family – ittybittywhitty

Christmas Cards and Cookies

Can I just use these photos on the rest of my Christmas cards for the rest of my life? Not sure I can get any better than this!

December 14, 2018December 14, 2018 ittybittywhittyLeave a comment

You guys. This was officially first year that I was A.) on time with sending out Christmas cards and B.) had a real family photo on the card.

I have my friend and fellow photographer Tammy to thank for that. She captured these super fun Christmas pajama photos for us in her NEW home studio. If you are in the northern, VA area and need any photos Tammy, owner of Berks Nest, is where you need to go. The kids felt right at home in her studio and you can see evidence of that with their huge smiles below!

For any of you wondering….how did I get my husband, Bryan, to wear these coordinating family pajamas? Simple. He had no idea until the morning of the shoot. Once the car was loaded and we were ready to go I hopped in the car with mine on and his and the kids in a bag. Not enough time for him to try to get out of it!

#whenmomishappyeveryoneishappy

Merry Everything!

And so I’m offering this simple phrase, to kids from one to ninety-two – although it’s been said many times, many ways, Merry Christmas to you!

December 8, 2018December 12, 2018 ittybittywhittyLeave a comment

This year feels a bit different, I felt a sense of completeness as I hung up stocking #4 for the first time. Lucy & Conor truly make this holiday (and every holiday) feel magical. It’s like I relive my own childhood as I see the wonderment in their eyes.

Reflecting on the past year, I still can’t believe we have TWO kids. Conor has been such a blessing to our family this year, and I was so excited to show him his very first Christmas tree. I am a bit obsessed with the teal and red bulbs we have on our tree this Christmas. While the kids are small, hanging anything too fragile seems a bit risky, so instead we used mostly stuffed ornaments and I just love how whimsical it is!

As much as I love the idea of making our own memories and traditions, there is nothing like bringing back the best ones from your childhood. When we were young, my dad always put a huge model train under the tree. This was no ordinary train, it had real sounds, lights, smoke puffs, you name it! We even would set up a little village with homes and tiny people in fake snow. I haven’t quite made it to that level yet, but in the meantime we have a beautiful little train set by FAO Schwarz that simply mesmerizes the kids as they watch as it passes by.

And although it’s been said many times, many ways…

I feel like i’ve hit the jackpot with these sweet & silly kids.

Masha and the Bear

To say Lucy loves Masha is an understatement. And, as proof, Bryan, Lucy, and I can recite every single word of every single episode verbatim.

October 30, 2018October 31, 2018 ittybittywhittyLeave a comment

If you have little ones, there is a good chance you know about the Russian animated series called Masha and the Bear. To say Lucy loves Masha is an understatement. And, as proof, Bryan, Lucy, and I can recite every single word of every single episode verbatim. I am pretty sure every polite thing Lucy has learned has been from her incredible daycare, and every naughty thing she has learned has been from Masha. For Halloween this year, Lucy wanted to dress as Masha, and Conor – by default – well…you guessed it…will be the Bear. It is going to be a sad, sad day when I can’t match these two cutie pies costumes together.

This past weekend, I dressed Lucy in her adorable handmade Masha costume made by Anna Fanosyan, owner of AnyutasCouture. She loved her costume so much that we left it on for half of the day, including our trip to find a pumpkin and our stop to the bakery (cake pop stains may or may not be a part of her costume now). For the past month and a half, Lucy has been asking me, “Is it Halloween yet?” so I am delighted to finally have her wake up tomorrow morning and say YES, it is Halloween!

Conor Boy’s cuddly bear costume makes him the perfect Bear to Masha and he was more fascinated with playing with the grass and mulch than taking photos. We are so excited for Conor to experience his first ever halloween and push him around in the stroller as we trick-or-treat through the neighborhood tomorrow night.

Wishing all of the little trick-or-treaters out there a happy and safe halloween!

baby noelle | newborn photos

Can we talk about the sheer joy you get while holding a perfectly new little newborn in your arms?

August 23, 2018 ittybittywhittyLeave a comment

What comes next in the series…one adorable baby boy…two (identical twin!) adorable baby boys….

If you guessed three adorable baby boys – you are incorrect – and I think Nikevia and Julian are breathing a sigh of relief that their 4th child was not in fact triplets, but instead one beautiful baby girl, sweet Noelle!

When Nikevia contacted me about doing a newborn shoot for her daughter, I felt like I was counting down the days till her arrival just as much as she was. Her and I went to school together and not only did she excel at everything – sports, academics, heck she was even our homecoming queen – she is honestly the nicest person on the planet and someone I am lucky to have stayed in touch with over the years. Spending time at her and her husband’s house taking photos of their family was such a fun experience…and also a challenge! Do you know how hard it is to try to get a photo of three little boys three and under all smiling and looking at the camera? Throw a newborn into the mix, and its darn right impossible! Despite the challenge, I was able to capture some real candid family moments, and I hope they treasure these photos for a lifetime!

Fun fact: Somehow between juggling 4 kids under 4, Nikevia owns an incredible business called Cinnamommy. If you are local to western Maryland, you need these in your life!

Kiersten & Jesse | Engaged

Taking photos of these two lovebirds was such an honor – the horses and goats were an added bonus!

April 22, 2018April 22, 2018 ittybittywhittyLeave a comment

Sometimes you see two people interact with one another and the world just kind of stops and then starts back up again revolving around them. Kiersten and Jesse are two of those people. Them being together just makes sense. That perfect mix of playful and serious – they truly bring out the best in each other. This weekend, I had the privilege of shooting their engagement photos.

When Kiersten invited me to her family’s farm, I had no idea what to expect and when I arrived, I was floored. The land was lush and green, goats greeted me, and there were beautiful horses in the distance. It was a phenomenal setting to capture the love these two share and I hope you can feel the same happiness I did.

Fun fact: When Kiersten was young she spent hours filling a bucket with yellow petals from these Forsythia bushes and then threw them around like confetti all around the yard.

Gorgeous couple, right? I wish them both a beautiful wedding and the most incredible life together!

Bello Bambini

Twice as much to love – my beautiful cousin is having TWIN BOYS!

April 9, 2018April 12, 2018 ittybittywhitty2 Comments

This past weekend I had the honor of attending my beautiful cousin Daneda’s baby shower for her TWIN BOYS! The thought of her being a mother brings happy tears to my eyes, and I know that she will not only have her hands full, but her heart will be even more full. Daneda’s mother (my Aunt) planned the most beautiful baby shower *side note: the nicest I have ever attended* for her daughter and her soon-to-be arriving grandsons, and I had to share some of the exquisite details with you. The venue was a log cabin out in the woods which she completely transformed with such care for every detail. In addition to the decorating, she cooked a delicious five course meal for the guests. Being surrounded by Daneda’s guests (much of it my own family) brought such joy to my heart. These two babies are going to be surrounded by LOVE!

During the dinner, a very pregnant Daneda and I ventured off into the woods for a quick mini session. Even though I was a bit nervous that I might put her into labor with all of the walking, I wanted to make sure I captured my stunning cousin in all of her soon-to-be motherhood beauty.

She is absolutely glowing ❤

I cannot wait to meet those two very lucky baby boys!

love & lots of whit – jen xo

The Biggest, the Loudest, the Craziest Party Ever!

A pink-rainbow-Troll-tastic recap of Lucy’s 2nd birthday party!

March 27, 2018April 2, 2018 ittybittywhittyLeave a comment

GUYS…Lucy is TWO – how is that even possible?! These past two years have been nothing short of amazing with our little girl in our lives. She is silly, loving, and so very smart! She sure does keep us on our toes. I am lucky that her birthday fell while on my maternity leave because it has given me actual time to plan a fun party for her!

It was a no brainer this year when deciding on a theme for Lucy’s 2nd birthday party. This girl can practically recite the movie Trolls word for word, not to mention her love for belting out all of the songs. We used Trolls as the main inspiration for the party and that went hand-in-hand with incorporating a whole lot of pink and rainbows as well!

We had such a great time celebrating and I wanted to share some of the pink-rainbow-Troll-tastic party details with all of you!

Can we all drool over those cake images for a second? Keri at The Farmers Daughter Bake Shop baked up the a cake that was MADE for this theme! It was overflowing with rainbow-y goodness inside and out and tasted absolutely delicious! For the rest of the food for the party, I tried to think of as many rainbow treats as possible, hence the fruit skewers, Rainbow Goldfish, Rainbow Chips Deluxe, and the pretty (but not that great tasting) rainbow popcorn. Though the Million Dollar Dip I made had nothing to do with rainbows, it was a huge hit and I highly recommend it for your next party or get together. We used Wegman’s catering for the sandwich platters and they did not disappoint! Their menu options were much better than the traditional go-to Costco sandwich trays and the same price point!

A shout out to a few other vendors we used: I found the perfect customized banner and cake topper at ShopSwayDesigns. The favor baskets I put together included awesome sound and light bubble guns (a must for bubble obsessed toddlers like Lucy) and wouldn’t have been complete without the adorable Trolls headbands made by BlackBoneBows. For Lucy’s outfit, I found a sweet and affordable rainbow tutu.

love & lots of whit – jen xo

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