C. Family | Family Session in Tucson Arizona

So I have had the honor of photographing this adorable family for 3 years.  I hope I get to photograph them for many more!  They have grown right along with me and they are expecting their 3rd little one early next year!!  We had a beautiful session at Gates Pass in Tucson.  The weather was still a bit warm but they were troopers as I made them hike all over. I cannot lie, these guys are seriously the silliest family I have ever photographed.  Their sessions are always full of laughs and tickle fights. I can't wait to hang out with you guys again when I am back in Tucson for my spring sessions!!

E. Family | Family Storytelling in Tucson Arizona

I was graciously inviting in the Emery home.  Kelli is an amazing photographer here in Tucson and she reached out for an in home documentary session because their pup Lulu was going to undergo surgery the following day.  So much of their session was focused on her. This was the very first time a family invited me into their home for a documentary session that didn't involve a newborn- I was really nervous.. not to mention she is an awesome photographer her self and it's always new wracking to photograph another photographer.  

Towards the end of our session Kelli asked for a few 'posed' (and I use that term really lightly) photos on their bed with their family surrounding their pup with love.  E. Family, I know you are surround your sweet pup with love while she recovers from her surgery!  Thank you so much for inviting me into your home!

R. Family | Military Homecoming in Tucson Arizona

Haylea is a fellow photographer here in Tucson and I was so honored when she asked me to be part of their homecoming.  When we first connected a few months ago I knew we would become friends.  Haylea is so wonderful and up lifting.  Her husband Ryan had been gone since the beginning of the year and I had yet to meet him.  Our evening started off a little bit crazy, we decided to head out about 30 minutes early to sneak in a mommy and me session of her and her beautiful son at sunset but she called me because she locked her keys in her car!  I was luckily by her friends house that had her spare and I was able to get it to her in time.  By the time we made it to my open desert the sun was nearly gone but we had about 5 minutes of light left.  It was totally worth it.  I am glad we decided to head out early because if we hadn't we may have missed Ryan's flight!  We got to the airport with about 30 minutes to spare and we had some fun playing around before Ryan arrived.  That night there were several service members coming home, it was a really wonderful night.  I am so glad this little family is reunited again and I hope they have quite sometime before they are separated once more.

W. Family | Military Homecoming in Tucson Arizona

Military Homecomings have a very special place in my heart.  I can honestly say that they are my second favorite type of session (right behind births). This was a huge homecoming where roughly 300 service members were arriving home from one of our base's biggest deployments ever.   Whenever I am at the airport, or on the flight line waiting very impatiently for that plane to arrive, this quote always runs though my head.

 "Whenever I get gloomy with the state of the world, I think about the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. General opinion's starting to make out that we live in a world of hatred and greed, but I don't see that. It seems to me that love is everywhere. Often it's not particularly dignified or newsworthy, but it's always there – fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives, boyfriends, girlfriends, old friends. When the planes hit the Twin Towers, as far as I know none of the phone calls from the people on board were messages of hate or revenge – they were all messages of love. If you look for it, I've got a sneaky feeling you'll find that love actually is all around." -Love Actually

The amount of love and anticipation in the room is really an adrenaline rush.  No matter who is coming home, my hands get clammy, I get butterflies in my stomach and my mind starts going a million miles a minute.  

The W. Family has been counting down the days for months for this one special moment.  I am so honored that Amber asked me to be there with them.  I got to document this homecoming a bit different than my normal homecomings because Amber also happens to live just 4 houses away from me.  I loved being able to be in their home while they finished their final preparations for Andrew to come home.  It was raining and cool out it was also 10:00pm.  Since this homecoming had so many people arriving home it was held on base which is always amazing.  The news was there, and so many of my photographer friends were there as well.  The happiness in this hanger was radiating well beyond the hanger it's self.  Thank You W. Family for letting me be part of this wonderful moment in your life~

I also wanted to put a little PSA here.. I get booked out for homecomings months in advance.  This specific homecoming has been booked since February- it also unfortunately overlapped with another homecoming booked out a few months ago as well and I could only be in one place.  It's is very important to communicate with your photographer and your spouse as much as possible when it gets close to the homecoming.  Please inform your spouse that you have hired someone to be there with you, this could alleviate a lot of confusion. For this specific homecoming I had people calling and messaging me all the way up until 5pm on the day of arrival.  

If you need a homecoming photographer I have two available spots open for the remaining of the year, one in September and one in November.

Melanie and Caleb | Expecting in Tucson

Melanie and Caleb have been great friends for a couple of years. They are the only people we trust with our fur baby Pocket, he loves visiting their house when we go out of town.  Melanie is due in July with their second little one and I am so beyond thrilled for my amazing friends!!

Jessie and Jon | In Love in Tucson

Jessie and Jon are two of the sweetest people I have ever met in my entire life.  I documented their engagement and wedding last year.  This year I suckered them into an early morning session at Sunrise.  I can't wait to see what the future holds for these two!

Stephanie and Danny | Expecting in Tucson

This family was such a dream to work with. When Stephanie contacted me, I was so excited for this session.  She is a labor and delivery nurse here at the Birth Center.  She has attended a few of the births I have photographed!  She is expecting her new one (they will find out the sex when he/she is born) in just a few weeks.  I can't wait to work with them again!!!

Rachel and Stan | In Love in Tucson

I have photographed Rachel and Stan a few times before.  I did their lovely engagement photos a few years ago and followed up with some Maternity and Documentary photos a couple years later.  

This session was such an amazing experience for me.  Their session is the start of my new path.  They have trusted me from the very beginning and now I am hoping they love their gallery as much as I do!