Courtney Westlake

Newwwwww blog!

2010-05-04T12:34:00.008-05:00

It's a little sad saying goodbye to this blog because it was the first way I was able to showcase my photos with the world, but it's time to move on to bigger and better things!

Westlake Photography has a NEW BLOG!!!

Our blog can now be found at courtneywestlakeblog.com.

So add that address to your Google Reader and check back often! It's my goal to blog very regularly, both client sessions and glimpses into my little world of being a mom/wife, business owner, writer and so many other things that I have going on!

I think my favorite thing about the new blog is BIGGER photos! I can finally showcase the beautiful photos that we capture for our clients in a much better way.

Anyway, so all posts from now on will be at the new blog, so head on over there!

Sneak Peek: The Leach Family mini session

2010-05-03T20:22:00.003-05:00

Sneak Peek: Peyton and Lydia's mini session

2010-05-03T20:17:00.003-05:00

Sneak Peek: Makayla's mini session

2010-05-03T20:15:00.002-05:00

Spring Mini Session: Sam and Erin

2010-04-30T15:54:00.008-05:00

Oh my goodness, that smile just melts my heart!

Sam has graced our blog multiple times before, and we love seeing him and his mom every time we get together! They are such a sweet family. And actually, I found out recently that my parents attended high school with Erin's parents, and her mom and my dad were good friends - small world!
He is SO adorable with that blond hair, blue eyes and sweet round face!!

I love that face :)

I love watching Erin and Sam together, you can just tell they are best buddies! I hope to have such a strong relationship with Connor as those two have!

Day at the Zoo

2010-04-29T19:17:00.011-05:00

We went to the St. Louis Zoo yesterday with my mother-in-law, sister-in-law and her three kids; it was Connor's first trip to the zoo and I think he enjoyed it!

I was a little bummed because right after we got there and started looking at the animals, he fell asleep.

getting tired...

But luckily, he woke up soon after and got to see some of the fun animals, like the kangaroos, and he loved watching them jump around!

in front of the giraffes

His favorite, though, were the orangutans. He was pretty enthralled by them...

Here is some of the rest of our group...

We also saw a huuuuuge rhino, lots of birds, tigers and lions and bears (oh my), lemurs, warthogs and elephants!

I LOVE getting to do things like this with my baby :)

Sneak Peek: Skylar, Tri-City High School Senior

2010-04-28T21:24:00.004-05:00

Sneak Peek: The Castelletti Family mini session

2010-04-25T10:56:00.005-05:00

Sneak Peek: The Pearse Family mini session

2010-04-25T10:51:00.002-05:00

Sneak Peek: The Gavin Family's mini session

2010-04-24T21:57:00.005-05:00

Another regular family on our blog! It's hard to believe that Brooks was about eight months old when we first photographed him, and he's now 2.5!

Sneak Peek: Erin and Sam's mini session

2010-04-24T21:53:00.003-05:00

Not only did the rain hold off for our mini session event today, but the sun stayed away too, and the overcast skies made for some beeeeeautiful lighting for our sessions!!

We got some ADORABLE photos of Erin and her son Sam, who have graced this blog perhaps more than any other family! We have loved watching Sam grow up!

Stick around for more sneak peeks and full blog posts from our mini sessions!

Sneak Peek: The Pease Family

2010-04-22T21:10:00.004-05:00

Here is a peek at my session from this morning in Washington Park!

If this post gets at least 5 comments from family, friends or blog readers, this family will get a 5X7 print on me! So let's hear from you!

Avery and Grant 2010

2010-04-19T09:08:00.014-05:00

If you've been a blog reader for a while, you've seen Avery and Grant on here back in 2008! I can't believe how fast they are growing up...and they just seem to get more and more beautiful!
Love this lil half-smile, it's so Grant!

OK, who else is super jealous of Avery's gorgeous curls?!?And oh my, those blue eyes. Make me melt. I hope Connor's look like that when he grows up! What a heartbreaker.
A big thanks to Avery and Grant for a beautiful photo session in downtown Springfield!!

Sneak Peek: Mary

2010-04-16T12:53:00.001-05:00

Audie: 6 months old

2010-04-14T13:21:00.012-05:00

ohmygosh I'm just SO EXCITED that my Aunt Courtney is taking my pictures, I just want to SCREAM!!

I'm sure that's what Audie was thinking, right? :)

As I mentioned before several times, Audie is Connor's first cousin (son of Evan's sister) and 3 weeks younger than Connor. Audie has two older siblings, and the four cousins are so super adorable when we get them all together (if we can get them to slow down for a minute)!

The two older ones are in love with the babies and like to give hugs and kisses :)

Audie's older sister Evie, who will be two in June, now likes to copy what her mom says, and one of her new favorite phrases is saying "you're so SWEET!" after hearing Mommy say it to Audie one day. So now when I look at these pictures of Audie, I think "you're so SWEET!" in my head.
I realized that none of these pictures show it very well, but Audie has the cutest dimples. Connor didn't get dimples, which I was disappointed about since I am in love with Evan's...that and his beautiful blue eyes are why I married him, after all! ;)

But Audie's dimples are adorable, they make me want to keep him smiling :)
Looking forward to watching these babies grow up together!

Connor: 7 months old!

2010-04-13T20:51:00.003-05:00

I could write a whole book about how big Connor is getting and how much he is doing now and how fast time is flying and how I can't believe he is SEVEN months already!

But to simply sum it up, he is the light of my life and the best thing Evan and I ever did :)

Here is his 7-month picture...he's looking like such a little boy and not so much like a baby anymore!

Sneak Peek: Avery and Grant

2010-04-13T09:12:00.003-05:00

What a gorgeous day for a gorgeous photoshoot downtown Springfield, Ill., with Grant and Avery!! Full session to come very soon :)

Alyx: 6 months old

2010-04-12T19:41:00.006-05:00

If I am recalling correctly, I believe that Evan's cousin Adam's wife Sara was due with their baby girl Alyx about mid-October at the same time I was pregnant with Connor and due September 8. My sister-in-law Aimee was also due about a week before Sara with her son Audie.

Well Connor decided to be stubborn, and Alyx and Audie decided they didn't want to wait around...And all three babies were born within three weeks of each other!

While I am close with all of my cousins, I am not close in age with most of them, so I was so excited that Connor will have lots of cousins the same age to play with as they grow up together.

It was long over-due, but we finally met Alyx for the first time for her six month pictures...and she is a doll!
It's a good thing she was born with a head full of hair because her grandma is a hairdresser :) She will have the cutest braids when she is little and the best up-do's for school dances when she is older!
Connor loves other kids and babies, and we tried to get a picture of the two of them together...but he was too enamored with Alyx and kept grabbing her shoes! At one point, we were taking a break for a clothing change or something, and I looked down at the two babies together on the blanket and it looked like they were holding hands...it was so precious!

This one kind of looks like she is sitting in snow :)
playing with Mommy!

It was so great to meet you Alyx, and Connor and I can't wait for our next playdate and photo opp!!

We have a winner!

2010-04-10T20:17:00.005-05:00

Andddd the winner of a Westlake Photography family session at half the regular cost has been announced on our Facebook fan page - congrats!!!

I was soooo appreciative at all of the awesome comments from people who are already clients and people who will hopefully become clients very soon! I thought I'd share some of the nice things that people said about why they love Westlake Photography...

"From day one, our pictures taken by Courtney have been so wonderful!! She always gets perfect pictures, even when Brooks decides not to smile for us!! From all of the pictures we have had taken of Brooks and of our family, the pictures taken by Courtney have been the best quality and most professional of all. I recommend Courtney to everone I know!"

"I would have to say that Courtney does a wonderful job of capturing the moment. Which I know it can be hard when you are dealing with two little ones but somehow she knows just what to do."

"I would love love love a family photo session with Westlake Photography...Coutney did our pictures 2 years ago and I absolutely LOVED them."

"I would be completely thrilled to have a family photo session with Westlake Photography! I'm continuously impressed with Courtney's work and feel like she's especially talented when it comes to capturing the true innocence and curiosity of little ones! More and more people I talk to in the area have either had a wonderful experience already working with you, or know of you and are just impressed!"

Ahhh I can't say it enough, but we seriously love our clients!! Every single one of them is so sweet and caring and fun to be around! We can't wait to meet up with everyone for sessions this year!

Get a session for half the regular cost!

2010-04-08T16:51:00.005-05:00

We're running an exciting give-away right now on our Facebook fan page!!

Become a fan and comment on the latest status to be entered into a drawing for a family photo session at HALF OFF the session fee!

Hurry, the drawing ends tomorrow morning, Friday, at 11 a.m.!

Sneak Peek: Audie

2010-04-07T12:53:00.003-05:00

All of the Westlake cousins are turning 6 months old which means...pictures! This is Audie, who is Connor's first cousin and three weeks younger than him. I can only imagine what life will be like when these two are older and getting into trouble together ;)

Happy Easter!!

2010-04-04T20:42:00.006-05:00

yummy Easter egg!

Jesus Christ our Lord is risen today! Allelujah!

We had a wonderful first Easter with Connor and our families. And what a beeeeeautiful day - warm and mostly sunny. It was perfect for Easter egg hunts outside!

Something's going on around these parts...

2010-04-02T09:32:00.018-05:00

So I've alluded to lots of changes going on behind the scenes at Westlake Photography, and most of those have to do with life in the Westlake household. The biggest change, which has been a huge adjustment for our family, is that I am no longer working full-time!

As of February, I have chosen to become self-employed...working from home and raising my baby boy. And I couldn't be happier!! I truly feel like I have found the best of both worlds, since I get to be with Connor all day and experience all of his milestones, but I also get to work still and continually challenge myself and my creative skills.

Currently, I freelance write and do some photography for several publications in the central Illinois area. And then of course, this gorgeous spring weather means that Westlake Photography photo season is beginning soon!

I'm SO SO SOOO excited for this year and everything that it will bring, not to mention having more time to devote to not only my business and my awesome clients but my family as well. Already, I'm seeing such growth in Westlake Photography, both in myself and the business as a whole, and I am already feeling the love from all my clients this year...and we haven't even started shooting yet!

If you haven't checked it out yet, we've made some changes to the Web site - homepage photos and galleries are updated, we've updated pricing and packaging information (including new options!!) and we're adding to our product line (yay for gallery wraps! and I'll be rolling out another awesome new product soon, so stay tuned!)

I'm feeling so inspired about this year's photo season, and I have a TONNNN of new ideas! So in the words of my favorite commercial, "hop on up here, pretty lady - grab your hoopskirt and let's rollllll reaaaaaal slow!" We're ready to meet some new families, reconnect with past clients and knock your socks off with some GORGEOUS photos!!

In the meantime, be sure to become a fan of Westlake Photography on Facebook to stay updated with events and announcements....and who knows - we might even be posting some exciting specials in the coming weeks as well!

Sneak Peek: Alyx

2010-03-25T19:23:00.004-05:00

This little cutie is one of three babies on the Westlake side born within three weeks of each other!

Alyx, who is the daughter of Evan's cousin, turns 6 months old next week, so she is almost three weeks younger than Connor and only two days older than Evan's sister's baby, Audie. It was a pleasure to meet her finally!

Alyx's full session will be blogged soon!

Canvas gallery wraps now available at Westlake Photography!!

2010-03-24T14:36:00.015-05:00

Yes yes yes, how DE-licious is this?!

Beautiful gallery wrap canvases are the latest product in the Westlake Photography line!

They have a 1.5 inch side that wraps around a real wood frame. All of our gallery wraps include a semi-gloss laminate that protects it from scuffs, scratches and cracking and also provides UV light protection.

You can choose to have framing paper with metal hangers or a wire hanger on the back without paper backing, so that it's ready to hang on the wall the minute it arrives. As you can see, this one has the metal hangers with paper backing... Pricing is available by contacting me. Sizes start at 11x14.

Gallery wraps are now available for ordering for 2010 clients (past clients are welcome to order one as well!!) I'm so excited to have this option now...and I can't wait to order one for my own wall!!

Taste of something new

2010-03-21T18:29:00.007-05:00

We gave Connor carrots for the first time today. He LOVED them. Soon enough, he'll be tearing into a big steak with his dad...

Connor William is 6 months old!

2010-03-15T20:42:00.009-05:00

Attempts at getting some more "formal" photos of Connor for his 6-month birthday (read: not in a sleeper at home) just failed miserably yesterday.

Apparently the morning nap he took wasn't long enough because he was just NOT interested in smiling. We went to Evan's grandpa's house in Ashland because he has beeeeeautiful natural lighting and cute, brightly-colored furniture. But of course, Connor didn't want to cooperate.

After he began to go so far as to blatantly ignore us and stare out the window, Evan's grandpa resorted to making funny faces and jumping around in the backyard....with no positive results. Sigh.

This is the best photo we got...it will do, I suppose!I guess I will forgive him though, just for the mere fact that he slept straight through the night last night for 11 hours...which he hasn't done in way too long! He was sleeping through the night for a month or two at around three months of age, and then began waking up 2-3 times a night again. He doesn't need to eat or anything, just really be "tucked back in" and given his pacifier to fall back asleep, but it's still annoying to be getting up like that all the time.

I can't believe how big he's getting! He's about out of his first carseat, which is fine with me because he is getting way too heavy for me to haul around like that.

He's also sitting up really well and starting to really stretch and reach for things that aren't right in front of him. He loves to do it all himself already - he will yank his hand away if you try to just pick up something and put it directly in his hand. He's eating one meal of rice cereal a day, and we're going to try adding some veggies into the diet this week!

He's such a sweetheart, and my heart melts every time he smiles and laughs - which he has been doing a lot more lately. I love his giggle fits, especially when what I'm doing isn't actually funny whatsoever. It's so cute what makes babies laugh!

Well, I'm heading off to bed soon, so I'll leave you with a super cute photo of Connor and Leo, his lion...

Boston is famous

2010-03-09T08:36:00.004-06:00

So this totally made my ENTIRE WEEK yesterday...

...when I woke up and saw that this sweet picture of Boston had been chosen a semi-finalist for Pioneer Woman's kitty photo assignment contest!

I loooooove me some Pioneer Woman and subscribe to all of her blogs. I even use her Photoshop actions, though I tailor them a little for my personal style! Pioneer Woman, aka Ree Drummond, is a blogger in Oklahoma and has an enormous following; she's been appearing on several national TV shows lately and has a new cookbook out, which my sister-in-law Aimee is obsessed with!

So she has these photography assignments where she asks to see the public's photos of whatever she feels like - in this case, cats - and then she chooses groups of semi-finalists and then finalists. I submitted my photo of Boston and was so excited that she chose it!

I guess those cats come in handy sometimes after all.

Happy baby!

2010-03-04T13:39:00.006-06:00

oh this kid. I can't get enough.

So how about those Mini Sessions flying off the shelves!? We booked all slots in a matter of, ohhhh, about an hour!! My clients are awesome!

I'm so SO excited to begin the shooting season again, especially with my new friend, my just-arrived Canon 5D Mark II! Between my new camera and my wonderful high-quality Canon lenses, I am set for a great year!

I just began booking for the spring...April is already booked and there are only a few spots left for May, so definitely get a hold of me soon to set up your spring or summer session! I have tons of location ideas for your session and can help with clothing options too. Looking forward to seeing everyone again this year!

Announcing 2010 Spring Mini Sessions!

2010-03-01T15:19:00.007-06:00

(Note: ALL TIME SLOTS ARE NOW FULL! please contact me to schedule a regular session this year or to get on the mailing list for Fall Mini Sessions!)

Westlake Photography will be holding Spring Mini Sessions in April!

Mini sessions are portrait sessions at a specific location that are shorter than a typical session and are relaxed and enjoyable.

A Spring Mini Session is perfect for spring family photos or children’s portraits for Mother's Day or Father's Day!

Westlake Photography mini sessions are 20 minutes and include a CD of 20 to 30 high-resolution images from your session in both color and black and white. The cost is $100.

The sessions will be held on Saturday, April 24 and Sunday, April 25. The available times for booking a mini session are:

Saturday
9 a.m.
9:30 a.m.
10 a.m.

Sunday
2 p.m.
2:30 p.m.
3 p.m.

As you can see, sessions are very limited and are expected to book up quickly, so if you are interested in a time, please email me as soon as possible!

Spring mini sessions will be held in Washington Park by the Carillon and Botanical Gardens, a beautiful area full of bright colors. We will meet you and your family by the fountain next to the Fayette Ave. parking lot.

Sessions will run according to schedule, so please be on time to make the most of your session!Please contact me at courtney@courtneywestlake.com or 217/801-6000 about booking a mini session. We look forward to seeing you this spring and kicking off our photo season!

Cat Nap

2010-02-28T20:37:00.006-06:00

Well I guess I'll take a break from posting photos of my baby all the time...and give you one of my "other babies."

We have two kitties we adopted from the Animal Protective League a couple of years ago, and they are turning 4 years old this week! They are the sweetest cats ever and LOVE people - in fact, I'm pretty sure they think they're dogs.

Anyway, so the other day I walked in our room and found one of them - Gus - curled up on the bed. But I couldn't find Boston, his brother. Since they usually snooze together, I was befuddled. I looked around the house and tried calling for him.

And finally found him...curled up with Gus...but under the covers!

Tiny Toes

2010-02-22T08:28:00.006-06:00

This post comes to you announcing a Spring 2010 Special from Westlake Photography!!

Our Tiny Toes Special includes one maternity session and one newborn session, PLUS the high-resulution images from BOTH sessions on a CD for you to use (perfect for birth announcements and the baby book!) The cost is $200 - which is HALF of the normal price!

If you are pregnant or know someone who is, pass the information along and get in contact with me! We'll make tentative plans for sessions with your due date in mind...but I am very flexible since I know babies come according to their own schedules!

Your sessions must be booked before May 1. (The sessions can take place anytime this year, they just must be scheduled before May).

Your maternity session can take place anywhere you want - your home, the park, downtown - I have tons of ideas, and it can include other immediate family members. Your newborn session will most likely take place in your home and will be slow-paced, relaxed and all about you and your new little one!

As a mom, I am SO thrilled we chose to document my humongous baby bump as well as Connor's first week of life. Oh my goodness, he was so scrunchy and snuggly and TINY!! They seriously change so fast.

I highly encourage you to capture these moments full of emotion and love. Or what a WONDERFUL gift this would make for a close friend or family member who is expecting!

Please contact me for questions or to schedule your sessions in this special package: courtney@courtneywestlake.com or 217/801-6000.

Cardinals fan!

2010-02-20T14:12:00.004-06:00

We realized we hadn't dressed Connor in his Cardinals onesie yet, (and he's growing so fast he won't have many more chances to wear it!) so we decked him out in Cardinals gear this morning and had an impromptu photo shoot.

It's hard to catch his smiles with our point-and-shoot camera because of the delay, but we came pretty close!

California Here We Come: Day Three

2010-02-17T08:19:00.021-06:00

On Saturday (January 30), the wedding we were attending wasn't until 3:00, and we wanted to make the most of our time in California, so naturally, we went to the beach!

Not far from where we were staying in Newport Beach was this adorable little island called Balboa Island. It was packed with these cute little stores and cute little houses and cute little restaurants.
We parked at Balboa Island since we could drive across the water to it, and then we took a ferry to Balboa, which is a peninsula along the ocean.

Once there, we headed out to the pier...

(taken by a California surfer, who told us "welcome to Cal, man!")

And then we frolicked around the ocean for a while...which was FREEZING by the way. Evan kept claiming he was going to jump in, and he even wore his swimsuit, but once he felt the water, he changed his tune. It was an absolutely gooooorgeous day, albeit a little chilly. I'd take it over Illinois winter weather though! (except for Christmas - I need a snowy, cold Christmas.)

And lastly, one of my favorites of the day...

Connor William: 5 months old!

2010-02-15T08:49:00.006-06:00

I need to take a break in our regularly scheduled programming to bring you Connor William, who just turned five months old!!

Five months - augh! How BIG is he getting?!

one with the lion...

I've been trying to take a picture with his lion friend, Leo, every month, to show how much he's changing...

and one without the lion...

Everyone always asks me about his latest tricks, so let's see....He's still only got two teeth, but he's definitely working on some more, and I think they will pop up any day now.

...He's the smiliest kid alive.

...He's just really starting to laugh and it's the cutest sound I've ever heard! It sounds like a forced chuckle, literally like " ha ha ha!"

...The mirror is one of his favorite things and I read that babies don't recognize that it is themselves in the mirror until they're closer to 8 months, but Connor breaks into a big grin every time he sees his reflection. We joke that he's probably thinking, "who is that other baby? he's a handsome devil!"

...He also is starting to be able to sit up on his own for long periods, and it won't be long now until he's got the sitting thing down!

California Here We Come: Day Two

2010-02-14T12:33:00.011-06:00

We rented a car for two days while we were in California, and the second day, we cruised up to Hollywood for the day.

We got off the freeway on Sunset Boulevard and drove all the way into Hollywood from there. It was pretty sweet seeing those big beautiful houses and knowing that they cost some obscene amount of money!

Of course, we had to find the Hollywood sign...
and see Beverly Hills...

The highlight of our trip was walking along Rodeo Drive since it's so well-known - it was fun to finally see it in person.
Though I was dying to find some little bar in West Hollywood to eat lunch at and hopefully spot some famous reality TV stars (perhaps the Kardashians or The Hills stars?!), I earned a total fail for not doing my research ahead of time. But it worked out fine because we found this little sidewalk cafe on Beverly, the street next to Rodeo, and it was DEEEEE-lish!

(I ordered water and the waiter said "bottled water or Beverly Hills water?" So here I am with my Beverly Hills water...how fancy!)

We spent hours driving around just taking it all in. Evan and I agreed that we really enjoyed the West Coast environment and really liked the L.A./Hollywood/Beverly Hills area, which was a little surprising since we normally prefer smaller cities or towns over big cities. (I think it may be just Chicago that we don't like though because we've liked every other bigger city!)

Evan also spent much of his time gawking at all of the fancy cars there - EVERYONE drives a BMW, Mercedes, Range Rover or Lexus and we saw multiple Maseratis, Rolls Royces and Bentleys. (yes I did have to ask him just now for the names of some of those - I'm not a car person!!) What else is nice about the cars there is that they are all in immaculate condition - another plus for warm weather year-round!

California, Here We Come: Day One

2010-02-08T19:28:00.010-06:00

In college, Evan and his friends were slightly obsessed with that TV show The OC (weird bunch of guys).

So as we landed in California on Thursday, January 28, we couldn't get that theme song out of our heads! ("California, here we come...right back where we started from. Californiaaa. Californiaaaaaaaa.") I guess I should backtrack real quick and note that we were in Cali - Newport Beach specifically - for the beautiful wedding of my good friend Kristi from high school!

We landed at around 11 a.m. local time, and the first place we headed to after we checked into the hotel was In N Out Burger! Evan had been talking about eating there literally since Kristi announced her engagement. Let me tell you, it exceeded all expectations!

Then our day got even BETTER when we met Kristi and her soon-t0-be husband Andrew for afternoon drinks. We were joined by Kristi's sister Julie and her fiance Joe - who you might remember from their engagement session last summer!

We met at a rooftop bar called Ky'a Lounge overlooking the ocean - BEAUTIFUL!! To come from temps in the single digits to basking in the glow of the sun on a warm afternoon sipping on a Mai Tai...mmmmmmm.

Not too shabby, ya think?
I'm not sure which was better though - sunny afternoon drinks with friends...or the fact that Evan and I got 10 hours of uninterrupted sleep that night!!

I'm back!

2010-02-04T13:08:00.004-06:00

OK I know it's been for-EVERRRR since I've posted and I apologize!!

Evan and I went on an amazing trip last weekend for four days...here's a hint:

And since then, I feel like I've been going non-stop trying to catch back up! I'm barely caught up on laundry, let alone blogging!

But I promise very soon, I will have a full post about our trip with some beautiful photos to accompany!

Cutting teeth

2010-01-19T09:58:00.006-06:00

I've been over-running the blog these days with personal posts, but I'm just enjoying Connor so much right now! I love babies this age. Not to mention that I'm also not shooting clients right now because of the winter weather...although I'm looking forward to spring in a few months when I can start booking sessions again!

I do have one or two client sessions to blog still from the fall, but they are taking a backseat right now to Connor :)
This weekend, he had two teeth pop out! I knew even though it was a little earlier than a lot of babies, that it would only be a short time until he got teeth because he's been so drooly for so long! Lately, he's really stepped up in the hand-chewing department as well. And sure enough, on Sunday morning, I felt the edge of a tiny tooth. By Monday night, we could clearly see both of his two front bottom teeth sticking out from his gums.

(poor gums, I think that must be so uncomfortable to feel sharp teeth shoving their way through!)

He's done pretty well with the whole cutting teeth thing, just a little fussier than usual. But he's also been cuddlier than usual when he wants to be soothed - and it melts my heart every time he nestles into me!

And otherwise, he's SUCH a sweetheart and smiles every chance he gets.

oh those cheeks. how I love those cheeks.

(the lighting isn't the best on this one - or any of them actually - but I just love his sweet expressions!)

We had a great three-day weekend, and Evan is starting classes for his Master's in Business Administration tonight. It's going to be an adjustment with him having classes two nights a week and not home with us. But I'm proud of him for pursuing his MBA, and I know he'll do great in his courses!

Connor William is four months old today!

2010-01-13T14:01:00.004-06:00

My baby turns four months old today - wow! Four months sounds so old! (in baby terms of course.)

We had his doctor's appointment today, and I swear, my heart just about breaks when I have to watch him get his shots. He was a champ though, and has been sleeping ever since we left.

(Actually, he's been sleeping close to nonstop since I picked him up from daycare yesterday. He so isn't used to sleeping with all of the baby noise and in his crib with no swaddling that he is just plain exhausted when he gets home. Last night he fell asleep at 5, we woke him twice to eat for 20 minutes each and he slept otherwise until 6 a.m.!)

We also got his new stats at his appointment - and we have a big boy on our hands still! Which we kind of suspected considering he is almost completely in 6-9 month outfits already.

Connor was 16 lbs., 7 oz. and 26.5 inches long....which translates into the 85th percentile for weight (same as his two month appointment) and 90th percentile for height (up from the 70th at his two-month!)

Evan and my dad are definitely holding out hope for a "6'5 shooting guard," as my dad puts it :)

Rough weekend

2010-01-10T17:58:00.003-06:00

Not really :)

We had a great weekend, and it was really relaxing actually. We ran errands yesterday and hung out with friends last night (and watched the Illini win!) It was nice to reconnect with some of our friends since we hadn't seen them in a while. And we definitely don't want to become those lame friends with the baby who no one wants to hang out with!

And today we spent the morning and afternoon in Greenfield (about an hour away) going to church with Evan's family and having lunch at his sister Aimee's family's house there. Aimee had made several recipes from the Pioneer Woman's cookbook, and the Pioneer Woman is one of my absolute faaaaaaavorite bloggers, so it was fun getting to try some of her recipes. They were spectacular!

All in all, a fabulous weekend.

And apparently we wore Connor out because as you can see, he totally zonked out while hanging out in his dad's arms this evening. I hope he wakes up soon or else he probably won't sleep the entire night!

Snow Day

2010-01-07T15:29:00.007-06:00

Today, this...

+

=

Today, I'm snowed in with my boy and I'm loving every second of it! It reminds me of the good ol days of maternity leave when I wouldn't leave the house for days :) We've been bummin around in our PJs all day and cuddling up together and playing.

I've also been updating my Web site little by little, mostly adding 2009 photos to the gallery...long overdue! I've also started to update my pricing and my homepage photos. You'll see some other changes very soon as well!

I'm really really looking forward to this photo season and can't wait to start shooting clients again in April! Until then, Connor will be my camera's focus. (pun intended. get it, focus? I crack myself up!)

Hope everyone is having a fabulous start to the New Year!

The Bell Family

2010-01-06T18:19:00.008-06:00

I've been waiting more than a month to post these pictures on my blog and facebook! I had to wait though because they were a Christmas surprise for the parents of these four...

I went to college with Courtney at U of I, and we were in the same sorority (shoutout to Alpha Gamma Delta!) She was always one of my favorites of the older girls in the house, and we got along really well. I was so pumped when she asked me to take family photos for her.

So I had no idea she had three little brothers! (OK maybe just younger, not so little...they might have all been taller than her, even her 13-year-old brother!) I thought she maybe had one or two older brothers actually. But they all piled out of the car when we arrived, and they were so fun to photograph. I enjoyed seeing how well all four of them got along.

Case in point...
We had a beautiful fall day for photos, and the Sugar Creek Covered Bridge in Glenarm was such a great choice for location.

Gorgeous!

Thanks Bell Family, I hope your parents and grandparents were thrilled with their Christmas gifts!

2009: Top Ten Family Portraits

2010-01-01T12:51:00.017-06:00

I can't say enough about the wonderful families I photographed this year - some of whom came to me more than once this year! We captured not only some nice family portraits but also some great moments and interaction.

I had such a hard time choosing this category because I have so many favorites. (So you'll have to check my updated Web site in a few days to see the many other great family portraits from the year!)

Here are the Top Ten Family Portraits from Westlake Photography for 2009...
I just want to send a message of thanks to ALL of my clients in 2009!! It was a wonderful year, and I feel so blessed to have had so much support and interest during my first official year in business. Like I mentioned in a previous post, 2010 is going to bring some really fun changes at Westlake Photography, and I'm so excited for it!

2009: Top Ten Children's Portraits

2009-12-31T15:46:00.015-06:00

I noticed looking through this year's sessions that I don't have nearly as many photos of just children as I did last year. I have so many more of families, which I think is wonderful. And it's even more fun when we get both family shots and photos of just the kids (and just the parents!), which was how many of my sessions were this year.

In no particular order, here are my favorite children's photos of 2009...
Check back tomorrow, New Year's Day, for the last review of the year: Top Family Photos!

2009: Top Ten Senior Photos

2009-12-29T19:14:00.013-06:00

Time for my annual year in review! I feel like this year was such a whirlwind with having a baby right in the middle of portrait season and shooting portraits both when I was huge as a barn and also when I had a newborn at home.

But I also feel like it was an amazing year, and I thank all of my clients who were so great to work with! I met some fabulous new families and saw numerous repeat clients, both of which I'm so grateful for.

I've had a good time going through all of the sessions from the year to choose some of my favorites. First up is the Top Senior Portraits for 2009, in no particular order....
Thank you, Class of 2010, for a great 2009 :)

Connor's first Christmas

2009-12-29T12:51:00.012-06:00

Hope everyone had a spectacular Christmas! Christmas is by far my favorite time of the whole year, and I wish it would last for half the year (with summer as the other half of course). And this Christmas was extra-amazing because we got to celebrate it for the first time with the best gift Evan and I have ever received!

(taken on Christmas Eve. Doesn't he look so handsome in his little holiday sweater?!)

We're lucky that both of our families are within a half hour of our home and while that means never having to choose between holiday celebrations, it also means that we are constantly on-the-go and attend every family get-together. This year, we went to five family celebrations in three days!

We had Christmas Eve brunch at Evan's parents' house with his immediate family, and mass and Christmas Eve dinner with my immediate family. On Christmas Day morning, we opened presents at home (Santa definitely visited Connor! He was a good boy this year ;) ) Then we spent late morning and early afternoon with my mom's extended family and then jetted out to Evan's grandpa's house in Ashland (about 30 minutes away) to spend the rest of the day and night with his mom's extended family. The day after Christmas, we had brunch with my dad's extended family. Whew!

Connor was very enthused about all of the present-opening...

Christmas Eve morning

Christmas morning

oh wait, he was awake for some of it!

early Christmas morning

Though we were totally exhausted after the weekend, we had a fabulous time and feel so blessed we got to spend such a wonderful holiday with our families. Connor did great the whole time and LOVED all of the attention lavished on him! Here are a few more Christmas photos...

(the hat says "Kiss Me Grandma")

my mom and I

Connor and his cousins - Garrett, Evie and Audie. Four grandkids under age 3!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-24T17:12:00.003-06:00

Awww my heart melts every time I see this photo! I got this the other night right before Connor decided he was done taking photos and started drooling all over his uncle's present. :)

Merry Christmas to all!!! Hope you have a wonderful holiday with your family and friends!

William: Virginia High School 2010

2009-12-23T15:13:00.014-06:00

My last senior of the year! I particularly enjoyed this session because it was in the small town of Virginia, which I had never been to before. I have a special place in my heart for small towns for some strange reason, especially ones with cute little town squares.

It was also really great hanging out with William, who was very laidback, easy to talk to and pretty much went along with whatever shot I came up with!

Here's one of my favorites...maybe even my absolute favorite. I think it could be one of the posters in the front of Abercrombie and Fitch!

oh my, I just love these country shots

I really like a lot of his more serious looks, but we got some nice smiling ones too :)

Here's that small town square I was talking about...love it!

We went out to the farm where William has worked for several years...

Another favorite!

Thanks William - enjoy your senior year!!

The A Family

2009-12-22T08:22:00.013-06:00

I got lucky this fall with having really great families to photograph, and it was especially nice because it made everything stress-free while I was leaving my newborn to photograph some of these!

It seemed like Washington Park was a popular destination this summer and fall for family photo sessions, but my session with the A family took me out to the Sugar Creek Covered Bridge in Glenarm. It workd out really well since we had such a wet October and while the park was muddy, being on the bridge wasn't too wet at all!

And oh those precious boys...

Mom had said she wasn't sure that the youngest, Grant, would smile much for us.

I think Grant made a liar out of her!

In fact, these were some of the best behaved and easy-going kids we have photographed! I wouldn't mind having 10 kids if they all acted like these two... :)

What an adorable family. Maybe we can get together for a play date?! in a couple of years, when Connor might be a bit more interesting to Wyatt and Grant... ha. How cute. Love them.

Thanks for the session, A Family!!

Ellie: Tri-City High School 2010

2009-12-21T08:33:00.015-06:00

So the last two seniors I had for the year were farm kids and wanted photos on the farm...which I absolutely LOVED!! I am obsessed with rural settings for photo sessions! They're so rustic, natural and beautiful.

The first was Ellie, from Tri-City High School in Buffalo. Her family is good friends with my in-laws, so we had a good time traipsing around their farm and coming up with some fabulous shots.

Here are some of my favorites...

yep, she's a country girl!!

beautiful eyes!

absolutely stunning

ahhh I'm CRAZY about this one!!
Thanks Ellie, hope you are enjoying your senior year!!

I'm still here!!

2009-12-17T08:23:00.005-06:00

So I completely apologize for the quietness around here lately!! I went back to work at my fulltime job after Thanksgiving, and things have just been CRAZY trying to adjust to a new schedule, working fulltime and trying to get ready for Christmas!! I don't even have a single present wrapped yet :(

But I STILL have some sessions left to blog from the late fall, not to mention some very sweet photos of my baby boy, who just turned three months old last Sunday! I can't believe how much he is growing and changing every day. I love him so much I can hardly stand it and feel like my heart is going to burst every time I see him!!

But I digress (sorry, I was having a new mom moment).

Check back very very soon for some new posts. And in the meantime, I am cooking up some amazing new things for next year, and I can't wait to unveil it all in the early spring! There are going to be some really fun changes coming to Westlake Photography!!

oh and PS if you're still looking for that last-minute gift, we are offering gift certificates for photo sessions! These make a fabulous present for your mom or grandparents, who often want to get the family all together for photos but just never seem to get around to it. And through purchasing a gift card for a session next year, you are able to get a 2010 session at 2009's prices! Contact me if interested :)

and now I'll leave you all with a precious pic of Connor because what's a blog post without a photo!?

Thanksgiving

2009-12-01T17:55:00.009-06:00

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving, hope everyone else did too!!

Both of our families are in town, so we pretty much have an all-day feast with both families! Connor was a little overwhelmed with all of the activity, but did great. Next year he'll actually get to enjoy some of the delicious food though :)

Here's a photo of our family of three on our first Thanksgiving

Connor and his cousin Brody, who are two weeks apart, were decked out in their festive Thanksgiving outfits!

Brody was way bigger than Connor the last time they were together, but I think Connor has caught up! I love my chubby little guy :)

looks like someone had too much turkey ;)

Lots of smiles sitting in Grandpa's lap!
I can't believe it's almost Christmas!! This fall season has seriously flown by, but I guess I have been a little preoccupied with a new baby and all! I can't wait for Connor's first Christmas. I love Christmastime!

Heather and Eric: one year anniversary

2009-11-20T13:55:00.007-06:00

My good friend Heather and her husband Eric celebrated their one-year anniversary in November - congrats guys!!

They wanted some beautiful fall photos to commemorate the occasion, so we had fun in the park one evening :)
I love them not only because they are friends, but they're so photogenic and up for anything! Not to mention SO cute together!!
Here's to many more years of happy marriage for you!!

The B Family: fall mini session

2009-11-15T20:45:00.008-06:00

My last mini session!

Tammy is a friend of my sister-in-law from high school but I first met her two years ago because she was doing my makeup for my wedding. At the time, she was pregnant with her daughter Lucy, who is oh so beautiful!
It was great to finally get to meet Tammy's family and see Tammy again while we captured some great photos for her!

loooooove this one!

OK they're pretty much all fantastic!

Thanks to all my families who did a fall mini session with us!

Peyton and Lydia: fall mini session

2009-11-13T15:53:00.007-06:00

The H family loves my mini sessions...they are already planning for family photos during my spring 2010 mini session event! yea!

Which is great because I love photographing Peyton and Lydia - they are such gorgeous kids! And I love the way they interact with each other...

precious

sharing sibling secrets? :)

Great to see you all again!

Rodd, Lisa and Ethan: fall mini session

2009-11-09T16:23:00.007-06:00

I work with Lisa during my fulltime job and when she signed up for a mini session, I was very excited! I loved getting to meet her family - what nice people!!

And their brown clothing looked amazing againts the backdrop of the yellow fall leaves...

of course they wanted to bring their sweet dog, who had a great time running around in between photos :)

Charles: fall mini session

2009-11-05T19:33:00.005-06:00

Like several of the kids that day, Charles was a little bothered by the cold of the morning, but we still managed to get some sweet pictures of him. How could we not - he's so CUTE!

Charles has made an appearance on this blog several times, and as recently as July for his one-year photos! He's walking now, which was fun to see :)

Even though we only got a couple of smiling pictures, his mom said that was OK because he's a serious kind of guy much of the time!
love this lookwhat a cutie!!

Sam: fall mini session

2009-11-04T14:59:00.008-06:00

The mini sessions, despite being a little chilly, were a hit! Everyone's photos turned out beautifully, and it was great to reconnect with old clients as well as meet some new ones!

The first family of the day was one of our cutest clients! I can't believe how big Sam is getting. You should hear him talk now!

Little Abercrombie and Fitch model I'd say!!

Halloween

2009-11-01T17:09:00.003-06:00

Hope everyone had a very happy Halloween!! We had so much fun with our little guy, who dressed up as a peapod!

We took him to a few houses in the neighborhood before we ended up across the street at our good friends' house to hang out with a small group. Connor did so great and didn't seem to mind his costume too much either :)

He might be the cutest peapod I've ever seen...

JP and Family

2009-10-30T14:10:00.011-05:00

Whew... I've been so busy with sessions, I haven't had time to blog!! But that means lots of great posts coming your way!

I just HAVE to start with this picture because of the front page article in today's SJ-R featuring J.P.'s family!

If you recall, I photographed J.P. when he was a newborn back in June...He's now 4.5 months old and one of the cutest babies EVER!

J.P. was mentioned in the newspaper story today that was about his grandpa and uncle, who coach football at SHG and Rochester, both making it to the playoffs. If they both won state in their respective classes, it would make state history!

J.P.'s dad, Brad, also helps to coach at Rochester...I'm glad he brought his football along because the photo above is so totally precious.

We also got some beautiful family photos for J.P. and his parents...

one with mom...
and one with dad...
my favorite of the bunch!!love this :)Ahhh... fall is definitely my favorite time to photograph families!

The L Family

2009-10-19T14:59:00.008-05:00

Wow we just LOVED this family!! We enjoy everyone we get to meet, but we especially clicked with Stephanie, Ryan and their little ones not only because they are some of the nicest people but we had so much in common with them too!

Stephanie even brought a little baby present for Connor - how sweet is that?!

It was a little chilly, but we had a gorgeous fall day for their family photos.

I just love this!And this!What a beautiful family

playing in the leaves!

Thanks to the L family for a fun Saturday morning!

Cousins

2009-10-16T08:17:00.007-05:00

On Wednesday, my sister-in-law brought her new baby over to play with his new cousin! Her son Audie was born almost exactly three weeks after Connor - how cool is that?

We just had to get some pictures of the cousins together!

As one of my friends commented, it looks like they're telling little baby secrets :)

Here's one of Audie...

And one of Connor...

I'm sure the boys are going to be lifelong friends!

Crisp Fall Day!

2009-10-11T16:35:00.006-05:00

We took Connor to the Apple Barn in Chatham yesterday morning and had a great time! We got some apple cider to sip on this fall and walked around enjoying the beautiful fall day...

Connor had a great time too :)
Can't believe my baby is going to be a month old on Tuesday!

Announcing Fall Mini Sessions!

2009-10-06T10:35:00.003-05:00

Westlake Photography will be holding Fall Mini Sessions on Saturday, October 24!

Mini sessions are portrait sessions at a specific location that are shorter than a typical session and very laidback and fun!

Westlake Photography mini sessions are 15-20 minutes and include a CD of 20 to 30 high-resolution images from your session. The cost is $75.

A Fall Mini Session is perfect for fall family photos or Christmas card pictures!

The available times for booking a mini session are:
10 a.m.
10:25 a.m.
10:50 a.m.
1:20 p.m.
1:45 p.m.
2:10 p.m.

As you can see, sessions are very limited and are expected to book up quickly, so if you are interested in a time, please email me as soon as possible!

Fall mini sessions will be held in Washington Park by the Carillon and Botanical Gardens, a beautiful area full of bright fall colors. We will meet you and your family by the fountain next to the Fayette Ave. parking lot.

Sessions will run according to schedule, so please be on time to make the most of your session!

I will be scheduling through email only, so please contact me at courtney@courtneywestlake.com about booking a mini session!

Welcome to the World: Connor William

2009-09-25T10:05:00.008-05:00

I just have to share some of the beautiful photos I captured of my precious newborn!

He wasn't as cooperative as I would have liked with these, but I'm still excited about what we got :) And hey I understand that it could be annoying be positioned in different ways when you're trying to catch a few Z's!

And lastly, my favorite...pure innocence!

Introducing the newest addition to Westlake Photography...

2009-09-20T13:51:00.005-05:00

...Connor William Westlake!

He was born on Sunday, September 13, at 7:14 p.m. (after a labor longer and harder than Mommy would have liked!) He weighed 7 lbs. 7 oz. and was 21 inches long.

We may be biased but we think he's the most beautiful thing we've ever seen :)

Chelsea: Williamsville Senior 2010

2009-09-11T07:33:00.012-05:00

My final session of the summer before maternity leave couldn't have gone any better! We had a blast with Chelsea and her mom!

Chelsea was a total natural in front of the camera and so fun to work with, not to mention absolutely gorgeous!

Chelsea plays golf for Williamsville, so the first place we met up was The Rail, Williamsville's home course, to get some golf shots! Chelsea's mom threw out this idea during our consultation and I loved it!

We also headed downtown, where Chelsea sported this amazing dress...

Aren't her blue eyes awesome!? I didn't even edit them at all, they just sparkle like that on their own!

Love this blue wall with her dress!
Beautiful...

Thanks so much to Chelsea and her mom, what a fun afternoon!

Now that I've posted about this last session, I'm off to have my baby this weekend! I'm officially 3 days overdue as of today, and we are forcing him out on Sunday morning! :) Check back soon for photos!

Owen and family

2009-09-09T14:14:00.009-05:00

The thing I love about little kids is that everything you capture is just completely natural! And 18-month-olds are definitely a challenge since they are so on the GO! Owen definitely kept me hopping during our session, but I expected nothing less :)

man on the run!

We had a great time with Owen and his family, and really appreciate them driving from Taylorville to hang out with us for the morning!

what a good-looking family!

SO adorable!

wheeeee!one of my favorites!

Katy and Jay: Love Story

2009-09-03T14:11:00.016-05:00

When Katy described where she was interested in having her engagement photos taken, I was so excited! We went to a farm of some family friends of her fiance Jay and it was SO gorgeous - beautiful prairie grass, a small pond, even a quaint tree swing!

I've known Katy all my life it seems like, through friends of friends, and I went to high school and college with Jay, so it was a big coincidence to me that they are now engaged! They are planning a beautiful destination wedding in Florida next year...

For now, here are some photos documenting their new engagement!

delicious evening light!!

LOVE this swing!

so romantic...
check out the bling!! good work Jay!
they're so cute together!

love it!

Congratulations to you both and best of luck planning your wedding!!

The Metz Family

2009-08-31T12:36:00.015-05:00

This family drove all the way from Colorado to have their photo taken by Westlake Photography!

OK not really, they were in town to visit family, but it sounded cool right?

So I loved meeting this family! This happens to be the uncle, aunt and cousin of Baby J.P., who made an appearance on the blog a couple of months ago!

J.P. was present at the shoot, and assistant Evan got to hold him for a bit and practice his dad skills. It was so sweet!

We had a great time hanging out with this family at dad Chris' parents' house. They have a beautiful yard and it was a lovely day for trying to keep up with their little one, Cassidy. The one thing that made her laugh every time was when her dad made a chicken noise - it was a riot!

My favorite!

After trying to get Cassidy to look at the camera for a bit with little success, we looked over to see her posing oh so sweetly on the front steps!

love this one :)

this is just a "slice of life" picture, isn't it? playing around with a fun-loving toddler!It was a pleasure meeting all of you, we had a great time and were glad to be a part of your family trip to Springfield!

Ellie: Rochester High School senior 2010

2009-08-26T08:52:00.011-05:00

We had a fabulous time with Ellie and her mom for her senior photos! It turned out to be one of the hottest days of the summer, but it worked out nicely because we were able to reschedule for the early morning instead of the afternoon shoot we originally had planned!

We went to several different fun spots that, including two I had never shot at, so that was fun for my creative side. I think the pictures came out beautifully!

this is one of my favorites - the bright yellow flowers look amazing with her beautiful red hair!

I love this one!
gorgeous!

I included two similar barn pictures, but I like them both so much!

Be sure to look for some more fall senior pictures of Ellie, as we are splitting her session up into two!

I'm still kickin...barely!

2009-08-21T11:46:00.005-05:00

So you may have noticed that the blog has been a little...lackluster...lately. I am at week 37 this week and while this is pretty much my only excuse for a lacking blog, I think it's a pretty good one! I'm really starting to drag these days, and really starting to countdown the days until the due date! :)

More exciting news too is that we are booked for the fall already! The only exception is the possibility of mini sessions, which I will keep everyone updated about, and newborn sessions, which I will strive to fit in any time as I know the importance of capturing those sweet little bundles of joy in their earliest days!

And between now and when my fall sessions start up again, you'll be graced with many images from my little one, I'm sure :)

In the meantime, stay tuned for some blog posts from recent sessions, including:

Ellie's senior photos

Katy and Jay's engagement

The M family

Another M family!

and finally, Chelsea's senior photos!

Geri and Kevan: Wedding

2009-08-19T13:00:00.021-05:00

So I have to start with this picture because you just really can't beat the expression on Geri's face! :)

Geri and Kevan tied the knot in Champaign, IL right on campus in St. John's church, which happens to be the church attached to the dorm I lived in freshman year! They've made a lot of changes to the dorm since then, but it was really fun to be back in the building and to wander around that area of campus.

Cute exchange between father and daughter before the walk down the aisle!

with this ring...

Geri and her bridesmaids got ready at the hotel during the morning while Kevan and his groomsmen played a round of golf at the course where their reception was held. I love this photo of Geri's very proud mom capturing Geri and her sister Jamie...

gorgeous!

Geri, her mom and her sister were all members of Alpha Gamma Delta (as were many members of the wedding party and yours truly!) so we of course had to stop by the house and snag some photos!

The reception was held at Stone Creek Golf Course, which brought back more memories from college, since we had a Moms Weekend function there for the sorority, my family ate dinner there on my graduation night, and Evan and I also celebrated a Valentine's Dinner there!

The golf course was a great backdrop for photos...

about to be dropped? :)
beautiful!and finally, a few from the speeches, both of which were really great! both the maid of honor and best man had everyone laughing...

Congratulations Geri and Kevan, and best of luck to you as you begin your life together!!!

Geri and Kevan: Wedding Details

2009-08-14T09:41:00.012-05:00

Geri and Kevan got married in Champaign on July 25, 2009. Here are some details from their beautiful wedding. Coming up soon will be more photos from their big day!

Tim and Hannah: Summer 2009

2009-08-07T11:55:00.009-05:00

They're baaaaaaack! You may recognize these sweet faces from this post or this post last year!

We managed to beat the rain on Saturday, and got some fabulous photos downtown at the train depot.

I'll start with my favorite one for a change. I just love this!

The funny thing is that most of the ones we got aren't really posed except for me guiding them where to sit or stand. Tim and Hannah love to hug and share some sibling love! Tim didn't hesitate to pick Hannah right up in a bear hug for this photo!

Smooches

"No pictures, please." :)

Another un-posed one. Hannah was playing peek-a-boo from behind the lamp post. But I caught her in action!

Don't you just love toothless grins? Tim lost a top tooth and a bottom tooth!

Very cute

Thank you guys, we loved seeing you again!

Maternity Photos!

2009-08-04T21:19:00.013-05:00

So I coerced my friend Betsy of Betsy and Butler fame to take some "maternity" photos of me and Evan and my baby bump :)

I was beyond excited about taking them (now I know how my clients feel!) and I'm so in love with so many of them!!

We went to Evan's parents' farm just east of Riverton to take them (seniors: definitely a fun option for a location!) Here are a few of my favorites...

We are 5 weeks away from my due date, and I can't believe how fast it is going now! I am feeling like the little guy might make an early appearance, although I've been encouraging him to wait at least another couple of weeks so I can get through my scheduled sessions and my baby showers! :)

We're so excited to meet him!

Jenna: SHG senior 2010

2009-07-31T13:31:00.011-05:00

We had a crazy windy day when we shot Jenna's senior photos, so I was pleasantly surprised at how great they turned out - much less windblown than I expected!

I had a great time hanging out with Jenna and her mom at the park and downtown, and it was fun talking about teachers we had in common since I went to SHG too!

Here are some of my favorites...

Love this one...

Very cute!!

Sassy! :)

Thanks again and hope you have a great time during your senior year!!

Andy and Amanda: Wedding

2009-07-27T19:57:00.015-05:00

Andy and Amanda exchanged vows on June 27, 2009 in Champaign. The wedding was at St. Matt's and the reception was at the Illini Union. We had a great time hitting up different spots around campus for some beautiful photos! It was a very hot day, but everything went without any problems!

(side note: to get rid of any confusion, I don't normally shoot weddings. I agreed to shoot two weddings this summer for good friends, and though they both went extremely well, I definitely want to stick with portraits! Hope you enjoy the photos though :) )

Getting ready for the big day...

Lovely ladies

and the dapper men

A stop in a park near downtown Champaign provided us with some beautiful pics!

I love this

I saw a photo like this from another photographer that I absolutely adore, so I "borrowed" the idea :) It's so fun and different!

Wedding party at the Hallene Gateway

During the reception, Andy and Amanda didn't seem to leave the dance floor, which was packed full of people all night long. But before they rocked out, here is serene and loving moment during the first dance...
Congratulations to you both as you start your life together!!

Booked til Baby!

2009-07-17T07:31:00.005-05:00

Pssssst. Guess what?
We are officially booked until my "unofficial" photo maternity leave begins around mid-August!

As I've mentioned before, we are going to be taking a limited number of sessions in the late fall, and after looking at my calendar today, I realized that it will indeed be a very limited number. I am anticipating holding a fall mini session event, possibly the weekend of October 24, but I'm not making any promises because I have no idea how my schedule will be with the new baby!

Other than that, I only have a few slots open for sessions between the middle of October and beginning of November, so if you are interested at all in scheduling a fall session, please let me know as soon as possible so we can tentatively plan a date! (I will of course make an exception for anyone who wants a newborn session - those are best within a few weeks of the baby's birth!)

I'll be posting lots of photos from all of the sessions we have coming up over the next month, and after that you might just have to stick around to see the millions of pictures I expect to take of my lil guy :)

We're so excited for his arrival!!

Andy and Amanda: Wedding Details

2009-07-16T15:23:00.014-05:00

Andy and Amanda tied the knot on June 27, 2009, and both the ceremony and reception were just beautiful!

They got married in Champaign and had their reception at the U of I Union, on the Quad. Ah, it made me miss those college days!

Here are some beautiful details from their day!

If I recall correctly, Amanda made this for Andy for her wedding day gift to him...

Lacing up the gown...

Beautiful bouquets

This is a treasured family rosary, and it meant a lot to Amanda for it to be a part of her wedding day

Best wrapped present ever?! If you look closely, you'll notice that it incorporates all of their engagement photos!

And finally, their initials were shining on the wall during the reception!

Stay tuned for more wedding pictures to come!

Charles: One Year

2009-07-13T20:02:00.010-05:00

Can you hardly believe how much Charles has grown?! If you recall from my blog last fall, Charles spent about four months in the hospital after being born extremely early, and this June he celebrated his first birthday!

We had a great time with little Charles and his parents playing in the park last week, and I just adore the photos we captured.

Family photo

I love this one.

Charles lights up both of his parents' faces!

oh those eyes! makes me melt. little boys get the BEST eyes and eyelashes!

sweet smile!

Charles and Family - so good to see you all again!

Little feet

2009-07-10T21:27:00.005-05:00

Is this not the most precious thing ever?! It just makes me melt. :)

This is a sneak peek from my session last night. Can't wait to post the rest, they all turned out so great!

Julie and Joe: Engagement

2009-07-06T20:47:00.015-05:00

Julie is my good friend Kristi's younger sister. I used to sit by both of them in 7th hour study hall in high school - wow, that was a long time ago!

Julie had moved out to California, where Kristi lives, but was then transferred to Washington D.C. However, she began dating Joe about a year ago and when they got engaged, she decided to move back to Springfield. It was so nice to reconnect with her during their engagement session!

We had so much fun sauntering around the park and downtown Springfield...

They enjoyed my over-use of the word "canoodling".

They were quite the canoodlers though.

Love this one!

And this one...OK it was just pretty much a great session!
I think this is my favorite...Congratulations on your engagement Julie and Joe, and best of luck with all that lies ahead!!

Welcome to the World: John Patrick!

2009-06-29T21:13:00.010-05:00

On Friday, I had the pleasure of meeting and photographing Baby John, or JP, as many have taken to calling him!

I went to high school with John's parents, so it was nice to reconnect and meet their new little guy. It made me even more over-the-moon excited about the impending arrival of ours :)

John was a sweetie and so good while I was there, although he didn't want to go to sleep for us! Guess there was just too much excitement with getting his portraits taken... Mom finally managed to lull him into a light sleep...

Big yawn!

So precious

His nursey is SO cute

Tiny toes!

And my favorite...

Amanda and Aakash's pre-wedding festivities!

2009-06-26T08:27:00.023-05:00

Last Saturday, we photographed the Ras Garba, or dance festival, which was part of my friend Amanda's wedding! The wedding festivities were all held in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, and everything was so fun and exciting to be a part of!

Amanda married Aakash on Saturday, June 20, and the Ras Garba was held the night before. Everyone spent hours dancing and celebrating the upcoming marriage - here are some photos...

The bride and groom :)

Amanda's beautiful henna

The wedding party was a good time and up for anything all weekend!

The groom and his twin brother (yeah I can't tell them apart either!)

Amanda and Aakash got the party started!

Let the dancing begin...

Worrrrrrrk it!!

(Is Amanda trying to raise the roof??)

Aakash's mom enjoying herself...next to Amanda's dad gettin down!

After hours of dancing...they weren't ready to stop!!

Thank you guys so much for having me be part of your celebration!

E Family Photos

2009-06-19T08:54:00.011-05:00

Meet the E Family!!

Mom and Dad...

Luke
Hannah
and Jake...

Hannah and Luke are twins and with little brother Jake, it's a very active household! We really enjoyed meeting this family and capturing some photos for them before Dad leaves to serve our country in Afghanistan this weekend. We wish him the best of luck there!

I love this one, where Jake has the spotlight! :)

Just hangin out...

And lastly, it's a mini Abbey Road! :)

Betsy and Michael: Newlyweds!

2009-06-18T21:45:00.015-05:00

Evan became friends with Michael because they were in the same fraternity in college. (And just for the record, it feels so weird calling him Michael because we all call him by his last name!)

I met Betsy sometime in college, and since they both live in Springfield now, we have all become friends and hang out together.

Betsy and Michael tied the knot on June 13 in Coulterville, Illinois - Betsy's hometown.

It was an absolutely beautiful day! Here are some of my favorites...

Dapper men in tuxes... (I especially like that tall one on the right in the back ;) )

Michael was supposed to say "I will" after a big list of intentions the pastor read off, but he jumped in after the first sentence asking if he would take Betsy to be his wife, causing everyone to laugh :)
Studly.

Beautiful.

Bubbly send-off!

They like John Deere, can you tell?!
(I love this one!!)
I had to save this one for last, because guess what? That's my veil floating there! Betsy wore it as her something borrowed, and it looked great with her dress...but I'm kinda partial to it ;)

Betsy and Michael: Wedding Details

2009-06-18T21:38:00.010-05:00

I have so many great shots from Betsy and Michael's wedding that I decided to do two posts for the occasion!

Here are some details of the Big Day...

Betsy and Michael tie the knot!

2009-06-14T18:24:00.003-05:00

Yesterday we witnessed the vows between Betsy and Michael in a lovely ceremony and overall beautiful day!

Here's a quick photo for now, I'll be posting more this week!

Patiently Waiting!

2009-06-09T06:50:00.004-05:00

We're on Week 27 today as we wait for the arrival for our little boy! My belly just keeps growing and growing, and it's so fun to document it from week to week.

My sister-in-law Alayna took this photo of me and Evan during her high school graduation party after her graduation ceremony from Tri-City High School, and I love it (I might just have an assistant in the making!)

We've been super busy lately, and we're gearing up for some craziness that will soon be upon us with friends' weddings, photo sessions, family trips and of course, planning for baby!

Stay tuned in the near future for lots of blog posts from upcoming sessions!

The W Family

2009-05-30T08:03:00.010-05:00

What a wonderful family we got to hang out with last Sunday! It's a good thing we met up early in the day, because it got HOT later on. Which was nice for the W family as they were heading to the water park later that day!

I found out Mrs. W was due on the same day with Liz that I am - September 8 - but Liz decided to make her appearance a month early, leaving them with an August filled with all of their birthdays!

They called Liz their "little squirt" when she was born :)

She is so beautiful!!

This is one of my favorites!

We risked life and limb taking photos around these parts - there was an angry squirrel who did not like us near his tree!

I love this family shot...And lastly, this might be my new favorite children's photo :)

Thanks W family, it was a pleasure!

Summer Sessions - Schedule Soon!

2009-05-20T11:07:00.004-05:00

This weather we are having lately is simply perfect! Perfect for a photo session too!

We are filling up like crazy, so if you are interested in scheduling a portrait session, please contact us soon!

July weekends are completely booked, and we have one open slot for June weekends - early afternoon on June 14. We have several Fridays open during those months too, and we are available for weekday evening sessions as well.

Because of the impending arrival of our little one, expected in early September, I am only taking a limited number of August sessions and late fall sessions, so please contact us soon if you are interested in having photographs done of your family, child or high school senior during the first couple weekends in August or in later October!

Our contact and other information can be found on our Web site, www.courtneywestlake.com.

In the meantime, get out and enjoy this beautiful weather! :)

Jeffrey: A-C Central High School 09

2009-05-14T06:55:00.010-05:00

Yay my first senior GUY! Girls are definitely way more into senior photos than guys are, but guys are really fun too, and are usually more laidback and casual with their sessions.

We had a great time scouting out downtown Springfield last Friday night for these shots, especially after the storm passed through and left us with pretty light!

Jeffrey is big into music and brought along his guitars, which I loved.One of my favorites...

Jeffrey is graduating from A-C Central High School in a few weeks - congrats!!

P Family Photos!

2009-05-11T09:55:00.013-05:00

We have lots of connections with this family, so I was glad to finally get to meet them! Mom is good friends with my cousin, and Evan happens to work at the same bank as both Mom and Dad now too!

I love the way both the black and white shots and color shots came out with their white shirts - great outfit choices for a beautiful spring day!Black and white has become my new favorite :) Here are some individual family photos...

We found out Anna likes the word Monkey :) Her giggles were so cute.Thanks P Family!

The A Family: mini session

2009-05-06T20:42:00.010-05:00

This is our final spring mini photo session, and it was a great one to end on! We really enjoyed spending the last part of our afternoon with this family, and their little boy Cameron is great!

Once he realized what I was doing, he came to check the photo after each shot to give his approval :) It was so cute.

Here are some of my favorites...

It's so cute how Cameron is holding each of his parent's legs, like "yep they're mine!"

I love the way Cameron is looking up at his mom :)

Thanks to the A family, and to all of the families who did mini sessions! We had a great time meeting everyone and capturing some moments for you!

The D Family: mini session

2009-05-04T20:20:00.009-05:00

What a fun and friendly family! They were so nice and good-natured, and they made us in a good mood just being around them!

And what cuties! (are you supposed to call boys cuties? Maybe that's not manly enough :) but I don't care because they are!)

Typical boys climbing trees!Individual shots...

Mom and dad jumped in for a few, including a tickle party!

Thanks D Family, it was a pleasure!

The H Family: mini session

2009-05-02T14:50:00.011-05:00

These two little ones were SO adorable - I especially loved Lydia's dress :)

We got some of Lydia's two-year-old pictures while we were at it, which worked out nicely since her brother was much more interested in climbing trees than posing! They were absolutely precious playing together and didn't hesitate to embrace in big hugs the whole time!

So sweet...

Love it!

Megan: Tri City High School senior

2009-04-30T18:36:00.022-05:00

We had a great time last Saturday with Megan, who happens to be good friends with my little sister-in-law! They are both headed to U of I in the fall, which Evan and I are extremely excited about since that is our alma mater!

We were glad the rain decided to hold off, although it was a bit windy for our liking, but somehow Megan's hair looked perfect the whole day (can't say the same about mine!)

Here are some of my favorites...

She asked me if I liked "serious" faces, and told me she was more of a smiler! I understood because I'm like that, but I think she looks fabulous being "serious"!

Her boyfriend Brian met up with us for a few pictures. Aren't they so cute together?! I just love this fun exchange between them...

Love it.

Beautiful and dramatic!

Thanks so much, Megan, and good luck at U of I in the fall!!

I L L... ;)

Sneak Peek - Megan: Tri-City High School 09

2009-04-27T06:57:00.005-05:00

We had so much fun with Megan on Saturday - here's a sneak peek of her senior session!
Stay tuned for more!