Be A Part Of The Story!

You should totally be doing a little dance right now because #1 it is Saturday and #2 I actually did what I said I was going to do and posted a new blog this weekend! And just because I can, I will sprinkle this post with cuteness for your pure enjoyment. :)

I shared with you in my last post how I planned to used Kristian Ogden Photography to help raise funds for our adoption. Beginning October 1st, all proceeds from my portrait sessions will go toward bringing our little girls home. 

I’m hoping that we can partner with a new non-profit organization called Clement Arts in the near future, but we are still working out what that relationship will look like, so I am starting things off this way for now.

Normally, when clients choose to do a portrait session with Kristian Ogden Photography, they are charged a session fee ($150-$225) and then they purchase print products afterward. In the past I have charged $50 for a single digital image. What I’m getting at is these new package prices are greatly discounted. I truly hope this not only helps us raise funds but also helps bless other families.

The Session Packages are for newborn sessions, baby/toddler sessions, children sessions, family sessions and couple’s sessions. I still do not shoot weddings or high school seniors. Here are the packages:

$300

-30-45 minute session

-10 digital negatives

$500

-1 hour session

-20 digital negatives

$750

-2-3 hour session (great for newborn)

-25 digital negatives

$900

-2-3 hour session (great for newborn)

-25 digital negatives in both color and black &white (50 total)

Of course there are plenty more details on my website HERE.

Please consider helping support us in this way, and if you know anyone else who is looking for a portrait photographer, pass this info along. When you support our adoption, you become part of our little girls’ story. That means a lot to us!

I do want to say that if you have a photographer already, PLEASE don’t take your regular business away from them. I have  a lot of photographer friends in the area, and the last thing I want is for this fund raising effort to have a negative impact on their business.

If you have any questions about the photography or how you can help bring our girls home in other ways, please feel free to email me at krisogden@hotmail.com. 

Until Next time! -K

Questions and Answers

Yay! It’s the weekend! I got to sleep until about 9:00am this morning. That never happens. I use the term “sleep” loosely because I really just dozed lightly between getting drinks, wiping little butts and threatening corporal punishment. Good times.

I’m starting to realize why people who are adopting start to post gobs of blog post about it... you can control blog post. FYI, I’m a type “D” personality, and the “control” factor is a big part of me. God is constantly having to kick my legs out from under me to remind me that I am NOT in control! Knowing what I am, I think that desire to do something... anything, gives me some sort of feeling of control. I'm thankful for a good friend pointing that out to me the other day.

So, with that being said, here’s a post about adoption. :)

I’ve realized that, similarly to being pregnant, adoption comes with a few questions that people ask you ALL the time. When you’re pregnant, the questions are “When are you due,” “Do you know what you’re having,” and “What are you naming him/her?” With adoption, the questions are “Where are you adopting from,” “How long will it take,” and “What made you decide to adopt?” Every time someone asks me that last question, I want to respond with, “God.” I’m not sure that would be the best answer, but it’s the truth. That’s such a hard question to answer, but I usually say something simple like, “We feel God has called us to adopt because it’s such a beautiful example of the gospel.” People usually smile and agree, but y’all, it’s so much deeper than that. The other day I tried to put it into words but I failed (aka another deleted blog post). 

This morning I woke up thinking about our girls. Oh yeah, I forgot to update that we have settled on adopting TWO little GIRLS from [country in Asia]. Anyways, I was thinking about our girls... what they were doing, what they look like, what their personalities will be like... and as I was looking at some articles online about adoption, I stumbled across a video of John Piper talking about adoption.

John Piper is one of my favorite reformed pastors. He is so deep in his teachings it makes my head hurt. I can’t casually listen to a sermon by Piper. It takes way too much brain power and that’s so hard to muster when you have two screaming kids running around! I need that brain power to focus on staying sane.

I watched this video, and I knew I had to post it. It totally explains my answer to the question, “What made you decide to adopt?” I encourage you to take five minutes and watch it. 

Until next time. -K