Is That Just His Last Name, or What?

"Mom? Who IS God? I mean, I know that Jesus is God but is that just his last name or what? Also, where is heaven and why haven't I ever been there? And what kind of stuff do they even have there?"

5 year-olds are the best things to have in your house. Also, this one lost his first tooth.

Gentle with Yourself

"I will be as gentle with myself as I am with other people."

First Comes Love

My favorite love stories are the real ones. Raw and tangible in their imperfections yet ongoing in an undying dedication to each other. As a photographer, I have been given many opportunities to witness and capture such love stories. I feel like Mark & Temina have something exceptionally beautiful with each other. Getting to know them as their love story continues to pen itself is exciting. 

But let's not get ahead of ourselves! There was a lovely little country wedding at a winery on a warm, sunny day back in September. It was simple in a way that makes the beauty of it all so much more vivid. Standing before God and their gathering of friends Mark and Temina vowed to be each other's companions through life, no matter what. 

Adding a unique touch of beauty in all of the satin and flowers was this creative little girl.

Emelia, the miniature bride.

This special day in her daddy's life was just as much about how loved and treasured she was too. The thrill of being a little princess that day glistened in the twinkle in her eye as she danced and flitted about in her fancy shoes. I'm pretty sure every person present in that ceremony turned into a little bit of a mess when Temina took sweet Emelia's hand and vowed to love and always be there for her too.

 In January I received a note from Temina. Would I be able to meet their little family out on the ice? They had a surprise they couldn't wait to tell their friends about.

As they say, first comes love, then comes marriage... then, well, I have a feeling that big sister is going to be putting a lot of miles on that baby carriage.

Props:
Wedding Venue: Munson Bridge Winery
Reception Venue: Historic Thorp Quonset Hall
Engagement and Announcement shoot Location: Twin Springs Camping Resort

Choices

"Life is about choices. 
Some we regret, some we're proud of. Some will haunt us forever.
We are what we choose to be." --GRAHAM BROWN

This is just a cropped excerpt of the flowers delivered to my teller station one Friday in January. The note said, "Happy last day of work!" I was quietly choking down a lump in my throat that day. I had chosen to leave behind a fun job, so I could better dedicate myself to photography, and actually have time for my family. Yet change always terrifies me, so the choice to let go of this financial security and all the friendships it had cultivated in hopes of succeeding as a photographer was bold and daring and scary. 

It's been two weeks, and this copper tone bouquet is still sitting on my table. While the petals fall listlessly, one by one, to the platter below and the greenery slowly wilts, I still hang on to them just one more day... by day... by day... Because I feel passion and motivation every time I look at it. It's such a pretty reminder of choices and blossoming within them. And friendship too, of course.

Choices close chapters and open new ones. You don't always know in the moment if your choice is ultimately good or bad. Sometimes the choice seems so perfect--cut-and-dried, only to wake up and realize it was nothing short of devastating, leaving you with painful scars. Other times you might think you're biting off a piece of hell, but it ends up being the closest thing to paradise this side of heaven. 

Choices. We make them every day. They're as simple as deciding which socks we put on in the morning or as complex as the person we choose to spend the rest of our lives with. Choices chart the course of our lives, they are who we are. It can be scary, choosing to let go of your secure comfort zone to free fall into an abyss of dreams and the great unknown. But today I dare you to choose to not be ordinary. 

Dare to be brave, to trust God and to believe in yourself. 

Cranberry Orange Doughnut Muffins

We had a snow day yesterday. And since I can't really remember the last time I baked anything for fun, we decided it was perfect for a muffin baking day with the boys. I tweaked this blueberry muffin recipe and ended up with the husband-declared "best muffins in the world". They were quickly consumed and I have received numerous requests to make this again. Friends and family members who saw my snapchat have even offered me money and bribes to make dozens more. My boys keep pretending to pull the muffins out of these pictures to eat them again. 

They are that good.

Cranberry Orange Doughnut Muffins

yield: ABOUT 18 MUFFINS  |  prep time: 20 MINUTES  |  cook time: 15-17 MINUTES

Ingredients

FOR THE MUFFINS

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon corn starch

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon salt

Zest of 1 orange

1 cup pure cane sugar

1/2 cup applesauce

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk (or add 1 tablespoon vinegar to regular milk)

2 cups coarsely-chopped cranberries

FOR THE GLAZE

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed orange juice

1 tablespoon warm water

• Preheat oven to 425°. Lightly grease or paper a standard muffin tin.
• In a medium bowl, sift together flour, corn starch, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• In a large bowl, Combine the zest and sugar until it is moist and fragrant. Add applesauce, eggs and vanilla. Cream together until smooth. 
• Stir the flour mixture into the wet ingredients alternately with milk, make sure everything is thoroughly combined. Fold in cranberries.
• Spoon the batter evenly into prepared pan, filling muffin tins nearly full. Bake for 15-17 minutes, or until muffins are a pale golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean. 
• In a medium bowl or small sauce pan, whisk the glaze ingredients until smooth. When muffins have cooled slightly, dip the muffin crown into the glaze and allow the glaze to harden. You can leave them as is or go for the double dip. 
• Serve warm, or cool on a rack and wrap airtight. 

Perspective.

It was the last rose of Summer, plucked gently off of my sad but brave worm eaten ruse bush. I was pretty certain I had destroyed that poor plant earlier in the Spring, because I am notorious for my inability to keep green things green even with the best of intentions. My poor little bush was indeed dead. Until one day, in between the spindly worm eaten veins of former leaves, was a little bud of pink. And then another, and another. That brave plant came back and with roses. And this was the last one.

It was so pretty and delicate I took a picture of it. And then I changed my angle and took another picture. Same spot, same settings, different perspective, completely different images.

I just can't help but think about how much like life this is. A simple matter of focus can change your circumstances. Not to be cliché or anything, but perspective is everything. You can look at the dark things in your life and dwell in the depression of your circumstances, or you can find the bright things in your life and experience the light of the blessings you do have. There will always be plenty of things to complain about, but there is always, always something to be grateful for. A lot of things, when you stop and think about it. So change your life and dwell in the joy of those things and be grateful.

Colton: Inspire Me

This time of year is crazy in my line of work. When I'm not behind the camera, I'm spending every spare moment editing, tweaking, adjusting, and finalizing literally thousands of images for other people. And then suddenly I hit a wall. And my eye for it is just done. I can't see the details, clarity, coloring and vision for my beloved work any longer. It's just a blur. A blob of pixels. I'm so uninspired.  And then I flip to my personal files, from months gone by with out more than a thumbnail glance. And suddenly I'm deep in brushes and cloning and light adjustment and perfecting. And just like that my inspiration returns. 

These images were captured back in September when I was experimenting with settings, lighting and technique. Colton is always a good sport for me.