Niki Flynn Photography

Shooting Nicole & Rob’s wedding was meant to be.  I met Nicole in the strangest of circumstances.  Now I’ve said before that I am a girl who believes everything happens for a reason and this is a perfect example.  I was out shooting maternity photos at the golf course on what may be the rainiest. day. EVER.  Nicole had just gotten engaged to Rob and was out looking for locations, chatting with a friend about photographers, and was told that she should call me.  Just as he said that, they rounded the corner and there I was… in the pouring rain.  We’ve been working together very closely since that day and I believe that Nicole and Rob are much more than just clients… they are new friends.  Things are just meant to be.

Right along with that sentiment, comes Nicole & Rob’s story.  Nicole and Rob attended the same high school in Ontario, and knew each other, but had never shared classes, or hung out together.  Fast forward 20 years when Nicole was helping to plan their 20 year reunion… the two reconnected over facebook.  They chatted, and then got together at the reunion.  They both realized at that time that they were meant to be together.  They’ve been together ever since!  I have loved all of the time that I was able to spend with both Rob and Nicole.   The love that they have for each other makes me smile… it is so apparent to anyone who is near them.  It was meant to be.

Their wedding day was perfect.  The planning and preparation for the ceremony and reception and all of the details came together so nicely.  From the timing of the arrival of the cars (which was perfect) to the cupcakes at the reception… everything came together just as it was supposed to.  It was a blessing to work with Rob and Nicole and their sweet families, and I have to say that Nicole’s children Caedon and Andrea could quite possibly be two of the nicest children I have ever met.  (and the most fun!)  Our time spent together taking formal portraits was filled with laughter.  I loved it.  Nicole and Rob were up for anything and we just had such a wonderful time together!

Nicole and Rob, I wish you both all the love and happiness in the world.  I know that the love you two share will guide you through anything.  You are such fun people to be around and I am so happy that I was able to document your day.  It was definitely meant to be!

xox Niki

 Some of Rob’s treasures…

 Beautiful Nicole

 I couldn’t resist sweet Dominic… so cute!

 During the ceremony, Nicole sang while Caedon accompanied her.  Not gonna lie… I had tears in my eyes.

 The cars were fantastic!

 More tears… I just love the relationship that Nicole has with her kids.

 Nicole and Rob wanted to have a photo with me too… Thanks Shannon for this one! 

 What a fun group!

 One of my absolute favourites!

Thank you for stopping by… I’d love to hear your thoughts!  :)

Family & Friends…  You’ll need your login code that I sent you in your email…

To view the slideshow go here:   To go straight to the gallery go here: 

So this is my second installment of five people twelve times, and I am so thankful to have set this goal.  To read the first installment it can be found here.  I found myself really taking note of the great things my kids, husband and I say and do with each other.  I know that it will be wonderful to look back on and see all of the things we have done together as a family. 

I absolutely love this photo, because we are all ‘clean’ (4 of us are boys after all) and dressed nicely.  We took it on our 13th wedding anniversary (which is at the very beginning of August…) with our little point and shoot camera hanging off of our van door, after our special dinner out.  It just makes me happy.  We are just standing in a parking lot… together.  I love it!  

And, not even one minute before the sun set (and just before we took the above photo) we took this shadow picture.  We tried to take one more and the sun was gone.  The kids loved watching their shadows fade, and then disappear!

July… often a time of relaxing, time at the beach and general lazy, fun days.  This July has brought us so many different things… many different than the norm. 

We celebrated Canada Day with the MacLeod family at ‘our spot’ again this year.  Sounds silly as I type it, but each year (for probably the past 4 years) we have watched the fireworks from the same place.  It’s our yearly event!  We take our trucks (and now our mini-vans… because there are 8 children between our two families) and park them down by the water.  We back them in, bring lawn chairs, blankets, snacks, juice boxes, more snacks, and get ready.  Now, the thing is… because it’s our special spot we need to get there early.  How early?   Well, the fireworks start at 10:22 or so… and this year we got to our spot at about 6:40.  Now I write this for a couple of reasons.  One, to document the events of our Canada Day.  Two, because every year, we ask each other, “Now, what time did we go last year?”  So, next year when we’re planning up… we can check back here and find out what time was great to go… Brilliant!    So, 4 hours in a sand lot with giant rocks, water and 8 little kids.  Just our families.  And, Grammie and Grampie too!  This year, Grammie Linda put out an amazing spread of snacks, and special treats for us… the back of the jeep was full!  It was so nice of her!  But, the past couple of years we have had a couple of other families come along… so there are a lot of kids.  And, Owen’s the oldest.  8.  Oldest.  12 or more kiddies.  Did I mention 4 hours?  Giant rocks?   The greatest thing though, is that the kids all love being together so much, playing, giggling, eating snacks, licorice and juice boxes… timbits too… that they just have FUN!!  It truly is the hilight of the year for them.  They love it… and we do to!  Just hearing all of them oooh and aaah when the fireworks start makes everything worth it.  Next year, we think we’ll go down early, park the vans, then walk across the street and go for a nice dinner all together.  At 6:40… and we might just want to make reservations… there sure is a lot of us!  :)

Our first weekend of July was very sad, as we lost our beloved Grampie.  Andy flew home to be with his family and the boys and I stayed here.  My heart breaks.  We will all miss him so very much.  Andy was home for a little over a week, then once he got back home (meaning here-home not home-home… sheesh!) we spent the rest of the week together.  I was very busy working on the weddings, but also really wanted to spend as much time as I could with Andy and the boys.  We are hoping to get to go away somewhere together in August and spend some time having fun, and making memories.

We also had a sleepover with the MacLeod kiddies at their house one night.  Our kids love each other so much that they are almost like siblings.  It’s so wonderful to see them all together.  It was HOT…. very HOT… all of July, and when we were in town playing with our friends - Sean had a reaction to something.  Sun? Sunscreen?  Something crazy - and his little cheeks swelled up, and he had a crazy rash all over.  Did I mention it was HOT?  And speaking of the heat… our poor little corn, sunflowers and Kelly tree that we planted are not fairing so well in this heat.  I sure hope they make it through!

My boys have crazy wooly hair and dirty little feet and faces.  I love summer!  We spent a day cleaning out the sandbox.  All of the toys and junk came out of it and we worked hard to tame the ivy that likes to take over.  Owen and I cut back as much as we could, we cleaned it all up and then on the weekend when Daddy got home, we got a couple of truckloads of new sand.  They are in heaven.  I have lots of sand in my house.  And in the tub.  And in their hair.  And I love it.

Thomas visited the dentist and got his first filling.  Yikes.  That feeling when you go to the dentist and hope that even though you brush and floss and do all the things you are supposed to, that they don’t say the dreaded word… cavity.  And, for Thomas it happened.  I took him in… just the two of us while Shannon had the boys, and he chatted up the assistant.  Like crazy.  He talked continually about the wii.  And Bowser.  Peachy’s castle.  Super smash bros.  Gold coins.  You name it, if it has anything to do with the wii, Thomas knows about it.  And is not afraid to share!  The filling went sort-of well.  Poor little monkey.  I just kept promising more stuff if he could just get through.  The dentist did a filling in like 3 minutes flat - I swear!  And, Thomas came away with a frozen little mouth, 3 prizes from the prize drawer, and Ginny… his new Guinea Pig webkinz.  I’m amazed at just how brave my kids are.  This was big.  He did great!  I was so proud of him.  He also continues to amaze with his math knowledge (that he did not get from his mother!)  Skip counting, counting by 10’s, and backwards from 20.  Random math facts are always flying with Thomas.  It’s great.  And, he keeps me on my toes. 

Sean has spent the month amazing me with his lego-building abilities.  Anyone who knows Sean, knows that he likes to  play by himself.  When the craziness gets going with his big and little brother, Sean will often be found in the basement building… quietly… where he is in charge of all that goes on.  Because upstairs, sparks are often flying between the other two.  Sean is an incredibly smart, sensitive, kind, gentle boy who has always been one to play on his own.  Even when we are with friends.  I love this about him because I know that he has the ability to be incredibly creative and independent, and I love watching his mind work.  He has built some incredible creations this month and is always so proud to show all of us.  Sean and I spent some time one afternoon looking at lego.com and putting together little lego men.  Did you know that you can order individual pieces of lego… and lego men.  Like their pants, and shirts, and faces and hair.  Seany and I had a blast building little men for each of our family members.  We even created a girl lego person for me complete with white pants, a hawaiian shirt and a pony-tail… (cause I always dress like that!  :)  and, because I’m the only girl in the house… Sean thought it would be special if I had my own Lego-girl.  Cause he’s just like that… incredibly thoughtful.

Owen has grown up a lot this month.  Not that he’s really grown so much, but that I have caught glimpses of who he is going to be when he’s a teenager, a lot more than usual.  And, that scares me a bit.  He’s just getting so big.  He’s up to the top of my shoulders now - and he’s 8.  Owen’s my little helper.  Often when I come down in the morning after my shower, he’s there to tell me that he has already eaten breakfast and helped Sean and Thomas get theirs too.  He likes to be a big helper.  He likes to be a part of the action.  He and I have spent some more time this month having conversations.  Just talking.  About whatever.  I’ve really been enjoying our time together.   He’s got the cutest little grin and when I ask him silly questions like, “Who are you going to marry?”  he just giggles and answers, “I’m never getting married… I’m just going to hang out with my friends.”  I am amazed at how well he can read and can see the pride he feels when he reads what is on TV, or instructions on the wii.  He is just growing up so fast.  All of the boys are.  I’m so proud of them, but a little bit sad and excited at the same time.  Life is like that.  Always changing.  This month brought lots of changes for us.  I’m learning that the key is to accept the change and move on, not dwell in the past… because there will always be change.  And growing and changing is good.

July also brought races on the lawn, laundry on the line (ahhh summer…), random afternoon walks for soft ice cream, a jewelry party and birthday parties.  We saw a quick black bunny, ‘Alvin’ our little buddy, and made a friend with a little birdie we like to call Greg (who, by the way, spent some time in the boys bedroom).  We all got haircuts, ate lots of corn on the cob, and decorated gingerbread men (but didn’t eat them… YUCK!)  We went to town for a ‘breakfast date’ at Ricky’s and had waffles and built towers out of creamers.  We spent days and days at big bend, playing in the water, catching minnows and building forts out of sticks and rocks.  We played with our friends, and had a ‘dirty bird’ picnic in the park.  July has been HOT - not a day of rain.  Mommy photographed another wedding with Auntie Shannon, and Daddy spent another day with 8 kiddies.  He’s amazing!  The summer is going fast.  One more month and we will be back to school.  July has been busy, and we’re looking forward to a few more lazy days, and fun memories come August.  I hope you’ll pop back to find out what we’ve been up to!

Thanks for being here… please leave a little comment about your favourite memories of July.  :)

xox Niki

I met Pattie in the fall of 1996 as we both began University in the Comox Valley to become teachers.   I think it’s ironic that we both came back to the Comox Valley late in June, 14 years  later… this time Pattie as a bride and I as her photographer. 

Pattie and I had met for lunch one day where she told me that she was thinking of teaching in Singapore.  I was excited for her and the opportunity that was ahead of her.  I had a feeling though, that Singapore would bring much more than teaching experience and great opportunities for travel…  turns out I was right! 

DJ began teaching through Canadian International Schools in Singapore just as Pattie was.  Both very fun loving individuals, they immediately hit it off.  They worked together, travelled together, and made memories together.  Pattie decided to further her education and get her Master’s degree back home in BC.  Both Pattie and DJ agree that while standing in the Vancouver Airport together as DJ was about to return to Singpore, they both knew they had found ‘the one.’  DJ returned to Singapore for one more year, but then decided to come to BC as well.  They got engaged on a May afternoon in 2009, on Denman Island… one of Pattie’s very favourite places.

One thing that both Pattie and DJ love is food and one of their favourite things to do is to watch the ‘Food Network’ early in the morning with a good cup of coffee, then make a great breakfast together.  It’s no surprise then that these two, who appreciate great food, had their wedding at the Kingfisher Oceanside Resort and Spa.  What an amazing location with incredible food!  Everything about the wedding was perfect.  Guest tables were named after places that both Pattie and DJ have lived.  The Kingfisher dining room and wedding site - both naturally beautiful, were transformed into something amazing by the very talented Christina from Krylea Creative Solutions.  It was absolutely a beautiful day, stunning location and adorable couple.  

Thank you Pattie and DJ for the opportunity to document the first step of your next journey together.  After travelling together to places such as Laos, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia, and many others, I know how exciting this brand new adventure you are taking together will be.  I wish you many new memories, and much love in the journey.  

xox Niki

 Such a beautiful bride

 This might just be my favorite.  No, wait… there’s too many favourites!

 Friends made this sign for Pattie and DJ… it looked lovely at the entrance to the Kingfisher

 The Kingfisher looked beautiful.

 Amazing desserts!

Family & Friends…  You’ll need your login code that I sent you in your email…

To view the slideshow go here:   To go straight to the gallery go here: 

Crystal and Roger’s wedding may very well be one of the most fun weddings I have ever attended.  They both have such an easygoing nature and their friends and family are so much fun.

Their wedding reflected their love for the outdoors and each other as well as both Crystal and Roger’s simple, laid back, easygoing nature.  I absolutely loved the unique touches that were a part of the day.  From centrepieces made of wood with oyster shells that they had collected together, to the gifts for guests which stated “Live, Love, Laugh” Crystal and Roger’s personalities and outlook on life were so apparent throughout the day.  I absolutely loved spending the day with two people who love life and each other so much.

Thank you so much Crystal and Roger for allowing me to share in the absolute beauty of your wedding day.  I wish you both nothing but happiness in your future together!

xox Niki

 I couldn’t resist the beautiful antler chandelier.  And… sweet Jessica!

 Cute girls…

I love how you can see Roger’s Mom and his Uncle Mike reflected in Dick’s sunglasses… one of my favourites! 

 So. Much. Fun!

 Married!

 Gorgeous!

 Beautiful Crystal

 This shot was so much fun to take.  Ok… maybe a little bit scary too!  Thanks to Shannon for capturing the image on the left!

After we were finished taking photos, Roger’s Uncle Mike said that he thought Crystal and Roger would like to have a picture taken with me, so we asked Keyla to be our photographer.  So cute!   There Mike, I told them it was your idea!  :)

What a beautiful day.  I absolutely loved it!

Thanks for popping by!  I’d love to hear your thoughts! 

Family & Friends…  You’ll need your login code that I sent you in your email…

To view the slideshow go here:   To go straight to the gallery go here: 

Each year I donate a photo session to the Gold River Minor Hockey tournament fundraiser.  This year, Rhonda won the session and over the weekend, I got to spend some time with her and her family and their adorable dog, Zion.

Now I’ve photographed dogs and families before, and typically we can get a few shots with Mr. Poochie in them, but that’s it.  I couldn’t believe how great Zion was during the shoot.  He was in most of the group photos, and he was working it!  What a great dog. 

Here are some of my favourites of the day.  Thanks Rhonda, Brett, Izaac and Zion for a very fun morning… Enjoy!

 Rhonda has the prettiest eyes!

 …and I just love this image of Izaac

 Beautiful morning light…

 awe Zion… what a great dog!

Recently I was reading the very talented Tara Whitney’s blog and she had done a series of posts entitled six people twelve times, where she took a photo of her family every month and journalled what was going on in their lives.  I was incredibly inspired as I read it and decided right away that I wanted to chronicle our little family every month for a year too (at least!)  As a photographer, my job is to capture moments and emotions that families will cherish forever.  As a mom, my job is the very same, however these photos that I capture of my own family, rarely have me in them… and I am a part of this family!  So the goal is this… take at least one photo of my family each month for the next 12 months (and I must be in it!)  It doesn’t have to be a “photo session”… a phrase that sends my three little boys running for cover.  It just has to be a photo, of our little family.

So, here’s the first installment of five people twelve times 

Today was a day that my girlfriends and I had been planning for months.  We were off to the spa for the day.  I have learned that it is incredibly important as a mom, to take time for myself.  Whether it be a spa day, or a 20 minute walk by myself… some Mommy time is always important.  When I came home at abut 6:00pm, my beautiful little family was playing ‘Red Rover’ in the yard.  My heart smiled.  I was so happy to be home and so lucky to be sharing my life with these 3 amazing little boys and one big boy.  I took out my point and shoot camera, which had just been to the spa with me and asked the boys to all sit with Daddy for a second.  About a minute later, a photo I absolutely love.  I love that no one ran screaming when they saw the camera.  I love that they all gathered around Daddy and Mommy for a quick family picture.  I love their dirty little faces.  I love that Owen is wearing the new soccer shirt he won at last night’s soccer wind up.  I love that Thomas has his very favourite ‘Billabong New York’ shirt on that I got for him last year (that he’s been wearing for days)… and that Sean’s wearing his favouite colour… red.  I just love how real this picture is… and how perfect.  My family is not always dressed in their best duds waiting for a perfect photo op.  They are little boys… playing and having fun.

Our life this month has been busy… the last month of school always is.  We started June minus one family member… we had to say goodbye to our beloved Kelly girl at the end of May.  It has been hard, just remembering that she’s not here.  We all miss her like crazy, but have almost 14 years of wonderful memories to cherish.  

June brought field trips o’ plenty in the Flynn house.  Thomas went on two field trips with Little Dinosaurs at the beginning of the month.  The post office was a highlight for him as he got to go in the back “where the mail ladies work” and stamp a letter to Mom, and put it in our box.  The excitement that day when I picked him up was adorable… he was thrilled to go to the mail to get a ‘surprise’ for Mommy.  Owen visited Seaview Game Farm with his class and got to see a little baby goat arrive in the world.  He told me it was pretty cool.  They petted a bunny and got to spend some time combing the beach for treasure.  Thomas and I were supposed to go as well, but both weren’t feeling well… so we asked Owen if he would take us and show us around with Seany and Daddy too this summer.  He is growing up so much.  I am so proud of him and just how much he’s grown.  He’s reading like a crazy man and loves it.  We are so thankful for the year he has had, and that he was blessed to have the same great teacher for 2 years in a row.  Sean and his class visited Strathcona Park Lodge for a morning of outdoor adventure.  Thomas and Mommy were able to go along for this one and it was fantastic.   We took a giant canoe that held 20 kids and 13 adults over to ‘Treasure Island’.  The kids (and the adults) loved it!  For the past 10 years for me, and 16 for Andy, we have driven past the lodge and have NEVER been there.  What a great place that I know we will have to visit again in the very near future… a treasure in our own backyard!

We celebrated our Seany-boy’s 6th birthday this month, and had a bakugan themed party.  We counted down the days for what felt like forever to Sean.  He was thrilled to invite his friends and we had a giant bakugan on his cake.  This marks the first birthday that I did not transform flour, sugar and some eggs into a magical cake creature, but Sean wanted to have a giant bakugan on his cake and he even picked a cake at the grocery store to put it on.  He told me “Cause then you won’t have to bake one tonight when we get home.”  What a sweet, kind, thougtful boy!  He’s getting so big and so grown up. 

Thomas continues to amaze with his counting, spelling and general wit.  He is one funny boy!  Each day after morning drop off, he can’t wait to watch his favourite program “Super Why”.  Daily, he tells me random math facts and out of the blue will say “I know how to count backwards from 14…” or “I know what 50 + 50 is.”  He’s really amazing!  I always giggle at his humour too when I brush his teeth every night and tell him to look at the sky.  He looks up, then looks at me and says, “Ya mean the roof!”  He is growing up so incredibly quickly.  We emptied his drawers this month and realized he still had a bunch of size 2 things in there… and now he’s 4.  I feel like we jumped through time.

And of course, talking about the boys would not be complete without talking about the wii.  Oh the wii.  The cause of so much joy, frustration, tears, laughs, ideas, chats, bites, hugs, high fives, cheers, and fun. 

And Andy… such an amazing man that I am so incredibly blessed to share my life with.  He is so loving, kind, and supportive and for that I am forever grateful.  He spent so much time for me in front of the camera this month which I know is a big deal because he’s not really all that into having his picture taken.  Tonight, as I look through countless photos of him, I just smile.  I  just love every single thing about him and am so thankful for him.

This month we’ve laughed, cried, danced, sang songs about pickles and bubblegum, paddled a canoe, went for our first family bike ride, got a massage, got a goat, got some new shoes, passed an exam, won a t-shirt, ran & taught mom some new things, worked hard, played hard, painted faces, celebrated a birthday, re-arranged an office, and a bedroom or two and built bunkbeds, had our first dinner outside together, saw a deer in our front yard, pressure washed the deck, caught carpenter ants, blew bubbles, played ‘red rover’ in the yard, had a sleepover with our friends, photographed some weddings, got a new camera, went to Boston Pizza, planted corn and sunflowers, and a tree for Kelly, fixed bike tires, “graded” and had ‘grading day ice cream’ and grew and changed so much… all of us!

Thank you for being here!   I’d love to know…what’s a favourite memory of something that happened in June for you?

I am doing what I love.  I love working with people.  I’m happy when I’m capturing emotion, love and silliness with my camera.  I have a wonderful family and friends and I am blessed to be able to love my job, and love life and all of my blessings so much.

And… I love cheesecake!   and… sharing fun memories with wonderful people!