Mah frieeendssss! Love this little group of 5! They were a little group of 4 (yes, I am 100% including Margie the dog), but this year they added a new member and I just ADORE her. Tyler’s on the Durham Dirtbags baseball team with Geoff so I get to hang out a lot with his family at games, and this little lady has fit immediately right in – smiling at everyone, having the time of her life bundled up in a little carrier and being a little ham. She’s still a baby, but I am pretty confident that she’s an extrovert. She smiles at me constantly, unless I’m taking her picture, and then it’s 50/50, obviously. Her brother, also an adorable ham, has been perfecting his baseball skills at the games and at home, but also his mad skateboarding skills. He literally goes to skateparks. He was Tony Hawk for Halloween. I saw him do an ollie in his living room but also jump off his couch onto the skateboard. And yes, he wears the checkered Vans. I’m obsessed. I also love their parents and their dog and their house and everything about all of them. So glad to have these magical people in our lives!

These are our BUDS. Always happy to photograph them as clients but more happy to photograph them as some of our best friends. Last year we did an on-location shoot but this year we went back to their house because SamSam, their dog, felt left out and missed me too much. I don’t know what to say about these folks that I haven’t said before but it bears repeating that I love them and I’m grateful to have friends who are family down here. We watch a lot of bad movies and occasionally some good movies and we celebrate holidays and birthdays and go through good things and bad things together and sometimes I take their pictures. Their oldest son and I are buddies – we hang out at Geoff and Jon’s softball games together where he tells me important things like “I went to Target today” and asks the hard hitting questions such as “How far is your house from here?” and about 50 other questions that start with “why” in an hour’s time. Their youngest son, who has been slightly more wary of me, is now big smiles and I’m pleased to report that he voluntarily ran up and pushed me during this session while giggling and running away, which is his first voluntary interaction with me. Soon we’ll be best buds too. However, their first and oldest child, dog SamSam, will always make sure that I’m her best friend first and foremost and will bowl over all children and people in the process (I’m going to pretend she’d do this even if I didn’t give her treats).

It was such a joy to photograph Annie and James enjoying a weekend morning at their home with their kids! We photographed their wedding in 2014 and it was so nice to see them again! Their two girls are an absolute delight – funny, intelligent, and full of spunk. They enjoy riding their bikes, hanging out in their yard with their sweet dog Luna, building forts with their Buc-ee’s blankets, and making special family recipe pancakes. I had a great time learning about all their stuffies and being introduced to the world of Buc-ee’s, which I wasn’t previously familiar with but now I think I know what to expect should I ever run across one (it sounds delightful). I loved photographing a little slice in time for this amazing family!