Recently, I had the pleasure of photographing the Hartness family. But in order to tell you about their session, we need to go back to the beginning...way back to our time in East Tennessee. 
This family was one of my very first clients. So new in fact, I would call Meggie to bring herself and her little girl over when I needed to practice some new skills. She even helped me out taking pictures of my middle guy when he was just a little baby! 
We became fast friends and kept in touch throughout the years and through 2 PCS's ( for you non-military affiliated folks, that means that our family moved due to military orders). 
Fast forward to a few weeks ago...

Her husband contacted me and said he was putting together a little surprise for Meggie and wanted me in on it. He said that he wanted to surprise her with a quick family vacation and as a double surprise- have me photograph it! Of course I was on board. How could I not be? Do you know how hard it was for me not to send Meggie a message and just SCREAM at her that I would see her again soon? And that we would get to meet each other's 3rd babies that we had only seen via social media? And that our big kids that were toddler playmates would get to reunite?
It was hard. You get the point. It was like word vomit. I needed to tell her and talk to her about it. But I kept quiet and patiently waited until about a week before their session and finally her husband caved and told her the whole plan. After all, they were about to drive approximately 530 miles with their 3 kids. 

And so he told her (he received much fanfare for being the best ever and giving their family an awesome gift! **hint, hint husbands of the world-- here's a surefire way to make her swoon!**) and they began their journey to Norfolk, Virginia where we met early in the morning for delicious coffee and hot cocoa. I followed them around for the morning and captured fun memories of them exploring a new city. We ended our day with a visit to our favorite park to explore our favorite marsh and play at our favorite playground. 

I think the session served a few purposes:
1. It was a fantastic excuse to see each other, hug her neck, and catch up with an old friend. 
2. It gave them updated family portraits.
3. It allowed them a spur of the moment getaway where they were able to spend quality time together as a family. 
4. Beyond updated family portraits, it gave them the opportunity to have a physical representation of their love and connection with each other. The images serve as a reminder to them, each and every day, of how much they love each other. 
5. They now have the best souvenir ever of their time in Norfolk.

If you'd like to schedule your Day in the Life/Half Day in the Life session with me (or any other session for that matter!) click here to be directed to the Contact page or you can find me on Instagram or Facebook too! 
Let's start planning your dream session! 

When I was a kid, I always could mark the nearing of Christmas when we began to gather supplies to pack in shoe boxes to send across the world via Operation Christmas Child. Our whole family (aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, everyone!) planned their boxes seemingly all year round, always picking up things here and their for shoe boxes. School starts after Labor Day in our part of Virginia, so this year, we spent our last day of summer gathering and prepping our boxes for their journey to a special child. The kids were so excited to pack their boxes and were so happy and were filled with joy to know that they would be helping some child, some where out there, have a brighter day. It's a special memory for me, so I wanted to document the day with our own kids. I hope that they will continue to enjoy giving and find joy in serving others.

We packed the following in our boxes:

• socks
• water bottles
• bandanas (we put opened these and spread them on the bottom to almost act like tissue paper or gift wrapping!)
• hair brush
• stuffed dolls/bears
• hot wheels
• soap & mesh pouf
• toothbrush/dental floss
• pencils & sharpener (in many parts of the world, children are only given 1-2 pencils to last them for the year!)
  
• friendship bracelets and supplies to make their own
• bouncy balls
• pencil pouches with zipper
• building block kits
• dress up accessories & princess crown
• tic tac toe bags with canvas carrying sack
• wooden waldorf peg doll sets with canvas carrying sack
• playing cards
• glue sticks/various school supplies

I saw the idea for the tic tac toe bags on Pinterest from a blog called Suburbia Unwrapped. She used paint markers for her muslin/canvas bags, but I chose to use acrylic paint that I already had at home. I simply cut a piece of craft foam to go inside of the bag so that the paint wouldn't bleed through. I painted the board on the bag and instead of doing X's and O's, I opted for 2 different colored stones. I could make 4 tic tac toe boards for $2 total. They are so cute and fun! If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen some behind the scenes of the game and packing our boxes!

The wooden peg dolls/Waldorf dolls I ordered unfinished from Amazon. I painted them here at home. I ordered a case of 50 dolls. I am separating them into groups of 10. I plan on giving each of my children a set under the Christmas tree as well. They have had lots of Waldorf inspired toys over the years (and are you surprised that they still play with them? I'm not!) and I think that they will love these to play with. I chose to paint them in a rainbow of colors because I think their little imaginations will be sparked by the simplicity of them and they can pretend that they are whoever they want them to be!

We had so much fun packing our boxes and I'm glad I busted out the camera for just a few seconds to document these little hands doing mighty work. If you are interested in packing boxes to send to children who may not receive presents otherwise during the Christmas season, check out Hobby Lobby. They usually have Operation Christmas Child boxes there you can pick up, also some local churches have them as well. Pinterest is filled with great resources on what to pack and how to pack to maximize space in the boxes.  I'd love to hear what you put in yours or other fun ideas!

I get this a lot- I come into a client's home (or whatever they are doing, where ever they are doing it at!) and do my thing. They do their thing. And when it's time for me to leave, I almost always hear this- or something along the lines- "This was the most laid back session we've ever had!" Ya'll, I'm all about that no stress, no drama life. 
So, you've taken a leap of faith. You've contacted me, we've agreed on a day and time, you've signed your contract and paid your retainer. Here's what happens next and what you can expect from me and the session.
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You can expect:
1.) No stress. I promise. There's no posing, no saying cheese, no coordinating outfits. I know that sounds crazy if you are used to traditional, formal portraits. But know this- your real life is awesome. It may not be magazine perfect or Pinterest perfect and that's okay. Ya'll, I'll take bare feet and mismatched Halloween costumes from 2 years ago any day over perfectly coordinating, brand new outfits. And again, there's nothing wrong with that! Nothing wrong with it at all. It's just that when you book with me, that's not our purpose. Our purpose for the session is simply to show your everyday life and document those fleeting moments.  

2.) To not need to prepare for anything. Really. You don't need to make the house look spotless. You don't need to spend hours cleaning. You don't need to get ready, curl your hair, or put on makeup. There's no need for anything like that. Some of my client's favorite images have been of their kids brushing their teeth, tangled bed heads, and undies! This is about you being real with your loved ones. It's about documenting your day to day so that when your kids are grown, they can look back and recall those ordinary moments and I have a feeling that they will absolutely cherish them. DO NOT underestimate the value of daily routines. They make up so much of our lives. 

3.) A no frill approach to wardrobe. I will tell you this- just be yourself. What you'd normally wear on a normal day. If I'm coming over in the morning and you still in pajamas, that's okay. The only thing I would suggest is to stay away from super busy prints or neon colors. The colors can cast colored shadows on skin and prints can be distracting. HOWEVER, if that's who you are and you LOVE plaid and floral at the same time, ROCK IT. OWN IT. I'll go with whatever flow you got going on. And honestly, it whatever you do would probably be awesome. For myself, I'll probably be in the most comfortable thing I own...probably leggings...because I will be all over the place getting just the right shot. Which brings me to my next point...

4.) To assimilate into your home like an old friend (this is my favorite thing you can expect!). I don't want to take a fly on the wall approach- unless I need too- because that's kinda awkward. I won't intervene in ANYTHING, but I will chat with you, take a glass of water, and play with the children a bit-  like an old friend would do that you haven't seen in many years? I have cheesy jokes, silly stories about my own kids, I like hot tea, and love animals.

5.) To capture what matters to you. In our initial consult, we will talk about things. Why you want the session, a little background on your family, what's important to your family, what you like to do, etc. through doing this, it gives me an idea of important things to be aware of throughout our session; whether it be a special lovey your child has, a mannerism they display, your favorite thing about your home... you get the picture. Think about their personalities and we will go from there.  

Now, the type of documentary-storytelling sessions I offer don't have to be at your home. If you want to take me on a family adventure, then here I come. Some favorites are a hike, the beach, the playground/park, or  putt putt down at the Oceanfront would be amazing! The options are endless. I can help you decide further based on your family once you book. 
After your session, you will have about 2 weeks until I deliver your gallery. If I happen to hit a bump in the road, you'll be the first to know. But I only take on a few clients per month, so this rarely happens. You'll get a gallery of images that are fully processed in my signature style, printing instructions and recommendations, and if you decided to invest in wall art, gift prints, or to have your images displayed in a custom designed album- then we talk about that once your gallery is delivered. I love to see beautiful statement images hung in a home. 

If you are ready to book, click here and fill out my contact form. We can get the ball rolling from there!