Chelsea reached out to me and asked if we could do some mother daughter photos for her and Myla. But she explained that their situation is a bit different than many mothers and daughters. You see, Chelsea is Myla’s aunt but she filed for adoption. While Chelsea was on deployment in the USAF, she found out she would be getting custody of her niece. When she came home, she made sure everything was ready (she got a small SUV, a 2 bedroom apartment, etc.) to give Myla the best home possible.

Chelsea is the sweetest; she has the biggest smile, and a contagious joy. I know this transition from being a single 20-something woman to a mom of an 8-year-old can’t be easy all the time. But I admire her grace and the choices she makes to give this sweet girl a wonderful life.

I loved being a small part of their journey by capturing these mother daughter photos to celebrate this new life they are creating together. We laughed, they ran around in the sand, and then Chelsea and I talked for a while outside our cars after the session. I’m always so blessed by the people I get to meet and work with (and become friends with) in my job!

Check out some of my favorites from their session below!

-M