I featured one image of this family last week, and had a lot of trouble choosing which images to post in this follow up. The Mother of this family celebrated a milestone birthday last year and was given a gift certificate for my photography to celebrate.

Honestly though, she’s so youthful that I don’t really think I believe her, and I struggled to believe she was the Mum of these young adults! Here she is, alongside her equally gorgeous daughter.

And her sons…

The family hadn’t had any family photos taken in over a decade, and with such busy lives it took a while to co-ordinate the timing, but I’m sure glad we did. I really enjoyed hanging out with this family for the afternoon.

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• Katie Toland says:

  What a stunning family. These are just beautiful.

   (February 18, 2010 at 12:32 pm)

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• Liz M says:

  Oh my, they are such stunning images and a lovely family. wow, mum and daughter could pass for sisters! love the colours

   (February 18, 2010 at 2:13 pm)

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• Kristen Cook says:

  What a gorgeous family!

   (February 18, 2010 at 3:51 pm)

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I had an opportunity late last year to spend some time with this beautiful family.

I can’t believe I haven’t had a chance to post a preview yet, but I’ll put some more up next week.

Enjoy the weekend,

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• Natalie Davies says:

  what a beautiful family, lovely colours in the shot too. Looking foward to seeing some more

   (February 8, 2010 at 7:42 pm)

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Really. When I was 4 I’m not sure I had much of a say in how my hair looked, or what the hairdresser did with it. That came much later when I was approaching my teens and decided I wanted flicks (or ‘”bangs” as they’re now called)… a serious mistake! How was I to know that my long locks would spring into tight curls when cut shorter…. it just wasn’t a great look at all and it took a long time for me to find a style that worked – but it was the 80′s and there was a LOT of choice

This little 4 year old however had a very different approach. It was her second visit to the salon- in her life – and when the lovely hairdresser turned to me and asked what we were doing with her hair today, my voice was drowned out with instructions:

“ a fringe… to my eyebrows…. and longer bits down here (beside her face)… and a healthy trim…….. please!”

“Same again”, I replied when I got the chance and as she set to work I relaxed into a spare wash basin lounger (they’re really comfy). I watched on with delight as her Grandmere (freshly arrived from the UK) looked on with eager anticipation. It really wasn’t as serious as it looks, Grandmere was delighted to be there and Miss 4 felt v. grown up.

I really have enjoyed having my parent’s-in-law over here from the UK. There is so much that they don’t get to see or share with the children that even mundane things like haircuts become special treats. Another opportunity to strengthen the bonds between the children and their long-distance grandparents. It’s these little moments that give lasting memories that can be shared together.

Enjoy,

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We had a great Christmas this year… I truly hope you did as well!

Each year we buy the kids a tree decoration to add to their collection, so that one day when they have a tree of their own, they’ll have decorations to put on it. This year they chose their own, and they loved having responsibility for trimming the tree. It was interesting to watch the 3 year old hang decoration after decoration on the same poor little branch, and – as a friend remarked the other day – the difference a year makes, as the 4 year old was definitely getting the hang of spreading the decorations about to complete the tree.

We have family all over the world, and this year we were privileged to have some of our family from the UK {and Queensland} over to join us. Each year is different and this year we all shared in the preparation of the food. Everyone was responsible for part of the meal, and since I love giving surprises, no-one knew the full menu until the day… they were chuffed to see their names and dishes alongside everyone elses and there was a keen sense of participation and giving. It worked so well, I’m pretty sure we’ll be doing it again next year.

Our kids were so patient… it wasn’t planned but the gift giving became an incidental part of the day rather than the main focus. During an interval in our very late lunch, we shared gifts with our family. The part I look forward to most is the giving and receiving of Christmas cards. It’s our chance to reflect on the past year each person has had and express our hope for the year ahead (yep, we’re a soppy bunch, but it’s cool). And the gifts. Nothing big, amazing or over the top – oh, except for my Mum who was ever so spoilt by Dad – just a gesture. And it was the perfect way to show our children that Christmas has far more meaning than Santa and presents. It’s one of the few days of the year when we can stop what we’re doing and come together as family and share a meal and each other’s company. It was the best!

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• fiziskandarz says:

  a nice photo u got here! happy new year

   (December 31, 2009 at 11:23 pm)

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to a 3 year old!

Last Saturday was the first free day we’ve had to spend together in some time, so we kicked off pretty lazily. I caught up on the latest episode of Glee, which I’ve become completely addicted to,  while my husband and the kids occupied themselves. I was so absorbed in the show I hadn’t noticed how quiet the house had become. When I looked up this is what I saw.

My husband was ensuring the next generation would exist harmoniously in this household’s addiction to technology and gadgetry… but I’m now in a battle with my kids for time on MY phone… We have a selection of pretty cool kid apps on our phones for those times when a few blissful moments are required {for me, it’s at the coffee shop, when we’re waiting for their order}. In this photo, she’s making Tinkerbell fly, and he’s getting Bumblebee to transform and dance to an iPod selection….

It’s not that I mind, it’s that it completely blows me away that they can intuitively navigate through games and puzzles on an iPhone without being shown, and without being able to read yet!

Happy Monday!

Mel

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• jelb says:

  Bonsoir,
  A nice picture..Beautiful light and DOF..Bravo!

   (December 2, 2009 at 10:37 am)

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