Her 9 month photo session was shot during the craziest time of year for me, but it was a welcome little respite from the hustle that comes along with holiday sessions in the fall. It was perfectly candid, relaxed, laid back, and documentary:

• a sweet little round face peering through the crib in the early morning sunrise
• snuggles and bedhead between baby sister and her big brother before they head downstairs for breakfast
• building Legos on the living room floor
• a shy game of peek-a-boo
• the perfect water spout cascade of pigtails
• clumsy, yet loving hugs from big brother
• dimples in all the right places
• breathing in warm, bare baby skin
• playing in the light and shadows of a warm fall morning in Austin.

My heart skips a beat when I look at the images from sessions like this because if I squint my eyes and try really hard, I can almost see my own kiddos at these ages again. I can almost feel the sticky kisses from a toddler and the whisper of milky baby breath and I realize how lucky we are to live in a time and place where we can take a few moments to document these seemingly “everyday” occurrences and file them away until we need a little reminder of how life used to be and how completely wonderful “ordinary” actually is.

[The black and white image in the shadow grid up there…I couldn’t decide which one I liked better…that one, or color?]

I was blown away by the gorgeous outfits she put together for her family and this incredible location we visited. It was made even better by the fact that this spot is *very* special to their family and it was an honor to get to photograph them there. Her children did AMAZING for their photo shoot and I was so excited that she even thought to bring some fall leaves for everyone to play in at the end of the session. We even managed to find a bit of fall color when we were exploring that afternoon ;-).

GPS can’t guide you here. It’s hard to believe there are places in Texas that are *that* remote ;-). The directions to get to their family’s beautiful remote ranch involved a number of gates and “turn past the 3rd cow,” but it was 100% completely worth it. My daughter actually accompanied me on this adventure and I felt so blessed to have that little girls’ trip AND to get to spend such a wonderful time with this family. The weather was absolutely incredible and we actually stayed out exploring after sundown. It truly does not get more “Texas” than this photo session…complete with big blue skies, cactus, rocky hills, yellow grass, and wading in a river. Oh, and don’t forget the beautiful family, too! I know I’ve probably blogged way too many images from this session, but I could not narrow it down. I also had a hard time picking a single fav…THIS is just one of them.

Thank you so much to this family for sharing the ranch with my daughter and I, for this incredible photo session, and the wonderful hospitality (with some very, very tasty chocolate chip pancakes the next morning ;-)).

It was a bit of a glum day when we got together to do their annual family photos, but somehow, the decision to dress up and take a bit of a “domestic chic” approach turned glum into glam. It was the perfect amount of sparkle and rich velvet and deep jewel tones and I just love how these images turned out! Especially the “looking glass” series, including this one HERE. {Hair and makeup by Katie with Modern Muse Beauty}

So. Much. Color! I always adore working with Brooke and her family and how well we collaborate creatively together! This fall photo session along South Congress was no exception and I have to point out how beautiful her outfit selections were, no? Not only is this family funny and loving and dynamic, their kids are cute as can be and sooooooo charming. I pretty much grinned from ear to ear from the time we started shooting to editing the images to posting about it right now. Thank you, Brooke, for the awesome times with your awesome fam! My fav HERE!

So maybe we missed a stunning sunset (thanks to a major flight delay for fog in Austin ?????), but the sunrise the next morning was a close second. My only regret for this gorgeous beach family photo session in Florida was that I wasn’t able to stay with them longer. I don’t have the brain capacity right now to say the right words to tell their mommy just how magical that day was, but I think she already knows. And I think she and I would both come back here in a heartbeat to do it all over again. xoxo, girlie! (Favity fav HERE.)

I couldn’t think of a more perfect place nor perfect day to mark their new adventures here in Austin from Chicago! And what an incredibly stunning and striking looking family as well. The children really interacted so well with one another, so well in fact, they required very little direction from me. My favorite images from this photo session were from when they were just being themselves. Like in this dance party HERE. At first, it was just Dad and the pup, but the kids wanted to join in, so we convinced Mom to play along as well ;-). Speaking of the pup: I was a bit skeptical when they wanted to bring him to downtown Austin for the photos…I was worried enough about keeping all the kiddos safe and contained…but they assured me that this dog was very well-behaved. And let me tell you that my jaw hit the floor to learn that this dog was still a puppy but followed the family around perfectly behaved, even without a leash! It was quite impressive!

Oh yes! I LOVED the fun Behind-the-scenes shot Stacy snapped when I was photographing the dabs ;-).

I first met Stacy at one of my photography workshops here in Austin a few years back (which may have been one of rowdiest groups I’ve ever had, lol) and I will never forget how she introduced me to DoTERRA ‘s Deep Blue lotion to help me with my muscle pain in my back thanks to carting around the camera bag all the time. I will always be grateful to her for that! And now I’m grateful to have met her amazing family…ALL of them. It was quite special to help them celebrate one another, the lives they have built together, recovery, strength, and love…so much love! Oh, and crepes. We celebrated crepes, too ;-). (I was kinda jealous of their awesome brunch, so I made Stacy come back the next day so I could have some, too ;-). One of my favorite candid shots from this photo session is HERE.

We were treated to a gorgeous morning in downtown as we commemorated their time in Austin, TX before they go off on a new adventure. I love that there is SO much personality in these images…particularly note that little man is holding something he loves in every single image. So precious! My favorite image from this session caught me by surprise. I was SO thankful I actually was able to catch it. You can see what I mean HERE.

Each year when I get to work with this family, I know there will never be a shortage of ideas because their kiddos are so full of energy and personality. I don’t have to make anything up…it’s always a case of me going along with whatever the kids want to show me at the time and I like having to think creatively on my toes. On this particular evening, we celebrated the completion of their new backyard. Dad even built a fire and they got to roast marshmallows! We also spent a lot of time playing on their awesome swing and I loved getting to hang out with the chickens, too! {Favorite HERE}

Their new pup stole the show quite frequently as you can see. You may recall in past sessions, the appearance of their doggie, Troop. Sadly, Troop passed away shortly after our annual pics last year and I’m just so glad we were able to faithfully document his time with his family though the years. When I walked in for the first time since they lost Troop for this photo shoot, the first thing I noticed was this tribute to him and I thought it was sooooooo beautiful and special:

Note: We are currently booking for the 6th Annual FREE Pinkle Toes Photography Kids Only Holiday Minis! A little sneak peek of the set is HERE and to find out more (and see more pics) and snag your spot, inquire HERE. There is a bonus offer that is ending soon, so you’re going to want to learn all about these ASAP!