Sheena called me the other day letting me know her husband was due to come home from overseas a couple days later.  Homecoming coverage is the best  The expressions in the photos say it all.

Over a year ago, I photographed Chad and his family before his deployment overseas.  You may remember this:

One year later, which was just a few days ago, Chad returned home safely. I was so excited to see this family reunite!  Chad and Whitney planned on surprising their daughter after his arrival, with her opening a huge present and him being inside it!  I was so excited to capture this!

Since their arrival date/time is known only days before they show up, it’s hard to plan for a homecoming like this though. This time, it just happened to fall on a date and time that my husband was at work, which forced me to either take my two kids with me…or tell them I wouldnt be able to make it.

So, I loaded up the kids and headed to the airport. A huge group of soldiers were inside, and the kids were in awe. They love soldiers.

Anyway, usually the airport is bare when I am there to shoot a homecoming. This time was different. There were about a dozen patriotic fans waiting for them to arrive (in addition to family and friends). I dont think these people had any relation to the soldiers, they were just there to welcome them home. This made it really special for the soldiers who were arriving with no family there to greet them.

These are the moments I love:

This next photo I just HAD to take haha. Going down the escalator, my kids were just in awe watching them

Now for the really good part! The surprise. We headed to the park, got Chad into position, and waited for the grandparents to arrive with their daughter. Be aware…you may just cry.

After the first hug and kiss, you could tell how glad she was that her daddy was home. She immediately introduced him to her teddy bear, and then asked if he’d go play on the swings with her.

Welcome home Chad! So glad to see this family back together

I met with Chris and Katie earlier this week for their Operation Love-Reunited session in Bricktown. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you’re familiar with these sessions. If you’re new here, then my last sentence probably already confused you.  To fill you in:

What is Operation Love Reunited? This is a non-profit organization I participate in- made possible by photographers who volunteer their time and services to support our deploying military.  We donate a portrait session of the soldier and their family before deploying, or candid coverage of the homecoming ceremony, free of charge.

Why I participate? I am a firm believer that to whom much is given, much is expected.  I believe it’s important to not only use my God given gift and love for photography to make money, but also to use it for some kind of charity and good doing.  I’ve also “been there, done that.”  I spent four years as a military wife while my husband was in the Infantry. We went through the deployment…I know exactly what these families are going through…and that these photos of their family members will be getting them through the day over there.  When you can’t physically see or talk to your family/kids, photos are EVERYTHING.

Other info? You can find out details about OpLove at www.oplove.org.

Anyway, back to the story.  I photograph hundreds of soldier and their families every year- which means I am constantly hunting for “their story” that led up to our session.  If you don’t have regular contact with our soldiers, you may not be aware of how often these soldiers are deployed. The majority of  the soldier’s I’ve photographed are deploying for one year.  In addition to that, it most likely won’t be their last tour.

These photos below feature Chris & Katie. I was curious as to if they had been through a deployment before, and he informed me it was his THIRD deployment in two years.  Thats a huge sacrifice. Please continue to pray for these soldier and their family, including Chris & Katie!

I get asked all the time if families can bring their pet for portraits. This is a brilliant idea because: 1) The dog is a huge part of their family 2) Nobody seems to fake smile when a dog is there 3) Unexpectedness.

This Operation Love Reunited session was photographed at Will Rogers Park a couple weeks ago before the soldier was deployed.

Remember the unexpectedness I talked about earlier? SCORE! I had the whole family (including dog) posed on a bridge overlooking water when the puppy decided he couldnt take the temptation anymore. That’s right…he bailed into the water in about 2 seconds.

This water had two sections…normal…and nasty. Which did he choose?  bahahahahaha.

This bottom pic is my fav. The family had plans to take one last photo in front of this fountain. The dog was banned from this pic, but decided he was refreshed and ready for photos again! This photo was taken just as he shook off the wetness all over the family!

This soldier, along with many others, just left for a one year deployment. This family will struggle the entire year trying to adjust to him being away, so please pray for the soldier AND his family members.

Tonya called me about an OpLove homecoming pretty spur of the moment. She was really nervous (and a little doubtful) that I wouldnt be available to work her coverage into my schedule because of short notice.  Must have been “meant to be” because the date her husband arrived back from overseas was my only date available for the next three weeks.

He was originally suppose to arrive at 5:30, but that changed last minute….when the engine on his flight from Ireland caught on fire!! They had to actually turn the plane around and head back there for an emergency landing.

Later that night, at 9:50 pm, Tonya and their son finally got to reunite with their soldier!

He couldnt believe how much his son had grown over the deployment!

After their reunion, he introduced his family to a good buddy that was overseas with him.

Glad you’re home soldier!

Last week was bombarded with OpLove sessions! Good news is: Oklahoma photographers participating in Operation Love-Reunited has gone from 3 to 17 in the past month!! The organization has restructured and been working on recruiting, in addition to many other things.  This is Enrica and her family. Her soldier, David, deployed the next day for his training and will head overseas after that.

Have you ever seen that new tv show called “Coming Home”?  Its feel-good stories about soldiers coming home from war and seeing their families for the first time.  I get to see that in person several times a week.   And I love it and am very honored to be a part of that moment.

Bree had been waiting 8 months, and her Marine finally came home this week! We arrived at the airport about an hour before his flight was scheduled (just to make sure we didnt miss it), and I’m totally not exaggerating when I say this: Bree paced back and forth in front of the arrival screens the entire time. Back and Forth. It was fun watch that…because it brought back the memory of the video my friend took of me pacing the exact same way when my husband returned home from his 14 month deployment.

I knew this reunion would be both happy and emotional for everyone.  Here’s the story:

At the beginning of the school year, I went to parent day at my daughter’s preschool.  The teacher went around the room and asked each kid to name something they are responsible for. My daughter, Maddie, said her two dogs, Molly and Chops. The next kid, Faolan, said softly “My mom and brother.”  I didn’t really think much about that answer…until the teacher paused and said, “Faolan’s daddy is overseas as a soldier so he’s taking care of his family.”  I think every parent had a tear in their eye after that.

A few minutes later, I worked my way over to his mom and told her about a program I volunteer for, Operation Love-Reunited.  This organization of photographers volunteer their time and services to help our our deployed military.  The family is eligible for a free portrait or homecoming coverage, as well as 20 4×6 prints. These prints are shipped to the soldier’s overseas address for moral support.  No doubt, these family photos are hanging next to the beds of thousands of soldiers overseas.

Shawn is now on R&R (a couple weeks during the deployment to come home and see your family) and two days ago we had their OpLove session. Of course, a couple weeks always goes by so fast in a situation like this, and he will be returning overseas in two days.

Thank you to all our military AND their families for your sacrifices! For more info on OpLove, visit www.oplove.org.

Liz and her family are preparing for her husband’s upcoming deployment, and we met the other day at a park before the weather turned crazy!  How cute are these boys?

If you live in Oklahoma, chances are you have probably heard about the swarm of soldiers headed overseas in March. Ray is 1 of 3,500 soldiers deploying next week for their training.  To understand how large of a deployment this is…take it from Ray’s words: This is the first time the 45th Infantry Division has deployed as a whole since the Korean War.  Here are some of their session photos, with his wife Casey and cute daughter , Taylor, included.