Seriously, I love when I meet a friend who doesn’t have a cookie cutter family – these are my most interesting friends. I suppose I relate to them, because my own family is a blended one. I didn’t grow up picturing myself as a stepmother. It is as rewarding as it is challenging. But honestly – who pictures themselves loving someone else’s children? I would guess not many do. But once you do, there’s definitely no going back. And it feels just the same as loving your own flesh and blood.

Ashley and Branden have three boys between them. The two older boys, Thomas and Ben, belong to Branden, while Wyatt is all Ashley. (Look at the photos; he is her twin, and I am absolutely obsessed with it.) As you can imagine in a house with three boys, things can get a little crazy. The same could be said of our photo session, and honestly, I’m one hundred percent here for it. I’m sure part of why Ashley and I get along so well is having being a boymom in common. There’s just something about having ALL BOYS.

Ben, the oldest, is 9. He was sweet and a bit quiet at first, but eventually I did see more of his mischievous side, and he definitely eggs on his younger siblings. Thomas, 6, was honestly a little bit of a mystery to me. I definitely had to work a little harder to get the smiles out of this one. Though I did hear Ashley call him the “clumsy child” more than once, so clearly he’s as capable of silliness as the others. Wyatt – oh, Wyatt. Wyatt bounced around, full of energy, and talked to me almost non-stop throughout the session. You could tell all he wanted was to keep up with the big boys. Well, that and to be close to his mama.

Probably the most challenging parts of the session were photographing Ashley and Branden together without the kids. Obviously not because of the photos themselves. But who knows what those kids were getting up to while we were preoccupied! And with that creek right there, there were more than a few close calls. Which the boys of course loved.

Ashley and Branden, thanks so much for entrusting me with your first family photoshoot. I know it felt crazy at times. But your boys are an absolute joy, and I laughed a lot at this session. (During, and after, while going through all the photos!) I’m so happy we had this beautiful little Addison, TX park all to ourselves to create these beautiful memories for y’all.