Sydney

And now for a Sydney feature. . . . She was super excited about doing a photoshoot with just her. We went to the mall and we picked out a dress which she made the final decision on, and then she saw these sunglasses that she really wanted to have for the pictures. She has so much personality, and it always amazes me how different our two girls are. If someone, asks Sydney if she is a princess, she usually answers something like this. "No, my sister Riley is a princess, I only like princesses a little bit. " Truth be told, Sydney would much rather be digging in the dirt, running around, riding her bike, playing blocks, or doing gymnastics. She is also my helper and the very best big sister. I am already having anxiety thinking about her heading off to kindergarten next fall.



Sporting her new shades








That is a great face . . .


Love that smile




Her dancing skills, I think she got from me. A little too funny.


I love getting to just freeze a moment of that pure, unrestrained happiness!












Right after this, I was eating leaves

Riley Jean is growing up. . .

It is about time one of the Hawkins girls got some blog love. Sydney will be featured in a future post, but we had a mini photo shoot with Riley tonight so here are some faves. It has been a little over 2 1/2 years that RJ has been a part of our lives. She never fails to bring a smile to our faces. Riley is convinced that she is a princess. And we pretty much agree. Mark and I saw this quote when we were in a shop recently that seemed perfect for Riley. It said, "I am fairly certain that given a cape and a nice tiara, I could save the world." For Riley, we would have to amend it to say "given a [wand] and a nice tiara . . . " since she is rarely without her wand and her tiara.


There is something about kids and dandelions.


Love that she is trying to blow dandelion seeds when there are no seeds yet.


She was trying to convince me that she was sleeping. Hmmmm?!


Love this series


Can you see why she keeps smiles on our faces?




Her laugh is contagious.






So she is running toward me to give me a great big hug!


Beautiful!


So magical and happy just like my Riley.

Ryan and Becky

Preface: So...I will be posting my resume up on monster.com if any of you high paying employers want to take a look! Why you may ask?...We'll Kelly has finally surpassed me in shooting ability. Check out how she cleaned house and took names on this engagement shoot. -Mark


Mark and I had such a great time doing this shoot with Ryan and Becky. I have known Ryan for a long time. He and his family go to our church, and he was in my high school chemistry class quite a few years back. And now he is getting married in just 6 weeks! It was nice to get to know Becky more. I am so glad that these two found each other. They are a great match and have so much fun together.

Here is the happy couple


We hung out at Bayshore park which is one of our favorite spots.




Bear hug

Overlooking the bay.


I love how Ryan looks at Becky.


And how Becky looks at Ryan.




Gotta love a little flare.


Doing a little exploration of the caves at Bayshore.


Love this scene



One thing I haven't mentioned is that Ryan is very, very tall. Becky gets to stand on her tiptoes a lot.


Perfect end to a great time.


Enjoy the slideshow. We are looking forward to the wedding.

Ryan and Becky's Engagement Session

Amber

So we took a drive up to Pembine to hang out with Amber and her family for some photo fun. Amber's family is a lot like my own in their history of moving up to Pembine so her parents could attend Northland. Amber's dad is an electrician/pastor like my own dad...so I immediately felt like we had something in common. I thought the session went super smooth, and the pictures are pretty cool. Check 'em out!



My thanks goes out to Dave Jackson for my lighting inspiration!

What can I say...Kelly love's the weeds...not weed...weeds. Gotta please the wife too!





I was talking to Amber's sister, and when I turned around she had this pose going on...totally natural.



This is my style of family photo.

Amber's Senior Pictures