The Huser & Vaega Families

     I've had the privilege of photographing The Huser Family for over four years now. When I first met Myra, Jack, and Emily it was a cold November afternoon. When I say "cold" I mean COLD. It was barely above freezing and overcast and there was a nice cool breeze that would pick up off and on throughout the session. Even though Mother Nature had a bit of an attitude that afternoon, what I remember the most is how much fun I had that day. To this day I don't think I have laughed so hard during a session than I did that day! I walked away from their session and thought, "I love this family! I hope I get to work with them again!” 

     Here we are four years later and there have been a few additions to their family. Emily and Hosea were married a little over three years ago. No matter how hard I try, it's hard to fully express how charming these two are. If I didn't know any better I would have sworn this was their engagement session. They are so sweet and loving towards each other. Just when you think it can't get any cuter, you meet their adorable children Daniel, who is two years old, and their precious little daughter, Sofia who is almost three months old. If I could describe The Vaega Family in one word it would be, “beautiful”. They are a beautiful couple (inside and out) with two beautiful children, and have a beautiful and loving family relationship. This is the first time they have been photographed as a family of four, and it was truly an honor to be able to do this for them. To know that you are capturing memories for your clients that they will be able to cherish forever .... that is one of the coolest feelings in the world. It's just one of the reasons I love doing what I do! 

     I have a permanent smile on my face when I am with The Huser & Vaega Family! Whether that be while I'm photographing them during their session, when I get back to the office and I'm editing their proofs, or even now as I'm writing their blog post. I'm always smiling when it comes to Myra, Jack, Emily, Hosea, Daniel, and Sofia. They will forever and always have a very special place in my heart. I hope you enjoy just a few of my favorite images from their spring family session. Enjoy and Happy Friday! 

Oliver | Six Months

     It's hard to believe that six months have passed since I first met Baby Oliver. He has grown so much since our last session together. He's almost sitting up all by himself and he smiles and giggles all of the time. This session was even more special because I met his big brothers Wyatt and Ian. Just when I thought The Carlson Family were too cute for words, I met these little guys and now this family is soaring off the "cuteness" chart!  Wyatt and Ian were awesome during this session. They were such big helpers and my favorite part was when they would stand next to me and act super silly in order to make Oliver smile. Not only did Oliver love this, but also so did I. They were cracking me up the entire time. Oliver would light up as soon as these little guys would talk to him. Some of my favorite images of Oliver are when his big brothers were being silly standing beside me! 

     The sun set far too quickly the night of Oliver's Six Month Session. I wasn't ready for their session to end because I was having so much fun. I enjoyed myself so much walking around downtown with these guys. They all are so sweet, down-to-earth, and fun to be around! The boys kept us smiling the whole time. We ended our time together at Jordan Valley Park. It's such a beautiful park in the heart of downtown Springfield. The weather in our area has been so wonderful the last month or so. We have been so lucky because spring decided to come a little early here in Southwest Missouri. As we walked into the park, I was almost giddy because the trees that line the walkway were in full bloom and were absolutely beautiful! When I suggested that we end our time together at JVP, I was hoping for all the Bradford Pears to be in bloom and they were! They did not disappoint at all! It was the perfect end to a perfect session. 

     Thankfully we will be seeing even more of The Carlson Family in just a few months at Oliver's One Year Session! I'm looking forward to seeing them again! Until then check out some of my favorite images from Oliver's Six Month session now. Enjoy and Happy Tuesday! 

The 8th Annual Wing Off | Our Super Bowl Sunday Tradition

     Before I start into today’s blog post about our annual Super Bowl Sunday tradition, let me give you a little bit of a back story. Justan and I have been re-modeling our house over the past twelve months. We did a major overhaul on our living room, dining area, kitchen, and laundry room. When people walk into our house the most common phrase uttered is, “Whoa! It’s totally different in here now”. For anyone that has remodeled a home, while still living there, it’s quite the process (to put it nicely! Ha). When we started our remodel, we got rid of all of our living room furniture and the kitchen table. It was time for a change and to “spruce things up a bit”. We have updated everything slowly piece-by-piece over the past year. The last piece of the puzzle was a new kitchen table. We have been without a kitchen table since February. We looked and looked for months for the perfect table. Finally, in December, we headed to the furniture store to finalize our decision and make the purchase. Justan and I love to entertain, so we knew we wanted a table big enough for family and friends to sit comfortably. We found a table that met all of the requirements, so we were good-to-go. As we were setting up the details for delivery I said, “I just want to make sure that we have it by Super Bowl Sunday”. We knew that our annual Super Bowl party was around the corner and having a kitchen table was a must. Ha! Everything worked out perfectly. We received our table in plenty of time. It matched our new flooring, and was big enough for everyone at the party to enjoy. Once again we were good-to-go!

     This brings us to February 7th, 2016. The 50th Super Bowl, but more importantly it was the 8th Annual Wing Off. For those of you who don’t know about our tradition, it started back in 2009. We were sitting around talking about what we wanted to do that year for Super Bowl. “We should have a competition to see who can make the best chicken wings”. With that one phrase a tradition was started and it’s a tradition that has turned into one of my favorite days of the year. It started with everyone making their best chicken wing recipe and each of us voting on his or her favorite. A few years later the award for “Best Presentation” was added to the mix. We have some pretty competitive family and friends, which makes for a very good time. Each year the wings get better and the presentation gets bigger. It’s safe to say that year after year everyone consistently brings his or her “A” game!

     Everyone is starting to arrive and begin setting up their spread for the competition, my older brother Ty pulls me to the side and says, “Can you clear off the side of the table? My display actually needs to be plugged into an outlet”! “Oh my goodness”, I thought to myself. “What does he have planned for this year?!” So here comes Ty walking through the kitchen with a storage tote spray painted to look like a football field. The tote was covered in rocks, spray painted green and white to mimic a football field, and he made a yellow goal post out of pipes. Everyone was laughing and going crazy because we knew this year’s competition was in full swing. Ty then proceeded to plug in a cord that was hidden under the rocks and the goal post turned into a water fountain! WHAT!?! Oh man! It’s ON!!! However, that wasn’t the end of it. He then get’s out a lighter and ignites a small“line of fire” on the football field and then places a football plate in the corner with his favorite Honey Mustard Wings to add the finishing touches to 2016 Wing OFF entree. Well done Mr. Sanders! Well done!

     By this time more and more wings are added to the table. So many unique displays continued to be unveiled and all of the wings look delicious. Everyone out did themselves this year!  I’m taking pictures of everything and all of a sudden I hear, “Ty’s display is on fire. … No it’s LITERALLY on fire”!!!! Everyone started to scramble and Ty jumps in and puts out the flames. All I can hear is my Mom saying, “Their table! Their brand new table! Get it off their brand new table”! I’m standing there watching the side of the tote melt down, through the tablecloth, and onto the table. Woops! Everyone just stood there in shock for a second! Ha! Ty looks up and says, “I tested this over and over at home and not once did it do THAT”! Everyone started laughing and so began hours and hours of teasing at Ty’s expense.

     As the night went on I would catch a glimpse of Ty in the kitchen looking at the table, scrubbing and scrubbing trying to get the melted remains off. To say he “felt bad” is a huge understatement. It’s just a table (which has a protection plan on it so it will be fixed very soon) and no one was hurt and that’s what matters. Plus we now have a really awesome story to tell for years to come. I will forever be able to tease Ty about this. As the youngest in the family, anytime you have a story on your big brother, that’s a sweet- sweet moment! Ha

     As Super Bowl 50 was coming to an end so was our party. The wings had been eaten, the votes had been tallied, and the results were in. Everyone’s hard work had not been in vain. It was a Wing Off that will always be remembered! Congratulations to all of the winners!

First Place: Nikki Henley – Salt & Vinegar Wings

Second Place: Sabrina Garton – Balsamic Wings

Third Place: Justan Layne – Spicy BBQ Wings

Best Presentation - Ty Sanders & Jared Henley

     This was the first time we have ever had a tie. Both Ty and Jared had awesome presentations. Jared’s was a little less flammable, but very cool and unique to say the least!  

     Here are just a few of my favorite images from a very memorable evening! I’m already counting down the days until next year! Enjoy and Happy Thursday!

First Place: Nikki Henley - Salt & Vinegar Wings 

Second Place: Sabrina Garton - Balsamic Wings 

Third Place: Justan Layne - Spicy BBQ Wings

Best Presentation (and fire starter): Ty Sanders

Best Presentation: Jared Henley 

The Winners! 

View fullsize

Ethan | Newborn

     I’ve been anxiously awaiting Ethan’s arrival for months. The Hudson Family are dear friends of ours. We were so excited when Craig and Nicole told us they were adding a fifth member to their sweet little family. They have two adorable little girls, Kenzie and Kaitlyn. I love their girls so much! They are so kind, sweet and funny! We always have the best time when we are together. I think all of their family and friends were taken back a little bit when they announced in July that …  IT’S A BOY! Even Nicole was surprised as they received the news themselves, “I had in my mind it was another little girl”, she said with a giggle! They were so excited to be expecting another baby, but knowing they were having their first boy just added to the excitement! 

     Teeny-tiny ten-day-old Ethan is absolutely precious! I don’t think there are enough adjectives to describe how delightful this little guy is. He was perfect during his Newborn Session. Some of my favorite images are those of Ethan with his big sisters. They love their little brother so much already. It’s very evident how much he means to them. I love the way they look at him, how big their smiles are when they talk to him and how they would sneak in little kisses every at every opportunity. I think it’s safe to say he has them wrapped around his perfect little fingers. 

     It was truly an honor to be able to photograph The Hudson Family again especially in this very special time in their lives. Thankfully, we will see more of them and watch Ethan grow over the next few months. Keep your eyes out for more images of The Hudson’s coming this summer. For now, here are just a few of my favorite images from Ethan’s Newborn Session. Enjoy and Happy Thursday! 

The Vaega Family

     The last time I had the privilege of photographing Emily and Hosea, they had only been married a few months. Fast-forward three years and they are back in the U.S. and are expecting their second child! Such an exciting time for this adorable little family!

     Emily and Hosea live overseas, so their trips home are not as frequent as they would like. However, when they do get to come back home it just makes their visits that much more memorable. When I got a message from Myra (Emily’s Mom) informing me that Emily, Hosea, and their son Daniel were coming in for visit at the end of November I was beyond excited! Not only was I excited to see Emily and Hosea again, but this would also be the first time I would meet their son, Daniel. Oh. My. Goodness. You want to talk about a cutie pie! Daniel is adorable! Those big brown eyes and his little grin that lights up his entire face! He is just so sweet and is going to be a heartbreaker for sure when he grows up! What’s the icing on the cake for this family? They are expecting their second child, a baby girl, in the next few weeks!

     When Myra and I were setting up all of the details for their family session, we were mentally preparing ourselves for a cold December afternoon in the park. However, Mother Nature has an odd sense of humor and decided to give us spring temps in December, so it was a beautiful and mild afternoon in the park that day. It was especially perfect outside for December. This is a Missouri winter I can get on board with! Ha!

     I had so much fun with The Vaega Family that afternoon! Chasing little Daniel around, watching him laugh and giggle with his mom and dad, and getting some great shots of the three of them. You can instantly tell how much they adore each other when you look at these photos. As the sun was beginning to set, the sky turned into the most beautiful “cotton candy” sort of colors. It was then I was able to get the sweetest images of Emily and Hosea together. The way they look at each other and the way they interact, it’s incredible to see. It’s evident to everyone around them that they are in their own little world and how much they truly mean to each other. You know you are in the presence of true love when you are with them!

     I am counting down the days until their next session. Next time we will be meeting their new baby girl, Grandma Myra and Grandpa Jack will both be there too. I can’t tell you enough how excited I am for their upcoming spring session. It’s truly an honor to photograph them during this special time in their lives. Emily and Hosea, congratulations on the new little addition to your family. I can’t wait to meet her!

     Here are just a few of my favorite images of The Vaega Family. Enjoy and Happy Wednesday!   

Grace | Senior 2016

     The day of Grace’s Senior Session was a little crazy, but so much fun and totally worth it. I flew out from Atlanta, Georgia around ten o’clock in the morning. I landed back in Springfield, Missouri around noon, grabbed a quick bite to eat, and then headed straight to the park to meet Grace. Whew! I had so much fun while I was in Georgia and I had been looking forward to Grace’s session for weeks. I didn’t have time to think about being tired. I was enjoying myself too much to even think about that!

     It was a beautiful fall afternoon when I met up with Grace at the park. Grace and her dad had traveled from St. Louis for her session. Which is about four hours away from me. She loves the outdoors, especially in fall. I was watching the weather while I was in Georgia, because I knew if I didn’t photograph her session that weekend it would be too late because the fall colors were coming to end in our area.  Thankfully, everything worked out perfectly.  We caught it just in time because the trees still had a little bit of color to them and it was definitely the “outdoor fall setting” she had hoped for! The sun was shining and the temperatures were perfect. I knew it was going to be a great session.

     Grace is absolutely beautiful. She is a little on the shy side, so when we started her session she said, “You don’t have to take a lot of pictures of me today”. I just laughed because I knew once we started and she got in the groove of things she would change her mind … and she did! By the end of her session she would sweetly ask, “Can we take a few more over here?” Grace nailed her entire session. Just when I thought I had my favorite images (that I had already taken) mentally filed away, she would do another outfit change and would totally rock that section. By the end of her session I thought to myself, “Well I LOVE all of them! I’m going to have a very hard time narrowing these down!”

     Some of my favorite images of Grace are when she is sitting down in a pile of leaves in a small section of the park. The sun was peeking through the trees in the most beautiful way. Also, what makes those images so special is the expression on her face. What you don’t realize is that Grace’s dad, Barry, is standing off to the side while I’m photographing her. The smile on her face says it all … how much she loves and adores her dad! I always have my clients talk to their mom or dad during their session, because I know I will get the most genuine smiles. There is so much of Grace’s personality in all of her images, but especially in this section. It makes my heart so very happy!

     Grace I hope you have an incredible Senior Year! I know you will go on to do wonderful things and I wish you the very best as you embark upon the next chapter in your life!

     Here are just a few of my favorite images from Grace’s Senior Session. Class of 2016! Enjoy and Happy Thursday! 

The Dotson Family

     It was a cold and dreary Sunday afternoon in November 2011. That was the first time I met The Dotson Family. Their oldest son Kameron was only a year and half old and was an only child at this time. Kim and I had been talking all day trying to decide if we should proceed with their afternoon photo session that had been planned for weeks. We decided to power through the cold temps and go ahead with their family session. I pulled into the parking lot and parked next to them, Kim rolled down her window and started laughing and said, "Well it was only cold before…now it's raining!" 

     Fast forward four years and we find ourselves in the same predicament. It’s Friday morning and I’ve been in Atlanta for almost twenty-fours and it has rained the entire time. At this point Kim and I were checking the weather app so much we could have been local meteorologists for the day. Ha! In all the craziness all Kim and I could do was laugh. We continued to reflect back on that first session we had together, back in 2011. She would say, “I have total faith in you Steph because that first session we did together it was freezing cold and drizzling and you couldn’t tell at all in the pictures. I know that you will be able to do the same with whatever conditions we have here today. I know the pictures will turn out perfect!”

     As I was finishing up with The Bates Family (previous blog post), I turned right around and headed to start The Dotson’s Family session. The rain had stopped, the humidity was a little high, but there was no rain and that was a very good thing. Kim and Aaron were looking incredible (as always) and ready to start their family session. We head to pick up the boys from school, do a quick clothing change for them and then it’s on to Downtown Buford to start their photo session fun. “Alright! This is perfect! We are doing great on time, the rain has stopped, it looks like the clouds are starting to lift in the distance … everything is coming together perfectly!” I thought to myself. We were doing it! All that worrying for nothing. It was then I heard Aaron say “Oh no! My tooth”! Nothing to worry about, just a small dental emergency on our hands! Ha! One thing I can say about Kim and Aaron is they know how to roll with the punches. Another small detour in the plan, but no worries we worked it all out! At this point the three of us couldn’t stop laughing. “What are the odds”, is the phrase that was uttered the most that afternoon. We made a quick turn down the most beautiful back road to figure out a game plan on what to do next. The amount of multitasking that went on during their family session is comical and makes me smile every time I think about it. We all rocked it out of the park that afternoon. Outfit changes are happening while photos are being taken. Aaron is on the phone with his dentist while I’m photographing Kim and the boys. We had a few minutes to grab some family shots before we had to meet up with Aaron’s dentist at his office. The images of The Dotson’s on that back road are some of my favorite of them. It didn’t matter what was going on, they kept a smile on their face and laughed it off!  Talk about “go with the flow”!

     We jumped in the car to make a quick stop at the dentist office and then it was back to their family session. The dentist office backed up to the most beautiful woodsy area. As we parked the car I got the biggest smile on my face. “I can totally work with this”, I thought to myself. I was able to get the sweetest shots of Kim and the boys and some individual shots of the boys there too. You would have never guessed that we were in the backyard of a dentist office. The only thing that could have made this moment even better was if the sun were shining. Well I kid you not, as we were standing there the clouds started to part and the sun started shining through the trees for the most beautiful glow! The sun hadn’t come out in over a week and the fact that it decided to peek through an hour before sunset made me so happy that I can’t even put it into words!

     It was smooth sailing from that point on. The sun was shining, the humidity was down, and the smiles were flashing non-stop! We even squeezed in a few more location changes before we ended their session. To say they “rocked” their session would be an understatement. They were absolutely amazing and I was able to get some incredible shots of this beautiful family. I love every session that I get to do for The Dotson Family, but this session will always have a special place in my heart and will always make me smile when I think about it.

     Here are just a few of my favorite images from The Dotson Family’s Fall Session. Enjoy and Happy Tuesday!

The Bates Family

     As I was prepping and getting everything together to fly out to Atlanta, Georgia to photograph two awesome families not once did I think to myself, "I hope it doesn't rain while I'm out there". The entire time I was picturing bright sunny days that turned into the most beautiful sunsets and warm fall temperatures. Well, once again Mother Nature must have been laughing because she had other plans for us. I was going to be in Georgia for less than seventy-two hours and I had everything scheduled out with my clients. I was going to photograph The Dotson Family on Thursday evening (a few hours after I flew into Georgia), then The Bates Family on Friday evening, and fly back home on Saturday morning. As I flew into the airport in Atlanta, I couldn't see anything out of the plane window because the fog was so thick. I thought to myself, "Oh no! This isn't a good sign"! I kept thinking positively as I gathered my luggage and then, I stepped outside. Fog + pouring down rain = not the conditions you desire for an outdoor photo session. As I hugged Kim "Hello" all she could do was laugh. "Can you believe this?” she said. We talked the through entire trip to her house trying to decide what to do. Should we go on with the session? If we cancel the session, when would we be able to fit it in before I left? At this point the rain was really coming down and we knew the answer was clear.  It was then we got a call from Jill (I would be photographing her family the next day). Jill was just as concerned as Kim and I were about what to do. The weather for Friday looked a little better, so we decided to throw out the original plan completely and start again. The new plan looked like this: move the Bates family to an earlier time in the day on Friday (when the sun was supposed to come out) and then schedule the Dotson family immediately afterward. Whew! We were determined to not let anything get in the way of our photo session fun! 

     Friday afternoon arrived. It rained all morning and was still raining as I walked into the Bates’ home, but I was still very optimistic. I had a feeling everything was going to turn out well. And that it did! As we were driving to the park, the rain finally stopped. We were all so excited! One thing I’ve never experienced at an outdoor photo session in November was humidity. Oh. My. Goodness. I now know why it's nicknamed "Hotlanta". We were all so excited that the rain stopped, however the humidity came rolling in quickly after.  As soon as we stepped out of the car, Jill and I looked at each other and said, "Wow! It's a bit warm! At least the rain stopped! Ha"! Jill, Tom, Cooper and Hunter were AMAZING! I mean so very great! Not only was it hot, they all had on several layers of clothes. You would never be able to tell, from the pictures, how warm it was that afternoon. Their sweet smiles in every image says it all ... What an incredible little family they are! The boys were so sweet and were so easy to photograph! I loved hearing them giggle as they ran around playing in the leaves and chasing each other. They had me smiling the entire time! I had so much fun with Jill and Tom as well. Jill is hilarious and had me cracking up several times! What a sweetheart! Tom was such a trooper during their session. He never complained, not once, but would rather smiled and said, "sounds good to me" when I would give him instructions on what to do or where to stand. They were a dream to work with, especially under such crazy weather conditions. 

     It was truly an honor to photograph The Bates Family for many reasons, but especially because this was the first time they've had family portraits taken. I loved being able to capture some many wonderful memories for them that afternoon. They are such an incredible family and they will always hold a special place in my heart. Here are just a few of my favorite images of Jill, Tom, Cooper and Hunter - The Bates Family. Enjoy and Happy Friday!