First there was little Jax (a few posts down). Now there’s beautiful Josephine. And, soon you’ll see new baby Journee.  It’s a “J” thing over here and I’m loving it. These are some of my favorites from her session. Although I’ve said many times how much I adore a really rich black and white, I’m a color girl at heart. BTW – Josephine’s very talented grandma made the fabulous little bloomers you see on the red chair. (Yep, that’s the sound of my brain working overtime on new color combos I can commission her for). Enjoy!

… to be a boy and have lashes this gorgeous.

I’ve been promising Carter’s mom that he’s next up on the blog for a few weeks now. Fortunately, I wasn’t lying – he really was next up. I just needed a few more hours in each day the past two weeks to focus on blogging. And that just hasn’t happened. So Grandma Gail is visiting (much to Bella’s delight) and I’m taking the next few days off to have fun and perhaps catch up on a few posts here.

So without further ado, meet Carter. Pensive little thinker with an inner adventurer. The one with the to-die-for-lashes. All boy.

Celebrating 50 years together. There’s a story behind that, he told me. Wanna hear it?

Are you kidding?!, I said. You bet.

As he tells it,  she was just 17 years old when he attended a wedding in which she was a bridesmaid. Upon meeting her for the first time, he proposed.

She laughed it off and said no. I mean, she was 17 and who did this guy think he was, after all?

Never one to back down from a challenge, he looked her square in the eye and said, “I’m only going to ask you three times and then I’ll never ask again. You’ve already turned me down once, so that leaves two more chances.”

Being the savvy girl she was, she opted for a few dates instead of a ring. And he kindly obliged.

And then he asked again. To which she replied, no. Again.

(Did I mention this guy was stubborn and not easily deterred?)

So the courtship continued and, feeling brave, he asked once more. As it turns out, the third time really is …. well … charming. And so are they.

Photographing the two of them, hearing their stories and witnessing the ease and devotion that fifty years has nurtured left a giant mark on my soul. If it’s possible to have a couples crush, then they are mine. And I’m fairly certain I took far more away from their session than I ever could give through imagery.

Congratulations, John and Joyce!

The first image pretty much sums up the spirit of this session. In the midst of a few outfit changes and a pretty humid morning, we managed to play, jump, laugh, blow bubbles, chill … and capture these two beautiful summer boys. I instantly fell in love with this family.

I kept asking mom and dad where the baby got those stunning blue eyes and the quick answer was “Grandpa.” I had no idea just how much he resembled said Grandpa until I met him just a few weeks later for a 50th anniversary session. Turns out, they were spot on.  I plan on blogging them next, so stay tuned.

Remember those “unscripted moments” I talked about in the last blog post? Yep. The next image was another one of those. I was busy shooting big brother above and just happened to turn around and look behind me. There, on the grass was Dad and little guy just hanging out. I couldn’t have planned this one any better.