extended family day in the life | sandbridge, va

Okay, I have to say, when a big family (and I mean big), gets together at a big beach house for a family vacation- you can count me in! Sandbridge Beach in Virginia Beach, Virginia is the perfect backdrop for this! It's a small little area that feels a lot like the Outerbanks in North Carolina. 
This family came in from all over to meet at the beach house. They were celebrating the grandfather's retirement from Princeton University.
I was immediately ushered in and got to work. There was a lot of different things going on and a lot of different sub-stories happening all at once. 

You know me, I was immediately sucked into the children's perspective of vacation. It brought me back to my childhood days vacationing with my aunts, uncles, and cousins. (I've got a ton of stories to share about that!) Needless to say, I instantly felt all the nostalgic feelings and began to immerse myself in their little world. I practically got heart eyes as I walked into their room and found that they had made their bunk beds into a fort! 

The teenagers were teenagering in the downstairs game room area. Playing pool, hanging out on the beach, lounging in the hot tub (by the way, it was 98 degrees that day!), and playing fun board/party games. I even got serenaded when 2 of the guys played Nirvana for me! I love a good jam sesh. 

They made homemade ice cream (it was a first for all of us!), pico de gallo (we debated all day whether it needed more lime or cilantro), played a game of chess, built more forts, played more games, swam a bit, did a lot of talking, telling stories, and hanging out, and before I knew it- it was time for family portraits on the beach. 
I know it sounds like a lot and yet, not a lot, but hanging out and just settling into the no-rush vibe of beach life is what memories are made of. These are the moments of vacation that will stick with them forever.
I know it's true for me at least. 

If you'd like to talk about having your vacation memories documented, I would love to talk with you. I want you in front of the camera with your family on your vacation, not behind it. I don't want you absent from every photo. 
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