I love that she greeted me at the front door in her mommy’s heels. I love that we got to hang out at their home and just do the things they like to do at home. I love all of the snuggles that took place (especially THIS one). I love that the sun came out for just the last few minutes of our time together. I love red hair. I love freckles. I love mom’s necklace. And I love that she wanted to do this session for the three of them (well, four counting the pupster). What a special thing to have captured…the love between a mother and her children.

From Mama, herself:

1) Tell us a little bit about your family… I have two ridiculously amazing kids – Jackson (7) and Kennedy (4.5). We have a rescued Boxer named Teddy Roosevelt. Collectively, they are my presidents and we live in the White House that just happens to be brown.
2) What made you decide this was the time to do a photo session? Were you marking any special occasion, etc? The past year was full of challenges for us all. I had a medically necessary hysterectomy, my grandmother died, our first family dog died suddenly, and my ten year marriage ended in divorce. As the wedding pictures came down, I decided that wanted to do a session like this to fill our home with photos of our recomposed family. It’s up to me to set the tone for this next phase of life, and I want my kids to have prominent visual reminders that we are still the happy, silly, loving family we have always been.
3) Where was your session held and why? Our session was held at home – partly because of yucky weather, but it turned out perfectly.
4) What did you like about your session location? My kids were relaxed at home and had fun showing Michele all of their favorite things.
5) What was your favorite part of your session? I loved that Michele never asked us to do anything that felt unnatural or staged. She went with our flow, even when my kids got seriously silly, and that made for the most authentic part of the whole session.
6) Was there anything you were nervous or worried about before the session? I was definitely worried about getting the house “camera ready.”
7) Any funny stories or interesting happenings during your session? I bake and the kids love to help me in the kitchen. I decided to incorporate that into our session, and I’m glad I did, but I should have saved the chocolate batter for the end! I was wiping the kids’ faces right to the very end!
8) Any advice to other families before their photo sessions? Relax! Michele’s got this!
9) What made you choose Pinkle Toes Photography? As an amateur photographer, I’ve always admired Michele’s style. I knew she would give us a fun session and amazing images.
10) What do you hope your kids/family will say years down the road when looking at these images? I hope they’ll say that these images are evidence that, even in our most difficult time, we were full of joy and love. I hope these photos reflect what I most want them to know about life in general – we can’t control what happens to, but we can choose how to react and move forward, and that makes all the difference!