For those who know us personally, you’ll know that we debated for years whether we wanted to have children.  We just weren’t sure if we would be ready for the responsibilities and lifestyle change.  However, after doing a shoot like this, I not only want kids, I want little girls!!  The Wu family lives in Nevada and scheduled this shoot during their summer (Disneyland) vacation.  It was in my books for so long that I just couldn’t wait til the day I got to meet these girls.

First, meet big sister, Gracie.  She’s 5 years old and super sweet.  She clicked with me (and the camera) instantly!

Next, meet baby sister, Vera.  She was actually extremely shy in the beginning and was actually grumpy.  You’d never know from these photos though.  It took around 30 minutes (and a lollipop) for her to warm up.  But once she warmed up, oh what a ham she is!

In all honesty, I was a little worried when she threw a fit for the first half hour; however, when she finally opened up, it made this experience even more rewarding.  How amazing to see this side of her!  And what an honor to get to witness such joy and closeness in a family.  Whether I’m shooting a wedding or a portrait session, it’s always an honor & a privilege to be allowed such an intimate glimpse into their lives, and to be able to share that love with them.

I’ve always wanted a sister:

Aren’t they just the most adorable family?

The best part of wearing a dress is getting to twirl in them!  Even us grown up girls love it, whether we’d like to admit it or not!

Love this photo of Vera wandering off.  She’s such a free spirit:

Did I mention I always wanted a sister?

And now I want a daughter!  Look how cute mom & her girls are!

And I love this family photo… Vera has such a big personality!  I’m so grateful she opened up with me!

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It’s an amazing feeling to watch a family grow.   You may remember the Oh family from their first maternity shoot, to Roman’s newborn, 100th day, and one year portrait.  They actually recently delivered a healthy boy, Grant.  As I was shooting this second maternity session, I thought back to their first maternity session and I felt so special that I got to see them through these milestones.  They’re still the same giggly couple, but I could also see how much they have grown.  I feel like their growth parallels my growth since they have been with me since day 1 of this business.  Needless to say, they are a very special family to me.

I love that photo above of Roman.  It just makes me laugh.  And I love his “skinny” jeans, that are still baggy on him.

This next photo is one of my favs.  I think it was his first time seeing a dandelion so the first thing he did was smelled it!  I guess that’s better than trying to eat it.  haha.

Just like her first pregnancy, Grace just glowed.  She carries the bump so beautifully.

Roman already warming up to his little brother:

peek-a-boo!

And I just love this next father-son moment:

I don’t remember what got him so excited, but it was hilarious:

And then he was tickling himself with the weeds:

Congrats to the Oh family on their new addition.  I can’t wait to meet Grant!

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This holiday season, I’m realizing more and more how much I LOVE photographing kids, especially babies.  Audrey contacted me months before she was due to book me for a newborn session.  I’ve been so eager to meet baby Ethan and his new family.  Audrey kept me up to date with the pregnancy and the last email I got from her said that she was being induced the next Monday, but then I got the text a few days later saying that little Ethan arrived!  I immediately checked my calender and headed down to Irvine the first available date I had.  It’s so important to do newborn photos within the first two weeks.  They don’t curl up quite the same after.

Baby Ethan was such an easy baby.  Slept literally like a baby.  I love this photo of Audrey with baby Ethan.  Aren’t they both gorgeous?  I love how mother’s glow around their baby.

I could watch him sleep all day.  I love how he’s all curled up!

Now let me introduce to you Ethan’s two beautiful big sisters!  They were really shy when I first arrived.

Lauren is the eldest sister.  She loves helping and was a wonderful helper this day.  She helped me dress her sister, showed me around, and helped me sort out my stuff.

Hailey is the little sister.  She was extremely shy at first, but soon warmed up & her silly cute self totally shined.

These kids make me want kids!

And I love watching parents with their kids…

In the above photo, Lauren was comparing her hands to her dads and she says, “Im catching up!”

Hailey was such a ham once she warmed up.   Love that photo of her holding Ethan and her giggly smile.

Welcome baby Ethan!  You have a beautiful family and two wonderful sisters!  I look forward to watching you grow, but pleeease take your time!

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Kate was really shy in the beginning.  I think it was PNS – post nap syndrome.  She found comfort in clinging to dad this day, which I thought was so precious.

We walked down to the beach and Kate quickly brightened up!

One thing I love about wedding slide shows is seeing baby photos of the bride/groom with their mom.  When I look at my baby photos or my husbands baby photos, I think about how young our mom’s were, how fashionable they were, and happy they were to be new parents… and how that could be me now!  These photos of Kate with her mommy reminds me of photos I would see in a wedding slide show.  When I take family portraits, I always think about how it’ll look in a wedding slide show (or whatever new technology they have by then!).  And I tear when I think about these following photos in Kate’s wedding slide show because I empathize with Kate’s mommy!

I just love how happy and silly Kate is, and how happy their family is.  I especially love this next expression…

This next diptych symbolizes her growth.  She was super afraid of the water, but eventually started walking that direction herself.  I think she was still scared of the water, but was taking a few steps closer!

Congrats you two on a beautiful family!  I look forward to watching Kate grow and documenting Kate’s many milestones… and perhaps even her wedding many many many years from now!

Oh yeah, and it’s the last few days of a buck a comment!  We’re at $117 now to charity:water!  This Thursday at midnight is when I will send over our donation!

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The Leung family was amongst the first few families I photographed. It’s so amazing to be able to see how much the kids have grown since our last photo session. It’s also cool for me to see how much I have grown. I love it when clients contact me for another session because it gives me the opportunity to not only see the family grow, it also reminds me to reflect on my own growth.

Jessica has really come out of her shell since our last session. Last year, she was really shy & reserved. Her parents told me it would be difficult to photograph her last year, but this year, she has totally blossomed!

Last year, Jacob loved taking photos and loved water. This year, he didn’t like the camera so much and was terrified of the ocean. I had to trick him/turn it into a game to get photos like this:

Jessica loved the water though and didn’t want to leave.

Mom and dad has not changed one bit – still super cute & happy together.

And the adventure continues! I look forward to seeing the kids again next year!

charity:water update – we’re at $70! Lets keep it going!

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