One of our neighbors is out of town a lot and occasionally asks us to put their packages in their garage. One day this neighbor texted me, “Are you interested in family photos? I’m a photographer and I’d love to do a family session for you to say thanks for always picking up our packages.” I was stunned with happiness! Photography is not this neighbor’s full time job so I didn’t know they even did it, and I LOVE family photos. I seize any excuse to get new high res photos of my family.
Thanks to Oregon’s bazaar weather, the spring blooming season was late and short. We magically caught the peony field on the last day it was open. Glencoe Farms is in Hillsboro, has 2+ acres of peony’s, and lets you cut your own flowers ($2/stem).
Even though we went during a spring heat wave, we arrived early in the morning to beat the heat and it was legitimately cold. The kids were not happy about that. But it doesn’t look cold in the photos because the sun was very bright. It was magical to wander around the beautiful field and show the kids how to cut flower stems. It was less magical trying to get both kids to smile in the same direction. We were ultimately never successful. Overall, the kids were pretty good cooperators because a lollipop was on the line.
Also, a few minutes into taking pictures Lucas started sniffling, and by the time he got to the car at the end his eyes were watering and nose was running. The wind in the field was blowing something around and Lucas was definitely allergic to it. We went straight to the store and got him allergy medicine and he perked back up shortly.
Random story about peonies… Around the time we first moved to Portland (9 years ago) Lucas walked into the kitchen and said, “ugh what is that awful smell?” We felt stumped after we checked the usual suspects in the kitchen and couldn’t locate the smell. It turned out he was referring to the the peonies I had in the sink ready for a vase. 🤣 Apparently Lucas doesn’t like the smell of peonies. Most people do.
Photo credit: Eloquent Moments Photography. THANK YOU Joanie!
Photos were taken a month before the kids turned 2 (Murphy) and 4 (Tennyson). The last adventure with the kids just 1 and 3!
