Briar Funke's First Year! // St. Charles Family Photography

I have  been wanting to share all of this sweetness with you for quite some time now!

I have had the amazing opportunity to capture so many beautiful families as they grow (some even before mom & dad say "I DO") - it truly is such an honor & such a joy!  So, I wanted to put a little post together from one of my First Year Packages to give everyone an idea of how important & awesome it is to document all of the beautiful growth that takes place in such a short amount of time!  (I'll try to post a couple more families soon too!)

I believe it really is so important to have precious images like these to cherish many many years from now - right?!  & not just for you, but for your kiddo's too!  Don't we all love looking back at photos of us & our parents from years ago?  It's always good to have something to look back on & remember the joy &  beauty in these fleeting moments!  

If you're interested in having this sweet season of your life captured please check out some of the details on my CONTACT page & send me a message - I'll get back to you with lots of details, answer all of your questions, & we can make some plans to freeze a few of life's blissful moments for you!

MATERNITY:

NEWBORN:

6 MONTHS:

ONE YEAR:

Thank you Jake, Colbi, & sweet little Biar Gray for continually inviting me to share in so many beautiful seasons of your life!  Love you guys!  :-*

Alden's First Birthday Fun // St. Charles Child Photography

I'm so excited to share this adorable First Birthday Session with y'all!  

Do you remember Alden's Newborn photos from last year? If not, then you should go take a peek now Welcome Alden - it so fun to see how much they grow & change in such a short period of time!  This little man has brought so much joy to his mom & dad...& pretty much everyone he comes in contact with.  He's one of those little boys that smiles ear to ear when you just say hi to him!  It's making me smile as I type just thinking about the twinkle in his eyes when he smiles at me.  What a treasure!

I love how simple yet fun all of Linda's ideas were for his session...I hope you enjoy them!

We even got to sneak out when Alden was sleeping for a few of just Bob & Linda - gosh I'm so thankful for them in my life.

We love you Alden!  Thanks for always bringing so much joy & sweetness with you wherever you go...can't wait to see the awesome little man you grow into!

Baby Simms Gender Reveal // St. Charles Lifestyle Photography

Happy Friday everyone!

How about some photos that are sure to make you giggle & grin from ear to ear??

I finally got around to sorting/editing my own family photos from this summer (my sweet fam always tends to take the back-seat when it comes to photos...wah wah).  Well, after we got all of the family photos, which I promise to show you soon, we did a quicky gender reveal for my sister Kelly & her hubby Shane . . . & it.was.perfect.

Enjoy!

utter shock & surprise...it's a GIRL!!!

Clearly they were expecting something else.  haha

& then of course we all laughed & squealed for about 5 minutes, had a cupcake to celebrate, & then headed off to dinner together - all 18 of us - these are memories I will cherish forever.

Congratulations again Kell, Shane, & Ethan!  Can't wait to meet your sweet little princess this winter!!

Welcome Benjamin // St. Louis Newborn & Lifestyle Photogrpahy

I absolutely LOVE celebrating new little bundles of joy with their families!  It's something that I have done more of this year than in the past & I'm having so much fun! It's such a precious time in their lives & I love getting to capture it for them!

The sweetest sleeping babe you ever did see.

I just love love love this little family snuggle & daddy playing with his feet!  

I try so hard to keep my sessions as relaxed & natural as possible...sure there is some direction involved, but isn't it just that much better when everyone can settle in & feel like themselves in their own images?!  For instance, I helped them get into this pose, but they made it comfortably their own & I love every little detail!

Thanks again for inviting me into your home to capture this precious season in your lives!
What a treasure little Benjamin is!

Make Room For Milo // St. Louis Maternity Photography

I'm thrilled to share this spunky, colorful, intimate, & all around fun maternity session with you!

This is my beautiful & very creative friend Kristi & her manly hunk of a husband Trevor.  
They are expecting their first child, Milo, any day now!  
Kristi is my stylist friend that I always brag about & recommend to clients that are interested in adding a little extra flair to their sessions - remember Finn's Adventure?  The creativity she brings always adds the perfect touch to each session!  SOOOO...of course any session for herself would have to be nothing short of glorious, right?  

I hope you enjoy scrolling through these as much as I do!  :)

Kristi, you're such a beautiful, expectant, momma!

The images we did in the bedroom are my favorites!  The image below is one of those perfect & real moments that just makes my heart happy.  Kinda like those images you find of your parents from when they were young...I think it'll be one that your children will love seeing when they're all grown up!

Charlie is already loving on his brother!

How perfect is this baby bump?  & how rockin is that gold skirt?!

Ice cream for everyone!

Get ready Milo!  You're in for a lot of fun adventures with your mommy & daddy!

Gusewelle Fall Camping Adventure! // Alley Spring + Elephant Rock

Soooo...in an effort to begin blogging some more personal things I thought I'd start with a little camping trip John Paul & I took last September (our first camping trip together) to Alley Spring.  
I've had camping on the brain for the past month or so since we weren't able to go...& I can't wait to pack up & head out somewhere beautiful for a weekend away with John Paul & Stanley...hopefully sometime soon!

Even though we were camping, I wouldn't exactly say we were "roughing it"...there was a bathroom nearby, we used a blow-up mattress in the tent (complete with sheets & a comforter), & we fixed some delicious bacon wrapped filet mignon & corn on the cob for dinner.  Since this trip John Paul has come home with several other camping gadgets that will enhance our experience even more next time around.  Ultimately we'd love to get a little tear-drop camper...but that's down the road a bit.

The cool night air mixed with the crackling of our warm campfire was the perfect combination for a peaceful night of relaxing.  We even had a gorgeous full moon too!

After a peaceful sleep under the stars in the cool fall air, we hopped out of our comfy tent to start on breakfast & coffee...there's just something extra delicious about campfire coffee in the quiet of the morning.  :)  Once we packed up camp we headed to the spring...which was so beautiful!  It was the most beautiful shade of aqua you ever did see & watching it bubble up out of the ground was so cool too!

After a lovely little walk around the spring we started our journey home...stopping off for a PB&J at Elephant Rock.  This little plot of earth is almost unbelievable!  Just look how huge these rocks are - magnificent!  We had so much fun climbing around on them, hopping from one cluster to the next, & taking in the beautiful sights from way up high.

That's all folks.
Hopefully we'll have another fun adventure to share soon!

Welcome Weston Lee // St. Charles Newborn Photography

A few weeks ago I had the privilege of capturing handsome little Weston along with his mom, dad, & adorable big brother & sister.  I love how sweet, relaxed, intimate, & fun this images are - I hope you enjoy them to!

This is Mollie & Cayson (aka: big sister & big brother) ... they were so cute & already so in love with their new little brother!

Mollie could not get enough of her little brother - she kept coming in the room just to give him a hug & a kiss while I was shooting some of the images with him & his momma...

...clearly, she is a lover.

Having the kids lay on the bed with Weston was completely natural - they gladly snuggled up with him when I suggested it.  :)  I'm so used to the older siblings still being a little too young to really understand the new baby thing - usually the length of time they can/will sit & hold the little one is about 2 seconds, then of course they push the baby off b/c they are ready to move onto something else.  haha  
All that to say, having these sweet older siblings kinda spoiled me.  

All of their faces in the photo below are perfect!  
Cayson & Mollie were starting to get a little wound up at this point, but Weston seemed to totally understand & chimed in with a big 'ol smile at just the right moment - pretty sure this is one of my favorite images!

Thanks for letting me be a part of welcoming Weston into your family - it was so much fun!!  

Finn's Adventure // Francis Park // St. Louis Child Photography

The spring air has me excited about all things warm, colorful, & adventurous!  & I can't stop thinking about this AMAZING session I got to do last summer alongside the wonderful Kristi Pinkham - a styling genius.  Of course the adventure would not have been complete without the delightful, spirited, & might I add, adorable Finnley.  

He was just about to turn 3 when we shot this & was such a good sport about everything.  Kristi has such a great way of bringing a simple session to life with fun props for the kids to interact with as well as a boost of beautiful, creative energy (can you imagine having more of that at a session with me - it's pretty wonderful! haha).   If you've ever thought about doing a styled session, debate no longer & just do it!  You won't regret it & you'll have more than just vibrant photos in the end, you'll have some great memories from the experience as well! 

Okay...enough jabbering & onto the images...I hope you enjoy them as much as we do!

These next images are to give props to Kristi again for her spirited creativity she brings to the session...I love working with you darling...hopefully we'll get to do it again sometime soon!

Okay you adventurers...get out there & see the world!!