Waiting.

I haven’t really written about the specifics that are taking place in our life right now. I haven’t wanted to because of the uncertainty that lies ahead and the worry it might cause by me just writing it all down. Writing anything down always makes it feel so much more real to me. I have always been a journaler – I have boxes of them downstairs in my house. I have loved it and still enjoy writing when time allows. I have kept pregnancy journals, first year journal for Logan, sermons I’ve loved, quotes I’ve read…I love writing. But writing all of this down sounds ridiculous, just unreal. You’ll know why in just a moment.

The last post I wrote about my family was about Illness in our household. From there we’ve kind of lost track. I have everything written down, of course, and the easiest way for me to explain everything is to literally bullet it out by date, I think. We’ll see how this goes…

• 1/22 – Brian gets diagnosed with mono. Two strains of it; Epstein-Barr and Cytomegalovirus (CMV)
• 1/25 – we spent 6 hours in the ER with Logan for his 105.1 temp. He goes through test after test and gets a shot of Rocephin.
• 1/26 – at the follow-up appointment for Logan, they diagnose him with Strep. He gets put on Ceprozil.
• 1/27 – I have my 24 week appointment for the baby. I casually mention that Brian has mono and Logan has strep. The DR and I call Brian at work to find out if he knows what ’strains’ of mono he has. He does – one of them is CMV. This is very worrisome for pregnant women as it can cause complications with your baby.
  I stare at my DR in shock.
  Everything kind of slows down as I’m trying to process it.
  I don’t really know what it means yet.
  Bless my DR for being thorough – she sends me the lab to get bloodwork done.
  I pray and feel good.
  We wait.
• 1/29 – The DR calls back with one of the test results. My IGG (antibody) was positive. This can either mean that I’ve already had CMV (which can stand alone from mono, it is very common in children, usually they don’t have any symptoms, so the chances are high that I’ve already had it) or that I have an active infection in my body that I’ve already contracted from Brian.
  I didn’t know how to respond.
  I was glad…and I was worried?
  In order to find out if indeed my CMV is active, they need to wait for the other antibody (IGM) to come back.
  I pray and feel okay.
  We wait.
• 2/2 – The DR calls to tell me that my IGM was postive. This typically means that I do have CMV in my body right now. Because this is hard to diagnose and nail down, they want me to come back in for more bloodwork so they can compare my antibody levels against each other to see what my body is doing with them. They also want Brian’s blood results to compare to mine. The receptionist schedules a bloodwork appoint for 2/10 (which would be two weeks from my initial bloodwork). They also want me to get a Level II ultrasound done to ensure the baby is growing okay at this point. Why are they worried about that? Because CMV can cause anything from hearing loss, to mental retardation, to stunted growth, to a smaller-size head…the list goes on…in babies. Some don’t contract it from their mom (meaning it isn’t present in the amniotic fluid) and some do.
  I was stunned.
  I had been praying on my hands and knees for removal of this completely.
  I was expecting a “you’re okay!” phone call.
  I go upstairs to my husband’s ‘room’ (he has such bad night sweats and sleeps so uncomfortably that he hasn’t been sleeping in our room for quite a while now) and tell him.
  We are worried and in disbelief for what this could mean. We have to get through that first.
  Then we can focus on what good could come of this! It could turn at any moment and everything could be fine! This we hope for.
  We pray as a family. And…
  We wait.
• 2/3 – The Perinatal Specialist calls me to schedule the Level II ultrasound. She says, “Because of the exposure your baby has potentially had to CMV and the serious risks this could cause, we recommend you spend some time with the genetic counselor prior to your scheduled ultrasound.” I ask why, she tells me that the counselor will be able to get all of our questions answered. I say a definite “YES” to that recommendation as we have more questions than we can even process right now. She schedules our appointment with the counselor for 2/10 and our ultrasound directly after that.
  Foreshadowing to our day on 2/10:
  -8:30 a.m. bloodwork
  -9:30 a.m. genetic counselor
  -10:30 a.m. level II ultrasound
  I have come to terms with this.
  I have prayed for a shield around my mind from the Enemy.
  I know that is my weakness – my mind. And that the Enemy uses that.
  So I had been praying for that.
  By the time I spoke with the Specialist I was okay. I was only looking towards the next test and nothing further.
  It is out of our hands.
  It is in the hands of our Father, which gives me more assurance than ever.
  He chose us for this baby. He chose us as his/her parents.
  We are all okay right now. We are getting there.
  We will wait.
• 2/4 – I’m at work. Brian is also at work, for the first time all week. He called to tell me he left work at 2:30. He thought I’d be proud of him that he was going to go home and sleep (and I was proud of him, so proud of him. I need my husband back and healthy).He calls me 2 minutes later and says,
  “You’ll never believe what just happened?”
  “What?”
  “I just got in a really bad car accident”

  {{Shock}}.

  “Are you okay?”
  “I think so, yes, I’m okay. My airbags went off and my car is totaled, but I’m okay.”
  I leave work to drive down to Lakeville to pick him up. The entire way down I’m praying. I’m also kind of laughing. I knew at this point that he was fine – that was what mattered – but the disbelief was never-ending. I couldn’t believe this had just happened. What else do you do but chuckle and think, “Really? Really Lord?”
  After I reach him, we sit for a while and I listen while he tells me about the accident. A car two cars in front of him pumped his breaks on a slippery part in the road. He moved from the left lane to the right lane very quickly and tried to overcompensate for the swerving. He ended up flipping his car in the ditch. This caused the woman behind that man to instinctively put her breaks on and Brian watched as she swerved into the right lane. Brian knew he didn’t want to pump his breaks as the same thing would happen. So he was going to go right through it, he didn’t know what else to do. At the same time he was going through on the left-hand lane, the woman overcompensated to stay on the highway and bolted over to the left hand lane just as Brian was getting there. He t-boned her driver’s side of the car and they both slide into the ditch together. As he got out of his car and ran over to her, he saw a little 2-year-old boy in the backseat. Then he heard her say,
  “I’m 9 and a half months pregnant” (meaning she was probably around 36-37 weeks pregnant).

  {{Shock}}

  He coached her through calming down and breathing. She was okay by the time her husband got there a few minutes later. The paramedics initially checked her out and thought she was fine. We have to find her name and phone number to check on her today. We pray for her and her baby.

  Brian has an enlarged spleen from his mono. We worried about the impact of that from the airbags and accident.
  He talked to his DR, she wanted him to watch it and pay attention to signs.
  He is sore – but okay.
  We will wait overnight to make sure he doesn’t have any other sore spots on his body and that his spleen is okay.

• Later that evening (2/4) – our dear sweet nanny, Annie, stayed later so we could deal with the car accident. We had noticed a steady decline in Logan’s overall health the past couple of days. Terrible cough, runny nose, high fevers, not really sleeping. When I walked in the door Annie says,
  “Jac, I hate to tell you this but Logan didn’t nap well this afternoon and he seems warm. He also has this rash on his face”
  The rash continued to get worse and covered his entire body – in his ears, all over his head, his chest, back, neck, legs.

  you…have…got…to…be…kidding…me

  Annie, bless her heart, prayed over us while I was waiting on the phone to get through to our Peds office. She prayed for our entire family and the rest that we need.

• Even later that evening (2/4) – the DR determines the rash is viral (Logan was on antibiotics for strep, so that takes care of anything bacterial) and they draw some blood. His white blood cell counts and other counts are off.
  He has mono.

  {{Shock}}

  That would explain the irritability, the loss of appetite (the boy is skinny right now), the temps, etc.
  The DR wants us to monitor his fevers over the weekend. Because he has had fevers all week, his body is fighting it and that is a long time. If he still has a fever Monday morning, we’re supposed to take him back to get further tests done and determine if its something else.
  We wait.

• 2/5 – This morning we are tired. We are giving lots of hugs and comfort to each other. We have talked to our parents and those that we know will pray. Because that is what we need right now. This is a moment of weakness for me – where I’m just spent. And I’m okay with that. I’m okay with crying out to my God asking for something…not sure what…but something.
  Peace.
  Answers.
  Health.
  Protection.
  We are locking our doors and not moving until Monday morning  All joking-aside, we are okay. I am praying for wisdom as a mom and wife, patience as my boys are healing, strength as my body is weak, my heart even weaker.
  He will bring us through this.
  He is in control.
  He is our Father, Healer, Protector.

  We will wait.
  We will wait for Brian to desire to eat, Logan’s rash to go away, Logan to desire to eat (meanwhile I’m going to let him eat anything with calories – I don’t care what he eats, just that he eats), my health to remain intact, our ultrasound on Wednesday, the bloodwork on Wednesday, and for an annointing of the Holy Spirit over this entire house, this entire body of a family, this everything.

• Thanks for listening. For letting me get it all out. It feels good to let it all out.
  And of course I’ll end with pics…

my boys hanging out in daddy’s ‘room’

the waiting room last night. b had to wear a mask – (which yes, I laughed)

logan’s rash

look at that tired face (or he could be tired of me taking pics )

reading this morning his ‘big brother’ book – all about learning to be a big brother!

Heaven Stands.

Right now we have a lot going on in our family – but one thing we know for certain is that we have a faithful Father and Protector.  It is difficult at times to be ‘calm’ and ‘trusting’ but in our fear, He is there. This is what we know. This is what we cling to – and will continue to. Brian is still sick but making some slow progress. Logan still isn’t quite himself but he’s getting there. I am hanging in there.

I heard this song yesterday morning from an amazing artist – I had never heard of her. I fell in love with the lyrics instantly – and, as always – His timing was perfect for me to hear it.

JJ Heller, Your Hands
I have unanswered prayers
I have trouble I wish wasn’t there
And I have asked a thousand ways
That you would take my pain away
You would take my pain away

I am trying to understand
How to walk this weary land
Make straight the paths that crooked lie
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine

When my world is shaking, heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave your hands

When you walked upon the earth
You healed the broken, lost and hurt
I know you hate to see me cry
One day you will set all things right
Yeah, one day you will set all things right

When my world is shaking, heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave your hands

Your hands that shaped the world
Are holding me
They hold me still

Our House = Illness

We have had quite a rollercoaster ride since we’ve been home from our trip. It has been full of fun, time together, and…illness. All through our trip in Mexico I noticed Brian wasn’t eating much. Since we were staying at an all-inclusive place, I was quite surprised. My man usually has quite a stomach for yummy food. This resort we were at had a bunch of different restaraunts to eat at, a couple of buffets, a snack bar that was open 24 hours with enough burgers, fries, and ice cream to last you a lifetime, and still, he wasn’t really eating much. We attributed it to the sun after a while…while the countless number of times I was eating through out the day was attributed to, yes, you got it, the baby! Still, there were a few times that I asked him if he was trying to lose weight on the trip. He looked at me like I was nuts. Regardless, I was confused. Other than that, we didn’t notice anything else. We didn’t have a ton of energy through out the day because we didn’t need it. We were lying on the beach in the sun, who needs a lot of energy?

I was even more confused once we were home and he was still not eating – and now he was going to bed right after Logan did (around 7:30 p.m.). He went in for some bloodwork and his hemoglobin counts were off but that was about it. He was lightheaded, had no appetite, no energy, and terrible night sweats. Those were his symptoms. They sent his bloodwork to Abbot and the tests came back inconclusive. After his second trip to the DR, they did a mono test…it was positive. We have both had mono before and he had all of the symptoms. He has 2 strains of it: Epstein-Barr and Cytomegalovirus. Poor guy! He is finally starting to feel a little bit better and even was hungry yesterday, which is an encouraging change to see. His energy level is a bit higher everyday and we just have to let his body rest up as much as possible and recuperate.

This morning Logan let me sleep in until about 8:20 a.m. I jumped out of bed because I was so shocked I hadn’t yet heard from him. When I went into his room he was awake but not doing much. Just kind of laying there and moaning. He had a temp of about 102.2 this morning. I gave him some tylenol but noticed he was pretty shaky and couldn’t get his footing while trying to walk. So we cuddled for a while and I tried to give him some breakfast. Logan is a cuddler in terms of hugging – he LOVES to give hugs and kisses, which I soak up as much as I can. But as far as rocking him to sleep or him falling asleep in my arms…rarely happens. So after breakfast I noticed him just crying and moaning, he was pretty miserable. I brought him into his room and turned on some music. I laid him on my chest and we just kind of rocked gently. Before I knew it, he turned his head to look up at me and those huge blue eyes were staring into my face. Then they started to drift and he fell asleep. Right about then the baby starting kicking and I had one of the greatest moments ever as a mom. Here was my little bud, not feeling well and completely dependent on me to make him feel better, and my new little baby growing inside of me kicking his or her brother as if to say, “hi! feel better!” It was absolutely adorable and I rocked him them for about 20 minutes before finally laying Logan down in his crib. I loved every second of it!

When Logan woke up 3 hours later, he was burning up – his temp had increased to 104.5 and I called the DR immediately. He was shaking and miserable. The DR told me to bring him to the ER if his temp went above 105 (which felt so high to me!) and administer tylenol and recheck his temp. I gave him Tylenol and within 1/2 hour his temp was down to 103.5. We have an appointment scheduled for tonight if his fever doesn’t continue to get better. He really doesn’t have any other symptoms, which seems strange to me. He laid on my chest all day and this is what he looked like:

Update!

I started that blog yesterday afternoon when my son was sick but not horribly sick. I am finishing it with a 6 hour trip to the ER as Logan’s fever increased to 105.1 and we took him to the ER (per the nurse at our ped’s office). We spent 2 1/2 hours waiting to be seen but they had given him some IB to decrease his temperature. It was around 102.5 while we were in the waiting room. He was pretty ‘loopy’ it seemed as he was walking around the play area saying, “Mommy…Daddy….Malmo (elmo)” over and over again. It was hard for B and I not to laugh as we watched him. We were just glad he was actually talking.

His fever then spiked again and this continued on the rest of the time we were there. They ran a bunch of tests, tried to draw his blood and failed until the 3rd try when this amazing nurse was able to get a vile from his tiny little vein. The worst part about that was that they swaddled him like a newborn so only his arm was sticking out. He was so hot from his fever and then the trauma of what he was experiencing that he was beat red and sweating while crying. It was painful for us to watch. His white blood cell count came back fine and his ears, nose, and throat looked okay. They took a chest xray for pneumonia and that was also clean (I couldn’t go b/c I’m pregnant but Bri said he did great in there). They ended up treating him like they would a blood disease, as apparently children can get really high fevers when there is something running in their blood that shouldn’t be there. Giving him a shot in his thigh would eliminate any chance of that continuing. There was no other known cause or ’source’ from where his high temps were coming from so they were being cautious, I think. We were then instructed to return to our ped’s office the next day for a follow-up, making sure to administer tylenol/IB all night to monitor his high fever.

Logan had a pretty rough night (mine might have been worse ) with a lot of moaning and periodically waking up. However, this morning when he woke up he was a bit more chipper and his temp was down to 101.3! The lowest it had been in over 24 hours – so nice to see! We went to the DR this morning and they noticed some pussing on his throat. So they determined that maybe the high fever was a symptom of strep. Since he had already had the shot doing a throat culture would essentially be going backwards. So they just gave us an antibiotic, treating his throat like strep for the next 10 days. I was relieved when his temp continued to go down and his spirits continued to rise. For anyone that knows my kid, you know that he is a social little man and loves to be around people. He loves to talk and ‘make friends’ so seeing him so down was difficult for me as his mom. He was so lethargic and clingy – praise God for healing him!

Here are a few pics from last night…

This was the worst of it – when he had a washcloth on his head he was so hot and fell asleep from exhaustion on the bed while B and I were talking…(took this with my phone)

He would still crack a little smile when the IB/tylenol was working at its peak. Shortly after this little ’stint’ of energy, he would crash again with a high fever.

Brian and I are exhausted – emotionally and physically. But we know that the right thing was done and that Logan will just continue to get better. We are thankful for the places and people we have around us and for our families’ prayers last night. We love you Logan!

AJ & Nate Wedding: Riviera Maya, Mexico

This wedding was absolutely beautiful, in so many ways. Shooting a destination wedding was like nothing I’ve ever experienced in wedding photography. I loved spending days with the couple, their family and friends before the wedding even took place. I took pictures on the beach, at dinners together, hanging out playing volleyball in the sand, photos of the groom body surfing in the waves, I captured moments with the bride & groom’s friends that wouldn’t have otherwise been caught. It was an entire weeks’ worth of photos, frozen in time for the bride & groom to cherish forever. I was absolutely honored to be there doing this for AJ & Nate. They are such a fun-loving couple with a great body of support in their family and friends.

I have so much I could write about this wedding. The pictures below (be sure to click on the slideshow icon) are more about the wedding day than the actual week. I plan on documenting the week in another entry. What I really wanted to focus on was the story that was told on the beach at the Sandos Caracol Resort on January 10, 2010. The way the bride had carefully traveled with her wedding gown on the plane, the detail that was put into the invitations, the gift bags for those traveling that included an ‘emergency kit’ for anyone who may have forgotten to bring bandaids or chapstick (with SPF). The toasts that were made at countless dinners we all had together, the 80+ people that all made their way to Mexico for this wedding, the laughter that the bride & her bridesmaids had when I asked them to ‘pose like aj’ for certain shots (backstory: AJ is an actual model and has been for years, this was a piece of cake for her!), the true nature of the groomsmen – they were so much fun to be around and, as you can tell, didn’t even flinch when asked to pose. The way Nate looked at AJ as she made her way down the aisle, seeing her for the very first time as his bride…ah, the whole thing was just beautiful. There was laughter, tears, and more memories made than can even imagine.

AJ & Nate, I can’t thank you enough for allowing me to be a part of your incredible journey to Mexico for your wedding! It was truly a blessing for me spending that much time with you guys and your incredible family and friends! What a memorable and amazing week for the two of you. I hope these images are something you treasure for years to come. There are so many more coming your way…but this is your little sneek peek. Enjoy married life to the fullest – blessings to both of you! Love, Jac

AJ, you are stunning!

Loved these shoes! Perk to marrying a guy so tall – beautiful, huge heels!

My husband took this shot of the bride & her dad right before they started walking down the aisle together. I think he’s hired – LOVE it!

Doesn’t she have the best looking laugh?

Donating Your Time for Haiti

I got this idea from my sister to post about Haiti on my blog (thanks Moppy!). This weekend my family and I are doing a Feed My Starving Children event together - 75% of what is being packed will be sent to Haiti.  What a desperate time for Haiti, for the people, kids & families affected. FMSC is such a wonderful organization and it is so much fun to pack! I’ve done it 3 or 4 times now and love it every time. Target is great at volunteering our time and energy and my team has already done this twice this year, we loved it so much. 

My amazing brother-in-law, Noah, has worked there for about 2 years now and my sister just recently got a job there as well! She will be in the marketing department there and knows how good and faithful the Lord is in bringing them both to this type of company. It will be so wonderful for them to be surrounded my Christian co-workers and doing something they are both passionate about.

My other side of the family (the Senske side!) is also going to do a FMSC event at their church at the end of this month. I feel so fortunate to have families who are willing to donate their time to something like this – so…I’m encouraging you to do the same. They need it. And badly.  

AJ: 1 Week Old Newborn Session

In early December I attended a baby shower for this mother-to-be. A few weeks later, shortly after Christmas, I was able to meet little AJ (Andrew James). What a sweetheart he is! Lindsay and my husband Brian go way back, their families have been friends for a long time. I have also loved the time I’ve been able to spend with them over the past years, and when we heard Andrew & Lindsay were expecting, we couldn’t have been more thrilled. They are going to be great parents and I loved seeing them in action when AJ was just about a week old.  He stayed awake for the entire session, falling asleep about 2 minutes before I was packing up my equipment. He has beautiful eyes, however, so I loved capturing him wide awake.

Congratulations you two – he is such a wonderful blessing. Can’t wait to see more of you!

One of my favorite games to play with newborns – “where is baby?” and put them somewhere they just don’t belong. Love these shots on the wine rack!

Back from Mexico!

Brian and I are back from Mexico. We spent a week in the Playa Del Carmen area and had an incredible time! Our friends, Nate & AJ, got married down there on Sunday 1/10/2010 and I was the photographer for their big day. It was my first destination wedding and I loved it! I’m hoping to get a few more of those Even though I bawled at the airport on the way there from saying goodbye to Logan, and I cried once during the week after we hung up the phone with him, I was glad we were able to do this trip. I know it is going to be much harder for someone to take our 2 kids than it was for them to take our 1 and it was a great time for Brian and I to just relax and spend time with one another. I’m going to give a full rundown of the trip in a later post…just wanted to say hello!

I’m working on some newborn photos I shot before I left and also getting through the filtering process of the photos from the week of Nate & AJ. There are many photos to come! Stay tuned…

What we’ve been up to….

We have been busy around here! But fun busy! I wrapped up my last wedding of 2009 last weekend and loved it! Beautiful weather, great couple, gorgeous shots. I’m looking forward to a trip to Mexico in early January for a destination wedding for our dear friends, Nate & AJ. I can’t wait! Brian and I are constantly reminded of how much we’re going to miss little Logan – but we know this trip will be so worth it, especially before #2 arrives and life gets even more busy!

Speaking of busy…Logan is growing and growing everyday! He is learning all kinds of things and talks constantly. I don’t know that the average person would understand him, but we certainly do! We have our own little language in this house and it makes complete sense to us. He is truly such a social kid and loves attention. Maybe that is first-child syndrome…but we are starting to understand him more in terms of his gifts and we love continuing to get to know him at a deeper level and understanding who God created him to be. When we think of Logan we think of a leader as he already displays that trait. He will love people and serving others – I just can’t wait to watch him grow as everyday gets more amazing (even when I didn’t think it possible).

Over Thanksgiving we made reindeers with his cousins, Parker & Emmie, from their foot and handprints.

Logan also met Santa! He absolutely loved him and immediately ran over to him to sit on his lap. It was pretty funny to watch! Again, this kid has no fear.

Full of curiosity…checking out Santa!

LOVES to dance! Dancing with Emmie & Parker!

Decorated his first Christmas cookie with Mom – and couldn’t wait to eat it!

One of his best ‘girlfriends’ Annalis. He adores her and her brother, Soren!

This is a pic from about 4 weeks ago now…but its the closest one I have right now! SO different this time around (ha ha!)

Baby #2 is getting bigger and bigger. The best part is that Brian has been able to feel the baby move quite a bit already. Just last night we were watching TV and baby was going crazy. Brian put his hand on my tummy and for a few minutes straight, my tummy felt like a little tennis ball rolling around in there and Brian just marveled at that feeling again! I loved it and so did he. Amazing to think how quickly that little one is growing. We have our ultra-sound on 12/30 and we’ll be halfway there! Again, we aren’t finding out, so no updates for you in that area. So far its a split between boy and girl. Some feel very strongly that we’re having a girl and others think I’m destined to have another boy. I see benefits to both – I’d love a girl for me but I’d love a little brother for Logan. They would be best buds and I would love watching them. Logan will be a great big brother to either! I can’t wait!

We are really looking forward to Christmas up in Grand Rapids. I can’t wait to be there with all of my family and see the cousins play together. We have Anna, Logan, Owen & Brodie on that side now with one more on the way! It is so wonderful watching our family grow and my siblings as parents. I love it! We will be up there through the weekend and Logan is ready to go on the snowmobile with Grandpa and sit and play with Grandma….and definitely ready to run around with Anna!

More pics to come when we get home – either before or after Mexico!

Merry Christmas everyone! I have been reminded a few times about what this season is truly about – the birth of our Lord & Savior, Jesus Christ. What a gift God sent us by sending His Son in human form – to endure all that we endure but while remaining pure and sinless until He made the ultimate sacrifice and died for us. What a humbling and joyous season this is! May you marvel in awe at Jesus Christ and be reminded of His gift! Merry Christmas!

Sarah & Tommy : Edina, MN Wedding

I love winter weddings! I truly have enjoyed the few that I’ve been a part of. I love the snow, the love the sharp contrasts, and I love when brides, grooms, and wedding parties are willing to go outside for those gorgeous shots! Sarah & Tommy had a beautiful day at St. Patrick’s Church in Edina. They are such a loving couple towards each other and the friends and family that surrounded them were so encouraging of their relationship. Sarah and her bridesmaids braved the cold numerous time and look adorable! We headed to Lake of the Isles before the reception to get a beautiful view of the Minneapolis skyline. I love living in this city! Their reception was at Edinburgh in Brooklyn Park. It is a beautiful reception site and driving up to it feels like you are arriving at a castle. What a beautiful way to end the night as husband & wife!

I had a lot of ‘favorites’ from the day – I loved when Tommy saw Sarah for the first time and had their first moments together – there is nothing like it (doesn’t he kind of look like John Travolta?)! I really enjoyed the priest’s message. He placed such an emphasis on Jesus being at the center of their marriage. I really liked seeing Sarah with her new little nephew, Jacob, what a sweetie! I also loved that, as we were leaving the reception that night, all of the bridesmaids came to give us hugs and tell us how much fun they had! That meant so much to me as I usually am interrupting the bride & groom to say goodbye. They were so thoughtful, thanks ladies!

Sarah & Tommy, congratulations! I loved taking part in your day and meeting all of your family and friends. Merry Christmas to you as husband and wife!

Thanks to Emily of At Last Images for second shooting with me that day!

Family Photos

Now that our Christmas cards are out and arriving in the mailboxes of our closest family & friends, I wanted to post some pictures from a family shoot we had in late fall this year. My good friend, Emily, from At Last Images took them for us and we absolutely love them!! She is a great friend of mine that I love to talk business with – she taught herself everything she knows by learning and soaking in as much knowledge as she could – so I love learning new things from her! She is so wonderful to have around…thanks again Em!

This little man has so much personality – we absolutely love watching him!

We will soon be a family of 4!

B, you are the man of my dreams and I love you so much. Thank you for what you do for this family!

We pray you have a blessed Christmas season and that it is a reminder of who Jesus is and what He has done for us! Merry Christmas!