I can't remember what really has all went on since I last wrote. I know a lot has. A wedding in the family, a new vehicle purchase and NEW CARPET to name a few! I have been waiting for new carpet since we bought the house in December of 2009! It's such an awesome update. I love it so much and Willie Tallman and his crew did a fantastic job. I wouldn't have wanted anyone but them to have done it.
Well, this past weekend was a great/busy weekend. My brother-in-law, Kyle married Morgan and I got a new sister! It was a beautiful wedding. One of my best friend's in the entire world, Tiffany (Owen) Johnson came back into town because she was in the wedding too! I feel like I haven't seen her in forever. Friday, we decorated the church and Moose Lodge and then I got to go get my nails done with Morgan and her cousin, Taylor. I love having my nails done. It was a great girly time :) Then the rehearsal and dinner! I got to wear my own set of cowboy boots for the first time and I'm not gonna lie, I didn't hate it! I am SO NOT a country girl. For those of you that know me, or have even had me take your pictures and I've had to go through the woods or fields, etc. I'm very girly and not outdoorsy or country. I'm more of a heels type girl. But I put them with a dress and wa la! Cute :) A lot of us wore our boots that night and it was adorable. Okay so a random squirrel moment here, but the funniest thing ever was when Morgan's grandma pointed at Anthony Brummer and had forgotten his name so she stopped and said "MEATBALLS!!" So that's his new nickname;)
So the next morning (the wedding day) did not start out well for me. I had a date with Tiffany and Adriene at Starbucks for coffee. I use my phone for an alarm and it shut off during the night and I woke up when I was supposed to be out the door. So I was flustered and then there was a ginormous line at Starbucks because it was right before the Truman Homecoming parade. Either way, the rest of the morning went well because I had my coffee and a great date with two great friends whom I love so dearly. Next up I picked up a couple extra coffee's. One for the bride herself and one for Judy who was taking pictures with us at the hair place! Coffee makes life better :)
I was then off to pick up the bride from the church. We went to the hair place to start getting hair done and I had an up-do of one that I picked out. Now, I do have an extreme amount of hair and I had picked out something that the lady didn't know if she could do or not. I sent the pic to Paula at Rapture and she said they could do it and Lindey had an opening! I had to take Morgan there next anyway to get her make-up done by the very talented Tierney Hocker. Make-up goddess that woman is! So I get there and Paula and Lindey both start curling my hair. Between both of them they gave me such a fabulous up-do and I cannot thank them enough for doing an emergency style on me! I would do anything for those Rapture Ladies. Best girls EVER. Off to the church we went from there and we got dressed. Morgan looked absolutely stunning and seeing her in the dress with her hair and make-up done was so awesome. The wedding was beautiful and nobody tripped down the aisle ;) I was a bit concerned for Lucas and I as our rehearsal down the aisle wasn't flawless but so funny. I get nervous and tend to walk a little bit fast and he had to kinda yank me back a couple times--haha. I think the best part was when Brent (Morgan's dad) gave her away and his lip started to quiver as he held back tears giving away his little girl. So sweet and reminded me of my daddy giving me away. A daddy/daughter bond is something that is so sweet and something to cherish.
From there we took a few more pics and went off to the reception! I let out of my shell and danced my little heart out! I learned how to line dance and did a little two-stepping with my husband and father-in-law. I think those boots did something to me! I was a dancing machine--haha! Even after Morgan and Kyle left the reception we were still dancing. Daddy Buckallew taught me how to really two-step and I perfected the line dance. I even got to dance with my nephew Kaden and did the cupid shuffle while holding him--talent, I tell ya! I danced until about 10:30, I had such a blast!
I can't describe how incredibly weird it was to not only attend a wedding but to be IN a wedding. The only wedding I've been a bridesmaid in is my sister's wedding which was before I even started taking pictures. Ever since then I've been to tons of weddings but it was always a full day of work. When Morgan told me back when she and Kyle first started dating that she wanted me to actually be in their wedding I about cried. It meant so much to me. The fact that I got to be a part of all of the fun things with out being expected to work was the most amazing feeling. I never have time to sit down and catch up with people, dance, etc. Please don't get me wrong, I've enjoyed shooting weddings, it is enjoyable to meet new people and capture the excitement, etc., but it was a great break from the norm to be on the other side for once. See what it's like from the other side of the lens. The whole family got to be a part of this wedding and it was a fabulous day to enjoy together. I can't say that I honestly wasn't stir crazy though. I really don't know what to do when I'm not working. But especially at the reception being able to sit back and relax, dance and eat and socialize--it was awesome. Thank you, Kyle and Morgan for letting me be a part of your day.
I asked on facebook tonight what I should write about. I really enjoy getting people's opinions who want to know things from me that I can write about. Tonight I had one person say I should take a step back and write about where I am now, and another person told me to write about the world's views today compared to how we were raised, etc. I think I can mesh those together pretty well :)
When I look back on how I've gotten to where I am today it's because of how I was raised. My parent's did a fantastic job on instilling values and work ethic in my sister and me. And that's gotten me to where I am today. We were very loved in our home but also disciplined. We didn't get away with doing stupid things. We didn't get to go out and do whatever we wanted whenever we wanted. We didn't get things handed to us without working for them. We were taught to respect others. We were taught to help others. The list goes on. The world's views today teach you that everything should be handed to you. At the age of 15, my sister and I both had cars we were paying for and were getting jobs. My parent's bought the cars and we paid them. We always had to pay for gas so we were conscious of where we were going to go and if it was that important because of gas costs. I'm not trying to make it sound like my parent's just didn't pay for anything, they paid for a lot, but when it came to the things that we were going to have to pay for in the real world, we were fully prepared. Cell phone, insurance, car, etc., we paid for. My parent's taught us what to look for in a husband and although they were extremely choosy in who we were interested in, I'm thankful because I knew exactly what I wanted when it came to finding my husband and I didn't have regrets from my past to carry into that relationship. The work ethic of both of my parent's carried over into my life. I didn't know if I could start my own business at the age I did and be successful but I've been told many times that my work ethic is great. I have a mindset to get things done and looking back, it's all because of how I was raised and how I watched my parents. I am so thankful for it. If I was allowed to do whatever I wanted, who knows where I'd be. But because of the moral values that I was raised with, I can look back with not many regrets. I wasn't scared when I got married and into the real world--I was prepared. My advice is not to compromise. Stick with what you believe in and do what's right. Respect others and respect yourself. I got made fun of a few times in High School for not being allowed to do certain things, date certain people, go to parties, etc. I may have been a bit frustrated then, but I'm extremely happy and blessed to be where I am now. I have worked so hard to get where I am today and I'm so thankful for it. Thank you so much mom and dad for putting up with my attitude and raising me the right way. I love you both so much for it and I hope I can do the same with my future children.
I feel like this is such a random post, but I guess when you don't write in so long you just have a lot to catch up on :) One more thing that I wanted to write a little bit about is the letter that I found from my grandpa. I posted about it on facebook but I feel like I can elaborate a bit more on here. So, as I said before, my senior of High School I took a composition class where I was required to keep a journal. I filled two or three of those journals and I put everything in them. Posts, pictures, notes, etc. Everything from senior year. At the end of the year we were to tape them up and put them away and not think about them or find them for years. Well, when Justin and I first got married and moved into this house we put a lot of things downstairs until it could get sorted through. We had a basement flood. My journals were part of it and I was devastated. They looked ruined. I left them alone because I was so distraught but then about a year later I decided to try and open them and save them. Some things were saved but I could tell others were ruined. I put them away again without reading them. Before I taped them up my senior year, I had friends and family write notes to me that I didn't read before I taped them up. Well, last week I had an itching to get some out and read them. I found one from my Grandpa Findling. He passed away my senior year and I didn't even realize that he had written one to me. He even dated it and I saw that he wrote it just 11 days before he died....I'll always cherish this and I'm so thankful that God saved this letter...
I wish my grandpa could see where I am now. To see that I am living my dream of photography and that I've found a man that he would be so proud of. He's so much like my grandpa...
Well, I guess that's all I have for tonight. Took me enough hours to write it :) For any of you that read, please don't hesitate to email me or message me questions or topics that you'd like me to write about. It will make me stop and write more. I've got something already working in my head for next time I think. If I can put it all in the right words. Again, thank you for taking the time to read this and enjoy the pictures posted below :)
 |
| BEFORE! Brown ugly carpet |
 |
| AFTER! Pretty carpet! |
 |
| Got a pink extension for breast cancer awareness! Get cha one at Rapture salon $10!! |
