Kaitlin & Adam first joined the Bello Family in early 2007, when Andy & I photographed their engagement session at Dowses Beach in Osterville. Such fun! A few months later, exactly 15 years ago to the day today, we photographed their beautiful wedding at the Asa Bushnell House in Centerville. It was as dreamy as they come. (Happy Anniversary you two!!)

I feel a real attachment to Bello couples from those early years, like Katie and Adam. You see, Andy & I first started photographing weddings in 2002, after being disappointed with the photos from our own wedding. And, so those first few years of documenting other people’s weddings felt like a redemption of sorts…a way to right the wrongs of the past. I’m being a tad overly dramatic, but for me anyway, each wedding I photographed after my own felt like a chance to capture for these wonderful couples the magic I felt was missing from my own wedding photos. What I never expected, however, was that this love-fueled work would birth such incredibly enduring relationships. As much as I got an absolute thrill from capturing special moments in beautiful imagery, the thing I really loved, the thing that made my heart sing was the connections I was making.

Knowing that couples like Kaitlin & Adam have kept in touch for nearly two decades, coming back to us because they not only enjoy the photographs we capture for them, but because they like and trust us….well, that’s where it’s at for me. And so, I was thrilled when Kaitlin & Adam reached out to me about reuniting to photograph their expanded family. The last time we saw them was 8 years ago. Back then, it was just the four of them – Kaitlin, Adam, adorable 3-year-old Miles and baby Bennett. Click HERE for a peek.

Other than their wedding, all of the sessions with Kaitlin and Adam have taken place at Dowses Beach, so it seemed fitting that we head back there to enjoy some more fun and lovin’ with these lovely people.

Because they boys didn’t remember me….why would they, they were peanuts who only met me for a couple of hours….I told them how I’d photographed them when they were really little and showed them photos on my phone. Grant, the youngest, who wasn’t yet born, got a kick out of seeing his big brothers looking rather small. I was telling them about how one of my favorite photos from that session was of baby Bennett peering through the wood slats of the nearby pier. They thought it would be fun to do an updated version. So here it is…Can we talk about those baby blues???

Making muscles was also a suggestion I was open too. Can we talk about their faces? Adorable! PS…mom’s got some guns!!! Way to go, Mom!!

Bennett showing me a clam he found and (Right) Dad and his boys.

Making their way through the beach grass….love this photo of Kaitlin, who, in addition to being drop dead gorgeous, is also incredibly talented and super smart. When I first met her, she was doing branding and marketing work for Hearst Media in NYC, writing and producing content for Cosmopolitan Magazine and other industry leaders. After the birth of Miles, Kaitlin struggled with the guilt that can often plague working moms. She wrote “Kisses for Later – Because Love Never Leaves….Even When Mommy Has To,” a children’s book that she hopes helps other working families “feel connected and loved, no matter what!” You can purchase her book HERE.

Grant….giving the same dashing James Bond gaze his dad has.

Happy, smiling, lovely people.

Miles skipping stones.

Momma and her baby cubs.

Miles and Grant….gorgeous, just like their parents.

Pig pile….

And then wrestling….well, because.

More goofing around, while mom and dad take the opportunity for a sweet snuggle.

Dreamy family. Dreamy sunset…..swoon!

I love it when families want to have some activity during their lifestyle session….it gives me the chance to capture more candid, real life moments, like these of the boys as they play catch.

We were treated to the most beautiful sorbet colored skies after the sun set. It made for the perfect backdrop for this beautiful family.

An Andy Beet silhouette special. Hope I did you proud, honey!

Katie & Adam, thank you both soooo very much for giving me the chance to see you both again and spend some time with your delightful boys! It was so great reconnecting at the place where it all began for us! I hope these photos serve as happy reminders of this period of your life. It’s so crazy to me how quickly it all goes by! It really doesn’t feel like 15 years ago when Andy & I photographed your wedding and yet, here you are, with grown boys, who in 15 more years might be getting married themselves. It’s madness! Sorry…got off track there for a second. Anyway, I hope these photos help preserve this fleeting time in your lives. And I hope they bring you as much joy as spending that beautiful summer evening together brought to me! I also hope you feel I “worked my magic!”

Lots of love and big hugs to you all!  Christine xoxo