We have had the pleasure of shooting the Pellerin Family and their daughter Addison for the past 3.5 years. From her first newborn photos, to her yearly Christmas & Birthday pictures, we have gotten to watch her grow into a beautiful little lady. We have also gotten to hear Steve's singing get progressively worse as he tries to get her to smile from belting "The Hot Dog Song" {Now that we have a toddler it's crazy to me that we once did not know this song} to her most recent favorite "Let it Go".
Anthony and I were thrilled to hear they were expecting another addition to their family, and captured some adorable photos for their birth announcement. Through the pregnancy they discovered their son Callen James would be born with a rare congenital heart defect called Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome {HLHS}. Callen is now 5 months old and has already undergone a successful heart transplant. There have been so many scares along the way, but he truly is a "Heart Warrior". To learn more about his journey, visit his blog for his most recent updates.
He has been a patient at Boston Children's Hopsital where he has received the most amazing care. Callen's Mom and Dad, Jenna and Steve, reached out to us to come to the hospital to shoot their family photos at the hospital and in the garden. Upon arriving, we were let in on the most exciting secret: CALLEN WAS GOING HOME THE NEXT DAY! After 5 long months in the hospital, he was finally going home to spend his first night under the same roof as his family.
The garden is such a beautiful place for the patients and their families to get out of their hospital rooms and enjoy the fresh air, and was the perfect place for their family photos. Callen is such a sweet and happy baby and smiled so effortlessly. His big sister Addison was so good with him, and they already share such a special bond.
After spending time in the garden we went up to Callen's room. His room was like a scrapbook of his 5 months at the hospital, and was filled with so many personal touches, well wishes, and mementos. We're so glad we were there on that day, as everything was packed up to go home the next day.
Callen was given a special bead for each of his milestones and setbacks while at the hospital. The beads are supposed to form a bracelet, but Callen has been through so much in these past 5 months that his already wrap around his whole body. The beads are a testament to what a fighter this beautiful baby is and all that he has persevered through.
The Pellerin family are some of the most remarkable people that we know. Their continued strength and positivity are such an amazing example for their children, and we are so thankful to have them in our lives. We look forward to capturing more milestones and celebrations for this wonderful family and are so happy that they are finally together and doing so well.
To see their full gallery of photos, click the button below!