Aiden Rakers ~ Class of 2021

I’m not sure when it happened, because I promise I barely looked away for a moment; but this tiny four week early little 6lb 13oz baby boy is about to graduate high school. Not only is he about to graduate, but he also turns 18 next month. He is a varsity swimmer for Steele High School, has owned and run his own small lawn business, along side life guarding for the past 3 years, and is looking forward to going to school to become a mechanical engineer. We finally went out to Essex Modern City in the downtown area of San Antonio and got the rest of his Senior pictures taken care of. The first group we took down at The Float Inn in the fall, but these are more his speed. Cap and Gown pictures to come…

The Float Inn, New Braunfels TX

Location : Essex Modern City

A Little Photo Fun with Grandma

I completely forgot that I had these in my camera roll, so as I was uploading the images from my last session into Lightroom, I was very pleasantly surprised to see these. My mom moved to the area this past summer, so we have been excited to do all the things that the San Antonio has to offer. This particular day we took her to the Float Inn for the Pumpkin Patch and some lunch. Iit was fun to walk around and see all the cute little areas that they had put together for different photo opportunities.

Sunday Morning with the Salinas Family

Words cannot express how much I was looking forward to this session. I met Susan when my younger two started school in Cibolo. As the councilor at our school, she has poured so much love into so many young men and women and I am very blessed my own younger two children got to experience just that. This month has brought a bright new beginning for Susan and her family as she was asked to full fill a different position and now gets to teach incoming councilors and help guide them into helping out their own students. While we were all shocked and sad to hear that she was leaving our school, I couldn’t help but be excited for her and for all the students that her guidance will touch. This past week was our first full week without her there, so I was so excited to get to see her Susan’s today and have a little fun with her and her family. It was such a pleasure to walk around Historic Gruene with them, listen to her boys giggle as they talked, and enjoy the area pretty much all to ourselves. Susan and Joe, I hope you enjoy this little glimpse at your images as much as I enjoyed you all today.

xoxo

Rowan

Ms. Jennifer and Family

Nothing gives me greater pleasure than coworkers reaching out for a photo session for their families. This lovely lady left our campus at the end of last year to be able to stay home, because her household was about to grown by two tiny pink feet. I finally got the pleasure of meeting this sweet little baby last weekend, and OH MY, did she give me some baby fever. While we are finished expanding our family, I take great joy in being a bonus Auntie to friends and their littles. This little one has such gorgeous big brown eyes, and was so easy going. Her older brother is just in love with his baby sister, and boy does it show in these pictures. I can’t wait for you to see this little glimpse into the time we spend together last week. To my sweet friend, how I’ve missed your “Hello, my Love” greetings in the morning and seeing your face everyday. I can’t wait to come spend more time with you this summer and get my Jenn fix and my baby fix in. Thank you so much for asking me to capture this precious six month mile stone.

Much love,

Rowan

Steele High School Senior ~ M'Kenzie Daniels

I’ve got the pleasure of meeting M’Kenzie a few years ago, because her mom offered her help to my incoming freshman, so he know when he needed to try out for the swim team. It’s crazy to think that was three years ago. I also get to work with her mom on my campus. They are a really fun bunch, and know how to have a good time and there are always tons of laughs when her mom and I get together. Kenzie, is incredibly driven and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for her. She will be off to Texas A&M Corpus Christi this summer to study Marine Biology.

Steele High School Class of 2021

Have you ever h ad those moments when you nail something, and you get so excited that you jump up and down? Thats how this entire photo shoot felt. I got the pleasure of photographing Noah’s sister a few years ago, for her Senior pictures, so I was super excited when their mom messaged me for Noah’s as well. Noah is such a sweet kid and I’m so excited with how comfortable he was during the shoot. His pictures are some of my favorites of this year. He asked to go out to the Japanese Tea Gardens in San Antonio. I love photographing there. Many people forget about it or write it off because it tends to be pretty busy all the time. It’s a really beautiful place, and perfect for his shoot. So enjoy them, and comment and give them some love.

The Switaj Family

There isn’t much I couldn’t say about this lady and her family. She is one who would quite literally give you the shirt right off of her back. Her son Zack, swims with my Aiden for their high school team as well as a summer league, and her daughter cheers with my Chloe. We’ve become quite entangled in each others lives. Her two other boys are just as enjoyable to be around. I loved being able to photograph a post holiday shoot for them. There wasn’t a moment where they were playfully teasing one another, smiling or cracking jokes. It make for an extremely fun evening. So without any more delay, here is a little peak into their session.

Our turn….

I try every year to create family photographs of our own; you know, the ones where I’m in them too. It’s only worked one other time, and that was 8 years ago. I hired someone last year, and this year I was going to hire someone again. Our schedules just didn’t match, so that meant if I wanted them, I had to do it myself. Thank Goodness for tripods and self timers! I’m very happy with the turn out, my oldest was able to help, and captured a great picture of my husband and I. As I sat editing this afternoon, I kept looking at my older two dumbfounded at how fast the last 16 years have flown by. I wouldn’t change anything. Doug and I have three amazing kids, and we are so blessed by all three of them. They are all completely perfect in their own way. That’s not to say there are some pretty low, lows that come with really high highs, but I wouldn’t change anything about any of them.
2020 has truly been a year to remember for so many reason. There’s been so much loss, so much uncertainty, so much ahhh! This year has taught us, to “Take the Pictures” as my dear friend Alissa always says, Live Your Love LOUD, as my friend Kryste says, and enjoy your little people being in your house, all together at the same time. Aiden started working this year and had to work ON Thanksgiving. We were absolutely NOT fans of this new part of our new normal. So on days we are all home the answer to going to a friends house is now my new favorite time to say NO. They may gripe about it sometimes, but I know down the road they will appreciate it. So here’s a glimpse into our day today.

The Brett Family

I was pretty excited when she asked me to take her families pictures this year. Out of everyone that I know, Alissa Brett knows how much value a simple photograph can hold. The journey photographs take you on, to be able go back in time for just a single moment. These are moments to treasure and sometimes leave you wanting to grasp hold of that moment in time and never let it go. This last year her motto has been “Take the pictures, always take the pictures.” I couldn’t agree with her more. Alissa has taken 2020 and has done everything she can to make the best out of it. Whether it’s a Zoom craft day, dinners in the drive way, creating a bowling ally on her driveway for her kids, or taking remote learning by the horns; one thing is for sure, she makes the best lemonade out of every lemon she’s been handed. Lis, I hope you love your sneak peak every bit as much as I loved spending time with you and your family.

The Davis Family

Words cannot begin to describe how much I love this family. While 2020 likes to throw us all through loop after loop, it is hard not to see the sunny side of things when I’m around this bunch. Ricky is one of the AP’s at the school I work for and their two younger boys are two of my students. I got to meet Melissa at a staff get together, and immediately fell in love with this family even more. This family loves to laugh, and are always so positive. Ricky is quite the prankster, it never fails that even if I see him out of the corner of my eye, he can still manage to sneak up behind me and scare the bejeezus out of me. I don’t think I have ever seen him without a smile on his face. He loves to have fun, and loves to include his staff members in that fun. Gunner is pretty quiet ( at least when he comes to my class) and is always my helpful one, their youngest Greyson is silly just like his dad. He spent the morning trying to photobomb his parents and twerk for the camera. Gage moved onto intermediate school the year before I joined as a staff member, but after just the morning with him, you can tell he is the easy going one just like his mom. The Davis family is definitely a ray of sunshine, and I’m so grateful they asked me to capture these images for them. I hope you love this sneak peak into my session with them, as much as I loved my morning with them.

Zubiate Family 2020

What a year it has been. 2020 has really been one for the books, as we are starting to getting used to our new normal, I am so happy to be able to be back behind the camera and bringing families some gorgeous pictures. This family is very close to my heart. One of them is close with my daughter, while the two younger girls are two of my students. I’m always so happy to get to spend time with this family, and they always bring a smile to my face. I was over the moon when they asked me to update their family pictures again this year. We decided to head out to Gruene, Texas; one of my favorite places to photograph and to just be. It’s a wonderful place to spend the day and to slow down a little. A perfect little staycation location that is right on the Guadalupe River. This area has so much history and such beauty, and is one the reasons I was so happy that we decided to make Texas our home. Here is the always wonderful Zubiate Family. I hope you enjoy these images as much as I enjoyed taking them.

Thank you 2019, Nice to meet you 2020!

2019 was a blessing to my family in so many ways. I set a goal for myself to learn to start saying no, and to make more time for myself and my family. To focus on what makes me happy. I Marie Kondoed not only my house, but other aspects of my life. I got rid of a lot of stuff that just accumulated over the last four years, really sat down and made myself decide what needed my focus most. I was really trying to do ALL the things, and found myself stretched way too thin. I asked myself what things to I really want to keep on my plate, is there something missing. One thing was noticeably absent, photography. I initially took a break to go back to school, and wanted to make sure I could handle that before adding other things. I attempted some half hearted attempts over the last four years but really never gave it my all. Because I was focusing on so many things at one time, nothing got my all. I also wanted to focus on nourishing relationships/friendships that were fulfilling and that I felt were reciprocated.

We took a trip to Jacksonville, Florida in March to watch my niece, Kiley get married. I got to spend some really wonderful time with that side of my family. My youngest really bonded with my grandmother, which I think is so awesome. We got so spend some time just the five of us and walked around the Beach and look for shells. We lived in the moment, which is something we still need to do more of. When we got back I sat down and shut down my Etsy site, and recreated a brand new watermark and website for my photography business. I did a casting call and things took back off from there. Summer arrived and we spent almost every day in the pool with the kids, and created some new bonds with some awesome people. Towards the end of summer I got a phone call to come interview for the art teacher position at the school my youngest attends. I was so excited and was offered the position and now get to teach art appreciation to young minds. I’ve been having such a blast. Since I do most of my photographing on the weekends anyway, this is perfect. It has been such a nice change, and I love the people I work with. Plus, as a bonus I get to work at the same school as my husband and where my youngest goes to school. I am definitely very blessed.

I’m really looking forward to what’s to come this year. I am excited to continue to grow my business and to be a positive influence on little growing minds. Here’s a throw back to this past year. I thank all of my 2019 clients. Thank you for allowing me to bring you gorgeous images of your lives and loved ones.

Rowan Rakers Photography really had a wonderful year, full of beauty, cuteness and love. I can’t wait to deliver more in 2020.

xoxo~ Rowan

If you would like to book an appointment, please send me an email and we will get you scheduled.

The Rosas' and Family

A few days before Christmas this beautiful family and I took to the park for quick mini session. This family was truly just so fun to hang out with and photograph. They have such a fun and very loving family dynamic. The images of Tina and her husband Gabriel are definitely some of my all time favorites. The immense crush that Gabriel has on his wife is 100% evident in the way he gazes at her. Then we move onto Tina and her brother Brandon and her sister Alicia. I asked them to just be themselves, even if it was putting each other in headlocks and giving each other noogies. They took full advantage of that request as their mom just smiled and looked at her kids enjoying each others company. So without further ado, here is a little peak into their session.

Tina~ thank you so much for asking me to photograph your family. I hope you love your images as much as I loved photographing them.

Angel- Samuel Clemens Senior

Angel is a Samuel Clemens High School Senior. She joined my model team this year and I was so excited to add her. She is a quite an accomplished young lady; at school she enjoys being part of the DECA (a club for young business men and women of the word), theater, she is Vice President of her Student 2 Student club, and is also a youth leader for women’s bible study. Angel has also been on the wrestling team for the past two years. Her favorite high school memory is making bonds with new people. Angel has been accepted to 5 different colleges to include St. Mary’s, Houston Baptist, Baylor, Northern Arizona and Dallas Baptist University. She is striving to study Forensic Science and Criminology. Her goal is to use these degrees in the US Air Force and become an OSI Officer.

For her senior shoot we ventured out to Gruene with her parents and younger sister. Of course I couldn’t resist snapping a few images with her Dad and little sister. Angel, thank you so much for joining my rep team this year. You are such a beautiful young lady, and I cannot wait to hear about all your upcoming success. You are gonna move some mountains my girl.

If you are interesting in a Senior Portrait Session, send me a message and I will be happy to set one up with you!

What are your favorite images? Tell me in the comments!

xoxo-Rowan

A little Late Halloween Fun Post

My daughter loves to go all out for Halloween. We are usually hunting down the perfect garments to piece together her costume for months. Goodwill is the perfect place for that. This year, while we thought we were going to be a little more simple, we were not. Well, we kinda were. We purchased a costume from the Halloween store, and went to town with her make-up. Chloe does creepy very well. Her facial expressions are always perfect. A few years ago we did the Mad Hatter and omg we loved that costume. This year she decided to be a broken doll. It was awesome. Leave me a comment and tell me which image is your favorite.

The Ferro Family

My sweet neighbor Allison messaged me asking for a fun laid back family session at one of our local coffee shops. Emily’s place is a favorite here in Cibolo, know for its whimsical decor, awesome coffee, playground, and some amazing re-purposed wooden doors that serve as a fence to their backyard area. The backyard area is a great place for event gatherings. I love photographing photo journalistic style shoots, they are really some of my favorite because you can truly see their family dynamic. Both Allison and her hubby serve in the military and have two beautiful girls. Off we went for some hot chocolate, cuddles with mom and dad and some playground fun.

Allison, thank you so much for asking me to photograph your gorgeous family. I loved every minute with you all, and I can’t wait to show you the rest.

xoxo, Rowan

The Boland Family

I’d like to introduce you to the Boland Family. I was so excited to get a message from this lovely lady. I got the opportunity to photograph her oldest son Samuel’s First Birthday Party the first year I lived here in San Antonio. It was such a fun party. She hired a musical that wrote songs just for Samuel’s Pete the Cat birthday party. This party was just super fun! We’ve tried to schedule a few sessions since then and this year we were finally able to make it work, and this time she has two adorable daughters I got to photograph as well. She had the fun idea to head down to The Pearl Brewery for a family session while her mother and father in law were in town. This family is just so fun to be around. Mary is very laid back and you can’t help but feel relaxed around them all. She dressed her girls in adorable blue dresses with her littlest donning a white bonnet. SO CUTE!

I mean nothing is better than a bunch of cute kids and some laughs, so here are some of their images from their session. Mary, I cannot wait to show you the rest!

xoxo, Rowan

Recipe Wednesdays- Chocolate Chip Sweet Potato Pancakes

Over the last few weeks, I’ve really been trying to change the way our family eats. After a trip to the doctor, myself and my husband found that we have a little bit of work to do. For myself, I really need to start watching my sugars and cholesterol. I’ve shared a few pictures of what we’ve eaten on Facebook, with some friends asking for the recipes. SO, I thought it would be cool, to blog a recipe or two every Wednesday.

My husband and I found this cute little brunch place down at the quarry in San Antonio called Snooze. Its adorable, and their recipes are so yummy. They have a different pancake special everyday, as well as breakfast cocktails. Who doesn’t love a good mimosa on a breakfast date away from the kids, right? On this particular day They had a Sweet Potato Pancake with chocolate chips, vanilla sauce, chocolate sauce and mascarpone cheese topped with almonds. It was good, but very rich, and I said to my husband that I bet I could take to Pinterest and fine a good Sweet potato pancake recipe. Well I found one, two weeks later I tried it, and reduced the amount of Chocolate chips and also did away with the almonds, vanilla sauce and excess chocolate sauce. My goal was to keep it as healthy as possible, but scrumptious enough so that my family would love them. My first attempt did not go well, and they just ended up being a mess. They were very loose, hard to flip. I ended up throwing a cup of Bisquick in them and cooking them that way. This morning I tried again, and had much better success. NOTE: they are going to be a different consistency than your normal pancake because it has sweet potatoes in it. Some of the sweet potatoes will remain smooth just as you are eating mashed sweet potatoes.

The recipe I used today was this:

Ingredients

1 and 1/4 cup of cooked and pureed sweet potatoes

1 cup of Plain Greek Yogurt (I used HEB Brand)

2/3 cup of milk

3 tablespoons of melted unsalted butter

1 egg

1 cup of All Purpose Flour

1/4 teaspoon of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

1/2 cup of semi sweet chocolate chips

Instructions:

1.In a large mixing bowl combine your Greek Yogurt and your pureed sweet potatoes. Once mixed together add your melted butter, egg and milk. Stir together until well combined.

2.Add in all of your dry ingredients; flour, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, salt and cinnamon. Stir together and then add your vanilla and chocolate chips. (I ended up adding a little more milk, because I wasn’t happy with the consistency. So if your mix looks dryer almost like a break mix, just add a splash more milk.

3.Before adding my batter to the griddle I added three very small slices of butter to where I was going to add each pancake. I took my 1/4 cup measuring spoon, and plopped the batter directly over each slice of butter. This allowed the edge to get that beautiful golden ring, as well as offering the non stick buffer between the pancake and the griddle.

4.This recipe stated to cook each side for 3 minutes, this is where I changed it. I cooked them, until about a centimeter around the top of the pancake looked dry, then I flipped them.

5.For the mascarpone cheese, I took about half a tub of it into a small mixing bowl, added 1/4 teaspoon of vanilla and 2 teaspoons of sugar, whisked together and then added a dollop to the top of each pancake.

This recipe made 11 pancakes.

This recipe was super good, my sugar level afterwards were fantastic; I was very please. My children were mad that I didn’t make a double batch.

The Pankey Family

I got to go photograph this beautiful family in one of my favorite places over the weekend. Gruene, Texas is one of the prettiest places in Texas that I have ever seen. My client had never been there before, and she very happily surprised with our beautiful surroundings. I had a great time with this lovely family. Their daughter had such an infectious smile, and was an absolute joy to photograph.

Letty, Thank you so much for asking me to photograph you and your family.

xoxo, Rowan

Announcing the Our Newest Little Firecracker..

…the Trufilio 5 is turning onto a Party of 6!

Now that the cat is officially out of the bag, I can share these adorable images with the rest of you. I am over the moon excited for this amazing lady and her family. Occasionally when you think your family is complete and your kids have become mostly self sufficient, life throws you a curve ball. Amy thought she was done, she and her husband Frankie we perfectly content with their party of five. Being told she was in menopause, Amy got call that would floor them all. She has lovingly named it a “medical miracle.”

Amy and I volunteer together at our children’s school on the PTC. She is the President and I am her Vice President, our boys also play on rival youth football teams. This allows some pretty fun and silly banter between the four of us. Over this past year we were blessed to become very close friends, and she is without a doubt one of my most favorite people in the world. She radiates positivity and kindness. She is uplifting to everyone around her. This past Spring Football season, our final game was against each others teams. One of our athletes broke his arm right before we were to warm up. After making sure he was taken care of, Amy sent me a text to make sure I was alright, while I was the moment came where the Mom emotions took over. I took them moment to give myself a breather, walked up to where she was sitting, and I immediately felt calmer. This woman has an amazing presence and definitely my rock on a bad day. So when she called me to tell her about her amazing secret, and asked me to help her share the news with a photo session, I was elated.

Come December, we will get to meet this precious little addition, and I am so excited. So without further ado, I give you their session. Congratulations my sweet friend.

xoxo, Rowan