The Best Family Pictures

There are two elements that make these pictures especially important to me, beyond the obvious fact that they are pictures of me with my two favorite people. The first is that this place is beautiful beyond words and I spent a good portion of my younger childhood here. It is the home of my friend Gretha, who I first met in her capacity as my nursery leader at church, and who I rekindled my friendship with when I came down to BYU for school.

Imagine as a child having a neighbor who had a pool, a pony and cart, a cottage filled with vintage toys and tea sets that you were ALLOWED TO TOUCH, a flower garden that rivals anything that Mary Lennox ever found, and the biggest hammock you've ever seen. Now imagine that that neighbor was like quintessential grandmother - making delicious things, taking the time to appreciate any specimen you wanted to show her, and letting you play dress up and have tea parties any old time you wanted.

That is who Gretha was, and who she still is, though Peppy the pony has since passed on. In the months before I left Utah, I went to her house almost weekly. We made applesauce, canned pears, picked blackberries, made fresh spearmint tea, watched Christmas movies, and sometimes we did nothing at all.

So that is the first thing. The second reason that these pictures are the best is the photographer. When I got married, I had arranged for a guy in my ward with a knack for photography to take my pictures. About a month before my wedding, he got a great job in New York and was no longer available. I was pretty worried about it, especially because my photography budget was pretty much set in stone by that point, and it was tiny. Then I remembered a guy my friends had recommended, and I wrote him an email a desperate plea for help. And guys. He saved the day. Not only did he take all of our temple and reception pictures for a mere pittance, he did an amazing job. And he's such a nice person and great to work with. So I instantly thought of him when I decided to get some family pictures taken before our move.

So, here are just a few of our favorites. For the setting, all the credit goes to a dear lady who loves to beautify her house and yard. For the shots, there is no one better than Chad Keyes.

This is the cottage, full of tiny, special things. Not the least of which is Ivy.

The entrance to the garden, which was sadly not in bloom, it being November and all.

These are from her pear orchard, where we picked pears and canned them last year.

This is by the stable where Peppy used to live.