MY favorite shots – the REAL ones!!

SO BEAUTIFUL!!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE THAT SHOT!

Kate – you are SUCH a beautiful bride!!

THE CEREMONY!!!

THE grandma!!!

They’ve got their own fan section in the crowd!!

HERE COMES THE BRIDE!!

So – Kate – do you!? YEAH!?

WITH THIS RING!! Are you a tongue-sticker-outter!? I am – and Kate is too!!

JUST MARRIED!!

ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!

Stay tuned!!

Those little piggies!!! ADORABLE!!

Kate’s grandma holds a VERY special place in her heart!!

Kate’s grandfather also holds a special place in her heart. Her grandmother brought his wedding ring for Kate to wear on her wedding day.

He’s right here. RIGHT HERE. He’s with you today.

So many emotions. Such a BEAUTIFUL bittersweet moment.

SQUISHY HUGS!!!

BRIDE TRIBE!

TIME TO GET READY!! REALLY READY!!

GORGEOUS!!

CLASSIC!!

Sometimes your bridesmaids need to get up close & personal – pick your tribe well!!

Kate had a first look with her dad. I met her dad at their engagement session & knew this would be an emotional moment!

Are you ready dad!? He said – no. I’m not. I’m not ready.

THAT FACE!!

AH! The tears – they flowed – ALL around!!

ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!!

Those beautiful details. Those emotional looks. Those wedding day moments.

I met Willie & Kate at the PENN WELLS OPEN HOUSE in January!

They won my FREE engagement session give-away – you might remember their session – at her grandparent’s farm!!

Their wedding was a HOT day in July – but even a HOT day is better than rain – right!?

THOSE FLOWERS!!!! Aren’t they JUST GORGEOUS!?

PHOTO-BOMBED by Rapunzel!!

SWEET MOMENTS!!

I LOVE reflections – every single shot!!

GORGEOUS!!

ALL the wedding rings!!!

Stay tuned for the rest of their wedding day throughout the next week!!!

I had a wedding last weekend – did you know that I LOVE weddings!?

I was charging batteries and checking over my equipment and Enoch wanted some pictures taken!

And now that I have this BRIGHT kitchen and a WHOLE LOT of space – I didn’t even have to ask him to move to the living room!

He’s lost his two bottom teeth and those two top teeth and just hanging there!

Sometimes I forget that he’s only 5 – closer to 6 than not – and then sometimes he feels so little still!

THERE’S the REAL smile!!

He starts kindergarten soon – THREE WEEKS!!

I remember trying to figure out what grade Fitzy would be in when Enoch went to kindergarten – and HERE IT IS ALREADY!

We’ve had such a fun summer and I plan on doing ALL the fun things with the three weeks we have left!!

HOW WAS YOUR SUMMER!?

Do you have a youngest kiddo at home going off to school this year!? What will you do with your time during the day!?

I held a little contest on FACEBOOK recently – post a picture of your kiddos outside doing what they LOVE!!

And you get entered to win a FREE mini session at the creek!!

Desiree WON!!

Her littlest had just woken up – and was NOT in the mood for any creek exploring or photos!

MY FAVORITE SHOTS!! A different perspective – one I happen to LOVE!

Mini sessions can be hard for the kiddos that need time to warm up to the thought of a stranger with a camera in their face!

I LOVE THOSE SHOTS!!

ONE LAST CHANCE to get a smile!

DARLING!! I LOVE THAT ONE!

AND THAT ONE! SO SWEET!

I WON in the end – I usually do – a SMILE – even a few smiles!

Always let them be silly!!

THANK YOU SO MUCH for making the trip to Mansfield! I hope I see your family again soon!!

We showed up a little early for Missy’s session – so I took advantage of having my camera with me!

I LOVE coming to the playground and chasing your kids around – getting them in action – the BEST way to shoot – in my opinion!

We met up with Sierra and her kiddos for ice cream – and I took advantage of having ALL our kids together!!

8 – 3 – 8 – 10 – 6 months – 5 – 7 – 5!!

This mom thing – it’s not easy – and having a tribe – it helps SO MUCH!!!

Missy and I were close and we knew Sierra – but one day about two years ago – Sierra told me she wanted to make an effort to get to know Missy & I better – she needed a few 3 AM friends and she was hoping Missy and I might be those friends. And sometimes it’s hard to bring someone else into a close relationship – and people ask how we manage it.

We try. We make an effort. We are CRAZY busy – we all work – we all have family and other friends we spend time with – we sat down to try and figure out a time we could all have a sleepover for a weekend – and it was OCTOBER 26th before 2 of us said YES – we are FREE!! But the third wasn’t – so we said – let’s come back to this later. But sometimes it’s – hey – wanna do dinner NOW!? What are you doing in an hour!? We help each other. We encourage each other. We love each other and every kid in that picture – I love them. Missy loves them. Sierra loves them.

I love that our kids love each other. That this big group of kids – do they argue!? Yep. But do they love each other!? ABSOLUTELY!!!

I love you guys – SO MUCH!!!

As promised – the rest of Missy’s session – because I can’t STOP!!

And because I can – this is Missy and her family 7 years ago compared to Missy and her family NOW!!

And it’s crazy – I was photographing my new friend Missy and now I’m photographing my best friend Missy!

She kinda loves her momma – just a little bit!!

BROTHERS!! And those crystal clear blue eyes!!

SO MANY SQUISHY KISSES!!

Missy SEVEN years ago with her baby boy! AND NOW – with her baby girl!!

I really wanted to recreate that photo from 7 years ago – but this girl will not gently sit on her dad’s arm and stay still!

SHE IS A MOVER & A SHAKER!!

She was SO HAPPY standing up and dancing!!

We’ve decided that Missy must be a vampire – has she even aged!?

Jared and the boys came with me to our session – because we were meeting up with Sierra for ice cream – so once we were done they NEEDED to take a photo of Missy & Cody themselves!

And I think this is one they took – but I’m not totally sure!

It must have been – because I moved in closer once I saw what they were snapping!

I couldn’t pass up that photo!! THAT was the face I was looking to recreate!!

MISSY & CODY – I know you know – but I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH!!!

It’s amazing – because I picked up a camera and decided to write about our hurts – Missy and I went from new friends to BEST friends!

ONE decision – just ONE decision – shapes your ENTIRE life!!!

If you’ve followed my blog for any amount of time – you know who Missy is.

And you know she had a baby girl 6 months ago – CAN YOU BELIEVE it’s been SIX months!?

But – she also has this guy – who will be EIGHT this December!

And she has that guy – who is 19! And I’m gonna get that shot of those brothers for as long as I can!

GAH!!! CAN YOU STAND IT!?

Sweet baby girl – words escape me. This baby girl has been prayed for. Waited for. SO MUCH!!

That middle guy – the littlest big brother – he could NOT stop looking at that baby girl!

He said – Danielle. Do you know what!? Grace is BEAUTIFUL. Isn’t she just BEAUTIFUL!?

THOSE FACES!! Missy – I know you know – but LOOK at your CHILDREN!!

SERIOUSLY!!!

HIS BABY SISTER!!!!

HEY BABY GIRL!!

I CAN’T EVEN WITH THAT FACE!! MY FAVORITE!!

GORGEOUS GIRLS!!

Stay tuned for the rest of their session!!

Jack has a Christmas birthday – and winter in PA is usually NOT the best time to take outdoor portraits!!

So – we had a half-birthday shoot!!

Jack will be FIVE this Christmas! FIVE!? Gah. How is that possible.

Last year he was diagnosed with Autism. He had a pretty severe speech delay.

And now. NOW. I can’t get together with my sister and him without crying.

He talks SO MUCH. He understands SO MUCH. He asks SO MANY QUESTIONS.

Did you know that finding a therapy that works for YOU and YOUR child is THE KEY!!

Go with your gut – and sometimes you have to go with the gut of the people that love you and want the best for you.

Sometimes a diagnosis is TERRIFYING. The thought of a diagnosis is crippling.

And sometimes a diagnosis is THE KEY.

Jack is kind. Jack is empathetic. Jack is FULL of questions. And a while ago – he wasn’t.

And my sister cried because he wasn’t talking. And now we cry because he doesn’t STOP talking!!

This is where his mom & dad said YES – FOREVER!!

MY FAVORITE!!

NOPE – THAT one is my favorite!!

And one of us together – because I don’t think I have ANY of us together!!

I think he looks more like me than my sister – if he looks anything like anyone except his dad – because he’s his clone!

JACKIE BOY – we love you so much and are SO PROUD of all you’ve done and all that you WILL do!