You know what the best part about being a wedding photographer is? It’s AFTER the wedding. Don’t get me wrong, I love the whole wedding process, but what I love even more is watching our couples go from dating and excitedly planning their wedding, to becoming newlyweds, to becoming parents and raising their families. And being asked to be part of it? Bestill my ever-loving heart; there is absolutely nothing better than that!

We first met Dan and Michelle a few years ago when we shot their Joshua Tree engagement session and photographed their vintage carnival inspired wedding, and we’ve kept in touch over the last couple of years even though they lived all the way in Australia. A year ago, they welcomed sweet (not so) little Emerson into the world and made the decision to move to America this past summer, and it made me so happy that they’d be so much closer!! Michelle reached out to us before they even moved back, to see if we’d come hang out and meet Emerson and celebrate his first birthday at the pumpkin patch with some fun lifestyle photos. Ummm – of course!!!

So just a couple weeks ago on one of our trips to California, we made the trek to Menifee and hung out at Wickerd Farm’s Pumpkin Patch. They had hundreds of pumpkins and Emerson loved roaming around, showing us all his favorites and trying to pick up the biggest ones he could find! He didn’t even get scared of the scarecrows (our kids were totally terrified of those when they were younger).

And after we got done exploring the Pumpkin Patch, Emerson got to experience his first cake! The cake smelled SO GOOD you guys, Randy + I could smell it from a few feet away and boy oh boy did Emerson dig right in to it! He loved it, and then he even shared some with mom and dad!! We loved celebrating Emerson’s first birthday at the pumpkin patch at Wickerd Farm!