m family ~ river rats

These amazing parents are my brother and sister in law and mannnn, do they have the cutest kids. Their happy place is in the Thousand Islands, right on the St. Lawrence River (I know to us NJ’-ers, “river rats” sounds like a bad thing… but it is actually really special to them!) They pretty much spend the summer up there and each year, we join them for a long weekend. It is one of my favorite weekends of the summer. We are basically one big family, group-parenting style. The kids have the run of the place, biking all over, taking golf cart rides to get ice cream from the local shop, with big family meals. It is a magical spot that seems like time stopped there 100 years ago.

For the past few years, I have taken pictures of my brother’s family there and it is the absolute perfect backdrop for family photos— especially their family photos since this place has so much meaning to them. I love doing it because I get a special glimpse into their family’s dynamic that most people don’t get to see. We always laugh because the kids can be so shy around our family… but when it is just me and my camera, I get to see beyond that.

This year I wanted to create a family film for them as well as take their photos. So heeeeere it is. Enjoy 🙂

‘So—this—is—a—River!’

‘The River,’ corrected the Rat.

‘And you really live by the river? What a jolly life!’

‘By it and with it and on it and in it,’ said the Rat, ‘It’s brother and sister to me, and aunts, and company, and food and drink, and (naturally) washing. It’s my world, and I don’t want any other. What is hasn’t got is not worth having, and what it doesn’t know is not worth knowing. Lord! the times we’ve had together! Whether in winter or summer, spring or autumn, it’s always got its fun and its excitements.’

– from The Wind in the Willows