Ok, I promise these silly days of the week titles will stop. Soon.  I really just couldn’t decide what to call this post and didn’t want to go with “Buckmore” family.  Boring.  And boring does not fit these three.  I met Cheryl when my M and her M started kindergarten together.  Sadly, since the girls have the same name they have been in different classes every year since. Happily, that doesn’t stop us from being friends and I am grateful to have such a kind person and her silly kiddoes in my life.  And of course, I was more than happy to fit them into the schedule for a family session.

Cheryl is a quiet person who seems a bit “go with the flow.”  She is calm, kind, caring and overall as sweet as can be.  The greatest thing that I admire in her is that the times she has a million things going on or those times when anyone else would feel like their world is upside down, she holds everything together. 

M and C are both really great kids. (Undoubtedly because of their really great mom) But man is it hard to get them to smile.  I mean really really smile with teeth and everything.  I was probably laughing harder than any of them during our session just watching them try NOT to show their teeth! Too bad for them, I did manage a few great smiles and those without teeth certainly didn’t disappoint.

Gorgeous, M. Just gorgeous.

Now C is all boy.  Yeah, he is quiet like his mom, until you get him to start making up movies with titles like Chicken Noodle Soup and he is all excited and ready to spill is guts over the fact that he lost yet another tooth!  Yep, his little grins with the missing teeth will make you giggle, but when he is serious and looking directly into the lens…those eyes are to die for.

Aahhh…togetherness….

…it always leaves room for a little sibling rivalry.

But it definitely all still comes back to being about being together…

…sharing a quiet moment and pretending to be embarassed when your mom starts handing out kisses.

Cheryl, thank you so much for asking me to capture these precious moments for you guys.  I have loved watching our kids grow up together over the past couple years and am so lucky to call you friend.  Hope you enjoyed your sneak peek and your full gallery will be available soon!

I am loving Monday morning blogs lately.  Such sweetness to fill the blog with on such a dreaded day of the week.  So it was only natural that I start this Monday off with a few faves from yesterday’s maternity session.  This was  actually the second session of its kind for Miss Chelsey and I couldn’t have been more excited to visit her again.

Wondering why a second session was a neccessity? Well, a couple reasons really.  The first session was shot mainly to get some images to be incorporated into the shower invites.  And to surprise daddy. Well, daddy (aka Tommy) is such an amazingly sweet guy that he just HAD to be part of a maternity session with Chels!

I just love the way he looks at her….*sigh* such sweet and true love <3

Tthese two could not be more ready to meet their newest addition, and they almost did just last week!  The doctors finally conviced the little man that he should stay in there just a bit longer, but there is no doubt that in the meantime he already knows how much he is loved.  Every time daddy kissed mommy’s belly, baby boy would get super excited and kick daddy right in the face. 

Oh, and there is someone else who is also anxious for the arrival.  Meet Bo.  Now, that’s a lot of personality wrapped up in one little dog!

Chelsey and Tommy, thank you for again inviting me into your home to capture such a special moment in your lives.  There is no doubt in my mind that you two will be amazing and living parents, and I cannot wait to capture many many more as you welcome baby boy into the world and watch him transform into a beautiful little man.

This has got to be one of the most difficult posts I have ever written.  Not because I can’t find the right words. Not because there aren’t enough pictures.  In fact though, it is the images.  Which ones to share on this blog, because there are at least 100 I really want to share!  I cannot count how many times I have just had to walk away and come back to “start fresh.”  In the spirit of that laid back approach, let’s just jump right in.  I am really not sure exactly what is the perfect place to start, but I sure am grateful that you’ve already seen most of the details here.

Actually, just because you’ve already seen a bunch of details, doesn’t mean I can’t share more in this post too:)

So in love with Hil’s J. Crew gown and all of the gorgeous floral arrangements by one of her talented bridesmaids, Katie Tesseo.

Yep, Hilarie had thought of every last detail…right down to her simple stunning antique jewelry.

Oh, and back to that J. Crew dress…it wasn’t entirely the Crew.  Hilarie’s mom added her own personal touch with a little apron-esque customization to match the custom veil she designed and made.

How cute are Hil’s parents? <3

Stinkin’ cute ring bearer and flower girl!

You did remember the llama from the details post, right? Yep, they had a front row view of the reception and were very well-behaved guests.

Uncle Al’s Band was simply amazing and could not have featured a nicer group of guys:)  We wrapped up the reception with the bride and groom center stage…er…tent…..

…and captured a kiss that could only mean a lifetime and more of love and happiness.

Hilarie & Scott, thank you again for asking us to be a part of your special day, and here’s to many many long loving years to come <3

Because we just rushed the girls out the door to a bus that came early and blaring its horn.  Because C has once again woken far earlier than necessary. And most simply, because it is Monday. Monday marks the first day of another week of crazy schedules; school, sports, work, errands.  So let’s just revisit school one last time.

Yes, C is always always up very very early.  And PreK orientation day was definitely no exception.  He was up and ready well before 6am andthe bus wasn’t scheduled to come until after 10am.  Fortunately for us, he was very excited to share his day with his little sister.  Miss I and myself got to ride the bus with C and I had  to capture such a sweet moment between these two <3

When we arrived at school, Miss I just wanted to stay on the bus (yeah, she was feeling like such a big girl). But we were able to leave the bus to spend some time on the playground as all the PreK kiddoes ran off to make new friends.  C found a few kids he already knew and showed off his skills sliding down the fire pole before we headed inside to listen to a story.  These ears were made for listening

Stories and recess sure can make you hungry, and C was happy to share in snack time with Miss I.

The hour long orientation just flew by and C couldn’t wait to go back.  I was excited at the prospect of quiet afternoons and a school-loving 4 year old.

My apologies for those of you have visited here looking for something new in the past couple weeks.  Life has this funny way of creeping up on you sometimes and then throwing everything at you at once.  Easily knocking you smack down on your bum.  The past few weeks have felt like I was sinking.  Not even treading water anymore. Just slowly sinkng to the bottom of the ocean. Yep, it’s fall again. My favorite season for all the cool weather and changing leaves.  Not my favorite for the major adjustments that need to be made within this family structure.  But it is what it is.  And it seems pretty ironic that the second weekend after school starts, our town welcomes the fair with all its organized chaos, greasy foods and rides designed to make you puke and scramble your brain. Really? I was kinda feeling scrambled all on my own even without the fair…which of course we had to bring all four kids to!

Anyway, what kind of momma would I be if I didn’t start at the beginning of this whirlwind  two weeks and post some sort of ‘first day of school’ images? M started the day before everyone else, and is always ready to pose.  It was her idea to use daddy’s ‘stang

The following day, H joined M at the  bus stop.  H hates posing for pictures!  Of course, there was no way we were letting her get out of this one.  I am amazed at how tall she has gotten over the summer…yes, she is exactly the same height as I am and she is not quite thirteen yet!  I really wanted to show the difference in height between the girls, but of course H couldn’t resist a little playful tormenting.

Now this next one is huge. Huge!  C’s first day of school. EVER!  He is just four and starting preK this year.  To say he was excited for school would be an understatement. He actually had an hour long orientation/practice day last week (stay tuned for another blog post on that), but this week was his real first day.  Sadly, DH was away for work and missed it, but C was too excited for it to bother him. He helped me pick out his clothes, and I was quite happy at his long-sleeveT selection:)  Oh, and that great guy on the right? That’s ‘Old Man’ from across the street.  He just had to be there to chat with C about his big day and see him off.  I love that this day meant almost as much to the neighbors as it did to me.

C is also a tough one to pose.  He NEVER looks at the camera and has developed the habit of flashing ‘the peace sign.’  Where did he learn that anyway? Since M had used the Mustang to pose with, I thought Daddy would appreciate it if his only son did as well.

After some good conversation, it was finally that time.  The bus had arrived to take my little man off to his first afternoon of PreK. I shockingly didn’t cry. And he climbed onto  that bus without ever looking back.

Miss I and myself really enjoyed a quiet afternoon, and she took an amazing nap. Me? No naps for this girl.  Instead I tried to concentrate on editing while I anxiously awaited all the stories the kids had to tell about their day. See, no matter how crazy the mornings are, how much work and homework is still left to be done, how tight finances are at a time when both the refrigerator and the microwave decide to break, no matter how bumpy this ride called life gets….the moment those smiling faces cross the street ready to share every part of their day makes every bump worth it.  And yes, those bumps seem like mountains when you are standing at the bottom, but really….really it is just a tiny bump in the end.

I have said it before and I will say it again.  Photographing teenage boys sometimes makes me nervous.  It’s a little weird. I know. And even scarier is when you show up to the session and THREE teenage boys crawl out of a vehicle!  But then something amazing happens, and they are just easy going and ready to do whatever I ask of them.

So here is Joey. 

      Winthrop Senior.

              Class of 2011.

Varsity football player…

…AirForce bound…

…loyal friend. Remember how I mentioned three teenage boys yesterday? Yep, these are Joey’s best buds.  And if you have been following along at all the boy down there on the right should look familiar.  Senior rep, Colby. You can see him here, here, and oh yes, here!  Yes, this would make Colby’s FIFTH time in front of my lens this year…and all voluntarily!   

I warned the boys that this last image was most definitely going to be on the blog.  The shot was all their idea and they almost didn’t ask if I would shoot it.  We had wrapped up the session at “The Point” in Winthrop where the boys had explained they spent their whole summer kneeboarding together, so when I announced Joey’s session was finished unless there was something else they had in mind, the response was: Well, there is this one thing…

I am not sure at this point of my little fear of shooting teenage boys just disappeared or suddenly intensified.

Joey (and Colby & Danny), thanks for bringing a little fun to your senior session.  Hope you enjoyed your sneak peek and your full gallery will be available soon!