Fall can be a busy time for photographers, especially here in the Blue Ridge Mountains with the leaves changing color and lots of families wanting to create their annual family portraits. But we've got family traditions of our own that we're simultaneously trying to establish from October right through to the end of December!

We're passionate about capturing all those little moments that make up everyday life—what we often refer to as Lifestyle Photography—so we grabbed the camera to make sure we preserved these fun fall experiences for our kids. We hope you'll enjoy these pictures and perhaps be inspired to reach out next year so you can have art like this of your own!

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We usually enjoy carving pumpkins in October but since our kids are of the ages when 'pumpkin carving' is really more like 'watching daddy carve the pumpkins', we thought we'd give painting a try this year so they could play a bigger role in the process. We won't try to interpret the final results for you...we're not sure what they are either!...but the kids seemed to have a great time and although the paint didn't last (we used washable paint which was great for cleanup but not so great for standing up to the rain), the pumpkins lasted much longer.

We also had fun dressing up for various local events at the public library and nearby church. The older boys' costumes (photographed here) very accurately demonstrate their current interests. And our youngest son got a lot of attention in a homemade porcupine costume which we were careful to tell people was a labor of love only a grandmother is willing to commit to...I mean, those quills are individually hot-glued onto the back!