I’ve worked with this amazing family for several years now and I have to tell you, each session seems like a dream to me…as in a dream come true (remember that time we got to photograph them with their horse in downtown Austin????). This family is so connected with one another. These sisters are so connected. The love and closeness is almost tangible in their images. I literally could not stop smiling and gasping while culling their images from the session.

 Real, true expressions and emotions. THIS is what makes my soul jump for joy and I’m always completely honored when families are willing to open up like this for me.

 Again…this is REAL. These two are SO in love!

 I mean, no words. Just…sigh…and then there was THIS.

The following images were also very dreamlike to me. I kept thinking about the visual pull of The Tree of Life (and oh, how I loved that movie. Didn’t fully understand it, but did it ever inspire me!) when processing them…

 Childhood…girlhood in it’s richest form. Dance, play, spring air and flowers. Hair wild. A halo of sunshine.

Shelly…thank you so much for trusting your family photographs with me. Thank you for being so comfortable as a family and letting your girls be themselves. My time with you never disappoints. xoxo

Their trip from New Jersey to Austin, Texas had been planned forever it seemed. And of course, as their travel date approached, so did some yucky looking weather. Even the day of their session, the weather could not make up its mind what it was going to do and I was so very thankful that they were incredibly flexible and understanding (well, mom *is* a VERY talented photographer herself in the New Jersey area) and somehow, the Texas weather (and wildflower) gods smiled down upon us and gave us amazing temps and the perfect amount of cloud cover to take advantage of my favorite creek and frolic in some beautiful flowers!

As with most siblings, whenever one got to be the star of the session, the other wanted a turn, too. There was a lot of switching the focus throughout the session which I think the kiddos will appreciate in looking at these photos years down the road.

 Loved these interactions between mother and daughter!

And how sweet was this between mother and son?

He had us both cracking up because he was taking his kite flying *very* seriously and wanted to find the best direction, lol!

They were having SO much fun with their dad!!!

Finally, we let them get in the water. They had been chomping at the bit since we first arrived. Their patience paid off! And her dress? WOW! My FAV dress pic is HERE.

What? Is that the sun poking out for like 20 seconds?

It’s always so magical for the kiddos when their parents join in on splashing in the water. Delightful!

All of my newborn photography clients qualify to add on unlimited mini sessions for their baby’s first year. It’s a wonderful way to document those major milestones in a child’s first year of life and experience all of the beauty in Austin’s “seasons”. This beautiful baby girl’s 7 month mini session happened to fall right in line with peak wildflower season, so at the last minute, we changed our location from downtown Austin to this incredible wildflower field filled with Bluebonnets and Indian Paintbrush. This family is completely gorgeous, but what I want to know is how mom was able to coordinate their outfits to PERFECTLY compliment the orange and blue hues of the flowers we were in? I don’t recall telling her what kind of flowers were here, but maybe I did? Or maybe she’s just that awesome? Yeah, I think she’s just that awesome. My favity FAV is HERE!

Um, yes, I will gladly travel to Houston to get to work with a family this colorful, this vibrant, this fun, this loving, this energetic, this full of love! Beth, it was my absolute pleasure!

Since mommy is a photographer, it was super important to get lots of pics with her in them. LOVE their natural interactions here. It’s pretty clear that he loves his mommy.

Of course, he loves his daddy, too ;-).

OMG. The doggie was cracking me up!

Can’t resist a little bubble magic!

Um. They’re kinda gorgeous.

This was making me giggle because of course, when we wanted to take pics with little man in them, he had better things to do. But the second we stopped paying attention to him, he HAD to pop into the scene! Love it! After bubble time, we got to venture out for a tricycle ride…

Yeah. This photo session pretty much rocked my world. Also, THIS trike shot makes me happy.

For so many reasons (far too many to list) this bunch is near and dear to my heart. I am truly blessed to know them and to have watched these kiddos grow and each time I see them, it brings me tremendous joy. Their energy and free spirits inspire me and make my soul happy.

His facial expressions are out of this world!

 Pure. Love.

 I don’t know why, but I adore this shot above.

 This light!!!!!!!!

She’s an old soul.

And how lucky were we to find these amazing bluebonnets!?

 Love.

 This image above just happened. The kids ran off, wild and free. It spoke to me and made my heart happy and ache at the same time.

SOOOOOO much personality in this family!

I was laying down on rocks for this shot. A few days later, I couldn’t figure out where all the bruises came from on my arms and legs until I remember this image, lol. #worthit

YES!

This is another one of those cases where clients have become friends. I’ve been blessed enough to experience so many incredible times with these lovely people…all the way back to when they were expecting their very first baby. I was even present at the births of their first two sons…both events to which I am forever emotionally tied. I will never, ever, ever forget those magical times.

And now we come to the caboose of their family…son #3, who is just as adorable as his older brothers and already immensely patient with all of the “love” with which they tend to smother him, lol! In fact, most of the time during his newborn photo session, I had to ask for less love from the big bros as I couldn’t see baby brother’s face, lol. I truly did enjoy watching these boys together, though. And mama…as a boy mom…is clearly worshiped by all three (well, four, counting her hubby) boys in her life.

Their grandmother has been present at each of their newborn sessions, too, so this was no exception. I just loved this candid moment snapped right before we had officially started.

See what I mean? Boy mom love!

 Gotta love those cute little newborn baby legs!

 I was trying to photograph the interaction of the three in front here, but the two monkeys in the back kept stealing the show ;-).

 So cute!

 I see sooooo much of his mommy in this pic!

 Love.

Of course, we had to revisit the infamous “family dinner table” photo now that they have a new addition.

 We were even treated to a visit from Buzz and Woody, who had me laughing so hard with their dance moves, I had a hard time keeping my images in focus!

I hope she doesn’t mind me posting this, but she looks so beautiful when she’s crying happy tears.

Yeah. I’ll say baby brother fits in quite perfectly with his family. Even during the crazy times like THIS ;-).

There is NO denying that these three are sisters. There is no question that they are STUNNING. There is NO doubt in my mind that dad is going to have his hands full when they are of dating age ;-). But for now, I think we can just appreciate this perfect, beautiful little milestone session just as the Texas wildflowers were starting to bloom (the last time I saw them, the caboose was just a few days old). These little beauties rocked it in every way possible and brought their A game to the fields! LOVED this image, but THIS might be my personal fav.

I honestly don’t remember quite how this crazy idea came up for me to visit Denver, CO, but I do know that two of the first people I talked to about it were these two. As with most of my clients, I first began working with them while their eldest daughter was just a baby bump. Honestly, we have had some of the most memorable and beautiful sessions together that when I learned they had pretty much moved to Denver from Austin full time (more on that in a sec), I was thrilled for them, but heartbroken because I feel like they are family. I was overjoyed to get to visit with them in Denver last week and to help document this new and exciting chapter in their lives as a family (again, more on that later).

Oh, how I adore this image!

TOO MUCH LOVE!!!

Z – you have impeccable fashion sense!

Sigh.

One of those families where you can just feel the love coming through in their images.

Maybe my most fav I’ve ever taken with you and A.J., M!

This made me giggle.

And goodness me, so did this one!!! So this is the new chapter in their lives: Fé Fit. I am so incredibly proud of them for following their hearts and pursing a dream of helping women (especially moms) to get healthy and achieve their fitness goals. I was especially inspired by the HUGE success of their pilot program to create fit communities by involving teachers, students, and their families in a bit of friendly competition. Be sure to become a fan on Facebook to keep up with their inspiring stories.

Before downtown at Union Station got too crowded, we drove out really quick to catch the sunset behind the Denver city skyline and of course, the Rocky Mountains:

Their faces were cracking me up!

Love!

Love!

Love!

Never will you meet a couple more in love than these two. They have an outstanding relationship and deep respect for each other. And as their family has grown, so has their love. And then my personal favorite from the session can be found HERE.

You gotta go with the flow. I LOVED mom’s idea to shoot at the newly revitalized Union Station in downtown Denver. Neither one of us made the connection that being the Saturday before St. Patrick’s day, downtown *might* be a bit crazy. Oh my word! The sea of green when I walked into the train station that afternoon was craziness. I almost texted her to tell her that the best way to spot me was to look for the only person in the station NOT wearing green, lol.

But in spite of the crowds, we were able to make it work just fine. These Austin transplants are doing so great in Colorado and it was nice to be able to capture them in their new town. Big sister and big brother were incredibly patient and so full of energy. Baby sister wasn’t quite sure what to make of me at first, but in the end, with the help of her older siblings, we were able to get a few giggles!

Such a sweet moment with his mama!

She was non-stop giggles!!!

Loved the little flower shop inside the train station!

Freckles sprinkled with perfection.

Hammy.

She’s not too sure about all this snuggling 😉

Flare! YES!

Sweeties.

He was being so adorably silly.

 They actually had me cracking up with them.

I guess this Pinkle Toes gal isn’t so bad after all 😉

I am so glad we stuck it out and made Union Station work for us. What a neat little place and what a beautiful family to play in it! (One more HERE).

Like, literally chillin’ – as in what is up with this Texas weather because it was reaaaaaally cold during our session. But that’s okay, the girls managed to have fun and let their true, energetic, sparkling personalities shine through the brisk wind that followed us up and down the streets of Georgetown.

I love this giggle shared above between Mama and baby girl, who, by the way, I guess isn’t a baby anymore because we were technically celebrating her ONE YEAR BIRTHDAY! My, my, my, how Baby Q has grown since her newborn photo session:

 This series above cracked me up. I told her mom there is no shortage of personality in any of these images!

 Cinderella kept losing her shoes 😉

Sometimes, I enlist the help of older siblings to get mom and dad to relax while I’m taking their photos. Usually it results in a photo bomb or two:

 Such a sweet moment!

And really, it’s a toss up between this one above (look at Q’s face…she is SO done with us) and THIS one as my fav family image from the shoot. Thank you again, guys, for having me document these days for you. Your family has grown into such a beautiful, fun little brood! [And once again, hair and makeup rocked by Katie with Modern Muse Beauty!]