O’Brien Family | Seattle Family Photographer

I met Julie, Dan & Evan a few years ago and they are one of the sweetest family you could ever meet!  Over the years, we have gotten to know each other better and Julie is such a sweetheart.  She’s just one of those people you know you can always count on whenever you need help.  No matter what it is.  She’s just that kind of person and she has such a BIG heart!  I’m so honored to call her my friend.

On the day of the photo session, it was cold but the scenery was so beautiful it was worth braving the cold.

Julie & Dan – I had such a great time hanging out with you guys!  You guys are the best!

Happy Sunday!

-Dy

Schmahl Family | Seattle Family Photographer

It’s been a while since I’ve blogged and I’m so excited to start the blog off again with this family!

I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know them over the past year and they are seriously a beautiful family inside and out.

We couldn’t have asked for a more gorgeous fall afternoon.  The colors of the leaves were perfect which made capturing beautiful images of them easy.

LOVE!!!

She’s got two older brothers that love her so much they were willing to let this pose request (Hannah’s idea) be captured 🙂Never too old for a hug 🙂 She loves her daddy!
Nothing but love!

Love this one of Matthew!

Gorgeous family!

Thank you Schmahl family for letting me capture your story!

-Dy

Kaitlyn Turns 5 – Magical Unicorn Party!

Let me first start off by saying how much I love birthday parties with a theme!  I cannot begin to tell you how excited I get each year when the kid’s birthdays come up and the discussion around the dinner table is figuring out what theme the kids want for their party.  I must admit that I do try to influence them just a little to pick a theme that I’m super excited about :).  In the end, it’s always a theme that we both want.

Well, this year is no different and for Kaitlyn’s 5th birthday, we decided on a Magical Unicorn themed party.  Of course, I went straight to Pinterest (my latest addiction) for ideas.  I found some really cute ideas; however, finding ideas for a unicorn themed party was harder than I thought.  Fortunately, I got connected with Krista from Hoopla Events and she helped me scour the internet and she worked with various vendors to pull together a Magical Unicorn party for Kaitlyn!  I have to add that she was able to help me pull all this together in less than 2 weeks!  AMAZING!  She did not miss a single detail!

Kaitlyn was beyond excited to see her party come together!

Turning 5 is great!

Unicorn horns – so much FUN!

I found this idea on pinterest and knew I had to make them for the party.  By the way, have I said already how much I love Pinterest?!? 🙂

Everybody needs a little unicorn magic 🙂

Goodie bags complete with unicorn lollipops!

Krista – these turned out great!

I just LOVE the cake!

Wagner’s Bakery did an amazing job on the cake!  It was delicious!

And the unicorn cake topper – ADORABLE!

My sister-in-law Lisa, who makes amazing cake toppers out of clay, has outdone her self again.

If you ever need a cake topper, please check her out – Jadestone Studios!  She loves making unique designs.

How adorable are these mason jars (Smashcake & Co.) and paper straws (TomKat Studio)?!?

I just love them!

The best part of the party?  Pony rides!

The kids eagerly waited for the ponies to come.
THANK YOU to everyone who came and helped Kaitlyn celebrate turning 5!

Thank you again Krista for helping me pull together one AMAZING party!

Event Planner: Hoopla Events

Party supplies: Smashcake & Co.

Paper straws: TomKat Studio

Party printables and banners: Sandpaper Custom Stationery

Pony Rides Sign: Two Crafty Teachers

Cake: Wagner’s Bakery

Burlap ‘Kaitlyn’ Cake Pennant: A Felt Affair

Unicorn cake topper: Jadestone Studios

Mini Cupcakes: New York Cupcakes

French Macarons – Chef Michelle Nguyen (email: myepicuriouslife@gmail.com)

Unicorn tank top: Kota Couture

A Day At The Beach

I had the pleasure of spending Memorial Day weekend with Lois and her Oregon grandkids.  Visits from Nana Lois are always special especially since they only get to see her twice a year!  Lois travels from Tennessee so she definitely makes the most of each visit with lots of snuggles, hugs and kisses.  During this visit they were able to make it out to the coast for some fun at the beach.  It was great to see the love and connection between Lois and her grandkids!

Lois – I had such a wonderful time spending the weekend with you and getting to know you better.  The dessert you made at the beach house was DELICIOUS and having it before dinner was definitely a good idea!  🙂

Family session with a doggie adventure

When Alison emailed me to schedule a photo session I was excited as this has been a year in the making (they originally contacted me July of last year!).  Alison and Brant were interested in having the session focus on their two dogs, Wrigley and Harley.  I’ll be honest that I was a bit apprehensive as I have a slight fear of dogs (childhood fear that is still with me today) but I wanted to really do this.  Of course, the park we selected was packed!  This was the first summer like weather after weeks of rain so everyone was out enjoying the sun.  Fortunately, we found a spot that was quieter so we let the dogs off the leash to capture them playing.   We had a couple of adventures chasing after them but in the end, we captured some great shots of Wrigley and Harley 🙂  As an added bonus, Allison was able to bring Payton with her  so we were able to capture some adorable shots of him  as well.

Thanks Alison for the fun adventure!  Wrigley and Harley may not have cured my fear of dogs but I’m on my way 🙂

I must admit, Wrigley and Harley are beautiful dogs!Having goldfish crackers as treats worked for both the dogs and Payton! LOLA.D.O.R.A.B.L.E!!!  

Grandmas are the best

My mother-in-law is a very special woman.  She has shown me nothing but love from the moment I met her and has treated me like I’m one of her own daughters.  She is the only surviving grandparent for my kids so it’s especially important to me that they have a relationship with her.  Although we live hundreds of miles apart, and we don’t see each other everyday, I know there’s a special bond between them.  The love that grandparents have for their grandkids is pretty amazing.  I can definitely see the love between these three and I love it!

Thank you for always being there for us and showing us unconditional love.  We love you Mom!  Happy Mother’s Day!

Grandmas are fun to play patty cake with.We didn’t let the rain get us down.  The kids had fun chasing after their umbrellas! 🙂
Best mother-in-law I could ask for!

The best part of the photo shoot?  Getting frappuccinos from Starbucks at the end! 🙂

Finding Quality Family Time

Hello!  I know it’s been quiet lately on the blog but life was getting a bit out of control with our crazy schedule of work, before & after school activities for the kids and just daily life in general that my head was spinning.  However, a couple of weekends ago, my family and I had the opportunity to take a weekend getaway to unplug from all the schedules & routines and just relax!  We went to Suncadia, which is a resort just east of Seattle.  What a great trip that turned out to be and the BEST part of  it was that the drive was only a little over an hour!  Before we knew it, we were there 🙂

The kids had such a wonderful time hiking, swimming, and just hanging out!  It brought joy to my heart seeing them so happy and relaxed.  I know that life can get busy but every so often you just need to unplug and step away from the craziness for quality family time.  Each year seems to be blazing by and these kids are growing up way to fast for schedules and routines to prevent you from making memories.  Spending quality time like this is a must for us now and we cannot wait to go back!

Kaleb talking to the clams rather than eating them 🙂

Roasting marshmallows for s’mores – a must do!  

From hiking and climbing rocks to just searching for fishes in the pond, these little adventures was what made us happy.  Quality time together. 

Kaitlyn loves rocks so searching for special rocks was such a fun time for her!

One of Kaleb’s favorite past time is playing a game of chess…I just love his focus!

My husband saw a sand bunker but my kids saw a sand pit to build sand castles 🙂

He was able to give the kids golf lessons in between building sand castles 🙂  We had the whole golf course to ourselves since it wasn’t quite open yet for the season. 

We had such an amazing time on this quick weekend getaway!  Just stepping away from the hustle and bustle of daily life was exactly what we needed.

Playing, hugging and dancing on docks – that’s what it’s all about!

Agreed!  I love Suncadia and we are definitely going back!

Traditions

Phirum & Seth had a beautiful traditional Cambodian engagement.  The vibrant colors, the jewelry and all the details were amazing.  It’s so nice to see the younger generations of Cambodians continue to appreciate the traditions.  Considering myself as a part of the younger generation, I personally know how hard it is to pass along these traditions to my  own kids so being able to capture it is very important to me.

Phirum & Seth – Congratulations on your engagement!  Thank you for letting me be a part of this wonderful time in your life.  You guys make a beautiful couple and I had such a great time getting to know you.

Traditional Cambodian fabric – I just love the vibrant colors.

Greeting their elders as they start the engagement ceremony.

Through the Eyes of a Child

This past Christmas, Kaleb (my six year old son) got a point & shoot camera from Santa ;).  He was so excited that Santa had gotten him something he loved even though he hadn’t ask for it.  His exact words were “I can’t believe Santa knows that I like photography without me even telling him!”.   I just love the innocence of children.

He was so excited to start taking pictures with it.  He asked me for advice on what to take pictures of.  My only advice to him was to take pictures of things that are interesting to him.  It’s amazing what he has done with that.  I truly love seeing the images he takes as it gives me insight into his view of the world and the memories he wants to capture.  I’m such a proud mamma!  Looks like I may have a partner in crime in this photography business :).

These are images he captured during our trip to Newport, Oregon.

He did an amazing job capturing the details of our trip to Leavenworth, Washington.  

He loves anything Oregon State so when he saw these OSU ornaments at the Kris Kringle store, he had to take a picture!

He nailed it capturing the beauty and energy of Leavenworth on our last night there.

Crider Family

It was a cold December morning when I met Steve, Tanya and Allison for their photo shoot.  They braved the cold and we got some beautiful photos.  I could not believe how good baby Allison was.  She was so cooperative and did not cry the entire session!  I could have taken pictures of her all day long!

Steve & Tanya – You have a beautiful little girl!  She is such a sweetheart.  I hope you had a wonderful Christmas with your family and friends and wish you a Happy New Year!

Love that sweet smile.
Mommy has her cracking up!Daddy’s sweet baby girl.