Looking back on MY 2009...

I have the worst memory on the planet seriously, the worst.  It's one of the reasons why I take pictures.  I'm obsessed with recording my life or more importantly Hope's life.  I'd love to tell you what I did but honestly, I can't remember.  I had to go through my Lightroom library to try and construct this 'year in review' post.  As I was doing that, I said to myself 'self, why not just post the pictures?'.  So, that's what I'm going to do :)

He won't be here this New Year's Day but he was in 2009.

 

My BFF Sarah visited, a Christmas present from her husband.  So, why did I feel like it was the best gift ever for me?

My brother Billy and is wife Melinda visited us.  We had SO much fun showing them the island.

 

Then my world changed, I got a new camera.  An early anniversary present from my husband who had the intuition to know something I hadn't yet let myself believe.  This Nikon D300 changed my life.  Here is one of the very first photos I took with it.

Here is the very first picture I ever took that made me cry when I pressed the review button on my camera.  I've had a few moments since then, but this was life changing for me.  Her expression was completely lucky but I did plan the rest of the shot. 

We spent a lot of time at the beach...

A lot of time with friends...

We had some family pictures taken that came out fantastic!

In June, our little girl turned three.

In July, we sent our husband and father off to Afghanistan.

We went to the East Coast and visited family and friends in Massachusetts and New Jersey that we were meeting for the first time or hadn't seen in 18 months (or longer).

Then we came home back to Hawaii and I started college.  What a journey it's already been.  If I can say one thing for certain, I have learned a LOT.  I was lucky enough to have Ryan Baldwin as one of my instructors at the Academy of Art University.  What an awesome opportunity!   Here are a few of my favorite photos from assignments I submitted this semester.

 

I'll leave you with a couple of my favorites of Hope and Brian from this year.  I'm beyond excited about 2010.  2009 was good to me, here's hoping 2010 is just as good, if not better!

R&R is over....

So yuck, my hubby headed back to Afghanistan recently.  We were lucky enough to have him home for Christmas and we really did enjoy the last day he was home even though there were sad undertones to the day.   These two are hands down the best part of me being a photographer. Capturing moments like this is really what I enjoy doing the most.

Here's a rare one of the two of us :)

Only Daddy can make her smile like this...

 

Could they be any cuter??

Even Indy wanted in on the cuddle time...

Here's to hoping the second half of his deployment goes as quickly as the first.  We love you Brian.

I ♥ Faces - Hilarious Outtakes

I don't have many but these are some that I get a kick out of when thinking back....

Avery took a bit of a nap before the shoot and had a hard time getting into things, this made for a great outtake though :)

Lucy didn't want the Santa hat on and I nabbed this one while she was in the process of taking it off.  I love it!

I get a lot of outtakes of Hope since I'm always snapping pictures of her.  You wouldn't know it but she was listening to a book at playgroup during this shot.  I guess she didn't like the direction the story was heading....

I swear Ashlee was having a great time during our shoot.  It's funny because the sun was a bit bright so I asked her to close her eyes and open on the count of three.  I guess I should have asked to her to smile before 3 ;)

Please take a moment to stop by www.iheartfaces.com  and check out more of the hilarious outtakes posted by a lot of talented people.  It's sure to give you a laugh (or 2)!

Christmas!

Well, the Hires family was particularly lucky this year.  Brian, who is currently in the middle of a 12 month tour in Afghanistan, came home for Christmas.  He was lucky enough to get his midtour leave right smack dab in the middle of Christmas.  Coincidentally, he was here for his birthday and our 12 year anniversary as well (all within 2 weeks, perfect!)  Here are some of my favorite shots from the past couple of days. 

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!!

Wasn't it nice of her to pose for me?  I even got a smile!

 Cookies for Santa!  The ornament tree was handmade by me!

This really is what Christmas is all about...

Anyone who knows me will understand why I took this picture... ;)

Santa definitely made a stop at our house!

 

Jackpot!

This is the first photo of her beginning to open gifts...

I think she's warmed up at this point...

Let the games begin!

I'm on a roll now, get outta my way!

Taking a moment to check out some of the loot...

Isn't it nice to see a master at work??

Don't forget about the stocking!

I just can't explain how good this is to see...

There is a wicked story behind the securing of this vanity from Target.  Let's suffice it to say that it involved Target on Black Friday - the first Black Friday at Target that Oahu, HI resident's had ever seen.  Need I say more??

Merry Christmas Hope...