A sleepy eyed cutie with nap wrinkles on her cheek. The smell of wet pavement drifting in with the thunder clouds. The soft hush of a spring rain. The comforting melody and mom and dad telling the story of Little Quack. A soft, cuddly kitty taking a little nap in the kitchen sink. Welcome to the cozy, in home lifestyle session with Dan, Desiree’, and Natalie.

I know Desiree’ and Dan through my sister, and had the absolute pleasure of photographing their very first family photo session in early 2018, shortly after Natalie was born! This family was actually the very first in-home session I had ever done! And real talk. They have the most beautiful sun room in their home. I wish all of my clients could have these 3-window-covered-walls-providing-the-best-light-even-during-a-thunderstorm-light-EVER!

At the beginning of family sessions, I will spend a couple of minutes really chatting with the kiddos. I introduce myself, I will shake their hands or give them high fives if they are old enough. And my secret mission is to find out what makes them smile the MOST! For Natalie, it was tickles.tickles.tickles! We snagged this photo within the first 3 minutes of us starting the session! I can still hear her joyful giggles!!

Most of my favorite moments of family sessions happen somewhere right in the middle of the day. The littles are a bit more comfortable with the lady behind the camera because by this time, they know she is just so silly. The kiddos also LOVE to see their faces on the back of the camera (or Mom or Dad). And we have usually found a second thing that really gets those laughs going (Natalie LOVED flying). I am pretty sure this was the most fun part of the session for Dan and Desiree’ too!

This session was no exception. We headed up to Mom and Dad’s room to read a story about Little Quack, and as we were passing through the hallway, I saw a collection of framed photos on their walls from their first family session with me! Back when Natalie was still so tiny! This has been one of the biggest joys for me when I shoot in-home sessions for repeat clients. I get a burst of emotion when I see those photos hanging on the walls of their home. These are legacy photos, guys. This has been and will always be my mission. To provide you with beautiful memories that you can look back on and smile (even if the smiles are because you remember how goofy your photographer was acting in order to get your kiddo to giggle)!

So, I know that I mentioned that my favorite part of family sessions is somewhere right around the middle. And while I loved seeing those legacy photos on the walls, hands down my favorite part was right at the very end. We are talking I-am-putting-on-my-coat-end, camera-is-back-in-the-bag-end. Just as we were saying goodbye, Natalie, in beautiful 1 year old fashion, runs over to me and puts her arms up, telling me she wants me to pick her up for a goodbye hug. Dan + Desiree’, I cannot even thank you enough or explain to you how touching that was. You are raising one beautiful, independent, and very well read daughter over there. I cannot wait to watch your family grow over the years! Enjoy the love and giggles!

Rachel