One of life's greatest blessings is to be loved by your family. The older I get, the more I realize the importance of holding family members close and cherishing even the small moments with them. As I photographed this family, I could tell that they love one another greatly and I even learned a few things from them during this mini session.

From Sierra, I learned that nothing replaces the love and comfort of being close to your mother. Sleepy Beckett was attached to her hip the whole time, and nobody else's hugs would quite do the job.

From Steffen, I learned that patience is golden. It was a warm summer evening and they were wearing dress clothes, and, when a lot of guys would've been complaining, he had an awesome positive energy. A lot of times the parents set the tone for how things play out, and it was so cool to watch him do just that for his family.

From Xavier, I learned that if you just stare at the camera and smile 100% of the time, you'll always look good in pictures. (Seriously, though. Have you ever seen a kid who looks this perfect in every picture?)

And finally, from Beckett, I learned that sometimes if you stare at the ground long enough, you just might be offered sweets in return for a few glances toward the camera. ;) #ItWorked

Here a just a few of my favorites from this mini session. Let me know what you think!

*Do small things with great love.*

-Lauren