Sparkler...

Kate bought herself a present.

This is my kid who never spends any money. She's a total saver. I was surprised when she told me her plans...and happy for her. She deserves it.

Jake was so excited about car washing this weekend. I think he was most excited because it wouldn't be the car wash. He's not a fan...too loud. When Dan asked him if he wanted to wash cars in the driveway this weekend, he was thrilled.

This warm weekend brought another almost summer tradition...the ice cream man.

I thought I would end this blog update with some pictures of sweet Joseph. I did a newborn shoot in his home, but he wasn't feeling very well that day. I'm happy to say that his tummy problems are resolved and he is in fighting form.

I think he's saying, "Go away, Gigi!!"

Allison...

I would call last week "senior week" for Gigi Wagner Photography after 3 senior shoots...but I did have one baby shoot thrown in, too! :)

Allison was my second senior for the week. We lucked out with the weather!! I can't believe we squeezed this shoot in between rain showers. Allison wasn't so lucky later in the day. Her graduation had to be postponed due to tornadic weather in the area!  I felt so badly for her and all of her fellow graduates. Fortunately they were able to reschedule for later in the week. She's officially graduated and deserves smooth sailing from here! Congrats, Allison!

Margaret...

I love these shots. I LOVE these shots! Seriously.

I tried to talk Margaret into other locations. I thought something urban and edgy would be fun for senior shots. She really wanted the park. I love these shots. Good location choice, Margaret. :)

We got some edgy, too. This is my favorite shot from the session.

Congratulations and enjoy this summer!

Rite of passage...

When you grow up in St. Louis, that first trip up the Arch is a pretty big deal. Kate decided that we would begin our summer of fun with the Arch visit. I really didn't know what to expect with Jake.

He got right in the tram with no trouble at all. He was completely fascinated once we were at the top. Many people around us were commenting about his concentration as he stared out the windows.

 His sister kept giving him a boost so he wouldn't slide down the viewing platform.

Of course once we were outside, it is another rite of passage the first time you actually touch the Arch.

Last weekend we had some special friends over for dinner. Kate and Claire were best buds in high school, and we hadn't seen Claire's family for almost a year. It was fun to spend some time with them. I forgot to get permission to post a family picture, but I'm sure Claire won't mind a few shots of her. This first one just cracks me up...reminds me of the fun they had in high school. Claire is laughing at Kate, of course.

I also got some adorable shots of my two kids the same evening. :)  I am always thrilled when Kate asks for studio shots.

It is just so good to see the happiness in the above shot. :)  It makes my mommy heart happy.

Misc. May...

We've been so busy in May, and I feel like I've hardly blogged about it. Here goes.

Mother's Day at Jake's school was wonderful. I love hearing how sweet my little man is from other moms, and it happened again. He makes a good impression. :)

He made a picture frame for me, a place mat, and a yummy treat.

He also brought home a pumpkin seed. I stuck it in the ground near my rose bushes, and the thing is going crazy!

Jake played soccer for a few weeks.  He did great and is working hard to remember not to use his hands. We signed up for another session in the summer.

I made adorable bags for teacher gifts. We gave them Target gift certificates.

The last day of school was bittersweet. Jake is really going to miss it this summer. We had to say goodbye to two very special teachers.

Kate and I have decided to do a big outing with Jake every week this summer. They started with a trip to the mall. I got these pictures in a text.

I'm so glad she took pictures! I've asked Jake many times if he wanted to try that, and the answer was always NO! He asked Kate if he could do it!!  I don't know what changed since our last mall trip, but I have the feeling he is going to expect this every time now.

They came home and crashed. I don't know if he wore her out or she wore him out.

Dan and I made an attempt to take Jake strawberry picking, but the fields weren't open yet. We let him play for a bit, and then we noticed that the field right next to us had strawberries. We had to sneak just one.

We also took him to an area fair. When we got out of the car, he looked around and announced, "This is AWESOME!!"  After two rides, he told me, "This is an amazing place."  I took my camera along, but I had to leave it in the car because of the weather. These are iPhone shots.

Yesterday Dan and I took Jake back to the farm because the strawberry fields were finally open.

We are cramming more fun in today...heading to the Arch!