the bilkey beauties

though the promised temps of "in the fifties" ceased to hold true (mixed in with a bit of an angerball wind, forcing us inside to our giant window destination of light and warmth), the sweet little brown-eyed bilkey sisters were still ready to rock the shoot with some new props, a bit of sass, and a giant orange bowl of jellybeans. just in case.
and with crazy cute smiles (and plenty of luscious curly locks that make me oh-so-jealous), they cannot help it. my lens adores their doe-eyed innocence. and we even got to pretend like it was spring. almost.

little olivia..

and big sister, ella.

the bilkey sisters. (and yes they have celebrity look-a-likes, do you recall??)




first, some block stacking and crashing with olivia..

and plenty of climbing and exploring.

then down to some serious model time with ella.

you know we mean business when the tinkerbell costume comes out...

(adore.)

the bilkey beauties.

sometimes sisters and jellybeans are really good together.

and very necessary. but we will never tell.
because that's what sisters do.

the super stylin (and quite lovely) lokker family

hiking through the woods in high heel boots (NOT me...)with color coordinated outfits, million dollar smiles, and laughter that could be heard *almost* a million miles away, you would think it would be all about the lovely lokker family. but it wasn't.
because how could we forget about their furry family member, colby, in hot pursuit of a hike of her own sniffing, the infamous bear from below who was *apparently* not home (according to his note), and of course mr. peeps. how could I go anywhere without my dear little red helper friend? and yes andrew, he is very funny. but dear sweet boy, you are SO funny. you ALL are.

and you are so full of life and love. it oozes from every one of your images. including my absolute favorite.....EVER.

this one doesn't rank very far behind...





yes, the adorable andrew.... with a face that cannot help but make you smile. a million miles wide.





























seriously. this shoot was all about the moments in between. and this family sure knows how to live them up.























I think they may be supermodels on the side as well....



and to go from preferring to be in any room but where I was to racing with "aunt missy" (yes I pretty much would have done anything for this boy, including giving him *all* of my stickers, I mean stickers from mr. peeps that is...)

I think you should know, andrew, that you have already sealed the heartbreaker status at the ripe age of three.



I think this may have been the best hike EVER.

next time, I will remember to wear my super cool hiking boots. and even mr. peeps might dress up for the occasion, too.

a montage of the shared love, strength and faith between one family

one AMAZING family.































nick schaap. you are an INSPIRATION.



thank you.

sassy lil ballerinas, a sweet blue-eyed boy, and a side of cake

mini dance breakdowns including fast spinning twirls and some fly breakdancing, tickle sessions from my dear birdie friend whom often sits on my shoulder (sometimes head) as my assistant, sticker sticking, cake mashing (and a whole lot of eating of it, too- by everyone),cars racing through tubes, some supermodel breaks (and maybe a few breakdowns but we will never tell...),and the finale of bathtime in a sink.
all before noon. but you would never have known it.

my *very* favorite image of the day.

and so it unfolds...

two sweet, lil sassy ballerinas.
(really, tutus bring out the sass in all of us. especially the pink ones.)

one with big ol gorgeous brown eyes...

and the sweetest, most sincere laugh.







the other with bright, blue curious eyes......

and the most squishy, kissable cheekers. my favorite.





did I mention the adorable, blonde hair, blue eyed, super awesome big brother?

(a superhero undercover, actually, saving us from a many of meltdowns with his gentle, sweet soul)




it doesn't get any more fun than this.




well, maybe it does. one word: cake.



and a one year old on a mission.

(who me??)

yes this may have been the best morning ever.

what better way to complete a fairytale beginning than with a magical star wand





and a warm, sunlit bath.


and they were happy.

ever after.