And striped leggings.

Oh. And did I mention a skirt with ….. (cough, cough) …. ruffles. In hot pink.

Anyone who knows my soccer shorts and t-shirt-wearing little tomboy, knows I had to pull out the big bribes for a whopping 20 minutes of camera time to capture her official four-year pictures.

But despite a 100 percent humidity day, buckets of sweat and the three ticks I came home with, I’d say these were worth it.

(And, yes, I’m trying out yet another blog frame for my images. One of these days, I might actually decide on one and stick to it. Until then …….)

The next two are “so Bella”:

Happy Day After Halloween … and day two of the enormous sugar highs.  (Forgot to mention: This one is for Aunt Judy who says I don’t post enough Bella images.)

Well, it appears the reason for all that fuss looks a little something like this. Meet Arraya (pronounced ar-ee-uh). Caution: May cause spontaneous urge to reach toward the computer screen and squeeze those little arm chubs.

Um. Yea. That’s a real smile, people. I swear there’s a lot going on in those little heads even while they’re sleeping.

And, for the photographers and trendy moms/grandmas/aunties out there reading this, the beautiful swaddler she’s wearing was custom made by the lovely and talented (not-to-mention-mom-to-three-busy-little-girls!) Britanie Ramirez of My Pinkytoes Baby. You can see and commission more of her stuff, including her awesome designer labor/delivery gowns (yes, you read that right — check ‘em out), wipes cases, minky swaddlers, bows and designer onesies at her Etsy store. The fabrics are to die for! These make great gifts and – my favorite – add fabulous color/texture to a newborn/baby sessions.

Now, three years later, we’re still beside ourselves most days with a different kind of fear (mostly for her safety amid exceptionally daredevil ways) and the same jaw-dropping amazement. She keeps us on our toes, for sure. But her smile, quick sense of humor, spunky attitude  and kind spirit occupy the very brightest spots in our hearts. She’s a girly-girl and a tom-boy all rolled into one who likes Toot and Puddle, Nemo, strawberries with homemade whipped cream, taking baths in the “big” bathtub, playing soccer and finding new ways to antagonize her furry buddy, Baker.

Today, our Bella Bug is three years old and all of a sudden, she’s looking like a big girl to us.  It began about a month ago when we woke up one day and all of her pants were suddenly two inches two short. I always tell my clients I can often “see” what their little ones are going to look like as adults after spending many hours staring at their images on the computer screen during post-processing. And I have to say, the bicycle pictures below are the first time I’ve been able to see that in my own child.
She had an amazing birthday weekend of celebrations with little friends, her favorite babysitter (thank you for coming, Abby!), and lots of spoiling from Grandmas, Grandpa and Uncle Kory. I’ll let you guess which gift was the big hit, hands down.