plattsburgh, ny - week one

Week one will officially be over as of tonight, and it's been a fun and busy week, although we were saddened by the news that my grandfather ("Pipi") fell and broke his hip just a few days after our arrival. He is in the hospital having some post-surgery complications, so please keep him in your thoughts.

After Carrie and Dave's wedding, we were able to spend some time on the lake. Ava and my brother Jonathan, also known as Uncle Bobo, relaxed on the dock and splashed in the water. So sweet!



Love this one:



I also got to see my stepbrother's kiddos, Nik and Leah, right after we got here. Here is Nik. The kid could be a Gap model.



This is Leah:



And this is Nik and Leah:



The day after the wedding, we visited Carrie and Dave and my other girlfriends and their families out at their camp on the lake. Right after we arrived the guys caught a fish, but Dave didn't want to touch it. I'm sure Dave will be a wonderful husband, but I hope Carrie has someone on backup to kill big spiders and catch mice :) So here is Dave "holding" the fish with a little help from Chad, my girlfriend Irene's manly husband:



Not that Dave isn't manly, because he is . . . :)

Irene and Chad make some pretty beautiful babies, don't you think? This is Caleb.



And Cohen . . .



Cohen had to go to the doctor's while we were there because he just wasn't himself. It was heartbreaking. He had a fever, was tugging at his ears, his eyes and nose were draining like crazy. They were flying back to Virginia the next day so Irene wanted to be sure he didn't have an ear infection. The diagnosis? The North Country Crud. I'm dead serious. You gotta love upstate NY!

Ava and Madison were so thrilled to find each other underneath their wild manes:



And Mackenzie just took it all in . . .



Those two girls are my girlfriend Erika's little ones. Erika married Ryan, Carrie's brother, and I plan on spending more time with them and taking some family photos while I'm home. Can't wait!

Then we were off to Hillary's dad's house to have dinner and play with Zack, who will be a big brother in October! Ava and Zack enjoyed a romantic duet at the piano and Hillary pointed out the adorable feet shot . . .



. . . while Hillary relaxed with her fabulous pregnant self:



And this morning my other stepbrother's little guy, Nathan, showed up for a few hours to bond with Ava and I think they hit it off pretty well. Here they are showing off their John Deere hats:



And here's Nathan's better face:



Tonight is my stepmother's birthday so we'll be partying it up at my dad's house. I have a few portrait sessions this weekend so stay tuned for those! Plattsburgh is just covered with lush green fields, trees and wildflowers right now so I'm excited for all these photo shoots, there are so many beautiful places to take pictures! I was not, however, prepared for the humidity. I grew up here and it was really all I've known but the summer weather in Montana is much more pleasant.

Anyway, we miss our friends in Montana and hope everyone is doing well!