Here in the heart of Clearwater, Fl lies a historic home welcoming this young family of 5 and their puppy, Luther. Just before the couches, beds, and dressers made their way into the home, the dust of filing cabinets, office desks, and ringing phones of a business office were beginning to settle. Linawa and Josh Shaffer and their three girls love the character of this old home and began making it their own just a short three months ago.  With portraits just starting to find their place on the walls, everyone is getting use to the new layout and finding the space where they can enjoy time together.

The smell of fresh coffee as the door slowly opened, the familiar eyes of a small child greeting me I had only seen through photographs, a Mother giving her daughters loving, pampering attention,  sounds of an old wood floor beneath my feet and Dad making breakfast in the kitchen, this was the heart of their new home.

It is with a heavy heart that with a new location and unfamiliar boundaries comes a very sad ending. At just 6 months of age, Luther, the family dog had his life taken yesterday just as the family witnessed the accident in trying to retrieve him just steps away from their home. My thoughts are with with family as they grieve such a tremendous loss and hope they find comfort with the memories they're left with.  

"We met through social media" is so much the norm of the current situations of most connections these days for me but this didn't feel like much of an introduction, this felt like a case of me hanging out with friends I've known for a while now while placing the pieces of how we each found one through the social media trenches. When I had my last and final baby, I wanted to discover all the things that I hadn't experienced before like making organic baby food, cloth diapering, baby wearing, and surpassing my past goals with breastfeeding. This was my introduction to Christian Axness who owned a local baby boutique I found on Instagram. She in return had found me because at that time I was representing a major brand Freshly Picked, baby moccasin creator and she was looking to be a wholesale distributor for Freshly Picked. Her Facebook and Instagram is filled with all sorts of hilarious videos and the success she's made for herself through Young Living.

 She is now a health and wellness educator, breastfeeding consultant, and runs a full-time business with Young Living. Nate and Christian have been together for 15 years and married for 10 and are currently selling their home to travel the country with a camper, their two toddlers and their bunny. This is the home they've made for the past 5 years. It holds many memories, strengthens playtime, stores conversations, and shelters their beds so capturing pieces of them enjoying their home before their big adventure just made it that much more special. 

This lifestyle session is just a small glance that shows just how important family is to them and also the many personalities that made this family session so enjoyable for me. They're playroom is the place they say they spend the most amount of time in their home. Nate and Christian love their comfy couch for cuddling with a cup of coffee or watching movies on the iPad while the children play.

The family adventure continues.

We took to the fisherman's wharf on our second day. Things you don't realize about San Francisco is that you will need a jacket even in July and especially by the water. Refreshing differences but coming from Florida heat of what feels like an oven, we stopped in a novelty shop and bought a few sweaters to keep our thin blood from freezing over. We enjoyed some Italian food, and continued exploring till Reese found a "pirate ship". 

Next Stop..Redwoods.

Know what's not fun? Taking a three year old through a forest of redwoods and he wants to be carried the whole way up. That's right!... UP! This national park allows you to hike up into the trees tops hundreds of feet to get the full effect of just how large these trees are. Packed full of people coming and going and a crazy parking lot congested, backed up and hard to maneuver, we got lucky on a parking spot right at the entrance- Thanks random guy giving us your spot. Another check off the bucket list!

If you have a place you love to visit in San Francisco area, restaurant you enjoy, or an experience you'd like to share with me, leave me a comment below and I'll try to add it to my future visits!

Every year we plan a new destination for family adventures. Last year we took our youngest to San Francisco and with no real set itinerary, we played it by ear and let the adventure begin. As you can imagine, the excitement was pretty profound in all of us experiencing it all together for the first time. Our cousins living in Berkeley graciously allowed us to stay with them in their beautiful home that we heard overlooks San Francisco. Once we landed, we were quick to get the best rental car they had. 2016 blue mustang convertible? Yes, please! This would later be forever known as the "blueberry car"

The drive meant going through tunnels and over new bridges until we reached Berkeley and had some catching up to do with family. Cousins, Erin and Tony greeted us at the door and made the best hosts. The modern elegance of this home had two levels of floor to ceiling windows, heated concrete flooring, fine art covering each wall...but that view. Oh, that view.

Golden Gate Bridge

Just stunning....

This WAS last year, so some of my memory on date and times may have faded a bit but I can 100 percent recall my first experience seeing a hummingbird for the first time and it was perfect timing. Outside, here on the balcony, soaking in the scenery...and boom. I'm in a mecca of hummingbird territory. I may have got a teensy bit hysterical and dramatic about it, but my inner National Geographic expedition took over, grabbed my camera, posted up in a chair and patiently waited...and waited...and waited. Then finally, like a bullet, this little guy appeared and swooped in a photo debut showing me all his good sides.  

We slowly settled into our new surroundings and made it a night in for dinner with our family. Erin ordered us takeout from their favorite vegetarian Burmese restaurant...I can still taste the coconut rice and hear Reese asking for more. We watched over the city through the telescope and finished the night with a glass of wine and long conversations on the couch. First day was a huge success.