Allix Ruby: Lifestyle + Love Photographer: Anna turned four so we celebrated at The Woods // northeast, tx portrait and lifestyle photographer

Down a windy road shaded with trees of all shapes and sizes, drooping together to make an archway of sorts, freckling the pathway with glimmers of sunshine seeping through the leaves, there is a home with a giant oak tree, which has seen many an autumn, that guards the front yard, surrounded by 70 acres of, what we call, The Woods. Underneath the shelter of its branches several gatherings have been held with a good amount of chattering, eating, laughter, and memory making. Sometimes these gatherings are elaborately planned to mark a special occasion and sometimes they are thrown together for no particular reason; similar to how you would quickly bake a batch of your favorite cookies to take to a friend's house for the afternoon...the spontaneity doesn't diminish the value, it gives it a certain element of surprise and adventure. This particular story I'm going to tell you today tells of a mishmash of those two possible scenarios. :)

You see, though it was thrown together rather quickly, there was a special occasion taking place. A very remarkable little girl, the youngest in our family, turned four. {Insert much ado of tears and smiles and bittersweet feelings here please and thank you.} My precious baby Anna Claire...the one who shyly giggles when I act silly with her, the one that cares for baby dolls like her life and their's depended on it, the one who is deathly afraid of dogs but will pet them if their face is turned the other way, the one whose curls and dimples and bright blue eyes have stolen my heart over and over again until I have given up trying to compose myself. ;) She is my Anna Banana and I am her Owl-itz. :) I hope she remembers these sweet days that are shaping her life. I hope she will be able to flip through them like a beloved photo album or bedtime storybook. I hope, when she and I are both older and wiser, we will be able to smile upon the faded recollection of the fall chill that kissed the air, the fields and trees peppered with yellow flowers and red leaves, the long walk she and I took with all her best friends, discovering the world and all its wonder and beauty together...

one twist and turn of the trail at a time. :)

Here she is. :)

And we can't forget, Big Sis Maggie Grace. :)

Anna certainly never forgets her. They're closer than close friends....because everyone knows sisters are built in besties. :)

Gavin is on the left, Dalton is on the right. We ladies couldn't go on a walk without big strong men there to protect and guide us. :)

Miss Abby. I quickly noticed that she was very fascinated with my camera so I let her give it a whirl from time to time...I declared her my assistant photographer for the night.. :)

Every time I turn around, she's having the time of her life. :)

And this is Katerbug...Kate actually ;) , Abby's little sister. She is full of joy and always bubbling over with incessant giggles. :D

They're buddies. :)

About to set off on our Great Journey into the Unknown Forest. ;)

Alexis. Abby and Kate's cousin.....she is a hilarious ball of fire, if you couldn't already tell. ;D

Abby wanted her picture with the Birthday Girl since they were both wearing pink. ;)

That little fella in blue is Alexis's younger brother, Reece. He may be the smallest but without a shadow of a doubt, I will tell you he's the bravest. He's really the man that was our chaperon. I felt very safe with him around. ;)

I just love bitty people. :)

Maggie climbing an old deer stand to impress everyone with her Great Outdoors experience. ;)

Yes, his pocket knife is out....something serious must have been going on.

Once we decided to start heading back to "Camp" as we called it {to sound cool and official}, everyone's little legs suddenly got tired and I had a symphony of pleading voices begging me to pick them up and carry them back. I grabbed as many hands as I could, we formed a line, and I assured them we would make it back before we knew it. With the boys trudging on before us, it became a race against time...it was my mission to get these darling girls back safely and not totally exhausted. As I racked my brain, trying to think of a solution fast, I was subconsciously and quietly humming a Justin Bieber song to myself as I sometimes do {no judging allowed here, sorry} and all those sad little moans of agony turned into shouts of exuberant happiness. "YOU know that song?!" They all exclaimed at once. I knew what I had to do. I had fallen into the most fervent mini Bieber fan-base you can imagine. I scraped the bottom of my brain for every J.B. lyric I had ever known and that became our marching anthem. Then, as if transported there, we arrived at our destination without a single thought of hurting legs or tired feet. Like George Washington before me, I cannot tell a lie...it honestly was one of the funnest moments of my entire life, bar none. :D

When we did finally get back, Anna watched this as a birthday reward of sorts. ;) Well...actually...they all watched it, huddled like penguins trying to stay warm. Reece poked his head into the circle for just a moment but then, after realizing what was going on, said, "Oh good grief! They're watching Yustin Beaver!"

Tara Jayde...Maggie and Anna's sassy little cousin. ;)

Gavin's signature smirk. ;)

Digging tunnels. :)

His Daddy is in the Navy so he's representin'. ;)

While we had been on our expedition, the adults were busy preparing supper. Fried catfish, hushpuppies, french fries....it was a regular Texas feast. :D

My dad was in charge of the hushpuppies. :)

Hey Alexis. :)

Look at that face! I'm telling ya, these little boys are gonna grow up to be heart throbs like this world has never seen. ;)

Cake time. :D

This was while everyone was singing happy birthday...such a sweet moment. :)

To Anna's surprise, they were trick candles...so they kept relighting. :)

The surprises didn't stop there though...since we hadn't been able to do anything special for Mam-maw for her birthday at the end of September, we had cake for her too!