I had this vision several months ago of a beautiful lifestyle Christmas session. I wanted to capture a family in their home, all decorated for Christmas and doing “Christmas-y” things. Snuggling, building gingerbread houses, decorating the tree, etc. Christmas has always been super special to me. My mom has, for as long as I can remember, made Christmas so special for us. It has created this deep love for the holiday in me. Now that I have children of my own, it is even more special. Seeing the wonder of Christmas through their eyes is truly magical for me. I wanted to capture this. I wanted to capture all this magic and wonder for another family.
I had this vision, this expectation. I assumed it would take lots of direction and guidance to get the shots I wanted – to create this vision I had. I thought that it would be difficult to make it look unforced and natural. In reality, it was so organic. They far outdid my expectations. This family is a rare breed – a unicorn family, if you will. They are fun, honest, kind, caring, hysterical and real. They were not pretentious or putting on a show, they were simply themselves and it translated so perfectly.
I met Rhanda last fall when I did their family photoshoot. We clicked. She gets me. Our core values are aligned and our senses of humor are pretty spot on, as well. I admire her hustle and her business savvy. She is someone I know I can turn to for advice and also someone I can send a funny meme to and know she’ll appreciate it – however dumb it may be. So naturally, when she asked me to do a lifestyle Christmas session for her I was thrilled. I knew it would be a fun shoot!
They had recently finished building their dream home and it was the perfect setting for this session. I spent hours at their home and it flew by. It was so special to see them interacting with their kids. They are such loving and affectionate parents and it shows in their kids. Their children know they are loved and, in turn, are growing into such amazing little people. These two kids were two of the most polite, sweet and (extremely) funny kids I’ve worked with. I am convinced Charlee could have her own hit reality TV show – she is that funny!
It was also really amazing to see the wonder and excitement in their eyes. At one point Charlee walked me around the Christmas tree pointing out all the special Christmas ornaments and telling me about her favorites. Seeing their excitement as they opened their gift and their joy as they explained that their elves had had a baby the night before was so fun. It was so funny to watch them build their gingerbread house. Charlee was practically chugging the icing and it spoke to my heart – I would absolutely do the same.
Needless to say, this session was everything I imagined and more. This family welcomed me into their home and let me be a part of some of the holiday magic and I am so very grateful they did.
It should be noted, I learned after the shoot that Andy had been telling the kids that the two elves (who had the baby elf) were brother and sister. So that should be fun to explain.
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