welcome

Holly and I became friends because of marshmallows. We went to the same church and I had been trying to figure out how to be friends with her for a while. It’s weird to make friends as an adult. It feels an awful lot like dating. You don’t want to come on too strong in case you weird a girl out, but you also don’t get to hang out with people unless you just kind of insert yourself into their circle.

A little more than two years ago, Holly had her youngest son Bryce (he was napping when we took the photo above). I saw it as my chance to buffalo my way into Holly’s life.

I’m really excited to kick off my month for mothers with a shoot I did last month. Whitney is a mom, a wife, a business woman, an athlete, an encourager, and just an all around rockstar. Her business and lifestyle are both things I find so valuable and I’m so excited to share them with you.

I met Whitney last fall when I joined my CrossFit gym. She had just had a baby a few months before and was waaaay more fit than I was. That sounds like it might be demoralizing, but it was actually really inspiring. She talked with me about how CrossFit changed her life and how it improved her body image and made her feel capable of doing so much outside the gym.

I’m writing this post from the sky. The plane is taking me away from my family, but back to my husband. Far from sadness and close to my comfortable life. The longer it flies, the more I feel the distance between myself and the first 24 years of my life. 

The past week was really rough. What was supposed to be a trip to just help my parents move became one also centered around spending time with my precious grandmother, who had a significant stroke three weeks ago. That is a different post for a different time, but it made an already emotional weekend even more so. 

Before I start talking just about myself, let me please tell you about my new, but quickly loved friend: Abigail Green. She launched a brand new site this week, which should give you an excellent glimpse into her wise-beyond-her-years mind and sensitive soul. 

She has been compiling notes, writings, scraps of paper and tons of photographs for the last couple decades. There was never an official way to read and see all of these nuggets of truth, so she decided the publish them this week. In an impressive display of work ethic, she built the whole thing by herself. She asked to interview me for her “stories of storytellers” section. 

Nina found me online last month and contacted me wanting some family photos. I never know what to expect when I meet new families and I absolutely had no idea I was in for such a treat! I was thrilled to meet them and that they entrusted the documentation of this special time to me.

People ask me all the time if I miss home, or if I like Denver better than Pennsylvania, or if we’re moving back east anytime soon. They are all SUCH loaded questions though, and I don’t know if people realize that when they ask them. I’m writing this as a PSA for anyone who needs an answer.