My husband Nik and I met at a club in late 2006 through a mutual friend. After the very brief meeting, Nik found me on myspace (yes, that’s how long ago we met!) and we began talking. Meeting again in person was certainly interesting because I thought he didn’t like me because he was not as talkative as he was online. Turned out he was “intimidated” because he thought I was too pretty a girl to be talking to him! Obviously, I told him that was not the case and not long after did we start dating. The first addition to our little family was a spunky hedgehog named Hedgemeister VonPrickles, Hedgie for short, in 2012. Then in 2015 we welcomed a fluffy little pup named Piper. The topic of children always went back and forth between my husband and I because there were multiple factors taken into consideration that resulted in the decision being pushed back. Then, after four years of marriage, we decided to start trying. On February 17th we welcomed our newest addition, Dorian. Is our family complete? Today I say…yes. My heart is beyond full. But who knows what the future holds for us. We may just get a multitude of puppies!

I booked both a maternity and a newborn session. My experience with Corinna has always been nothing short of amazing. She always has a bright smile and encouraging words to say while you are before her camera. I’ve had the honor of knowing Corinna and her photography prowess since high school. Her attention to detail and ability to make you feel comfortable in front of her camera is beyond words. I wanted serious and dramatic shots for my maternity shoot, but there were countless times that we both cracked up laughing because we were having so much fun! (The shots still came out serious and dramatic, just as we had planned, by the way!)

I knew I was pregnant when I was ‘late’ by an hour! After nearly a year of trying to conceive, I was still astounded when I saw that second line. Ever since I was a kid I knew that I wanted to be a mother. It was a dream come true and yet it was so overwhelming and surreal that it was becoming a reality. Before I knew the gender (though I was like 80% sure I was having a boy), I nicknamed the baby “Baby Bat.” We didn’t even have a name for our child until he was a few hours old because we were so used to just calling him Baby Bat. My cravings consisted of Hot Cheetos and pink lady apples (not at the same time). I also drank water like a fish. It was how my husband had a feeling that something was going on. I hardly ever drink water, terrible, I know. So when he saw me drinking a lot of water he became suspicious. Also, my boobs grew a cup size in the first trimester and that he definitely noticed immediately! I have so much respect for women who can maintain an exercise regime while pregnant because I had to quit at the beginning of the second trimester. My only form of exercise was walking our dog and sadly our sessions went from forty-five minutes to barely even fifteen. While the pregnancy itself was fairly easy and there were no complications, I was constantly uncomfortable. I loved being pregnant because it was such a breathtaking experience to feel the creation of life within me, but I was literally counting down the days for my pregnancy to be over and I could hold my little Baby Bat.

My labor was very short. At eight in the morning, my water broke, but I wasn’t sure that it was my water breaking until it happened again around nine. By then we got to the hospital where they told me that I was going to have a baby. My contractions had already started but I wasn’t aware because I thought I was just having cramps. At two o’ clock I asked for my coveted epidural. As I was waiting for the anesthesiologist to come to my room, it was discovered that I was at complete dilation. I was NOT excited about that and my husband has said that he would have laughed at the facial expression I was making if he wasn’t so terrified of me at the moment because I was LIVID. At 2:45 I began pushing. At 3:00 I opened my eyes and found a screaming, squirmy, adorable little creature laying on my chest.

I’ve had a passion for art since I was a child. I’ve always loved hanging images on my bedroom walls and pretending that I lived in an art museum or gallery. When my husband and I were planning our wedding, one of the first things I told him was that I didn’t care where the wedding itself was held, I cared more about the photography. Moments are fleeting. Photography is the art of capturing those moments that so quickly escape us. I look at our wedding photos and I can remember what I was thinking at that exact moment. Investing in newborn photography holds so much meaning for me because when I look at the pictures of my little one, I’m reminded of how tiny he was and all the emotions I felt when I saw the positive pregnancy test, the giant smile on my husband’s face when I told him that we were going to have a baby, and the all around love and excitement that surrounded us during our journey.

I had so much fun! With the maternity session, it didn’t even feel like a photo shoot. It felt like two friends reconnecting after years apart. The whole time we talked and caught each other up with our lives…it just so happened that one had a camera in her hands! During the newborn shoot, I was understandably exhausted. Corinna told me to just sit back and relax but I enjoy watching artists work so I stayed close and watched her work her magic. I was more worried that my son would throw a tantrum because he was in the middle of a growth spurt but any time he started fussing Corinna was able to calm him down quickly and with ease.

Just go with the flow, Mama. You’ll do fine.