Michael, Sophia, Ravi, Vidya & Inana

This family are dear friends of ours and so I especially enjoyed capturing their love and the kids who are growing so fast that it is alarming. One always notices more in other people's children the speed of childhood spinning past, even friends who one sees often. Sophia and Michael are good about documenting their family each year and they like to send out a holiday card which I look forward to, even when I took the photos! Michael travels so much to teach that scheduling was a challenge but we squeezed it in before he disappeared again and so glad we did and that we were blessed enough to have gorgeous sun and great light. Sophia came over to chose her sofa and decided upon my newest addition to my collection of mad antiques. I was so thrilled such dear friends were the first shoot on it, and oddly enough, they were the first ones to shoot with my new pink sofa last year too! They always do such a great job of dressing in a palette that suits the scene. I adore how they chose golds this year to go with the sofa and it just looks dreamy. The family love to play and have fun dressing up and are all about experiences so this was just another to add to the repertoire.

Ravi's name means "Sun" in Hindi. He is growing taller ever second it seems to his parents, but is stil their baby boy. He is one of those kids that is just always smiling and always full of happiness in his heart. He is a good friend of my little boy, Oslo, and so I spend a lot of time with him and he is just a sweet heart. He adores Lego, fishing and Uber Strike computer game. As his mum describes him, he is an awesome free spirit and an evolved unschooler. I actually loaned him one of my shirts which we pinned and I think it looks so dapper on him.

Vidya means Knowledge in Hindi and she was Bermuda's very fist home water birth! She was born with the caul which is a sign of good luck. In medieval times, the appearance of a portion of the amniotic sac remaining on the head was considered an open that the child was destined for greatness. And when you meet Vidya, although she only just turned four, you feel her presence and confidence and know she will be someone some day. Before her parents eyes, she is transforming into Josephine Baker and it is her second name - they have started calling her ViDiva since she is such a rising star already!

Every time Vidya comes over, she asks if she can dress up. She is particularly smitten with my veil that I wore at my wedding which I made out of a mosquito net!! I simply adore this image of her - I almost wish I had one like this taken on my wedding day! She is also wearing my fabulous Indian necklace I found in Nova Scotia - so happy all my goodies are helping to make magical imagery. She also borrowed one of my pettiskirts which are just so full and fun and make any little girl feel special.

Dear sweet Inanna, a curious bunny, who is growing stronger and wiser for still enjoying her momma's milk. She was named after teh Goddess, Inanna of ancient Sumaria who was a divine being and had the power to heal. There is something serene about this child and I believe she could be a healer one day. Although she is only 18 months old, she seems wiser than anyone I know. I feel a special connection with this little one who is a very slow warmer upper, but has recently started reaching out for me to hold her and my heart just melts away. I was there at her birth and photographed the incredible moment when she was born very quickly in a pool of water into her daddy's arms - an incredible experience to be a part of and as a result, I feel we two shall always be a part of each other.

Sophia and Michael are an impressive couple in so many ways. First of all, one can't help but notice how distractingly beautiful they are. But beauty is of course only skin deep. But their beauty runs thick and deep and they are dear friends of our family. They are both so impressive in their passion for their work - they work together running Lotus, are raising this beautiful family together, and are even more in love now than before children.

Michael is an international yoga teacher and presenter for structural integration with Thomas Myers and runs Mindful Integration. He travels a lot for his work and we never cease to be in awe of all he has been up to on these journeys. Sophia laments that he hates grocery shopping, but the fact that he utterly adores the children and is totally hot more than makes up for it! You may recognise him from his home away from home, Juice 'n' Beans, where he is addicted to their curries and shakes.

Sophia is one of these women who is so impressive and so passionate that she can almost be intimidating. I was intimidated before I became close to her - she used to dance professionally for the Dance Theatre of Harlem and since she returned to Bermuda, she has brought so many alternative practices to the island and made them mainstream, from Pilates to Feldenkrais to Birth Doulas to home births. She is the founder of The Bermuda Integrative Health CoOp and Lotus but still is ready to be on stage at any moment and plans to dance and perform for many more years. She is happiest when she is empowering wormen and their families to have beautiful birth experiences. She was my doula for Indigo's birth and I just love that each of us have been there for each other at one of our children's arrival into the world. She has not had a straight eight hours sleep in seven years but this does not prevent her from having boundless energy and she loves the idea adding yet another baby to their family. For now, she is totally smitten with the three blessings they has been gifted already, and has loved every minute of nursing each of her little ones until the next one came along!

I love that Sophia borrowed a dress I bought off emoo for shoots. I have been longing to find an opportunity for someone to wear it and it was perfect for this setting.

Thank you so much to the five of you - I love that you always trust me and are open to whatever ideas I might have. So glad it was your family to Christen my new sofa - it looks just divine and you all dressed perfectly to make it such a beautiful scene. Love and much gratitude to you all for your friendship. xxxx