What a fun session this one was!!  My client wanted her Christmas card this year to include her Grandma’s delicious sugar cookie recipe.  Together we came up with a plan to photograph her kids baking and decorating cookies to use on the card.  The kids loved whipping together the dough, but nothing compared to when the frosting and sprinkles came out.  Oh, the fun they had!

One of the many things I love about my job is putting together invitations and announcements for my clients.  For the past few years I’ve had the opportunity to create “Stache Bash” invites for wonderful clients of mine who host this annual event in honor of the Movember movement.   My client along with his teammates grow mustaches for the entire month of November in an effort to raise funds and awareness to men’s health (especially cancers that affect men).  This has turned into quite the movement and last year the Minnesota Wild and 1,131 fans broke a Guinness World Record for the largest gathering of mustaches.  It has been so fun watching this movement grow and gather more momentum with each passing year.   I especially love that there are people out there who are willing to use their talents to raise money and awareness to a cause they believe in!  Here’s a peek at the invite we came up with for this year’s event:

My job as a photographer has allowed me to work with some pretty amazing people in my lifetime.  Susan is one of them!  I’m not sure if I’ve ever met someone who gives so much of themselves as Susan.  If she’s not participating in 3-day cancer walks, she’s volunteering at school or hosting fundraisers for other causes she feels passionate about.  Her generosity and selfless attitude is so incredibly inspiring and I know is appreciated by so many people in her life.  I’ve loved getting to know Susan and her family over the past few years and it’s been such a treat to watch her boys grow into gentlemen.  Not surprisingly,  her sons are sweet, compassionate and full of life…just like their parents.  Here are just a few of the images from their recent session:

This little man was recently welcomed home by his loving parents and big brother.  He arrived at the studio wide awake and ready to play, but once he fell asleep he was out like a light.  I couldn’t get over his head full of hair…how cute is that?!  Janice, thank you so much for bringing him to the studio for his first portrait session.  You guys were so great to work with!

Within the first 5 minutes of my session with Megan I knew I was working with someone special.  What started out with a simple question about where she was planning to go to college led to a conversation about how she planned to go to medical school to study oncology.  She shared her mom’s cancer story and filled me in on a student group she started to support other families affected by cancer.  Megan works nearly full-time between several jobs, has an overwhelming course load including a few college classes, and volunteers with her student group.  I think it’s safe to say that Megan is not your ordinary high school senior.  She is one driven, passionate, and determined young lady.  Megan, I’m so proud of all the work you’re doing for a cause you so strongly believe in!  Best wishes as you finish out your final year of high school!

I’ve been working with this family for several years and have heard them talk on several occasions about the vintage car they own.  Imagine my delight when they arrived for their session in said car!  I knew immediately I needed to incorporate this incredible car that the dad has spent so much time working on into their family photos.  We headed out for their shoot and had such a fun time together.  The girls are always so full of life and have the sweetest personalities.  I only see these girls once a year but the oldest one always remembers my name and doesn’t miss a beat when we start shooting.  This year was certainly no exception!  After we finished shooting family pictures she grabbed my hand and led me off to another shooting spot that was all her own. When it was her little sister’s turn for individual photos my little helper didn’t leave my side serving as quite the apprentice.   It’s crazy the bond that develops between myself and the kids when we work together time and time again…which of course means I like to spoil the kiddos after a session.   We wrapped up this shoot by stopping off at our locally owned candy store where I let the girls pick out a special treat (or two).  It’s so fun for me to think that these girls will likely remember our photo sessions together for many years to come.

Oh, the excitement!!!!

Mom and Dad agreed to let each of the girls have an ice cream cone before they left.  We went outside and I watched the following scene play out right in front of me!

Big sister offered little sister a taste of ice cream, but turned at the very last minute deciding it might be better to keep it for herself.  Little sister thought this was HILARIOUS.  Big sister offered, quite convincingly, again to share her ice cream and BAM!  Right when little sister went in for a taste she flipped her head and all little sister got was a mouth full of hair.  HA!!

Eventually they both decided to share a taste of their cones with one another.

And then all was well with the sisters again!

Up here in the north woods we try to be prepared for any kind of weather…sleet, snow, rain, you name it.  I thought I’d shot in just about every kind of weather, but on the day of Maddie’s high school senior session we were met with an entirely new challenge which was WIND.  Not just a little wind either!  We were dealing with gusts up to 50 mph at times.  Luckily, Maddie had a great sense of humor about it and we found a little area tucked between some buildings that helped protect us just a bit.  Throughout the session we just had to laugh as we were yelling back and forth just to hear each other over the wind.  It must have been quite the scene to say the least.  Maddie was such an easy subject to photograph…even with the unusual windy weather.  Maddie, have a great senior year at Hudson High School!  I had a blast working with you!

I recently photographed these adorable kiddos and had a lot of fun in the process.  The little boy has a love of pirates and I can’t tell you how impressed he was of my knowledge of all things pirates.  Needless to say, he and I hit it off “straight away, matey”….arrrrrgh!  The little girl was such a little princess and I just had to giggle at how much she loved changing from one outfit to another.  She was so sweet and oh, so cute which certainly made my job easy.  Unfortunately, our first shoot was cut short because of rain but I drove our to their house a few days later to wrap it up.  When I finished the 2nd shoot I walked into the family room and captured a shot of the little boy playing legos with his dad.  As a mama of two young boys I know this scene all too well!  To the Pirate and the Princess…thanks so much for a fun day(s)!

We have been so unbelievably spoiled this year with the weather.  Typically in October I’m shooting in multiple layers of clothing and I have to rely on my trusty mittens with the fingers cut off to get me through a shoot.  But not this year!  No, siree!  This year we’ve had well above average temperatures which has made my job so fun this season.  To be shooting outside with all the beautiful fall colors without feeling like I’ll have frostbite at the end of a session is such a treat!  Claire and I were able to spend a good portion of her session outdoors and dare I say that both of us even got a little hot when we were standing directly in the sun.  We had such a fun time together and by the end of the session I think we had shared more giggles than anyone else I’ve ever photographed before.  Perhaps we were both giddy over the unusually warm weather?!  At any rate, we had a blast and I had a hard time calling an end to the session.  Claire, have a great senior year at White Bear High School.  I’ll be anxious to hear where you decide to go to college!

Every time I photograph a high school boy I can’t help but think of what it will be like when my own sons grow up and are seniors.  It’s hard to believe how fast time is flying already and with the number of high school kids I see each and every year it is a constant reminder that all too soon my boys will be graduating.  As hard as it is to think about, when I photograph kids like Mitchell I’m filled with hope that maybe it won’t be so bad after all!  Mitchell, a Hill-Murray High School senior, is not only incredibly smart but he’s also an all-star soccer player (his club team just recently won the State Championship and went on to win the National Surf Cup Championship PLUS he’s the captain of his high school soccer team).  Additionally, Mitchell is a Student Council Representative, Link Leader, CARE Representative, and he volunteers regularly with various student groups.  The best part is that Mitchell didn’t utter a word about any of this. It wasn’t until I started prying him about how he spends his time that I started getting some of these details.  He was so vague and so unassuming about his accomplishments and that alone was impressive.   When I chatted with his mom I wasn’t surprised at all to hear that they have college recruiters from around the country knocking at his door.  Congratulations on all the things coming your way, Mitchell…you definitely deserve it!