I’m so thrilled that I got the chance to reunite with Sarah, Tim, and Theo – and to meet the latest addition to their family, Linden! I photographed Theo back in 2019, so now we needed to get some updated photos with his little sister. Sarah told me it would taken Theo a minute to warm up, but that was not the case, and within about 30 seconds he was showing me his breakdancing moves and telling me everything there is to know about soccer. Linden enjoys cooking food in her pretend kitchen and taking a ride on her puppy bike. They both love pretending to be monsters and attacking their parents, but who doesn’t? Sarah and Tim are great parents and people, so they abide all monster attacks and even feed the monsters dinner after a bike ride. We enjoyed a wonderful little sunny afternoon taking pictures in their home and in their gorgeous backyard. Bat stickers were placed on all bicycles so now I feel like there’s a little piece of me riding down the sidewalks of Durham… and what a wonderful crew to go riding with. :)

Family sitting on couch in Durham laughing
Durham family portrait photographer
Family photographer in Durham NC
Family photographer in Durham NC
Durham NC family photographer
Mom wrestling with kids on the couch
Mom taking photos with her two kids
Mother and daughter wrestling on couch
Mom wrestling with kids on couch and laughing
Mother and son candid family portraits
Father and son wrestling on ground in living room laughing
Father and son wrestling on ground in living room laughing
Father and son wrestling on ground in living room laughing
Father and son wrestling on ground in living room laughing
Father and son wrestling on ground in living room laughing
Dad sitting with kids on the couch
Dad sitting with kids on the couch and kids pretending to be monsters
Dad sitting with kids on the couch and kids pretending to be monsters
Daughter jumping on the couch with dad
Father and daughter at home docoumentary photographs
Father and daughter at home docoumentary photographs
Girl smiling behind couch
Girl getting turned upside down by dad
Girl laughing and running across couch
Girl smiling
Girl smiling
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures in Durham NC
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures in Durham NC
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures in Durham NC
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures in Durham NC
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures in Durham NC
Kids having dance party in the living room during family pictures in Durham NC
Kid laying on the couch
Kid holding green couch cushion
Kid holding green couch cushion
Girl working in pretend play kitchen at home
Girl working in pretend play kitchen at home
Girl working in pretend play kitchen at home
Girl smiling and holding out food from kitchen
Girl smiling and holding out food from kitchen
Kids making food in pretend play kitchen
Kids making food in pretend play kitchen
Kids offering pretend play food to parents
Kids offering pretend play food to parents
Kids offering pretend play food to parents
Kids offering pretend play food to parents
Kids offering pretend play food to parents
Siblings playing together in kitchen
Parents sitting with son on the floor in living room
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Parents building blocks with their kids on the floor during family pictures
Wedding portrait hangs on the wall of the family home
Dad helping kids put on shoes on the deck
Boy playing soccer in the yard
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy playing backyard soccer in the yard with mom and dad
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy kicking soccer ball in the backyard
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy playing soccer in the yard with Dad in Durham
Boy playing soccer in the backyard
Mom hugging daughter in the yard
Mom talking to daughter in the backyard
Girl walking away in the yard
Girl crying and holding hands with mom in the backyard
Girl playing with remote controls in living room
Girl sitting on couch and smiling at her mom
Dad helps daughter put on shoes
Little girl walking through garden gate
Boy holding his blue bike with stickers
Carolyn Scott Photography stickers on bike
Girl sitting on her puppy bike and waiting for her family to get ready
Girl sitting on her puppy bike
Boy carrying his bike down the steps of his house
Boy carrying his bike down the steps of his house
Boy riding a bike on the sidewalk
Boy riding a bike on the sidewalk
Girl riding a bike on the sidewalk during Durham family photographs
Girl riding a bike on the sidewalk during Durham family photographs
Girl riding a bike on the sidewalk during Durham family photographs
Siblings riding bikes on the sidewalk during Durham family photographs
Girl riding her bike down the street
Girl riding her bike down the street and stopping to talk to mom
Girl walking her bike down the sidewalk with her mom and dad
Girl riding her puppy bike down the street
Boy riding his bike
Boy riding his bike
Girl riding her puppy bike down the street
Girl riding puppy bike down sidewalk
Girl riding puppy bike down sidewalk
Mom helping girl take off helmet
Mom helping daughter smell flowers in tree
Mom helping daughter put her bike helmet on again
Girl riding bike in neighborhood
Boy riding bike in neighborhood
Kids helping mom in the fridge
Kids carrying tray of potatoes through kitchen
Boy carrying tray of potatoes through kitchen
Kids handing dinner to dad
Kids handing dinner to dad
Mom giving son a high-five
Kid drinking a carbonated water
Daughter listening to seashell
Daughter handing mom a seashell
Girl helping mom listen to a seashell
Girl holding a seashell
Girl holding a seashell in the backyard
Girl listening to seashell
Girl playing soccer with family in the backyard
Girl playing soccer with family in the backyard
Boy kicking soccer ball in yard
Siblings smiling by a fence in yard
Brother and sister sitting on steps
Brother and sister portraits with silly faces
Brother and sister portraits with silly faces
Brother and sister portraits with silly faces
Brother and sister portraits with silly faces
Brother and sister portraits with silly faces
Mom and dad portraits
Mom and dad portraits
Mom and dad portraits
Durham family photographer
Durham family photographer at home
Durham family photographer at home
Durham family photographer at home

Doing at-home lifestyle family documentation is normally a very fun thing to do, but it becomes even more fun when the family is British and have fun accents, and when their 3-year-old daughter makes you tea. Clare and Dan live in a phenomenal old neighborhood in Durham that reminds me a bit of my old ‘hood in Pittsburgh. And their house is adorable, bright, fun, and 100% complete with KISS Mr. Potato Head dolls. They moved from the UK to America several years ago and first landed in Los Angeles, and then hopped across the US to land in Durham. From across the pond they bring with them their wonderful senses of humor but also the knowledge of this British kid’s television show involving a cute monster-looking guy whose name currently escapes me but was reminiscent in the best ways of My Pet Monster (which was brilliant). Harper likes this monster, but also Daniel Tiger and Peppa Pig, and also occasionally snacking on goldfish crackers straight off the pond on top of the dollhouse that Clare painstakingly made her. Baby Lyla is happy and sleepy, and not yet appreciative of all of Clare’s household crafts (of which there are many fabulous ones!). I had a great time hanging out with this family and learning such phrases like being “duffed up on the nugget.”

Oh boy oh boy oh boy. Fall is our favorite. And it’s even more our favorite when we walk up to a house to photograph a family session and a six-year-old werewolf answers the door. Meet Dena (mom), Richard (dad), Abi (Pocahontas), and Jacob (werewolf)! They spent their day-in-the-life family session carving pumpkins, doing dance routines in the living room, splashing in puddles, and exercising some serious restraint in not cuddling their cat Snickers too hard.

The first thing we noticed is that everyone was American except dad who had an awesome British accent. So naturally we asked how he found himself to be living in North Carolina with a werewolf and a Pocahontas and it turns out that him and Dena were pen pals when they were young! Legit pen pals! Anyone who’s probably borderline thirty and older remembers this… but you used to be like, “Oh hey, I wonder what it would be like to exchange letters with kids in other parts of the world and hear about their culture and country. Let me get involved in a group that exchanges addresses with other kids!” At the time this was completely normal and safe, but it turns out that you learned less about culture and countries and more just about how middle school actually sucks no matter what part of the world you live in. But anyway, that’s how they met, and eventually when they were in college they actually met in real life, and now they both live in NC with their kids and cat and this one other cat that isn’t actually theirs but comes around a lot. They like the Counting Crows surprisingly as much as we do (a rare breed).

Abi and Jacob are seriously good, polite, well-behaved children who actually seem to enjoy each other’s company despite being relatively close in age and a boy and girl (the only sign of dissent was a large poster hanging from Abi’s bedroom door that said “Unless Emergency DO NOT come in NOTICE NOW” that she informed me was directed at her brother). At one point Abi was using a suction-cup bow and arrow set while Jacob got out his rubber-band gun, and nobody aimed their weapon at the other’s head, which I found incredibly impressive. So A+ parenting, Dena and Richard! We enjoy your crew immensely.