A couple weeks ago, my family and my sister’s family had a week long vacation (if you can call it that with 5 kids in tow….) at my uncle’s farm near Rushford, MN. It was a great week of slip ‘n slides, 4-wheelers, movies, magazines, food, and family. 

My sister, Mandy, and I have always been close. We look nothing alike, but still somehow get mistaken for each other….by our own mother (love you mom!). We joke that it doesn’t matter who you’re talking to because we’re  “the same person anyway”.  When I graduated high school, she and I took a trek to Australia with work visas and, as the fairy tale goes, she met an Aussie guy who stole her heart. They ended up getting married and having the 3 most beautiful children I had ever seen (until my own came along of course :), all in the land of Oz. 

Last summer, they traded the beaches for corn fields when they moved back to Minnesota. It was a HUGE move and continues to be a big adjustment for the whole family, but I am incredibly grateful to have them back. Especially now that I have my own children, it is such a blessing to have my sister (a seasoned mommy and a constant source of entertainment) and her family around. My niece, Lucy (9) and nephews, Rocco (5) and Leo (2) are so smart and fun to be with and I am proud to be their aunt.  I couldn’t wait to do portraits of my favorite little kiddos on the last day of our time together at the farm.

-Gretchen