternating playing games and holding baby Lillian. Here’s Megan…the future RN!

And here’s one of the pics from bowling…

Finally, just a cute picture of my boy that I took tonight…isn’t he handsome? :) That’s it! Have a great rest of the weekend…I won’t be blogging tomorrow, but might on Monday..depends on what time we get back from Myrtle Beach.

TGIF

2010-01-15T22:59:00.001-05:00

So it’s Friday night and I’m about to fall asleep, but since I’ve done so good with blogging daily, I just had to pop on here and do a quick post. I’m almost caught up with sharing all of my 2009 sessions – yay! I should be able to wrap them up next week. In the meantime, I had such a fun session today with 2 super sweet people. Some of you may have seen this on facebook already and I will give the full story later, but a year ago tomorrow…

Flight attendant & handsome marine…meet on a flight to IRAQ! After a year together via email, phone and a 2 week R&R..they are in loooove….

Here’s a quick pic with many more to follow…

I have a shoot in the a.m. so I’m going to bed..night!

Emily and Stephen – Part 2

2010-01-14T20:42:00.001-05:00

As mentioned in Part 1, Emily and Stephen got married in September outside in a tent…on the side of a mountain…in the rain. There really was nowhere indoor to take photos, so we got creative. The first few here are from the house where the girls got ready. Luckily on the side of their house was a covered walkway between the house and the garage, so we stayed dry and used some of the brick as a back drop. Emily was such a trooper and kept a smile on her face 99.9% of the day and didn’t let the weather spoil her special day. She looked radiant…

I hadn’t met Emily’s Mom before, but by the time we left, we were calling her Mama too. She is such a sweetheart and really made us feel like part of the family instead of just the “hired help.” Thanks, Mama Pruitt!

A few more pre-ceremony photos. We had hoped to do a lot more than we ended up doing, but that’s ok, we made it work! You can see in the back of some of the pictures, the misty weather. I think that actually adds to the pics since it was definitely not bright, sunny and dry! I love love love this next picture of Emily and her Dad. I think it’s so sweet how he was helping her keep her dress dry.

Finally, it was time to head up to the venue. It was still raining so some people had to park at the bottom and be driven up the mountain in 4 wheel drive vehicles. Luckily I was with the girls and we rode in a big ole pick up! The plan was to get married on another part of this land to the left of the tent, but with the bad weather, the ceremony was moved underneath. So many helpers made the change quickly and it was beautiful. The bridal party came down the hill, with their umbrellas..luckily everybody stayed upright :) I love the next 2 of Emily and her Dad.

Hopefully they won’t kill me for posting this one, but I just love it. I love capturing raw emotion. Their friends had just finished singing a song written just for them and they got choked up.

Yay! They’re married; seal it with a kiss!

Some of the details… Emily and Stephen had a really fun wedding party and they didn’t mind getting a little wet! Carlie and Leah bought matching umbrellas for the wedding party the day before since it was looking like it was going to keep raining, so they were perfect for pictures! If it had been nice weather, Emily and her Dad would’ve crossed this bridge to “walk down the aisle..” Everybody else would’ve come in from a different side. So I wanted to make sure to utilize the bridge in some of the pics… Emily and Stephen are so cute together… they are so in looove…but they also do lots of laughing with (and at..) each other..haha. The groomsmen came up with this one all on their own..I just hit the shutter…

The reception was fairly short because of the weather (it was a bit chilly along w/the rain)….but they still had their first dance together…

Finally, as things were winding down, somebody brought out the bubbles… Emily and Stephen, thank you for having Brian and I document your special day! It was an absolute honor and you and your families treated us so wonderfully. I’m sure you’ll find Brian sitting out on the dock one day when it warms up, fishing. haha :) I wish you all the best!

Katie and Matt – Baby On The Way

2010-01-13T20:06:00.001-05:00

I love my job! Have I said that lately? One of the fun things I get paid to do is attend parties and take pictures, eat yummy food and hang out with awesome people. It’s rough I tell you! I had the opportunity to do the party thang this past weekend when Carlie and Leah (pals with Emily, of Emily-and-Stephen’s-wedding-on-the-side-of-the-mountain and Katie, the mommy to be) threw a shower for Katie (and Matt). The shower was at Carlie’s step-dad’s house, right on the water. It had lots and lots of windows and a beautiful view, so even though it was only like 30 degrees, Katie & Matt braved the elements for about a 5 minute photo session outside before the guests arrived.

I bet you can’t guess how far along this mommy-to-be is, can you? Ok I’ll tell you..she’s 34 weeks….isn’t she gorgeous?? I couldn’t believe she was that far along!!

After the pics, we headed inside for the party. It was small and intimate and so much fun. They didn’t do traditional party games but one of the activities they had was cookie decorating – great idea!

They also had yummy food and super cute decorations! The baby’s room has a fish decor going on, so that’s why they did some decorating with the bath toys!

If you want to see all the pictures from the shower, click here for the slideshow.

In a couple weeks, we will be getting together for a full maternity session; I can’t wait!

By the way, is anybody else shocked that I’ve posted 2 blogs this week that are from CURRENT sessions? OMG!!

The Sheesley Family

2010-01-12T13:22:00.001-05:00

Happy Tuesday! I hope everyone is staying warm during yet another chilly day. It’s supposed to warm up by the end of the week, so we’ll see. I have another great share today. The Sheesley family is absolutely adorable. I can’t stress enough how nice it looks when families coordinate and don’t match. I always say, if you wouldn’t be seen walking down the street together on a “regular” day wearing what you’re wearing for pics, then that is not you (and your family!) Wear something that represents you!

They told me they don’t photograph well, but I beg to differ!!

It was time for a quick wardrobe change and I about died when I saw her adorable outfit!!!! Love the boots, love the dress, love the hat!!

One more change of clothes and we played with bubbles and closed out the session with some pics of her reading in her room..so cute!

The Alexander Family

2010-01-11T21:02:00.001-05:00

Oh my goodness, I can NOT wait to show you the pics from this session. I shared one a while back, but I have many many more. Little Avery is so adorable!!! I had never met them before our holiday session and I sure hope that isn’t the last time I see them. I’m sure Avery will just continue to get cuter and cuter. Ok enough gushing..check out the pics of this baby doll (oh yea, and of her Mom and Dad and doggies)…

Whew! I know…it was a lot of pics..but I just couldn’t decide which ones to share!! Hope it was worth it :)

Jerry The Graduate

2010-01-11T20:17:00.001-05:00

I’ll share some more of Emily and Stephen’s wedding tomorrow, but for now, I want to share pics from my “biggest fan!” Seriously, that’s how he signs his emails to me – I admit, I love it! Jerry is such a super duper nice guy! In December, Jerry graduated from Mount Olive with a degree in Healthcare Management, so he wanted to mark the occasion with some photos. We only had a short window because we were losing light and it was chilly, but we still rocked it out. I’m sure many of you have seen these since he has shown them to the whole world..haha…but for those who haven’t…you’re in for a treat….

I can’t remember what year he told me he started going to college…it was in the 90s sometime…and this hat was significant because he bought it the first year of college and has kept it (and worn it, as you can tell) this whole time. I love pics that have a meaningful touch to them! Congratulations, Jerry! I can’t wait to do some more soon :)

Emily and Stephen – September 26, 2009 – Part 1

2010-01-11T09:54:00.001-05:00

Oh where do I begin? Back in the Spring, I decided to give away a free wedding. Well not the whole wedding, but at least the photography coverage. Emily and Stephen were the big winners with the majority of the vote! Click here to read their story.

So, on Friday, September 25th, my hubby and drove up to Hickory for the big wedding weekend. Ironically, I had photographed a wedding in Hickory, NC exactly a year previously. When we got to the hotel we were pleasantly surprised by a super duper cute gift basket that Emily and her mom had put together for us. It had all kinds of local goodies..breads they had made, jellies, coffee mugs, chocolate...it was so so nice!

After freshening up a bit, it was time to head up the mountain (yes, I said mountain) for the rehearsal. There was only one problem..it had been raining all day..and the wedding (and rehearsal) was outside. Well, the show must go on so in between rain showers we still had the rehearsal and then came up with a back up plan for the next day if it continued to rain. The venue was absolutely gorgeous, so on a selfish note, I was praying for good weather because I wanted to take some fabulous pictures.

Fast forward to Saturday morning...

The girls picked me up at the hotel (the hubby got to go fishing) and after a quick trip to Starbucks we met the rest of the girls at the nail salon. Unfortunately..it was still raining. Uggh.

The girls got their nails done..

After getting the nails done, it was time for the bridal luncheon. This sweet sweet woman, named Ruby, from their church wanted to have a luncheon for Emily and her girls. Her house was decorated so pretty for fall and she brought out all the fine china. The food was heavenly! Ms Ruby entertained us with her many stories from being a concierge for a major airline and told us about all the famous people she had met, etc. It was so fun!

After lunch, it was time to get the hair done. The hair salon was so cute, there was only like 3-4 chairs and we were the only ones there so it was great for being able to take pics.

After everybody got their hair did, it was time to head up the mountain. Did I mention it was still raining? Did I mention that the wedding and the reception were outdoors and it was about 60 degrees?? Just sayin.

In any case, we went to a family friend’s house where she had a big beautiful bathroom for the girls to get ready in. Before getting made up, there was about an hour where the girls (and moi) got to chill out on the couches (under blankets) and watch football. These girls are big into their college football!

Time to put on the dress! Emily’s grandmother made her dress. It was gorgeous and just perfect for her.

Right before the dress went on, the girls gave Emily the gift that Stephen had sent for her – a beautiful necklace. Here she is showing Grandma...

Since her Grandmother made the dress, I think it was only appropriate that she help get her dressed, along with Carlie, the Maid of Honor.

Since it was still raining, and the wedding was on a mountain, outdoors (have I mentioned that before)..Emily opted to wear her boots. I love it!! It was all Emily!

As you can tell, it was a big weekend and there are lots of pics to share, so I’ve decided to split the blog posts up into 2 or 3. Up next..you get to see how creative we got with formal pics, since the wedding was on the side of a mountain, outdoors, in the rain :)

Greg & Stephanie

2010-01-10T13:32:00.001-05:00

I have worked with Greg before on some website projects. He owns his own company, Ford Design (they do logos, websites, etc). He’s been great to work with and so when his wife Stephanie called (at the last minute..haha) for some holiday pictures, I was more than happy to squeeze them in for a mini session. We met down at the beach on the most gorgeous evening in November. We said it was probably the last nice day of the year and sure enough it was! It was in the 70s and had a beautiful sunset – perfect.

Katie Jones

2010-01-10T13:13:00.001-05:00

Another repeat client is, Ms adorable-as-can-be, Katie Jones. I’ve been doing pics of her for a while now and I love it! She is so stinkin cute and Mom always puts her in the cutest outfits. This mini session was actually supposed to have been done when I was doing fall minis but we had to keep rescheduling because of the rain and eventually Halloween was long gone, so we just did a “fall” session instead. I think they turned out great!

I really do have a tough job, but somebody’s gotta do it! :)

The Enright Family

2010-01-10T13:04:00.001-05:00

We had to do a couple of reschedules to get this session in but boy was it worth it! I probably say this all the time, but this was such a cute family!! Even the dog was cute – haha! I love love love the color scheme….blue is one of my favorite colors and pink is the other so I was a happy camper. This was another one of my downtown mini sessions on a fall Saturday morning. I hope I get to work with the Enrights again – hopefully a full session this time because I know it would be a blast!

The Chapman Family

2010-01-10T12:46:00.001-05:00

A while back I did maternity pics for Amy and then some hospital pics when baby Kenny was born. Now it was time for a family picture of the 4 of them. We met downtown on a chilly morning to do a mini shoot. Charlotte is just cute as can be and quite the model. Kenny wasn’t too sure about things, so I didn’t get many smiles out of him, but he’s still a cutie pie. Maybe next time :)

The Mueller Boys

2010-01-10T10:42:00.001-05:00

I love photographing these next 2 kiddos. They are just a riot…totally silly and yet the youngest especially turns into such a little model when I turn my camera on him. I did a mini session of them last year too…they’ve grown so much!

Mom has a sense of humor, she picked this one for her Holiday Card!

Mom jumped in for a couple with her boys…I just love this one!

The Cornwall Family

2010-01-10T10:23:00.001-05:00

Next up, another of my holiday mini sessions. The Cornwall family recently welcomed baby Madeline to the family and wanted some new pics of all 5 of them. Mom is a photographer herself, but it’s always hard to take the pics and be in them at the same time!

These girls are just adorable….and I loved the clothes they (aka Mom) chose! I’m a big fan of not being matchy match in pics and I love color, so they all compliment each other really nicely!

The Brown Family

2010-01-10T10:10:00.001-05:00

Good Sunday Morning to you! We went to church last night, so I’m enjoying some at home time this a.m. rocking out to some tunes and doing some blogging (and editing). My boys are playing the Wii and it’s chilly outside…so we’re all under blankets in here..love it!

The next family I’m going to share with you is the Brown family. I had never met them before our mini session. Unfortunately because it was a mini session, little man took a little while to warm up to me so we weren’t able to get as many shots as I would’ve liked, but when I got home and looked at the pics, I was really happy with them. I just love that they are so real!

Brown family, I hope I get a chance to do a longer session for you….I know we would have fun!

Rylee, Mollie & Charley Bell

2010-01-09T20:37:00.001-05:00

Up next, another one of my holiday mini sessions. Last fall I did a mini session for Charley Bell. (I can’t find the link right now but it’s from last fall.haah). Anyways….I was happy when Mom called and wanted to do another session with me and this time bring her cousins along. All 3 of these girls were absolute naturals! I could’ve taken their pictures all day long….check out all this cuteness…

The Gance Family

2010-01-09T16:08:00.001-05:00

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. I just got home from photographing a baby shower. (Pics will be shared later!)

For now, I thought I’d share one of my holiday mini sessions. The Gance family is always a pleasure to work with. They are a lot of fun and they always have little Sophie dressed in the CUTEST outfits!!!! We went to the Arboretum on a beautiful, but crisp Saturday morning and got some great stuff in just 20 minutes!

The Twins are Back….

2010-01-08T21:41:00.001-05:00

I’m going to do a crazy thing today...blog a session before it’s more than 2 weeks old (gasp!) So remember these two cutie patooties from this summer? Well they are now 6 months old and cute as ever. Mom contacted me and begged me to do a photo session over “Christmas Break” when their family was going to be in town, so I happily obliged. Would I want to see those adorable twins again? Yes, please!

We accomplished the impossible...a picture of both of them smiling at the same time! Granted, they’re not both looking at the camera, but let’s not get too picky here!

Next up, a cousin picture. The big cousins travelled like 18 hours I think it was to spend Christmas with these little ones.

Mom & Dad…still standing (and smiling) after 6 months with twins!

I didn’t do individual pics of the babies this time, except for this one of Mirabelle while we were waiting for the boys to get in position – I couldn’t resist…she was just looking at me with those big beautiful eyes!

This is Dave’s (the twin’s daddy) sister and her family – such nice people!

The big cousins absolutely adored the twins, it was so cute!!

Tim & Lynn – Engaged!

2010-01-07T21:30:00.001-05:00

Well I haven’t gotten too many comments on the blog, but people have been emailing me individually telling me they are enjoying the blog-o-thon so I’m glad!

Next up is Tim and Lynn. They are getting married in June and yours truly is their wedding photographer. The wedding will take place here in Wilmington – it should be a lot of fun. We broke their engagement session up into 2 nights because they wanted some downtown and some on their boat and at Masonboro Island. We had such a blast! We did the beach pics on a Friday and met the next day to do downtown pics.

Tim & Lynn – thanks for choosing me to be your wedding photographer – I can’t wait to capture your big day for you!

So I started this earlier today, and then got super busy. I did a shoot and then I have family here in town and by the time I’m getting back to this now at 9:30pm…I finished it…but I’m tired…and I have a headache and I’m going to bed. So I didn’t get a ton of posts done today – just this one..but I’ll make up for it tomorrow :) Night!

The King Family

2010-01-06T22:01:00.001-05:00

This is my 7th post tonight in my mission to get caught up on sharing my 2009 sessions w/in the next week. My stats are higher than usual, so I assume people are looking at them :) Let me know in the comments below if you’re enjoying seeing the pics or if it’s boring or what..lol. Cuz inquiring minds want to know….lol.

Next up is the King family. Their girls are so cute and were really well behaved. I am so lucky..I have such great families I get to work with!

My Little Brother and His Wifey….

2010-01-06T21:43:00.001-05:00

When we were in MN, I did a little photo shoot for my brother and his wife, Jenny – the bestest sister in law in the whole wide world :) We went to this cool little place called, “Murphy’s Landing.”

The Landing – Minnesota River Heritage Park, formerly Historic Murphy's Landing, was established in 1969. This 88-acre living history museum depicts life in the Lower Minnesota River Valley from the 1840s–1890s with authentic 19th-century buildings, demonstrations and a scenic river trail and overlook. Original site features include Major Murphy's inn and ferry crossing, the Pond Grist Mill, and a river overlook wall constructed by the Works Progress Administration. The mission of the park is to interpret how people, for thousands of years, have connected with the Minnesota River and its surrounding natural and cultural resources.

Unfortunately by the time we got there, they were done giving tours and we only had about an hour to wander around on our own, so the place was pretty much deserted. But that didn’t stop us from getting some cool pictures. Love you guys!

The Buechler Kiddos

2010-01-06T21:34:00.001-05:00

Ironically, my husband has a cousin that lives in Minnesota too. A few years ago, his cousin Ginger (born and raised in NC) met a guy that was from MN…he has 2 kids from a previous marriage so when they got married, she moved up there. A little over a year ago, they had James – who has also appeared on the blog before. So when we went to MN in October, we went to their house for an evening and did some pics and had dinner with them. It was fun to hang out with them at their house since we usually see them when they come down here. It was really cold and rainy the afternoon/evening we went over there so these pics were done super quick, but I still think we got some winners!

The Schneiders

2010-01-06T21:23:00.001-05:00

My cousin, Nikki also wanted me to do a photo session of her 3 kiddos. Once again, it was a lot of fun to spend time with family that we don’t get to see very often. I think I said about a thousand times “I can’t believe you’re so old”..I’m sure they loved that! haha

And finally, my beautiful cousin Nikki – love you!! :)

Zach – Senior Pictures

2010-01-06T21:16:00.001-05:00

One of the other sessions I did while in MN was my cousin Zach’s senior pictures. I was so excited to get to do these for him because he is my Godson and I just can’t believe he’s old enough to be a senior in high school! I moved to NC almost 12 years ago, so he was only a little older than Anthony is now. Unfortunately we don’t get to see each other often enough…we’re lucky if we see the family once a year, so it was so much fun to spend some time with him. His Mom, my cousin, Nikki and Brian and I (and of course Zach) went to the Nature Center that Nikki used to work at and wandered around taking pics – there was lots of laughing and even a few pics taken!

Jana & Jesse

2010-01-06T21:03:00.001-05:00

Back in October, my hubby and I took a trip. It was totally spur of the moment. We flew to Minnesota because my parents were buying my Grandma’s car (she passed away back in May)…and somebody had to drive the car from MN to NC…so Brian and I volunteered. Anthony stayed with my parents for the week because he had to go to school and we flew up there one way….saw lots of family and friends and I did a few photo shoots while we were there. First up was my cousin Jana and her boyfriend Jesse….they are now engaged…so congrats to them….

The McCain Family

2010-01-06T20:41:00.001-05:00

This fall, one of my absolute favorite families from last year called me to do some new pictures of their beautiful girls. We were going to go out on the boat like last year but that didn’t work out, so instead I went to their house. We had so much fun! They have a beautiful home and have a pond in the backyard so that made for a great backdrop. In addition, the girls had fun playing on their swings/slide….kids always do great when we do pictures at home because they are comfortable and in their own environment! It was a couple weeks before Halloween so Tricia (mom) brought out the Halloween costumes for a couple of shots and then we ended with dance outfits. I can’t wait to do it again!

I love, love, love this one!! And apparently Mom and Dad did too because they ordered it – HUUUUGE! I can’t wait to see how it turned out when they got it framed…I bet it’s beautiful!!

Another of my faves, although I’m sure Chris will kill me for posting this one….he is such a good Daddy and so good with those cute l’il girls!

The Scarola Girls

2010-01-05T19:18:00.001-05:00

Ok get ready for some super duper cuteness. These girlies are absolutely adorable and we had so much fun at their session. In fact their mommy told me this when she saw the pics…. “You are my forever photographer. You can never ever move away! I don’t know how you do it!” How cool is that? I love my job…I’m so lucky :)

So here’s the cuteness….

I love that you can see the reflection of Mom and Dad in the glass – they were jumping around trying to get the girls to smile…love it!

She’s a natural….

The Edwards Family

2010-01-05T18:54:00.001-05:00

In Feb 08, I met up with Tanya and Ryan to do some maternity pictures….this past September when baby Landen turned 6 months old, we went out to the beach to do some new family pictures. One of the things I love about my job is getting to meet so many wonderful people. More times than not we become “friends” on facebook and it’s so fun to watch the kiddos grow (in between sessions). Landen was such a good boy for the session…..6 months is one of my very favorite ages to do pics. They are sitting up and giggly as can be. The only downside is they put everything in their mouth – including handfuls of sand! haha

I don’t know about you, but these pics are making me wish for warmer temperatures!!!!!

Jill, Craig & Harrison

2010-01-05T18:40:00.001-05:00

Up next, another awesome family from this fall. Little Harrison was such a cutie pie and was so good during the session. He’s at that age where he’s not moving too quickly (by now I’m sure he’s running, since this was from September!) We had really pretty skies that evening…that’s always a plus. You can tell this little guy sure is loved!

Nikki – Senior Session

2010-01-05T18:05:00.001-05:00

Back in September, I did some senior pics for a really nice young lady that travelled all the way down here from Garner, NC! She and her Mom (and 2 friends) walked around Wrightsville Beach with me and stopped at various spots for pics. She was super organized and had all of her different outfits with matching accessories etc. She was an absolute natural in front of the camera which made my job super easy. We also lucked out and got the most beautiful sunset at the end.

I don’t do many senior sessions, but they are a ton of fun, so if you or anyone you know is graduating this year or next, contact me about becoming a senior rep (you can get your session for FREE and earn print credits as well!)

Cousins

2010-01-05T17:44:00.001-05:00

Last December (2008) I photographed the Phifer Family. This past September I had the pleasure of photographing them again, but this time it was just the girls and they brought along their cousins. We went back to the park and the girls that last year we weren’t sure how they were going to do w/me (a stranger) were like little models…they did such a great job. I love repeat clients…it’s so fun watching all of these kids grow up!

The Beasley Family

2010-01-05T17:20:00.001-05:00

At the end of August, I met the Beasley family down at the Carolina Beach boardwalk for their session and we continued it onto the beach. We have been trying to do this session for almost 2 years….but with hectic schedules all around this was the first chance to do it. This is such a fun family and so sweet! I love doing sessions at the boardwalk..there’s just something about it….

Baby It’s Cold Outside…

2010-01-05T16:47:00.001-05:00

Most of you probably know, I grew up in Northern Minnesota. When they show the coldest place in the country usually it’s in International Falls, MN. I lived about 2 hours from there at the tip of Lake Superior (in Duluth)…where it’s super duper cold. When I was 21 (I think) we took a family cruise to the Bahamas. What?? There are places that are warm? With no snow? Who knew?!? So when I graduated from college a year later I got my happy butt down to the beach here in Wilmington. That was 12 years ago. Well after 12 years, I have become a complete wuss about cold, so this windchill in the teens and twenties here is way too cold for me – we’ve been staying inside bundled up as much as possible!! Hopefully it’ll warm up soon….

So anyway…here’s some images to warm you up….sweet baby Henry was born back in August….such a cutie pie….he stayed awake almost the entire session. I guess he didn’t want to miss anything!

These next 2 are some of my favorites because of the family memories associated with it. I hope I remember this right now that it’s been so long, but this blanket was made by Audra’s (the Mommy) grandmother when she was a baby. So when she brought it out for the session I was so excited.

Fast forward about 4 months and I did some pics for this sweet family again and this time we added Audra’s sister and her husband. Unfortunately it was the coldest day of the year (until now!) so it was pretty chilly especially out on the beach. But they were all troopers, especially little Henry!

I love these 2 pics since my sis and I are so close…you could tell these two had a special relationship too!

Funky

2010-01-04T21:26:00.001-05:00

Hmm… a couple of those pics look kinda funky when I posted them on here…oh well…. I’ll try to fix it tomorrow :) Night!

The Allen Family

2010-01-04T21:24:00.001-05:00

Another mini session I did back in August….

The kids were a lot of fun…they were a little rowdy..but they were having fun so I didn’t mind a bit…makes the pics more fun!

Here’s one all sweet and innocent….

And 2 seconds later…

And another one of Mom and the kiddos…

Mini sessions are perfect for families…they only take 15-20 minutes and the session fee is less! But we still have fun and get great shots! Stay tuned for my 2010 pricing guide….mini sessions will be available more often throughout the year!

Monday, Monday….

2010-01-04T20:48:00.001-05:00

As the first Monday of the year is coming to a close…I’m indulging in one of my guilty pleasures – watching the Bachelor and eating Oreos…(ok 2 guilty pleasures). I thought now would be a good time to do some blog posts. I have about 50 sessions to share…seriously. I got so far behind but I really want to share them anyway….so I’m going to just do a little blog-o-thon over the next week and post about 5-7 sessions each day. My goal is to be current in a week so I can share new stuff. I’m also working on my fresh, new blog and website….yay!!

So first up for your viewing pleasure is the Pugh girls…. I did a mini session with them on the beach back in August (gasp!) Then the littlest one turned a year old a few weeks later and I did a few pics of her in her cute l’il tutu!

A Change of Scenery…

2010-01-03T21:27:00.001-05:00

I spend a lot of time in my office. We’re talking about 2/3 of my waking hours. Over the past 6 months I’ve been blessed to be able to make some changes to my cozy little space. First…back in July I desperately needed to get rid of the yellow….so we painted it a pretty blue. Then about 2 months ago, my business was doing so well (thank you very much) that I was able to purchase a new computer. It was needed desperately. It has allowed my productivity to soar through the roof! I didn’t realize how bad it was until I got the new one. Then this weekend….I felt the need to upgrade my desk when my husband pointed out that mine was literally falling apart. I had had it since high school. It moved across the country with me and then probably through at least 10 more moves within NC/SC. At one point it even fell out of the back of a pick up truck (during one of the moves)..lol. So we got me some new furniture yesterday! We worked hard to get it all put the desk together (yes, I helped for 5+ hours) and at almost midnight last night, my geek squad (aka Brian) hooked up all my stuff….except there was one problem. My monitor was dead. Whaaaaat?? We tried it on numerous computers (there are many in our house..haha)…and it didn’t work on any. Well, crap. So this a.m. I became the proud owner of a new 23” widescreen LCD monitor that I loooooove. Soooo….just thought I’d share a couple before/after pics.

I can’t believe I’m even going to show this before picture… it’s awful..lol

And now…..

I actually have room to spare….the bookcase still has 2 shelves that are empty…. and the top of my desk has room for framed pics or some other kinda cutesy items. Unbelievable..

Thank you to my wonderful hubby for putting up with me and all my spontaneous projects :)

Back to school and work tomorrow for the Mathews household….I’m kinda glad.

Happy New Year!!

2010-01-01T21:37:00.001-05:00

Wow! Hard to believe that it’s 2010…where does the time go? We had a rough year in 2009 but also had many many blessings. I am so grateful to have a loving family and to get to do what I am passionate about every single day! I’m not big on resolutions, but I one thing I want to do is try to blog more. I love to read other people’s blogs so hopefully one or two people like to read mine. I still have tons of client sessions to share and hope to get those caught up relatively quickly. In the meantime, I thought I’d share how we rang in the New Year. Brace yourself…it was pretty lively :)

Last night, Brian, Anthony and I went over to my Mom and Dad’s house to have dinner with them and Diana (my sis), Ed (her hubby)and the kids (Lillian and Edwin). We feasted on the most glorious meal – thick, juicy steaks with mushrooms and onions….a yummy salad…fresh bread…baked potatoes and cookies and pie for dessert. Mmmmmmmmmm…so good. After dinner we spent lots of time laughing at the kiddos. They keep us entertained for sure. One of the other things I want to do more of in the coming year is take more pictures for myself. I get so caught up in taking pics/capturing memories for other families..I tend to forget my own!! So I broke out the camera and what happened? Edwin and Anthony started playing the game…"Don’t let Katie/Mommy take my picture!!” They ran all over the place….

After a little while, I got them to look at the camera and smile…well, at least Edwin did… (notice the brownie mouth!)

And then because nothing says Happy New Year like a 2 year old “beating up” a 6 year old…..Edwin pounced all over Anthony like usual. It’s pretty funny to watch. Note: no children were harmed in the making of these photos….:)

Finally, to add to the craziness we brought our new Wii console and games over. I get teased on facebook because most of my statuses since Christmas have said something about playing the Wii in them..but it is so darn fun. I think my current favorite is Mario Kart…it’s addicting!! I keep saying “Ok last race and then I’m going to bed…. (or whatever else I’m supposed to do)” and then I find myself hitting “Next Race.” Anthony loves it because he and I are usually playing together and then he gets to stay up later too!

The first game we got out last night was boxing. We laughed so hard. Ed started it out against Anthony….on other days, Anthony had beat me, Brian and Diana….but Uncle Ed was a bit too much for him! Uncle Ed won!

Diana recorded the action which should be pretty hilarious. Then she turned the camera on me….what was she thinking? haha….so I took a pic of her taking a picture..yes, I’m a dork!

Uncle Brian and Edwin watched the action closely… Look at Edwin’s red cheeks – he was so sweaty from all of the running around!

The next match….Ed & Brian…I’ll let the pics tell you who won!

And then Pappy had to get in on the action…. he did really good and almost beat Ed…but Ed prevailed…

Diana and I played the last round of boxing, but I hid the camera…..I didn’t want proof of me losing to my little sister!! haha

Just a few more pics of the cute boys….I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family. We missed my brother and sister in law, but this is their year to come at Thanksgiving instead of Christmas (from Minnesota)…so we saw them about a month ago….but it never feels “complete” without them.

Happy New Year!

Anticipation….

2009-12-23T15:27:00.001-05:00

The presents are wrapped…..the tree/house is decorated….the candles are lit…the Christmas music is playing….it’s my favorite time of year!!!! I can’t believe that tomorrow is already December 24th! Where has this year gone?!? We haven’t had the easiest year in our family but we sure have been blessed! Today is a special day for me…exactly 6 months ago today I made a life changing decision (which I won’t be sharing the details of…) but I am so very thankful today. My life is so much better and I just can’t wait to celebrate the birth of Jesus with my family and friends! I am absolutely giddy…I don’t know who is more excited…me? or my 6 year old? haha

I’ll be taking some time off over the next 2 weeks to spend with friends and family, but will still check email and hopefully I’ll get a bunch of blogging done – I have TONS of sessions to share and I want to get caught up before I start my 2010 sessions! Response time to email may be a bit slower than usual, but all of the sessions are edited and pics are delivered…so you shouldn’t need anything anyway :) (But if you do…shoot me an email)..

Merry Christmas to you and yours from The Mathews Family!!!

Coming Up For Air…..And Ordering Deadlines…

2009-12-15T09:46:00.001-05:00

I know I know…I have not blogged in like 3 weeks. Where have I been? Well right after Lillian was born my brother and sister in law were here for Thanksgiving and then on Black Friday….my husband started throwing up (fun) and by Sunday my son had it and by Monday I had it…it was an ugly ugly week…we were all so sick. In the meantime, I edited almost 30 photo sessions and shot about 10 more….and then we had more family in from out of town. Add to that…orders orders orders….and holiday cards and well…me and my new computer have been getting very well acquainted!! Oh yea and we did the PPD Holiday Party this past weekend too. Whew! I’m tired just writing about it all..haha.

So I have lots of sessions to share with you and plan to do that very soon, but in the meantime I needed to let everyone know about the holiday deadline(s) for ordering cards and prints.

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 17TH is the LAST day you can order prints/cards if you want them here in time for Christmas!!!!

And because a post is no good w/out a picture….this one just cracks me up – here’s one from one of my recent family sessions.

She’s Here!!!!!! I have a niece!!

2009-11-24T08:10:00.001-05:00

As most of you probably know, my niece Lillian was born yesterday! She kept us waiting and teased her Mommy (and the rest of us) with a lot of false labor, but when she decided to make her appearance, she did it fast and furiously. She was the talk of the labor floor yesterday the nurses told us. Long story short, (you can read more about it on her blog here) my sister and I talked at 7:40 yesterday morning and she admitted she was having some contractions…we decided I would go to my parent’s house where she was staying (because they live 45 min away – from the hospital)…. by the time I got there her contractions were 2min apart and very strong…we went to the hospital. We got there at 9 and she was still only 2cm (had been for a week). So they had her walk….yea she only walked for about 20 min and the contractions were so bad that they checked her again..she was 5cm! Moved her to a room…checked her a few min later…she was 7cm. Checked her a few minutes later and she was 10cm!! Time to push! And the poor thing didn’t get to have an epidural that she really really wanted because there was just no time. So yesterday morning was crazy, but so amazing. Lillian Grace Boso was born at 11:31am (remember, I said we didn’t get to the hospital until 9!!) God is so good and our family is so blessed! So turn up the volume, listen to the words of the song handpicked by my sister….and enjoy the photos. Thank you everyone for your prayers and support…. and now, I need to go to the hospital cuz Lillian called and wants me to come hold her… :) :) (Don’t worry, everyone’s pics/proofs will be ready in plenty of time to order for the holidays).

Lillian is here!

Oh and guess who won the baby poll??? My MOTHER!!!! lol

…And Waiting Some More…

2009-11-21T21:35:00.001-05:00

Still no baby yet, but for those friends/family that are checking my blog for updates…Diana made one of her own….go check it out here! Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Still Waiting…

2009-11-20T21:57:00.001-05:00

Well, it was looking like my niece was going to arrive today, but no such luck. My sis has been having contractions since 9:30pm last night…. they looked like they were getting a little closer together and then they got pretty irregular later this afternoon. So after lots of walking and a doc appointment….we’re hoping she still goes on her own…otherwise they will admit her to begin her induction on Tuesday evening. Keeping our fingers crossed and saying lots of prayers that she goes on her own and goes when the time is right (although at this point, I admit…we’re all anxious and hope it’s sooner rather than later!!) Even though there was no baby at the end of the day….it was beautiful outside here today and we got to take lots of walks together and have plenty of girl talk (Mom, Diana and myself)…so that was fun. I’ll post any new updates as I have them.

On the computer front, my awesome hubby has worked many hours to get my data transferred to the new computer. I’m now working on all of the little details…. finding the programs I use on a regular basis and re-downloading them…setting up different rules in my email account that got lost in the move…. etc etc….it’s coming along nicely and OMG…it is SOOO Fast!!!! And now…this tired Auntie in waiting is off to bed………….

A Little Update....

2009-11-19T17:17:00.002-05:00

UPDATE - Friday, Nov 20th... My sis is in labor!!!! Hooray! Contractions are not super close at the moment but we think today is the day so good timing since hubby is working hard on my computer transition! Pray for quick, painless (haha) labor for my sis....pics will come soon after she's born of course! :)

I wanted to post in case anybody needs anything in the next couple of days. I got a new computer – hooray! It’s going to double my productivity (at least – possibly more) because it’s going to be so much faster. Unfortunately there is no easy way to move the info over to the new computer and there’s no “good” time to do it. So soon as I finish this post, I’ll be shutting down my current computer and won’t be able to work (i.e. edit, place orders, etc) for up to 48 hours. The good news is..that once the new one is up and running, I’ll be able to edit much much faster and I anticipate being able to fly through my current edits. There is still plenty of time before the holidays, so no worries….everyone will get your proofs, holiday cards, etc in time. It’s like when your flight is delayed and they make up the time in the air..haha…hopefully when the new computer is ready…I’ll make up the time in the air! In addition, my sister is still pregnant so I will be taking at least a day off when she has the baby…but hopefully she’ll have the baby in the next 24 hours and while my hubby is working on my new computer I won’t lose any additional working time!

Thanks for your patience and understanding….this new system really is going to improve turn around from here on out….

Have a great night!

Katie

P.S. I will still be available by email (and phone), I’ll use the hubby’s laptop…so turnaround on emails will be a little slower, but I will still answer them.

And I have to include a pic...most of you have probably seen this but it's one of my favorite pics from a photo session I did with Anthony.....I'll share more later.

2009 Holiday Cards

2009-11-10T20:57:00.001-05:00

I'm wrapping up my holiday sessions for 2009. I might be able to squeeze a couple more in, so if you want one, contact me ASAP. All prints/card orders need to be in by December 8th to insure they are here in time for the holidays. Keep in mind, payment must be made in full before I place the order(s).

I have some new holiday card designs for this year. Holiday cards are 5x7 and are really heavy duty (I love them! My print company does a great job!) Regardless if it is a one-sided design or two-sided, sets of cards are $45 and come with envelopes. You're welcome to pick a design from my 2008 cards if you don't find a 2009 one that you like. Most text can be changed, just let me know what you would like. Holiday card orders can be emailed to me directly. Include the card design number, quantity, text, and the pics you want. As always, feel free to email or call with any questions!

2009 Holiday Cards

Card #1

Card #2

Card #3

Card #4

Card #5

Card #6

Card #7

Card #8

Card #9

Card #10

Card #11

Card #12

Card #13

Card #14

Card #15

Card #16

The Baby Bump

2009-11-06T14:31:00.001-05:00

As most of you probably know, my sister, Diana, is preggo with baby number 2 and it's a GIRL!! I'm so excited, I can hardly stand it. Last weekend, we finally got a chance to go out and take some pics of the belly. So I'm going to share some of my favorites, but I also want to have a little contest. Here's the scoop:

- anybody can enter
- you must include your name/email address so I know how to contact you if you win
- include your guess for the day she will be born, time, weight and length

Whoever is the closest to her actual date/time without going over (on the length/weight) will win a $20 GIFT CARD to Target or I-Tunes. (Perfect just in time for holiday shopping).

Here's a little info to help you out...

1. Her due date is November 21st
2. With my nephew, she delivered 4 days early
3. I drove her to the hospital at 8 in the a.m and she had him before 3pm
4. She's already had some real contractions (but they went away)

That's it! I can't wait to see all the guesses. I'll enter mine too (but obviously I am not entering my own contest!)

One other thing...you do NOT have to have a blogger account to enter....just put in your guess and click on "anonymous" (but write your name in the text of your guess). It's that easy :)

And now for the pics....

Have a great weekend everyone!! I'll be shooting and editing.....this time of year is just a little bit craaaazzzzyyyy, but I love it :)

Happy Birthday Carrington!

2009-11-03T21:14:00.001-05:00

I promised Michelle (C's Mom) that I would do a blog post today on Carrington's first birthday! A little over a year ago I met this really sweet couple and did some maternity pics for them....

Then on Nov 3, 2008, the beautiful Carrington made her debut. I went out to their house for newborn photos soon after.

This past Spring, we did another session when she was about 5 months old...

And today, on her first birthday, we celebrated with what else? A photo shoot! Mom planned the shoot....the outfits, the props, the cake and she wanted it all on a white back drop. I don't do a lot with back drops because I prefer the "natural" environment, but for first birthdays especially I think it works great!

Happy Birthday Sweet Baby Girl!

Happy (almost) Halloween!!

2009-10-30T09:40:00.001-04:00

We are back safe and sound from our trip. Within 16 hours of getting home, I had to shoot a wedding..so I was pretty wiped out...but it was well worth it. This week I've been crazy busy editing, processing orders, responding to emails etc. Just a quick update...I've only got 2 regular sessions left for the rest of the year. In addition, I've got holiday mini sessions available next weekend (Nov 7/8), so if you want a session with me for the holidays, contact me ASAP!!!

Ok commercial announcement over.... since tomorrow is Halloween, I thought I would share some of the pics from my fall/halloween mini sessions. I had lots of little little ones this year...so cute! Unfortunately the first day we did sessions it was super hot - 90 and humid....and then the next day it was cold and windy...go figure.

Up first...Princess Leia and Yoda....they were not too pleased but they sure were cute! Poor babies were roasting in those costumes...who knew it was going to be so freaky hot?

And then we had our Sumo Wrestlers.... dressed more appropriately for the weather...again...who knew?!?

And then to torture them just one more time (haha) we got a pic of all 4 adorable babies...

Then I had 2 cousins bring their cute little girls.... I love the fall outfits...so cute!

And then....a monkey showed up..a very very cute monkey!!!

And finally Ms. Finnley came to visit...look at those blue eyes - love em!

Since I ended up going to MN....I had to cancel my 2nd day of mini sessions, so we squeezed this one in before I left and I have 2 more stopping by today....

I've photographed these 2 a couple of times before..they are always dressed so cute :)

And that's it for now....I hope everyone has a safe and happy halloween! What are you and/or your kids dressing up as this year??

I'm leavin...on a jet plane...

2009-10-16T23:28:00.001-04:00

The hubs and I are leaving in just a few hours (uggh...who needs sleep anyway??) to go to Minnesota. We'll be doing a few photo sessions..seeing family and friends and freezing our butts off...should be a great time. I'll be back in a week and will hopefully get to blogging more regularly...hopefully.

Just a reminder...I've only got a few sessions left for the rest of the year and I still have some holiday mini sessions available. I will be checking email daily so feel free to contact me this week about booking - I'm bringing my calendar. Any orders etc that I haven't already taken care of and edits...will be done when I get back (I'm almost completely caught up....amaaazing :))

I'll leave you with 2 cutie pics from my fall minis last weekend....(I'll be sharing more when I get back)...

The Donovan Twins

2009-09-29T14:05:00.001-04:00

I hope everyone had a nice weekend. My hubby and I went out of town - to Hickory, NC - to photograph a wedding. In fact it was the winners of my wedding giveaway - Emily & Stephen. They were so gracious and happy we were there...we had a blast even though it was an outdoor ceremony/reception and it rained the entire weekend!! Pics to come soon, but we still got some awesome shots even in the rain!

Now onto some cuteness. Some of you may have seen a few of these on my facebook page. If I post on FB, I make sure to not post the same pics on here (sometimes just a couple are the same). So it's still worth looking in both places! I had never had the opportunity to photograph twins, so one weekend when we were at the Farmers Market, we ended up talking to this couple that were pushing their newborn twins in a double stroller...oooh so cute! So I told them I was a photographer...gave them my card and begged them to let me take pics of their babies. Apparently they didn't think I was too nuts and they called soon after. Newborns are tough to photograph anyway...but when there's 2..watch out! When one slept, the other was awake...when one cried..the other was calm...lol....but we had fun and I got to snuggle the babies..never a bad thing... :)

So here they are in all their cuteness..

Don't forget to sign up for a mini session and/or enter the current contest!! :)

The Griggs Family

2009-09-23T14:29:00.001-04:00

This is my 2nd to last "old" session to share...then it's all new stuff..yay! But even if this is an "old" session..I think you're going to like it. The Griggs family lives near Winston Salem, but they come down to the beach each year and this is the 2nd year they had me to do family photos. Here's a peek at last years.

We did this session back in June on a beautiful evening...it was great to see this family again - they are so sweet and fun!!

These next 2 are hilarious! A lot of times when I'm shooting families with small kids, I try to get the kids laughing so I ask them all to make funny faces on the count of 3. After they make the funny face they usually all start laughing and those are some of the best shots. So last year I did the "funny face" shot with them...and this year they all remembered it and asked me to do it again. Super cute.

So here's last years.... (I think I've improved my photography a little bit since then :))

And this year...

And finally..here's Mom and Dad who started it all.... this is the sweetest couple ever. He is a pastor and she is an Oncology nurse. Enough said.

They are so in loooove. When Kellie came out of the beach house all dolled up, Sterling yelled out..."My wife is HOT!!"

They were willing to do anything I asked...I think I took more pics of the 2 of them than I did of the whole family! They were so easy to photograph..

Thanks Kellie and Sterling for your patience while I was out and for just being you! See you next summer!!

For the rest of you...don't forget my contest and mini sessions (the link is posted on the top of my blog, but I'm guessing some of you have my blog in a reader and wouldn't see the link...just trying to help you out..haha!)

Baby Reese - Little Miracle

2009-09-22T09:34:00.001-04:00

I still have 2 "old" sessions to share, but I figured it's time to start showing some new stuff. I was absolutely honored to do a session for this family. They have been through some tough times in the past few months. Their baby girl, Reese, was born at only 26 weeks! She was born on March 30th and weighed only 2lbs, 3oz and was 13" long. Tiny tiny baby. She's a fighter and came home almost 3 months later to her big sister, Laine and a happy/relieved Mommy and Daddy. In August, I did a "newborn" session for them. Although baby Reese had been born at the end of March....her size and actions were like a 5 week old.

So here she is...miracle baby... Reese...

And here she is with her proud, big sis, Laine...

After we wore out the baby...Mom and I took big sis outside to play and take some more photos of her in her own environment. She was shy at first, but didn't take long to warm up!

I love this one of her and Mom..so sweet....

Finally...Laine wanted to show me her bedroom..and she had to have her own camera..haha

And that's it......I'll be back soon with some more shares. Be sure to sign up for a mini session (they're going quickly) and don't forget the contest!! :) Happy Tuesday!

Lillian Grace

2009-09-17T22:16:00.001-04:00

I'm so excited for the arrival of my niece in about 2 months...since I have a boy and my sis has a boy...we are soo excited to have a little girl in the family. So...when we had a shower for my sis this past weekend...we went a little nuts on the pink. I can't wait to see her wear all the cute clothes she got. I took a few pics at the shower...ok a bunch. There were a few people that weren't able to attend that specifically said they were sad they wouldn't get to see the presents she got...so that's why there are a lot of gift opening shots. Anyway....here's a quick slide show I put together from this weekend (disclaimer...these have not been edited...just snapshots :)) Turn up the volume and listen to the words...I love this song!

Diana's Baby Shower

Katie, Matt and the Brothers + mini sessions + a new CONTEST!

2009-09-15T20:28:00.001-04:00

Wouldn't you know it? My hard drive crashed Sunday night so I couldn't do a blog post yesterday..uggh. Luckily I'm married to my own "geek squad" and he has me back online and he saved all of the data (hooray!) The only thing I lost was a days worth of time working on the computer....something I hate to lose, but it could've been worse.

So, as promised..I'm back with another session to share as well as a contest and the info about my fall mini sessions!! First, let's talk mini sessions. (I'll send out an email later this week so here's your sneak peek so you can book your session early!)

What: Fall Mini Sessions with hay bales and pumpkins. Bring the kids with or without their costumes. If there's time you can have them do a quick change.

Where: My house - in front of my garage (same location as last year) 216 Woodland Dr, Wilmington - near Cape Fear Hospital

When: Saturday, October 10th and Saturday October 17th (9-11am both days). Depending on demand I may open up another date. I will also have limited evening sessions (5-6pm) Monday, Oct 12 and Tues, Oct 13.

Session includes:

15 minute session
10-15 proofs
1 5x7 and 1 sheet of 8 wallets
20% off additional prints
A treat for the kids after their session

Cost: Only $30

To see some of the sessions from last fall, click here.

I expect these sessions to go quickly since a lot of people have asked me if I'm doing them again, so call (910-297-5378) or email katie@katiemathewsphotography.com ASAP to reserve your session! I can't wait to see the kids again this year!!

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And now for info about the contest. Since I haven't blogged much in the last 3 months (for various reasons I've already explained), I really want to start blogging more frequently and if I do that...I need an audience :) I need your help to get my readers back....or some new readers would be nice too. So...for the rest of September when you do one or more of the following things, I will enter you into a contest for a FREE HOLIDAY mini session (different from the fall one I just posted about). The holiday mini sessions usually include a pack of holiday cards as well as a 20 min session at a location around town. It's approximately a $100 value! Soo..here's the deal....

Get 1 entry into the drawing for every comment you leave on my blog between now and the end of September (1 comment per post).
Get 1 entry into the blog for becoming my facebook friend (search for Katie Balow Mathews). If you are already my FB friend, post a message on my wall.
Get 3 entries for putting the KMP blog on your Google Reader or other similar RSS feed. (Leave a comment here if you did it or it's already on there).
Get 3 entries for writing a blog post (if you have one) about Katie Mathews Photography and direct them here to see my work. (Leave a comment here if you did it).
Get 3 entries for posting about Katie Mathews Photography on your facebook status (for at least a few hours) and direct them here to see my work. (Leave a comment here if you did it).

And that's it... I will announce the winner on October 1st! Thanks for your help :)

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Finally...here's another session I did back in April. Katie and her hubby Matt both have 2 brothers. So all 6 of us got together and did a shoot at Greenfield Lake and Downtown. They did this for Mother's Day and birthday presents for the parents - great idea!! And we had a lot of fun :)

Here are Matt and Katie...aren't they cute?

Here's Matt and his twin brothers...I admit...I am bad with names...but I do remember these guys were a trip...

And then Katie and her brothers....also really nice guys...

After a quick change of clothes..we headed downtown...