Merry & Her Girls {Laurelhurst Park, Portland, OR}

How lovely are Merry and her girls? I had an opportunity to capture a mini-shoot for them, and really enjoyed following them around for a bit.  Merry is vivacious, funny, and endearing, and the picture of a graceful, engaged mom. As the mom of two younger daughters myself, I watched with interest from behind my lens her interactions with her beautiful girls, for clues as to what might be in my future. I hope to be as close to my daughters as she seems to be!

By the time we started our shoot, both girls were tired, chilly and hungry, but they were troopers anyway. Merry really seemed to want true interactions with her children captured, rather than poses. I hung back and followed them, and did my best to catch those moments. They allowed me to takes some posed shots too.

Thank you ladies, for allowing me to photograph you. It was my pleasure to do so!

Baby Tate & Kai (and the backpack too!) {Tigard, OR}

Its always special to see a family you've enjoyed photographing in the past grow in number. Such is the case with the D. family, who welcomed beautiful baby Tate in mid-March.

The first thing I noticed about Tate were his brilliant blue eyes. They were big and bright and OPEN when I arrived. He has the perfect smattering of red/brown baby hair, and a precious little pout. My favorite moment was when the entire family snuggled around him, and he gave the biggest dreamy baby smile I've ever seen. So sweet!

Big brother Kai was so good with the baby, and happily kissed his face and snuggled him, when not showing me the contents of his backpack, which you might notice in the pictures below. Kai LOVES his backpack.

Congratulations on your gorgeous boy, D. Family!

Gus and Evelyn {NE Portland, OR}

I first met Evelyn and her parents last spring, when I took their family portraits on Mt. Tabor. This time around, Evelyn had a new baby brother to introduce me to. As soon as the front door opened, Evelyn charmed me all over again, pointing to little Gus, asking me 100 questions about my camera, and moving about with such precociousness and excitement! New baby Gus is simply gorgeous, with pretty olive newborn skin, the best baby faux hawk I've seen, and even a little baby fuzz all over. Gus and Evelyn's Mama makes the "mom of two" thing look easy, and was upbeat and relaxed, despite a lack of sleep. We were able to grab a few shots of Gus with an adorable hat and blanket she made for him, before he decided he wanted to be awake for the rest of his photo debut. I love these kind of shoots, with a beautiful family in a relaxed home environment. Thanks, E. Family, for making my job so enjoyable!

Lilianna is Two! {Laurelhurst Park, Portland OR}

What to say about this sweet girl? Lili is spunky, beautiful, and doesn't much care to have her photograph taken. She's a mama's girl who  squealed over passing bicycles, flowers and her Dora doll. She has the absolute BEST pigtails, so perfect, her mama gave her 3 instead of two! Lili, you don't care much for me, but I adore you! I hope we can do it again!

Lucy, Grace & Etta {Laurelhurst Park, Portland, OR}

Lucy, Etta and Grace are three of my children's most favorite playmates, and three of the loveliest little ladies I know. Their awesome Mama wanted a few head shots of the girls, so we met up at Laurelhurst park and made it happen.

Miles {Portland, OR}

Even though I'm on maternity leave, the weather was warm today, and my 4 year-old was itching to get out of the house. Miles, Baby Landree and I headed to our favorite local outdoor spot, and I brought my camera along. Miles threw rocks in the water, dug in the dirt, and even did a little mugging for me. I love this boy so much, I'm so glad he's mine!

Maevyn {Portland, OR}

I'm currently on Maternity leave, but I had the opportunity to photograph this little beauty, Maevyn. She shared a due date with my new daughter, Landree, and is my daughter's first little baby friend. From the baby mohawk, to her gorgeous blue green eyes, I think you'll agree, she's extra adorable, even by baby standards!