I’ve been praying for these two girls years before they were ever born. Being able to watch them grow and blossom over these years is so immensely special. Being able to witness Candice and Jay effortlessly love each other and their daughters—my heart just bursts. Every time. It’s one of the most beautiful melodies I get to witness with my own eyes. Gosh… it really doesn’t take long for my eyes to fill with tears reminiscing on their story and where they are now.

Candice is another wedding photographer who was moving to Colorado from California at the same time I was moving to California from Colorado (we just swapped states). For those first two years after we both moved, we would join each other on wedding days, photographing side by side. So many fun memories, and so many heart-tugging ones too.

While Jay and Candice have family still in California, we have family in Colorado—allowing us to catch up over the years. And it’s also been extra special because I’ve been one of their photographers, capturing the girls’ adoptions and a handful of family sessions as babies and toddlers.

This year we had planned to photograph the four of them when I was in Colorado this past summer. With odd weather and an exhausting week on their behalf, they asked instead to come out my way to capture them in California a few weeks later. And goodness! The Oceano/Pismo Beach Dunes was the perfect backdrop this evening. The sunset was magical, and the girls soaked up every second of our time together.

Family sessions shouldn’t be “perfect” and full of stagged and awkward smiles. What they should be instead is fun and magical, creating a core memory that the kids themselves cherish and remember feeling when they see the photos. This night was one of those for sure. And I loved every moment and belly laugh.