Seems like my families have a lot of boys, which means, LOTS of energy.  Which in turn stresses mom out, thinking there’s no way they’ll have a good photo for their Christmas card.  But I just eat it up.  The kids make me laugh and I love it when their spirited-ness shines through!

Check out these cuties!

Dad’s idea.  LOVE. IT.

Coolest. family. ever.

Could you just die?

These kids crack me up!

These little tigers go everywhere with him.

There’s just something I love about this.

A couple of months ago Bobbi emailed me and told me her family was going to be in Santa Cruz for a few days and wanted to see about flying me up there to do some photos.  FUN!  Of course!

So we made it happen!  I got to spend a few days getting to know her family and it was such a fun time.  I got to stay at Mt. Hermon Conference Center.  BEAUTIFUL!  We did a little photo shoot around the camp.

Kayleen decided it would be fun to eat leaves.

Look at these handsome guys!

And beautiful girl!

Silly faces are fun.

The next day we went exploring.  We went to this park that had an old covered bridge.  Uuummmm… yes please!

We heard that there were a couple of places in Santa Cruz that the monarch butterflies come to rest on their journey south to… wherever it is they go.  The first one we went to, I think we counted about 10 butterflies.  To say that the kids (and I) were underwhelmed would be a big understatement.  But the next day we went to another one and saw TONS!  It was really cool!

These kids are super active so it wasn’t long before they were climbing up trees.

Even Kayleen got in on the fun!

It doesn’t really show here, but they were kinda high up.  It made me a little nervous, I’m not gonna lie.  But my cousin Bobbi wasn’t nervous at all.  I love mom’s like that!

Look at that smile!  She is one good natured little girl.

Then we headed down to the beach.  The kids had so much fun and definitely didn’t want to leave.  They were soaked!

Then we popped over to see the redwoods for a little bit.  This would be the part of the day where the clouds came in and it got really cold.  And then… it started to pour!  The kids were already wet so it didn’t really matter.  They didn’t complain at all…. yeah right!

I loved how there was a little beam of light coming through the trees right on this bench.  She looked so tiny amongst these HUGE trees!

Such a beautiful area!  I had so much fun connecting with family.  Thanks so much, Bobbi, for flying me up there!  Your kids are just wonderful and some of the best behaved kids I’ve ever met.  They are just really cool people!  Merry Christmas!

The light that day was yuuuuuuumy!

Chris let me borrow his 35mm 1.4.  He said that this shoot was going to end up being expensive for me.  After using the lens for a while I understood what he meant.  I. NEED. THAT. LENS.

Masha is Russian, so I loved this sweet little necklace that she had.

Hahahaha!

They say you can tell a lot about a girl by her shoes.  Especially her favorite shoes.

One’s a little dare devil, a gymnast.  The other loves ruffles and sparkles.

We decided to get some ice cream.  It was my idea.  Clearly I don’t have children.  Do you know how drippy ice cream is?  Especially chocolate ice cream?  Do you know how much it shows on your clothes.  Right.  A LOT.

We managed to turn her skirt around so the chocolate-y drips didn’t show.

Oops…. nope, you can see them in this one.

Thanks again Eggleston family!  I think you’re great!

The happy couple!

It’s clear who the real star of the show is though.

Oh my gosh!  Could you just die?

Now can you imagine how much fun it was for a mom of 3 boys, who’s favorite color is pink, to decorate a nursery for a girl!  SO much fun!

The baby photo below is actually a photo of mom, Jennifer.  It’s so cool to see the family resemblance.

Found out pretty quickly that she didn’t like laying on her tummy.

Well hello!

Bubbles

When the boys first found out they were going to have a little sister they decided that they should call her “Sweetheart”.

This photo just cracks me up for some reason.  The tilted frame with the little army men underneath is just a snapshot of life with 6 year old triplets!

I don’t think this girl is gonna have any trouble holding her own!  Look at that kick!

I couldn’t pick a favorite.  I just love this series.

Thank you for inviting me into your home!  Your family is precious!

Some little hams!

Never underestimate the strength of 3 brothers!

The photo on the right cracks me up!  I think he likes getting his picture taken!

Time for a little snack.

Don’t you just love the expression?

Ahhhh… the picture of brotherly love…

…. oops!  Well… that didn’t last long!

What a beautiful mama!

Thanks for such a great afternoon, guys!

This family was such a blessing to photograph.  The daddy of this little peanut is one great husband!  He gave his wife a gift certificate for a family shoot with me for Christmas.  When I asked what this little sweetie likes, mom, Jennifer, told me she loves trains and balloons.  So I grabbed some balloons and spent the afternoon playing around the Los Rios District.  The owner of the flower shop even came out and gave this little cutie a pretty rose to match her pink tutu.  So sweet!  It’s days like these that make me so grateful to do what I do.

Gotta get one of mom and dad.

She liked watching her shadow jump!

Such a precious family.  Thank you for allowing me to spend the afternoon with you!