So, this was an adventure. 🙂

We decided earlier this year that we wanted to invest in good family pictures this year, and Lauren Clark was my only choice. We scheduled these pictures several months ago, back before she gave birth to precious Solomon, so I knew from experience that her schedule would be a bit wonky once the baby was here. I was so excited that everything came together just like I wanted… and I even got to snuggle Sol while we were there!

Lauren lives in Stillwater, OK, so that’s where we went. Luckily, we were able to turn the trip into a full weekend, visiting Mack’s extended family in Southern Kansas. We packed up the car with all our outfits, and got excited to hit the road.

Then it rained.

And it rained.

And it was COLD.

See, we took these pictures in mid-September. The day before pictures it was 103 degrees here at home, so I was glad I’d chosen all summer outfits. (And by “chosen”, I clearly mean “blew the budget”). Unfortunately, when we got to Stillwater, it was 58 degrees and drizzly. Not ideal. Not what I had in my head at all. The kids were freezing, tired of being in the car. We didn’t get any individual shots of Diva Dottie at all, Jack used his “school picture smile” and Mack and I both feel fat.

BUT.

I still love them. Maybe, even, I love them BECAUSE of all those things. Because that’s real life. Lauren did a really fantastic time posing us, and getting our kids to participate in the session, and I so cherish that we have this special time captured. This is my family… imperfect, unorganized, and frequently uncooperative. And really? I wouldn’t change a thing.

Plus, because of this boot camp Mack and I have been doing, we know we’ll be in better shape next year when picture time comes around again. 🙂

Lauren blogged her favorites from our session in the days following our trip, so those of you that follow us on Facebook have already seen those. But I figured they were worth sharing again, with the addition of a few of my personal favorites you haven’t seen yet! Some are edited by Lauren, and some by me (as she gave me permission to do so).

I was glad that we did my big idea first… I really had my heart set on pictures of us as a family, all on a couch together reading our favorite books. Reading is a big part of who we are, and regardless of how the rest of the session went, THESE pictures are perfect, so I’m a happy camper. (And, extra special thank you to Lauren, because she brought the love seat from her LIVING ROOM for us to do these pictures on. I’m so grateful she embraced my vision!)

The following is my absolute favorite, and will soon be a massive canvas in our home. 🙂

Thank you, Lauren, for being patient with my crazy family. And blogstalkers, thank you for all your sweet comments on the images I posted to Facebook… we so appreciated them. We’ll definitely make McG family pictures an annual tradition… I mean, after all, NOT having current family pictures is a bit hypocritical, don’t you think? 🙂