The Woes of Winter Skin! TIP:

If you are suffering with dried out itchy winter skin...here is an easy, natural solution:

1/4 cup of virgin olive oil
2-6 drops of essential lavender oil
2 vitamin E capsules (broken) (helps to keep the solution from going rancid & it's great for your skin)

Mix them all together. Use a cottonball to dab on problem areas. I am using it on my nose, (I tend to dry out where my nose is pierced) & between my eyebrows. I am only using 2x per week.

Hand/Facial scrub:

1 tbs sea salt

1 tsp vanilla

2 drops of lavendar essential oil

2 drops of chamomille

1/2 tsp aloe vera (I take mine straight from my plant)

3 tbs pure sugar

2 tbs brown sugar

1/2 tsp lemon juice

2 tbs finely ground oatmeal

vitamin C (I have vit C in capsule form. I just break it open & pour the capsule in).

Virgin Olive oil. stir in until desired consistancy is achieved.

I am leaving it next to my kitchen sink & using it throughout the day.

The photo is of the hand scrub. I had to add a photo...cuz I'm a nerd like that!

Happy Valentines From Jase!

and here are the bookmarks from Jase!

New background

I bought a new background today & was dying to see how it would photograph! Moriah let me take a few shots of her, but ONLY if she could wear my wings & one of my new tutus. DEAL!

Almost 5 months

Time is passing so quickly! I love this age! Full of discovery, wonder & happy squeels. The teacup...Kale in vintage...Kale in color. Just me being a dork & playing.....hehe.

Pencil Portraits

I just wanted to show an example of a pencil portrait. White, light, or bare skin are ideal for pencil portraits. Don't forget that you can always click on the photo to see a larger version!

I, personally, am not a fan of color tinting, (totally just personal preference)...but some people are & I was asked to show an example of a pencil portrait with color tinting. So, here it is! :) I would be happy to do color tinting on a pencil portrait from your session. Just ask! :)Click on the first photo to see the color tinted version more clearly.

sledding

We went sledding! We went up the North Umpqua with a large group of friends. All of our kids are around the same age, so it makes things pretty easy. They either entertain eachother or fight with each other. Either way...they're occupied. hehe. Here are a few of my favorite images from the day. The photo of the guy catching some air cracks me up! That is our friend Perry. He loves life & loves to have fun! It was great to spend time with our friends & meet Perry's paintball buddy, Bill & his family. I love the photos of the "crashes". The guys are all little boys at heart & were having fun crashing into eachother, or trying to see who could have the best wipeout. I was so proud of all of the kids. They were all having so much fun that they would go down the hill & then truck their sleds back up the hill without complaining. Moriah & Jase are both at great ages to go up in the snow. I was so worried that the kids would be miserable. So, I'm glad that they are looking forward to our next trip up. Jase did tire out toward the end & went in the truck & took a nap. Kale enjoyed being bundled in his carseat or getting passed around. I had to include a photo of him in his little airman snow suit. I bought it a size too big & thought that he would be able to wear it for awhile. We had to cram him into it cuz he's so chubby, but it was about 4 inches too long. It was made for a long skinny baby. Not a short chubby baby. I guess that I will be buying a new suit before the next trip. Note to self: try it on first! :) I did go down the hill a few times with Moriah, but I prefer to sit back & watch the fun & take photos.

Yay for Credit Cards!

Sheila Nielsen Photography is now accepting Visa, Mastercard and Discover cards for your convenience!

Get Ready for Valentines!

I am currently taking appointments for Valentines Day! When you place your order, I am including a pack of 50 bookmarks for your child to give to his/her classmates and friends for Valentines Day. The bookmarks will have 2 images from your childs session. I even have three new pettiskirts, if your little princess would like to use one during the session! They are so soft & fun! Call the studio to set up an appointment! 541-673-0423. See above for a sample. The layout and design on this bookmark was by the talented Jessica Dittmer with Midnight Hour Design.

I will be accepting credit cards starting Friday!

Happy New Year!

We were able to spend a few days in Bandon with our good friends. We had such a relaxing time! With a total of 9 kids, it was rather peaceful! They have the most respectful, well behaved children. It was fun to see their kids with Kale! Somebody was always looking over him & playing with him. He LOVED it! I think that he was sad to come home! Moriah and Jase had a great time too. We were all sad to come home!

The weather was fun. We had a variety of weather the first two days. The third day was perfect. We spent some time on the beach. At one point, I was trying to take some photos of the rocks and I didn't think that the tide would come in...my camera was pointed in the direction of the ocean and then turned back around to take a photo of one of the kids...and before I knew it...I was being doused by a freezing cold wave! Elizabeth Campbell saw that the wave was still coming in & started to run backwards, taking out Jase in the process...she was able to get up, but Jase was still down. So, I grabbed him as I was running to shore. It was rather comical. Erik was up with the other kids...he had a look on his face that said, "she's NOT with me!". I do my best to embarrass him! A couple was walking by as all of this was taking place. They were laughing and saying that they wished that they had a video camera. I'm glad that I could ad some laughter to their lives! :)I have to add that I don't usually have my camera strap around my neck, (the first rule of photography school: keep the strap around your neck at all times so that you don't lose your precious piece of equipment!). I did this time & I would have lost it if I didn't! Lesson learned!

Moriah is a collector...she was thrilled with the opportunity to find rocks and shells. I really need to take some photos of her collections...that will be in another post! :)

I love to just step back and watch kids be themselves. I remember when my dad was diagnosed with cancer. I believe that I was 7. It quickly became important to him that he mend broken relatonsips and make memories. Those four years before he died were a whirlwind of trips to Disneyland, Sea World, Knotts Berry Farm, Disney World.... I remember him talking about how hard it was to know that he would never see us graduate, go to college, get married & most of all...he would never meet his grandkids. That is why it is so important to me to capture my kids growing up. It goes by so, so fast. Sometimes, I am so focused on getting a "perfect" shot of my kids and I have to stop and remind myself that it's the moment and their personality that I want...not some idealized shot that I have in my head. That lesson has been repeated thousands of times because my kids WILL NOT sit and pose. I have always loved a good challenge...and my kids definately provide that! This weekend was great though...all of the kids were distracted by eachother and hardly noticed that I was snapping away.

Here is a quote that I recently stumbled across;

This Year
This Year... Mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion, and replace it with trust. Write a love letter. Share some treasure. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Mnifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Find the time. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Listen. Apologize if you were wrong. Try to understand. Flout envy. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Appreciate. Be kind; be gentle. Laugh a little. Laugh a little more. Deserve confidence. Take up arms against malice. Decry complacency. Express your gratitude. Have faith. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love. Speak it again. Speak it still once again. --Elizabeth Lucas