November 15, 2022

Jen+Jon+Declan

If I ever tell you that I watched some weird horror movie recently but mostly talked about the themed food that accompanied it, chances are these were the other people involved. The best of those situations, in my opinion, was when we made assorted deviled eggs for the Easter horror movie about a giant killer bunny, and the worst was when we tried to put spaghetti in a plastic brain mold for Halloween Ends. They can’t all be winners. Jon makes amazing fried pickles, and Jen makes the best charcuterie boards. And there to pick up all the pieces that we drop on the floor, is SamSam, their… black… golden retriever? Long haired black lab? Fuzzy doggo butt? I don’t know what breed SamSam is but she is extremely cute and extremely fuzzy and likes to boop you on the leg with her nose when she doesn’t feel like she’s getting her fair share of snacks. SamSam LOVES it when Declan is around because Declan is a primary floor-snack source. I love it when Declan is around because he’s just plain funny and adorable. Usually he makes me food in his play kitchen, but during this photoshoot I was introduced to candle-sniffing Declan, which is apparently his favorite Target shopping activity. He takes a candle, opens it, sniffs it extremely dramatically with a scrunched-up nose face, and then runs over to you so that you can do the same thing. He’s precious. Then he smartly puts the candle in his Target shopping cart and off he goes. These folks are truly incredible people and friends, and I’m happy to photograph them again. Oh, and if you’re looking for a dose of Dad humor, Jon runs the best Dadstagram there is.

Kid shopping with mini Target shopping cart toy

In-home documentary lifestyle family photography in Raleigh

Kid serving parents food at Target store in-home

Kid holding a candle out for you to smell

Kid holding out a candle for a dog to smell

Parents throwing leaves with a child in the yard

Dad tossing son up in the air during family photos in Raleigh

Kid holding a stick during Raleigh family photographs

Toddler walking with his dad holding his hand

Toddler holding his dad's hand and walking

Kid running through his yard during family portraits

Black long haired dog with tennis ball catches ball

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October 26, 2022

Erika+Emmanuel+Felix

You guys remember Erika and Emmanuel. I’m not sure they need an introduction at all despite my two year hiatus. I photographed the incredible Felix a couple of times as well before my break. Last time I photographed him he was a little toddler. This time he was 3 (almost 4) going on 33-34. I pulled into the driveway and he burst out of the house, “Hi, I’m Fe. My mom told me all about you.” I asked him if he remembered the last time I photographed him, which received the response of “Nope! Do you want to see my skeleton?” Amazing. I adore him. He is very polite and hilarious and I know it looks like I stopped him every two seconds and asked him to smile for the camera, but I didn’t – that’s just Fe. He loves cameras and he knows he’s cute. It’s a dangerous combination. He also loves Halloween and showed me many skeletons, tombstones, and also his cat mask. He also showed me his actual cats and his dog and his chickens and his trampoline. During all this he asked if I wanted ice cream and what flavor. I told him vanilla with sprinkles but he said, “No, I think you want chocolate chip” and my order was abruptly changed. He is definitely a gifted young kid who will do incredible things and look insanely fashionable as he does them (just like his parents). Or he’s an alien. At one point he did discuss how “the humans” make chocolate milk… like he himself is not a human but rather separate from the humans… and Emmanuel told me that he does this sometimes. I think this makes me love him even more.

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October 11, 2022

Katherine+Jon+Alex

What an utterly delightful small child Alex is! I already knew that Katherine and Jon were delightful so it didn’t surprise me. Alex, much like his father, loves cars and transportation devices of any type. His vehicle of choice is a sweet blue and orange number by Little Tikes and he’ll beat you in a street race any day of the week. He’s fast. He’s mean. He’ll casually rest his elbow on his permanently rolled down window and look like one cool dude, and you better get out of the way. When he’s not racing people in the streets, he’s offering Cheerios to his parents and then swiftly rescinding the offer and putting them back in his own mouth. When he’s not doing that, you can also find him reading, building towers of blocks and then knocking them over, or hanging out at the local playground where he’ll also race you on the slides, all while being one cool dude still. I am excited for the breadth of knowledge about Rush he’ll have when he’s older. He’s very charming. His parents are very charming. I’m very happy to reunite with them and meet their little street racer.

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