Jen and Will welcomed sweet Isla into the world just over a year and a half ago. I was honored and thrilled to be a part of their journey, documenting their maternity and their newborn photos as they brought their first child into this world. When Jen told me, this spring, that they were expecting baby #2, I was so excited for them and yet, I had a twinge of sadness knowing that they are a military family and were scheduled to relocate early this fall. When Jen contacted me this August, and asked me to document their maternity and newborn photos, I was ecstatic! Their time here in Annapolis, Maryland had been extended and I have the privilege of watching, and documenting, their family grow.
The first time Jen and Will visited John Downs Memorial Park in Pasadena, Maryland was for their maternity photos with me, in January of 2021. Now, Downs Park is a place they enjoy frequently. Isla, (who is still a firecracker!), takes them on baby led hikes, enjoys the playground (a lot) and is definitely a beach baby.
For sweet baby sister’s maternity session, we met in the meadows and explored the flowers and the insects that make Maryland nature so beautiful and intriguing. Isla led daddy around the meadow paths, enjoying the scenery and checking out who I was, while I snapped some candids of her exploring and enjoying her daddy’s company. Then mama, Jen, joined us for some portraits lit with beautiful, golden, evening sunlight. Isla continued to explore the flora of Downs Park, while Jen and Will took a moment to gaze into one another’s eyes and contemplate the adventures that lay before them as a family of four.
Packing up from the meadow, we headed over to the other side of Downs Park, where blowing bubbles provided a fun distraction. The vision of a pair of eagles nesting offshore greeted us when we walked out onto the pier. Jen and Will recalled how an eagle had flown overhead during their maternity session with Isla, and we all soaked in the warm feelings that with come serendipitous moments and happy memories.
Will grabbed their picnic dinner from the car and we made our way down to the beach to enjoy the last light of the evening. Jen breathed in the flood of emotions, thinking of Isla as a big sister and all of the dreams she has for her two girls, and herself and Will. We enjoyed the waves, the sandy toes and Isla’s firecracker personality in the sand, as the sun sank behind us. We took moments to capture the baby Converse, that were Isla’s (which she never wore before outgrowing, but she has many more pairs now!) and are being passed on to baby sister, and to line up our family of Converse sneakers.
As our evening came to a close, we took a moment to dance in the waves and soak up all of the love and laughter that feeds our souls.
Jen and Will, thank you again for allowing me to be a part of this time in your lives, for trusting me to capture these sweet moments for you. There is something so special about capturing the sun setting on your time as a family of three and rising on your family of four. I hope this coming sunrise is full of feelings of hope and adventure, and I know that it will be filled to the brim with love. I look forward to meeting baby sister and documenting all of the sweet little details, the emotion, the love, at her newborn session.
