Last time I was visiting
my little oasis (a.k.a my mom’s house in Utah) my cute sister-in-law Dayna called and asked me if I’d take some family pictures for her. K. I am so NOT a professional photographer nor do I have ANY skills at taking family portraits. And I basically told her uh…no. And to quote my husband “but I’m not mad you asked.” (Which by the way is one of the most annoying things my husband says. Especially since he gets such a kick out of himself every time he says it.) Moving on. So I said no and Dayna said please and I said no again and Dayna said please again and at some point I finally caved. But I gave her full disclosure that I didn’t know what I was doing and the pics may turn out looking worse than bad. Well – a lot of them did turn out worse than bad…but a few turned out ok. So I thought I’d share them tonight. You know. Just so Dayna thinks twice before convincing me to do this again. ;) (love you Dayna)
And here’s the happy couple now. My little bro Austin and his beautiful and incredibly persuasive wife Dayna. I have to admit that my parent’s back yard does make for a beautiful backdrop for pictures. It was so funny because Dayna’s family would ask me questions like “Where should we stand?” “Where is the best light?” And I was thinking “I don’t know! Your guess is as good as mine!” Ha! I totally just pretended like I knew what I was doing.
And here they are with their adorable baby (Kole’s partner in crime) Drew. I’m so impressed with this picture. Getting Drewski to hold still and smile for a picture was quite the feat. I snapped about 20 pics of them in this pose and prayed for a miracle! We lucked out with this one shot.
A couple of shots of the girls in the family – Dayna’s mom, sister, sister in-laws, and nieces. How adorable are her little nieces…and their dresses!?
And how cool is this sun in the background!? K – maybe I really am a professional and I just didn’t know it!! Or maybe the sun just happened to be peeking through the trees at the perfect moment in time and it had nothing to do with me… Nah…totally planned!
Here we have a traditional family shot.
And here we have a not so traditional family shot. Aren’t these mustaches fun!? Dayna made them all with some black felt and sticks. We had quite a fun afternoon together at my mom’s. She made the mustaches while I cleaned out
my mom’s pantry. :)
But the prop queen didn’t stop there! She also brought along this frame she painted blue for a few photos. SO fun, isn’t it!? Such a cute idea to mix up family photos and make things a little more interesting.
This picture is my favorite because it is so “them.” Austin is always cracking jokes and goofing around and Dayna is always giving him this look.
They are an adorable couple and I’m proud to claim them as my own! Most of the time.
We tried to get a picture with Drew in the frame but it just wasn’t happening. I took a whole lot of pictures very similar to this one. Oh… this picture makes me dread family pictures with my own firecracker this year! Maybe I’ll just get a picture of me and Kenny with the girls and then photoshop Kole in… hmmm…. I am a professional now you know.
:)
To thank me for the photoshoot Dayna made me this delicious fruit pizza. Homemade mustaches and fruit pizzas!? I’ve been calling her Martha ever since.
And since I’m talking about my little bro. I wanted to mention the archery business he is just starting. My dad is the president of a college but when I was growing up he also owned an archery shop on the side. Archery/bowhunting is his passion and I grew up helping my dad in his shop on Saturdays. I may have picked up a thing or two myself! (That’s right – you don’t want to mess with me.) And my brother definitely picked up a thing or two. He’s even more obsessed with archery than my dad (if that’s possible) and he just started a business called ATS Outdoors. So if you or anyone you know is interested in archery, check out his site and I promise he’ll take good care of you! Or at least “like” him on facebook to help him get things up and running. I love my little bro. and would really appreciate it!
Oh and Austin…you can show your appreciation for the shout out with my Christmas present this year. I’m thinking boots….Nordstrom boots….I can send you a link if you need some guidance. I’m super nice that way.
:)
xoxo, Erin
I had that same shirt that you’re wearing in the archery picture! It was from GAP. It was my favorite. I wore it all the time. I think my 10th grade school picture was taken with me wearing it.
those pictures turned out great! you SHOULD go pro…not like you have anything else going on, right??? ha! :-)
Such a sweet shout out for your brother! Yes to the Nordstrom boots! Fruit pizza – yummy. Great thank you for your fabulous photo shoot. Thanks for your comment – it gave me the courage :) to send more items to the DI.
I did the exact same thing taking pics for Crystal of her little boy. I have no clue but wish I did. We really should learn how to be real photographers.
Take credit where credit is due, girl. You’re totally a professional photographer!!!
Love the professional pics! They look fantastic, and what a cute family she has with those mustaches! Love it! I love the archery business. You know we did the archery camp this summer and loved it, and wish Austin was closer because I would have him giving lessons/birthday parties and camps over here. You look like you might be a natural yourself to start the San Diego site of his business:)
Hey Erin, please respond or just even say hi! I would love to see if you did or not
Wonderful pictures and how nice of you to promote your brother! Its tough to start an own business. I am not part of his “target group”, but I will pass on the link to his store to some outdoor/ hunting people, if that’s ok. Hope his business picks up wonderfully!
Erin, OMG you look EXACTLY like the actress Laura Leighton in that last shot. I thought it was her, actually, until I read what you wrote about your dad and archery! Too funny! And the pics you took turned out great… way to go! :)
Thanks for all the sweet comments!
“Hi” to anonymous! :)