I had so much fun at this shoot. Seriously, so much fun! I told Lex & Shea I was going to just going to have them be my regular stand in models when I wanted to go out and about and explore and have an awesome time!  This could totally pass for an engagement session….however, they are siblings.  They wanted a session done so they could give the photos to their mom for her birthday.  I got to go to the party and let me tell you….it only solidfied the fact that I do indeed have the best job in the world.  She was speechless and in tears….and then had almost the entire party in tears….including me.  That’s what it’s all about peeps.

meet "w"

i could just stop here.

"w" fondly referred to as dubbie was my first experience with four legged wonderment and photography. he did quite well….and i…well i managed. getting people to cooperate is one thing….getting a dog…completely different ballgame! we had fun though and dubbie cooperated for the most part. 

paul, belinda & valerie are the beautiful family dubbie chills with.  if they weren’t so darn nice i’d hate them for being so beautiful (did i just say that outloud?) ok, maybe not….but kindess & beauty has been bestowed on this family that is certain. here are a few from our day together…..some with…and some w/out the little furry dude.

These are shot from my friend Sherry’s shoot. I know her & her family through church and they are just the sweetest, kindest, most devoted family.  I have so much fun with them.  We had only one obstacle to overcome during the shoot, her son was so not interested in having his photo taken….really does that even surprise you? boys are so not about photos.  they’d rather be rolling in the dirt and playing with light sabers. i’ve said it before…and it never changes. with that being said, like any other photographer facing this challenge you realize you must stand back and act as if you are NOT shooting….then you end up with this

and this…..

here are some other faves from the day

When Hudson started attending preschool he had a sweet little dude in his class that he instantly bonded with.  They became "best buddies" and to this day that is how they refer to one another.  Inseperable.  Then went on to enjoy 3 years of preschool together and this year is has been quite an adjustment to watch as they went off to seperate elementary schools (ok, i think it may have been harder for sandy & I….but the boys do miss each other) Here’s a little shot of them at their preK graduation in May….aren’t they too stinkin’ cute???

Anyway, I was sooo honored when Sandy asked me to take their family photos.  We had sooo much fun and this was another session where everyone was totally laid back and having a good time. Cole was totally himself in every single shot, and Samantha…well, she’s a little model. She loved being in front of the camera and completely posed herself and took all the pressure off me.  Sandy was awesome and I loved watching her interact with the kids and beam at them….which she did alot…. So much fun! Here are some faves….

Sandy, thank you so much for the opportunity to do this for you.  I love ya’ll so much and feel so blessed to have been able to freeze their innocence for you for a bit longer.  They are such amazing kids and yo have done an incredible job at loving them and giving them the chance to be the amazing kids they are!  Thanks for making this process so fun and so darn easy!

i have so many shoots to catch up on and post here. the last couple months have been soooo busy and hectic and i’m still trying to figure out how to juggle all of this and make it work. i thought i had a good handle on it until i was completely booked with christmas shoots & had to figure out how to fit them all in, plus some last minute amazingly fun senior sessions….and then work on all the proofing and orders.  anyway, i managed…my head is slightly above water and as i wait for parker to wake up from his nap before heading out to run some last minute christmas errands i thought i’d play a little catch up.

back in october….or was in november…i did a session for a friend of mine who i adore and who is just such a ray of sunshine.  she has the most amazing laugh and can always make me smile.  trish & her family were soooo much fun. i mean….like i did not want the session to end. they were so realaxed and comfortable and ready to have a good time. i loved that they showed up in red…as opposed to the regular white / black combos i usually get (not that there is anything wrong w/ white or black people…let’s remember how CLASSIC those are…but color…always good!) anyway, they looked amazing and trish’s mom was in town from michigan and cam along which i loved. always cool to get to capture 3 generations in a photo.  here are a FEW of my very faves….(my gosh there were so darn many)

this was by far one of the most fun shoots i’ve had. it’s rare that you get an entire family that actually WANTS to be there and is enjoying the process.  most of the time the guys show up dragging their feet and the only person that wants to be there is the mom and by the time they get to the shoot they are about 1/2 hacked off because they’ve had to try to bribe the entire family just to show up.  but the entire hopkins family rocked this shoot! ( perhaps trish offered up some serious bribes ? )

thanks guys! your love for one another and the connection you have as a family is inspiring!

i am blessed. i am blessed with a beautiful family. i am blessed with a love and deep connection in my faith…and i am blessed with a circle of friends where an outpouring of love and graciousness abounds.  many friends that i have today are people with whom i’ve spent years knowing, growing and connecting with.  cultivating and nurturing these friendships which will continue to impact my life for years to come.  the beauty of photography is that i can look through a lens and capture the essence of a family and the relationships within it.  when the people i photograph are my friends i am blown away by the sheer magnitude of this.  on sunday i spent some time doing just this with my friends, tami, shawn and their two gorgeous children, konnar & kaleigh.  we did a session at the mcnay art museum.  it was awesome and amazing and life changing (ok, so maybe not life changing….but close) no, seriously, we had fun.  the kids were hysterical.  little kaleigh who is 4 was cracking me up because she kept picking up rocks and pecans and holding them up to show me as i was snapping a picture.  so here are a few of my faves from the day

case in point…

Thanks for your friendship guys!! much love!

on sunday i had the amazing honor to photograph my dear friend emily’s parents who were in town visiting from washington d.c.  they have visited in the past and just recently moved from dallas to d.c but i had not gotten the opportunity to meet them until this weekend.  what an amazing couple.  not only were they beautiful….it was so apparent that even after 26 years of marriage they were still incredibly connected and in love.  i loved watching them through my lens interacting with each other. the way they would look at each other….very sweetly and tenderly.  the way their hands would gently touch, lingering for a moment before interlacing their fingers.  they were so fun and at ease with one another. comfortable and familiar.  it was awesome to be there to capture that for them. emily said they had never had a professional picture taken of them (other than one on a cruise…you know the ones…with the cheesy backdrops?) so i was so excited to be able to do this for them.  here are a few of my faves.

monday’s shoot was awesome! and how could it not be with a family that looks like this

i met the family of rockstars about four years ago when i was mason’s (cute little blonde dude on the left) preK teacher and then again last year when i was Tanner’s (cute littlest blonde dude) teacher.  when tracy emailed me to book a session i knew we were going to have a great shoot when she said she was up for anything.   they all made me laugh and were totally relaxed which makes my job easy schmeezy.

these boys are adorable and considering it was over 90 degrees and they are BOYS (how many do you know that actually want to have their picture taken?) they were such troopers and amazingly patient and cooperative and totally making me laugh and just being boys!

so here are a few of my faves

i love these of billy & tracy……aren’t they gorgeous???

i’m thinkin’ tracy had fun? eh?   

tracy had emailed me a couple days before the shoot telling me she was having her tiara shined…..i was afraid she might forget hers so i picked her up one on my way to the shoot.  we had to do something to balance out all that testosterone.

gettting 3 boys to look at the camera at the same time was more challenging than i thought but those are my favorite ones anyway! i love to see their personalities come out and this could be my fave from the entire shoot.

thanks so much for hangin’ with me and for a great shoot! can’t wait to see ya’ll again!