Gavronski Wedding Highlight from I Do Films on Vimeo.

Jaci and Steve waited for the wedding day, and I don’t mean for pizza delivery. Like, WAITED waited. Jaci invited me to document the moment she gave him her purity ring during the First Look (which was a surprise to Stephen). I had to remember to breathe while shooting these few minutes. It was such an electric moment.

Fedoras for the fellas, see! You dirty rat.

Okay, so KEVIN BACON doppelganger, right?  Jump back!

Both sides of the Jewel Box moments before the ceremony started.

I love seeing the parent’s faces during a ceremony.

Jaci was calm and collected most of the day, but  her neck tensed often during the service as emotions rode through her like waves- Joy so intense it overwhelmed her with gravity. She’d hold her head high as if willing herself  from drowning in it.

Sparklers- right at sunset, with just a kiss of the sunlight to help.


I loved what Jaci did with the lights in the drop ceiling. It made for some fantastic bokeh, and I spread it on my toast and ate it. YUM.

SMUSH.

They had a photo booth! WOO! I loved it! Every time we do one it just gets more and more fun.

It’s always fun and games until the guests start punching each other in the piehole.

Sydney is a little woman now, dressing herself and potty trained. This time of our lives seems to woosh by in a blur. A camera sits on our bookshelf within easy reach, so we snap a few pictures a day when we remember. We were told that this time would go by fast, but it’s out of this world to experience firsthand.  Pictures help me to step outside our lives for a bit and see objectively. It’s nice to refocus and remember that life is not measured by piles of laundry, or dust bunnies using our ceiling fan blades as a carnival ride. Life is measured by other lives. An intangible metric system. Six kilograms of love mixed with 1/8 teaspoon sleep and whipped into stiff peaks.

So today I was going over what the rest of the year will look like, scheduling Holiday sessions and thinking Christmas presents (I know, I’m a freak of nature) when I came across my 2010 Birthday Bucket List. And I thought, “OH NO, THE YEAR IS ALMOST OVER. And I’ve completely forgotten the Dance Party.” A lot of questions come my way about how I work, mostly about the expediency in which I produce the wedding sneak peeks and editorial spreads.  And this answer is this:  I have good focus and tasking skills. This sword is double-edged, however, in that I forget to take AND make time for the best things in life. Like a spontaneous Dance Party.  Looking at my list, I’ve blown away my business goals, but have Sad Tromboned my relationship goals.

So tomorrow is a new day, and that new day will have another Spontaneous Dance Party like today- thank you, Brian Setzer Orchestra.

How is your New Year’s Resolution going? Do you remember what it was?

I bring you the BLT- making mouths drool since 1895.

Kristin put mountains of thought and care into every detail-

“As you can see, we have tried to remain local and “handmade” as much as possible. In fact, we seem to have selected primarily women-owned businesses in the St Louis and Columbia areas! Our rings were designed by jewelers we learned about at Poppy, a local store; my dress is a J. Crew dress that I purchased on ebay, but which has been completely deconstructed and redesigned by a local seamstress, Aurora Dawn-Rose (in essence, only the fabric is from J.Crew!); and the bridesmaid shawls are from Etsy. Darin was dressed from head to foot by the owners of a local buisness — Binghams — who also helped us decided on ties for the groomsmen.”

The hairdresser ran an hour and a half late, but the result was a work of art!

They had a ‘First Look’, which gave Darin time to properly admire her hair.

Rachel from Rachel Flowers did an incredible job as usual.

Instead of one big wedding cake, they had many little cakes. Would it be right to say they were babycakes?

They had a contra dance (like a square dance) at the reception, with a caller, banjo player, fiddler, and guitarist. It was a great way to include everyone.

Thank you to Kelly Manno for wrestling a behemoth of this magnitude and WINNING.  Yesterday left me deeply moved in so many ways, and it was all because you made it happen.

Thank you Clary and Kelly for being by my side during the Q+A sessions. The mountain to climb seemed much less intimidating when facing it with friends.

Thank you Jasmine Star for loving life unabashedly, and reminding us we have the freedom to be unique.

Thank you JD for supporting her when she went out on a limb to follow her heart. Our souls are richer for it.

Thank you Debbie for coming to offer an olive branch from the Capulets to the Montagues!

Thank you Samantha, Elisa, Sarah, Tiffany, Kelly, Mary, Nikki, Donna, and Terri for following up this morning with more questions, or just wonderful things to say! I will be following up many of the seminar’s questions as individual dedicated posts on the blog.

Thank you Emily and handsome fiancee whose name I totally forget for braving the business end of 30+ cameras. It’s not an easy job to do, but you did it.

And lastly, thank YOU right there with your nose in the screen. I see you, reading me. You are the children clapping to revive Tinkerbell.  You make a HUGE difference in my life just by spending a few moments here. You give Henry and Sydney a mommy that has time in her day to transform into a tickle monster or to make rings out of dandelions before lunchtime.  Thank you for giving them the gift of an unhurried mommy.

~Michelle

“Take a jalapeno.  Cut off the stem and slide down one side. Scoop out the seeds. Fill it with cream cheese.  Wrap it with bacon and secure it with a toothpick. Throw it on the barbecue and you are all set!”

P.S. Although not speaking, Emily will be at the 2010 Shot Party.  She’d be happy to answer any questions you have about her internship experience,  playing Cow Golf, or just photography in general.