a day in the life of the pappoe family

I’ve known Kristy for 15 years. FIFTEEN YEARS!! She is a beautiful soul. We instantly connected and fell in love. I was at her wedding, she was at mine. Her oldest daughter was a newborn at my wedding 12 years ago!!

Like, WHAT??

Fast forward to now and we live three hours apart, she has four wonderful children and a super cool husband, James. We always wish we had more time together, but you know, LIFE.

I was super pumped when they invited me to pop down to their home in Vancouver, Washington and photograph a day in the life session for their family. These kids are a dream. I love each of their personalities. They are so fun to get to know. I have a special connection with each of them. They were even calling me “Auntie Anna” by the end of the weekend!

Sitting in a car load of Pappoe’s is quite fun. There is always so much going on. I watched this unfold as the oldest sister, Maliya finished her pizza roll and desperately wanted more. She quickly resorted to utilize her stellar puppy eye trick to petition for more from her littlest sister. I’ll let you guess at the outcome of this moment.

This might be one of my favorite photos I’ve ever made. The expression on each of these girls KILLS me. A quick read at first glance, but also layers of detail in those beautiful features that make them who they are. Both on the inside and the outside.

These are the things I think about when I’m photographing your family.

What is meaningful to you? What do the relationships within your family look like? How can I make a picture of each kid that TRULY represents them, RIGHT NOW?!

If you haven’t had your real life photographed before, you may be surprised at the content here. You most likely haven’t considered having your family photographed in the grocery store or a parking lot. Just think about this. This is the content of your every day life. This is what you’re snapping quick pictures of with your phone, which means they are important to you!! But guess what? YOU’RE NOT IN THEM!!

I could go on and on about why I want to be the one to photograph your family. How documenting your real life is WAY more than just snapping a quick shot. How much thought and creative vision goes into making one picture for your family. I could tell you the countless hours I’ve spent researching and geeking out over photography and fine art, studying composition, light, and story telling. I could tell you about my degrees in design and art history. Even though all of this is important to me and super valid to the conversation, it is secondary to this argument:

You need to be in photos with your kids.

If not for you, for them.

So, photograph them. Get out your phone and make pictures. Take silly selfies. Make videos of you being together. But also, let me do the heavy lifting once in a while. Let’s set aside a day for your family to be together, without feeling the pressure to document all of it yourself.

Live your best life together and have photos to prove it.

Thank you, Kristy and James, and all the kiddos, for welcoming me into your home to photograph your everyday life. I loved every moment with your crew.

Love, your photographer

Anna