Photographing Valerie and Julian's family was how I got started in photography. I was their nanny and documenting their day-to-day life was one of my favorite things about my job. To this day, those kids are still my little loves - they're just not so little anymore!
Valerie loves photographs but she loves the orderly kind with everyone in coordinating outfits and smiling sweetly. Those are just fine sometimes - don't get me wrong - but the kids are getting older and I feel like we're approaching the end of an era. Their oldest is almost a young lady and in a blink, they will all be teenagers.
With this in mind, I really wanted to capture them just as they are right now - in their day-to-day life again while all of the kids are still kids. I talked Val into doing a true lifestyle session but I think she might have regretted her decision a bit as we arrived and told the kids to go pick out whatever they wanted to wear for the shoot. ;o) Being a kid in everyday life though, is all about the mix of real clothes and costumes, grass stains, and messy hair. It's not perfect, but I think it's completely beautiful. :o)
Audrey is officially 7 weeks old so true to form, her mom Rachel and I planned her "6 weeks" session for this past weekend. :o) Getting the girls in for the sessions at just the right time has never been our forte!
Audrey is such a good baby! She woke up after just 10 minutes of sleep and was still completely happy and bright eyed...
We've done this exact image with each of the girls at this age. I love this sort of thing! It will be awesome to have them all framed side by side one day!
Getting newborns and young children in the same photo without parents is always so interesting. They can hold still for just a moment...
...but craziness is always bound to ensue! I'm surprised any younger siblings ever survive! ;o)
and one more because I just like it.
Thanks for looking! :o) Hope everyone's week is off to a great start!
- Mel
As many of you know, we contribute annually to the big Saint Jude Dream Home Giveaway. We have never felt more strongly about the work of Saint Jude than we do this year. When we lost our son this past November, we were rushed into an emergency c-section and told that it wasn't looking good as the doctors worked to try to save his life. Those few short moments brought the greatest feeling of helplessness we have ever experienced as we knew that our child's life was out of our hands and we were losing him. I cannot imagine how the parents of Saint Jude's patients feel day after day as they hold on to hope for their precious little ones who are fighting cancer. It is truly an amazing thing Saint Jude does as they help these families and continue to search for a cure that will end cancer in children for good!
The Saint Jude Dream Home Giveaway is a fun way for you to help! Every year, a house in the Westhaven neighborhood in Franklin, TN is given away to one lucky ticket holder. Sean and I live in this neighborhood and we LOVE it so come be our neighbor! There are also lots of other prizes to be given away as well, including a McLellan Style Session so if you can't be our neighbor, we can at least hang out and get some great images! :o) All proceeds go to Saint Jude to fund their research and offset expenses for their patients. It's a great cause! If you'd like to purchase a ticket or just learn more about Saint Jude, you can do so by clicking on the link above or the banner below. We hope you'll consider contributing and thank you for letting us tell you about it! :o)
Hugs,
Mel and Sean
