Lyndsey called her mom after her first day of World History Class to tell her that she had just met the man she is going to marry.  A first date followed shortly after, and about a month later Jake realized that Lyndsey was the woman he was going to marry.  Between their love of video games and their dogs, Lyndsey and Jake are pretty much the perfect pair.

The details of the wedding were absolutely stunning!  The bead work on both of her dresses were to die for!  The flowers, the cake, the lighting, the funny toasts…. everything was perfect and we finished the night was some awesome music!

Congratulations Lyndsey and Jake!

ceremony: Greysolon Moorish Room
reception: Greysolon Grand Ballroom
invitations: Paper Ink
floral arrangements and centerpieces: Saffron and Grey*
dress shops and designers: Mori Lee from The Wedding Shoppe* and Martina Liana from Bridal Accents Couture
shoes: Bridal Accents Couture
veil/hairpieces: veil was from The Wedding Shoppe* and the bird cage was from Bridal Accents Couture
tux/suitshop: Ed Barbos Columbia Clothing
cake/dessert: How Sweet It Is 
linens:  Simply Linen*
hair/makeup:  Kellie Sengthao from Younkers Duluth
catering: Blackwoods Catering
entertainment: Corey Bonneville from Sounds Unlimited*

* preferred vendor

I do try to stay away from the magazine rack, and my wallet and husband thank me for that.  However, every few months I sneak over to take a peek at what is going on because I literally get chest pains thinking about what I’m missing.  So this month, I was being good, but I was in the checkout at the grocery store and I look over and the cover of Vogue grabbed my attention.  For those who haven’t seen it, Kate Upton is on the cover, and it is an incredible cover… and it is perfectly timeless.  This cover could have been anywhere from the 50′s to today.  There is nothing about the image that will ever date it, seriously perfection.  Mario Testino is such an awesome photographer, that there are no words {yep, I’m a dork}.  If you think the cover is amazing, the article images are flawless.  I’m in love.

About halfway through the session, Ben asked “Isn’t she beautiful?”  Those three words, spoken apologetically in public, not caring who hears, are so powerful and amazing.  Isn’t she beautiful trumps I love you, hands down, any day of the week.  Isn’t she beautiful means I love you more that anything and anyone, no matter what.  It means you are my person, you are my guy, and I will be there forever no matter what.

Harper, as much as I think you are growing waaaay too fast, I cannot wait to see you back for your one year session!

Do you believe in love at first sight?  I never really though about the truth behind it, until recently.  I am now a firm believer in love at first sight, and I have the proof to back it up.  I believe it so much, that I don’t really consider it a belief at this point… it just is.  Love at first sight is called living your life.  It is strong, refreshing, powerful, and the most beautiful thing in the world.

Another thing I strongly believe in, is photography.  I believe that I am not photographing for my clients directly.  These photos are for their children, and for those children to share when they have grandchildren, themselves.  Photos aren’t just photos, they are heirlooms, they are your legacy.  Now on to Jeremy and Ellie’s story.

Andy and I know Jeremy and Ellie from the Duluth Retriever Club.  Our pups graduated class together, and I remember it always being pretty amazing watching their dog work while Lucy was the troublemaker of the class.  I was pretty excited to hear that Ellie was expecting and wanted to set up maternity photos with me.

As the lovely Minnesota weather works so well with photo sessions, we had to reschedule their first session because it was raining {yes, raining}.  The day before the rescheduled session happened, Ellie and I spoke on the phone.  She told me about how she was in the hospital and was already dilating, and was supposed to take things easy, as she still had six weeks to go.  Ellie was in high spirits and was ready for their maternity session.

Their session was freezing, and typically, I would have rescheduled because of the cold and wind, but because of the urgency with the session, there wasn’t much time to work with so we went forward and the session was beautiful {I will post their maternity session soon}.  Right after the session, we went to dinner together… mostly to warm up.  It was here that Ellie’s water broke {unknown to the rest of us}.

At their maternity session, they asked me if I had any interest in photographing the birth.  It’s true what they say, you fear the unknown.  I wasn’t sure if it was something that I was interested in doing, but I will try anything once.  However, I thought I would have time to research and prepare for the session, so when I got the call the next morning that this was happing that day, I was immediately nervous.

Before I continue with the story, I have to give a HUGE shout out and thank you to Essentia Health, St. Mary’s Hospital in Duluth.  Their staff were polite, open to questions, so incredible responsive to patients and guests, and just amazing to work with.

The atmosphere in the room was calm and peaceful.  Amber, their nurse, monitored Ellie’s progress while explaining everything that was happing.  Jeremy and Ellie were excited, but at the same time, conversing like it was just another day in the life.  Doctors came in and out and checked on how things were going.  Ellie cracked jokes and shared a lot of smiles.  She was ready…. until she was told that it was time, her reaction was pretty priceless, but Ellie still kept her cool throughout.  25 short minutes later, Jeremy and Ellie were new parents to a beautiful baby boy, Soren.

Soren was healthy, considering he was six weeks early, 5.13 lbs and perfect and was able to go home two weeks later.

Jeremy and Ellie, I honestly cannot thank you enough for sharing such an important event in your lives with me.  It was such a wonderful experience and every time I think about it, I smile and maybe shed a few tears, because it is one thing to experience love at first site… but when you witness someone else experiencing it, it will change your life.  Thank you, thank you, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Here is their story on the day they became a legacy for future generations, and proof that love at first sight exists:

We finally found a day that the weather was in our favor, and Nolan and Jessica drove a couple of hours to get to me, and then I added another hour to their trip to get to a location I’ve been dying to try.  I think it was worth it, I hope they did too

We definitely stepped outside of the box this year… I mean really, who doesn’t love black wedding dresses?!  I think they are stunning, and actually when I was a little girl I dreamed of having a black dress for my wedding {I always did like to be different}, and even though, I did not go that route, I still think they are amazing!  I hope you enjoy these images as much as I enjoyed creating them!

vendors:
venue: Clyde Restaurant & Bar
floral: Saffron & Grey
clothing and jewelry: Always and Forever Bridal, along with Savvi Formalwear from Always and Forever
cupcakes: The ButterCup Factory
makeup: Derick Cich Makeup Artistry
hair: Vain Salon
invitations: Tin Cup Design
hair piece: MoeSewCo

On their six year anniversary, in the middle of winter on a rooftop, Brett got down on one knee and Tracy said yes.

During the wedding planning process, Tracy was having nightmares about things going horribly wrong on her wedding, and I think she even had one about us not showing up.  Thankfully, I set up several alarm clocks for weddings, and that was one thing she didn’t need to worry about   Tracy does have some great advice for future brides: Anticipate hair and makeup running longer than planned, so make sure to schedule more than enough time for pictures; make sure you have chapstick close by; and while the details DO matter, it’s not the main reason you planned your wedding, so don’t stress out if something goes wrong.

ceremony location: First United Methodist Church, Duluth
reception location: Greysolon Ballroom, Duluth
dress and veil: David’s Bridal
hair: Jenni Lowe from Language of Hair {br}
makeup: Derick Cich Makeup Artistry * {br}
paper designs: Invitations for Less {br}
florist: Bloom by Design
cake: Exchange Bakery
cupcakes: Cold Stone Creamery
entertainment: Tubular Studios {br}

* preferred vendor
{br} bride recommended

Also, you may notice a little something about the watermark… more on that soon