Suzuki Family {3.10}

During Spring Break I got to take photos of the Suzuki family. If you check my blog frequently, you probably remember Meah - her photo has appeared on my blog many times during the past 4 years. In November I got to meet her new baby brother Cohen and take photos of him as well.

They wanted an updated family photo now that they are a family of 4, so we loaded into their golf cart and headed to the main streets of Rockford to shoot some family photos.

Cohen is 4 months old, so it was time for some updated photos. It was a beautiful day so we headed outside for some photos. I love his rooster tail hair!

Meah is turning 4 very soon. We started with some photos in her bedroom...

...and then moved on to her swingset....

...and finished with some photos uptown. Meah has the cutest personality and I love that it shows up in her photos!

Holmes Co.

While many of our friends were spending their Spring Break on the beach in Florida, or Disney World, or a cruise, or Myrtle Beach...we spent 2 days in Holmes County, Ohio visiting Amish Country with my parents. We stayed in Berlin and spent a lot of time visiting the shops in town, eating lots of good food, and relaxing at the hotel.

Jenna had spotted a sign for buggy rides right away, so we checked it out. A nice Amish man named John took Jacob, Jenna and I for a ride. He talked non-stop during our 15 minute ride and shared a little about his lifestyle and his history. I've read lots of books about Amish, so it was fun to actually talk to someone and learn a little more. He allowed us to take photos, but he tried to stay out of them. He's been doing buggy rides for 10 years, so I'm sure he's used to the photos by now. Jenna and Grandpa walking through Berlin...

I am really fascinated by the whole Amish culture and lifestyle. I've read quite a few fiction books based on Amish culture and loved getting to see some of it in person. I really could have spent more time just driving around the area and snapping photos. Chris and my dad were both patient and stopped the car a few times to let me lean out the window or run across the street for a few photos.

My favorite photo....I saw this house as we were driving to a bakery we had heard about and told Chris he had to stop on the way back. I loved the rainbow of laundry on the giant pulley clothesline!

Jason & Jen {2.13.10}

On Valentine's Day weekend I got to shoot a wedding with Jodi! I was so excited to work with her! She was so organized and laid back and I really had a great time with her! The wedding was at St. Johns Catholic chuch in Delphos, which is a gorgeous church for a wedding. Here are just a few favorites from the day...

Dance to the music.....

Jenna had her first dance competition this past weekend. She was so excited to finally perform! She was only able to do two of her dances at this competition since they didn't allow tap.

Dressed and ready to go for jazz..... Close up of her with all her make up, hair, and her fancy earrings....

Jazz - "New Girl in Town" from Hairspray.....Jenna gets lifted up to be the "homecoming queen"....

She is in the middle row, second from right....

You can't tell, but she is totally making a "dance face" during this pose. She practices them in the mirror!

Ending pose....she is in the middle right - one of the first ones standing up...

Ready for lyrical and waiting oh so patiently between dances. Thank goodness for her Nintendo DS!

Lyrical (ballet)

Close up (Brenda....check out that 1" part in her hair!)...

Gotta love those eyelashes!!! She was excited about them at first, but then couldn't wait to take them off at the end.

Lyrical - "Send it On"

She's front row, second from left...

The end of the dance - she holds a candle out front...

Running on empty....

I started this past weekend with a full tank of gas...and ended it with the empty tank light on. It was definitely a busy weekend!

• Chris' last basketball game was this past Friday. His team ended up 19-1 (they only lost to OG...which makes me dislike OG even more than I did before!). They had a great season! Tournament starts Tuesday!



• I took Amy (my ESL student) and her sister Angela (an 8th grader) to the game. When I went to pick them up, their mom had her coat on and was ready to go too, so I took all three of them to the game. Mom speaks very, very limited english - so it was an interesting night. I'm not sure they had ever been to a basketball game before - I hope they enjoyed it.



• Saturday was Jenna's first dance competition. At the last minute, Chris and Jacob came along too. It was a busy, hectic day getting her hair and make up done, changing her into her costumes, and making sure she was in the right place at the right time. Jenna did a great job and loved every minute of it. She has 3 more competitions coming up (Columbus, Dayton, and VW).....and she can't wait! I have photos to share, but I'll save them for a seperate blog post!



• After the competition we headed to UT to watch the girls' basketball game. One of Chris' former students is a senior on the team, so we went to watch her play. We met up with some friends and watched the game together. It was really fun to watch a college basketball game again.



• We attempted to find a Buffalo Wild Wings after the game, but the GPS led us to the a totally different restaurant. After trying a few other places, we ended up driving back to Bowling Green and ate at Frickers - a wings place we both used to eat at when we were in college.



• We had some time to waste between the competition and the UT game, so we drove around BGSU. We showed the kids where we used to live and where some of our classes were. We also browsed through SBX for a while and both kids ended up getting new BG baseball hats.



• We made reservations for our summer vacation! We are going with Mike and Deb on a grown ups only vacation to Jamaica for a week in August. I cannot wait!

photo from Couples Tower Isle website



• If anyone is bored over the next few weekends, you are welcome to join us. We are booked every weekend for the next 5-6 weekends with either a basketball tournament for Jacob or a dance competition for Jenna. Some weekends we even have both! I complain about all the running around, but it's worth it when you see them doing something they love!



• I had a photo session Sunday - 7 adults and 6 kids. Fun stuff!!



• I'm am done with this snow and cold weather. Please bring on the warm weather, green grass, sunshine, and flip flops.

I heart my BFF!

• CONGRATULATIONS to one of my BFF's Cheryl and her husband Nathan on the birth of their daughter, Annabelle Grace yesterday. I'm so excited for them and can't wait to meet her! I haven't seen a photo of her yet...but mom says she has lots of dark curly hair and looks like her dad.

• There's nothing like dressing like your BFF...especially when you are in 2nd grade. Jenna and her BFF Savannah have the cutest matching shirts and hair bands thanks to Savannah's mom. They even have matching shoes. They truly are quite the pair and are such great friends. I love that Jenna has found such a great friend!

• These two BFF's got marriend on Saturday and I got to help photograph their wedding. Congratulations to Jason and Jen. Be sure to check back later this week for more photos from their wedding!