When I first saw her, I immediately noticed her adorable haircut.

Until she showed me her Courage Beads, I had no idea that she is growing it out from something much, much shorter.

From a journey that was much, much longer.

And certainly it was more difficult than any girl who believes in Unicorns and Fairies should ever have to endure.

The amount of strength and spunk in this tiny little person is humbling.

As I photographed her with her family, I could tell that each embrace was probably longer than before.

And while I pride myself on being able to get smiles for the photo,

I have a feeling the words “clean scans, cancer free” were responsible for these.