JDP senior Hope is a self proclaimed tomboy, yet she gave her mom crazy eyes when her mom asked if she wanted to include some everyday clothes in her portrait time. Hope has been envisioning her senior portraits for a long time now, with long flowing dresses and her beloved horses.
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She, like just about all our girls, had an absolute blast in her wardrobe selection time. Her excitement was palpable and the pile of dresses she set aside for her portrait time was giant. Our wardrobe room is filled to the gills with dresses that make dreams into reality!
Hope came from Elizabethtown and was hoping we’d be able to come out to her for portrait time with her horses. She was fine if she had to forgo it, but was optimistically hopeful. Fall is a challenging time to try and fit in an extra trek like that, but I’m glad we were able to make it work out for her. Hope’s love of horses is a defining factor in her life. 
Six days of the week Hope is in muck boots, so what better way to pay homage to that than in a gorgeous dress!?!
Hope is home-schooled which allows more flexibility to train and care for her horses. She is currently dually enrolled for her senior year, but in actuality is taking all college classes at 2 different colleges and keeping straight A’s. This will help her with when she applies to Central Penn to pursue a degree in physical therapy. How cool would that be to blend her career in a specialty niche with her passion for horses!?!
Hope’s family has 4 horses, 3 are hers. She’s had one since she was 9 and two she got more recently which she is very diligent about training. It was fascinating to hear her talk about the steps required to train out disrespectful behavior like kicking. She works to teach the horse respectful spacing and works with a trainer to support her efforts. It takes time to gain the mutual respect required to bring a horse into the deep bond of trust that Hope seeks.
Although they have several horses, it’s London who has stolen Hope’s heart. London was a prize for an essay Hope wrote in application to compete in the American Quarter Horse Association Young Horse Development Program. She competed with a filly weanling her family bought from Clark Farms. The AQHA was so pleased with Hope’s essay, she was awarded another weanling from the same farm.
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Hope had her choice of 3 horses and was very surprised to see her beautiful London as one of the options. London is a heritage horse who was born in a pasture with 20 other mares and beef cows. This helps her to be a cow horse when raised in a mixed pasture. She can be a reigning or a cutting horse because she’s bred to be interested in cows. London was only her mom Tina’s 2nd foal, so Clark Farms had no idea what the dispositions would be like on her foals. What they’ve since learned is that Tina is now one of their favorite broodmares.
Saddle Up Farms, where London trains, was very hospitable to us as we created the portraits. One of the trainers Cliff came out to help give Hope pointers to accomplish cool moments like this hug. It was a marvel to watch him work as he was so effortlessly in control of the horses and intuitively knew how to guide them.
We ended the night in the stables, Hope’s 2nd home. Hope, your focus and determination married up to your incredible work ethic will equip you to accomplish your dreams in this life! Keep reaching for the stars dear one! 
And of course keep feeling the wind in your hair as you ride like the wind all the days of your life!
These pictures of Hope are absolutely breathtaking.
Wow Hope! Not only beautiful, but REAL portrayal of your spirit-woman. You’re showing us who you are both inside and outside. Thank you for the bold confidence in following through with your idea for senior portraits. Just beautiful. And….I love what you’ve been learning in training horses. You will be so blessed throughout your life as you use those principles in your relationships. Blessings of joy to you, girl! Congratulations on your upcoming graduation!
Jennifer, I cannot find the adequate words to describe how we all feel about these pictures. We, as Hope’s family, have always felt that she is absolutely beautiful (and so is London). However, the world makes teenage girls feel otherwise. I more frequently snap a picture of Hope that she doesn’t like than I capture one that she does like. The day we sat in your office at the View and Choose (which we weren’t very good at because we basically chose to keep practically everything), my heart rejoiced to see my daughter LOVE every photo. These incredible pictures have caused this beautiful stage of life to become artwork on our walls (and a book). I know without a doubt that these pictures will be a blessing all of her life and I can envision many years down the road, should Hope be graced with children, how happy they will be to have them. Thank you so much for your flexibility in making this happen, the time you have poured into this, and for never giving up until you got the perfect shot.
Oh Joyce…you are making me tear up over here…so sweet!! Yes, my absolute joy is showing these seniors their strength, their beauty, their resolve, the magic they make in the spheres of life where they pour themselves out like Hope does with her horses. What an absolute joy and I am grateful we could make this all work out as well!! 😉