family ties

So, I have been struggling with how and what to blog...I don't want to just go back to "normal" like nothing ever happened, like losing my brother has not changed my very being...But, on the other hand, I do believe mine is an overall joyous occupation, celebrating individuals, families, and love. I don't want to cloud all of my posts with my own sadness. So, like I said, I have been struggling. This post is easier, because it is of a family so close to my heart, a family interwoven throughout my personal history.
My family has always lived farther away from my grandparents' farm than most of our other relatives do. When I was younger, I always loved get-togethers at grandma's for so many reasons, not the least of which was getting to see my cousin and one of my best friends, Kayla! We would always beg my parents and her parents to let me spend the night over at her house. Now, in case you don't know, I was raised very strictly, so I didn't get to spend the night with very many people, but thankfully my Uncle John and Aunt Becky were on the list of approved chaperones. ;) I have so many great memories of fun times with Kayla!

When I was up in Iowa recently to attend the annual family hayride/bonfire out at my grandparents', my Aunt Becky asked me to do some family portraits for their entire family. I really enjoyed the shoot, as I have recently been so severely reminded of the importance and preciousness of family photos.

{A fun fact: my Aunt Becky is one of my mom's nine siblings/one of her seven sisters! :)}

Here is the entire Engle family...


my cousin Kayla, my Aunt Becky, my cousin Keith, my Uncle John, and my cousin Kim...


Kim is the oldest of John and Becky's three. Here is her adorable family... {I got a few where they were all looking at the camera, but I just loved this one with the boys messing around. :)}


And here is Kayla's beautiful family...

{Funny story about the above photo: When Kayla and Jason started dating, I bet her a Mountain Dew {yes, the pop--we were obviously mature teenagers} that the next time I saw her she would have a different boyfriend. Over ten years and five kids later, I still owe her that Mountain Dew! :)}

John and Becky with their grandkids...


the boys... {awww!!!!!}


pretty girls...


sibling love...


"Okay, everybody lean in clooooose!"


the couples...





The girls wanted a pic of ALL the girls in the family...


John, Becky, and family~
You guys are so special to me! Thank you for trusting me to document your family! Also, thank you for being a tower of strength, love, and support for my family to lean on!

~abi~

jaded

Well, it has been a while since I have posted some pretty photos, so I wanted to come back with a bang. I needed something to lift my spirits today, so I decided to work on these portraits of my lovely friend Jade. Jade goes to my church, and she is such a sweet girl with a heart for God! Since I first met her, I have been so inspired by Jade's awesome fashion sense, so I asked her to pose for me sometime in a fun, stylized shoot! When the fair was going on a month or so ago, I thought it was the perfect place to do our session, especially because I had also been wanting to do a fabulous shoot with all the fun lights at the fair.





I played around with some off-camera flash, which I don't use very often...










































Jade~
Thank you for humoring me and agreeing to do whatever I asked in order to produce this shoot! You rocked it like a pro! :) You are the COOLEST girl!! :) Also, and more importantly, thank you for your friendship and for sharing your kind heart! Love you!

~abi~

throwback thirsday: a change is in the air...

The weather here in Oklahoma this week is starting to feel a bit like fall...You know, the cooler breezes, leggings instead of bare legs, back to school, and dare I say it, longing to watch a football game, type of weather. At the beginning of every season, that particular one is my favorite! I just love the feeling of change, of a new season. Funny thing is, I also fear change, and sometimes I even dread it...This is something I am working on.
There has been a stirring in my heart lately. A longing for change. God is at work in me, and as much as I fear the changes He is bringing about, I also welcome them. I would love to have your prayers for guidance and clear decisiveness in my actions. I really am not trying to be cryptic, I am just not quite ready to share what's on my heart...but I'm almost there!
Someone else who has experienced a lot of change, and is facing even more, is my lovely subject in these photos: Wiebke. You see, Wiebke was a foreign exchange student last year at Yukon High School. She came over from Germany to attend her senior year here in the states...Only, it wasn't really her senior year. She explained to me that the schooling system is different there, so even though she was a senior here in the US, she will be a senior again when she gets back home to Germany. In fact, she might have even said she has two more years of school, but I can't remember for sure. So anyway, she obviously made a brave decision to go to the other side of the world and live and experience something totally different than the norm for her. Wiebke told me that they don't do senior portraits in Germany, so she really wanted to do them here as part of the whole "senior year in America" experience. My sister coached Wiebke in tennis, so she convinced Wiebke to have me do her pictures, and I am so happy she did! I was thoroughly impressed by Wiebke!! She was very well spoken, cultured, and kind! We had great conversation as we shot, and Wiebke was genuinely excited about the photos as I showed them to her on the back of the camera. She is such a sweetheart! Honestly, I cannot say enough good things about her!
We did this session after the end of the school year last year, so really this is a "Throwback Thursday" post. Wiebke is now back in Germany. Anyway, on to the photos!

Bam! Thought I'd start this off with a bang. :) This sorta reminds me of a Gap ad or something...


I just love the tension Wiebke is portraying in this shot! She was sooooo good in front of the camera!




















Love the shot on the right, when I caught Wiebke blowing her hair off her face!




It was suuuper-windy that day, which made for great windblown supermodel hair! :)
















Not only is this one of my favorites from Wiebke's session, but it is perhaps one of my fave portraits I have ever done! :)


Wiebke~
I hope you are having a great time being back at home in Germany! Thank you for choosing to have me do your portraits! I know that you have a great future ahead of you! You are a beautiful person in every way!

~abi~