Alice Park Photography » Blog

One resolution I made to myself this crazy fall season was to let go of some things so I could focus on our clients & our family.  Sadly, one of those things was blogging….and cooking and cleaning (but that’s another post).

I’ve kept up with my daily photo project on facebook, but if you missed anything, here’s a brief summary of what’s been going on:

1.  Lyon has been teething for the past 3 months it seems, but those darn teeth have yet to make an appearance.  He’s drooling, constantly running a slightly elevated fever, fussy, sleepless (which makes us allllll sleepless), and gnawing on everything.

2.  Did I mention there hasn’t been much sleep here?  Ah yes, we’re up 3 times a night, and each time – it takes Lyon about 2 hours to fall back asleep.  *yawn*

3.  We’re so thankful for this season & all of the wonderful clients we had the opportunity to work with.  Amazingly, this has been our strongest year yet…especially considering I took about 3 months off to move and for maternity leave.  Kyu and I work incredibly hard in what we do, and we’re appreciative of the clients who see us year after year and all of the new ones we meet along the way!

4.  Lyon’s 1st visit with Santa was one of the highlights for me this season.  I’ve photographed thousands of children with Santa, and it was so fun for me to finally photograph my own.  And he didn’t cry!  That’s my boy 🙂

5.  Somewhere along the shuffle of the season, we stopped to take a photo of the chaos.  It never fails; the list of projects, shoots, appointments, etc becomes mountainous, but we somehow manage to make it alive.

Here we are (minus Kyu who is behind the camera) last night working on our last rush of client gifts, 3 days before Christmas.  Lyon has found his mojo in the mix.  He’s at that darling age where he can sit still and entertain himself for hours (ok, more like minutes..) on paper & boxes.  And yet, he feels like he’s part of the team too.  Love that little boy of mine…

This coming year, I promise to be a lot more active here.  I’ve got dozens of posts to share, projects around the house I’ve been working on, sessions to blog, and fun stores to share about Lyon.

Until then, Merry Christmas to Everyone!

Dear Fall 2011 Clients:

Thank you.

Thank you for entrusting me to document your family’s most treasured memories.

Thank you for your patience as I learn to be a Mommy while keeping up with the busiest time of the year.

Thank you for not saying anything when I arrived 5 minutes late for our session with spit-up on my shirt and bags under my eyes.

Thank you for all of your parenting advice, words of encouragement, and telling me I look great when I clearly have more weight to lose.

Thank you for loving my Production Assistant Kristen and my Ordering Consultant Beth as much as Kyu and I do.  They allow me to focus on my two loves – photography & my kid.

Thank you for emailing/calling me to ask how Lyon is sleeping, eating and growing.  I never realized how much I much joy & pride I would get out of talking about my baby’s schedule & recent developmental milestone.  “Yes, he can sit still & watch while I write out the A-B-C’s!  I know, genius!!”

Thank you for demonstrating love and kindness and patience through your own families.  By photographing your most intimate moments, I’m learning to be a better mother…a better wife…a better person.

Thank you for truly humbling me.  Just when I think I have it tough, you show me that the real magic happens in between the chaos.  That life’s greatest moments occur when it’s tough.  And that Kyu and I are doing just fine trying to juggle it all. 

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

With sincere gratitude,

Alice

Greetings Friends!

If you haven’t guessed it yet, some exciting news from Kyu and I! This past Spring, we welcomed our own little bundle of joy, Christian “Lyon” Park. He is growing and thriving, and to me – a constant reminder of how fleeting this time is in our lives…

In our first newsletter, I share a glimpse of what is going on behind the scenes at Alice Park Photography and the Parks. Motherhood has given me a new perspective on what I do, and I realize how incredibly important it is to document our children’s lives. I started a journal of my son’s life, and what started off as a daily photo of Lyon is quickly turning into a chronicle of love letters on motherhood and life. Read more about Project Lyon below.

This Fall, we’re busier than ever keeping up with our favorite clients and our exciting calendar of events. Please take a look below on some opportunities of getting your holiday portraits done this season!

I’ve also started a new series on clients that inspire ME. As Kyu and I learn to navigate life with sippy cups, diapers and luvies in hand, I reach out to some of my favorite clients who seem to have it all figured out! Check out Courtney’s interview below for our first Client Spotlight!

To all of our clients, friends & amazing people in our lives – we hope life is treating you well and we meet again very soon!

Happy Fall!

Kyu, Alice, Sydney and Lyon

To view our Fall Newsletter in its entirety, click HERE!

 

My little Lyon turns 6 months old today, and I’m sad because he’s growing up way too quickly…

I’m thankful for this project of mine that I’ve diligently been dedicating his first year to. Project Lyon started off as a mother’s attempt to carefully document her first baby’s life…  Now, I’m realizing that these daily tidbits I’m capturing are the journals I’m writing to my baby.  It’s my first love letters to Lyon…

If you follow me on facebook, I’ve been periodically updating friends & family with Project Lyon.  From his birth, to his first plane ride, his first taste of carrots, to everything in between.  I’m not missing a beat.

Here are some of my favorite milestones copy/pasted from Project Lyon:

Project Lyon: 30 minutes old – Our precious boy is here! Christian “Lyon” Park arrived at 6:30 pm weighing 7lbs 8 oz at 20″ long. Kyu and I couldn’t be more thrilled! Thank you all for all of your thoughts and prayers.

Project Lyon: 3 Days Old – Coming home from the hospital with little Lyon. We are so in love….

Project Lyon: 8 Days Old – Baby Lyon’s first photo shoot!

Project Lyon: 19 Days Old – I’ve never felt so needed and so important than right now. Loving motherhood.

Project Lyon: 62 days old – getting weighed in at your 2 month appointment. 75th percentile in weight, height and head circumference. Growing up too quickly, little fella….

Project Lyon: 78 days old – Thankful for my first day off from shooting in 14 days. Instead of rushing to a shoot after Lyon’s morning feeding, I got to stare as my little monkey fell back into a deep, happy sleep. Love.

Project Lyon: 82 days old – You love bathtime and I love a clean baby. We make a great pair.

Project Lyon: 88 days old – Everyone told me that 12 weeks was a fun age, but omg. I just can’t get enough of you!

Lyon is blessed with some really amazing people in his life…  In the photo above, Lyon is with his buddy Erich who is about a month older than him.  Erich’s mother Chaffee and I have enjoyed watching our boys grow up, and each time we get together – I try to capture an image of the pair.  I informally call this project “Peas and Carrots.”

Project Lyon: 89 days old – Gurgling and babbling, we love listening to you tell us about your day, Lyon! Long gone are the days of speaking clearly or cohesively. It’s all about singing & that high-pitched baby talk now.

Project Lyon: 94 days old – Well, we packed your entire room, arrived to the airport 5 hours early and apologized in advance to everyone sitting around us. This baby is ready for his first flight!

Project Lyon: 96 days old – we took a little break from the napcp retreat this morning to show you the majestic mountains of Vail Valley. It’s absolutely breathtaking here and we’re so glad you are able to experience this with us.

Project Lyon: 99 days old – BIG explosion 39,000 feet in the air. Good times.

Project Lyon: 100 days old – Our families gathered tonight to celebrate our Asian honored 100 Day Birthday. They brought strings of gold and jade, lucky red pockets for good fortune, and we cooked up a feast as we counted the many blessings in your life… Happy 100 Day, baby Lyon.

Project Lyon: 107 days old – you woke up with a slight fever this morning, so we decided to let you stay home with dad this time. So sad to travel without you, buddy. Feel better soon.

Project Lyon: 113 days old – Saturday night. Heels in the closet, hair in ponytail, not a touch of makeup on. I would not want to be anywhere else in the world than right here.

The day my baby started smiling back at us was the day I had died and gone to Lyon heaven…

Project Lyon: 117 days old – The rolls on the baby go round and round, all through the town…

Project Lyon: 122 days old – Cousins Lucas and Gabriel came to play with you today, but you slept alllll day. “Wake up, Lyon! It’s time to play!”

Project Lyon: 123 days – Your new name is Chubbs. 4 months doctors appt weighing 18lb 3oz, 26 inches long!

Project Lyon: 137 days old – Those guns. Your hair. That face! Swoon…you must take after your dad.

Project Lyon: 149 days old – Just when I think I have you and your schedule figured out, you don’t nap or eat all day. Hmmm…. back to the drawing board.

Project Lyon: 151 days old – You are a girl’s BEST accessory. I get so many compliments when I tote you around…spit up and all 🙂 #proudmama

Project Lyon: 156 days old – It’s amazing how something so annoyingly bright and loud can make you so very, very happy.

Project Lyon: 179 days old – YUM! And when I say yum, I mean YOU!

When looking back at what I’ve documented over the last 6 months, I realize how much of my heart this little boy has.

Motherhood isn’t always so glamorous, and on the days when I just want to crawl into bed and hide, I look back at these snap shots & words, and I’m reminded how incredible this journey is.

So, cheers to Lyon.  Cheers to making it this far.  And cheers to what’s in store for us…