Hang in there.

I'm still here, I promise.... I know I've been a little MIA over the last week or so, but it's with good reason. Not only is it the holiday season and I've been finishing up all the editing from holiday sessions and doing my Christmas shopping, BUT I've also been packing. Yes, packing. I'm moving... in 2 days! I'm super excited about the new house, but goodness... this is the. worst. time. of the year for me to be trying to move!

So, if I reply to emails slower than normal or return phone calls slower than normal... Just be aware that I'm literally up to my ears in boxes and packing paper at the moment... Be patient and I'll get back to you as soon as I can!

However, if you are wanting to book a session for 2009, please don't hesitate to contact me regardless of my moving situation. January is already starting to fill up and I assume February will book quickly as well. So, let me know if you want to get in for a session!

And, since I can't post on this blog without including something fun... Here is a youtube video that my cousin sent to me that I find super duper amazing. I am a very, very intermediate guitar player and so when I see a really amazing guitarist... I am always stunned. This particular guitarist is extrememly stunning... he's only a child. He leaves me speachless... If I could only be 1/4 as good as him, I'd become a rock star. ;)

Snow!

Can you even believe this stroke of Christmas season luck? It's snowing! In TEXAS!

Of course, it's not really sticking to the ground or anything.... and there's only like 5 or 6 snowflakes visible at any given moment.... and by Saturday the high here is 70... But whatever. All that really matters right now to me and my little girls in this very moment is that we have actual snowflakes falling slowly to the ground!

Oh... One more thing: Only minutes before I started to write this post, my oldest little girl came up to me and asked me if I was SANTA? What was I to say? I couldn't believe it.... I mean, she's in 4th grade now, so I *knew* this would happen soon... But, still. I couldn't believe it. So, eventually after questioning her for about 10 minutes about where she got such a ridiculous idea, I finally confessed. She had me cornered... I had no other choice. Of course, she then asked... So, does this mean your the toothfairy too? And, what about the Easter Bunny??

little.angel.

This little bit was so sweet... When I first got there to take her photos she wasn't sure about me... but by the end of our time together she was posing like a little supermodel! It was so funny... She stopped all the tears and literally started posing... putting her little tiny arm up by her head while laying on her side.... and such wide open eyes... it was great!

Probably my favorite:

so sleepy:

I love how you can still see the skin peeling on these new little baby toes:

xoxo, reata

28 Years Ago Today.

*Photo by Bob Gruen.

On December 8th, 1980, John Lennon was gunned down in front of his NYC apartment building, The Dakota, by a delusional fan named Mark David Chapman, a man obsessed with the book The Catcher In the Rye. Lennon was shot 5 times by Chapman, after returning home from the recording studio. John's wife Yoko Ono watched in disbelief. Earlier that evening, Chapman had Lennon sign his Double Fantasy album and photographer Paul Goresh happened to be there and got a picture of the event.

I'm one of the many, many fans of John's. It's so horrible that he was murdered.... for no good reason. The contributions he made to the music world (during and after The Beatles) are huge and I don't think any one would argue with that. Let's remember John's music today and be glad of the wonderful songs he left us to listen to.

My new do.

Well, it's not really "new" because I've been cutting & coloring it like this for quite sometime, but yesterday when I went in for my hair cut appt... I left feeling absolutely delicious and quite like a rock star! My fabulous stylist, Lynn, *gets* it. She *knows* hair. She *understands* it. And, she is completely passionate about creating sensational hair everytime she works.

And that's why I love her!

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Lynn! I love my hair.... and, thanks for sending me the photo that you took of me too! ;)

To make an appointment with the Fabulous Lynn from Hair By Lynn, call 832.264.6053 and tell her that Reata sent you! :)

The C Family.

Aren't they all adorable? This sweet, little family is close family friends with my husband's family... they've known 'em for years. First meeting them when they lived overseas in England for a couple of years (when my husband was in middle school)... My in-laws became close friends with R and P, and all the kids became good friends too. Then, my husband's family moved back to Texas.... and as fate had it, the C Family moved back to the US too. More specifically, to Texas. And even more specifally (and unknowingly and coincidentally), to the next street over. Crazy, huh? Needless, to say, they've remained really good friends for years and years and years.

Anyhow, I've loved getting to know this family over past few years and I was so happy to be the lucky photographer to take their photos! They are all so adorable... and believe me, their personalities are even more adorable. ;)

it's not easy to get 13 people ready for photos:

but somehow they managed:

the cool thing about R & P is that you can literally see love all around them when they interact. it's so cool!

this one is so zen... love it!

these handsome little angels are gonna be heartbreakers one day.

i admit it.... i'm not sure which one of the twins this is. oops!

i had to convince this little lady that i was going to take her on a leaf hunting adventure inorder to get some shots of her... she was so sweet!

xoxo, reata

Share God's Bounty.

I totally forgot... Yesterday when I was blogging about how crazy I was for taking on 4 sessions during the week of Thanksgiving, I totally forgot to mention that I was the photographer for a HUGE event called Share God's Bounty at St. Laurence Catholic Parish in Sugar Land, as well! The church fed 800 families Thanksgiving dinner... isn't that amazing?! I was literally walking around in a sea of turkey, mashed potatoes, and yams trying to snap photos of the hundreds of volunteers. [ Seriously. Have you ever seen 800 frozen turkeys? Well, I have. And let me tell you... it's pretty intense. ] I was so happy to be there... I felt really lucky to be the volunteer photographer! :)



the catholic school was the headquarters for all the food.



some gravy and scripture... the scripture is the gravy, right?



some of the turkey toters:



there were 1600 boxes... each family got 2 boxes of food.



some hardworking volunteers:



me and my sis-in-law:

The H Family!

What a week this has been! FOUR photo sessions... all which took place during the week of Thanksgiving! Some may say I'm crazy, but hey.... I like my life to be a little crazy every now and then! Anyhow, this little family was super to work with, especially the two little ones! It made my heart melt when at the end of the session, I was bombarded with *HUGE* hugs and requests that I stay longer to play!

and of course, one of the family pup:

xoxo, reata

hearts-and-soles.

I think one of the best things you can do to boost your spirit is to volunteer... whether that be at a school function, a church event, in a homeless shelter, at a cancer fundraiser, ANYWHERE. Just being part of a group that is working together to put on a good event for a good cause makes you feel so... um... well, good! So, when my sister-in-law told me about her two good friends that were in the beginning stages of starting a charity - I listened in awe. Her two friends, Haley and Jessica, are the founders of Hearts-And-Soles, an organization which collects and distributes shoes to needy families. They are beginning and endevour which I KNOW will bring many smiles to their faces for many years to come.... Doing good things for good people tends to do that to you, ya know? :) It's crazy to think of how many *luxuries* we all take for granted in our lives... And, while I most often don't think of shoes as being a *luxury*, it most certainly is.

Hats off to you, Haley and Jessica! I can't wait to see what you accomplish through your organization!

founders:

founder:

founder:

board member:

group shot:

xoxo, reata

a gift.

my little girl brought me a gift this afternoon that made my heart melt... a dead, dried up flower from our flowerbed. she was so proud to give it to me and she couldn't wait to put it in a vase (baby food jar) and give it a drink.... it was very thirsty (read as: brittle/dead/a goner). moments like these are what being a parent is all about. :)

i'm old. and weak.

I must be getting old... I played the Wii over at my in-laws on Monday night and I don't think I'll ever be the same again. Besides having a lot of fun, I also got a complete workout... and got completely sore. That boxing game is really tough on your shoulders and arms! Then as if that wasn't enough, I put my body through another workout on Tuesday morning at the grocery store. [yes, i said at the grocery store.] Typically, my two littlest ones act normal at the store... but not Tuesday. My nearly 4 yr old wanted to ride in the basket because her "legs were so tired [she] was about to die" and my 1 yr old wouldn't ride in the basket because she wanted to crawl.

Needless to say, I ended up pushing my 40 lb child in a shopping cart full of heavy groceries with ONE hand, while my other hand was busy holding an extra squirmy 1 year old. We left after 1 1/2 hours of pure muscle torture... without all the groceries on my list.

Oh well... at least I'm gonna have some killer biceps this year for Thanksgiving.

Here are some photos from my last session with one of the cutest little newborns I've ever seen! His momma looked GREAT for only giving birth 10 days earlier! Introducing, Baby O:

xoxo, reata