I don’t know if Trevor and I have ever so fully enjoyed photographing a wedding!  Andrea and Marty, along with all of their family and friends, were so welcoming.  I think every single person came up to me saying that they had heard so much about me.  It felt as if we were attending the wedding as family rather than working, and it was wonderful.  We had such a great time!  And to add to that an extremely photogenic couple, we were in heaven! Congratulations Andrea and Marty!  I wish you nothing but living happily ever after!  Enjoy!

I love this single moment…the way her father looks at her you know he still sees her as his little girl.

I love when my couples decide to do a First Look.  I always tell them that, truly, it will be the only time all day that they are alone together without family and friends.  It is nice to be able to look at one another, and share that special time taking in everything that is about to happen.

Today I let Jasper get messy and wash his dishes in a tub of water, and it was fun.  But the best part, he got up and gave me the tightest squeeze around my legs when he was done.  It was one of the greatest moments.  I gave him a Buzz Lightyear that I picked up at a Garage Sale (he LOVES Toy Story), and he stared at it with the cutest little grin.  We have played outside, ran uptown, and played at the park.  And somehow, we have kept up with housework and here I am actually blogging.  It just has been a great, fun and balanced day today, and I am so thankful.  The best part, the day is not even over yet.

I am also ecstatic and thankful to begin wedding season on Saturday!  YAY!  I cannot wait to be photographing Andrea and Marty!  Here is one image from their engagement session last Fall.  And if you want to see the rest, CLICK HERE.  Enjoy your weekend!

I have been working hard all winter finding new products that you will love!  I also wanted to simplify my Portrait Catalog so that it wasn’t such a chore choosing what to order after your session.  It should be stress free and enjoyable throughout the whole process…from booking your session, to getting your pictures taken, all the way to the moment that you hang your new custom art.  (Sorry, I do not come over and hang it for you, but I might for a good cup of coffee)  So, there are now three Collections to choose from when booking your session.  Three choices…that seems easy enough.  Then anything can be added from the A La Carte section.

I want to kick off the season right, and celebrate that I am done crunching the numbers and on to the fun of taking pictures.  So if you book your summer session for the months of May, June, August, or September by the end of next Monday, April 23rd you will receive 10% off everything – 10% off your Collection, Prints, Albums, Gallery Wraps… EVERYTHING!  10% off everything becomes quite the savings.  All you have to do is send me a quick email letting me know you are interested, and we can begin to talk details.  I will send you my nice, new and beautiful catalog, and we can start planning your session.  We just need to get it booked by Monday and you will SAVE!

And to get you even more excited, here are some of the new products that are included in one of the Collections.  It comes with a custom designed Fine Art Album and DVD of all your Session Images all wrapped up for display in a custom Image Box.  Hope you enjoy, and I can’t wait to hear from you!

It took me a long time to decide on a theme for Japer’s party.  I was constantly bouncing ideas off of people, and then one day it just all came together. We knew we wanted to have a brunch birthday party simply because Jasper is best in the mornings.  Who wants a grumpy birthday boy?  Breakfast is also his favorite meal of the day, and if we get brave enough to go out to eat as a family, it is usually for breakfast.  I also knew that I wanted the entire party to be a celebration of Jasper and his first year, not some cartoon or character that he loves.  And to top it all off, Jasper’s big present from Trevor and I was a little kitchen.  So, the theme came together on it’s own – Jasper’s Diner.

At first, I struggled figuring out what to do to make the party diner themed.  My sister even said at one point, “Why couldn’t you just pick an easy theme?” But once we got started, it was so much fun!  And our retro kitchen fit into the theme perfectly, so we didn’t even have to decorate much.  On the menu we had breakfast casserole, baked oatmeal, fruit, pie, cake, coffee, and orange juice.  The food was so good!  I’ll let the pictures tell the rest of the story.

I borrowed some coke bottles from my brother’s Coke collection for the centerpieces.  I created the Jasper’s Diner logo and used it for a big sign and coasters for everyone to take home.  We made sure to have the diner style napkin holder, coffee stirrers, and toothpick holder.

We also had lots of old fashioned candy!  Good for decoration and to munch on.

We displayed a picture from each month throughout his first year.  I even got those little coffee magnets on Etsy.

Trevor surprised me with these for the party.  Every diner needs some soda, and the customizable Jone’s Sodas were perfect!  These would be great for a wedding’s too!

It was such a great surprise because Trevor and I go back a long way with Jone’s Soda.  It was my favorite in high school, and for our first dating anniversary Trevor surprised me with a case of Jone’s Soda customized with our first date picture and a sweet note on the side.  Who would’ve thought that someday he would be doing the same for our little boy’s first birthday?!

We had to have Diner hats!  Every time I look at this picture I am reminded of why my mom and me always feel so outnumbered.  I think Jasper has enough Uncles!

This is the only picture I have of the three of us from his birthday.  That’s what happens when the craziness of a party begins.  I was so disappointed when I went through the pictures, but at least we got one.

He didn’t eat much of the cupcake, but he sure got messy!

And this is our spoiled little boy surrounded by all of his presents!  We sent out this picture to everyone as Jasper’s thank you note.  Trevor, Jasper, and I had such a good time the evening of his party.  We just relaxed and enjoyed playing with his new toys.  We are so blessed by Jasper each and every day! And as much fun as it was having this birthday party, afterwards I swore I would never do it again!

To my wonderful little boy, Jasper Migs Fruth,
Happy first birthday, baby!  I cannot believe you are one already.  I told Daddy today that it has been the longest year of my life (probably because we have been awake more hours than ever), but the year has also gone by faster than any other.

I know everyone always says it, but I honestly didn’t know I could ever love someone so much!  You are my everything.  I look forward to each day because of you.  Everything that was important to me before you were born has taken a back seat because you are my number one.  Every single decision I make, I make with you in mind.  You are the center of my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

The moment the doctor laid you on my chest I was in love with you.  A gut aching, heart pounding kind of love.  And my love grows for you every day.  I loved when you were so tiny, your little baby cries, cuddling with you on the couch all day, and bundling you up like a little burrito at night.  I loved you when you began to coo and smile up at me.  I love you all the nights that you slept in bed with me and Daddy.  I was so tired because I could never sleep well with you on my arm, but I knew I couldn’t complain because it didn’t last for long.  I would give anything for you to sleep in bed with me again.  I loved you when you always waved your arms like crazy and when you became a dancing machine.  I loved you in the middle of the night, even when I walked you down the street at 2 AM.  I loved you when you began to crawl and get into all of the cabinets.  I loved you when you sad Ma Ma and as you turned into a little boy instead of my baby.  As hard as some days are to take care of you, I cannot look back on a single moment that I was not completely and utterly in love with you.

You cannot even imagine how much joy you have brought to this family.  You are always the center of everyone’s attention, and you love it.  You have been there for all of us in some of our hardest times this year with your smiles and giggling laughter.  You are our ray of sunshine.

You are such a loving, funny, thoughtful, smart and energetic little boy.  I am so looking forward to watching you grow up, but yet I want you to stay a baby forever.  Just promise me that you will love me as unconditionally as you do now forever and ever.

I love you, Jasper!
Mommy

When he was born I set a goal for myself to have a mini photo session with him every month.  It was hard to stick to, but I am so glad that I did.  He changed so much throughout the year!  Here is a look back!

2 Weeks Old:

6 Weeks Old:

Two Months Old:

Three Months Old:

Four Months Old:

Five Months Old:

Six Months Old:

Seven Months Old:

Eight Months Old:

Nine Months Old:

Ten Months Old:

Eleven Months Old:

And here he is at One!  My big boy!

I have been collecting ideas to celebrate his first birthday for probably at least six month.  I am definitely a planner.  I knew from the very beginning that I wanted to celebrate his whole first year by sending a video invitation to family and friends for his party.  He has blessed our lives so much, and I wanted everyone to be able to relive all the memories that have been created.  He has changed so much in one year and gone through so many different stages that it is very easy to forget.  This is one way for us to remember all those tiny moments that we will treasure for a lifetime.

No one loves this video more than Jasper though.  We have probably watched it on my iPhone at least 100 or more times.  It is set to his favorite song, and he dances the entire time.  He is actually crying right now as I write this and pointing to my phone because he wants to watch it.  I hope you all enjoy it just as much and that you can see why we are all head over heels in love with him!  Happy Valentine’s Day!

Stay tuned for more birthday celebration details this week and next.

This little girl is intertwined into so many moments of my memories of being pregnant and of Jasper’s first year, and that is so very special to me.  From the first time that I held her (Jasper kicked her like crazy from inside my belly), to enjoying her first birthday party – I love that we are a part of her life.

It is so much fun to be able to see how different two babies can be.  As much as Jasper is all boy, Demi is all girl.  Ruffles, bows, and shrill screams included.  She is so beautiful, and I had such a great time photographing her.  Happy first birthday, Demi!  Enjoy!

These images with Demi and her bottle are my absolute favorite!  The simple day after day moments seem to be quickly forgotten.

First place goes to Tara and Brian!

Second place goes to the Gilsdorf Family!

And third place goes to cute little Demi!  Thank you to everyone who voted and make sure to check back in the coming weeks for a winter session special!