To My Love

Happy Birthday, my love.

You are a godly, strong, patient, funny husband and father.

We love the way you love us. And we're so thankful we're yours.

Big Brother, Baby Brother, and Baby on the Way! | houston maternity & family photographer

The "baby" of the family is about to be a BIG brother!

Wilson

(I could just eat him up!)

Loving this one. It's possibly my very favorite. I love Wilson's little eye peeking around the frame, and Braden laughing at his little brother. (And they used this frame in their maternity shoot when they were pregnant with Wilson.)

big brother, little brother

Mr. Too Cool for School (Braden) absolutely lost it when mom & dad started doing who-knows-what behind me. ;)

doing their secret brother handshake.

for reals. cuteness overload.

Steven & Amanda. And #3.

It's sort of exciting to not find out the sex of the baby, right?

I really don't think I could do it.

But then Amanda told me she always thought she would never do it either. ;)

Don't they look so lovely and fall-ish and cozy? You'd NEVER know it was 85 degrees, right? And that we were all sweating buckets? Hottest. Fall. Ever.

But, hey! They look good. And that's really all that matters for family portraits. ;) Steven kept saying to practice "mind over matter". I thought Amanda might hit him. ;)

Can't WAIT to do their newborn shoot next month!

One Big Happy Family | houston family photographer

Only 2 hours earlier the sun had been shining its gorgeous-yummy-delicious-almost-sunset light. But then the clouds rolled in. And they were THICK. And DARK. And GRAY. Honestly, you couldn't even tell which direction the sun was coming from. I got to the field and called Beth to give her exact directions. Where were they? Oh, just stuck in a parking lot with a broken down car. I mean, photo shoots are stressful enough as it is for families, right? But then your car dies on the way to your shoot? I mean, you've got to be kidding me! Luckily they were just down the road. And because I run a full service operation here at FLP, and happen to drive a minivan- I was able to rescue their family of 6 from the parking lot and we squeezed in a super quick shoot before it became pitch black dark outside. Despite a rough start, I think we got some pretty cute ones! ;) And then I drove them home. The End.

Embrace the Camera | Family Photo Session

For this week's "Embrace the Camera", here are 2 of my favorite pictures of us by my favorite local photographer- the amazing Shalonda Chaddock of Chubby Cheek Photography. I have adored her images for years- since before I had Elizabeth, and was so excited to have her finally shoot our family last month. And folks, she did not disappoint. Shalonda, thank you so very much for these images of my little family. I love all of them, and I so appreciate you for taking them for us. xoxo

If you'd like to see more of my favorite pics from our session with Shalonda, go check them out on FLP's Facebook page! See those 4 tabs at the top of the page, just under the main banner? Just click on the Facebook one. :)

Did YOU "embrace the camera" this week and get a shot or two with your loved ones?

*inspired by my friend annalee, who is inspired by the anderson crew*

The Girls (plus Daddy) | houston family photographer

Jordan

Reese

Callie

Raegan & Brad

"All mama really wants in life is one good family picture." - Raegan ;)

Pink Pettiskirts & a Pram | houston children's photographer

This session was just magical. Gorgeous light, pretty, happy girls, twirling, jumping, & laughing. I left this session feeling so creatively fulfilled and with a full and happy heart. This was just half the session. Will blog the other half tomorrow. :) Enjoy! xoxo

in the field

something very very different than what i normally shoot. but i had time to kill and the field was so beautiful- the light, the colors- that i just decided to take a minute and play around. so very glad i did.

Zoo Day!

There's nothing more wonderful than a gorgeous, sunny (yet CHILLY day) at the zoo with all your friends!

I don't know how she managed it, but Elizabeth got pulled in her wagon all over the zoo by her friends. It started with Everett. Then Aubrey took over at some point. She was living the life, that's for sure.

Aubrey & Elizabeth

I feel like since I've started "embracing the camera", I really have gotten more intentional about throwing my camera over to a friend and saying, "Will you take a picture of us?" Only took me 2 and a half years of her life. Better late than never, I suppose. PS- that's a lion behind us. But you can't really tell.

Her Royal Highness being carted around by Aubrey this time.

This monkey just kills me. I mean- please just look at these pics below! Are you kidding me?

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! That monkey would have straight up kissed Karis ON THE LIPS if that glass hadn't been there. Remember Becky's policy of "no kissing on the lips"? Yeah, she's totally over that. She totally kissed my kid on the lips today even though Elizabeth's lips were covered in Cheetos. B's come a long way. ;)

The giraffes are my favorite. Kristen's too. They're usually E's favorite, but she was pretty tired by this point.

Tired girl after the giraffes- being pulled around by her best friend. Who is smaller than her. But apparently very strong.

Oh, Miss Taylor. This is Aubrey's mama, Kristen and her baby sister. I could just squeeze that Taylor. And her little velour jumpsuit was just too much.

Somebody get that kid a baby sister STAT! ;)

So frustrated that this one's blurry. But at least you can see the cuteness of Everett & his mama Erin.

The Swiggart Fam | houston family photographer

Preston

Chambers

Jason & Paige

Harrison

You know how sometimes you meet people, and just fall in love instantly? That's how I feel about the Swiggart family. This was such a fun shoot to do- a little different than what I'm used to. I'm used to patiently waiting for a newborn to fall asleep, or making crazy noises to get a baby's attention, or chasing a toddler all over a park. No crazy noises, no running around. Just lots of laughter, respectful young men who called me "ma'am", and a mom & dad that made me feel so welcome and at home. Thanks, Swiggarts, for letting me shoot your sweet family. It was truly a pleasure!