Growing up, my brother and I always went trick or treating with our parents in tow– it was mainly about the candy– for my parents and us!  Although we carved pumpkins and had some decorations around our house– Halloween was done in a simple fashion.  We’d grab a pillowcase and some of our friends, dress up in our spooky costumes– and head out into the darkness for trick or treating action.

Well, when I got married– the complexity of the holiday changed.   I didn’t realize that my husband & his family were going to be Halloween nuts– everyone ALWAYS gets into ghoulishly good spirits.  The Heck household turns into haunted spook-tacular… and the theatre of a great costume is spent hours in the making.   It’s become a contest to see who can get it just right!

This year, after getting our costume groove on, we grabbed the kiddos & Greg’s Great-Grandmother Ruth and headed over to New Symrna Beach to walk in the annual parade there.  Amelia dressed as Alice in Wonderland (so sweet and adorable) while Avery was her nemesis– The Queen of Hearts.  Greg proudly adorned a Gladiator getup– complete with warrier helmet, sheild, toga and lots of blood.  Ewwww!  I went completely feminine as a grecian goddess to cheer my Gladiator in his crusade.  We were quite the pair.  Aiden had NO clue what was going on– he played the part of the silent Indian while Great-Grandmother Ruth (78 years young b.t.w.) dressed up as Ghost Faced Killer from Scream.  I found her costume the funniest of them all.  Aiden couldn’t stop staring at her– he wasn’t afraid– but he wasn’t going to keep his eyes off her anyways.  What a laugh!

We hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween!  Here’s some pictures of our family to enjoy!

There are a few people in this world that have been there since the beginning.  They know who are you, where you’ve come and where you go… they’ve watched you take your first steps, cheered for you when you needed fans and hold your hand when you need a someone to hold you close.  Family.  There is nothing more important than that.

In honor of my family, I’m posting a few images that I captured at my cousin Justine’s baby shower of her and my Aunt Judi that I took that day.  She actually gave birth to Rylen nearly 12 days ago– I can’t wait to meet him!

That same day, I visited my Uncle Kurt & Aunt Dede to visit with their newest grandchildren– Twins Mallory & Kyleigh!  They are completely adorable and so charming– I’m looking forward to photographing them again… very, very soon!

When I was younger- dancing was my passion.  What I wouldn’t do to pirouette or leap across a stage.  I loved it!  Performing was a great part of who I was.  I suppose in some ways, I put on a performance every weekend with my weddings– but dancing is different.  It’s a wonderful form of personal expression and a great way to make lifetime friendships.  Many of the girls I danced with are still my closest friends.  It’s amazing to see our girls grow up together– and continue our love for dance through there tiny toes and happy steps.

I decided to pick up the camera and photograph my girls before their dance class yesterday.  It’s a small glimpse into our day– and their adorable faces getting ready for class.  It was a great day.

June 20th comes around every year, this year the Monroe Wedding had us celebrating Corrine’s Birthday at the Casa Monica in St. Augustine.  And when the work was beautifully done, it was time for Corrine and Me to have some fun.  With babysitters sitting back in Ormond Beach and wedding festivities stretching into the late night, it was the perfect place to enjoy our time together.  We had a martini at 95 Cordova and found ourselves holding hands and laughing down the sidewalk.  And a funny thing happened.  We came to a beautifully set table and chair in a window and it had one of our photographs on the table, with our logo and an advertisment for the Casa Monica.  Its not every night you get to mix business with pleasure.  But when its a pleasure to do your business, it can work out that way. We are so thankful to be where we are in our lives at only the age of 30, well Corrine’s 31 now.    It was a wonderful night out–and we had a great time.  (Corrine especially loved the menu at 95 Cordova– it lit up!)  Oh, what a fantastic night!

This has been a fun filled couple weeks for the Heck Family I must say!  There have been many huge moments in the span of just a few short days… Little man Aiden celebrated his first birthday– and got a couple of new chompers to bite with!  Lovely Amelia gradutaed from Pre-K4 (our little fashionista is growing up!) and is ready for big kid school.  Talented Avery has started her guitar lessons– watch out American Idol!  The girls participated in their gymnastics exhibition– which they completely enjoyed!  Flip, twirl, spin– lots of fun!  All in all, the summer has started off with a bang!  Here are some favorite moments that I captured of our darlings to share with you all!  Muah! xoxo

Aunt Julie came to visit us this week and brought along her adorable new Lucy Lou!  How sweet and tiny is this little dog?!!  She hopped around our yard with the biggest personality– and laid claim to nearly every toy in the house.   Our girls Ave & Amelia absolutely loved this little pup.  Needless to say they’ve been asking about her ever since.  “When is Aunt Julie coming back?  Can Lucy sleep in my bed next time?!  When can we have one?”  The questions are non-stop about this dog!

The only person in the house that wasn’t wild for Lucy was Aiden.  He wanted nothing to do with her.  Perhaps it was because she kept tugging on his pants, nibbling on his toes (it hurts!) and chasing him from room to room.  He was not amused and chose instead to push her aside.  I think it was the first time that he was not being squeezed to bits by his big sisters…. or maybe he’s just a cat person.  Who knows!??  He looked really cute with his baseball though!  Love ya Julie… come back to play soon!

This is a special shout out to our gal Kimmy on her birthday!  Happy Birthday Kimmy!  We HEART you!  Let us know when you come into town so we can all get together to celebrate!  Have a wonderful birthday!

My best friend/sorority sister/MOH/bestest-roomie-ever (sorry Greg!)  Julie has been wanting a puppy for what seems like years now!  She has searched and searched and searched, but poor Julie just could not find the right fit, or the right breed… she has not been able to make up her mind and pick the pooch.  Well, as fate would have it, yesterday Julie went to a puppy store in South Florida and her eyes fell upon the cutest and most adorable Maltese puppy.  Now get this– not only was the puppy born on Julie’s birthday- February 10th–  but her documents listed Julianne as the puppy’s mother.  So either the puppy store had Julie tagged before she walked through the door– or someone is sending Julie every sign in the book that this was her dog!  It wasn’t a whim!

Last night, when I received this image from Julie’s cell phone, my heart stopped!!!… and I fell in love with this little dog.  And I’m a cat person!  Gosh, now I want a sweet little white maltese…  Uh oh Greg!!  Congrats on the new addition to the family Julie!  We love you!!