A few weeks ago, right before we embarked on the road trip from hell, we had our final family photos here in Washington at the most gorgeous lupine field. If you’ve been following my blog for some time, you know that I found our family photographer when we first moved to JBLM in 2018 by chance. I did a lot of Googling and discovered she actually lived about two streets over (literally) from us at the time. Lynsey, the genius behind Lynsey Strader Photography, has become more than just our family photographer though. She’s become our dear friend, and when I saw she was opening lupine family photo sessions in Puyallup, Washington, I knew I needed to book.
I didn’t know that there were lupine fields in Washington until probably 2019. Zero clue, but it’s apparently super prolific in Washington state, especially in areas right near the Columbia River Gorge. Our lupine family photos were taken in Puyallup though, in the most stunning little field right by Farm 12, an equally fantastic eatery that’s rising in popularity out here.
But I digress…back to Lynsey. Lynsey has been there for my family more times than I can count. She took those first family photos here in Washington, she took my maternity photos when I was pregnant with Mieke, she brought me treats on Valentine’s Day when Ryan was deployed and soup when I was sick. She took our homecoming photos when Ryan got back from his last deployment, and she even taught me photography, leading to my little business – Missy Moore Photography.
Most of all though, Lynsey became our dear friend. She has a heart of gold, and she just gives so much of herself unto others. I wanted these lupine family photos here in Washington to remember this time in our lives before the complete chaos of moving across the world actually came to fruition but, most of all, I wanted selfishly wanted these to ensure I absolutely got to see Lynsey one more time.
While we head off to Korea next week, Lynsey and the entire beautiful Strader family has decided to make the PNW permanently their home, and I couldn’t be more delighted for them. Friends, visitors, all of you…if you need a Tacoma area family photographer, or a family photographer near JBLM, trust me when I say that Lynsey is your girl. I will treasure these photos forever but, more than that, I’ll cherish the friendship we built and all I’ve learned from her.
