I am lucky enough to call Minnette my friend and it was pretty moving after all these years to finally get to see her in her truest element: being a doting mom and wife, so proud of her family, glowing from the inside out. And even though I had only met her daughter just once before, it was as if I already knew everyone else. There was zero need to warm up. It was like I was hanging out with my own family, really. They are a dynamic brood of creatives and athletes with lots and lots of heart and soul. They color their world with love and light. I hope they can see how much joy they bring to one another and to the people lucky enough to be close to them.

So why is her hubby holding up iPhone flashlights? Read about that below ;-). We did manage to score some adorable images at this wall in spite of the challenge…this one is a top contender for my fav.

From Minnette:

1) Tell us a little bit about your family… Well, what can I say? We like to be silly, keep things as relaxed as we can and make a lot of jokes. We loooove to laugh. At each other. All the time. [Um, for what it’s worth, I have a GREAT image on hand you can use to get your kids to laugh anytime you want ;-)]
2) What made you decide this was the time to do a photo session? Were you marking any special occasion, etc? As a photographer, the only time I’m in photos is when I’m taking usies with the cell phone and honestly, my arms just aren’t long enough ;). Seriously though, we have been wanting to have you photograph our family for a very long time and are so happy we were finally able to make it happen. It was even more special to me, that YOU, my superfriend, knew us
3) Where was your session held and why? Downtown Houston because we love our underdog city and Montrose because it was our old stompin’ grounds.
4) What did you like about your session location? Both were just so us. [Indeed!]
5) What was your favorite part of your session? It was FUN! Let’s be honest. My kids aren’t thrilled about getting their photos taken anymore. They are over it. But it was very apparent that they loved you and the attention you gave them. I loved seeing them so happy to be there. [Honestly, I think they were happy because they were there with YOU guys. You two are such amazing and loving parents. It’s obvious the kids adore you!]
6) Was there anything you were nervous or worried about before the session? Our outfits. We didn’t buy anything new and I put it all together that morning. That Nathan wouldn’t smile or would give you a hard time. That I would not look good. That my hair and makeup were bad because I did them myself. That we would get stuck in traffic. That the locations would be full of people. Basically, all the things!
7) Any funny stories or interesting happenings during your session? I took forever finding our 2nd location making the end of our session super dark. doh! [Yeah, thanks for the challenge ;-)]
8) Any advice to other families before their photo sessions? Relax, enjoy each other’s company and be yourselves.
9) What made you choose Pinkle Toes Photography? I always have and still do think Michele is super talented and the best at what she does. And she’s my superfriend and I heart her. And now my whole family does, too 😉
10) What do you hope your kids/family will say years down the road when looking at these images? That we were always happy and we loved spending time with each other. [Done.]

So, when I was in Houston a few weeks back, I got to meet the newest addition to this family and honestly, I just didn’t want to leave. I had so much fun getting to hang out with them in their beautiful home and watching big brother and big sister love all over their baby sister. I’m not sure if I’ve ever laughed so much at a newborn photo session in all my photography days…and let me tell you, the parents are just as hilarious as the kiddos. And when they’re not being hilarious, they are being so very, very sweet.

And then, when we finished up all of the sweet newborn snuggly photos, we did what everyone naturally does at the end of their newborn photo shoot: DANCE PARTY!  

And these guys take their dance parties VERY SERIOUSLY. This was for real. Complete with lights, custom sound, and a robot dance off. Like I said, I was cracking up the whole time and feeling like these three children were very, very, very lucky to have such cool parents like this.

From mom:

1) Tell us a little bit about your family… We are chaotic and silly and a mixed bag trying to navigate life as a family of five. We have lost any notion that we can control anything, and when we try, it is a complete fail. But we love each other and we learn all the time how to do that better.
2) What made you decide this was the time to do a photo session? Were you marking any special occasion, etc? Baby Ruby arrived!
3) Where was your session held and why? At our home because we couldn’t possibly get all five of us dressed and to a location and all be in a good mo about it. I hear this is possible later, though.
4) What did you like about your session location? It was the cleanest the house has been in months. Seriously. Months. Also, it made it very laid back and we just had fun.
5) What was your favorite part of your session? Hard to say whether it was the robot dance off or the battle over the smelly stickers.
6) Was there anything you were nervous or worried about before the session? Lactating all over myself. [bwa ha ha ha – that’s a new one on me!]
7) Any funny stories or interesting happenings during your session? Dance party again here. And August and Matilda wrestling. Standard.
8) Any advice to other families before their photo sessions? Relax and just enjoy your family. [Truly…relaxed parents make for relaxed kids and babies which all make for a relaxed and AUTHENTIC family photo session.]
9) What made you choose Pinkle Toes Photography? Michele. Done and done. [xoxoxo]
10) What do you hope your kids/family will say years down the road when looking at these images? They love each other and they have fun!

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And now, I have to share a couple of outtakes – this was our first attempt at getting a solid family pic:

And then big sister totally smothering her baby sister with love:

She dressed her family in the most colorful outfits and we worked in front of one of the most colorful places in downtown Houston and it was SO perfect for them!!!! FAV HERE!

It took the youngest member of the family a little while to warm up to me, but it didn’t matter because he was still adorable giving me this incredulous look ;-).

No problems smiling with his mommy, though!

Sisters. Sigh. See what mom wrote below for the total opposite of the love and tranquility in this shot.

He. Is. Precious.

These two…just play all the time. They are always laughing with one another!

Hi, K!

Oh, he wanted to take pictures with his baby brother like the WHOLE time. Okay. We can arrange that.

MORE COLOR!!!

Yup…back at it again.

From mom:

1) Tell us a little bit about your family…

Our little circus is made up of my husband and myself, and our four crazy kiddos (8, 6, 3, and 11 months). They are indeed a wild bunch and rarely sit still for a moment. But we’ve adapted and we love them to pieces!

2) What made you decide this was the time to do a photo session? Were you marking any special occasion, etc?

We have a longstanding tradition of taking pictures every fall, and then turning those photos into a coffee table book and wall art.

3) Where was your session held and why?

We always try to pick interesting locations whether it be splashing around in a stream, jumping on a bed, or hanging out in front of Michele’s airstream (my favorite). This time we went to Houston’s famous Discovery Green park. How can you not love that brightly colored wall, which our kids have dubbed, “the Lego house”?!

4) What did you like about your session location?

I loved the colorful wall and all the interesting architectural elements that were nestled in the middle of a city park.

5) What was your favorite part of your session?

Probably the end when I asked Michele if she thought we got at least one good family photo. She assured us that we did! 🙂 [And we did, but I’m saving that one for you]

6) Was there anything you were nervous or worried about before the session?

I was nervous about getting up so early with the kids. [But you did it and I was very impressed!]

7) Any funny stories or interesting happenings during your session?

The highlight was probably when our three year old, who was trying to run off, bit the fire out of our eight old’s arm. Tears ensued. 🙁 [Sisters. Sigh]

8) Any advice to other families before their photo sessions?

Just relax. You will be amazed by what Michele is able to capture.

9) What made you choose Pinkle Toes Photography?

Michele is simply the best family photographer in the world! She is absolutely amazing!! I love her creativity, the way she plays with light, and the way she captures the beauty in the families she photographs.

10) What do you hope your kids/family will say years down the road when looking at these images?

I hope they remember the joy of being little, the feeling that nothing can stop them, the intrinsic curiosity they had about the world, and that they grew up in a family filled with love!

But not about the tragic, horrific, sad, unspeakable event that just happened there recently (though I will admit it completely broke my heart when I heard the news). No, instead I want to talk about the absolutely beautiful, warm, friendly city with the equally beautiful, warm, friendly people living there that I was introduced to back in May. Charleston, South Carolina was the site of the 3rd Annual Pinkle Toes Photography Workshop Reunion. With previous magnificent reunions held first in Chicago in 2012, then New York City in 2014, the barre (spelling intended 😉 had been set pretty high for this informal gathering of past Pinkle Toes Workshop grads from all over. You will definitely want to read this post all the way to the end so you can follow the links to the images by all of the photographers who came to play.

The very first thing I did in Charleston was Becky’s family photo session (sigh…that was amazing) and I have to tell you, the city pretty much blew me away with its charm and beauty. The next morning, those of us who had gotten to the house early got to take a wonderful stroll along the beach at Isle of Palms. It was there we happened upon this stunning pregnant momma and Becky got the idea for us to do a maternity photo session for her on the beach when the rest of our crew arrived later! I cannot even believe this mom did not run away thinking we were crazy with the idea…instead, she was thrilled and we were very excited to get to play at sunset. I cannot remember the exact order of events, but I do know we had an OUTSTANDING lunch at Cru Café, very VERY tasty pizza from Mellow Mushroom that evening (including a surprise visit from a long-time online friend of mine, Danielle Hobbs), and then a gorgeous sunset maternity session on the beach:

With that many photographers there with cameras snapping away, you would think that would cause extreme intimidation and shyness. That, my friends, was NOT an issue here. How wonderful that this family opened up their little world to us and let us photograph this magical time in their lives. By the way…there are TWO babies in there ;-).

Pull back from the above image HERE so you can get a taste of what it must be like to have your own paparazzi. 

Loved this playful interaction here with Heather! She really had no problem hamming it up to the camera!

 I’m not sure why Nicole is hiding under Jody’s dress. #motherginger #lotsofhashtagginghappeningduringthistrip

Yeah. Pretty stunning evening all around.

Okay, all of my days are starting to blur together at this point. In true reunion fashion, we packed in as much as we possibly could during our weekend. Let’s see if I can remember what all we did. Let’s see…

1. Pure Barre Class – I was WAY impressed that these ladies decided to join me for a class and I was amazed at how Pure Barre Mount Pleasant welcomed us with open arms. Maybe not the best idea for the start of a very busy vacation (can you say SORE?), but actually, maybe it was (can you say LOTS OF DELICIOUS FOOD?).
2. There was a lot of talk about T-Rex’s and what they do and do not like ;-).
3. We had amazing sushi at O-Ku.
4. Food Tour!! – we’ve done this at each of the reunions so far…such a great way to get to know the city and try all kinds of unique dishes.
5. Oh…I will never forget dinner at The Grocery, which involved lots of incredible roasted broccoli and a few too many grown up strawberry-basil drinky drinks ;-). Lots and lots and lots of laughs that evening!
6. The most amazing cupcakes at Sugar Bakeshop. I really want one right now.
7. Cruising around downtown Charleston in Christy’s minivan dancing to Uptown Funk.
8. #hashtag
9. Sunrise Saturday – it has become a tradition as well to get up before the sun and go someplace unique for some photo ops. We chose the Folly Beach Lighthouse this year and it did not disappoint:

Rushing to catch the sunrise! It amazes me how little convincing it takes photographers to get up at 3:30 in the morning after you’ve gone to sleep after midnight just by the promise of amazing light.

Christy is being very dramatic with her hand signals. Thank you, Christy ;-).

I LOVE the shot Annette ended up getting from this perspective. It really is telling when 10 photographers can photograph the exact same thing and each come away with their own unique take on it.

Cue sun. Cue birds.

Okay, so Katie and I took a bit of a risk and basically RAN all the way around the island to get the perfect spot. Maybe not a good move as the tide came in and we had to kinda wade back to the rest of the group holding our cameras above water. Oops. #stupidbutworthit

Oh, I wish I had a longer lens.

Wish granted.

It was indeed worth it.

We had yet another delicious meal complete with homemade cinnamon rolls at Lost Dog Café and then it was off to our carriage tour. After that, we headed to Boone Hall Plantation (see…I wasn’t kidding when I said we did it ALL). What a beautiful place and yes, we did get to see the very waters where Mr. Hey Girl Ryan Gosling dove in during filming of The Notebook. (BRB, going to go watch that movie again). #heygirl

Here, Jody is giving us jazz hands. Or letting us know she has 5 fingers. Or giving us a tour. Or telling us to stop walking. Or testing the light. It’s hard to tell. #trexhatesjazzhands

They were setting up for what was certain to be a GORGEOUS wedding that night. We seriously contemplated crashing it. Who would turn down 9 free photographers? Of course, we probably would spend the whole time photographing the Spanish moss, of which, I’m certain I have about 1,000 images. Good. Grief. #photogcandy That, and poppies:

We also got to make one last visit to Rainbow Row (sigh…Jen Y). I am SO glad we got to back there. So many lovely colors and plants and details. I decided to play around with the Waterlogue app on my iPhone images from the trip. I kinda like how this turned out:

(Follow this Instagram #hashtag for more images from the trip).

I am certain I have missed major details from this incredible reunion. I’m sorry I keep using the words, “incredible, awesome, amazing, beautiful, wonderful, etc.” over and over again, but really, there’s no other way to describe it. I feel incredibly (there I go again) lucky to get to explore these new places, but even more so, I get to do so surrounded by lovely people who share the same sense of humor and a LOVE of all things beautiful, artistic, and tasty. Ladies of the Charleston, SC reunion: YOU made this trip for me. I swear my cheeks hurt for days after coming home from smiling and laughing so much. I would go back in a heartbeat and do it all over again. Much love to you all. #trexlovesfriendship

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Now, click on over to Jody Mack Photography (Charleston, Mount Pleasant Lifestyle Newborn and Family Photographer) to see her images and take on the trip! Follow the blog circle!

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And for the complete list of photographers who attended this reunion (visit their sites and you will be blown away!):

Jen Yancey (Greensboro, NC)

Heather Schmitt (Dallas, TX)

Becky Keller (Raleigh, NC)

Nicole Leonard (Louisville, CO)

Katie Bork (Wilmington, NC)

Christy Gant (Sumter, SC) 

Annette Goodman (Charlotte, NC)

Jody Mack Photography (Charleston, SC)

Confession: I wasn’t really expecting to fall in LOVE with Charleston, SC, but I couldn’t help myself. This was the location of the 3rd Annual Pinkle Toes Workshop Reunion (I’ll be posting about that later 😉 and while I was in town, my friend Becky of  Rebecca Keller Photography wanted to have her family photographed in the same place where her husband proposed to her (the gazebo you see above). Um…I also need to pause here and let you know that Becky’s AMAZING photography was recently featured in People Magazine  for an incredibly inspiration article totally worth reading and in the same issue where Princess Charlotte first graced the cover. Yeah…you should have seen Becky’s hubby and I snagging copies at the local Harris Teeter and bragging on her ;-).

Anyway, the day I flew into Charleston, we headed right into town for an evening full of photographer’s eye candy which included a happy, loving, beautiful family; gorgeous light; unique and endlessly interesting architecture; the scent of jasmine so thick you could practically see it; a honest-to-goodness cobblestone street; and a row of homes painted so brightly, it is actually called “Rainbow Row.” I quickly learned that evening that Charleston was a city full of character, color, and charm.

This one made me giggle when I stumbled upon it! Mama definitely  has her arms full of love with these two hams. And there’s that jasmine. The streets were basically lined with it in full bloom!

Our first pass along Rainbow Row. We had to go back for seconds later ;-).

Cobblestone!!!!! Just don’t see much of this in Texas, so yeah, I was a bit infatuated.

Becky gave me the heads up that it might take a lot for little buddy up there to smile and true to form, he was pretty serious through most of the session. But he couldn’t resist the power of mom snuggles.

Yeah, there’s more of that stunning light.

Back to Rainbow Row!!! I’m kinda glad we didn’t come here first because I don’t think I would have gone anywhere else. I mean what a cool spot!

Another one of my favorite shots along Rainbow Row can be found HERE.

This little dude is sharp as a tack and SO charming! He is such a neat kid and so much fun to chat with!

Becky’s hubby has the patience of a saint. They drove in from NC that morning and then he drove back and forth to the airport to pick me up and then hauled the whole family into downtown to do a photo shoot AND then, took the boys home the next day so that Becky could stay and enjoy the reunion. I think he earned his hubby points for the entire year in just a few days’ time.

So there’s a thing about pineapples in Charleston. Didn’t know that, but they’re a symbol of hospitality and you can spot them everywhere…even as a giant fountain at Waterfront Park. The fountain and sunglasses were a big hit with big brother, but both were a huge miss with the little guy. He was D-O-N-E with us and all of our shenanigans by this point. Fortunately, Becky had a secret weapon: his bear. The first glimpse of his bear and he lit up with a full body smile! How precious it is to see something so small bring such delight to a child.

Becky, it was my absolute pleasure to get to work with you and your family. I know I said this over and over during the session, but your patience, relaxed approach, and realistic expectations of your sweet boys really gave me the freedom to create for you. It was such a joy to experience a city that obviously means so much to you with the people that mean the most to you! Thank you for sharing Charleston and your amazing family with me!

Update 6/4/15 from Becky:

Tell us a little bit about your family…

Michael – grew up in Akron, OH,loves Carolina basketball and spends a lot of his free time building legos with Owen.
Becky – Grew up in Greensboro, NC, loves photography, iced coffee, fried okra, and pure barre (thanks Michele for recommending!!!)
Owen – spends most of his time building legos, reading, and playing at the park
Harrison – loves trains, his bear, his blankie and his big brother

What did you like about your session location?

I was so super excited when I found out the Pinkle Toes Workshop Reunion was possibly going to be in Charleston. I e-mailed Michele to see if it would be possible to photograph our family and was so excited that it was going to work out. Since Michael proposed in the gazebo at The Battery, I loved the idea of having family portraits there, too. Charleston has always been special to us, and I’m so excited about decorating our house with the custom portraits Michele created for us.

What was your favorite part of your session?

My favorite part of the session was just how much fun it was. There was no trying to get the kids to look at the camera or Michele – no stress of trying to get the kids into good moods because what was important to us was capturing our family have fun together and interacting together like we normally do. The session was focused on us just being us which resulted in pictures I just LOVE. When I look at the images, I see my kids personalities just shining though and I love that – Michele captured so many of their everyday expressions. It was also fun walking around Charleston and exploring all the fun spots – we did not run out of pretty places and had to keep ourselves from stopping every second! I also love that we were able to capture so much of Charleston – the Battery, Rainbow Row, cobblestone streets, and the Waterfront Park. I’m still amazed at all we captured in one session.

Was there anything you were nervous or worried about before the session?

Since we all made the trip to Charleston that day, and Michele’s connecting flight was a little delayed, it seemed like a miracle that it all came together! I had my hair and make up done only twenty minutes after we arrived in Charleston and we left about an hour or so later for downtown.

Any funny stories or interesting happenings during your session?

Owen was totally Michele’s bff right when he met her and just took her hand right out of the car and started towards the park like they were hanging out – see you guys later!

Any advice to other families before their photo sessions?

I would just relax and spend the time playing with your kids and not focusing on trying to get them to look at the camera. Those are my most favorite images. I also loved that I had my hair and make up done and that I didn’t have to worry about it during the session and could just play with my boys.

What made you choose Pinkle Toes Photography?

Michele is so much fun, and I love how creative she is with her images and not focusing on posed portraits. I knew she would create authentic family portraits for us that captured my little ones’ personalities and us together. I also wanted something that looked more like art to decorate our home with, and I’m so excited to display these!I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about our session – that Michele would create beautiful memories for us that were unique and creative.

What do you hope your kids/family will say years down the road when looking at these images?

How much fun we had as a family and what a treasure these are to look at and remember. I love our images because they genuinely look like us because we weren’t stressed, and we were having so much fun together. I hope my kids will see that – how loved and treasured they are and the love their mom and dad also have for each other. Since I’m usually the one taking photos of my husband and kids, it’s such a treasure to be in the photos, too, and to also have a photo of just Michael and I. Thank you, Michele, for capturing these sweet memories for us!

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.

Thank you all for your sweet comments and sharing in my enthusiasm when I shared that I had *finally* printed an album from our huge west coast trip last summer! Many people asked where the album was from and also wanted to see more pics of the book, so here ya go!!! The album is an 8×10 Signature Album from Miller’s Lab and they did not disappoint! The pages are just e-surface, but I see now that they are offering deep matte, which might be nice to try sometime. I do want to point out that instead of using InDesign to do the layout, I just used Miller’s D+ software and it was really, really, really easy to do! I have been putting off learning the software for quite a while because I *just* figured out InDesign, but I’m glad I forced myself to give D+ a try.

Acknowledgments:

• Before creating the album, I interviewed each of the kiddos about the trip and was able to easily incorporate some of their quotes throughout the pages. You should also note that I watched The Secret Life of Walter Mitty and was totally inspired by that movie, hence the cover design and some movie quotes thrown in there ;-).
• I also want to send a HUGE shout out and giant hug to my dear friend Michelle Nicoloff (um, she’s kindofabigdealoninstagram) for so graciously taking some amazing images of us as a family on the beach in Southern California. Seriously, I treasure those images and it was amazing to have our time captured by her. xoxoxox, Michelle!
• I need to mention another good friend Jen Taylor in Seattle, Washington. You see, I had the amazing opportunity to photograph her BEAUTIFUL family by a pretty spectacular lighthouse during a pretty spectacular sunset one night and she could tell I was just dying to photograph my own daughter there. And so she lent my daughter a pretty spectacular dress so I could do just that.
• Finally, I want to thank all of our incredible workshop hostesses for working so hard and doing such an amazing job of pulling together housing and meals and models: Caroline Martin for our time in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, CA; Melody White in Mendocino, CA; and Casey Ray in Olympia, WA.  I mean seriously, what a JOY getting to hang out with each of you and spend so much time working together last summer. I am so thankful to know each of you and to call you friends.

This book was a biggie (I think it ended up being 90 pages), but I do love that even the “thin” pages on Miller’s Signature Albums are actually quite thick. I am very, very pleased with my album and I encourage EVERYONE (especially fellow photographers) to have albums made of your personal images and photo sessions. This is truly the best way to tell the story of your family and events and is guaranteed to be looked at and adored by YOU and your family. Definitely much more than simply leaving your images in digital form (valuable to have, but they just don’t get seen as much as when they are printed). In fact, to encourage more of my clients to have albums made from their sessions, I would like to make a special offer to just to you…see the bottom of this post for details 😉

The Special Offer:

Any client of mine (whether from 9 years ago or if you have a session coming up with me sometime this year) – leave a comment on this post sometime before April 15th and I will create an album from one of our sessions (or if you did a Baby’s First Year plan, we can combine images from all of those sessions) at 40% off my regular album price! Again, just leave me a comment on this post before April 15th and I will contact you with all of the album specs and details to get the process started.

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).

When Katie and I first discussed the family photo session we were planning, she asked me, “If you could shoot anyplace in Texas, where would that be?” Simple. “A castle,” I replied. “Find me a castle and we are good to go.”

And find me a castle she did.

It feels like ages of planning went into this session and with our Type A personalities, I actually think it did. When she showed me that amazing gold sequined skirt she was planning to wear, I was ecstatic!!! It doesn’t take much for Katie to be comfortable in front of the camera (she knows this), but I was little worried about her daughter opening up and being able to relax in such an overwhelming environment. Totally unnecessary worry, it turns out, as she embraced her role as Mommy’s and Daddy’s little princess and totally let herself get wrapped up in the fairytale atmosphere. And what about that completely unplanned Cinderella moment up there when our little princess lost her shoe while dancing? My heart just melted.

My heart also melted when she did this.

Katie, you did a phenomenal job pulling all of this together and making all my photographer fairytale dreams come true. Thank you for helping me close out 2014 floating on a cloud! (Another full shot of the castle for you to enjoy.) Can’t wait to see her again this weekend for our .emme. boudoir Snow Angels marathon!!