Celebrating 6 years married to my absolute dream @smmrdnl I’m inspired more and more by her every day. Her creativity, patience, love, humor, drive, and passion are even more evident now than ever before. I’m so grateful for the dreams we are pursuing and the life we get to live.
To kick it off this morning we got to walk to our shops and see so many people we love and then walk with our besties over to see other friends shops. Couldn’t be more grateful to do all of this together,
So thankful for @farrahpower and the way she documents our family so well. Larkin was so excited to see her again and it is such a tender feeling having our babies love our friends as much as we do. Especially in such a busy year it is such a gift to have these moments frozen in time to see our sweet little babies and all of their wonderful personalities bloom. I feel so lucky to get to raise two incredible little humans alongside @smmrdnl
6 whole months with Brecken today and it’s really hard to explain just how joyful our little boy is. You can lock eyes with him from across the room and he will let out a laugh, he can be in the middle of crying and still smile, and he is as smoochable as he looks. We spent the day doing a lot of his favorite things: listening to girls just want to have fun, watching Larkin play, eating new foods, being held by Sommer, and going to a bunch of coffee shops. Most of the time the coffee shops are just for us, but somehow he always finds a way to make a stranger light up. Babies tend to do that to people: bring out a little extra joy in the midst of everything else. He is happiest when he is being held by Sommer and interacting with someone else. London looks good on Brecken Bear — Larkin and Sommer too.
It’s been magical watching these two grow together, the love in Brecken’s eyes anytime he looks at Larkin. The way she has grown into being a big sister: singing his favorite songs when he is crying, the first question every morning used to be “how was my nap” and has been replaced with “where is Breck?” Somehow Brecken laughs every time someone else does and Larkin laughs harder because of his little giggle. Swipe to see Larkin on her first flight when she was his age.
So thankful @farrahpower took these photos of our family. I feel a bit too lucky sometimes that our family gets to be surrounded by such wonderful people: that our kids will get to grow up being loved and cared for by so many. It’s a gift I’ve always prayed for, and it feels too good to be true. It shows in the way Larkin cares for her little brother: attentive, nurturing, sometimes coming on as strong as possible. It shows in the way Larkin can come into a new situation and once she is ready can be entirely herself because she’s been shown love and kindness. I think I’ll always treasure these because it freezes and bottles the beauty of Sommer as a wife and mother of 2: sweet and fun and strong after a long week, long month, long year never giving less than her all to every moment. It hurts already to see how much Brecken has changed in a short amount of time but it captures his personality so well: along for the ride but couldn’t be happier to be there.
Our baby boy Brecken Heath McKenzie has joined our family and somehow it feels like he has always been a part of us. Sommer handled it all so well, we were surrounded by love and encouragement from the moment we stepped into the hospital, and the second we got home Larkin embraced the little baby brother she has always dreamt of. Grateful beyond measure for these first days as a family of four.
There’s so much I love about this photo that Brandi took of Sommer before AthFest. Our new baby will be joining us any day now and it’s a gift that we have so many people surrounding us to celebrate and share the excitement of new life with us. Larkin tells us all of the activities that she is going to do with “the brand new baby” and I can’t believe how lucky we are to get to raise a new life with Larkin as their big sister. I knew that having a coffee shop would bring a number of great people into our lives but the support and prayers from not only our team but also our regular visitors and friends make me feel so much more loved than I could have imagined.
Sommer is is unlike anyone I’ve ever met. Every day she shows up for the people around her, devoting herself to the ones she loves, working hard to fulfill our dreams, learning new ways to become the best mother for our kids, and growing to be the best version of herself. She is endlessly creative, she loves to learn and share what she knows — if she is ever too quiet it’s usually because she is 2 paragraphs deep in a text on helping a friend who needs advice or help — and I feel like our whole world is better because she is unwavering in her love for others. In a world where so many things continue to change, Sommer is a constant to those around her and more importantly a true version of herself. I can’t wait to add another member to our family with you because there should be more people in our world like you. If you want to celebrate her you can do so by engaging in these activities: eating any type of korean, Vietnamese, Chinese, Thai, etc. Listening to a podcast like 99% invisible or throughline, starting the project around your house you’ve been dying to do, getting together all the people you love and spending time with them (bonus points if they help with the project), going to a museum or on a historical trolley tour, go on a day trip to somewhere really fun just because you miss the brunch there. Loving you continued to be more and more fun every day, thank you for sharing your beauty with the world.
So thankful for everyone who came out this weekend. It felt so surreal to be playing again and so overwhelming to hear everyone sing along to these songs that have held such a special place in our hearts. I’m just so grateful to be surrounded by such uplifting and supportive friends and family members. I teared up a few times having our sweet baby seeing us play for the first time while dancing with Sommer and having her get to meet so many new friends. Thanks for cheering on Larkin as she helped me set up my pedalboard before our set, she the real MVP.
Every year gets a bit more exciting, every year with you seems to present new opportunities that are so fun to watch you grow through. Each year I am astonished and proud to see the woman you continue to choose to be, and these last few have been exceptionally rewarding. Being by your side as we embrace parenthood has made me feel more lucky than ever. I love you to the moon and back, happy 30th birthday. Larkin and I are so grateful to have you.
We got to shoot the Braves World Series Parade for The Atlanta History Center last year. I really love all of the events we get to shoot for AHC but this one was electrifying.
