I will never forget Codie and Steven’s wedding.  Ever.

And I wasn’t even there.

When I became pregnant and found out my due date, I had a bit of concern.  Codie and Steven’s August wedding was three weeks before Paisley’s estimated arrival.  I heard from many people that first babies go overdue more than they come early, so my worry level decreased.  Even so, months before their wedding, I had lined up my buddy and awesome photog Ian Williams to shoot should something unexpected occur (all of this was with Codie and Steven’s complete approval and support, of course).  My due date approached and all was well.  I was still shooting and working and truckin’ along.  I felt like some super awesome preggo lady that could leap over tall buildings and do just about anything.  But then some complications came up and I was put on bed rest a week before the wedding.  I. Was. Bummed.  To say the least.

When talking to Codie and Steven that week about the implementation of our Plan B, I was so grateful for their flexibility and understanding.  (Have I mentioned that I have the best clients in the world?)  Even though I wouldn’t be there, I was meeting with Ian the night before to go over Codie and Steven’s details, shot list, etc.  But Paisley had some plans of her own.  My complications became…um, more complicated…and I was told to go to the hospital that Friday night.  Thinking that I would just be waiting and laying around a lot that evening, I took all of Codie and Steven’s paperwork with me in the off chance that Ian and I could meet up at the hospital and go over everything.  Mostly, I expected to be monitored for a bit and sent home.  Wrong.  Within an hour or two of being admitted, I was told that I was going to be induced the next morning.  And then the fun began – they started magnesium (which made me feel like I had the flu) and told me that the induction would begin at 6:00 a.m.  Knowing that babies take a long time to arrive (especially first ones), I expected to have a lot of down time the following morning and Ian agreed to come up to the hospital to talk about Codie and Steven’s big day.  Looking back, I acknowledge this plan was nuts, but all of this made perfect sense to me at the time. And nobody around me voiced any objections, so I filed it in my “good idea” folder that day.

Pitocin (the artificial hormone that makes your body go into labor) was administered promptly at 6:00 a.m.  My estimate on how labor would progress was wrong.  Oh so very wrong.  Ian showed up that morning (around 8:00-ish) and I was smack dab in the middle/end of the crazy hard labor stage.  Correction - a crazy hard epidural/pain med-free labor.  I remember going over the sheet and some details with Ian between contractions but to this day, I cannot remember what I said.  Such details were victims of the post-labor memory dump that our bodies miraculously do.

I do recall, however, thinking about Codie and Steven that morning – a lot.  I knew that each of them were probably getting up that morning and that they had pre-ceremony butterflies of excitement.  I was heartbroken that I wouldn’t be there but was so grateful to have a competent shooter in my place so I didn’t have to stress about the service or product they were getting.  Even as something as simple as going over details about them as a couple and what they wanted was a priority to me that morning.  I wanted to do everything I could to take care of them.  About an hour and a half after Ian left, Paisley Grace was born.

What is really cool about Codie and Steven is that as I went through their images to edit, I totally felt the love and joy that was present at their wedding.  I saw it in their eyes.  I saw it on their guests’ faces.  That’s the thing about those pure, strong emotions – they just leap out.  Ian told me that the wedding was a blast and that everyone he encountered was so awesome.  I know that Codie and Steven have so many good times ahead and I can’t wait to do their Happily Ever After session with them soon!  They are so so so cute and you can tell how much fun they had on their wedding day!

Ian – thanks for being a great friend, competent help, and for doing a great job for Codie and Steven.

Codie and Steven – congratulations a million times over on your beautiful, love-filled wedding.  I admire your saturated devotion to one another and am so happy that we each could experience a big milestone on your special day.

To see more of Codie and Steven, click HERE or on one of the photos below.

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Vendors:

Dress – Bridal Designs
Ceremony Location – Victory Arts Center
Reception Location – Lockheed Martin Rec Association
Hair – Lindzie at Shelton’s in  Bedford
Makeup – MAC
Floral – Forget-me-not Florist
DJ – Complete Music and Video – Mark Brown
Jewelry/Accessories – Sam Moon
Tux – Al’s Formal Wear
Food – Mexican Inn
Cake – Delicious Cakes
Videographer – (Friend of couple) Tobias Jimenez
Photobooth – Create the Memories

Sorry that I haven’t posted in a while – but I have a good excuse this time.

Things have been a bit busy… I was placed on bed rest about a month ago and soon after, my daughter arrived.  Paisley was born on August 7, 2010 and we are so very in love with this sweet girl.  She weighed 5 pounds, 13 ounces and measured 19.5 inches long.

Motherhood has been amazing so far and Jeromy and I feel so blessed to have received this precious little spirit into our lives.  We appreciate all of the prayers and love we have received to get to this point.  It is fantastic to have clients who are so kind and concerned for Paisley and me and I am so excited to be in this new phase of life!

I’m slowly and surely working through some edits to get caught up on things and appreciate your patience and understanding.  There will be some great posts coming, so check back soon!

Thanks again for all the emails and well wishes – I am so touched to have such a loving group of clients and friends!

I love being pregnant and with my biology background, it’s neat to have this little process going on in my tummy.  Pregnancy is probably the coolest thing I’ve ever experienced and I’m cherishing each day.

I want to extend a special thanks to my clients, who have lifted me in prayer and offered support along the way when the road got bumpy.  There have been some trials getting to this point, but our joy has been magnified as a result.  I also want to encourage any couple out there that is struggling with adding to their family to remain hopeful and keep strong.

I am so blessed to work with the sweetest couples and families in the metroplex – hands down (and it’s so cool that I can call many of them friends).  Even this past week during a model shoot, one amazing stylist took it upon herself to keep a cold bottle of water near me the entire time.  I’m a bad sweater even sans-preggo (gross!), so I’m sure she thought I was about to keel over even though it was just my normal operating procedure – such a sweetie).

Even though I plan to attend scheduled shoots as long as I can waddle, I’m grateful to know and work with dependable talent I can count on should the big day come much earlier/later than expected (and happy for couples that are flexible if a change in plans occur).

I can’t wait to share pics in a few months of Pod and to experience the messy and wonderful joy of parenthood.

One of the many advantages of marrying into Jeromy’s large family is that I have plenty of cute kids to take photos of. Just one example is little Nathan… Jeromy’s cousin’s (Eric) and his wife’s (Emily) son. It was fun to meet up with Eric, Emily, and Nathan to get some photos to record the “6 month” milestone. Nathan has the most lovely disposition and was FABULOUS the entire time. I also had a blast getting to know Eric and Emily better and can see that parenthood has brought them a lot of joy. Jeromy and I are looking forward to our dinner with them this week.

(And in case you were wondering… yes, little Nathan’s eyes really are that vivid and amazing in person.) Click HERE to see a mini slide show of Nathan!