The McCollister Family - Calgary Family Photography

I was anticipating this afternoon because I was shooting in a new location, with some new friends and it consisted of a family of 4 boys and their families.  I know what it's like when Garth and his 4 brothers get together.....sometimes chaos ensues!  How is it possible to not have some jokes and laughter when 5 boys are all together for that rare occasion?  So I assumed something similar would be happening that afternoon with this family.  I was slightly surprised as how not chaotic things turned out to be!  Sure...we had little ones present who always enjoy looking around everywhere except the camera...but they're little, that's expected! 

Within minutes of meeting all of them I knew that this was a group that enjoyed their time together and shared lots of laughs.  That twinkle in the eye has been passed down and it was fun to see those eyes in multiples wondering what would happen.  But....we were on a mission to get the photos done before the sun fell and the cool air started moving in,so no funny business was taking place as we had a few different shots to get.  This location provided what we needed and I love the stairs here...expect to see these again sometime!

I failed to mention that this is one gorgeous group of people and although I do take credit for the final product I had nothing to do with how put together this whole family was.  Bright smiles, twinkling eyes, what more could I ask for?   I could have shot a lot longer, but they were off to dinner and I couldn't talk them out of not eating! I had fun and I hope they did too!  Enjoy.

 



Following the party

I very clearly remember her 50th birthday....I wasn't there to celebrate with her, but made sure she knew we were thinking of her.  We were living in Prince George and the drive to Caronport was just a little too far even for a big event like a 50th birthday.  So...I had a few things taken care of for me by some good friends.  They filled her office with about 300 balloons and posted signs and posters up all over the campus stating that it was her 50th birthday and that she needed to hear how old she was. In no way was I going to let such an auspicious moment pass without recognition of it!

Another year has come and I'm not able to share any chocolate cake with her, but I will partake in something chocolately tonight to celebrate.  But I certainly do wish I could fill her office with balloons again! And some lovely pink flamingos on the front lawn would definitely compliment the Christmas motif that is most definitely present in her house and yard already.

I really don't know what to post here.  As corny as it sounds, words really can't express how thankful I am for my mom.  Her thoughtfulness, encouragement and sacrifices have been a part of my whole life.  She is a laugher, meaning you won't be around her long without hearing her or possibly feeling the thunder of it.  A party follows Mom and I've been fortunate to take that ride.  She's loved me,challenged me, supported me and championed me - a true mother and friend.

Mom, I pray that this year is your best yet, although it will be hard to cap the year I was born. ;-)  I pray that you make the most of every opportunity and that you take time to do nothing, that you continue to fall more in love with the Lord and with Dad. I pray that even though we are far apart that you will continue to send "sugar" our way, and that you keep laughing in spite of what life throws your way. And... I also pray that you get to sink your toes in a warm sandy beach!  So someday I will share a cake with you Mom and no matter where you are I'll be following the party to hang out with you!

This photo was taken earlier this fall and I think it is Mom.

=

A quick shoot in the park

Sue and I had been trying to get together for family photos for a little while now and FINALLY! an evening worked.  We had approximately 35 minutes of light to work with and so we moved fast that evening. She introduced me to a new location that I think will be fun to try out again when we've got some more time.

I am fortunate enough to see this family just about every day as we walk the same path to school.  Sue is one of my bus stop friends and I'm so glad that I got the chance to meet her.  I know that she will be a part of many memories that will take place here in Calgary.  How fun to have a friend just down the street with three little boys that love to run around, wrestle, bike ride and play outside!

Enjoy the photos of Sue and her boys.  It was a fun-filled photo shoot as I got to see lots of silly faces in the midst of some handsome little boy faces too.

Back to the basement

Growing up in our house meant that Sundays were always hit and miss as to where we'd be having lunch. Usually we didn't make it home for lunch, sometimes supper was away too.  After church somebody would invite us over and inevitably we'd end up staying for the whole day!  Yup, you invite the Ballantyne's over and it didn't just mean lunch, it meant afternoon snack, dinner and night snack!  No... we weren't socially awkward just really loved!  It was hard saying goodbye to us I guess!

More often than not we'd end up at the Brown house, play clothes would be borrowed and the fun would commence for the next 6 to 8 hours!  Lots of memories are tied up with that family, but one came to mind the other night.  Now you need to know my sister Nikki to know how easy a target she was when we were younger (actually both of my little sisters were!).  Nikki always reacted sooooo well and it always made it that more fun!  At some point in time we'd be in the Brown's basement listening to Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant or Petra blasting it as loud as we could.  On one such occasion we thought it would be fun to run around the basement in the dark but to make it even better we decided that it would be even better to scare each other. So we proceeded to do just that. And that consisted of putting the zombie moves on Nik which involved huge bug eyes and slow walking movements with our arms out straight infront of us. And what did Nik do? Yup.... she screamed and ran away. So it made complete sense to continue doing it because she gave us such a great reaction! Aaahhhhh....memories! ;-)

So fast forward many many years to Thursday night where the Koop family found ourselves at the Holloway house.  The lights were off, the cousins were running around trying to scare eachother and enjoying it. Now my boys are always asking for stories about when I was their age. So..... it seemed like the right time to share that story.  I gathered the kids in the back bedroom and shared how to scare their mom.  So they proceeded to walk slowly through the dark hallway and living room to the kitchen where their mom/aunt was.  Was she scared? It was hard to tell amidst her laughter! Sadly you do grow out of some things. Sigh.

Here is a photo of the cousins.... just imagine the bug eyes and zombie like walk.





Beauty in the pasture

So.... I KNOW that you've seen these kids before but I couldn't leave it with what I had.  My deeeelightful nieces agreed to pose a little bit longer for me that afternoon in the pasture and why would I waste such great light and such beautiful young girls?  No one in their right mind would refuse that offer!   My girls (okay they aren't mine per se, but I do refer to them that way!) are so much fun!  There was no work required in getting these photos, in fact I'm certain that MJ could have posed longer if I'd asked. But I knew that their brothers and cousins (Tys and Ry) were itching to get something to fill their bellies.  So we wrapped it up with a few more shots of their brothers and headed back for some food.

I can guarantee that you will see more of these two young ladies in the future!  Just another reason why I'm glad we're closer.

Oh, how I wish for a scanner! If I had one you'd see how much this girl resembles her mom!

Not too sure yet, but this may be my favorite of MJ from the day.

 I think "my girls" thought I was crazy about this time as I was squealing quite a bit over the light and how great they looked. Now maybe they'll understand once they see it!

This photo would be more accurate if they were brandishing swords.  True boys!!!

 Does someone share an identical smile with his mom or what?

Back in the Day

I love music.... it is a very rare time to be in my house and there isn't music playing somewhere.  And often you'll hear me singing along.  I remember going to concerts with my family from when I was about 12 until I graduated from high school. Yup... my Mom and Dad would load us up in the car and made the two hour drive to Saskatoon (where all the concerts were) and we'd sing along to our favorite artists.

Now... my ultimate fave? Hands down...Amy Grant. LOVED her!  Anytime she came to Saskatoon you'd find me figuring out anyway possible to get tickets and get there.  I was so into Amy Grant that I even looked like her as much as I could. Now thankfully I don't have a scanner so I don't have to embarrass myself as you compare how closely I resembled her.  I had the long curly hair thanks to Mom and her perming abilities.

Her last album really set me up great with my high school friends.  You see they didn't really get my music and so when Amy started having her music play on the radio it all of a sudden gave me some credibility in regards to music.  Thanks to Jason Emiry and his ever expanding plethora of music tastes my tape got played in the grade 12 lounge from time to time. Wahoo!!! You laugh, but that was HUGE for me back then!

I was taken to another time and place earlier today when I heard a song from my past.  Right back to sitting in the grade 12 lounge on old matted second hand couches eating my sandwich along with all my other classmates listening to Jason "spin records" on the stereo.  Aahhhh, the good old days when you could eat peanut butter in public places and ear buds were a thing for the far far future.  We shared the music together and enjoyed it together...back in the day.



Apparently I can't link this properly due to some regulations but you can still view it by clicking on the link you tube provides. Enjoy! And sing along!

Walking isn't all that bad

"I don't care if you don't want to.... we ARE going for a walk!  We are going to have some family time even if we don't have fun.  We are doing it!!"  That isn't verbatim but the idea is there.  It was a cabin fever kind of day and we'd had enough of the house, the sky had cleared and the sun was shining brightly.....time to GET OUT!!!! 

My idea of fun sometimes is to just head outside and go for a walk.  Thankfully we've got a HUGE park not too far away from us.  A quick little 3 minute drive and we're there.  Sure going on our bikes would have been fun too, but then it's no fun for Mom to lug the bike rack to the escape and then load up the bikes and make sure they are secured with like 50 bungee straps.  So what's easier? Loading up the boys and just driving with no bikes.

By the time we got to the park things had quieted down...."you see what happens when we leave the house and yard?  Sometimes it means fun!!!!"  We had a great walk and came home ready to face whatever else was ahead.    I think I'm heading out for a walk.  ;-)