We were so excited to have the honor of photographing sweet little Lenora, or Nora as they plan to call her.  This little beauty is my 3rd cousin, or 1st cousin twice removed…whatever is the “proper” way to say it.   ;)  When my cousin Matthew contacted me about us photographing their baby when it arrived, I was giddy with excitement to meet her!

You may remember the blog post I did about my Grandma on her 93rd birthday and I mentioned she had her 2nd great, great, grandchild on the way…..

HERE SHE IS!

Isn’t she a doll?  :)

Look at that sweet little newborn face!  She was so sweet and calm for the entire session.  :)

Daddy Matthew and Mama Angie are going to be amazing parents.  I can’t wait to watch them all grow together.

Oh so in love with this one.  :)

She has the most perfect lil’ lips!

Modeling can get so tiring!

This was my cousin’s suggestion.  I was all for it.  Lasted about 20 seconds.  ;)

Matthew and Angie, thanks so much for having us over to capture Lenora in her first days!  She is so precious. When I showed these photos to Priya she said, “I love her.  I am so glad she is my cousin.”  :)

Enjoy every single minute with her.

love,

jess + brett

*36* years ago, this little sweetie pie was born.  :)

This is Brett at 4 years old.  *my heart melts at this photo*  Someday I must do a side-by-side comparison of this photo with Adin’s.  You might just crap yourself.

Brett’s Senior photo…..my heart no longer melts, more of an ON FIRE feeling.  DAMN.

Zack Morris who?? No, I’ll take Brett, thanks.

Ok, this is one of my FAVS although Brett hates it.  When I was 19 and met Brett at 23, he was such a “good” boy.  I’m sure the only reason he was drinking here was for some very practical reason, like keeping warm while camping or something.  But the photo totally cracks me up.

By the time I met Brett he had already been off exploring the world.  He went to school in New Mexico, came back to Ohio and then went to live abroad.  Here he is after coming home from Israel where he lived.  He also lived in Egypt, studying the Arabic language and living among the people.  He has such a strong passion for traveling, exploring, languages, and general vagabonding.

Very soon after this photo below, he came home to Cincy, met me, and “we” began.  How in the world he came back and married a straight up hillbilly is beyond me.  But I’ll take it.   ;)

Traveling in Germany with good friends.

So we met in 1998.  We dated, and were married 6 months later.  I knew I’d never find another man on this earth like him.  I knew I couldn’t let him go.

Thank the LORD I made that choice.  Look at these beautiful babies he gave me!!  :)  (That is Riah.)

Brett is such an amazing father.  He loves our children so much, and would do anything he could for their wellbeing.  His intentions are always with them in mind, and I respect him so much for that.  I couldn’t have asked for a better father for my babies.  :)  Oh, and he would GLADLY have 2 or 3 more.  In a heartbeat.

(Sorry honey….that’s not your birthday present!)

We married in 1998, and here’s what we had 10 years later.  :)

We celebrated 10 years with a photo shoot with our pals Bobbi+Mike.  Here, they photographed us at our apartment building where we first lived when we were married.  Is was so special to go back to where it all began.

This is the Brett you blog readers know.  :)

And this is my Brett.  :)  I adore him.

Honey, sweetie, baby pie….I love you more than I could ever put into words.  Your hard work and dedication to our family does not go unnoticed.  You’ll never know how much it means to me that you dropped your traveling, languages, and peace corp dreams to be with me and raise a family.  I cherish the man that God gave me, and I thank him every time I remember.  :)  Hope your birth DAY and this upcoming year are wonderful for you.  You are a blessing to us. Love you to the moon and back.

yours,

Jesse