Mike and Scott’s Philadelphia couples session hit me in the heart in all the right ways. Not only are they super-cute, madly in love, and generally a blast to spend time with, they also happen to be two of my best friends. Spending time documenting their love was truly a joy for me, and I’m so happy we chose to do it in Chestnut Hill, a neighborhood close to our hearts.

I met Mike and Scott soon after we moved into our rowhome in Mt Airy, right before I gave birth to my oldest daughter. It was our first winter in that home, and it was brutal in terms of record-breaking snowfall. While my husband was out shoveling every day, he met all the neighbors on our block, including Mike and Scott, who would always chat with him and offer him a beer afterward. We became fast friends. And since they only lived two doors down, we spent the next few years with their constant companionship. They were dream neighbors.

Philadelphia Couples Session – Chestnut Hill

Mike and Scott always send the girls birthday and Valentine cards, and would often leave gifts on our stoop (IPAS and wine for us, and candy for the kids). They would always include us, even though we had very young and loud children, for evenings out on the town, dinners in their home, or future travel plans. We traveled together multiple times, (Rehoboth, Ptown, California, Washington DC…)  and they are great travel companions. We have trained for and run marathons together (well, Scott trains, and Mike makes us delicious meals afterwards), and have spent countless evenings together at our dinner table, sipping cocktails and laughing, while teaching the kids how to play UNO. Mike was the very first person outside of our family to hold Ruby after we brought her home from the hospital. They have been buddies ever since.

In 2015, we celebrated with them, and many other neighbors, on our front stoop in Mt Airy when the Supreme Court declared gay marriage legal in all 50 states. And it was then, after 13 years together as a couple, they were able to start planning their wedding.

The following year, we traveled with them and 16 of their closest friends to Provincetown, Massachusetts, to watch them marry on a sailboat at sunset. It was an epic celebration of love and friendship. I was honored to be included, but mostly grateful that these two amazing individuals were now finally able to come together as one couple, legally, and enjoy the same basic rights that so many of us take for granted. 

That same year, we packed up our family of four, and moved off of our beloved block to the mysterious, faraway land of suburbia. It was a difficult move for many reasons, but most of all, because I knew we would never have Mike and Scott two doors down from us again.

But I soon learned that 20 minutes could not keep us apart. In the eight years since we moved, we have become closer than ever. We may not see each other every day, but Mike and Scott have grown from neighbors, to friends, to family.

To celebrate their 5^th wedding anniversary, we planned a Philadelphia couples session for them in Chestnut Hill, a neighborhood just outside of Mt Airy, and a neighborhood we have so many fun memories in together. It was great to walk around with them and watch them interact in a way I may not always notice as a couple in love, the silly laughter, the subtle glances, the hand squeezing…all things I probably miss on an average day in their company.

And when you get to end your session enjoying a beer with two of your best friends, it’s a pretty good work day.

Ready to book a Philadelphia Couples session? Send me a message and lets get started on documenting your love story.