If you've been around here for a while you'll know that we are neck-deep in the midst of a major reno/extension at the moment... and time is running out!  While our building approval expires later this year, we are madly trying to get everything done and ticked off the list - and the final major thing is my kitchen!!

We have been here for over 5 years now, and for all that time I have worked in a tiny, cramped little kitchen, with virtually no bench space, and WITHOUT a DISHWASHER!!  Yep - the dishwasher is ME... and well, first world problems and all that, but I am SO over hand-washing dishes!   

So the kitchen has been designed and ordered - and there are two big things I'm looking forward to most - hiding all the appliances in the Butlers Pantry so that I have masses of bench space, and, yes you guessed it - finally having a dishwasher!!

How long do you think you could cope without a dishwasher??

Todays blog post is from a recent session with Samara & Mat as they awaited the arrival of their newest family member!   Samara was simply glowing during her maternity session - its always so special to be asked to capture this amazing time in your lives! 

And although I quite often include the family dog in portraits, this was the first time that I was asked to include a beloved cat in the session - how cool!  Our pets are often our first "babies", so its lovely to be able to include them in the photos, as they are also an important part of the family!

Before too long, their handsome little guy arrived!   This sweet little boy was just amazing for his session - Samara & Mat loved images which included nests and greenery, and these suited him perfectly.   It was also fun to include a little bit of Australiana to the session.

Thank you so much Samara and Mat!  Here are a few favourites from the session:

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www.hilaryhudsonphotography.com.au
​Newborn photographer Gold Coast

In another instalment of "funny things my kids say" - master 9 came out with a good one the other day...

After playing a big day of AFL interschool sport, he very proudly reported that although his team lost all of their games, in one of the games he kicked "TWO BETWEENS!!"

I chuckled and said "I think they're actually called BEHINDS, dude!"

To which he replied:

"NO-OO - not THOSE ones, the other ones, the ones in the middle BETWEEN the outside ones!"

​Haha, well done buddy, two goals!

I love being creative in my newborn sessions, and I love collaborating with clients when they have a vision for their sweet baby's first photo shoot!

Angelina and Aaron had a few fabulous ideas which they wanted to incorporate into the session - including superheroes, using Aaron's Playstation Console as a prop, and a hunting inspired set-up.

Gorgeous little Ashton was the perfect model for his session.  At just 9 days new he slept like a dream and we were able to capture everything we wanted and more!  I especially love the PlayStation set up, complete with a few favourite games!

​Thanks so much guys, it was awesome meeting you and your gorgeous little man!

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Brrrr its been a little bit chilly lately hasn't it?  And as I'm sure you all know, a partly-renovated house isn't exactly the warmest!  Those tiny little gaps let all the cold air in and makes for a super cold start each morning in my kitchen.  Ugg boots are a required item in our home, and we seriously cannot wait to get a fireplace installed (its on the to-do list).

I'm generally wearing 3 layers (including a massive puffer jacket) as its so cold in my office.  I was sitting up here editing the other morning and feeling sorry for myself because the thermometer on my desk said it was a lovely 9 degrees in the office!  My 'mouse' hand is permanently frozen.

Our poor dogs have been feeling it too - mind you, they are 99% indoors and are both sporting nice comfy jumpers. And not only do they wear jumpers, they have beautiful warm fluffy beds, AND we cover them in blankets at bed time.   It makes me laugh how whenever one of the kids walks past the dog beds, they automatically tuck them in with their blankets -  Talk about pampered pooches, they've got us all trained perfectly haha!

Hope you are all staying warm!

Gorgeous baby Liam was a delight to have in the studio for his newborn session earlier this year!  I loved incorporating some family farming items in this session, which included some whips and dads Akubra hat, and I think these worked perfectly with the dark wood backdrop in the studio.

Liam also has his very own pair of tiny boots to grow into, how cute are they?

​Thank you so much Philippa and Justin for an awesome session with your gorgeous little guy!  Here are some of the favourites from our session:

Its been a LONG time since I've done a running event - 2 years I think.  So it was SO awesome to be able to do the GC30 a couple of weeks ago, with some great friends!  

The lead up to the event was a bit stressful with my right ITB twinging and aching any time I went for even a short run, and my left hamstring had been niggling for several weeks as well... I stopped running two weeks beforehand in a bid to rest it, but they were still a bit sore the night before.  I decided to tape my right ITB and hope for the best.

It was a beautiful morning on the Gold Coast - although I did have a moment, getting up at 4.30am, when I thought "What the hell am I doing this for?"  Also, the queue for the toilets was a bit crazy - we waited 45 mins for a port-a-loo and thought we were going to miss the start - eeek!  

In the end, the injuries held up ok, the course was amazing (a mixture of road and hard-packed trails, all along Main Beach) and not too busy or crowded, and the time spent with friends was awesome.  We did the 15km event and I loved every minute of it (despite the early start!)

I purchased the event photos last week and love how I'm smiling a big gumby grin in just about every photo (sharing the not-so-gumby ones here lol) - what a blast - cant wait to do it all again!

Beautiful baby Neve was a star during her newborn session in the Tamborine studio earlier this year - mum and dad requested "Natural and neutral tones" and I have to say, they just worked perfectly with this gorgeous little one's natural complexion!

Big sister Layla was so sweet and loved giving her new sibling some gorgeous cuddles.  We also managed to get a cute one of both girls in a tutu - what adorable little princesses!

​Thank you so much Melanie and Jayden!

How do you manage the kids time on devices?    For me, its a love/hate relationship.  I love the ipads because it keeps them quiet, and lets me get some work done.  But there are a whole variety of reasons why too much is NOT a good thing for my two.

Lately, I'd been saying "yes" a bit too often, and the devices have started to take over - hours and hours of staring at screens.   And then the daily requests (sometimes hourly with Master 9!) to have them again, it almost becomes an obsession and just about all they think about.

So this last month, we've pulled back.  They've gone whole weeks AND sometimes whole weekends without them, or very limited time on them.  Yes we get some moaning, but after the initial half hour of being bored and grumpy, suddenly they find stuff to do.  They've created LEGO towns, spent hours on the trampoline having fun together, done some cool drawings or read a book, or baked some brownies.  Last weekend they came to me with some old mismatched socks and googly eyes, asking if they could make sock puppets!

So my goal is to continue to say "no" more often, and encourage their imaginations to go wild. 

What do you do, to manage the kids time on their devices?

This week's blog post features adorable baby girl Lyrik!   Lyrik's beautiful mum Hailey loves florals, so Lyrik wore one of my cute little lace floral rompers.  It was lovely to capture some gorgeous sibling images with big sister Islah too, both girls were amazing and did everything I asked, and more!

Thank you so much Hailey and Cameron, I loved meeting your gorgeous family and capturing these memories for you!

Here are some favourites from the session:

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Its been a while since I've updated about our house renovations!  Anyone who has been to our place at Tamborine lately will have seen the huge amount of work going on.  My hardworking hubby is tirelessly working towards finishing this extension/renovation - and we are getting closer!

The most recent "big" event was the installation of our timber floors.  Deciding on the actual species of timber was a task in itself, with our original choices not working out and the colours not looking right in our home.  We eventually went with Queensland Spotted Gum - rich caramels, reds, blondes and browns give it a real warmth and we are so happy with it.  He has also top nailed these, so they look a bit more "old school" and rustic.

Here's some photos of how its coming along - next up is wardrobes, carpet, tiles and kitchen... still so much to do!

I recently had the pleasure of capturing this gorgeous family for the second time - and this event was the arrival of their beautiful baby girl, Andi!

​Check out the proud smiles on her doting big brothers - so adorable!  Rose golds and dusty pinks made this a beautifully soft and feminine session - perfect for a sweet little princess.   Little miss Andi also gave us a few gorgeous wide awake moments and a few big yawns before drifting off to sleep for the rest of her session.

Thank you Jianli and Simon for asking me to capture these precious memories for you!

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How are you all faring in these wet conditions?  Our block is pretty sodden, like everyone elses, but we are safe and dry - the only issue so far was a blocked drain and overflowing dam right down the back.

The kids school is closed right now so we are home learning again - master 9 did a massive fist pump when he heard that he didn't have to go to school, and actually I'm also pretty happy to be staying off the roads with so much local flooding and mini landslides going on!

Here's some photos of what its like at our place today...

Sweet little Everleigh came to the studio for her newborn session earlier this year and the theme was natural tones, pinks, purples, and florals - so beautiful! 

Big sister Layla was all smiles getting to cuddle with her new baby sibling - these early moments are so precious!  We got some cute wide eyed/awake images at the start, and then baby Everleigh settled off for a big sleep during the rest of the session.

Here are some of the favourites from the day:

Anyone else got a tween daughter who wants to have TikTok?  Miss 11 has asked several times, and we are still holding out on her, much to her disappointment.  But she was pretty excited the other week when I announced that I was starting to use it for my business.  Think behind the scenes, editing before and afters, a day-in-my-life kinda stuff...

Its been kinda fun actually and its got me thinking of fresh new ways to show what I can do!   Miss 11 is constantly asking me if I've posted any new TikTok's and if she can have a look... I think she secretly just wants to see what else is out there haha.

Are you on TikTok?  Let me know your handle and I'll give you a follow!

If you want to see what I've been doing, my handle is @hilaryhudsonphotography  or use this link: 
https://www.tiktok.com/@hilaryhudsonphotography?lang=en

I know its only March, but its been a pretty busy year for newborns so far!  My very first session of 2021 was gorgeous little Chase - and he was amazing!!  Such a beautiful little boy to start the year off, he even blessed us with a few cute smiles.

The theme for this session was neutral and natural tones, with splashes of blues and greens.   We also incorporated a few "baby in hands" poses, which are awesome for those parents who dont necessarily want traditional "posed family" photos, but still want to be part of the session and IN the photos.

Here are some of the favourites from the day!

They are back at school, and super excited about it!   Check out these poses:

1. The standing still "do we have to?" pose
2. The "I dont want to actually touch my sibling" hug (note the hands hovering over shoulders lol)
3. The traditional "rabbit ears"

I dont know about you, but I had all these grand plans and a list of things we wanted to do with the kids in the school holidays.  Roller skating, parks, playdates and coffee catch ups with friends, maybe a theme park, day trips and bushwalks...

But we did NOTHING.  I mean, we just . stayed . home.

In between family visiting, Christmas, newborn sessions and editing, renovations (my contribution - bogging holes and sanding), staying home while the painter or the plasterer was here etc etc - there just didn't seem to be any time to do anything.

We are super lucky that the kids play well together, and generally like each other, but they are really really hanging out to see their school friends again.  And I must admit, being the introvert/quiet-loving quiet person that I am, so am I!  Today is the day!

How are you feeling about 'back to school' day?  Are you happy?  Or sad?
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Continuing on from my last post, I'm catching up on some sessions that I didn't get a chance to blog about last year.  How gorgeous are these cuties?!

Ok - wow, its been a while since I've written a blog post.  Life turned upside down there for a little while, in early October, when my mum had a stroke and sadly passed away a few days later.  So things were a little hectic around that time and while I kept busy working, a few things (like blog posts) took a back seat.

We are also full steam ahead with the renovation/extension, and completion is getting so much closer (and yet somehow still feels quite far away!).  The last few months of 2020 saw the internal walls/VJ/plaster go in, the electrical wiring get done, the new Biocycle system installed and some paint on a few walls and ceilings.  Next up will be floors, and a kitchen.

So in my first blog post for the year, I thought I'd share some highlights from some family sessions from the second half of 2020 which I hadn't had a chance to blog about!  (and more of these to come!)

Check out these gorgeous families and these stunning locations on and around Tamborine Mountain and Scenic Rim, in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast beaches!

A beautiful (but chilly!) family photography session at Seaview Farm Retreat on Tamborine Mountain

A fun family photography session with this gorgeous family at Priestdale.

Highlights from some of this years Fundraising Mini Sessions on Tamborine Mountain!
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Stunning location at Christmas Creek for this awesome family!

Currumbin beach always delivers!  Loved hanging out with these guys for a Gold Coast beach photo session.

More beach fun, this time on an island at Labrador!

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