This family was a delight to spend a beautiful sunny spring afternoon with! The kiddos, Madelyn and Sawyer are the cutest and their eyes are amazing…and both were very sweet and oh, so good during the entire session! I had the pleasure of first meeting this family last summer when dad, Jason, returned home from a deployment and I was able to capture his reunion with his wife, Ashli, and Madelyn, as well, as the first meeting of his new son. What a heartwarming reunion and a true blessing to see just how wonderful our military and their families are in what they do and give up…and this family is a true representation of the many amazing military families of our country! It had been about 8 months since I’d seen them, and oh, how I loved seeing how the kids have grown, especially Sawyer…and to watch Madelyn – as a beautiful and delightful little girl, who turned three the very next day! She was a great little model and as long as we kept the bubbles close by, she was willing to do what we asked of her! Dad and Mom were so much fun, they are lighthearted and have a wonderful relationship that is filled with tenderness and lots of laughter…oh, how I enjoyed my time with the Shockley family! I will miss them as they are moving to a new base next month…I know it’s closer to their families, but I’m sad to not have the opportunity to capture some more photos of their family in the years ahead! I wish them the very best and will certainly look forward to updates from them in the future!
Jason and Ashli…what a gift it has been for me to have met you two and your beautiful children! I wish you the very best with your upcoming move and your future…and thank you for your service to our country! Stay in touch!
It’s amazing how quickly time can pass and these past two years have really flown by! Our youngest granddaughter, Emma, arrived 5 weeks early just over two years ago and after spending her first month in the hospital, she came home to relieved parents who just wanted a normal life with their new baby. And, since then, it has been, well, as normal as life is with a baby who is now a toddler! Emma may be tiny (let us say “petite”), but she makes up for it in every other way!! Naturally, being her “Mimi” (aka…grandma), I’m slightly biased, but besides being pretty darn cute, she’s got quite the sense of humor, she’s very active, likes to explore, climb and run…and is not afraid of anything! It’s not unusual for her to have a bump, scratch or bruise, but they don’t slow her down, she literally picks herself up and moves forward, often without even a whimper to signal something happened…she is a tough and strong little girl! Besides being very active, she’s quite vocal…talking up a storm, telling stories and making sure that we all know what is going on with her and around us…she doesn’t let anything pass by her without her knowing it! I love watching her play…she’s quite precise with her play and often will line up the blocks, dolls, animals, or whatever she’s playing with and it’s obvious she wants them in a certain order. She knows just how she wants things to be! On days I’ve taken her to the park with her big cousin, Jayden, (who she ADORES)…she gets quite upset when Jayden swings…and tells her “NO, no swinging, Jayden, stop!” It’s quite funny to watch…I’m not sure why she says that…and even funnier is when you pass by a park, she says she wants to go there and swing, yet when at a park, she never wants to swing! Sliding, is a while other story, she’s a little daredevil on the slides and loves it…goes back as fast as she can get to the top and charges back down again…and again and again! When around Jayden, she tries to do everything Jayden does…a little “monkey see, monkey do” going on with those two!! So, we celebrate this beautiful and bright little girl who is now two and totally normal and healthy…look back to two years ago and realize that a lot really has happened in that time!
I can’t get enough of her beautiful eyes…they are stunning!
A very caring an nurturing little soul…she’s quite kind and gentle with her stuffed animals.
Blowing bubbles with her daddy…who she adores!
A gorgeous family, who I love more than I can say…Jess and Sean are incredible parents…and they will be adding to their family with another little girl at the end of July! SO excited!
Okay, so I spoiled her for the photo shoot…a “big girl” sucker…which she loved and made a bit (and adorable!) mess of her face… ♥
Of course, she had to climb onto Jayden’s lap…and try to steal a lick (or bite!) of her sucker…too funny!!
And what a better time to show your love for your cousin, when you are sticky (everywhere!) and have a big sucker in your hand, this was too darn cute and shows just how loving Emma is!
Emma, you are beautiful, smart, kind and loved OH so very much…we can’t wait to see what the years ahead have in store for you…I know it will be great things!
It hardly seems possible that our sweet little granddaughter was due just about a year ago…although she arrived early and decided that instead of May for her birthday month, it would be March…the same month as her daddy’s birthday! The year has been filled with joy, wonderful memories, sweet snuggles, milestones and naturally MANY photos! For Emma’s first birthday photos, they were taken over a nearly two month span, with a few here and a few there…with the final ones a couple of weeks ago with her mom and dad on a lovely Sunday afternoon! The cake smash was posted earlier…with lots of very “sweet and messy” photos!! Of course, I LOVE photographing babies, children, families and more…but having the opportunity to witness and capture memories for MY family has got to be the VERY best thing in the world…it makes my heart just about burst with happiness! Naturally, you’ve seen Emma on her before and you will see her more throughout the year and I’m always filled with pride when sharing just how beautiful my family (especially our granddaughters!!) is!!
Getting both the girls together for some photos…oh, the joy more than doubles!!
Modeling is hard work, you need a snack break every once in a while!!
The day I became a grandmother (aka…Mimi) my life changed more than I could have ever imagined and the love for these two just continues to multiply more than I can say!
Family time…and so happy to get them together for some photos…happy for sunshine!
PEEK-A-BOO
Oh, how she loves riding on her daddy’s shoulder…and he’s even teaching her to give him a head massage…start ’em young!! LOL
A special gift she got last year…this wagon was her daddy’s and friends refinished it and “updated” it for Emma!
SO very loved by her parents…every time I see this, my heart is filled with pride!
Hmmm…are we finished yet?!?
All because two people fell in love…
Jess and Sean…you are incredible parents and watching you two grow with your beautiful daughter is amazing and we are so proud of all of you!
Love you all!!! XOXOXO