family

I have not moved as much as many military spouses/families have to, but one thing I have learned from my few moves, or from having friends that moved, is that I often find out how strong friendships are when there are miles between us . . .

The Reynolds’ family regular family gatherings were interrupted, as so many lives were, by COVID19 and so Nancy and Tom were thrilled to have their four daughters and their families at their home for a 4th of July family fun week this summer. Nancy wanted to take the opportunity to document this time in their lives in photos, and I was given the honor of capturing these moments the day after the holiday at Nancy and Tom’s home in Annapolis, Maryland . . .

I feel so fortunate to have the ability to homeschool my boys, and even more blessed that it leads me to meet people like Meghan and her beautiful, intelligent girls, Gabi and Camilla. I am even more fortunate that Meghan trusts me to capture photos of her family, and decided to gift her mother a family session with me, from her and her brothers . . .

Capturing memories and moments with families is something I just truly love to do, and when Jessica told me that she went through several websites and that she loves my style and had determined that she really wanted me for her family photos, I truly couldn’t wait to get this family of four in front of my camera . . .

If your spouse or parent is in the military or you have a close friend whose spouse is military, you know that the whole family sacrifices and serves alongside the active duty family member. This family recently faced a tough deployment (not that there is any such thing as an easy deployment!), and wanted to celebrate their reunion and acknowledge their service and hardship with a patriotic family photo session at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland . . .

Throughout these years that the Aviles family has given me the honor of taking their photos, we’ve done family sessions at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, and multiple beach family photo sessions in Ocean City, Maryland. This year, they decided to capture their family moments at their family home in northern Virginia. If you’re familiar with my photography, or have spoken to me about photo sessions, you may know that your family home is my favorite place to capture family photos and this session did not disappoint . . .

When baby Natalia arrived on August 29th, more than two weeks early, her mama was not at all surprised. Born 7 lbs, 7 oz and with a head full of thick, dark hair, this girl was ready for the world and she knew it.

And from the smiles, the quiet moments and the contented sighs that I witnessed at her in home newborn session in Washington, D.C., her family was ready for her as well . . .

I have been blessed to call Meredith a friend for a long time, and even though we sometimes go months without catching up with one another, every time we talk, I find out more and more how grateful I am that she is a part of my life. I’ve watched this woman handle both life’s struggles and triumphs with such grace. She shows leadership and intelligence in every interaction. I feel so fortunate that I’ve been able to be a witness to both the hard times and the joy in her life. So when she sent me a message this summer that she was due with a baby girl in September, I was both excited and honored that she asked me to capture some moments of her family before they became a family of 4, plus 2 doggies (who were their first babies).

When I first met Allison and Chris, we were at Friendship Trees for a Christmas tree farm session. It was a chilly morning, and their (almost) 3 year old, Riley, was not enjoying the cold, dew soaked grass. We captured some sweet moments anyway, and I mentioned that for a full session, I really do enjoy doing them at home so that the kids don’t have to be packed into the car to go anywhere and we can move at their pace . . .

Fast forward a few months to this spring, and Allison reached out to me again. She said they were interested in a family session, at their home in Severna Park, and I could not have been more excited to have the opportunity to document her, Chris, Riley and one year old Connor again. And this time, I would get to come to them and play with the kiddos where they feel most at home . . .

The highlight of our time together was when we decided to put half of the family members on other’s shoulders. I imagined the kids going up on shoulders but had not imagined that Michael (Bubba) would be putting Bonnie (Bubbie) on his shoulders . . .