Do you remember Miss Zoey?

Miss Zoey is two now.... do you remember Miss Zoey?
Who can forget those cheeks and those big brown eyes. I have been fortunate enough to take photos of her all the way back to the day she was born. I was at the hospital to document her birth, and I have taken her photo on numerous occasions since then. It has been so much fun to watch her grow. *** Click Here *** to see photos of Zoey when she was just a few months old.One of Zoey's favorite things to do is to pick strawberries. I love these images of her picking out her favorite strawberry. This is exactly what I was talking about in my previous post about trying to capture those things that happen daily that we sometimes take for granted. Her parents will always want to remember her squatting down to pick out the best berry.Hopefully they will be able to look back on these images and remember the smile on her face as those strawberries dripped down her chin and squished between her fingers.

Zoey has a great yard with soft blue flowers that cover a little walkway where she runs and plays.
There was a tiny rock wall where she sat and pondered all of the things that are most important to a two year old. Don't you wonder what they are thinking about? Oh... wait, that deep thought was fleeting, soon she was smiling up a storm again...Happy birthday Miss Zoey!

A Bucket Of Memories

Wow... July is gone. Just like that, we are in the second half of the year. It is amazing how time flies. Sometimes, when I feel like time is passing me by, I purposefully pull out my camera. I do something with the girls that is totally normal. An activity that we do every day, something that I often take for granted and I try to capture it on my camera. This past weekend, we pulled out the chalk. Coloring with sidewalk chalk has been a favorite activity at our home since the kids could hold on to it.We now have an entire bucket that holds our chalk. We have to have every shade available. Olivia really felt like doing some sidewalk art this day, and I LOVE the memories that I captured of her.I love that I can tell she picked out her outfit. She has been doing this every day. I can not even be in the room when she is selecting her attire. She selects everything, from her undies to her hair clips. It is always a surprise when she comes out. Some days her fashion sense is better than others. Luckily, this was one of her better days.

I love that her hair is falling out of her ponytail and that she has her trusty elephant with her...I love that she is barefoot. I will always remember the sound of her little feet slapping the pavement and the print she leaves once she has covered them in chalk.I love that she accidentally dumped the entire bucket of chalk and instead of tipping it back up to see her color options, she would lean as far over as possible to select her next color.I know these are simple things, but these are the simple things as a mom that I want to remember about her.

If you are thinking about taking some photos, try not to get worked up too much about the setting, the clothing or the smiles. Think about the memories you want to save forever, the moments in time you would like to freeze. No matter if it is those pudgy fingers holding a crayon, messy hair, a time out chair.... keep your camera handy. Don't let the moment pass you by!

And One More Makes Three !

When I was driving to my most recent shoot, I was thinking to myself, hummmm maybe I should have another baby. My youngest is almost four and I always thought I would have three kids... hummmm..... OK, I brought myself back to reality before I got there and realized that two is a great number for me. We are healthy and happy and life is good.

Then... I arrived and met Layton. The third boy to enter his family.
All right, maybe I do need another baby!!! Seeing this little guy made me really miss when my girls were this age. Now, do not get me wrong, I am completely enjoying sleeping uninterrupted through the night (for the most part)... but ahhhh look at this little cutie....
I had so much fun watching Layton and his family interact. They were all so enamored by him. They could hardly look away from him for me to take a photo. I love that. This little guy is the center of their world.I did this newborn shoot a bit different than I usually do. Typically most of the images of a newborn session are of the newborn alone, but this family inspired me to try something new. I could already see that in his first two weeks of life, Layton has had a huge impact on each member of his family. In this session, almost all of the images are of Layton, but in almost all of them, he is being held by a different member of the family. I think that this is my favorite family shot that I took. I love how they are soaking each other up. I feel like I can almost read each of their minds as they look at their new baby and each other and think about how their lives have changed and about the exciting times to come.Of course, this is fun too. What handsome little guys...
I loved to see each family member and watch them bond with this new little guy. Of course Mom was wonderful. Lisa was so calm and content. It seemed as though this little babe had always been a member of her family. Big brothers.... Jackson already has experience at being a big brother, and the comfort he felt with this new and fragile little baby was adorable. He was so sweet with Layton. Always wanting to hold him, touch his soft hair and kiss his sweet head. Layton is lucky to have a big brother like this.And now Kyle.... he was the baby of the family up until two weeks ago. He suddenly seems so grown up. He will thrive on the experience of being a big brother. I loved watching how proud he was when he held his brother. He is growing up and I think he knows it. And Last for Layton's daddy... we got some really great shots of the two of them. I loved seeing Ruben hold his newest son. He could not disguise the love he has for this new child.What a great family! Thank you guys for letting me come and spend the morning with you. I loved meeting Layton and seeing the changes in your family since God blessed you with him. Your home is going to be filled with noise, toys, light savers, wrestling and love. I can not wait to see these boys grow up!

Fourth Grade Friends

I was fortunate to have the chance to meet up with an old friend for a photo session the other day. Rachael and I met in 4th grade... I had just come to Washington from Alaska and we met in school. We remained friends all the way through high school. Years have passed now, and it was really fun to reconnect with her, meet her beautiful kiddos and spend some time with her husband.Even though many years have passed that I was not in contact with Rachael, it was amazing how easy it was to reconnect with her. Rachael and I went through a lot together over the years, and I am so happy and proud of the person she has become. It was an honor to take these photos, thank you!Her two little ones are adorable, and they were so much fun! They better lock their doors when this blonde blue eyed cutie gets a little older!She will however have an older brother around to help keep her safe!This little guys infectious smile and sense of humor had me laughing all the way home from the session.The next two images are a couple of my favorites from the session. They are so quiet, so powerful. No one is looking at the camera, no one is looking at the beautiful setting we are in, no one is smiling at me, BUT you can feel the deep and sincere emotion in each person. This little girl can feel the warmth and security of her daddy's breath on her arm, and he can feel the soft touch of her hand on his back as she rests her chin on his shoulder.I love how happy a child gets from a good hug. Sam's feet are off the ground and he can hardly contain his happiness from this hug! I can almost feel her tight squeeze as she quickly contemplates if there is any way to keep him from growing up. What a pleasure it was to spend some time with you guys at the beach. I am glad that I could stop chit chatting with you guys long enough to capture some great moments for your family! I hope you enjoy these for years to come!

Life After the Flu and a Sneak Peak for Jodi!

Life has been busy around here. The flu has been visiting our home! YUK! Immediately after we covered from the flu, we were headed out for a camping trip to Cannon Beach, Oregon. I am so glad that we were well enough to travel to Cannon Beach because it was amazing!!! There were horse rides, sandcastle competitions, great weather, kite flying, campfires, and the list goes on. Now, we are back, recovered and looking at the HUGE mess that is our home. YIKES! Well... it was worth it.

I did fall a bit behind on my editing, so this post is really for Jodi. I had the opportunity to meet her family a couple of weekends ago. She has been patiently waiting to see the images from our session, so I thought I would give her a sneak peak on the blog.She has a busy home. It reminds me of my own home a few years ago. Two little girls who are as beautiful as can be and going in opposite directions all of the time. Those were wonderful days that I would not trade for any amount of money.It was fun to capture all of their different emotions and see this great family interact. They were so laid back and welcoming. It was a pleasure to spend the morning with them.OK... could these two girls be any more adorable?!
I think that these next two images are some of my favorites from the day. When I am able to look deep into a child's eyes, I feel like I can hear their spirit. There is no smile.... but the emotions of these thoughtful little ones spill out of the image and right into my heart.What a privilege it is for me to be able to see into this part of their personalities.

I hope that you guys enjoy this sneak peak of the images from our session! More to come soon!

Listening To The Leaves

My sister and her husband have suffered a devastating loss in their family. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers as they begin to recover from the loss of Joe's son. Adam, was just 23, and the world will miss this wonderful young man.

Today was the memorial service for Adam... It was in Vermont, and I was unable to attend, but I have been thinking about him all day. I walked around my yard with my camera and looked at things in a bit of a different light.

I looked deeper into the flowers....
I looked closer at the leaves...
I thought about the family that lived in this nest... it felt like each leaf, each branch, each petal were quietly whispering their own story to me as I passed them by.
Joe and Kaia... I will be praying for you.

A New Addition

There has been a new addition to Sara Montgomery Photography. We have a new baby!.... a Mac...... I am so excited to say this beautiful 20 inch flat panel monitor and fancy pants G 5 tower will now be processing your fabulous images!!!

The story behind this fabulous new addition is even better than the computer itself. I went to Olympia on Mother's day weekend to spend some time with my family. I was completely SHOCKED to find out that my amazing family came together and surprised me with this computer as a gift.

I am still very humbled by this gift. I have been drooling over Macs for years. I am so excited to learn this new system... so excited to start some more advanced processing on my images and SO excited to dive into all of the features of this GREAT computer.

I really REALLY need to thank my family.

Thank you for being so generous, for seeing potential in me and my love for photography. Thank you for the role that each of you have played in my life over the years and the relationships that I have with each of you. I LOVE YOU ALL.