Every morning I welcome the day with my children.  We sit on the couch and read books, have breakfast in our pj’s and get ready for our day.  Some mornings it’s smooth sailing, other mornings, not so much.

Every day I watch my children learn, discover, play, laugh, cry, and grow.

Every night I put them back into their pajamas, read them a story, sing them a lullaby, tuck them into bed, give them kisses and hugs and, in my heart, give praises and thanks for the beautiful girls before me. 

I see them, every day.  Grace and Madeleine.  And yet, I don’t really realize how much they have grown in the past year, until I see a photograph of them.  Grace once stood as tall as Madeleine when Gretchen first started photographing our family.  Madeleine has always needed to be held, and now she is able, agile and active. 

It is these reasons that we treasure our sessions with Gretchen.  We want to remember those days when Grace was still shorter than us (’cause someday, I know she will be taller than me!), when Madeleine made that goofy expression, when Grace wore those bright pink, sparkly shoes and when Madeleine never let go of her Daddy. 

Thank you, Gretchen, for your beautiful photography, for capturing our personalities and for being such a wonderful friend!