And when they're famous, I'll have ALL the (embarrassing) photos...

Have I ever blogged about the avenue I live in?  I feel like I have, but I'm not sure.  I think I've made Facebook albums and such about the antics we all get up to; water fights, barbecues, family days, evening drinks, day drinks, and all the other general goings on in our small, friendly avenue of 8 homes.

Over the years our children have grown - they mostly attend the same schools and spend after school evenings, weekends and school holiday doing as children should; getting outside in the fresh air, playing tag, chalk drawing the pavements and generally having a pretty fun childhood with a group of great kids.

In this gaggle of around 10-12 kidlings we have a fab foursome who have their hearts set on a career as the next big girl group!  They are 'Girls Next Door', and you guessed it - they're the neighbours at number 5 and 7 of our avenue.  Two of which are my own daughters.

Lilli, Poppi, Macy and Layla make up this gorgeous group and spend a lot of their time rehearsing songs and writing lyrics in their bedrooms.   They have made their debut performance already at our annual summer BBQ and they were amazingly confident and well rehearsed.  No doubt we'll be treated to many more concerts in the future!

On a warm evening at the end of June the girls were doing as they usually would.  I was working on something in the studio and they all popped in to say hello.  Before I knew it they had me clicking away at them as a group.  They didn't know they were actually helping me get used to the dimensions I have to work with in my studio and finding the best focal lengths for the space, but we had a blast.  They directed themselves on how to sit, what facial expressions to use and how they would like their portraits to look for their Instagram account!  It was hilariously good fun.

There were far more images than the ones included here in their blog and the girls were thrilled when I sent them all to them.  What was a fun half hour to them really helped me start to see the potential of my studio space.

So here you go...  Thanks for looking.

x Fleur x 

(as always, better quality version can be viewed by clicking into the images...)

At home with the Chesters family...

When you arrive at a family's home and are welcomed in so warmly by everyone it really is a great feeling.  I know that a lifestyle 'at home' photography session isn't for everyone, but as it's what I am used to documenting most with my own family I feel right at home doing the same for others.  And I think there is true value in it too.  You capture people where they are comfortable.  Where they feel safe.  And where they spend time together living and loving.  To me it just makes sense to document it and preserve those memories.

The morning I spent with the Chesters family was wonderful.  They are a family full of energy and love.  Super happy kids and relaxed parents.  I couldn't have asked for more.  I think I possibly gained an assistant in their son too, taking after his Mum's creative talents - as he was able to direct me on the shots he wanted me to take.  What a star!  And not that you would be able to tell here, but the youngest of the family was still getting over chicken pox.  If it wasn't for the smallest of spots still present on her face I would not have known.  She was full of smiles and perfectly happy to have me snapping away.

The following images show a small selection of my favourites from the hour I spent with them.  I loved every minute!

Many thanks for looking ~ Fleur x

(as always, click into the images to see them at a better resolution...)

A Mother's Dream : Team Davies visit Speke Hall...

A Mother's Dream:  Team Davies visit Speke Hall.

We used to be Chester Zoo members.  We loved it.  We had begun our membership there when our eldest turned 1 and as our family grew we watched the already impressive zoo go through big changes and show brilliant exhibitions.  We'd spend days at the zoo in the summer and go for short trips on Sunday afternoons in the winter.  We were lucky to be able to do this and that the zoo was only a 25 minute drive away.  But in the last 12 months our kids have begun to enjoy time there less and less.  Not that it still isn't a wonderful place, but they knew it like the backs of their hands, we all did.  And the time had come where they would ask to go to different places and try different days out.  We needed an alternative.

So in April this year we decided to cancel the renewal of our zoo membership.  I felt sad about it, and I hope that someday, maybe in a couple of years we'll pick it back up again.   While we were making the decision about our cancelation we knew we wanted to find something that was just as cost effective for our family of 5 as our zoo membership had been.  Enter the National Trust.

Last summer we'd visited a couple of places within the National Trust, Formby beaches being one of them.  We'd learn that on that day where we'd paid £5 to park in the NT carpark for the area that we could have been monthly paid up family members for under £10 a month and the car parking would have been included.  Amazing value.  So as soon as we left Chester Zoo behind we walked into a family NT membership.  And we haven't looked back as of yet.  We've visited Formby beach (again), Chirk Castle (great place), and a few weeks ago Speke Hall.  What a wonderful day it was!  We couldn't believe how much time we spent there.  We actually could've stayed a lot longer than we did.  

Our day was filled with outdoor play areas, walks in the woods, admiring the main gardens, picnicking on the lawn, exploring the house, learning about the history of the Hall, discovering the secret garden and much more...

Not a lot more to say now other than to hand you over to the photos that accompany this post.  We had a great day and we're thoroughly looking forward to many more within our National Trust membership.

Thanks for reading peeps.

x Fleur x 

PS - the NT haven't paid me or anything for this post.  Just think their membership is pretty great!

Oh and when you're done viewing the following photos, you can pop over to the next post in the 'A Mother's Dream' blog circle by clicking HERE.

(as always, click into the pics to see them at best posted quality.)