I first photographed the Cole family when they lived in San Diego, but they’ve since moved away. I was so glad to see them again this year and meet their precious new addition! Let’s start with a family photo from three years ago and then let Christina tell this year’s story:
Christina says:
We had a wonderful week back in San Diego. We got to visit old friends from when we used to live there. While the kids played at the park, I got to go for a run with my old Run Club in Eastlake. We drove by our old neighborhood and visited all our favorites we missed. High on the list was eating at Rubio’s. We stayed near the beach in Pacific Beach so the kids could experience the sand and surf, even though I think we’ve established we are more pool people. They liked the beach until it was time to leave and the sand wouldn’t get off their bodies. The last part of our trip was spent at Legoland. It was our kids’ first trip there and they absolutely loved it and want to go back immediately.
We wanted to do photos because we were celebrating our youngest daughter Charlotte’s first birthday. We had Amy take our youngest son’s first year photos three years ago, and she did such an amazing job that, even though we moved away, we knew we wanted her to capture our daughter’s photos as well.
Leading up to the session, we were a bit worried about getting everyone picture ready in time, especially since we were staying in a small vacation rental and not our comfortable home. The time of day was also a concern. We try to start putting our kids to bed around 7:00, and our session started at 6:45 pm. We were worried if the kids would have energy (they did) and would they listen to our instructions (sort of).
The location is just so beautiful near the Hotel del Coronado. Every time we go there, I feel like I’ve stepped back in time to when people used to always dress fancy. Its just a magical place. My son looked up at the hotel and said, “Wow, mom look at the castle!” Now when I look at the photos Amy took, I will always be reminded of the magic, when the kids danced and ran on the gorgeous beach while the sun set.
One of my favorite images is of my oldest son, Grayson, jumping over a wave. The picture captures him in the air at the highest part of the jump. It looks like he is 10 feet in the air, when in reality he’s probably only 1.5 feet up. It really is amazing. We have always called our son our California surfer because he has longer, blond hair, but we all have dark brown hair. The picture just personifies that nickname.
I plan to hang our pictures on the wall. I like to display a larger black and white picture of each of my four babies when they just turned one. I also like smaller pictures of each of my kids, for each year of their life displayed around the house. I do not like the photos that are taken at school. Since I am not a good photographer, either, we have decided to invest in professional photos taken of our kids every year. We know they grow up so fast, and we want to capture those years in the best way possible!
Christina is a representative. Young Living produces pure essential oils and oil-infused products for your home and healthy lifestyle.