Two years ago today - April 30, 2006 - I shot my first-ever newborn photo session. So I guess you could say today is the birthday of Buttons and Bows Photography! The photo above was from that session and is one of my most-recognized images. It was inspired by my good friend Angela, of Angela Wright Photography in Richmond, VA.

In the here and now, the above photo is a teaser from a recent 8-month session with one of my 365-platinum babies. It's so much fun watching them grow up! You might remember her as the little baby girl in the Santa bag under the Christmas tree last year... You can see more images from this session in the "Lullaby and Goodnight" gallery.

And just in case you thought I'd forgotten, here's an update shot of my newly-redesigned office. This is the wall opposite the wrapping / packaging station shown previously. This desk is my workspace, and my husband's desk (for gaming and surfing) makes up the middle of the "U"-shape. This way, when I'm editing into the wee hours of the morning, we can still be together. Especially since it promises to be a very busy late spring!

The thing I'm most proud of in my new office will hang in the empty space above the the wrapping / packaging station. It's a photograph of me with my mother from 1976 taken by Glen Sanders (now deceased) of Sanders Studios in Ponca City, Oklahoma.

My grandmother owned a specialty maternity / newborn / infant / children's boutique called "Dene's Stork Shop" in the 1970s and 80s. This photo hung above her wrapping station until the day the store closed. Now it will hang above mine. Fitting since she provided my business model.

Unfortunately the years have not been kind to this heirloom and I'm in the process of having it restored. We know so much more about photo care and preservation now than we knew back then. Hiring a custom portrait artist is essential to protecting your family's memories for generations to come!