Marvelous Monday #14 :: I've got some 'splaining to do

Thank you all so much for the kind comments and emails regarding our big news! I've been a little swamped lately with wrapping up my job at the University and being in the middle of the busiest wedding season ever, and I apologize for not responding to you all sooner. Here are finally some more details :).

Two days after I turned in my resignation at the University, I decided I should maybe - just maybe - take a pregnancy test, especially considering I was about to start insurance shopping. Even though I felt like I was wasting money by wasting a test (those things must be made of gold!), I took a test anyway. When I saw the plus sign, I was truly shocked. Truly. So, after a frantic morning of calling my doctor, sending very vague text messages to my boss about why I couldn't come in to work, and taking three more tests (all of which sported a nice blue plus sign), it all started to set in. There was officially a bun in the oven.

And we couldn't be happier!

Although Jon and I hadn't planned on starting a family for at least a year or so, the timing really has worked out perfectly. I couldn't have planned it better myself :). The baby is scheduled to arrive December 28, a month after the last wedding I have the calendar and about 2.5 months before the next wedding we have on the books. In addition, Jon will finish up his master's degree at Covenant two weeks before my due date.

Everything has been wonderful thus far... no morning sickness or evening sickness or anything. Well.... there was one time when I accidentally used Jon's toothbrush and it grossed me out so much that I puked... but I hardly think I can blame that on the baby :). I was terribly exhausted through the first trimester, but that's probably also to blame on my insane work load. But now that I'm into the second trimester and the end of my university job is in sight, I have TONS of energy! Oh, and I am looking a little chunky these days, but again, not the baby's fault. I blame it on those dang blueberry eggo waffles. If they weren't so darn tasty, I wouldn't eat six a day!

And yes, we are definitely finding out the sex of the baby. We don't have any names picked out yet, but I'm pretty partial to Hannah Montana or Jack Bauer. I'm just sayin....

We're hoping Stella is going to like the new little guy or gal. Speaking of Stella... she was having some ear problems, so the vet had to tape her ears. I think she looks a little like a martian...




And now some details for my clients... just in case you were wondering :).
Because of the awesome timing of the pregnancy, I'm still completely able to fulfill all the wedding contracts I have (minus one December wedding, but we've already talked :( ). Weddings taking place during the month of November, even though I still will most likely feel pretty good, will come with an extra shooter at no charge. So yeah, that means if you have a November wedding, you'll get three photographers for the price of two :). From the other photographers I've talked to, I should have no problem shooting well into November, but because I know my brides value peace of mind, I'll have that third photographer there just in case there should be any kind of need.

I will be on maternity leave (wow, it still feels crazy to say that!) from Dec 1 until March 10. So, if you're wanting to do an album design and would like to have your design completed before I take my leave, please be sure to begin your order by October 30 so we'll have ample time to complete your book.

So yeah, is that marvelous or what.

Marvelous Monday #13 :: a pretty important piece of punctuation

Sure... it means a lot in math equations, but I never knew how important a plus sign could be for me until I saw it one morning on a stick.


more to come....

Tyler and Robyn are married!

I have been looking forward to Tyler and Robyn's wedding ever since the day Tyler proposed to Robyn. I've just loved working with these two and their wedding day was nothing short of fantastic. Some of my favorites from the day:

We started the day off early at the beautiful Celeslie's Salon.


Robyn getting her make-up airbrushed. Very cool.


The beautiful bride


Tyler's wedding shoes.


the rings, held by the most handsomest man in the room ;)


While the girls were getting glamorous, the men serenaded Tyler one last time a la Ray Charles. Jon had a great time hanging out with the group of guys :)








Married!


Because Robyn and Tyler had an early afternoon wedding, we had planned to shoot some portraits of them at a park after the reception ended. The beautiful day, unfortunately, turned very grey and rainy, and forced us to stay indoors. BUT, no need to fear, I got PLENTY of shots of the two of them at their day after session we just shot on Washington Avenue. Can't wait to share it!


reception fun - shot by my assistant who seems to always becomes part of the party :).


all the ladies in the family showing off their tattoos

Marvelous Monday #12 :: Threadless.com

I think that unique t-shirts are one of the coolest pieces of clothing a person can buy. AND, I think that having a hilarious, unique t-shirt is even cooler. If your Monday is off to a slow start, spend some time shopping at Threadless, home to some of the best t-shirts I've seen. I have a friend who has a birthday coming up AND hates raisins, so I thought this would be the perfect gift (Megan if you're reading this, pretend to be surprised :) )


This is one of my all-time favorites:


And some other notable favs:





Have a marvelous Monday!

Time to book your portrait session!!

I was just looking though my calendar for this fall, and holy crap, I am busy! I keep putting new bookings on the calendar and I didn't realize how full I was already! So for all of you still wanting to schedule a portrait session, whether it's a senior session, family, or engagement photos before the end of the year, the time to get something scheduled is now :). As of right now, I have no saturday dates still available until March of 2009 (I know... holy crap!). There are two Sunday dates still available (October 5 and October 26), and that's pretty much it for the weekends. I have a limited number of weeknight spots still open this summer, and a little more still open sept-oct-nov. If you'd like to schedule a session for 2008, please shoot me an email soon so I can get you on the calendar :)

I've got so many fun wedding day and portrait images to share with you that I can hardly wait! Here's a sneak peak at Tyler and Robyn's wedding. Check back soon for more!

Marvelous Monday #10 :: memoirs of bad blogger

So I admit it. I've turned into a bit of a bad blogger over the last few weeks. First, I miss a marvelous monday post. Then I miss another. And now, I'm trying to make up for it with only about 6 minutes left before it's Tuesday. Believe me, I have TONS to blog. TONS. I've been busy shooting like crazy. Crazy, I tell ya.

So, although this post hardly has the fervor that my usual Marvelous Monday contains, I felt the need to update, based on the number of messages I've received about my lack of blog updates :). In addition to being crazy busy in the middle of wedding season, I'm also working on another project that will soon be coming to fruition... but it's top-secret, so I can't reveal too much quite yet. But let's just say, it's going to rock :).

So until I get another free second, here are some pics of the world's cutest puppy and best husband/assistant doing what I wish I had time to do:

Eric and Becky are married!

Rain threatened to spill on the morning of Eric and Becky's wedding. I prayed that the weather would clear up all the way to Becky's aunt's house, where the girls were getting ready, and we were in luck! Eric and Becky's wedding day couldn't have been better! The couple, who hail from Boston, planned this wedding from quite a distance and everything came together just perfectly, even down to the last detail.

Becky's Wedding Day RocketDog's. Delicate, yet practical. Perfect.


Beautiful detailing on Becky's Maggie Sottero gown.







Love the look on these girls' faces. I can just imagine them picturing themselves one day all grown up and in a beautiful dress like Becky's.


The beautiful bride.


While I was with the girls, Carrie, my second shooter for this wedding, was with the guys.


Carried headed over to the park with Eric for a few quick photos before the rest of the party arrived. Since he's a KU alum, it was only fitting to photograph him donning his jayhawk hat.


And this is my favorite part of the day! For couples who don't have a lot of time between ceremony and reception, I HIGHLY recommend doing the photos before the wedding. Eric and Becky wanted to make sure they had plenty of time and weren't rushed during their photos, so they planned to meet before the ceremony at Laumeier Sculpture Park. Carrie and I coordinated the meeting time and made sure Eric's back was turned as Becky walked up behind him. The air was thick with excitement as they prepared to see each other. I shot form this angle..


And Carrie shot from this angle.


I like to give my couples a few moments to themselves after they see each other for the first time, so I stay in the background and shoot with a long lens.


And then it was time for the real fun to begin! Since Becky had built so much time into the schedule for photos (which I dig!), I was able to spend some relaxed time with them before the rest of the wedding party arrived.




The wedding party


If you couldn't tell, lately I've been digging the vintage look. I think Eric and Becky look great in these vintage photos.


Not your typical bridal shot... but that's probably why it's my favorite.


Saying their vows


Married!


Eric and Becky had me do an engagement guestbook album for them and it was big hit! The guests loved looking through all the photos and had the opportunity to write in a person note (or two!) in the book.




Congrats, Eric and Becky! Your wedding was wonderful and I'm so glad I had the opportunity to work with you! Enjoy Paris!