A slew of Christmas songs and lyrics are running through my head on this Christmas Eve. Can't help but love this time of year with moments like these photos where you can gather with those you love far and near, and celebrate because the birth of the Savior is here. Scarrow family, so fun to connect with you at the beautiful Union Depot in downtown St. Paul!

Often times when people think of family portraits, they picture family photos with younger kids or the cringy family poses of the 90s and early 2000s. So, let me introduce you to Kyle + Heather’s family. Instead of very posed moments, Heather let her boys explore and climb the entire portrait session, with only stopping after a few moments to take a quick picture before climbing the next hill. Her partner, Kyle, and mom also enjoyed exploring and mostly watching the two boys climb all over. I can’t stress enough how great that was for the photos, because it kept the time relaxed and the boys enthusiastic about what was happening versus the pressure and stress to smile the “right way” and stand this way or that.

​I’m not sure about you, but when I look back on my childhood, time with grandparents, aunts and uncles, and cousins were some of the best moments. There’s something about the family gathering together that allows life to slow down, the sun to seem all the more golden, and love to flow more easily. The best way to relive these moments? Talking with family about them all again – especially while looking at photos of those days, and for me growing up with my Bondy side of the family, there was always one iconic photo that we looked back on. Was it a perfect photo where everyone was looking? Honestly, can’t tell you, but it’s one taken behind my grandparent’s house with all the kids on this cement block hanging out together, cheesin’ at the camera. So to think that after taking the Newby extended family photos and getting to take a few photos to capture the cousin only moments, I might have captured one such moment? That’s a blessing!

What is it about kids that keep growing each year?! Ha! I know, but all jokes aside. Wow, time flies by. We first had the privilege of photographing the Ogren family back when no-longer-so-little Jeremiah here was a newborn. Yup, picture a newborn baby in not the greatest lighting and with a person who was just entering into the photography world. Oh my have we learned so much since that day, but the trust and privilege that Bethany and Jeff gave me all those years ago and continue to give me in documenting their family portraits means more than I can say.