It’s hard to believe it’s been a full year since we met our sweet Baby James and also said goodbye to him. So much has happened and so much has changed. I gave birth to our third baby just 8 days ago and life is very full. Full of diapers, full of emotions and full of gratefulness. If you had told me on this day last year that I would be holding an 8 day old, healthy baby boy one year later, I wouldn’t have been able to believe it. But here we are, celebrating our sweet baby in heaven while holding a new baby boy in our arms.
It was easy to fall into thinking that we didn’t do enough today… like we should have had a party for James… we should have started more traditions… we should have acknowledged him more. It’s easy to feel like we’re forgetting him because we have a new baby in our lives who needs me every 2-3 hours… but I know in my heart that that isn’t true.
Today may be Baby James’ birthday, but this is not the only day that we celebrate his life and talk about him. We share about him constantly. Sometimes I tell strangers about him even though I know that it’s a lot for them to hear… but I don’t care. When people asked me if I was pregnant with my first, I never say our second…. even though that would be the easiest thing to say. James’ life is still a part of our lives and will forever be a part of our story that we will share without hesitating.
Today, the four of us went down to visit James’ willow tree on the other side of our property with one balloon for his first birthday. I’m praying this tree lives for decades and I have told Michael we’re never leaving this house because of this tree!!!! :) It was a sweet day full of the kindest messages from so many friends and family who wanted us to know that they still love and remember our baby.
Baby James…. Happy Birthday sweet boy. You would have been one today and even though our heart ache to have you here… doing all the things little one year olds do…. we rejoice that you are in the place we all ultimately long to be. We love you and we’ll never stop sharing your story.
Read more about Baby James’ story HERE, HERE & HERE!
Thank you Aunt Emy for taking these!!!!
Thanks for reading!
— Katelyn
MORE RECENT POSTS
It still feels surreal to tell people about what we do for a living. We photograph weddings and we teach other people how to photograph weddings. It’s quite literally a dream job for a creative like myself who loves people! Every month when we do these Student Spotlights, I’m reminded all over again how much of a privilege it is to be a part of these photographer’s lives and play a small role in their stories.
This is Rhett’s third month blog post and I’m actually impressed that it’s only 9 days late!! I’m sure I’ll fall behind this year but as of right now, I’m doing ok and I’m actually thankful for the monthly-post commitment to keep me on top of editing our family pics each month!! While people say “the days are long but the years are short”…. I would say EVERYTHING feels short right now!
If you’re a photographer that despises Off-Camera-Flash (OCF), this blog post is for you! Ugh. I feel you. I used to hate it too… and it honestly still isn’t my favorite but it’s necessary in order to rise in your professionalism on wedding days after dark!! Off camera flash seems intimidating when you’re trying it for the first time.
This is such a fun post for me to share because it’s what I consider my “hobby”! Sure, it’s still photo-related so maybe it’s not a true hobby for me since my career is consumed in the photography world… but it is most definitely what I love to do for fun!
This is the biggest complaint we’re hearing about the R6!! Photographers who are moving from the CANON MARK III camera body and switching to the new Canon R6 camera body are lost when it comes to perfecting their edits to the style they are used to.
There has never been a year quite like 2020. It started off so normal, so simple and so carefree. Then, March/April hit and it felt like everything was turned upside down!
Top Personal Posts
Have a little time to read?
KJ ALL-ACCESS
A wintery boston wedding
"Best money I have EVER spent on education! ... and I've spent a lot!”
"I love all the lessons I'm learning from KJ All Access! Thanks Katelyn!”
"I find very few educational resources worth it ... this one is!”
"Being able to see behind-the-scenes of Katelyn interacting with her clients has been SO impactful!”
"SO worth it! It's amazing the amount of knowledge you get out of them!”
"I learned just as much in one All Access as I did in a whole course! SO GOOD!"
The KJ blog
must-reads
YOUTUBE
