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GRATITUDES + BREAKTHROUGHS // June 13, 2017
Gratitudes
Saturday morning I ventured into Washington D.C. for my very first District wedding with Shannon + Rob! Shannon got ready over at the Kimpton George, a swanky boutique hotel with her Mom. I love that she incorporated family heirlooms as details including her Mom’s blue garter, her Grandmother’s sapphire and diamond ring, and pieces of lace from her Grandmother’s wedding dress that she delicately wrapped around her deep red and bold burgundy bouquet. Shannon + Rob created a warm and welcoming ceremony at the stunning St. Aloysius Church at Gonzaga College High School. This church looked like something straight from Rome, Italy. It was massively beautiful with gold details and the prettiest stained glass windows. Their ceremony was filled with tradition as well as laughter, as their Pastor had quite a sense of humor! After the ceremony we walked through the campus for their romantic portraits; the brick and ivy made it seem like we were in an urban garden. Together we headed over to the Capitol Hill Club to enjoy the rest of the festivities with the newlyweds. The Bachelor Boys Band played all night and kept the guests on the dance floor! I’ll be sharing their wedding highlights soon, but in the meantime you can check out a few peeks on Instagram!
Sunday morning I hopped in the car with my friend Renu and we went back to the city to visit our friend Ayla. Ayla just moved to D.C. after being in Rome for almost a year, so it was nice getting to see her new digs. I must say they were nice! Her building is new with two roof-top pools with views of the Capitol Building and the Washington monument. There were lounge chairs and seating areas with small gas fire pits. I felt like I was at a resort! We enjoyed the morning poolside with Byren + Soraya, Renu’s kids and when it got too hot we went downstairs for lunch. While the kids napped we had some serious girl talk over coffee. It was so comforting to all be together again and to really connect.
Sunday after I got back from my second day in D.C. I knew the pups were ready for a long walk, even if it was 94 degrees. I packed my small Camelbak daypack with water, an ice pack, sunscreen and a dog bowl. The dogs have realized that when I start this routine they know we are going for a walk; it’s kind of cute. I strapped Mosby in his harness and locked him into the dual leash and then Ava. We walked probably 15 minutes before we ran into our first animal – a wild turkey. Mosby who now weighs as much as a medium sized child was trying his hardest to pull me along to investigate the bird. <Also, please image Mosby (60 lbs) and Ava (12 lbs) on a split dual leash trying to check out the turkey with me holding on trying to regain control.> Finally things settled down for a few minutes before we stumbled upon two separate sets of deer and then a groundhog. What was suppose to be a relaxing, but hot walk turned into the most surprising nature walk. The only real woodland creature we were missing at that point was a bear. Also as a warning, the ticks are really bad this year. While walking if I saw them I would flick them off of the dogs, but when I got home and did a tick check, I pulled 14 off of Ava. To give you an idea of how insane that is, she was on leash the whole time for a 55 minute walk. Gross, be careful out there fellow dog parents.
I finally bit the bullet and purchased a real photographers backpack and my first official House of Flynn bag. I’ve been in the market for a backpack that can safely and securely hold my equipment while on the move. I’m working on shooting more in the mountains and at outdoor locations that require a decent amount of walking so a backpack with padding was a must. Also I was looking for a pack that I could travel with, meaning there was space for a set of clothes or two. This gray and tan Wanderlust Rucksack does the trick. It’s so adorable and trendy! It doesn’t look like those boring and basic black camera backpacks. I feel cute and also comfortable in knowing that I won’t be targeted for carrying expensive gear. I’m so pumped to take this to Italy, that I’ve been wearing it around the house to help break it in.
To say I’ve been humbled this month is an understatement. I’ve been featured 4 times already and it’s only halfway through June. I haven’t yet been able to share all of them but as you know a few weeks ago my images were put in Belong Magazine. Specifically in their Weddings + Events issue (<click see inside) along side my favorite florist Julie Abrera of Beaumont House Design. I was also lucky enough to be featured through WeddingWire with Brittany + Kevin’s ocean themed wedding at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Images from Ponza + Palmarola are all over SALT -an online adventure + travel magazine – as of last week as well as an amazing story of trust and exploration. And I’m excited to announce that at some point this month another incredible feature will happen with The Knot!
This week you’ll find on my fingers and toes Lucky Lucky Lavender. With all of the good news rolling in from the recent features I thought it was appropriate. You’ll also know that light purples especially with a hint of gray are my all time favorite nail colors. This color though has a touch more pink, making it a little softer than a true lavender.
Breakthroughs
This week brought a lesson of personal boundaries. I choose this career years ago to create a work/life balance that I felt comfortable with like flexible family time, travel, regular yoga classes, evenings with friends and down time without a set 9-5 schedule. What I have learned though is that this flexibility in schedule doesn’t lend well to a healthy routine. I am aware that flexibility and routine don’t usually play well together but I believe that they can. I think in upholding a routine for personal events like yoga and maybe dinners with friends after 6:00pm can provide me with the flexibility I wanted as a business owner. I’m like every other working professional that needs personal days to decompress and unwind from a hectic work week, mine just looks a tad different. More often than not I work on my business every single day, that includes blogging, client calls, emails, Instagram, etc. I don’t have the ability to separate as easily as I used to at my previous 9-5. It’s necessary for me to enforce those personal boundaries, especially during wedding season so that I don’t feel the effects of burnout and fatigue.
So I’m working on politely declining invitations, scheduling the right number of sessions and really practicing holding those boundaries.
As always, thanks for reading. xoxo.
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