Twas a month before Christmas, and we needed a tree.

So we stood in a LONG line, waking up REALLY early.

(See “Waiting in Line” Flip-book here.)

At 8:30 sharp,

we took off running

Through the forest so thick, we had to be quite cunning

For there were hundreds of people all doing the same

In hopes of finding a tree worthy of Christmas’ name.

So before we begin the tale of our tree,

The final product, I first wanted you to see….

And now for the tale our tree longs to tell,

of how into our lives this Christmas it fell.

This tale is not long, but it is quite good.

So sit back with family and enjoy,

because you should.

…………………………………………………….

The morning was cold, as it usually is in November, the month before Christmas begins.

There were hundreds of people all traipsing about as us trees stood tall and looking proud.

And all of a sudden a girl popped out from behind

She was not scary, but the thoughtful kind.

Next came the boy, lost in wonder

He had a small leaf and complex things he did ponder….

The girl just stood in front of me staring

and then decided I was worth sharing.

(And I thought…. my God what IS that she’s wearing?)

She called the two others to look at my leaves

They checked my tag and looked rather pleased.

They poked and they prodded

Heads tilted, the boy nodded.

He mentioned the top of my head was quite green

I had their look of approval, or so it seemed.

So they took my tag and checked my price

It was really quite embarrassing, but they seemed somewhat nice.

They took one last look at me to make sure I was right

because picking the wrong Christmas tree would just not be right.

Looks of love finally appeared on their faces

and suddenly I felt warm and happy in all the right places.

“I’ve been chosen!” I thought as we smiled together

Here’s to cookies, cider, presents, and cold weather!

I have a home this year, a purpose, a job

and an important one at that

one given by God.

We point to the heavens to remind everyone

the true meaning of Christmas…

The birth of God’s son.

He came to this earth to set things right

to show us what true love looks like.

All this to say, I’m excited, you see

So I wish you good tidings… only the best that life brings

For you and your loved ones

and all your friends too

Merry Christmas to all

and God bless you!

…………………………………………………..

THE END

A couple weeks ago, I had the chance to spend some time with Christopher’s family up in Portland, Oregon. We road tripped up through California and Southern Oregon, stopping for some Shakespearean appreciation at the famous Shakespeare Festival in Ashland. The trip was full of new experiences and some good old fashioned family bonding time with the Kernutts. While in beautiful green Portland, I got to do some pretty sweet shoots for them! First off, we went to a house down the street that belongs to some friends of theirs…. this house looks like it came straight out of Better Homes & Gardens Magazine! It was the perfect place to shoot because their landscaping provided a variety of looks that were so good!

First, I spent some time with Brandon, Christopher’s younger brother…the resident “Cool Guy” of the family. (You’re cool too Christopher…don’t worry ) This was the first time meeting Brandon and as we talked in between shooting, I was amused to see similarities between him and his brother. Brandon has a great heart and a great smile! I chose the backside of the house with this awesome stone stairway to shoot most of his pictures because I feel like it had the perfect combination of the hard man-ness of his character and the welcoming home-y feel I felt when he talked about “his home-town, Portland.”

After spending some time with Brandon, the rest of the Kernutt family arrived and the party began! The Kernutts have this AWESOME family portrait of them taken in like 1994… Christopher was 9. They all have awesome 90s clothes and hair-dos and it’s in this sweet grassy park… vintage, if you will. I decided it would be fun to re-do that portrait with everyone in the same positions as last time to see how everyone’s grown. Here’s how it turned out….

From there we played a little Badminton… boys vs. girls…. they were fierce competition!

Here’s some more shots from the day…

Overall, I loved doing this photoshoot with them… and they reminded me of what’s important…. in life, the important thing is to be slow to get angry, quick to laugh! Thanks for letting me see a little glimpse into your family!