Oops.

Its been an extremely busy week!

* Spring Break and my daughter is out of school.

* She has a nasty nasty cold.

* Packing in less than a week. 'nough said.

* Work.

* Spending 45 min in the garden hose aisle (new home owner. can you blame me??) 

* Wondering why in the heck can't all of our stuff pack itself? Whyyyyyyyyy??

* Staying up late with the hubbs to pack... and staying up a little too late to where we laugh and giggle at whatever... delusional? yes. We'd like to think so.

And whatever else I have going on, and trust me there is def whatever else going on. lol

Needless to say, I'm not quite sure when I will be returning to the lovely world of cyber space. Throughout everything, I completely forget to call the light company back in order to get electricity in our new place. YES. Talk about major brain fart.

So, with that being said, I'll return when the light comes on.... literally and figuratively. 

Also, a quick shout out to those who have been so very patient with me in turning over images, rescheduling sessions, and phone calls, emails, etc.  Really, THANK YOU!  I truly appreciate your understanding, your patience, and your support!  

And lastly, I'd like to go ahead and introduce a new blog I have coming out. A non-photography related blog?  PSH. yeah, right!  Its about the Ayala household... a true comedy, I tell you, and yes, pictures included. Just gotta wait and see... Its in the works, and I will hopefully have my first post live shortly after... yes, you guessed it - the light comes on.  And we're moving, so what perfect timing to begin yet another blogging journey?

http://godandafamily.blogspot.com/

COMING SOON!!

ahh. yes.

Thanks again for your patience!

Love you all!

Love and Dreams, 

Casey

What's holding you back?

Welcome to the digital age folks! And welcome to a world where time is money, money is time, and both are fleeting like wild geese. 

Welcome to an economy where no-name brand food is legit, and Premium gas is no longer an option. 

Welcome to a time when kids are growing faster than your gray hair. Or wait... is that the other way around??? I forget.

Its hard to save for those important moments in life. 

Trust me, I know first hand.  You're always and constantly worried about paying for this or that in the future.  But, let's all face it -- a lot of those things will shortly fade away.

Memories, however, have more of an impact on us.  

And its easier to hold tight to those memories when we have something tangible to hold on to.

I haven't always loved photography, and to be honest, I haven't always appreciated photographs (of any kind). 

The Top 10 Personal Photographic Mistakes I've made thus far:

#1.  Not having maternity pictures made.

#2. Not having engagement pictures made.

#3. Taking "newborn" pictures at dare I say it... AHH, okay... Walmart (runs away in shame).

#4. Getting pictures done at Picture People.

#4.5: Wearing THE ugliest wardrobe. (Nothing was matching in any shape or form).

#5. Not realizing how "in personal" chain store studios are. (luckily, a good friend took our pictures, and was peppy and made us laugh)

#6: Not having sent out personalized Christmas greeting cards every year. (this is a big issue for me. lol And this past year was the first year we've done it, and it def won't be the last)

#7: Caring that I was too fat to have pictures done. (this past Christmas, I finally said, "WHAT THE HECK!!" Aislynn will hate me for it later, if not. lol)

#8. Not investing in a personalized session that truly captures who we are as the "Ayala Family". 

(before this past Christmas, this was unheard of)

#9. Not printing out images.  Lord knows, I have about 15,000 images on my computer, disc, hard drives, that have yet to see the glorious face of a actual printer)

#10. Promoting the importance of photographic art (memories), and not following in the same foot steps, myself. (tsk tsk. I know. I know.)

And I'm sure there are plenty plenty more!

Money is tight right now, but just think of the times when you have looked back and seen photographs of you when you were small.  Kissing your mother on the cheek, and being swung up in the air by your daddy.  All of these memories wouldn't be as pleasingly possibly without that camera to capture that specific moment in time, and freeze it forever. 

My husband and I have saved up and invested lots of time into a session we are soon to embark upon next month by the fabulous fabulous Clayton Austin. We haven't had pictures made in a very very long time, and we've never had pictures made that tell our story. 

So what are YOU waiting for? What's your reason for not having family pictures hanging on your wall? What's your reason for not having scheduled a personalized family session? Or even one for your kiddos?

If you're interested in booking a session with DreamTree, please feel free to email me, or hit the contact tab up top on the blog. I'd love love love to be apart of your special memories, and I consider myself incredibly blessed to be able to travel even a bit into a glimpse of your journey in life. 

Love and Dreams, 

Casey

Song of Solomon

Love and Dreams,
Casey

Peace, love, and paint.

Not too long ago, these two were a twinkle in their daddy's eye.  And now, they're growing boys after their mama's heart. 

Meet my two sweet nephews; Brandon & Justin.

Monogrammed t-shirts and flag banner provided by the lovely EmmaLove Boutique

Love and Dreams, 

Casey

Miss. Mix-a-lot.

Mixing business with pleasure.  Or in my case, mixing business with my personal life. 

You see, if it weren't for my personal life, I wouldn't have a business.  And I wouldn't have a business without my personal life. The two are very tightly intertwined, and to be quite honest, I am glad, and am very very thankful. And to be quite frank, I have no idea how I would run one without the other. To me, its a set up for failure.  Now, of course one must be wise in decision making, but on the other hand, sometimes sacrifice is what gets you ahead, and gets you... well, liked, and ultimately trusted.  

I've received questions and comments regarding the two being so closely knit.  "Aren't you afraid if you post that Bible verse, you'll scare people away?"  No, I'm not afraid.  At first, yeah okay, I admit I was a bit hesitant, but then I remember who gave me this love and passion for photography in the first place, and then think where I would be without it.  And then I think, why has this passion been give to me.  What is His purpose for this in my life?  Slowly, but surely its all coming together, and I am beginning to see, and doors are starting to open.  

So yes, I would like to say to those who question my cocktail mix of business and personal life/beliefs.  One will never be without the other.  The two will always go hand in hand.  I'm not one who's just after a buck or the hustle, but instead I'm one who's after a friendship who just happens to make a buck along the way.

"Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men." -- Colossians 3:23

Love and Dreams, 

Casey

Sweet child'o mine.

Always jump in the puddles!  Always skip alongside the flowers.  The only fights worth fighting are the pillow and food varieties.  

~Terri Guillemets

Love and Dreams, 

Casey

Sophia J.

This is my high school friend, Sophia. We swam together and gossiped together. Even cried together. (swimming wasn't exactly our forte. lol)

Almost 7 years later, we've done none of the above, but we have shared 2 sessions together in the past year, which we've laughed together, got cut and scraped together (the grass looks softer than it really is). And I must say, I seeing crying together in our future. Over a bottle of red wine perhaps? (lol)

Sophia is still as beautiful as she was in high school, if not more!  She has a loving grace about her that can charm any friendship, and a desire to love like no other.  

Her boyfriend ain't too bad himself! In fact, right now, he's over seas fighting for this dear country which we love so very much.  Please send up prayers, ask the Big Man to watch over him, protect him, and keep him safe.

Also, if you remember, she's the contest winner of the "We R Who We R" photo contest which I held late last year.  The objective was to create a self-portrait. If I don't say so myself, I think Sophia did quite well!

Without further a due. 

Meet Sophia.

Thanks, Sophia, for yet another inspiring session! 

Love and Dreams, 

Casey

Love is her.

Each time I photograph my little one, its an experience that gets better and better. One which is always rewarding, and never short of fun or enthusiastic.

I think she's already getting used to being photographed. From time to time, she'll randomly come and ask me, "Mommy, let's take pictures." or "Mommy, please take a picture of me. Pleaseeeeeeeeee." 

Awwww, c'mon, how can I decline that??

I also think its getting to the point where I don't even have to say anything, besides sing along, and poke fun of daddy, which I must say, is funner than fun. (yes, I just said "funner")

So, here are a few snippets I took last month of my love bug, who over night, has also acquired the name, "AislynnLove"

Love and Dreams, 

Casey