Our 5-year anniversary & maternity photos!

Deven and I celebrated 5 awesome years of marriage on October 18th… I can’t believe how fast 5 years went by! 2008 was my first year as a full-time self-employed professional photographer, as well as the year we married in my parents’ backyard. 2009 was spent purchasing, gutting and remodeling our first home in Lakeside, where we live today. We’ve put our blood, sweat and tears into this place and the work still isn’t done! (every homeowner knows how I feel!) Throughout 2010 and 2011 we built my business into a successful (thank you, Lord!) studio, photographing about 25 weddings and over 75 portrait sessions each year. All the while, Deven was building his skills and gaining field experience so that, in 2012, he could start his own business as well. Last spring, he took the leap, quit his secure and well-paying job, got his general engineering contractor’s license and is now building his business, specializing in grading and earthwork. I can’t say how underserving I feel of God’s sweet blessings on our lives. He is the reason for our success, the foundation behind our faith and trust, our provider, our hope.

Most of 2013 has been spent preparing to welcome our first baby, our little boy, into this world! With just three weeks to go until my due date, the nervousness is kicking in – for the labor, the birth, the parenting and all of the ways our life is going to change. I cannot even fathom the love that I will soon feel for this tiny little human. I’m reassured by my friends and clients who share over and over that the birth of their firstborn was not only the most life-altering, but the most incredible thing that has ever happened to them. I’m so eager to join in their joy and love!

It’s easy to become wrapped up in the planning, preparing, registering, shopping and decorating for baby… and I am constantly trying to remind myself to focus on what’s important and keep life simple. I’m also a very organized (can you say OCD?) person, and I’m trying to come to terms with the fact that I will most likely need to give some of that up once this little guy arrives. I have a tendency to want everything tidy, in order, clean, put away, organized, checked off… but I don’t want to be the kind of mom that values these things over growing and spending time with my husband and my children. Life is too short, and the chores probably (okay, won’t be) remembered.

I am so thankful to Troy and Aimee Grover for taking these photographs of us! Since I started shooting film again I really wanted this year’s annual photos of us to be photographed on film too! The Grovers are some pretty dang talented photographers in the Orange County area. We met up with them two weeks ago for these photos (that’s my 35 week belly!) I’m in love with these images and can’t wait to put them all over the house, and treasure them in my heart.