Summer Family Mini Sessions 2026

Isn’t it crazy to consider that we will know our children as adults for longer than we will know them as children?

When they’re little, it’s easy to feel that they’ll be seven and three and a baby forever, and that life will always be just like this. Dance parties in the kitchen, legos and nerf darts all over the house, bedhead and pajamas at breakfast. Some of you who’ve been with me since the early days when my little family was young and still growing, know that my own three babies have always been my inspiration. They always will be.

Parker is 22 now with a technical certificate and a budding career in residential contracting. Lila is heading off to college in August as our last baby, Charlotte, will be learning to drive. Life is lived more quickly than we often realize, isn’t it?

These beautiful seasons tend to become a little blurry as they shift from one to the next. Sometimes you’ll find that you’ve entered a new phase of life before you’ve even realized that the last one had come to an end.

So whether your babies are still small, or grown and flown, or a mix of ages and stages like mine, I would like to invite you to experience a special photo session with you and your children! They’ll never be this small again, after all.

And if you have kids leaving for college in the Fall (like me), shooting now may help you avoid an extra hurdle on the holiday photo calendar later.

S U M M E R F A M I L Y M I N I S E S S I O N S

Saturday morning, June 27 on the beach at 8:00am, 8:30am and 9:00am
Sunday evening, June 28 on the beach at 7:00pm, 7:30pm and 8:00pm

Saturday morning, July 25 in the park at 8:00am, 8:30am and 9:00am
Sunday evening, July 26 in the park at 7:00pm, 7:30pm and 8:00pm

If you prefer a weekday sunrise/sunset, reach out to me and we’ll make it happen!

After the honor of my own, photographing your families has truly been one of my life’s greatest joys. Thank you for allowing me into your homes and lives to document your most beautiful and special relationships for all these years, while my own babies were growing up right alongside yours.

Time will still pass, of course. The trick is that we not let it slip by unnoticed.

Hope to see you this summer.

xo,
Stacey

My Lila's Senior Photos on the Beach | Graduating Class of 2026

My Lila graduated in May. We took her Senior Photos at her favorite beaches, and it was an honor to chase the sun with her again. It was a joy for me because what an honor to get to photograph this time, especially when it’s your own precious baby! But it was bittersweet for me too, since it’s hard to fully believe that we are here, at this point. How, when she was just making sandcastles on the beach not so long ago? My little Sunshine Girl is all grown up now and will leave our home for college life in the Fall. I will miss her so much, even though I am incredibly proud of her accomplishments, for graduating cum laude while also working multiple jobs at once through high school. We are in love with the young woman she is, and so excited for what her future holds.

If you see me smiling big this summer with tears in my eyes, well, now, of course you did. And that’s just fine. I am still in awe of her and without a doubt I will always be.

Small Moments: A Rainy Morning

I love my quiet mornings alone on the screened porch of our little house. Although, if I'm honest, I'm never alone, and it's never truly silent.

This particular morning, raindrops fall on the stone path outside my door. I write while the frogs sing their low morning songs, happy that the drought is finally over and the rainy season has come. Little bunnies rustle in their hutches and wash their long ears. The cat curls up in the next chair over, pleased to have me for company. I faintly smell citronella and lavender along with the dampness of the rain, and I check on my small collection of potted herbs growing on the porch, so pleased that they have not met their demise under my care. A pair of mourning doves land in the yard, seeking breakfast. A squirrel shimmies down the palm tree, competing with the doves for food. The sweet birds give up and fly away. Rotten squirrel.

Hours later, after the morning chores are done and breakfast has been cleared, I return to the porch, sit beside the peace lily and listen to the rain continue to fall. Listen to the frogs singing a little higher, a little longer, a little more distant this time. 

And I feel a little higher, I can stand up a little longer, and my troubles are a little more distant now too.

A reminder to myself: make time for these not-so-quiet, not-so-alone mornings. Whether on the beach or on the screened porch. These mornings are restorative to my mind and refreshing to the depths of my heart. 

Do you have a favorite time of day? A few minutes of time that you prioritize each day? I'd love to know how you refresh your heart and mind. 

Waiting

Mine is a story familiar to many suburban mamas of school-aged children, I'm sure.

With three kids in three different schools, much of my life is spent waiting. Waiting for a school bus, waiting in car line, waiting for grades to come out, waiting for a kid or two to get ready or to finish their homework. Waiting for music lessons to start and finish, waiting in lines, waiting for our name to be called up on the "choice school" waiting list, waiting at red lights from one thing to the next.

We all need an abundance of downtime, so I am very intentional about our family not overextending ourselves. Each kiddo gets to pick one extra-curricular thing per season (if anything at all). Also, I try not to schedule more than one event per day for us, for the sake of my own sanity. Sometimes I'm great about that, but other times it can't be helped. However, there are still the end-of-school events and project presentations and honor roll assemblies, class programs and concerts and volunteer lunches to attend and field trips to chaperone.

Today, Parker had state testing for reading comprehension. Since he's in Virtual School, I had to bring him to the school board across town, to test in a classroom there. A couple hours of testing today, a couple more hours tomorrow, a few hours next week and again the week after that.

So. Many. Tests.

Is it summer yet??

Until then, I sit and wait for my kids. And wait a little more. I work in between dropoffs and pickups and lessons and dinnertime. I schedule sessions while I'm at bus stops and I plan my month out during the few hours of alone time I get each week. It's just the season we are in right now. Shifting tides, balancing acts.

Life is fluid like that. 

After Parker's testing ended today, we had lunch and then sat at a coffee shop to finish his school and my work. He wanted to sit in the sunshine, I wanted to sit in the shade. So we both got a bit of alone time. It was such a nice day and I almost wish that we could have stayed longer. 

But then again, we still have tomorrow to sit and wait. And next week. And the week after that.

Announcing: Holiday Mini Sessions 2016

It's that time again! Mini Sessions and Signature Sessions are booking up more quickly than I'd imagined. That's a blessing and a beautiful thing, and I'm extremely grateful.

Click the image below to reserve your Mini Session before they're gone.  

*Updated 9/30 at 7pm: YOU SWEET-HEARTED PEOPLE. WE ARE ALL BOOKED UP FOR MINI SESSIONS THIS YEAR!! I do hope you'll reserve a Signature Session on the two open weekends I have left open until Christmas, or a weekday morning or evening. I cannot thank you enough! xoxox

Or if you'd rather have the next weekend and a morning session....

I only have a few weekend dates left open through October and November, so if you're looking to have gift prints, albums and/or cards in time for the holidays, I'd highly encourage you to get in touch with me today to reserve your session. 

If you're flexible, I can definitely offer you a weekday morning or evening. But those weekend dates are booking up more quickly than I'd anticipated. Be sure to reach out to me if you're even remotely interested in reserving a session with me this Fall, so that I can make room for you and your sweet family.

Thank you my sweet friends, for your love and support this past year. I hope to see your precious faces soon.

xoxo,
Stacey

Under a Twinkly Ribboned Canopy

Ribbons and sparkles and twinkle lights and princess crowns, and the sweetest girl ever. This session was an absolute joy to photograph, from beginning to end.

Isn't she just a dream? She read her mommy's childhood books and played with her adorable puppy, and we giggled and talked about life through a four-year-old's eyes. I'm happy to say that I've been able to photograph this darling girl every summer since she was born. I have the coolest job ever to get to meet the sweetest families in Tampa Bay. 

xoxo,
Stacey

I am currently booking for October and November sessions, if you would like your own sparkly, magical, beribboned canopy session in the forest. And with a puppy, of all things. What could be better?! Reach out to me and let's make it happen!

The timelessness of Newborns in Black and White

Beautiful darling girl. Such a delight and loved beyond measure. 

Those rolls. That head of hair and tiny toes.

Those lips. 

Photographing newborns in black and white is something I truly love to do. Look at that soft light falling across those sweet baby features. There is something special about their softness, their roundness, wrinkles and creases, that look so timeless and perfect when limited to natural light and black and white tones. So simple and classic. Newborn images like this look amazing when collected in minimalist albums or framed large on the wall. They don't go out of style, even when you change the decor of your home, or when your little baby girl grows up and starts kindergarten. :) 

If you're expecting and would like for me to photograph your little one soon, I'd encourage you to reach out to me sooner rather than later: I want to meet your little one freshly home from the hospital if I can! And if you're nesting, wouldn't it feel so great to get this crossed off your checklist now? Click here to let me know your due date, and let's collaborate!

Back to School: Boo Hoo or Woo Hoo?

Raise your hand if you sent a child to school these past couple of weeks. I sent three. Three! THREE kids to school and I have so many feelings about that. My baby started Kindergarten, you guys. How is that possible? Lila started 3rd grade, and Parker started 7th. Time is flying.

I have mixed feelings about back to school. You all know that I love my kids more than life itself, but let's be honest. I work from home. So take your three kids to work with you for eight weeks straight and you'll have an idea of my summer. :)

Now that we've been in school since mid-August, we've found our bearings and we are settling into a nice routine. 

This is our first year of trying Virtual School for Parker, and I think it's going to be a really good thing. It's our county's program, and he was able to stay in advanced and honors classes, even a couple that count for high school credit. Pretty cool for a seventh grader. And it's tough to beat a flexible schedule, Skyping with your teachers, and Minecraft breaks once you've finished your algebra. Parker has essentially moved into my office, with the desktop computer all set up for him. So I have an office buddy again, after several years of working from home alone. It's kind of fun! I'm getting used to listening to his techno music while I work, although I've embraced my own pair of headphones so that I can continue to edit in my peaceful place. ;) We are totally okay with skipping the drama of Middle School this year. Sixth grade for sure wasn't the coolest, but we lived and learned. So we'll see how it goes and update you again come Spring.

I can't get over how grown up Lila looks. That braid. Her dimples. Those perfect freckles! She's in her third year of Spanish Immersion at her school, and it's amazing to hear her read in another language. This year, she is all about her friends, and it delights my heart. She is responsible and good, and is always the one who finds Charlotte's constantly misplaced glasses for us. :) When she was about three, I would often ask her, "Lila, what would I do without you?" and she would sing, "You would cry and cry and cry." And it's still true. I rely on her for help with Charlotte and she never fails me.

And Miss Charlotte. Our tiny firecracker. She was just four when she started kindergarten (she has since turned five and she tells everyone who will listen). She smuggles that well-loved Baby Ariel, with her silky tag, into her backpack every morning. She promises that she doesn't take her out at school, so I have just pretended not to notice for a few days! She is so confident, despite her smallness and reluctance to leave her baby at home. All the safety patrols fawn over her in he carline already.

I have loved seeing the hilarious photos and videos of these excited moms doing happy dances in front of their kids' school buses, etc. My friend Bree even threw her kids a Back to School Party to bribe them with cake, I mean, get them excited for school. Although I did not craft something so funny or wonderful or embarrassing, I can absolutely relate!

How about you? Were you singing, "Boo hoo," or shouting, "Woo hoooooo!" this year? I'd love to hear from you!

xoxo,
Stacey

Brand New

The biggest, tiniest grins.

The sweetest, scrunchiest yawns.

And the most adoring, loving first-time parents. 

If you'd like to schedule your lifestyle newborn session with me, I'd love to hear from you! Click here to get in touch.