I’ve always wanted to get some beach family photos, but didn’t want the typical smiling at the camera wearing matching white shirts and khaki pants. The boys love the beach so much, and I wanted to capture their joy, innocence, and the pureness in their love right now.
These were taken by Chloe Bee Photography and if you are ever in the 30A area in Florida…. go get some done!!!
If you have children like mine that don’t pose and smile for a camera here are some “pose” ideas.
Also, when it comes to the outfits I kept a mostly neutral palette. You can play with prints a bit to mix it up and keep to the same color family. I love the classic look of neutral colors.
We have a special tree that we do a lot of our family photos at in Nashville. I’ve previously written a post there about coordinating family outfits. You can check that one out HERE.
Happy Mother’s Day to ALL the “Mamas” of the world out there! For the mom still hoping, the mom that adopted, the mom that pricked herself with countless needles and endured IVF. The ones who saw the heartbeat and the ones who lost the heartbeat. The aunties, the grandmas, the step moms who stepped on in and up. Whatever describes you… Happy Mother’s Day to YOU.
The sweetest sound I’ve ever heard is the first time each of my boys babbled out, “mama.” My heart just about exploded. It’s the most honorable title I’ve ever held, the hardest job I’ve ever had, and the deepest love I’ve ever felt.
The day G came into the world and I got to join the precious “mama” club was the greatest day of my life. So much advice was thrown my way. How to swaddle/not to swaddle, to breastfeed/not to breastfeed, how tired I’d be, how to get my baby to sleep through the night. Blah, blah, blah. Now I’m happy to listen to advice from any other club member, because I know the kind of work that goes into learning these secrets. However, what I didn’t hear much of was the immense and absolutely insane love that you INSTANTLY feel for your child. Un-describable, unmatched, unconditional, pure LOVE.
So on this Mother’s Day I’m choosing to not focus on the sleepless nights, thousands of diapers, and the emotional distress that motherhood brings along. Instead I’m focusing on what being “mama” means to me. LOVE.
I’m just going to bask in all the love and focus on gratitude. Gratitude that I GET to live this life. That these precious angel babies call me “mama.” That they crawl to me when they are hurt. They yell for me when they have a success. For this incredible precious time in life I’m the one they need for everything and love the most.
Mother’s Day has quickly become my favorite holiday. Celebrating my favorite and most special role in life. How amazing!
So today, give yourself some grace and sing some praises to any fellow mamas out there. No matter what path they are walking!
(P.S. I’ve partnered with some mama friends of mine to do a pretty amazing giveaway to pamper all the mamas out there. You can check that out HERE. )
Real talk… getting myself and the boys ready for this picture and packed in the car to meet Trey and my friend/photographer might have been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. It took hours of planning, packing their diaper bags, sippie cups/snacks, change of clothes, loading the car. Then waiting till G napped to rush in the shower and attempt to do my make up. Then getting each of them ready without the other one crying, etc. Whew. I’m exhausted just thinking about it again.
Once we got there G decided he wanted nothing to do with picture taking that day. Par for the course. He normally is so sweet and cooperative. Not this time! Baby tantrum. He only wanted to play with a puppy he spotted from afar and eat dirt/throw sticks.
My original idea for this post was tips on taking family photos, because I do get asked that a lot. However, given the train wreck that was my children during these, I decided to stick to some tips on coordinating outfits. At least I got that part down!
How to Coordinate Family Photo Outfits (without looking cheesy)
1. Everyone does NOT have to match perfectly. (I know every family has done the all white beach pics, but we don’t need to all match. Keyword here is coordinate.
2. Make sure and choose a fairly neutral backdrop. You don’t want something super bold in the background to steal the show, or compete with anything else in the shot.
3. Don’t be scared of a little print. (However, no ones prints should match exactly.)
4. If you are unsure, stay in the neutral family. (Grey, black, white, tan, denim, etc.) They can all be mismatched easily.
5. Pick one persons look to start. (I knew I wanted to wear this dress. Even though it is orange, there are white, tan, grey, and sage colors in it as well. I pulled those colors for the boys!)
6. Don’t pick anything overly “trendy.” Fashions and trends are constantly changing, there is no way around that. However, if you want something that stands the test of time don’t go head to toe trendy fashion on every family member.
Photography by: Chelsea Rochelle (She travels all over the country and does fabulous wedding photos! 😉 )
Suede Tank Dress | Choker | Long Necklace: Rain + Rust Jewelry sold at Kitty in Nashville | Bracelets: Omi Beads sold at Hemline in Nashville | Shoes: Rebels Footwear (Style is Angie in Mocha)
On Trey: Grey Pants (Might be best fabric on a mens pant I’ve ever come across!)
I missed the window of opportunity for true newborn pics (besides the few we were able to snap at the hospital) so we decided to go ahead and get our first family photos. I love how they turned out! Georgie has been packing on the pounds these last couple weeks. He is starting to interact with us a little more and we are soaking him in. We found out he is lactose intolerant, so I’ve had to cut back all dairy from my diet. (Ahh how I miss CHEESE!) But other than that he has been so sweet and great.
I went with a suede dress for our first family photographs. It’s so comfy and easy with the little man. I plan to wear this a LOT this summer. Plus, it’s almost half price right now! Here is a similar suede dress but a lace up version. It also has whipstiching and is ON MEGA SALE. It’s drool worthy. I also found some great suede dress options that are very budget friendly. You can shop them here and here. I wanted a monochromatic look so I went with suede shoes too. These have a chunky heel and I can stand in them all day they are so comfy and sturdy!
