Nothing but wonderful things to say about this sweet family and their newborn in-home session near Woodburn, Oregon - you could just feel the love for this new, beautiful baby girl, it nearly brought tears to my eyes while photographing them. We only photographed in their baby's nursery where the light was the best and their main bedroom and easily captured a full gallery's worth of images. I always promise inquiring families that they don't need much space to make magic happ

As a toddler mom, I know exactly what you're thinking when I suggest a 7:30 or even 8:00 p.m. session. Because I think it, too, when making any plans. "That's bedtime." Believe me when I say that I get it. We've worked hard as mothers to build routines because they matter. A well-rested child usually means a happier child, and no one wants to intentionally throw off bedtime. So why would I ever recommend doing just that? Because the soft, golden hour lighting will give you wa

Best Family Photo Locations in Portland for Young Children

If you've ever thought, "We'll book family photos when my toddler is a little easier," I get it. Because I'm right there with you. I'm a toddler mom, too, and my days are filled with constant snack negotiations, chasing her around and wondering where she got her endless energy from because it wasn't from me or her dad lol, and wondering how someone so small can cause such destruction in just two minutes! So when parents tell me they're nervous their toddler won't cooperate du

How to Find the Right Family Photographer in Portland for Your Family

As a mama of three, she already knows how quickly the baby stage goes by, so she wanted to make sure to have captured all the baby snuggles, his little toes, breastfeeding, and his sweet baby rolls. This mama is also a teacher turned family photographer in Portland and I was so fortunate that she invited me into her home to get family photos done of her loved ones in her much loved Portland home. Her husband was working from home so he was only able to make a quick appearance

I had zero clue what newborn post-partum life was like until I had my own baby. I seriously thought it was just a cute new baby you get to hold all the time and lose a little sleep for awhile. Okay that's partly true but there's SO MUCH more to this new season of life. Hormones, learning to breastfeed, how to respond to your baby in the way they want, just to name a few. And yes, all on a few hours of sleep (if you're lucky) and still needing to make meals for yourself and de

As a family photographer I hear this concern a lot from parents. In fact, besides the #1 question, "What do I wear?" - worrying about what will happen if your kids don't behave is a close second, and honestly, I was concerned about that myself when I booked a family photographer for my own family. What If My Toddler Doesn't Get Their Usual Nap? I must warn you - what will probably happen the day of your photoshoot will be the first day your toddler skips their nap in a long w

When I first drove onto this property my jaw literally dropped. A wrought iron gate covered with ivy, opening up to a gravel driveway leading past the most beautiful blooming Locust tree...the most classic farm house with a big front porch, a tire swing hanging from the backyard's tree, baby chicks & goats, a field with tall grass to frolic in, a red brick stable... I could go on and on how bucolic this Brush Prairie farm was. A literal dream. AND this family!! The parents we

When you bought a lot of flowers from Trader Joes to make flower crowns, and you did do that for a Columbia River Gorge spring wildflower photography session, but then you leave the remaining flower crowns in the car for two days before remembering you accidentally forgot about them, and then find out that they survived miraculously and want to use them before they dry up completely, so you make one that fits your daughter's head perfectly and go out into a field with her aft