Texas State Fair 2016 | fall family photos

we did something totally different this year for our family photos.

we went to the fair.

after tagging a long with Brittany for a session she did out there for a sweet couple, I decided last minute to scratch all plans for our traditional holiday card pictures and do something fun.. because what better way to describe our family right now than one big carnival game, right?  we are so blessed, but it gets a little crazy at times.. and when its all said and done I wouldn't want to trade this crazy right now for anything! 

it was the last week of the fair and we didn't anticipate how many people were actually going to show up on a weeknight to get in their own Fair fix before it was gone until next year, but we made it work and these are some of my favorite photos we have ever taken.  plus, getting to take my kids to experience something like this for the first time was an absolute JOY!  

a couple things we learned about the fair:

-Baker LOVES corndogs.  like, a lot. she housed two fletchers on a stick before we could say "smile".

-no one likes cotton candy.  not even a little bit. 

well, except for pregnant Amber.

-Parker really loves the idea of riding all the rides, but once she's on them, the fetal position is where she stays.

-Jolie LOVED every minute of everything.  arms in the air, legs flailing, and uncontrollable laughter.

-the twins were in complete awe of everything around them and all the stimulus of the fair.

..trying to get them to look AND smile without something else catching their eye was basically impossible.

-THANK GOODNESS for papa + BB to the rescue.  this would not have been possible without roping Jordan's parents into tagging along to help us wrangle smiles and keep everyone together while we attempted pictures.

-I'm terrible at the games.  I failed to win the stuffed animals multiple times, while Jordan knocked that job out of the park for the both of us.

lastly.. we are making this fair visit with the kids a tradition.