Baby Raygan :: 4 weeks old

So picture this...

It's the summer before 5th grade and you've decided to play an instrument. You choose clarinet. You go to summer band class to learn how to play your instrument and meet a really fun friend. You laugh and smile together, while learning your 'new' and exciting instrument... such a great bonding experience, right? Ha! So, summer comes to an end and you realize that your "friend" goes to a different school than you... bummer! You decide to become 'PEN PALS' (remember you're in 5th grade... that was cool back then!) So you write back and forth for two years, you learn about each other... very basic stuff like if you have pets, what your favorite color was, what your favorite food was, what boy or girl you might like, etc...etc... So after those two years, you decide to quit playing the clarinet. You are getting ready to start 8th grade, which is at a whole other school, a school where all the middle schools combine into one BIG school with the 9th graders before you move to the HIGH school. (Your school district is really weird... I know!) You are super nervous because this is a big deal... 8th grade is all about being cool, right? So first day, you go to your home room and recognize a familiar face. The face of your old clarinet buddy! What are the odds! You spend the next 5 years bonding even more and becoming amazing friends! Fast forward to today... that friend that you met many years ago is still present in your life and you now are experiencing many of lives greatest gifts together.

One of my oldest and dearest friends just had the best gift she could imagine... me home for a few days to see her! Ughh... ok, that was my gift! But her's would be, that she was just blessed with the sweetest little baby girl ever! Little Miss Raygan was born a few weeks back and has been such a great baby, so I hear. The day I came she must have been growing or something, as she was not too happy about the camera in her face, although I was not complaining because it was great to see my dear friend in motherhood action. She's such a great mom... and does amazing with Raygan. I love both of them so much... I can't wait to see how beautiful Raygan becomes being raised by such a beautiful family.

Congratulations you guys... it was seriously a joy being able to see and capture this time of your lives... Love you! Mwaaahhh!


Here are a few favorites from our session...

Look at that adorable face!



I LOVE this one... she's so cute!



Look at that lung power...Pheww...



Those toes are so small...



Adorable!



Haha!





Sleepy, sleepy...



My niece was there to help... can you tell? Trying to steal her pacifier... haha!



She made up for it when she was trying to hug her... aww...



Wide awake, but not too happy!

Derek & Leah :: Wedding

I remember when I was in 1st grade and it was Halloween. I came to school dressed as Punky Brewster. This is her...



I was so proud because I wore clothes that were mismatched and cool. Plus I already had the dark hair and frekles, so I just put my hair in pig tails, which back then was cool anyways. At the end of the the day, we were all judged by our costumes and only the "lucky" few got prizes for winning. I did not really think to much of it, I was just happy I got to wear a costume to school. I remember getting up on stage in a single file line and the teachers all looked at the students. I don't remember all the details, it was SOOO many years ago. But I remember winning "Most Original". Yay! But at the time, I thought to myself, "I'm not even sure I know what that means." Ha! But once I was explained what original meant, I thought I was so cool! I was original then, and consider myself original now.

Derek and Leah are two of those people as well! They had one of the most creative weddings I have ever been to. Leah is such a DIY bride, from making their centerpieces, to their bouquets, doing her own hair, doing some of her girls hair, and much much more. She is just a natural and so low key. She also wore such a gorgeous and unique dress. She is the whole package there! Derek was also creative himself by choosing the most comfortable outfits for him and his guys... I'm sure all grooms wish they could do that, to having an ice cream truck come during their reception for dessert! It doesn't get any better than that, does it? But this couple fits so well together. They both are so sweet, so loving, so gentle, and just match perfectly together! Their wedding was at Pine Knob Mansion, which is so beautiful and unique by itself, but when you add their touch to it plus a gorgeous day, it was even more stunning! Everyone that came up to them just complimented them over and over on how great it was to be there and what a great wedding it was! I'm sure they loved that!

Congratulations you guys! We had SUCH a great time! Enjoy being a newlywed!!!


Check out some of my favorites and a slideshow from their day...

Dress: Demetrios
Flowers: Flower Works (Boutonnieres) Whole Foods (Bouquets- Made by Leah)
Ice Cream: Meadowbrook Ice Cream
Cupcakes: Mrs. Maddox Cake Shop
Linens: Linens and Beyond
Band: The Euphorians

Check out those shoes... LOVE THEM!



And those bride-made-bouquets! Gorgous!



SOOOO gorgeous!



And her girls... AMAZING!



Derek... handsome as ever!



And his guys were great... so fun!



Her poor sister dropped the ring during the ceremony... it was so funny!





And rose petals were thrown on the way out... just beautiful!



They have so much fun together!



Umm... love them!



Hot Stuff!



Check out a slideshow from more of their day...

Josh & Carrie :: Engagments

Phewww...

It has been quite the whirl wind. Just when you think you cannot get any busier, something happens and you somehow make time for the extra stuff!

I thought that our whole kitchen project was more of a "man's" job! I mean that's great that they want to include me to help, but seriously, I have other things I would rather do, like work, play with my dog, blog, etc... which I apologize I have not had the extra moments to sit down and fill you in on what's going on. But I could think of 100 other things I would rather be doing instead of being put to work with a paint brush in one hand and the paint can in the other, especially since I have sooo much other stuff going on right now. But I cannot complain whatsoever... the more help the faster it will get done! Right?! But I will do my best not to neglect my other stuff... like you all!

Anyways...

So it is my goal to get you all caught up on all the photo shoots I have had the last two weeks, which is quite a few...

Josh & Carrie are very, very, very good friends of ours. Carrie is actually Todd's cousin, but more than that she is a great friend to me... she's way more than just family! I remember the first time I met her five and a half years ago, she totally opened up her heart to me right off the bat and treated me as though I was family. Not many people, especially girls will do that! She's an exception and it has been so great getting to know her over the years. Then came Josh, and he has been nothing but PERFECT for her! It has been such a joy seeing their relationship grow and mature into something sooooo beautiful! I'm so excited for them and also excited that they are going to be living so close to us! YAY YAY YAY!

Congratulations you two! We are sooo looking forward to next weekend... it's going to be so fun!


Here are a few of my favorites... even though there were sooo many great ones!

Umm... this couple could not be more photogenic together! So Lucky!



This is where their relationship grew into what it is today... (Downtown Detroit)



Hottt....!!!



I LOVE this one... It's probably one of my favorites from the whole day! It's just so relaxed and genuine!



Love the background... gotta love fun colored walls!



Mmm... so pretty!





Josh's face cracks me up! What a fun soul!



They have so much fun together... it's SOOO contagious!





LOVE THIS! It would not be downtown without some graffiti!

Agghhh...

Agghhhh... Oh wow!

This is exactly what I said when I came home last night.

While I was in Indiana the last four days, I got a phone call from Todd Thursday to tell me him and his dad were working on the kitchen. I was so excited because the sooner they get started, the faster they get done and I have a NEW KITCHEN! Well... all four days I was gone, he would call and ask, "So what do you think about this idea?" or "What do you think about that?" I started to realize that when I came home, I just might not have much of a kitchen left. They ripped everything out of the existing kitchen that looked something like this...



I took it pretty well considering that I'm a HUGE neat freak and I really did not know what to expect. It was a bit surreal to me, like I was in the eye of a tornado. Literally, the eye of a tornado... everything around me was a wreck, yet I was calm.

As the next day came (today) and I got home from my morning yoga, it became apparent that I was not in a dream or a "tornado", but it was reality. I could not find where the bowls were, the silverware, the oatmeal, basically I spent a good 20 minutes digging through containers looking for the things I needed. I'm usually the one who picks things up and can't remember what I did with it, but Todd put all of our "kitchen" stuff in boxes and rubbermaid bins, along with using our kitchen table, TV trays, and bookcase to put some of the things we use a lot on. I can now blame the mess on him... ha! But seriously, during the time of searching for the few things I needed, I had to stop and just laugh! I dropped a whole bowl of broccoli in the bathroom sink, I cut my veggies with a butter knife, I ate my dinner on a paper plate with my table being a DIY kitchen hardback book... ha! I'm sure there will be tons more stories, but no matter how crazy and disorganized it is right now, I cannot get frustrated or be upset because I know it is ALL worth it!

Here's my temporary kitchen...



Happy Monday!

Mark & Carly :: Engagements

"Remember me?"

That is exactly what Carly said when I first talked to her. I actually remembered pretty quickly, but turns out we photographed her sister's wedding a few years back, like back in the day when we were first starting out here in Michigan. Wow! But I loved the whole family, so I was REALLY excited that Carly for one, remembered us and for two, wanted us to shoot her wedding! It's funny to remember those first couple weddings compared to now, but it's all a growing period, right? I'll keep telling myself that!

But I did not meet Mark then, and it was so great to be able to meet him and get to know both of them 'together'. It was fun to reminisce about her sister's wedding and then talk about their upcoming wedding. Mark and Carly are super, super sweet. They are so positive, genuine, and so down to earth! I thought it was great that despite Carly having to work at 3am that morning, she looked gorgeous and you could not tell that she was pretty tired! I was actually in shock that she had to work that early... but being a pastry chef means you have to get all those goodies ready for the day early, and I mean EARLY! Haha! We had so much fun and I am so excited, I mean SOOO excited for their wedding in September. It will be great to see the whole family again, for yet another one of their girls' weddings!

Congratulations you two! Enjoy the summer... it will go quick!

The lovely couple!



They laughed like the whole time... it was great!



Carly is absolutely gorgeous...



And they are so stinkin' sweet...





Hot Stuff!



What a gorgeous ring!



My Favorite of the Day! LOVE IT!

More Work... Less Play

"Stop talking and get back to work!"

I do remember hearing that phrase sometime through my lovely school days. I was usually the one who was being talked to rather than the "talker", but I admit I was a chatty girl who would always be giggling and clowning, especially when I got older in school. Oh, how I loved those school days and loved all those memories that I made and now over fill my brain. Sometimes too many memories, and some start to get pushed up into the attic and need some help getting to. I feel like that every time I come to Indiana, I'll remember little bits and pieces of what life was like when I lived here. I mean I did spend a good chunk my life here in this glorious state, but I'm finding myself forgetting what street names are and where they are located at, what store I want to go to in the mall and where it's at, the name of the gym I went to yesterday morning with my sister and now can barley sit down now... way TOO MANY squats! But my memory is fading day after day and the more I'm away, the more I forget! I guess that's part of life though.

Usually my trips to Indiana are focused more on spending time with my family and making memories with them since I do not get to see them very much at all anymore, but this trip down was focused more on work. I have had a few photo shoots being down here that I have been super happy with because for one, I get to see people I have not seen or talked to in a while and two, because well, isn't it obvious... I get to take PHOTOS! I'm not sure what the best part is seeing the people I have not seen in a really long time or taking photos of the people! It's a WIN-WIN situation for me and I'm totally lovin' it! It's kind of like I'm reminiscing the past while documenting the present, and looking forward to the future of the baby that was born and the two engagements that will soon be weddings! I'm getting really theological on you all, huh? I better stop now or else I'm going to be confusing myself here.

All I know is that when I get back home, our kitchen is going to be completely destroyed and I'm going to be a bit overwhelmed!

Until then... enjoy the sneak peak...

This photo pretty much speaks for itself... my sister and niece came over when we were almost done and Izzy thought she would take it in her own hands to steal her pacifier. Raygan was not a happy baby... haha!

One Thing I Miss Most...

There is more than corn in Indiana...

Most of you all know that I am originally from Indiana, I talk about it enough that you might have figured it out. Ha! I try to come visit as much as possible, but with my recent back injury and extremely busy work schedule now I have yet to have the chance to visit since February, that is an extremely long time for me. But I finally made the long haul down today.... waaa hooo!

I sure love and miss my family, and now I have a niece who is growing up so stinkin' fast. She is no longer a baby, but she's a BIG girl and has a huge personality that goes along with that big girl persona.

Here she is playing with my big gulp... this entertains her for hours! Haha!





But besides my family, there are a few things I miss about Indiana... one of those being the open space there is. I LOVE driving through the country with the windows down, fresh air flying through the car, especially with the radio blaring, while singing at the top of my lungs! (Yes, I totally do that!) I love the view of the sky, sunset, clouds, storms, or old run down barns (Great photo opts) in the middle of no where.

Today was one of those days. I was traveling into Indiana. It was nice and warm out so I had the windows down, fresh air was flying through the car, radio blaring, singing at the top of my lungs. I noticed it started to get really dark, but I was actually driving away from the darkness. I looked in my rear view mirror and thought, "How cool of a view that is!" It was all cloudy and dark, yet sunny and bright the other direction. I pulled over on the country road and got my camera out. I realize at that moment just how beautiful Indiana really is. You won't see skies like this anywhere (well maybe other places, but they are incredible here!). Indiana may have a bad reputation with not having much other than lots of cornfields, farms, bales of hay, or the Indianapolis 500, but one thing it does have, is an amazing beauty and peacefulness. I am amazed by how gorgeous a place can be when you move away and learn to appreciate the good things there are and miss so much!

I miss you open space!