The size of my ginormous belly is an indication as to how soon our family will go from three plus dog to four plus dog.  And this, my friends, is UNREAL.

Because sometime in the next few weeks, I’m going to have another one of these:

EXCEPT that it won’t be another one of these:

This will be a whole new creation!  With his/her own personality!  And wants and needs and demands!  And quirks!  And smiles and kisses!!  It’s so so so totally unreal.  We’re having a baby.  Another baby.  A baby that’s not Benjy.

Deep breath.

As many of you know, we’re expecting our second child in September.  And I’m now in full nesting mode!  Out with the old, in with the new!  This stuff has to go!  The products are listed here, along with their prices.  The aim of the exercise is TO GET RID OF STUFF, so if you want something but think I’m asking too much for it, give me an offer- I’ll probably accept it (I know, I’m one heck of a salesperson).

Black Metal Frame Freestanding Wardrobe- 20 euros.

Black metal mini-shelf- 20 euros

Black metal end table- 10 euros each (I have two)

Full set (Wardrobe, shelf, two tables)- 50 euros

Black metal lamp base (no shade- I promise it’ll be dust free when you get it)- 5 euros

Faux wood table- 10 euros

180×210 thin mattress cover (sijauspatja)- about 1 cm thick- similar to this one, but older- http://www.ikea.com/fi/fi/catalog/products/20156260 :  10 euros

If you want to buy anything or negotiate, let me know- sarah (at) pikkuarkki.com , 050 349 4460

For the slideshow, head here.  You’ll have to download a plug-in to watch the video, but it’ll make viewing other slideshows easier.  Remember to have your speakers on!

To book your own family’s session, write me at sarah(at)pikkuarkki.com or call me at 050 349 4460.

I’m talking about getting the four family members to look great at the same time.  I have LOADS of useable photos of these guys.  And I can’t wait to edit them and show you them all.

For now, this one- this teaser will have to do.

I don’t know where to start.  Mom’s electric smile?  Daughter and Son interacting?  That Daughter looks exactly like Mom and Son looks exactly like Dad?  All I know is that shooting Erika, Markku, Lukas, and Mia was a JOY.  More later.

Can I just for one second say how TOTALLY EXCITED I am to shoot this wedding?  It’s going to be perfect.  Perfect, perfect, perfect.

First, it’s going to be in Old Town Porvoo.  If you haven’t heard of old Porvoo, just imagine gorgeous, colorful wooden houses and cobble stone streets.  Streets so small cars aren’t allowed (which means no cars in photos!!).  The reception will be held at Hotel Onni, which is about as Porvoo as you can get- gorgeous terraced cafe and personal, well-lit rooms.  The wedding will be intimate- small guest list.

And the couple.  Oh, the couple!  Well, I’ll just let these photos speak for themselves.

Are you as excited as I am??!

Now, let’s hope my baby stays put until at least the day after the wedding.  I’ll be 3 weeks away from delivering on the day of…  You hear that, baby?  STAY PUT!

So, Ritva wanted to know if I had gift certificates.  As, it turns out, I was just in the process of getting them made (you can see the fruits of that labour here) .  So, Ritva was actually the first person to order a gift certificate for her goddaughter Ade.

WHEW!   You still with me?

The shoot was held at a beach in Espoonlahti.  It was a gorgeous day with a gorgeous family, lots of fun, lots of smiles.  And soaking shorts on my part (I had to climb into the sea to get the shot- the things we photographers do for our clients.  :)  ).

For the slideshow (always the best part!) head here.  Remember to have your speakers on and be patient while it loads!

]]> http://pikkuarkki.com/blog/2010/07/family-ade-at-13-months/feed/ 2 http://pikkuarkki.com/blog/2010/07/married-zeena-and-lee/ http://pikkuarkki.com/blog/2010/07/married-zeena-and-lee/#comments Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:49:01 +0000 Administrator http://pikkuarkki.com/blog/?p=1134 And here is the post you’ve all been waiting for- Zeena and Lee’s wedding!!

This was an especially special wedding for me for many reasons.  Here are some:

1.  I really, really like this couple.  Fabulous, funny, warm, gracious, open.  When I heard they were getting married, EVEN THOUGH it was in the seventh month of pregnancy, I knew we had to make it.  We had to, had to be there.

2.  It was the first Muslim wedding I’d ever attended.  In case you’re wondering, Muslim wedding ceremonies (if I’m to extrapolate based on this one experience) are really calm and quiet.  There isn’t any music.  The groom declares his faith.  And then the cleric gives a little sermon.  And then they’re married.  No kissing or exchanging of rings- that happens during the civil ceremony.  The civil ceremony that I missed, because someone had to stay with Benjy in the hotel while he napped, and that someone happened to be me.

3.  They served great food- we’ll get to that in a minute.

4.  It was at a gorgeous location.  Orsett Hall.  My ideal for what I will someday own as my own bed and breakfast.  Except mine will be smaller.  Much smaller.

5.  It gave me a chance to practice wedding photography, since I will *gasp* be photographing MY FIRST WEDDING EVER at the end of August!!!  This was a no pressure situation, because of course they had their own photographer, and I just got to jump in when my son, husband, and swollen ankles allowed.

So, now for photos:

First, we have a random assortment of wedding photos.  I’m sorry for the kind of random order, I was too lazy to create a new storyboard layout.  Apologies, apologies.

And then the food.  Well, part of the food.  You see, after this AMAZING sit-down Indian dinner, there was an equally amazing Indian finger food buffet in the evening during the reception.  However, someone had to be with Benjy as he slept in the hotel, and that someone happened to be me.  So, I missed the ENTIRE reception, including the finger food buffet.  But I’m not bitter.  No, no.  I’m not bitter.

Anyway, here’s the food.  Including your favorite and mine Sag Paneer!  I was THRILLED when I saw it on the menu.

And THEN!  The cake!  Or should I say cakes.  Because Zeena had cupcakes brought in all the way from Nottingham to serve as her wedding cake.

I’m sure these were as lovely to eat as they were to look at.  But, again, I missed the cupcakes because I was with Benjy.  And a certain husband, who shall remain nameless, who didn’t think to bring me anything from the Indian buffet, also didn’t think to bring me a lush, buttercream frosted cupcake.  Yes, dear readers, I lead a difficult life.

It was such a fantastic wedding.  I’m so happy we got to be there to help celebrate.  Many, many happy years of marriage I wish for Zeena and Lee.

Gift certificates are available from 20 euros.   Contact me at sarah (at) pikkuarkki.com to order yours!

The moment you’ve all been waiting for HAS ARRIVED!!

TACO BELL IS HERE!!!!!

Taco Bell has arrived in a gorgeous shopping centre in Essex.  As far as I know, it’s the ONLY ONE IN EUROPE and Olli and I were lucky enough to frequent it- TWICE!!!

It was a thrilling day on Friday, thick with anticipation.  The clock had barely struck 11:00am before we dug into our fat-ridden feast with abandon.  We were filled with joy, giddy with excitement.  But also a bit nervous- for the following important reason.

This is the first Taco Bell in Europe.  If it doesn’t succeed, there won’t be ANY OTHERS.  And so, good people of Essex, you are given the awesome responsibility of keeping my dream alive- a Taco Bell on every corner!  Okay, maybe not quite, but at least one in every major European city!  Please!  Olli and I leave tomorrow!  We can do no more.  And so we put our full faith in you and your ability to eat an insane amount of fat in a single sitting.

May the force be with you.

This wedding, more than any other I’ve ever attended, has been as much about the father giving up his little girl as the joining of two souls.  The father of the bride speech was so completely touching and beautiful.  Daddy’s little girl is all grown up.

So, for me, this photo summarizes this wedding more than anything else.  I’ll give you the whole deal later- well, as much as I captured in between taking care of Benjy and taking naps (I missed the civil ceremony entirely and the entire evening of dancing).