That boy-kind-of-joy... Aubrey, TX Gonzales, TX photographer

Just tonight, with the Texans game on in the background, my boys were playing football. Or, “...practicing tackling so we can get way better. Right West?” Their league rules were something like:

1. Hold the couch pillow “ball” and run as fast as you can into eachother’s stomachs. Grab hold of whatever you can and tackle until both of you are sprawled on the floor and laughing hysterically.
2. Be sure to tackle dramatically. Grunt a little. Enough to make your mother and sister glad they are not boys.
3. Occasionally check the score of the Texans game.
4. Repeat.

Marveling at why this was fun, I was secretly so glad they have eachother. So glad that they’ll grunt, run, and knock into one another with that boy kind of joy in their eyes, Lord willing, for years to come. 

I think Natalie must know exactly what I’m talking about. Maybe even more with three handsome, little men in her midst.

You met this gorgeous lady about seven months ago when I had the privilege of photographing her third baby boy. 

Speaking of, check out this rock star. 

He and I were getting reacquainted...

when his brother showed up. Not even mildly impressed with me {exhibit a}, his brother had him in fits {exhibit b}. 

And again...

Just as it should be. 

Many years from now, even though they’re not all smiling at the camera, I’m guessing mama will love these pictures the most. Her boys. Loving with that boy kind of joy.

Thanks again, Natalie. Can't wait for more later this fall.

P.S. if you need a girl break, just let me and my baby girl know.

Let's do this y'all, 

jen 

a little weekend in Dallas ... dallas, TX . photographer

see this little man...

this is my buddy, Owen. our relationship started well. he was ready for his mini-session and showed his personality like a champ! 

(look at that smile)

and in an instant, i ruined his life. 
i made the biggest mistake i've made in this career. and you can bet i WON'T be doing it again.  

(this face...this is totally. my. fault.)

in the attempt to make his older (emphasis-older!) brothers laugh (i didn't even know he was listening. honest.), i blurted out... "for this next picture, i'm just looking at you kids! we're going to pretend mom and dad are in the picture, but really, i'm going to cut their heads off and show you the picture in my camera when i'm done!" 


(insert older kids laughing and me thinking i'm a genius for making them do so...) 


so this is where things take a little nose-dive for 2 yr. old Owen. but i didn't see it yet. as i looked up successfully from my "genius" humor attempt, i asked mom why in the world was my buddy wailing? 


oh y'all!


he recovered well though, and his little grin perked up for the rest of the morning. 

and so did all of the sweet faces that i was able to meet on a beautiful day in Dallas!


an amazing little lady, Joanna, organized this mini-session, hosted me from out of town, and made sure all the details were in place. 

and since i last saw her and her husband, they had brought home their gorgeous daughter from Ethiopia! i was thrilled to meet Maeve for the first time. 

she even "cooked" me pancakes with ketchup. such a lovely hostess just like her mama and daddy. 

please meet the gorgeous, kind, Peters family,

and the lovely, very sweet, Mendoza family!

thank y'all for such a great day. thank you for your patience and for making ME laugh all day!!


meeting new people, 

looking JOY directly in its eyes, 

watching families interact, 

and learning their stories 

make what i do oh so worth it. 
even when it's me learning what NOT to do.


let's do this y'all, 


jen

let's read some feet . Yoakum, TX photographer

pictures talk.
that's my favorite part about photography,

"reading a picture."

and boy do i love reading feet pictures.

faces say so much, which is a good thing, but sometimes they say too much . . . they reveal a lot at once.  every now and then, a more direct message is all you need.
feet pictures get right to the point.

i love feet pictures.

but i think we've covered that.

man, this family pulled off the feet picture well, didn't they?! 

now let's reveal the rest of the story.
meet the Poskey Family!!

this mini-session happened to be their last stop together before school started for [almost] ALL of them - Mrs. Poskey teaches high school and her grown up "babies" are in college.

not to be outdone by human feet, Cowboy the dog wanted to be in on the storytelling too.

check out what he's saying here . . .

 good job, Cowboy. you're pretty much adorable.

to the Poskeys--loved catching you before you started your fall adventures. can't wait to see all of you together again!

let's do this y'all, 

jen

small towns, chips, and beautiful people . yoakum tx photographer

Michael and I have lived in a lot of places in the time we’ve been married, and have compared city life versus small town living often. At the end of the day, we prefer what happens in a small town...walk into a restaurant, store, or the post office and know the people inside. Know their families, know their story, know what they grow in their garden. (they’ve  shared!) There’s something about community that will win that comparison for us every time. 

So, we were intrigued one week when we went out for lunch and noticed an adorable couple with adorable children and we had never seen them before. Now, I am somewhat of an “out of towner,” not having been raised here like Michael so I asked him if he knew them or went to school with them--I didn’t mean to stare but seriously, they are just a good looking family, y’all! When he said no, I thought, well then they must be here for “the wedding”.

A while back you met another couple, Kayla and Riley. This was finally the weekend they were getting married and just as I surmised, good looks run in the family...that adorable family happened to be related to the groom. Had I known I was going to photograph them a few days later, I would have lamented the fact that I had no make up on and was stuffing my face with a turkey sandwich and jalapeno chips. 

: )

After one of the most gorgeous weddings I’ve attended, I had the privilege of meeting all of the groom’s family the day after for group pictures. They were such troopers and were a pleasure to be around. In honor of everyone that was there (from a few different states), I thought I’d share a picture of the family that caught our attention just a few days before.

I told you.  Simply gorgeous.

Thank you to the entire Boening family--I loved meeting all of you!!

Let’s do this y’all, 

jen

lots of ladies surrounding this man...

Michael and I have a routine...

I call him immediately after a session because, well, I like him :)  And he is always really interested in how everything went.  [Babe-if you're not, you are a great faker! Thanks.]

We have a little routine..."[j] I'm done!" "[m] How are your pictures?"

At this point, there are a million different ways I answer.  This time though, it was...

"[j] I have no idea, but we could totally hang out with this family!"

I am a big fan of the Reyes'!

I think we actually have a lot in common including having

3 babies who are close in age. 

And aren't theirs just beauties??!!

I fell in love instantly and adored watching them be 'girls'.

And this is one daddy who's got it handled!  You should have seen this [very manly] dad fix a headband or two... :)

We've lived in LJ for about 6 months now--I love that photography is allowing me to meet such amazing people here.  Thanks Lester and Ashley...so much fun!!  [y'all want to hang out? ;) ]

Let's do this y'all...jen

It's that time of year...

Thankful...

Narrowing down what I’m thankful for and listing it off isn’t possible.  Just isn’t.  This year has been absolutely unbelievable in its’ challenges, its’ gifts, and in the overwhelming support through each circumstance!

So...it may take another year, but I am just going to have to tell you about the many pieces to this thankfulness puzzle, one at a time!

One of the greatest things about this new career is that I am able to do it wherever we go.  I am thankful that photography “travels” right along with my family.  A week or two back, we spent 6 days in Yoakum and I was able to photograph so many of our friends.  The best part was that we met in the same pasture that Me Ra drove through last year to announce the SOAR! scholarship. [by the way, SOAR! applications are being accepted starting TODAY!!!]  Believe that I thought of that every time I looked through the lens to that golden grass. Speaking of that grass, it belongs to my in-laws and I’m thankful for their support...for their willingness to give whatever they have if it helps our family.

Now meet a few other families from that great, little town.

a little camera-shy cutie...

but she was just waiting for the right time...

To the Wagners, the Jacobs, the Svecs, and the Byrnes, thank you so much for letting me spend some time with your families!!

To all of you, have an amazing Thanksgiving holiday.  I pray you rest well!

Let’s do this, y’all...

jen

Lots of boys, one pretty Mama!

See this beautiful couple?

They're our next door neighbors and our good friends!

And they are responsible for these two handsome boys...

Which is great because my son happens to think

these boys hung the moon.  

Between our houses, there are bikes, rocks, trains, trucks, and some serious play happening.

We love every minute of it.

I really wanted to try to capture the personality

of this gorgeous family...

the hunting, fishing, camping boys

balanced by the sweet, gentleness of their beautiful mama

but sometimes you just need to let boys be boys...

I love this family. 

And loved spending this evening with them.

I should go knock on their door and tell them :)