Cassetes, Cheap Hair Dye and a Leopard Cape

Looking back, I  never really felt like I was bold enough Scary Spice, mostly because my thin straight-as-an-arrow blond hair looked nothing like her teased up swamp of curly brown delight. But I did love her vivid and loud personality, I loved that she got to do the fast rapping solo in "Wannabe" and  love that I forced myself to learn each and every well timed word. and I still. Know. It.

boom.

But more than that, i loved that there were five of us, and five of them. And I loved that in our own little time and place, we did everything we could to feel and act like them. Cause lets admit the, the Spice Girls were IT in 97' (and yes Wannabe was released on *cassette* thank you very much) . We had been to their concert, bought their merchandise, choreographed our own dances to their lyrics and now it was time to really BE them. Even if only for one night.

So there I stood, Halloween 1997, in the bathroom as an 8th grader with a cheap bottle of hair dye. Not the kind you lather into your hair from a bottle, let sit and then wash it out to find your color beautifully altered. Oh no, I didn't personify Scary spice enough to take on anything that permanent.

I opted for the cheap stuff. The kind that you find on shelves only around halloween right next to the plastic carton containing yellow, blue and red pastes and a make-up applier only good for one messy application. I bought the stuff that literally looks and smell like spray paint, but somehow magically washes out.  I can still smell that brown spray as it eeked out of its bottle, soaking in and transforming my golden hair into a *closer* version of my little teenie bopper hero.

We crimped hair, borrowed shoes, and mascara-ed our little pubescent eyes until we felt like we could walk out on those streets like we owned the night. And we did.

We really did.

The five little "wannabes" , and yes thats me in the middle sporting the leather half top and LEOPARD PRINT CAPE.

Funny, how a photo can instantly bring you to a time, a different place and make you remember so clearly, like you are actually there.   This little blast from the past, brings back so many memories;f fighting with neighbor kids we didn't know but didn't like cause they lived 'down the alley', of trampolines,  late night dance parties at sleepovers and forcing little brothers to be our photographer as we modeled in our backyards.

And though we have all grown up and moved on from this phase, we all still share that little love affair with those other five girls who were friends too. And I love them for that.


*Viva Forever*

Macias Family: + A Baby Girl on the Way!

I talked to Jessica before I met her and her 'all boy' family at the shoot. " I have three rambunctious, fun loving boys!" she said,  "Oh and they all LOVE soccer". Fun loving was the perfect way to describe this family of 5 going on 6.

Upon first meeting them I was impressed at how well mannered  her boys were. Clearly Renee and Jessica have raised these boys up right because they were so polite and smiled with the cutest faces as if they'd been Gap models since birth.

I mean look at those little faces! Kind of wish they were my kids.  : ) 

It wasn't too long into the session that their fun and outgoing personalities came shining through. This one was done without prompting and I just love their personalities in this!

Though this family is all boy now, in just a few short months they will be welcoming a little girl to the family! We got to take a few photos of Jessica's baby bump in progress!

Okay side note: Can I just say I was so impressed with the heels Jessica was rocking during this shoot?!We walked all around downtown Chandler and she never complained once and in fact, I never saw her break a sweat! She looked amazing and I know part of her 'glow' was pure excitement to meet her new little girl in March.

When we pulled the soccer ball out, we got some real smiles, you could tell the boys were in their element amongst the grass, quick feet and trying to bypass their dad.  Soccer. Its a daily part of this families' life as they go from practice to games and playing out in the backyard with dad.

Thank you Macias Family for letting me capture your amazing family, I can't wait to watch as your family grows! 

6th Birthday Dream Come True

She's colorful, loves to be messy and is a girl who knows what she wants. Megan has been asking for this Birthday  Paint Party since she was 4 years old, and now that she is 6, her brave mom and dad bought out the paint aisles at the three closest craft stores, invited over all her friends, filled up squirt guns with paint, and braced themselves for an afternoon full of organized chaos.  

Look at that sweet little smile of a girl fully embracing her special day. 

The kiddos just loved all the activities planned. From the moment you let the sidewalk chalk direct you to the backyard where all the fun was to be had, it was non-stop game on! Starting with decorate your own t-shirt and paint the tail on the donkey. 

I think i would have exhausted all of my creative energy by the time the hotdogs rolled out. Not this party! Joanne had planned even this part down. From the 'paint your own hotdogs' complete with ketchup, mustard and paintbrushes, everything went with the theme spot on!

 The fun continued with cake as each kiddo got to decorate their own cupcake with whatever sprinkles, frosting and decor they could find. Needless to say, I think this freedom led to the sugar overload 1/2 later.

Oh and lest you think that these type of events just happen, rest assured there was plenty of parental involvement in this happy day. Joanne and Devan are rockstar parents and i couldn't help but give a little credit to their *nonstop* work behind the scenes during this birthday bash. 

And yes, they definitely did join in the paint fun.... in fact i think its safe to say that Joanne instigated the paint war!

In the end, the kids had a blast and you had one happy six year old who got to truly live out her dream by literally SLATHERING herself in paint. She was in her own world for about 20 or so minutes, enthusiastically trading her friends for the green, and then the blue and then the orange. She took her sweet time to cover ingjust about every inch of her showing skin. It is, after all, her party. : ) 

Happy 6th Birthday Megan!! 

Check out more pictures from the day at https://www.facebook.com/jennwagnerphotography. 

Book your session with Jenn today at www.jennwagnerphotography.com

The King Family

One loves science, bugs and examining a world smaller than his own through a magnifying glass. He has energy and spunk and was the first to make a silly face without me even having to prompt. The other preferred his fire trucks, a warm hug from mom and then following in the footsteps of his brother, curious at the interesting bugs and flowers but from a distance.

Little Brayden and Caleb. Two brothers with adorably opposite personalities and parents that love and nurture both these boys to the fullest. It was a photoshoot where i truly felt like a spectator, just watching this family interact, only pausing occasionally for a quick picture mid smiles.

This was such an adorable and loving family and i felt so blessed to be able to capture a bit of their love.