Big weekend at the Bird's!

I can't believe it is already March!  I am loving this mild winter we have had, and I am hoping for an early spring.  Yesterday it was 65 here in Miles City!  Even though it was a little breezy it was nice to take Penny for a walk, and get a little sun.  I spent most of January and February doing boudoir shoots which are not shoots that I typically share on the blog.  I did do Harper's one year photos not too long ago, and wanted to share this Birthday present collage of the cutie.  She is such a doll! 

On a another note....My sister got ENGAGED this weekend!  I felt so honored to be part of it, and to share in James's and her excitement!  James is such a wonderful addition to the family, and I could not be happier for the both of them.  The engagement took place at our home, and since I had an idea it was coming, I made sure to have my camera handy. (I am an awesome secret keeper!)  I am so glad that I did because the photos are such a wonderful depiction of Carley's shock, and pure happiness in that moment.  Have I mentioned how happy I am for her?  I also snapped a quick ring photo for her to share on facebook as well.

 The ring is stunning!  Congrats again you two!  I can't wait to start planning your wedding as your Maid of Honor (I am shunning the title Matron of Honor because it sounds too old)

Random...

So this has not been my best blogging month.  Honestly I have just gotten a little burnt out.  I was feeling guilty about my terrible blogging, but my mom informed me that this is a good time to take a break since this is my slow part of the year.  She is a firm believer that I blog every one of my sessions, and that my clients appreciate the sneak peeks.  I absolutely agree with her, but it is important for me to blog for myself too, and that is why stepping away from the blog for a bit gives me the chance to miss it, and to come back with new blogging ideas.  I also don't want this blog to be all about "sneak peeks."  I want it to be a place for clients to get to know me before their session, and to stay in touch with me long after their session. 

Anyways....today's post is really random.  I will be sharing what I was working on this weekend soon, (I am really excited to finish editing those) but until then here is what I have been up to lately.  The below photos are all iphone photos.  I am obsessed with this phone!  My hubby completely surprised me with what I think is the best gift ever for Christmas.  I am still trying to master the camera, but I love using it to document my everyday life.  (For more iphone photos follow me on instagram at whitneylinphoto)

I always feel the need to freshen up my branding at the start of a new year, and below are my new folded  wedding business cards.  I feel like I  still need my basic card to hand out all the time, but these are great for potential wedding clients.  On another note, I am almost completely booked for Summer 2012 weddings.  It is a great feeling, and I even set aside a few weekends just for fun.  However, I always have a tough time turning couples away, and I find myself wanting to overextend myself.  One day I am set on not booking anymore summer weddings, and the next day, I am wondering if I could squeeze in a few more.  I will happily squeeze in weekday weddings, but my available weekends are very limited.  

 Earlier this month a bunch of my family met in Billings to watch the Fairbanks Nanooks play MSUB.  My uncle coaches in Fairbanks, and since I was in Eastern Montana for Christmas, it was nice to see the Alaska crew as well as my parents, grandma, sister, cousins, and some other friends.   

Kev and I in Billings.

Miles City finally got some snow last week.  This is our home covered in fresh snow on a very grey day.

I have so many photos of miss penny it is ridiculous. 

Penny and Kevin reunited after a week apart.  Kevin was gone for work then Penny and I were in Three Forks for the weekend so the second we got out of the car she was on the 4-wheeler plowing our drive-way with him. 

Happy Holidays!

So you might have noticed that I haven't blogged much this month, and that is because I am completely caught up on editing and shooting for the year.  I actually have been for about a week, and it has been so nice to have a few days away from my computer.  Last weekend we headed to Three Forks for an early Christmas with our family there, and this weekend we will be out at the ranch for Christmas Eve, and then back in Miles City for Christmas day.  This is the first Christmas that I will not be in Three Forks, and although I will miss my parents, sister, cousins, grandparents, aunts, and uncles a ton, I am also very excited to be spending the holiday with Kevin's side of the family.  I know how incredibly blessed we are to have such amazing families, and we are very lucky to live close enough to our families that we can rotate where we spend Christmas every year.  There is never a shortage of love regardless of where we go, and that is something I am very thankful for.

So what else have I been up to? Hmmm....  Well I haven't had much of chance to share what is new with me since most of my recent posts have been client sneak peeks.  I love being able to share personal part of my life on my blog, but honestly, so many sneak peeks means I have been really busy, and that just makes me so grateful.  December has been such a wonderful month.  I had a lot of print orders to fill, holiday cards to design, and I even took Santa photos.  The Santa photo experience was a first, and I LOVED it.  Some little kids screamed SANTA in excitement while others bawled.  Either way, it was such a fun time, and the girls at Studio Ten (where the photos where taken) and I where thrilled to be doing it for the Mile City Foster Care Project.  It is such a great cause, and I was so honored to be part of the fundraising.  

Anyways...now that you are caught up I want to wish you a Merry Christmas!  I will be working on marketing stuff next week, and am shooting a New Year's Eve wedding so I will be starting the new year off with a fun winter wedding to share! 

 These photos were taken in October.  I didn't want to share them until after our Christmas cards went out.  My sister and parents were in town so I had Carley take the photos, and then we passed the camera around and did a few other fun ones as well.

 I'm pretty lucky that my husband is such a trooper.  He thought I was a little crazy at the time, but I really wanted our cards done before the ordering rush, and I thought we had to take advantage of the fall weather so he went along with it.  Plus we didn't have any photos of the both of us with miss Penny so it was a must :)  (and yes I will always be the person who has her pup in the family photos)

 Love you my beautiful sis!

 This was not a planned family photo but we were together and there was a camera.  Reason enough to take a family photo.  Kev couldn't be in it because he actually took this photo and it is the first time he has ever used my camera.  Not bad babe.  

 And here is the Christmas card we sent out.  It was a 5x7 front and back and I actually had them printed in an ornate shape.