Gratituesday: The UPS Man

Gratituesday is a weekly blog post (that I try to keep up with) I got involved with over here. You should join, too! If you do, be sure to let me know in the comments as I would love to read what you write about. The truth is, I am actually quite frustrated with the UPS man. I have been trying to return a 65" Projection screen Television to Dell for the past three weeks and between the great service from Dell and the UPS man, it is still sitting in my dining room. Do you all know how big a 65" TV is?!  (It is ridiculously (unnecessarily) huge - that's why it is going back to the store.)

But. I digress.

Instead... I would like to express my gratitude that there is such a thing as a UPS guy. I could never have loaded this thing in my vehicle (it won't fit and I can't carry it alone) to return it to a store or to take it to the UPS store. It's really pretty incredible to have people that drive around to houses and deliver boxes and pick up boxes. Stop and think for a minute... it really is an amazing service that we have here in the US.

So today, I am very grateful for it!! :)

What are you grateful for today?

P.S. I took a picture of this massive box with my phone for your viewing pleasure. :)

Gratituesday: weather, assistance, and my man! | Personal

Gratituesday is a weekly blog post (that I try to keep up with) I got involved with over here. You should join, too! If you do, be sure to let me know in the comments as I would love to read what you write about. :) I can't decide what to write about this week. I want to write about it all! Haha...

1. I am grateful for a break in the CRAZY heatwave we got this summer. The hottest wedding we shot was June 26th (or maybe even June 12th -- ahh they were ALL hot in June) this year... and the coolest since then? Last weekend's wedding, August 7th! Something about that seems a little backwards... but no matter! I am so grateful for the fresh temperatures during weddings and outdoor portrait sessions now! I'm also really excited for Tommy that he can come home to nice mid-80 degree weather and actually get a break from the heat. :)

2. I am grateful for the help I received around my house last weekend. With the help of my mom, dad, and sister, my house is juuust about finished. When I say finished I mean we have painted walls, reorganized every closet, hung fixtures, pictures, and shelving, cleaned every surface and I even was able to get the entire garage clean and organized! Oh! And my awesome brother painted my front porch for me, too. :) I still have some trim left to paint in two rooms and a few more things to hang on the walls, but it's almost there! I am sooo excited for Tommy to come home and see this place! And I am super grateful for all the help I received. I would never have gotten all of this done without their help, especially from my dad who did a lot of electrical work and hanging of closet organization systems.

3. I am grateful for two working vehicles that are spotless inside and out. My car just about paid a month's rent at the shop down the road (meaning it was there for almost a month - not that I paid that much money to get it fixed) and now it is as good as new! Except it has a funny smell and no amount of cleaning has gotten it out. I don't like to mask smells with other smells (air fresheners), but I may have to do that in this situation. Nonetheless, I'm super grateful to have both of our cars back in the garage and as shiny as new! :)

And the big one!!!

4. I am so grateful that Tommy will be home oh. so. soon!!!

Okay, so I can't apologize for making a list... but I am excited about a lot of things coming up (one is a few weeks out of the office in September) and I am really grateful for so much in my life right now. Next week I'll try to take it back down to just one thing. :)

What are you all grateful for this week? I'd love to hear about it in the comments!

Oh, and for fun... a teeny sneak peek from Saturday's beautiful wedding... more to come soon! :)

tonight | personal

This weekend I drove back to Fredericksburg to shoot my long time friend (and college roommate) Sara's wedding. Being there with her bridesmaids and wedding guests was like attending a mini high school class reunion. After driving back home today, I spent the afternoon feeling a bit nostalgic.

As one might imagine, it can get a bit lonely around here with my husband's absence. Loneliness and nostalgia is not the best combination. Hah. So, I pulled out my yearbooks from high school and started reading the old messages that friends had written. Some of the messages made me laugh, some made me sad. Some made me question why I asked the person to write in my yearbook at all. ;) But mostly I just reflected on how crazy insane life can be. I thought about the paths that we all took after we walked off of that football field where our graduation ceremony was held. The different directions that we took really blows my mind.

Sometimes I imagine what it would be like if we could go back to high school with all that we've learned these past ten years and do it all over again. How would we treat one another? Where would we choose to focus our energy? Who would we spend our time with? How would our priorities change?

Just... thoughts. Fond memories, lessons learned. And again, I am reminded of the place I called home for so many years. As I flip the pages, I am reunited with memories that serve as the opening paragraphs of my life story. Those first big life lessons... they fall in between the hallways of that high school.

And I was surprised by the emotion that flooded my heart as newspaper clippings fell out that recall that tragic holiday season in 2004.

Nostalgia. That about sums up how I feel tonight.

To end this pointless ramble on a positive note... I am grateful for time, healing, and perspective. And forgiveness. :)

Gratituesday: Being at Home

Oh bloggy friends, how have I missed thee. I know I have been blogging sessions and weddings, but I feel like I haven't really written about life for a while. I am finally back in my home in Lynchburg and settled into my routine. Which means.... Gratituesday is baaaack! I honestly never intended it for be put on hold that whole time, but as it turned out... it was less stressful at the time to let each Tuesday slip by me without a post.

I missed a lot of things about Lynchburg and this week I am simply grateful to be home.

Here are some of my favorite things about Lynchburg that I really missed while I was gone:

1. Mi familia. (You like that español spin, don't you? Little did you know that half my Lynchburg family is Mexican :)) Tommy's family lives in Lynchburg and I missed spending time with them. I kicked off my homecoming my first night with plans to see my nieces and nephew swim in a home swim meet. Ahhh I LOVED it. I can't tell you how difficult it was for me NOT to just jump in the water and swim the 50 meter butterfly event! (Okay it wasnt' that bad, but seriously... I  miss those events.) And I love spending time with my family, so it was a fun night! :)
2. My house. Our house is finally becoming a home. In fact, I had a whole blog entry written about that adventure, but I'm going to save it for when I have before and after pictures to share. Point is... this house has had some major TLC on my quick weekend trips to Lynchburg these past two months and I finally feel like it is a home. I can't wait for Tommy to see it. :)
3. My fenced in back yard. My poor dogs have had to be on a leash every time they were outside at my parent's house. But here, they have a back yard to run around in. And they are so much happier. Which makes me happier.
4. My friends. I have been blessed with having many of my friends living all around the country, and while there are definitely con's to that, I almost always focus on the pro's. (Like the fact that we can go almost anywhere in the country to visit and see people we love.) I do have a few very special friends here in Lynchburg that I missed dearly. I am so glad to be back to visit with them. :)
5. Joe Bean's Coffee. Here in Lynchburg we have this fab hometown coffee place. It's a drive thru and there are about 3 of them around town. They make my order better than any other coffee shop I've ever been to and I LOVE them. I also have a soft spot for supporting local businesses, so I am pretty excited about being back in town to visit them!
6. My mailbox and my address. There has been more than one address mix-up while I was in Fredericksburg and I am glad to have things less complicated now. No more delayed mail! :)
7. My bed. It's the comfiest (to me) bed in the world and I'm glad to be back in it again. :)
8. Kroger!!! Ahhhh I missed my Kroger. A couple times I'd be shopping at my mom's local grocery looking for a favorite product and after staring at the section for 5 minutes it would occur to me that I was searching for a Kroger BRAND item. I'd be so bummed. And am so glad to be back in town with my fav grocery store. :)

I'm grateful to be home. :) I LOVED my time in Fredericksburg with my family and it was so, so good for me to be there. But, more on that later. Today I'm grateful to be home. :)

Happy 4th of July! | Operation: Love ReUnited

Happy 4th of July!

Today is one of my FAVORITE holidays... I love everything about today. The summer activities, the fireworks, the cheesy attire I can get away with wearing once a year, the hot dogs and picnic blankets and bluegrass concerts! (I know, that's random... but for some reason I hear more bluegrass music played on this holiday than any other.) My family and I celebrated the holiday yesterday at a local festival. I am getting ready to head out here in a bit to go enjoy a big family cook-out with my sister and her kiddos, also. So fun!

I just wanted to take a moment real quick and draw attention to an organization I am proud to be a part of. I have been a vounteer photographer for Operation: Love ReUnited for over a year now and it has been such an awesome experience. This organization brings together photographers who are willing to donate their time and talents to give back to the troops and their families. If you or someone you know has a loved one that is deployed (or is getting read to deploy), you may qualify for up to two free professional photo sessions! This is a great way for photographers everywhere to give back to those who sacrifice so much for us.

Check out my website here for more information, or click over to the OP: Love website to find a photographer near you!

If you are a photographer and you are interested in getting involved, click here for more information.

Yay! I am so proud to be an American! Happy 4th of July, ya'll!

p.s. I miss you, Tommy!