Mia is one of those younger sisters who may not always agree with me, but I think she’s pretty lucky to have a big brother. Jack has taught her the ins-and-outs of Go Fish, until now I think she can beat everyone…except maybe Jack, of course (Don’t mention it to Jack, but I’ll bet that will happen soon enough.) Jack will sometimes periodically go bear hug his sister, in a protective, and yet on-the-verge-of-hurting-her kind of way that can only speak of a brotherly love. And the way Jack says Mia’s name in that high pitched voice? Cutest thing ever!

During their fall session last year, Mia was lucky enough to have Jack hold her hand and walk through the nursery with her, make her laugh with his hyper antics, and well…maybe even throw a few leaves on her. But hey, what says brotherly love like a few leaves in your hair?

Can’t wait to see this family again, Thanksgiving maybe?

Then he was the ring-bearer at their wedding. I watched as he dragged his bear around behind him, as he looked up at his mom with his eyes huge with admiration at the beautiful bride. It was hard to tell who had more admiration for Katie, her son Ryan, or her husband-to-be, Kyle. The wedding was all about his parents and he perfected the triad of love…even placing himself in the middle of Katie & Kyle to stare up at their kiss that sealed his family.

Then it was fall, and finally their family fall session. & this time it was all about Ryan. He laughed a big belly laugh the entire time thanks to his connection with both Katie & Kyle…and also thanks to his funny cousin. & this was also the session that we connected…he thought I was pretty funny…& well…I’ve never gotten over his dimples.

Can’t wait to see you at the end of the month at your 2011 fall session, Ryan, Katie & Kyle!

But Fall doesn’t stop there! It’s the crisp air that calls for a Anthro sweater, leggings under a summer dress & boots! & then there are the leaves: colors & shapes & lots & lots of raking. But before the raking are fall fotoNovella sessions! The Bunger family had a beautiful fall fotoNovella session last year…& are already booked for our 2011 Fall Mini Sessions. I can’t wait to hang-out with sweet Mia, thoughtful Gavin, & crazy Dexter! Love every chance I get to hang-out with this family… especially if it includes playing in leaves!

Maybe this session & today’s crisp weather will inspire you to book your own Fall Mini fotoNovella session this October 21st or 22nd! Call 503.522.5594 to book!

(Also check-out the details on the Westwinds Nursery plant sale at the end of this post!)

Thank you Corey and Cass for letting me share a beautiful summer evening with your family…yes, in the cow pasture! I adore you!

This is why making cookies is the perfect valentine-expression:

elbows-deep in flour

sneaking tastes of cookie dough

pressing-out hearts & lips (& we blew a few kisses, too!)

pink-frosting. period. (I had no idea kids were such frosting fiends!)

kiss-able sugar sprinkles

taste-testing.

& friends and loved ones to share them with!

Thanks girls for helping me out! & thank you to Steve for sharing your kitchen with us for the day!!!

I hid just back behind the garden arbor. Tom tended to to the meat on the grill, cooking dinner for his wife & their friends. Janci chased the little kids around, entertaining them and keeping them out of trouble in Grandma & Grandpa’s garden. Amanda chatted it up with the guests while grandma put the salads out on the table.

The woman of the hour came around the corner & the extra cars, two dozen friends & paparazzi-style photographer welcomed her! Surprise! Happy 40th birthday, Julie!

The rest of the evening was family, friends, great BBQ (Cookin Spoo Style is Tom’s catering business…yummy yummy BBQ!), and lots and lots of laughter.

Oh summer, come back quickly!

I’ve thought about my own gigabytes upon gigabytes of work that I’ve done over the last year. Or really, the majority of which was in the last 6 months since I went full time in June, and there are two images that stand forefront in my mind. I have favorites from each of my sessions (which you will see in individual blog posts over the next two months…if I can hold myself to my New Year’s Resolution , but when I think about my works as a whole, these two images come to mind.

Perhaps it’s because I’m picky. Perhaps it’s because I’m perpetually critical of my own work. Perhaps it’s because one of these images is intimately personal to my family and the other was thanks only to a lot of hard work by a number of talented people.  Perhaps it’s because I’m seldom entirely happy with a single shot. Perhaps it’s because I never feel settled with one shot for very long.

Or perhaps I just have a bad memory

Whatever the reason, here are the two images that are most iconic in my mind from the past year.

Here’s to 2011!

I don’t want to wake up some day and realize that I’m just ‘making’ pictures or ‘creating’ pictures. I want to capture what’s already there: the personality that’s scream’n to be captured.

& with the Sperl family, we did just that. Yes they are gorgeous girls, but more than that, they are a screaming good time! I’m in Pendleton alot these days shooting & I always know that the Sperl’s home is welcome to me to crashing in their spare bedroom & hanging out on the back porch, eating red hots and almonds that Sandra keeps stocked in a little candy jar in the kitchen, and YES…sipping a coca from la botella & eating a wicked hot dog with PICO DE GALLO! If you haven’t tried one of Jonicka’s hot dogs yet, come down to the Pendleton Farmer’s Market on a friday evening in the summer. Jonicka pretty much has a cult following of locals who come down every friday night, and round-up week to get their hot dog fix for the week.

So, grab a coca en la botella & raise your hot dog to…seriously…one of my favorite families evah. period.

Even though John & Sandra weren’t planning on being in the pictures, we slipped them in for a couple shots with their beautiful girls at the end. & this shot makes my heart so happy we did. Please don’t kill me Sandra! & thank you so much for letting me share yet another evening with your family…oh, and a hot dog! See you tonight!

And here’s what’s to come!!!