Somewhere in life Lou became the brother I never had.  He is over the top personality most days, but has a way of every now and then surprising me with how grounded his thoughts on the world actually are.  And there is no doubt in my mind that his beautiful family  has led to keeping him grounded. With two amazing little girls (who without a doubt have inherited their father's energy) and his sweet wife, Rebecca (whom I am happy to call friend) I find myself blessed to have reconnected with all of them again. And, like most families, they were overdue for a family session....so off we went.

Miss L recently turned four.  I knew she loved to dress up and she loves bumblebees, so I found her the best of both worlds for the perfect gift.  This also meant I certainly would be including them for a little extra fun:)


Silly me forgot my bribes for the girls during their session. And to say getting them to listen was a challenge is a bit of an understatement. As usual though, this doesn't mean I was not prepared to capture every last bit of adorableness that they could dish out.

Since this family is part of my regular life, it was great to capture their family dynamic from a more personal point of view.  The personal intimacy of really knowing how a family works tends to make my job a little easier, and I can then share what makes things work for them.  All of us have family in one sense or another and it is really your thoughts on family that help you to remember what is important in life.

Through waist deep waters or knee high grass, your family will always be there for you.

Family is built on trust...

...and on how many kisses are blown your way.

Family is built on love...
...and wonder...

..and laughter...
...and bonds that shall never be broken.

The love between two people...
...will create more beautiful people...

...who will only grow and learn to share the love you gave them with the rest of the world.







Thanks for a fun evening Kenney family!  I am so grateful to have you in my life and look forward to sharing many more memories in the future.  I hope you enjoyed your sneak peek and your full gallery will be available soon.   In the meantime, I suppose I shall leave Miss V with a shot of her pose request...such silly girls :)

This adorable face belongs to my sweet nephew.  He and his momma (my youngest sister) are on a little vacation from their home in North Carolina and last week's incredible weather made for a great excuse for some beach portraits.  We'll call this Part One of J's Two-year portrait session.




Now having one son of my own with his own plans for filling up the days of his life, I know just how independent a two-year-old boy can be.  Luckily for J's momma, I am totally cool with letting a kid be a kid and working around their quirks and independence to capture some great shots.  Some might seem silly at the time, but when they make it out of the camera we usually have some really great thoughts.  That being said, here are a few things I learned about Mr J...

Number one is quite obvious.  He really really loves his momma <3
Second. He has loads of treasures and is always searching for where he put them:)
Third. He would rather bury is head in the sand any day than actually look at the camera.
Yes, J certainly has his own ideas about how things are actually going to happen.  I can't say I blame him though.  Really.  What could be more fun than sharing fistfuls of sand with your auntie?
And after all the "sand sharing" a rest is quite welcomed.....even if it is against your own will.
The reality of being made to take a short break is that you really didn't know you needed it and you are thankful for it in the end.

After more running around and a small amount of bribery, J did manage a couple smiles just for me. Well, maybe his mom too as she played leap frog over me as the freezing cold water lapped at our ankles. Yep, he thought it was hilarious.

Never would I have imagined when I first met Kami that we would share a lifelong bond.  A bond created by Multiple Sclerosis.  Kami's mom.  My dad. I was eleven when my Dad was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis, twelve when I participated in my first MS Walk and even younger when I first met Kami.  This year my stepdaughter, Hannah, is twelve.  This year she participated in her first MS Walk. So did a bunch of other amazing friends.

The weather turned out to be absolutely amazing and so were the moods of all of our kiddoes, making for an even more amazing morning!



At the end of the walk, everyone was welcomed back to the "starting line" by being greeted with particpant certificates, medals and lunch as well as the opportunity to add to the Wall of Hope.  Here is Makayla's sweet little addition...

I want to again thank each and everyone of you who came out to show your support and walk with our team. It really meant so much to Kami and myself to see everyone keeping Cathy's memory alive and joining in the fight to help make my dad's life more comfortable.