Merry Christmas!!
Love, the Sladek family
Santa School Graduates 2016
Meet 2016’s graduating Santas and Mrs. Clauses from Calgary’s own Santa School. If you haven’t heard of Santa School it’s pretty awesome! Santas and Mrs.Clauses from all over come to Calgary and train to be, well, a better Santa/Mrs.Claus!! They are taught how to create that Christmas magic and joy.
It’s quite a sight seeing over 20 Santas and Mrs. Clauses in one spot. Jingle bells are ringing, Santas are belting their jolly “Ho! Ho! Ho!”s, and there is SO much red!! I love it. We headed to this great little spot in Silver Springs and decorated with ornaments on the trees, Elf-approved burlap Santa sacks, and other Christmas decor. It was such a fun experience and a pleasure to be a part of. Only 4 days until Christmas and I can’t wait!!!
My Family
Meet my family. Well, my kids at least đ I really wanted to get Christmas cards out this year, and didn’t have a current family photo! It’s kind of like the shoemaker’s kids not having any shoes haha. The last family photo I have is from when my baby was 1!! How horrible is that?! That had to change! With my hubby bouncing around the continent for work I knew it would be challenging to get him and myself in the photos, so, I figured an updated photo of the kids would do.
On the first day that the snow covered the trees and barely the ground, I got my kids all ready and we headed out in the bitter cold to get an updated photo of them. I still can’t believe I was able to get together 5 outfits that morning!! Let me tell you this was NOT an easy task. Normally I spend a few weeks arranging outfits and planning what they’ll wear. Instead I borrowed all the vests and a couple shirts from friends and family (thanks guys!). I am amazed that it came together so fast. I have to remind myself that it’s not about the outfit but about capturing memories. Are their outfits perfect? Definitely not! Does that matter? Most definitely not! What’s important is that I have these images of my kids together happy and smiling, frozen in time as they were at that moment. And when I remember that, that’s all that matters.
I love these little (and not so little) rascals. They bring me so much joy and I couldn’t imagine life without them! Their personalities are so different and wonderful, making each day interesting and fun in new ways. Each one has different talents and strengths that bring something special to our family. Looking at these photos reminds me that they do love each other!  I hope that they can continue to develop their relationships as time goes on!
RYDER – LDS Baptism Photos
Check out my adorable nephew Ryder’s baptism photos! Ryder recently turned 8 and was baptized a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. His mom really wanted photos to display at his baptism and didn’t think I’d have time so figured it just wouldn’t happen. Well, I’m all about pictures and so my mom, Ryder and I decided to surprise his mom and take his photos at the Calgary LDS Temple while she was at work. Grandma had him looking super sharp in his blazer, and he rocked his photos. Ryder is such a little stud and did awesome despite the bitter cold. The best part was later in the day my sister called me in tears (happy tears) when she saw the gallery. I love when surprises make people happy like that!! And I love being able to document important memories for my family and for others.
TILLEMAN
My family and I had just moved to Edmonton for my hubby to start law school when we first met the Tilleman family. At that point, it was just Ryan and Susie, no kids. We would get together for dinners and games nights and they were awesome with our 3 munchkins. They made the transition to a new city much more bearable and thankfully we have stayed in touch over the years. Now they are a beautiful family of 6 and I was able to attend the birth of their little guy just a couple years ago. I feel wonderfully blessed to have amazing families like the Tillemans in my life.
We headed out to Edworthy Park for their family session. It had been sunny all day and as I made the trek over to the park the clouds started rolling in. Not only did the clouds come out, but the weather turned cold, FAST! These kids were so good and thankfully we got all we needed before it got too dark and we all got too cold. I love all those blondies!! Thanks for the fun night, Tilleman family!
