I last photographed them 3 years ago, and this is the sweet littlest sister. . .

If that seems a bit familiar, when I saw those purple flowers near the bench at our session I immediately thought of one of my all time favorite photographs, which happens to be of the very same subject, photographed in 2011!

While this time, 3 years later, there was still plenty of sweetness, there was also a bit more spunk and confidence.  Certainly the mark of an upcoming 2nd grader!

Moving on to middle sister, who I feel an instant connection with, as a middle child myself

And finally, big sister, who I think has changed the most in the last 3 years, particularly if you only consider added inches. . . she measured up right next to me at 5’4″ and is just a hair away from surpassing her mother!

It was such a gorgeous evening and I was so happy to spend it with these lovely  ladies!

. . . as I was going through their images on my computer I just couldn’t stop smiling!

I think it’s pretty evident how fun and loving they are. . .

. . . and how chock full of personality this little man is!

Who wouldn’t want to hang out with this cutie, right?!

Three is definitely a magic number!

Before we wrapped the session, we did “the” pose, which was suggested by one of the boys at their very first session with me years ago.  I love that I’ve gotten to capture this awesome crew so many times through the years!

Pigtails get me every time. . . and the set on this little beauty are definitely in the running for best ever!

Lest his little sister steal the show, this handsome guy was quite the ham, too.  It happened to be a very special day, his 4th birthday!  I was delighted that he’d share a few moments of his special day with me and loved hearing about his plans for the dinosaur birthday party on tap later that afternoon.

I’ll finish off with one great shot of the entire family, set in front of one of my favorite Bozeman backdrops. . .

We had fun piggy back rides and sweet moments between brother and sister. . .

A boy and his dog. . .

And even some jumping for joy before it was all over!

I love getting to capture that age. . . she’s got lots of personality, little self-consciousness and loads of cuteness.  And to capture that time when their mouths have a few toothless gaps is so fleeting and precious!

Although, even though little brother has a full mouth of baby teeth, he’s just as adorable!  I love, love his sweater romper!

It’s easy to see where those kiddos get their adorableness. . .

Such a sweet, loving, good-looking family!

I also absolutely LOVE how well this trio of siblings got along!  They were not only adorable, but so well mannered and sweet to each other!

And. . . those CURLS!  Aren’t they just to die for?!  Such beautiful girls!

Not to leave brother out, by any means.  I first photographed this handsome guy at his preschool 3 years ago.  Those pictures are quite possibly some of my favorite preschool photos ever.  He still knows how to work the camera!

Such a great family and I was honored to have them in front of my camera!

Like most good Montana families, theirs includes a dog.  I absolutely adore this first shot of the entire family — color-coordinated leash and all!  This pooch is definitely one of the family!

These two boys were like a glimpse into my own future. . . a few years old than my 2 boys, their personalities and bonds really struck a chord of familiarity!  Older brother is a little more reserved and younger brother is full of spunk, yet you could see in one glimpse how much they love and admire each other.

As you can see, even without their canine member, they make quite a handsome family!

This family was the perfect group to end my first day of shooting in Montana.  Aside from the gorgeous scenery, the 3 kiddos were pretty darn spectacular (and adorable!) too!

Pure Montana gold!

The entire family was looking pretty good, in fact!

And despite the chilly temps, they were having so much fun that Mom suggest laying in the colorful fallen leaves. . . a great suggestion!

A perk of going to Bozeman in the fall is that you get to experience a bit of Bobcat football frenzy!  Bozemanites love their Bobcats and when this family requested a photo in their team gear, I just couldn’t resist!

Except for the fact that it was only 16 degrees F outside!  My poor little 4-year-old client was absolutely too frozen to smile!

But, after some snuggles and kisses from mom and dad, he warmed right up!

Since it was so bitter cold, I offered them the opportunity to come back for a few more photos during my afternoon sessions.  At least 30 degrees warmer, we didn’t even need mom and dad kisses to bring on the smiles this time!

I had such a great time seeing this dear family twice in one day — I’m so glad they were such troopers!

At that moment, I remembered this image and thought, what a difference 3 months makes!

I shared a few other images from this beauty’s session a while back, but was saving this one for the perfect time.  Yesterday, in all that snow, I realized it was the perfect time!

So, one day last week, while little brother was peacefully napping, I met up with my son in his room and we spent about half an hour playing, talking, and having fun while I snapped away.

Did I mention silly?  We had plenty of that, too!

I’ll go ahead and admit right now that this way more than a sneak peek.  I typically only share a few images from each session on my blog, but since this just happens to be one of my absolute favorite people in the world (tied evenly with his little brother!) I’m sharing almost all of my favorites.  Which gives you a bit of an idea what you’ll get from a typical session with me.

All of those images were taken in front of the dresser in his room.  Who says you have to be limited when doing an indoor on-location photo shoot?  The beauty of taking photos in his space is that he was totally comfortable.  And I got to capture him in his element doing one of his favorite things–playing with his race cars.  Definitely something I’ll want to look back and remember about his preschooler days!

I convinced him to head to our family room for a few more photos before calling it a wrap.  After a few more minutes, he looked up at me and asked, “can I have my treat now?”  He definitely knows all of my tricks!

I’ll finish up by wishing a great big Happy Birthday to my favorite 4-year-old boy!  And I’ll add that if you have a young one with a birthday coming up, I’d love to capture their personality so you can always remember these days that pass way too quickly!

Here goes my inaugural “Friday Favorites”. . .

1.  Cost Plus World Market chocolate bars! The Pomegranate Dark Chocolate is divine and you can’t beat the price for gourmet chocolate!

2.  Swix Lobster Mitts are perfect for a day of play outside on a cold Montana day.  I love mine for cross-country skiing, but they’re also my go-to gloves for walking the dog around the block, sledding with my kids, or even strolling through downtown on a sub-10 degree day.  They keep your hands as toasty as mittens, but with the split fingers (they look like “lobster” claws) you have more mobility.

3.  I’ll keep this week short and sweet and wrap things up with two of my absolute favorite things in the world, my boys.  Maybe I should say it’s three of my absolute favorite things in the world–Hayden, Benjamin, and seeing them share a loving moment!

I’m a member of the Professional Photographer’s of America and am headed to their annual conference for the next 4 days.  It’s in San Antonio this year so it will be nice to thaw out from Montana’s cold for a few days!

I will definitely miss those two boys, but am excited to meet up with lots of other photographers and come back with new ideas and inspiration to make 2011 a fantastic year!

With a 1 1/2-year-old and a 3-year-old in the house, my days are never dull!  There are cars and trucks and trains and books and more cars and laughter and tears and sharing and fighting and jumping and rough-housing and fun and an occasional snuggle.

Oh, and there’s plenty of “handsomeness” too.  When I found out my second child was going to be a boy, I was happy, but conflicted.  Excited for my older son to have a brother, but a bit disappointed I wouldn’t have a daughter.  My nurse (a mother of 2 boys) said that while she doesn’t have a princess, she gets to be their princess.  Let me tell you, her perspective was exactly right.  I do feel like a lucky princess to have 2 wonderfully handsome princes (and their handsome, princely father) in my life!

I got the princess treatment this day when this little prince was surprisingly eager to let me take his picture.  He was even more eager to show off how old he’ll be when his birthday rolls around at the end of January.  Being 4 takes practice, you know!

He’s definitely got a share of “silly”. . .

And sometimes “shy” and “sleepy” (as he told me as he put his head down on the bench). . .

As much as he wants to be a “big boy,” I’m savoring every last bit of “baby” that I can.  And I know that even when the “baby” is gone, he’ll still have those fabulous long eyelashes. . .

That big, happy grin. . .

And a smile that will always make his mama’s heart melt!

. . . with a very awesome connection–twin sisters!

Although the sun was shining, the temperatures in Bozeman on January 1st were in the single digits.  So we did lots of snuggling and hugging. . .

And the big kids braved the cold for a few minutes without their coats, even giving me some beautiful smiles!

We’re going to wait for a warmer spring day to get the little guys out there without coats, but they were all troopers and we managed a fun extended family photo before jumping back in the car to thaw out our fingers and toes!

I’m thinking that last one would make a fun canvas, don’t you? 

Well, all of my fabulous clients made that a very, very challenging task!  And in the end, I couldn’t even do it. . . so here are 11 of my favorites from the year.  And if I looked through all of my files again in an hour I’d probably come up with a completely different 10 (or 11 or 12 ).

Here’s to a fabulous 2011!  Happy New Year!