FAMILY SESSION: tell a story

There once was a family...

A dad & a mom...a big sister and a little buddy...

squeezes and hugs were prevalent...

genuine HAPPY was found when they were together...

they worked as a team...they focused on the positive attributes in one another...

and they loved deeply and fiercely...and ALWAYS had each other's backs...

THIS is what family is all about...

I'm really honing in this year on "story walls"...

May the story of our lives, be the artwork on our walls!

We always want that "looking at the camera" picture...but life is about the messy and the digging in deep and the laughter and the goofy grins...the jumping high and laying low...

My sessions have evolved over the years...into a becoming and a capturing of hearts and not just faces...

Families like this make it oh so easy! 











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Happy Halloween

Today is Halloween, but we did our "trick or treating" yesterday...

We live out in what I consider the "boonies"...

My husband wanted a tractor...and he was feeling claustrophobic when we lived towards town...

We searched and searched for land, but to no avail...

Every weekend for what seemed like months he would drive us around "dreaming" of places we could live...hoping people would put their houses up for sale...

One such day, as we were driving down the long curvy road...with my head smashed up against the window, rather frustrated with our lack of finds and our inability to secure a lot in the area that he so desperately wanted to find a home...I spotted a "for sale" sign down a long street...

I sat up long enough to say, "well, there's a for sale sign down there" (pointing to the street as he drove past.  He said, "No there isn't anything for sale down that street, I've already looked"
To which I replied, "Okay fine (cuz I'm all about being sweet and good-natured when I'm frustrated) there's a sign, but you don't have to believe me"

To which he turned the car around to prove me wrong  check it out...

Low and behold...there was a sign...

It was almost as if angels started singing...

He got all giddy and starting jumping around in the driver's seat looking for his phone to call the "for sale by owner" number...

Turned out that the gentleman that built the house on the lot next to the empty one, also owned the one he was selling...
He came out and waved to us to come on over...

and thus began about a half hour of us girls sitting in the car while A "walked the property" with the man...by evening we had a bid in and within a day or so, it was ours...

It was meant to be...God wanted us here...and I"m so very glad He did...

because we get to do stuff like this on Halloween...



Everyone lives on at least an acre or two of land...sometimes much more than that...and we all have super long driveways...
So, on the Sunday before Halloween, we set aside 2 hours and everyone gets dressed up in their costumes, we hand off our contribution of bags of candy to some of the "passer outers" and everyone jumps in their vans or tractors to head down the street...

It's almost a "reverse" trunk or treat...



 There are multiple things I like about this venture...
1. all my kids stay together
2. it's light outside so I'm not fearful of losing anyone
3. it's on a weekend afternoon so no late nights before school the next day
4. we get plenty of good candy!


And in case you didn't know:

100 grand, take 5 and milk duds are my FAVORITES!!!


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FAMILY SESSION: New brother a'coming

Squirrels are everywhere at this park...and toads and geese and fish...and probably lots of bugs too...

Lots of 'sporlin' to do...

and that certainly helps when you've just woken up from naps and are gettin' over colds...

Sometimes it takes some climbing in trees, scoping out the pond or just rubbin' noses with Momma to get you into your happy place...

Each session is "story" for me...I've said it before and it's a big part of my philosophy when it comes to my family sessions...we aim to get "looking at the camera" pictures, but it's the authentic expressions and the candid relationships that tell the true story...our time becomes an "activity" of sorts, that gets captured forever...the time that won't stop gets frozen to remember...
when they fit into little red boots... 
when spiders were cool...
when babies were just the becoming of the dream...
when big sister was taller than the rest of the siblings...

before you know it, life has a way of changing...the ebb and flow of it all...












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SENIOR SESSION: Grace

Her name is a perfect fit...

The noun means elegance or refinement..
The verb means to do honor or credit to...

both of which describe her...

She is a gentle spirit...which is evidenced in the manner in which she speaks and interacts with others...she is attentive and thoughtful...she is eager to please, yet true to herself...

it's funny sometimes, how these little intricacies float to the surface during photography sessions...

It may start out with just smiling at the camera and showing a "good" side...but eventually, slowly, the essence of a person starts to come out...

the true smiles, the eyes that tell stories, the "happy"...

You all know I'm extroverted by nature...which often means that I need that opposite side to balance me out...

Grace brought the balance and thoughtfulness to our time together...
She has a wisdom beyond her years and a genuine love for whom she surrounds herself...

You know that I was giddy with excitement watching the sunlight catch her hair...
and she brought that "grace"fulness to my "power punches" in the air...

I think you'll agree with my assessment after viewing her images...












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FAMILY SESSION: Playtime

You could feel the energy in the air...

With 3 little ones preschool to elementary age, there is definitely some ENERGY that is itchin' to be spent...

it takes lots of patience and smiles...and these parents have plenty!

I've been in those shoes before and so it makes me happy to watch others "go with the flow" and choose to embrace the goofy and happy and ENERGY! 

There was lots of squeezing and giggling going on...and when you've got 2 sisters, man...you've got to make a path for yourself...

We raced and jumped and climbed...they toppled and squealed...

I think that half the fun for me, is just being apart of an "activity" with a family that just likes to be together! I get to be that "passerby" that then stops and watches and sneaks in on those special moments to capture them on "film"...

I can't wait to share their entire gallery with them...












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SENIOR SESSION: Hayden

I have always marveled at how complex people are...

I know that some would argue that point...some would say that we all eat, breathe, sleep, and do our things day in and day out...it's just a matter of who wins the race...

perhaps we pride ourselves on our accomplishments and all that we have done...and it seems as though we are entitled to the best and the brightest...and good things come to those who ______

I'm not trying to belittle the experiences and the lives of others...

but, 

I will admit that I stare in awe of those that have faced down giants, dealt with adversity, walked through tragedy...
and then continue to find joy, be vulnerable and share LIFE with others...

Hayden's family just moved in across the street from us.

I've known them from church, I've been in the hospital room with their family when they've said goodbye to their youngest child/sister...

they've had their fair share of hurts...

and I know that we all deal with circumstances in different ways in our lives...we celebrate differently, we grieve differently, we measure success differently...

however, it's not hard to recognize someone who strives to live life with integrity...

it's not someone who is concerned with pleasing everyone else...
it's not someone who is out for #1 either...

rather...

it IS someone who sees another person as someone to be valued,
who puts one foot in front of the other just doing the next right thing that they can do,
who finds the "joy" in unexpected places and does his best to leave someone better off than when they found them...

Hayden has listened to my endless chatter without complaint...
I've watched him make others laugh and his mom smile because her heart is swelling with love...
I've listened to his brothers praise him (and tease him)

He's touched many people's lives just by being who he is created to be...

if we could all do that...
or at least be fortunate enough to have them as neighbors! :) 














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How can I reach you?

The best way to contact me is either through Facebook Messaging or emailing me at ctphotomemories@gmail.com

I can't wait to hear from you!
"Teach us to number our days, (savor the moments) so that we may gain a heart of wisdom" ~Psalm 90:12

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