Ali Hohn Photography

This week I had four AMAZING Seniors!!  Absolutely AMAZING girls!  I am working on their images right now and loving all of the images!  Here’s a sneak preview of all these girl’s photos!

I will be posting more once these girls have come down to view their photos!

Erica

Emily

Hailey

Mel

Typically, we shoot in the evenings but I have the capability of shooting mid day sessions now.  If anyone is interested in shooting at mid day there will be a special mid day rate for these sessions.  Please email me to find out about the mid day rates.  These sessions will be on Tuesday and Thursdays.  ali@ahphotos.com

This has taken me a little while to post only because of Deanna and Allyn’s story. I read through what Deanna wrote the other night for this blog post and I started crying all over again.  See, the first time I met these amazing people was when their daughter was 8 months old.  They told me their story and we cried together but I never grasped what it was like to lose a child.  After just having my own loss and when my friend told me that Deanna and Allyn just had a baby I knew I had to call them in for a free session.  Rowan was born.  Rowan is such a cute little man.

Here is what Deanna had to say about her new little man and part of their story.  If you are a crier get tissue!

Rowan’s birth was a planned c-section, so we knew when exactly we would get to welcome the little guy home! The neatest part was we didn’t know if he was a boy or girl (someone a long time ago told us that there are only a few surprises left in this world, and that is one of them!). Because we didn’t know, the doctor told the entire medical staff to stay quiet so she could lift that baby up and we would see for ourselves if we had a boy or girl! Very emotional – and just an all around neat feeling. Not only did he arrive safely – it was a little boy! (But believe me – we would have been happy with either – just as long as he or she was ok!)

What do we love most about Rowan…that is a hard question for me! I love the fact that he is here safe and sound, I love the fact that Josie has a new little brother to teach things to, I love how tiny he is and snuggly and cuddly…and most of all I love how he has completed our family! We have 2 angels up above, a boy and a girl, watching over our 2 angels here on earth with us!

What happened before Rowan…Rowan (and Josie too) are extra special because of what we have gone through to get them here. Back in 2005 we were expecting our first child. I went into preterm labor on Christmas day, and after going to 3 hospitals and finally being airlifted to Abbott, we gave birth to Hope, our daughter. She was only 22 weeks and too small to survive – but she touched our hearts and made us realize how important having a family is to us. We decided to try again right away, and 11 months later on Thanksgiving Day 2006 our son, Augustus Michael was born at full-term, still. He was perfect in every single way, and a spitting image of his father. He somehow got an infection inutero and while his body did everything possible to fight it, the infection won. We were absolutely devastated…losing 2 children in less than a year. It is a horrible feeling that words can’t even describe and something that no one should have to go through.
We took some time to heal emotionally (which took much longer than the physical healing). Then we decided to try again. In June 2008 we welcomed home our daughter, Josiah Ruth – who was perfect. We doctored with the best doctors around, took every possible precaution, and put a lot of trust in the Lord and in the little baby to do what both needed to do to get her here safely. It was all out of our control – and thankfully it all worked out. She is just a joy – and I knew that I didn’t want her to grow up alone, and even though she has Hope and Gus, I wanted another child to complete our family.
We decided to try one last time…and no matter what the outcome, this would be it for us. Thankfully, the pregnancy and ultimately the birth was almost an exact replica of Josie’s – and we were blessed with another child – Rowan James.
Our journey to have a family has been a complete roller coaster, but through it we have learned so much. I never thought I could love my husband any more than I already did – but going through our losses and grief and healing – I discovered a whole new level of love for the father of my children. We are closer than ever, and I truly believe that since we have gone through some much to get Josie and Rowan here, they will know a deeper love than I was personally capable of giving before. They will also know that they have 2 angels always watching over them, keeping them safe, and waiting for them someday. Hope and Gus are important members of our family, and we speak of them often. Josie and Rowan do not replace them – they just complete us.
4. What is it like having 2…we are adjusting to “sharing” our time between a Princess 2 year old who has been the center of our world, and a newborn who literally gets all of his nourishment from me! Allyn is definitely hands-on, and we are trying to maintain a sense of normalcy around our house. Luckily Rowan is a good and easy baby (so far) – and maybe he even senses that he needs to make sure that his big sister still gets the time and attention she needs!! It is all worth it – and I wouldn’t have it any other way!

Being a new mom again…it is “easier” this time around! We have always focused on just getting our children here safely, that when Josie was born, we didn’t know what to do once she was here! We learned a lot from that, and it is true that parents become more relaxed with subsequent kids! We also decided ahead of time that there were certain things we were not going to stress over. What a difference that has made!!! I can honestly say that being a new mom again is much, much easier this time

What do we want to teach Josie and Rowan…Our biggest hope is to raise “good” children. We want them to be respectful, honest, compassionate, caring, giving, and loving. We will share with them our stories and journey – and we believe that knowing about Hope and Gus, and all of the other angel babies, will instill in them a level of compassion that maybe others don’t have. We also want to teach them about love, the importance of family, the importance of faith, and how everything we go through – be it good or bad – helps shape us into the people we are. Not everything is easy – but we can learn from our experiences and always find purpose and meaning in what we go through and in life in general.

What do I love most about my family…I love the bond that we share. I love looking into my husband’s eyes and seeing his soul and him seeing mine – knowing that we understand each other’s fears, dreams, and hopes. I love gazing at our children and knowing that they are a true product of such a deep love between 2 people. I love the sense of completeness and wholeness that we have. I truly love my life – with all of the sorrow that we have encountered because Allyn, Hope and Gus, and now Josie and Rowan have made me a better person.

Thank you so much Deanna and Allyn for allowing me into your lives again.  It was so great to catch up and just talk.  I think we talked more than we took photos but it was so nice to just hang out.

I got to photograph Josiah and Gianna again!  It was Josiah’s 5th birthday too!  I had so much fun with these two guys the other day!  Here’s a sneak preview of their photos!  I absolutely adore this photo of them!!! don’t you!!

The other day I got to photograph Mr.  Gus again!  And boy was he a ham!  Here’s a sneak preview of Gus’ photos!!

Today I had the pleasure to photograph a wonderful family from my church.  Every time someone has a new baby or adopts a child I offer them a free session.  It’s my present to the families in our church.

Here’s what the Benson’s have to say about adopting their new addition Amanda into their family!

Amanda has really blossomed into a happy little girl. The thing I most enjoy is watching her become “herself”. It’s like a present that is unwrapping before our eyes. Every day, I see a little more of who she really is – her personality, her likes/dislikes…When she learns something new, there is such joy on her side and my side. It’s been interesting because we have a 3 year old who is really experiencing everything for the first time.

It was hard to adopt her. We really knew this was God’s plan for our family so we were able to stick with it, but it wasn’t an easy path. We waited 3 years before she became a part of our family. 2 1/2 of those years, we didn’t even know if it would ever happen. When she came home, it was even harder. She was 2 1/2 with a mind of her own and had to adjust to so much. We figured out that she hadn’t gone outside ever in her life aside from trips to doctors and hospitals to repair her cleft lip/cleft palate. She was scared of everything – trees, grass, the wind blowing, animals, even colored food. I didn’t even like her for a few months. I didn’t get the feeling of loving her until much later, but made a choice to love her. Now, I can say fully that I love Amanda and am so happy we did this. In the nine months she’s been here, she has had to adjust to so much and has done beautifully.

The trip was hard for Brett. She was sick and we later found out she had a parasite and double ear infection. One of her eardrums ruptured on the plane ride home. It was on the trip to China that Brett found out she was this incredibly social person who loved to have fun and make people smile. Brett’s dad (his travel companion for the trip) kept commenting that we got the best one in the bunch. I think we did too.

We want to teach our children to love God with their heart, soul, and mind. Everything else they need in life will follow that. We also want to make sure Amanda knows that she was wanted and planned for from the beginning of her life. We figured out that our adoption journey started on the same month she was conceived. She has ALWAYS been on our heart and in our prayers. We also want her to be proud that she is Chinese.

I haven’t really figured out how a little girl is different since she is so active and likes to keep up with the boys. She does have this little mothering thing in her and that’s really fun to see. The first doll she got, she took around the room and told the doll about everything in the room. I looked at Brett and commented, “We have a girl!”

My favorite thing about Amanda is her hugs and kisses and how she just really relishes life and living.

For families that are thinking about adoption – it’s not always going to be easy, but it’s one of the best things you can do with your life. Nine months after adopting her, we can see how God has always meant her to be a part of our family. It’s like she’s been here all along.