One of my personal goals each time we go to the beach is to take some family photos.  I have been known to wake up at the crack of dawn, throw on pajama pants and flip flops and take my littlest babe out to a wide open sandy spot and figure out a way to capture them in all that beauty.  I’ve never done that at home….go fi

Last year when we went to Jekyll Island, we hit up Driftwood Beach (you can see that post here) and I wasn’t prepared for the epic scenery.  I mean…if you have been there you understand.  It’s like a different planet.  It’s alien.  It’s crazy.  It’s like God’s art show with wood and sand and water.  I honestly expected to see a Decepticon or something because it feels surreal.  So this year, I was hyped up to make sure I was completely prepared and ready.  That beach is so breathtaking that I wanted to capture our time there and frame it for our house.  I checked the tide charts and accounted for extra time for taking photos and exploring.  Because Driftwood Beach requires a chunk of time for good ole fashioned tree climbing and exploration.  And yes, we let the boys climb….we are living on the edge y’all.

Whenever we do family photos, we set up a tripod and the camera and hope for the best.  This time, I was really happy that we were able to snag such a cute photo….everyone looking was a bonus 🙂

TIP – Do your biggest family photos first if you decide to DIY pictures.  Set up your tripod and use a remote – it makes it way easier!  Here is a list of equipment we use.

After the family photo, I do individual pics – I think these might be framed later for our living room.  Max is seriously a camera hog.  He loves being in photos, looking at photos of himself and naturally smiles.  It’s adorable….except when you are trying to get a photo of someone else.  #photobombbaby

TIP – Take photos of the activities both close up and far away.  The things we do are a big part of the ‘story’ of your family and they can capture things that are more personal….like this one of LJ who insisted that he climb….I came around the edge and saw his progress and he was so proud of how ‘high in the sky’ he was 🙂

TIP – Remember to take close ups of things that are fun…this helps especially for scrapbooking or family photo books!  It can be anything typical of that adventure.

Will does this squinty eye smile thing now and sometimes it drives me batty because it’s not his ‘happy’ face.  But then I have to remind myself that it’s his version of being gentle and sweet and I really love that side of him.  It’s also hard not to be excited about those freckles.

This one looks other-world to me.  That foreground is mud.  It was slick and thick and the boys LOVED it.  Do you see what I mean about looking like it’s from another planet?

And this is so typical….the boys do whatever Jeremy does.  He climbs…they climb.  He steps in a puddle….they are right behind him.  And I love how Weston looks like a little Mowgli here.

I asked for one with all the boys and this was such a better depiction than the posed versions.  I love that my boys are independent and sweet and adventurous and usually with dirty knees and saggy pants.  One day I will look back and see all the little details of this photo….the swollen pregnancy knees and the way Weston’s fingers dragged through the mud and the way Will leans in close and I will probably just LOSE it.  Like ugly cry in the hands of Motherhood.  I can’t believe how big they are.

LJ said he was searching for sea turtles 🙂

And Weston literally gave me the most patience EVER to get this photo.  The light was changing so fast that I had a hard time with getting the right exposure….his fair skin just blended right into that driftwood or was overtaken with golden sunlight.  Finally I got it and I was so happy that he let me….this might be one of his sweetest smiles in a photo ever 🙂

TIP – Always do something fun for kids.  It can be jumping, spinning, screaming, splashing, WHATEVER….just remember that if the littlest ones in your photoshoot are unhappy….everyone is unhappy 🙂

While the boys were playing, I asked Jeremy to snag a few pics of this pregnancy.  It’s amazing how big I look already….definitely ‘maternal’ with that bump!  I guess my body is like “OH RIGHT….I know this!”  Oh and here is the link to my top.  It’s a maternity must have!

And this was one of Jeremy’s and my own favorites….I’m actually watching the boys make ‘sand balls’.

This was the boys waiting for simon says.  So CA-UTTTE!!!!

This shot of me and Jeremy is a rare winner!  I already plan to print it out for our bedroom!

TIP – Don’t forget just a photo of mom and dad!  You may feel insecure or not in the shape of your life or your hair isn’t cute enough….but you will NEVER look like this again.  My mom told me that.  She said get in the photo because one day you will look back and all those albums of people won’t have you in it!

I MEAN….Someone just send me my things.  I want to be right here.

And holy crap my kids are so cute!  Also I’m fairly sure Jeremy was making farting noises.

TIP – Take photos coming and going.  They hold so much emotion and can trigger so many memories.

I asked the boys to give a brother a hug.  Obviously the babies are the favorites here.  It’s funny because I can always count on Weston to hug LJ and Will to hug Max.  It’s like their little peas in a pod.  I hope one day they realize how dang lucky they are to have each other.

And how lucky I am to have that man and to be welcoming a sweet girl into the mix.  I mean….this adventure is crazy….we fight….this pregnancy is rough physically….but I am just the luckiest.  THE.  LUCKIEST.

And I am loving these beach maternity shots – my actual first ever maternity ones with the beach!  Awesome huh!?  I definitely want to do another shoot later in the pregnancy (I usually try to squeeze in two) but this one would be hard to beat!  I mean….that driftwood root system?!  Yeah…how could you possibly top that?!  I hope these tips were helpful and I would love to see your family photos if you decide to DIY them.  There are so many opportunities to try it if you are nervous….maybe just do it on a random day at your house….you know, capturing the every day moments.  Some of those are the most treasured items – and the cherry on top is they only require a small amount of effort and cost nothing!