What were your babies’ birth weights and lengths?
Give us the scoop. What has surprised you the most about parenting twins? Are there any funny stories or firsts that you’d like to share?
Mila. Newborn.
My session fave. I love how you can see her little piggies and their wedding bands and how gentle daddy is touching Mommy’s fingers. And the light. Yeah, I love the whole thing.
She is sure to steal your whole heart. Just look at those eyes. Precious girl.
Tell us about that first moment when you saw your baby. We were completely taken back by how beautiful and perfect Mila was. Words can't describe all of the emotions running through our heads the moment we first saw her.... from moments of panic to pure joy, pride, and a love that we have never experienced. What was your baby’s birth weight and length? Mila was 6lbs, 9oz and 18.5 inches long Is there a story behind your baby’s name? We wanted Mila to have a strong and meaningful name. Mila means "the people's love" and "favored." Her middle name is Jane and is named after her great grandmother. Jane means "God is gracious." Give us the scoop. What has surprised you the most about parenthood? How one six pound baby can completely rule your life. We didn't know how hard of work parenthood would be, but we also didn't know how rewarding the experience would be either. Are there any funny stories or firsts that you’d like to share? Mom has been pooped on.... twice (even though she has the most diaper experience), and dad has yet to be pooped on. On a "firsts" note, we had her laying on her back and she rolled over to her tummy at one month old! We were completely shocked and we think she scared herself when she did it! What did you like best about your experience with Crystal Jo? Loved how good she was with Mila. Crystal Jo has an eye for detail, very good at creative shots, and was very good at directing us on how to take the best pictures. She is also very easy to work with and very friendly.
Andrea and Adam. Engaged.
Their love will make you dizzy!
COSI, hands down, coolest place for photos! And even better when you have VIP status with NOBODY around… aka, it was 80 degrees outside and nobody in Ohio was indoors. 🙂
“Progress” is the same town, in 1898 and again in 1962. It’s like traveling through time and seeing what life would’ve been like years ago.
My session fave. I love the way her feet are crossing, the way he’s tenderly holding her hand. Cosi sign in the background which means a lot to these two. The entire image.
And this was a close second.. (their hands together up on the pole, they did that all by themselves!)
And then there’s this awesome sauce…
Andrea and Adam, I’m SOOOOO looking forward to your wedding day that is on my wedding anniversary. There isn’t ANY better couple that I’d rather spend the day with. Can’t wait! Xoxo, Crystal Jo
Some fun facts about this beautiful couple…
When and where is your wedding?
Adam: June 7th in Cleveland’s historic theater district at the Wyndham hotel
Andrea: June 7th at The Wyndham Cleveland at Playhouse Square which is the theater district we spend some of our most favorite date nights seeing our Broadway Series shows.
How did you meet?
Adam: I was having an end of the summer party at my house and Andrea was a friend of one my friends. We starting talking that night and continued to talk nightly after that. One thing lead to another and we were making a Cleveland to Columbus relationship work.
Andrea: I was invited by a friend to his house for a barbecue. He was so cute playing with this stray kitten his parents had been feeding, I was immediately smitten.
Tell us about your proposal!
Adam: For our first anniversary, we went out to dinner at a Gervasi Vineyard in Canton, Ohio. Gervasi has a beautiful property and before we sat down for dinner we walked around the lake. We came upon a stone archway that we had looked at in pictures before visiting and when Andrea was peering through the archway with her back to me, I got down on one knee and proposed using my grandmother’s ring. The amazing thing is that the ring, which we believe was made back in the 1930s, fit Andrea’s finger perfectly despite her unique ring size of a 4.5.
Andrea: We were out to dinner at a winery called Gervasi to celebrate our anniversary. Adam took me out to this adorable stone archway on the lake there and proposed. We had already been talking a bit about where we would want to get married and that archway at Gervasi was one of the top options on the list! Turns out what we’re doing is even more meaningful to us, but Adam’s decision to use that location was so sweet and thoughtful and we have a go-to place to celebrate anniversaries in the future
What’s your favorite thing about your significant other?
Adam: My favorite thing about her is her passion. She is constantly aiming it at different interests, but whatever it is she is wholly committed. Whether it is the Blue Jackets, various craft projects, or all things geek, she loves every second of what she is doing. I love every moment I spend with her and her passion for life. I know that the days we spend together are going to be a joy even when what we have to do might not be fun.
Andrea: His uncanny ability to understand and verbalize just about everything stuck in my brain that wants to escape but can never find the right/most concise vocabulary to do so 🙂 (NOTE: While reading his responses I had the “that’s exactly what I meant but worded *SO* much better” moment on just about all of them…as I said…uncanny.)
What makes you guys unique?
Adam: We are just kids trapped in adult bodies. We love sports, Doctor Who, Game of Thrones, video games, etc. We just can’t learn enough. That is the reason we wanted to do our engagement session at COSI. We couldn’t imagine a better place than one in which we get lost exploring our world.
Andrea: We are just big kids. We can enjoy something little like randomly hopping on a stand up teeter-totter to something big like spending a day at Cedar Point. Also we’re total geeks who love all things geekery…comic book movies, video games, Dr. Who, Game of Thrones, etc….oh yeah and musical theater….together 🙂
How did you find Crystal Jo?
Adam: I first met Crystal Jo at Andrea’s sister’s wedding. I absolutely loved that she took formal photos and got everyone to laugh.
Andrea: She did both my sister Erica’s wedding AND close family friend Margaux’s wedding. Made our photographer decision probably the easiest one to make.
Reason we chose COSI according to Andrea (who was not eloquent enough to work it so perfectly into a response to a pre-formed question haha):
We chose COSI for our engagement session because of our tendencies to act like giant children. The Mythbusters exhibit brought us in, the other fun stuff to do there reigned us in to just go for a membership (at not much more than a day pass, why not right?!). We share a love of all things science and if we both had it to do all over again we may just have been astrophysicists or something. We always have a great time there and can’t wait to finally get to the Sherlock exhibit some time after all the wedding madness is over 🙂
Javier. One Year Big.
Ohhhhmmmmgeee. Look at his outfit!
Big Sister, Adriana. She’s a little model, let me tell you. We were playing Simon Says and she would seriously do every action I would. I love her!
Some fun facts about this little cutie…
What is your favorite memory during his first year of life?
The way Javier gives kisses–big, open mouth, full of drool!
Do you have a funny story or something that happened in his first year that you’d like to share?
Javier got the Fisher Price crawl around car for Christmas. One day Adriana decided she would like to play with it and was sitting in it. Javier climbed in the car and sat right on top of her! She as so surprised and didn’t like it one bit!
What age/month has been your favorite and why?
12 months old because he is so interactive. Our favorite moments are when he belly laughs because Adriana does something silly.
One word to describe your baby is…loving.
Favorites…
Person: sister
Book: Ten Little Rabbits
Animal: bunnies of course
Food: yobaby yogurt
Toy: anything that can be pushed around like a car (i.e., step stools, boxes, pillows, chairs, open doors)
Avery. Newborn.
I randomly put this giraffe to Avery’s head before his mom pointed out this picture in his nursery. Giraffe kisses.
Just look at that grin. I’ll bet he’s already dreaming about all the love he’s going to share with his new family.
More on this beautiful little bundle…
Tell us about that first moment when you saw your baby.
It was 4am, so Matt and I were so tired, but we were so excited that Avery was FINALLY here! It was a rough delivery, so we were so thankful that he was healthy and full of energy already!
What was your baby’s birth weight and length?
9lbs 2 oz, 22 inches
Is there a story behind your baby’s name?
Avery is actually the ONLY boys name that we agreed upon, so it stuck!
Give us the scoop. What has surprised you the most about parenthood? Are there any funny stories or firsts that you’d like to share? Being that I’m from a family of all girls, the whole boy’s anatomy has been a struggle during diaper changes. I think Matt and I have gone through as many changes in clothes as Avery has!
What did you like best about your experience with Crystal Jo?
I love how easy the sessions are, as well as how beautiful the pictures turn out. Crystal Jo has been our photographer from engagement pictures through our 2nd child. It’s so special to have someone document so many milestones in our lives!
Kinley. One Year Big.
One Year. Fast. Just like that.
We celebrated with cake. Notice the matching dress. This littles Momma took her dress to Capital City Cakes and they replicated the dress. So clever!
My session fave…
Yummo!
Oh my!
The Rowe Family just installed this BRAND NEW hardwood floor. It’s beautiful. And it was some treat trying to clean the cake out of the cracks. Oopsies. So worth it for these photos, right, Courtney?!
Too much sugar, birthday girl? (She really did eat ALL of this!)
To the lovely Rowe family. Thank you, so very much, for letting me document Kinley’s special first year. You couldn’t be any sweeter. She couldn’t be any prettier. I couldn’t be more happy for you all. Xoxo, Crystal Jo
Here’s a little flashback of Kinley’s first year. (You can click on the links to see the full posts.)
3 Months Big.
6 Months Big.
9 Months Big.
What is your favorite memory during her first year of life?
We are sure this is so typical but we can’t choose just one. We love to watch her play and discover new things. But overall it’s been amazing to see her fall in love with us just as much as we are in love with her. The way her eyes light up and she smiles when one of us comes home just melts our hearts over and over again.
Do you have a funny story or something that happened in her first year that you’d like to share?
One that sticks out in particular is when she was about 10 months old we were eating dinner and she was feeding the dogs her food. Chris pointed his finger at her and told her no. Clear as can be she looked right at him and pointed her finger and told him no in her sweet little baby voice.
What age/month has been your favorite and why?
I am sure every parent says this but each new stage is our favorite. It just keeps getting better and better.
One word to describe your baby is…
Happy!
Favorites…
Animal: dog
Food: broccoli
Toy: the tv remote 🙂
The Hagerdorn Fam.
Four kids. FOUR. That’s insanity. And I can say this because this pretty lady is my cousin. And I tell her all the time… I just don’t know how you do it! And you always do it with such grace!
Ash sent me clothing options/pictures/pins months before this session. She lives in Minnesota and was in town for spring break. They had TONS of family stops to make including my visit with a fun photo session planned. Of course, OF COURSE, it was freezing. AND RAINING. But I think we nailed it. All in a quick FREEZING ten minutes.
Session fave. I love the movement, the expressions, the fun. It’s SO them!
I hope you love these as much as I love you, Ash. THAT’S A TON! XOXOXOXXOXOOXOXOXO
Ava. 2 Years Big.
Ava’s grandfather found this horse before Ava’s mother was born. It was very special to have her photos taken with it. And how awesome of a prop!
Ava loves playing music with her Uncle Justin. And she loves his guitar. Future rock star.
My session fave…
Some fun facts from Ava’s grandparents…
What is your favorite memory during her second year of life?
Ava wishing me happy birthday over the phone.
Do you have a funny story or something that happened in her second year that you’d like to share?
She always wants to look for our cat but she is terrified to get too close. When you ask Ava what the cat says she either says meow or hisssss.
What age/month has been your favorite and why?
Every age since she learned to smile.
Favorites…
Animal: Doggie
Food: Green Beans
Toy: Uncle Justin
Henry 10 Months Big.
We had a GREAT time at COSI. That place is so kid friendly. And photo friendly too! Such bright colors and cool little areas for fun photos.
Here’s Henry’s big brother, Ben. The farmer in the dell.
Hi ho, the strawberry, o. The farmer and the dell.
And then we made our way to the water and splish splash play area.
And an old town from 1962.
I love this place and these little guys!
Chanden. 3 Years Big.
I love these so much! Just fun and real. How it should be.
So big. So happy.
He’s ALL boy!
And this photo they ordered really big. Love it!