GRATITUDES + BREAKTHROUGHS // SEPTEMBER 18, 2019

Gratitudes

Colleen + Chandler celebrated their marriage on Saturday at Creeks Edge Winery! These two had a stressful week leading up to their special day with the threat of Hurricane Florence, thankfully she decided not to attend their wedding. Colleen + Chandler had a lovely day with sunshine peeking through the clouds! Their ceremony was under the large covered pavillion as well as cocktail hour with Creeks Edge estate wine. Colleen’s bouquet was lush and filled with dusty rose, burgundy and light pops of ivory. I was obsessed with her cathedral length gown that had tiny pearls sewn throughout. She was stunning! Their reception was inside the tasting room warmed by candle light and hints of their wedding colors with accents of gold. For dessert instead of cake, they chose mini pies and a gelato bar! Cocktails and an open dance floor brought everyone outside to enjoy the rest of the night. My favorite part of their wedding day was during the ceremony when the officiant shared the story of how they met. Colleen was late to a class that Chandler was in – in high school – when she finally arrived there was only one available seat left in the class… next to Chandler! These two have been high school + college sweethearts and are now husband and wife! Congratulations to the two of you!

Last week was a big week for my family, my sister Katlyn gave birth to her first child and our families second grand baby. Tenny Jean arrived at just over 6 pounds and 20 inches long. She’s so small but there is so much love for her already. Both families were at the hospital to give her a proper welcome to the world. The next day I went up to the hospital to take newborn photos for them, but earlier that morning Katlyn sent me a text requesting fake lashes, because she was going to be a cool mom! I make sure we had them (haha!) and spent about an hour with my sister, her husband Russell and Tenny. It was really special being able to watch them get adjusted to their new roles as Mom + Dad.

I went ahead and committed to Smile Direct Club. I told you guys back in July I went to my consultation and loved it. They were fast, efficient and made me feel comfortable when I asked a lot of questions. I had braces back in middle school and since then I had some shifting happen with my front four teeth – you know the ones most people see. So I decided this year I wanted to look into doing something about it. A recent bride and a friend of mine suggested I take a look. I got my package with all of my clear aligners last week and I started the program on Thursday. Popping in the aligner definitely brought back memories of my old school light blue retainer with the metal wire. I had a tiny bit of uncomfortableness but it went away within a couple of hours. The program SDC suggested will take me 5 months to get perfectly straight teeth again. That means I’ll be starting the new year off with a brand new smile! I’ll be sharing my experience here throughout my program.

I almost never share them, but I do family + newborn sessions! I was so excited to hear my friend Ashley gave birth to her second baby boy, Hayes. When I got back from Italy I had the chance to pop over and do a family session. Their first born Charlie looks exactly like his Mom, where as Hayes looked exactly like his Dad. This family of four snuggled up in the playroom for their portraits.. We laughed so hard because Charlie – a toddler – wasn’t super interested in our activities. Instead he wanted to pop in and out on his own terms, thankfully we were able to capture some really great moments for them to remember forever. Afterwards the adults put the babes down and we shared the best chinese food I’ve ever had and a much deserved glass of rose!

You saw Ayla + Francesco’s surprise proposal session last week, I also got to see them in person! I crashed their party with Curious Fox Press when they went to talk to Cathleen about their wedding paper! Cathleen was totally prepared for their upcoming Italian wedding with an Italian streaming music station and prosecco! Afterwards we went into Middleburg for an early dinner at King Street Oyster Bar. We went over wedding planning steps as well as wedding photography. I went for the crab cake dinner with hush puppies and french fries. It was so good!

 

Breakthroughs

I shared earlier this year that I had the opportunity to go through yoga teacher training again this fall with Stafford House of Yoga. I start up this weekend with two full 12 hour days of learning, practicing and opening up my mind and heart. The first time I went through YTT it wasn’t the right time, the universe has a funny way of letting you know that after the fact. I was going through one of my busiest fall wedding seasons, helping my then boyfriend get into vet school and plan/prep his move to another country. I didn’t have the head space or heart space at that moment to teach. I pushed through the program, but I didn’t feel called to teach after graduation. Instead, I felt called to photograph yoga teachers and studios, and I still feel that. So much so that I started that branch of my business in 2018. This time though, with this new opportunity and an open mind and open heart, I’m ready. I feel focused and prepared to enter this round with the intention of teaching in 2019.

 

As always, thanks for reading. xoxo.