Purpletree Studios

I have to apologize. I’ve been writing this blog post in my heart for about a month without putting pen to paper/fingers to keypad. Behind my camera, at times, I am crying for joy to know someone had hope for something better, that they knew the love they had been searching for was going to arrive.

The story of Hope is different for all of my families. One of my mamas had a desire in her heart to love a child of her own. This was fulfilled when she adopted her sweet little boy from Ethiopia. One family who had lost their sweet baby in utero  is now rebuilding their family.  I’ve had the privilege of being in a courtroom, as a judge declared a little girl was now lawfully their daughter. Through my lens, I watched a beautiful couple saying their vows, knowing the bride prayed for years prior for her husband to be free from drugs and to know God. These stories never end and time and time again, I am humbled by hope.

One of the stories I have been honored to document has been the story of Morgan. I first photographed Morgan less than a month after her heart surgery (see session here: http://blog.purpletreestudios.com/2011/03/morgan/ ). As some may remember, doctors presumed the hole in her heart was quite small. As they went in, what they found was a quarter sized hole in her heart. The doctors were able to fix everything and her healing was quite astounding. The day after her surgery, she was running around the hospital with her sweet, sweet smile.

For our first photo session over a year ago, mom wanted to make sure Morgan could always look back to see the scar from when they went into her heart, so that as she got older she always knew how strong she was. This past March, we met again, this time to show off how much the scar had healed.

We all have had scars, some visible, some not. Through her story, a little girl, not even three teaches healing. Teaches hope.

Goodness, do I love working with the Guadians. I’ve gotten to see Audrina about every four months since she turned one and I’ve loved seeing this little one grow and grow. She still loves to dance, and now her days are filled with running, hiding and lots of laughs. I don’t think there is any mistaking that at this stage, Audrina is very much a daddy’s girl. One of my favorite photos of the set is of her holding just his finger. It makes think of the way we love our parents, even when we have to let go a little, explore and be on our own for a bit. One finger because we still need them.