Dear Bride, You are not falling behind.

Most of my brides booked last year for their upcoming wedding in 2015.   Some perhaps are A-type and are kicking ass knocking items off their to do list.  Others were like me, and photography was the important thing, and one of the few items they took care of early in the game.  Either way it got done fairly early. 

But now that it is 2015, all the inquiries flowing in have a similar tone.  Notes that say "I know I'm a little late but..." and "Sorry, I have just been busy". 

And I couldn't handle it anymore.  

So I wrote back:  Dear Bride,  Don't buy into the late to the game mentality the bridal industry is telling you.  You are exactly where you need to be and everything will come together as it should.  

And guess what darling, stressed out, beautiful bride.  Even though your theknot.com checklist is full of red items and a dozen people have told you that you should of booked a photographer by now, and how can you not know what is going to be served for dinner, and you need to buy this wedding dress today because it is 8 months till your wedding and your cutting it tight.... IT IS ALL GOING TO BE OK.  

More then ok.  It will be magical.  

Girls who get married in 2 months still wear white dresses.  People will figure out a place to sit if you skip the name cards.  

And at the end of the day, if the only thing you poured energy into was creating a space to gather a community of people who love you, a simple reflection of who the two of you are as humans (not event planners), and the crazy love you share, you got it darling.

---

P.S.  I still laugh out loud when I see that picture of the beer bottle I spray painted gold 2 days before the wedding because I didn't want to make another trip to the antique store!  Or when our friends struggled through the impromptu singing of the pray before dinner...

But I wouldn't of changed a single thing.   It is all part of our story, and the messes belong in there too. 

Photos by: Paul Vincent Photography

Karisa & Jason

Why not start a session with morning cuddling and french toast in bed?  Followed by some city exploring!? 

Love when my sister and Jason come to town, love it even more when they need some fresh pictures (perhaps for save the dates...YAY!)   They are always up for going along with whatever creative endeavor I dream up, and look beautiful doing it. 

My February

It is nearing the end of the month, and it has certainly held some great celebrations with friends.  But this is about the everyday, and there really wasn't anything glamorous in February's days.  I really felt I had nothing interesting but I started writing anyways.  Things that happened in February.  

Rich got sick.  I am one of those people that always seems to catch the cold that is going around, but Rich is not.  So when he experienced the flu early this month he was pretty certain it meant he was dying, or according to the internet had some sort of crazy disease.   (I also got it a few days later as well as my sister, who unfortunately picked a bad time to visit)  Not the best start to the month. 

Surprise, my car is totaled.  What I thought was a little parking lot fender bender last month, turned into quite the unfortunate adventure.  Turns out if you ever want to get real bummed out about the world and how it functions, try being forced into car shopping.  Start by evaluating your entire life, and how you can try your best to live simply, and then realize you completely depend on having a vehicle, and you're killing the planet.  Fun day. 

Our Christmas wreath is still up and it is my favorite.  Yup.  Makes me smile daily.

I remembered winter is pretty!  Snow came!  And I fell back in love with this season.  Those big fat snowflakes and the winter light, amazing!

Maybe this all is ordinary.  But these are the little pieces of our everyday and here is where I choose to gather them up.  It's funny how the act of just writing these down revealed something.  Maybe it's not all grand and extraordinary, but lets be honest, we share enough of the glamorous on social media.   So instead, maybe there is something inspiring in coming to the conclusion of taking down the mask and deciding I think I'll just tell the truth.  

Slow snow days.  Kind of loving this curling up business.  

I wish I could say this was me grieving my car because I feel the expression is right on!   But actually this was my monthly reminder to get in front of my own camera thanks to The Story of Me Project.   Even if I am stressed, and my hair is a greasy mess, and there is hardly any light left, this project is about being seen, and this month it was about SHOWING UP, regardless.  

Because I never want to forget this. 

Nothing like a new season, to see something in a different way!  Hey lovely snow covered city, I kind of like you.