Jen Madigan Photography

On Sunday afternoon, I met up with the C family to take some family photos at Kent Park. First, it must be said that Vicki and Jason are superheroes. Truly. I know this because I am from a large family and I saw how hard my mom and dad worked to raise us. So my hat goes off to the two of them. Not only are these 5 kids (Ben, Matthew, Abby, Emily, and Jenna) absolutely adorable, but they are so sweet and fun, the time flew by. I think we got some great photos, I hope you like them as well.

When taking family pics, I like to try and get a mix of "everyone look here" and more candid moments (which you'll see near the end of the post).

I love all of these individual shots of the kids (and Kaia, their golden doodle in the photo with Ben). I took a bunch of these and there are a lot of good ones, it was incredibly hard to narrow it down for the post.

The kids made a huge leaf pile and took turns jumping in it, it looked like they were having so much fun!

It ended with everyone piling on Ben, I love Jenna's expression in this one.

On the walk back, Jason spotted a frog and the kids were fascinated (particularly Matthew, Emily, and Ben) - I didn't go over because I'm terrified of frogs (sad, but true). Josh took the photo below.

These next two photos of Jason with the little girls just melt your heart, I swear.

Towards the end of the session, things got a little silly...

Above photo taken by Josh.

Vicki snuggling the two little girls, adorable!!

The instant Kathryn and Brian arrived at their engagement session, I knew it was going to be amazing. Not only are they incredibly nice, genuine people - they are gorgeous and totally in love, so how could it go wrong? The location Kathryn chose didn't disappoint either, the light was just beautiful and the scenery was equally stunning. (I think I may run out of adjectives soon, ha!)

Kathryn and Brian met one night in Ames, while at the bar with a mutual friend. Kathryn thought he was cute, but was initially enlisted to help their friend find Brian a girl before he deployed (he's in the Army Reserves). That night they danced, talked, and began hanging out quite often that summer. Kathryn wasn't sure she wanted a serious boyfriend, but once Brian left for training in Wisconsin, she decided she wanted more. When she called him to find out if he was still interested in becoming a couple, he told her they'd been dating all summer (despite her thinking the opposite, or maybe just not wanting to admit it!). Brian was deployed overseas for a year, where they kept in contact through emails, letters, and an occasional phone call. I'm sure it was tough for the two of them, I honestly can't imagine! Two months after he returned, he popped the question while they were on a ski trip in Keystone, CO. Seriously, so romantic.

Kathryn and Brian are planning a wedding next June, and I am so thrilled to be a part of their big day. I hope you all enjoy the preview...