Personally…

Davidson, NC                                                                                                                                                                      March 20, 2017

PERSONAL POST WARNING!!!

A few personal pics since I shared my own last…..all sorts of images, including iPhone pics (mostly)too! It’s a hard share for this mama!! So many ups and downs! But we are amazingly blessed! 🙂 Just real life over here!! Best camera to use is the one you have on you!! Now a family of 7!! YAY!!! All the details of our 2017 family story is a couple posts back! 🙂 Enjoy!! xx

PS- I’ll try to post in order!

Jan 11, 2017 ❤  Isla Drew came into this world and our lives will never be the same again! Perfect gift from God!!

straight to the NICU…I never left her side.

FINALLY leaving the NICU ❤ headed home!!

our only picture with our favorite bulldog Dozer before he flew to heaven to chew on endless bones and snore away his days. 😦 He was always there beside his babies, protecting them relentlessly. Miss you Dozer!!

after Isla’s first bath!

And our Sunday quickly turned a corner…here is her first photo in the ER. The beginning of a very very long road. #holyemotions

This is right after they intubated her…I never left her side. Never will.

the INCREDIBLY prayed for day…they removed her tube!! 🙂

a letter from our oldest son, Cade ❤

finally free of cords and wires and tubes!!! Hallelujah

free to go home!!! Go girl go!! 17 days of hell behind us!

so happy to be home with my other babies!!!

Beyond grateful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jump on in…

Davidson, NC

and the sharing continues from the last post… enjoy!! next post will be my personal pics…

let the beauty sharing begin!!! xx

 

 

Goodbye 2016…Hello 2017

Davidson, NC     {FAMILY photography, CHILDREN photography, NEWBORN photography}       March 2017

 

Once again…my blogging skills remain my LEAST active or scheduled talent. Sorry friends. Life happens, and almost daily I think to myself- wow, if I could sit down for 10 mins and write “this” or “that” down, it would make a hell of a story. I also think I should have another blog just for my crazy life- so all of you wanting to see photography stuff only could enjoy just that, and all the others that want to hear about the gong show at our home could read a different blog. ahhh well- it’s not happening anytime soon. So for now- I shall do my best to update you pretty people here as much as possible.

Personal part- (so you can skip past if you’d like) The last time I wrote to you I think I was pregnant…well, she is HERE! And wow what a roller coaster ride it has been! The short version of our story is…Isla Drew (“eye-la”) was born in the water in a beautiful room filled with love and support. It was magical. And the very best way to end this era of my life. (the child birthing era) She was perfection but was grunting a bit while breathing, so we ended up in the NICU for 5 days to help her transition her lungs to air. Luckily I never once had to leave her side. Finally made it home to all our boys, which was incredible. They are obsessed with their baby sister. I was just getting into the flow of things when Isla caught a cold and within 2 days we were in the ER. The process from ER to Pediatric Intensive care unit went very very quickly- and there is where we spent the next 17 LONG days fighting.  She had come down with RSV (aka the devil virus) and it attacked her and her tiny little lungs. After lungs collapsing and a horrific case of pneumonia, the doctors had to intubate her. Beyond horrific watching your tiny baby suffer. The most amazing part is- she is now healthy. She beat it. Isla is one strong little girl. Our medical care and staff at the PICU was beyond incredible. The prayers, love and endless support from our friends, clients, family and all others was also humbling. That is such an understatement. But I have no words. God works miracles. Period. He was there with us the entire time. I felt him.  “What doesn’t kill us, makes us stronger.”

With all that being said- I took some time off work. My camera snuggled in her pretty bag for a month and I snuggled with our angel baby. BUT now I am BACK! 🙂 Our family of now SEVEN is rocking the house and emptying grocery stores like it’s our job. So the show must go on…and my spring minis begin this weekend!!! WOOHOOO!!!! I am doing spring minis almost every weekend until June to catch up with all my precious friends and clients! Also, booking summer and fall regular sessions and newborns! Cannot wait! Don’t worry- I’ll have Isla most likely attached to me or on site with someone loving on her…so you should all get to meet her. She’s pretty awesome.

Thank you so much for supporting me and my little passion. I am so so grateful. ❤

Now I’ll attach some of the past sessions…I’m sure I’m forgetting some or many- but my Facebook page usually has MUCH better updates!! Go check it out… http://www.facebook.com/HeatherMariePhotographyNC/  or instagram @HeatherMariePhotographyNC

Oh, I’ll share of few personal pics of our past months in my next post today!! promise!!!

PS- Fall 2016 we rocked it out of the park!! Out of this world sessions to wrap up the year!!

Until next time…xx

 

 

 

 

 

Minis, minis and more minis OH MY!!!

Charlotte, NC     {family photography} {child photography}

Our mini sessions this Fall have been incredible!!!! I can’t even believe how smoothly they have gone! The weather has been spectacular so far and the locations and set ups have worked out perfectly! I hope everyone is loving their outcomes as well! I am down to two more full days of minis for the entire YEAR!!! AHHHH!! I will have some newborn sessions here and there but I will basically be closing down for the season after those!

This baby boy growing in my tummy will soon be too giant for me to be doing my normal jumping around and crazy acts when I’m photographing everyone. He is apparently 5lbs 8oz at this point- which is bigger than my other babies at birth (eek!!) so I need to prepare for a chubby little man! I will continue to photograph my family and friends through the Holidays so hopefully I will still be posting some fun blogs every now and then!! But for now, I still have LOTS of sessions and gorgeous families to share with you!! I hope you enjoy!!

Chat soon friends!! xo

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Fall Mini Session Fun

Charlotte, NC     {family photographer} {child photographer}

 

Our mini sessions this Fall have been overwhelmingly successful!!! I am loving all the fun styles and locations, then adding in all the gorgeous families- equals perfection!! We have completely lucked out with the weather thus far too! Yesterday’s sessions were actually hot~ I was in shock!! I know this is a crazy time of year for everyone so I’m keeping this short and sweet…check out this beautiful loves!!!

 

 

 

 

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And here are a few from my family this past week too 🙂 I’m not giving away any of the family Christmas card shots yet…but soon they will come too! 🙂 I can’t believe how fast this baby boy is growing!!!

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The Fergen Family of now 6

Charlotte, NC   {family photography, child photography}

 

A few short months ago I was contacted by this amazingly sweet mother, Kansas about a last minute photo session in Charlotte.  Kansas and her family were flying into town the next day from South Dakota to begin their journey of adoption for the second time. 🙂 I knew from the moment we spoke on the phone that there was something special about this family. (duh…everyone knows I have a 6th sense about people!)

Fast forward a week or so, I met Kansas and Danny and their new little boy–their photos melted me, but their crazy love is what really overwhelmed me with happiness.  They had left their other three children in SD with family while the adoption ran it’s course.  So, I wasn’t able to meet their complete unit, but I just knew God had brought us together for a reason. 10 minutes after we left our session, they received a phone call that changed their paths completely. The birth mother had chosen to take her son back. WOW. Can you even imagine?  Seven days with this little baby as your own.  It ripped my heart out. I can’t even grasp what it did to theirs.  ok…so the story doesn’t end sadly—-

I learned so much about God’s Grace over the next couple weeks, as I watched this beautiful new family ache and pray over what was God’s plan for this child. Although they did not understand or know why this child (for which they prayed) would’ve been given & then taken back, they prayed and stayed strong. I kept in touch with Kansas through it all. And I can’t even begin to tell you all the tears I shed and prayers I prayed for all of them. It changed me.

Now, fast forward a couple more months…as I pulled into Starbucks it began to snow. (Us Southerners think that’s kind of a big deal…and of course I did!) I was smiling from ear to ear as I opened my car door. Then I heard a text come through my phone- it was Kansas.  It said “Are you free this week to take pics??? We are on our way to NC to pick up our baby boy, he’s 10 days old and he is ours! We could not be happier and we are bringing all our children too!!”  Yes, you bet I stood there in the middle of the road with giant crocodile tears of joy rolling down my face.  I was flooded with happiness. Can you imagine their own version of this story?

A few days later, I met their beautiful new son, Daeston Job Christian. I also met their other beautiful three children, Coyer (6), Kedren (4) and  Baylic (almost 2).  It was God’s plan all along. We played in the snow until the kids were miserably cold, and we captured their expanding family bubbling with the greatest love.  I am so fortunate to have been brought into the Fergen Family’s life. I wish I could explain it better with my words. But I’m sure you guys are all filled up with my stories for one day. 🙂

I hope you all have a better understanding of how much strength is needed to adopt, let alone to be able to give your child up for adoption. I have a new found  appreciation of adoption as a whole. Their love shines so strongly in these photos, and I hope you enjoy them!

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