Jodie & Rod

I had the pleasure of assisting Jeff Stone on a wedding last weekend. Because the wedding was a few hours outside of the cities, we made a weekend out of it and brought our families. It was really fun to stay in a hotel and have a "weekend away" with Bluejay, even if I was working. Jodie and Rod got married at Cragun's Resort in Brainerd, Mn which totally reminded me of the resort from the movie "Dirty Dancing". One of their favorite things to do together is to go fishing! In fact, according to the slide show they had at the reception, they are both fantastic fishermen! So, what better theme to have for the weekend than "catch of my life!" Jodie and Rod are such a fun couple and by the end of the day they really felt like friends more than clients. They were such troupers when it began to thunderstorm during their OUTDOOR wedding and didn't mind the 30 minute delay at all. They say it's good luck to have rain on your wedding day...

Congratulation Jodie and Rod!

Even the cute little flower girl had her hair done.

Jodie had secretly planned to surprise her guests by playing the violin with the band and their reception. She hadn't playing since high school but had been practicing for a couple months. 

Cutest Father/Bride photo ever! Her dad was such a ham!







The flower girl spotting some rain and we moved inside for the family photos. Luckily for Jodie and Rod, the rain stopped just long enough to have their outdoor ceremony and then STORMED the rest of the evening!




Check out those crazy storm clouds!

I got to try one of Jeff's 17-40mm lens for a bit and on my full frame camera it totally gave these portraits of the ring bearer blowing bubbles a funky look that I kinda like.





Such a funny cake topper for their fishing theme.


Even though it stormed outside, the party was a blast with a live band.

These two cuties wanted to dance together just like Jodie and Rod. So adorable!

Call me crazy...

For our entire marriage Bluejay and I haven't had health insurance. That is until last month. For the most part, it was no big deal. Neither of us get sick often and neither of us got injured (praise God!). But I was having some health issues. Even with regular exercise and eating healthy, I was gaining pound upon pound. It made for quite a self conscious newlywed when the scales were tipping at 60 pounds more than my wedding day. So, as soon as we were covered by insurance, I was eager to get to the doctor. As it turns out, last week I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism. Hypothyroidism is a common disorder that occurs when the thyroid gland is underactive and does not produce enough thyroid hormone. The thyroid gland is located in the front part of the neck, and the hormone it produces is vital to normal metabolism. A lack of thyroid hormone results in a slowing of the body's chemical processes and metabolism. So basically, my body wasn't able to metabolize what I was eating and therefore was turning it into fat no matter how healthy I ate. I'm thrilled to now be on medication so that I can get healthy again. It's going to be a long tough road to lose 60 pounds. 

Bluejay and I decided to kick start that process. A couple months back, some friends of ours did a cleanse called Master Cleanse. It sounded interesting. Bluejay and I decided to take the plunge and give it a try. My thought process behind doing the cleanse was that my body needs a kick start from the past two years of junk building up inside my body. Apparently, this cleanse can "restart" your system. According to what I've read, "Every cell of your body will be bathed with restoring and feel good hormones. Your metabolism, your mood, your energy levels, and many other important bodily functions will be restored to where they should be." Which sounds exactly like what I need. Of course I'm attracted to the fact that during the cleanse we will lose 15-20 pounds, but I'm more concerned with getting my body healthy. So what do you do for the cleanse? I'm glad you asked. Approximately 6-8 times a day for ten days Bluejay and I drink a lemonade concoction made up of 10 oz. purified water and...

2 Tablespoons freshly squeezed organic lemon juice...

2 Tablespoons all natural organic maple syrup...

and 1/10 teaspoon of cayenne pepper. Basically it's spicy lemonade! It's not that awful to drink, but it does burn a little. In the morning and evening we also drink an all natural laxative tea.

Today marks our third day on the cleanse. Yesterday I felt hungry. Today, not as much. I mostly just miss flavors and textures: salty, sweet, savory, crunchy... yum! So I explained why I am doing the cleanse, but what about Bluejay? He is pretty much the sweetest, most loving husband and he decided to join me for moral support. And I couldn't be more glad! We are able to encourage each other when it's tough. We giggle empathetically when the other runs to the bathroom. And it would be just plain awful if Bluejay was cooking yummy meals for himself while I drink spicy lemonade! Anyways, it might be a little too much information, but I thought I'd let my readers know. I mean, why not? That's what the personal section of this blog is for, right? Hope you all are enjoying your tasty breakfasts. I will be too... in only eight more days!

Rubi Mae

As promised, here are the rest of the photos from the newborn session last week with Rubi Mae. Even though I had several engagement and wedding sessions to edit and blog before this little cutie, every once in a while I would take a break from whatever I was working on to edit a photo or two from her session. There is something so sweet and calm about about a sleeping baby. It rejuvenated me to finish my many projects. May I present, Rubi Mae:

Look at that proud papa!

I think I see this year's family Christmas Card photo!






In college, Dave played football for Augsburg so we had to include a "baby as a football" photo!









Look at all her hair!!!