breath of heaven

i L O V E this song. it never ceases to get me thinking and pondering again the birth of my Saviour.

Luke 2 

The Birth of Jesus

At that time the Roman emperor, Augustus, decreed that a census should be taken throughout the Roman Empire.  All returned to their own ancestral towns to register for this census.  And because Joseph was a descendant of King David, he had to go to Bethlehem in Judea, David’s ancient home.  He traveled there from the village of Nazareth in Galilee.  He took with him Mary, his fiancée, who was now obviously pregnant.

And while they were there, the time came for her baby to be born.  She gave birth to her first child, a son.  She wrapped him snugly in strips of cloth and laid him in a manger, because there was no lodging available for them.

That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep.  Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them.  They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said.  “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people.  The Saviour—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David!  And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.”  Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,

   “Glory to God in highest heaven,
    and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.”

When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”  They hurried to the village and found Mary and Joseph.  And there was the baby, lying in the manger.  After seeing him, the shepherds told everyone what had happened and what the angel had said to them about this child. 

All who heard the shepherds’ story were astonished, but Mary kept all these things in her heart and thought about them often.  The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen.  It was just as the angel had told them.

don't forget to breathe.  take the time you need to remember what (and Who) Christmas is all about.  :)

personal | end-of-the-year portraits of the kids

chilly temps to freeze your tooshie?!  check.  yummy, incredible winter light (it was only 3pm, ya'll)?!  check.  pictures of my own kids for once?!  check.  ;)  ohhhh...  they will do anything with the promise of a hot chocolate.

haha.  i'm so glad they were up for this.  i just couldn't resist that afternoon light.  :)  joe wasn't even home from work yet but i scooped the kids up and we headed out to the andrews' to take some pictures.  lots and lots of pictures.  pictures of them running, playing, laughing...

GAH.  how i love them.  we will treasure these photos.  always.  <3

merry Christmas from all of us!  xo!

--H

the woods | moncton family photography

happy snow day to all the monctonians in the house!  :D  eeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!  it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!  :D  (...although, as i type this, i think it's turning to freezing rain.).  hope you're all having a fab monday!

meet the wood family!  we actually tried to meet at mapleton park, but it was too cold for the littlest guy!  so we made our way to the casino (special thanks again to them!), got warmed up and quickly started shooting!  it's amazing how quickly it gets dark this time of year!

anyhoo.....  to the entire wood crew - thanks for the opportunity to photograph your precious family!!  i was able to capture MANY wonderful moments!  here are a few of my favourite frames!  :D

take care today, everyone!  and ENJOY!!!  :D

--H

oh how we tried, eh trevor?! :)

the.absolute.cutest.little.cousins. (l to r: ryan, keira, catie and kolby)