It has been on a my mind a lot the past couple weeks, how grateful I am to the grandparents of the world, especially my own parents. And apparently yesterday was National Grandparent Day and I missed it. Like many, I’ve had to lean in hard to parent/grandparent support during this pandemic. When childcare is abruptly swiped out from under your feet, that solid ground we all thought we were on the first month or two of 2020, I had to ask for help in a big way. My superhero mother came to the rescue and supported our family a ton March-August so I could continue working; pandemics aren’t great times to quit as a nurse, and although photography initially came to a standstill, I think the experience of the last six months has brought many people to desire capturing the phase of life they’re in even more.

Adapting in the face of adversity - this feels like what we’re all trying to do right now during this pandemic. Some days I feel like I’m adapting well, and other days NOT. AT. ALL. I miss the “old” way of life, where Covid19 didn’t factor into almost every decision. It has taken away freedom, moments of calm, some level of certainty at least on a few things in life - and for many people it has taken away a whole lot more than that. At some point, I have a lot more to share. I have been hiding out, not blogging, not posting. Sometimes that’s because I’ve been in survival mode or feeling the weight of the world and more recently it’s because I’m so busy trying to get back to living (a very new way) and adventuring. I also haven’t been photographing much besides my own family, but I finally did a bunch of sessions recently which has gotten me re-inspired. So more photos and thoughts to come. For today, I just want to share a story of a family that seems full of resiliency.

Welcome to the World baby Alden! This session was very special, not only because it was the first time doing an in-hospital photo session in Calgary, but also because it was my sister’s family. Watching my nephew meet his new baby sister for the first time pulled on every heartstring I have and it took everything in me to stay focused on the photographer role as opposed to Auntie role. Since then, I have luckily been able to catch up on baby cuddles.

Where do I even begin in my attempt to sum up the adventures of the past month?! Camping for 3 weeks with a 2 + 3 year old and covering over 3000 km wouldn’t be most people’s definition of a relaxing vacation, and yet it was by far one of the best experiences I’ve ever had.. And if it was one of the biggest adventures of my whole life, I cannot even imagine what it felt like for my girls. The sad thing for me, is that the ability to form long-term memories does not start until age 7. That means that in the short term, Morgan and Farrin will be able to hold on to these adventures, but that they’ll soon slip away. Without this family film and photos, they would not be able to remember anything about this trip into adulthood, let alone later into childhood. That makes this the most meaningful photography project I have ever completed.

Small and Mighty - I love this phrase. It so perfectly describes not only Melissa’s charity, but also all the babies that have ever been a part of it. And most of all, her own 3 beautiful children. I had so much fun photographing this amazing Calgary family and getting to know them a bit more. They are just settling into their new dream home that they’ve been working on for awhile, and it seemed like the perfect time to capture a Day in the Life.

I am still on such a high from getting to capture this time in this family’s life. It felt special for a hundred and one reasons. This was a celebration of a baby boy about to turn 1, Mom’s birthday also approaching, and during the session we found out it was also international women’s day. But most of all this was a celebration of one of the biggest Mom milestones I know of so far - the last maternity leave coming to an end…