What an incredible opportunity I was given to meet this phenomenal family on Monday! I was contacted by my friend, Ashley (aka Ingram’s mom), a few weeks ago about a friend of hers she has met through their days together at St.Jude with two little 4-year-old boys that are fighting the battle of their lives at St.Jude. Ashley told me that Reid’s mom, Amy, had fallen in love with our city’s Botanic Gardens and really wanted some portraits made there. Ashley thought I might could help and I gave an enthusiastic “YES!”. And, Reid and his family were such a blessing to me! The guys had me laughing the entire time, and I loved how Amy just laughed right along with them. 🙂

Reid was diagnosed with spindle cell sarcoma behind his left eye in July 2012 which resulted in the loss of his left eye. He recently finished his treatments including 7 rounds of chemo and 9 radiation treatments. While they were in town last week, he had his first post treatment scans last Thursday. The scans were clear!!!! Though this family lives in Louisiana, they will return to St.Jude every 3 months for scans for one year. Then it will go to every 6 months and eventually annual check ups. What an inspiring example of courage this little man is! And, big brother Wyatt…the strong silent type! He had me laughing the whole time with his funny one-liners and jokes. Mom and Dad, Amy and Lance, are so laid back and easy going. We had a wonderful time just being together and enjoying the moment.

Although we haven’t known each other that long, this awesome family had a way of making me fall in love with their joy and courage and the love they had for one another. The kind of family that we all wish we could be in our darkest days. Lance and Amy, you have two beautiful boys whose smiles and laughter are just the BEST! I know you are so extremely proud of them. Thank you for the opportunity to share in your journey and celebrate  clean scans with you! You have made an impact on me that  I will not soon forget! In reading this quote the other day, your family immediately came to my mind: “Anyone can give up, it’s the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that’s true strength.” – Unknown 

I just LOVE this smile! 🙂 Meet Reid…

And, this next heartbreaker, Wyatt! Precious…you can tell these little men love their momma! 
These are their “tough” faces! Haha!
Dad gets some big smiles, too!
Gotta love the tounge in this next one. Silly boys! 🙂  To find out more of how to support St.Jude in their fight to end childhood cancer, please visit their website, http://www.stjude.org/ Reid and his family thank you! 🙂