Jared {Class of 2014}
Fall
Tonight Practically Canada is expected to get mixed precipitation. As in rain…mixed with snow. It’s only a matter of time now and winter will be upon us again.
I love fall and I hate to see it come to a close. I’m a fan of sweater weather and the smell of dry leaves. I like the eerie feeling in the air as things begin to close up, grow dark and quiet for a long winter season. I like cemetaries and the way they look with deer peeking out from behind grave stones and crow circling overhead. I love the colors and the flavors and the spooky side of this time of year.
So I thought I’d take this opportunity to put together a little image essay. These are a few things that caught my eye as I walked around my block. The beautiful thing about photographs is that you can savor a moment forever. This way, even if snow falls tonight, we’ll still have the color of the leaves, the smell or fresh apples, and the sound of crunchy leaves lingering in our minds.
Hannah: Class of 2014
This is Hannah. She’s a senior and she is especially dear to me. Last year she approached me and asked if I could begin mentoring her. Since then, I’ve had the pleasure of encouraging this fine gal along her spiritual walk. I’m so blessed to call her a friend.
Hannah is incredibly, musically talented. She plays the violin and the piano, and sings. She plays in the youth worship band at church. And she is a hot tea connoisseur. Which I totally dig, because I love chatting over a good, hot drink.
Hannah has ambitions of traveling far and wide. Dreams of seeing Norway and Ireland and all kinds of other places. I know this one is going to grow some major wings. I know this girl will {indeed} go places and do great things.
Savanna {Class of 2014}
Savanna lives in the country. Shade dapples the property. Classic cars peek out from behind the barn…projects to be done. The grass is green, bunnies hop through tall weeds, the sun makes the color of the world vibrant.
In this rustically idyllic setting, Savanna fits in perfectly. She’s fun and tough, and the kind of girl who walks around outside without shoes.
Like all the seniors I’ve book so far this year, I know Savanna through the youth group I volunteer with at church. So I offered her the same discount that Gretchen took advantage of. Throughout the rest of the post you’ll find the verses she chose to memorize and recite at her session.
“They replied, ‘Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved–you and your household.” Acts 16:31
She and her dad restored this 1960’s truck together. I’m simply crazy about the color. She calls it the “Turtle” because it’s green and slow.
“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” Romans 3:23
“For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 6:23
“In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” Hebrews 9:22
“For the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost.” Luke 19:10
Be on the lookout for more from this session on the Facebook page later this week. And don’t forget to come over to the Facebook page every night for a new costume idea throughout the month of October.
Amy
Gretchen: Class of 2014
It’s no secret that I love high-schoolers. Especially the girls. But not in a creepy way. They are living such an exciting time in their lives and there is still so much more to come. The energy, beauty and possibility found in soon-to-be graduates is infectious. Which is why I love senior portrait sessions.
Meet Gretchen. She was my first senior session of the year. I know you will like her as much as I do.
This year for teens involved in the youth group that I volunteer with I offered a special discount. For every Bible verse they could quote to me {up to 5, excluding “Jesus wept” and John 3:16} I’d knock $10 off their session cost. Gretchen nailed all five. Throughout the rest of the post I’ll be writing the verses she chose to quote to me.
Jesus answered, I am the way the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God–this is your spiritual act of worship.” Romans 12:1
“All scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” 2 Timothy 3:16
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.” John 1:1
“I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.” Psalm 32:8
Because Three People Fell in Love {Sneak Peek}
You know the phrase, “All because 2 people fell in love…” I’m sure you’ve seen it on picture frames, wall decals, signage above a gallery wall of family photos. A few weeks ago I had the great privilege of photographing one of the most beautiful weddings I’ve ever attended. It was like walking into an issue of Wedding by Martha. One thing that stuck out to me during my day with this lovely couple was a sign that read:
“All because 2 3 people fell in love.”
That’s the truth. This wedding is the story of how Erika, Elly, and Matt officially became a family. It’s not simply the story of two adults getting married, it’s the story of a family being formed.
Just look at this beautiful family, and prepare to be amazed. This day was Erika’s vision and she carried it out in amazing, affordable, DIY fashion. Every detail of their big day was thoughtful and beautifully carried out. (more…)
Grinnell Glacier
This is it. Our final day in Glacier. Tomorrow we will move on to other things. I won’t say better things, because after our short trip to Glacier National Park, I really don’t think there are many things better than this…but I’ll move on nonetheless. {Also, isn’t it crazy that nonetheless is an actual word?}
On our final day we got up nice and early and made the long drive from West Glacier all the way to the opposite side of the park to the stunningly preserved Many Glacier Hotel. It was built in 1910 and sits right on Swiftcurrent Lake. When you finally get there it’s like you’ve walked into a postcard. The hotel is idyllic, if a little surreal. The lake is pristine. The mountains are so gorgeous they couldn’t even be dreamed up by Bob Ross himself.
{Above photo: Swiftcurrent Lake}
{Below bottom: Many Glacier Hotel, other photos in the collage: along the Grinnel Glacier Trail}
We left from the hotel and headed to the Grinnel Glacier trail head. Now, next time we visit I think I’ll try to plan things out just a bit better in the time department. You see, there is a boat shuttle that leaves from Many Glacier Hotel that will take you across the lake where you can catch another boat that will take you up the trail a bit. All in all it will shave off a good 1-2 miles off your total hike.
We did not catch the boat.
So that meant another long day of hiking. However, I am very, VERY glad we decided to save this one for last. While the hike was strenuous {a steady incline over 5 miles…then a very steep, rocky climb at the end} it was the biggest payout of any of the trails we hikes while visiting the park.
Along the trail you’ll climb steadily until you are high enough that you look down upon Lake Josephine and eventually Lake Grinnell. You can see Lake Grinnell in the collage above. It’s that brilliantly teal body of water next to the pine tree. Then far, far in the distance you’ll notice a waterfall. As you continue it will become clear that the waterfall is simple melt from Grinnell Glacier, and it is this fall that feeds the lake.
You’ll pass falls closer to the trail and you’ll smell all these amazing smells. You know how men’s fragrances are called “Glacial Waters” and “Mountain Pass” and stuff like that? Well, there is a reason. This whole corner of the world smells like the manliest, best ever, cologne ever made. Forget Axe Bodywash. I want a man who smells as good as the woods around Glacier.
Now, I’m getting off topic again.
Anyway. Remember that steep climb I mentioned earlier? It’s rocky and lasts for a good stretch. Like climbing a rustic stone staircase. Up, up, up. Your quads will tell you to stop. Don’t listen. Keep climbing. Because eventually you’ll get….here.
You’ll walk right up to Grinnell Glacier. Yes, this is what a glacier looks like in summer. And the photo really stinks. It’s breath taking. The water is clear right to the bottom. The ice bergs are so white they sting to look at. And that water, oh the water…it’s a color even Crayola envies. All the fatigue you feel walking up, up, up will be gone as soon as you see the oasis before you.
Before making our descent, we were lucky enough to spy this beauty. Who, even though I was pretty scared, let me get close enough to nab this awesome portrait.
Needless to say, we were left pretty darn tired at the end of our last day. So, after dinner, instead of going for another walk, or finding something else to do…we simply pulled off and waited for the stars to come out. It’s so dark you can see the Milky Way and constellations become a blur of millions of tiny lights in the sky.
I think these few short, exhausting days away were just what we needed.
Amy
Glacier Day #2 {Rafting and Relaxing}
At the end of our first day at Glacier National Park I was so tired I dreaded even standing for the 15 minutes it would take me to shower. {You know how I get about showering sometimes…} So, needless to say, we were glad to spend our second day at a much more relaxed pace.
We started with a morning visit to Lake McDonald at Apgar Village, just inside the west entrance to the park. It was a beautifully gloomy fall morning.
We really wanted to rent a canoe or kayaks and paddle around the lake a bit…but for some reason there were none to be had. All the rental places were closed for the season, or opened after noon. It was hard for us, but we managed to just hang out without much activity. We checked the souvineer shops, we watched the clouds roll over the lake, we walked {but not much} by the edge of the water. Derek even bought me a fancy coffee to drink while the chill dissipated from the air.
Chilly mornings aren’t half bad when you have a good coffee, the best sweater in the world, and your best friend in the world with you.
Later we saw some Jammers leaving from Apgar Village. Aren’t they cute? They got the name “Jammer” because when the were first put into use the drivers were called “Gear Jammers” in jest.
After lunch we headed to the Glacier Raft Company for an afternoon of white water fun. Now, you may be surprised by this…but I am afraid of white water rafting. I don’t like it. It’s too scary. I know, none of us are perfect. But Derek really loves it. So the trip we took was a perfect compromise. It was an eight mile trip. The first four miles were a scenic float. The last four miles were rapids. And at this point in the season the rapids were really low and tame, so that really worked out in my favor.
We were encouraged not to bring our cameras. However, I’m not one for rules. So I took it anyway. I just put it in a Zip-Loc baggie and put that securely inside my life vest. It survived just fine.
It was incredible to see the park from this angle. {Especially incredible since we got to sit down and our arms did the work instead of our legs.} Oh, and you know me and movie trivia…here’s a good one for you. This section of the river and this exact company worked with the cast and crew or The River Wild to film the river scenes in the movie. Pretty cool, right? If you haven’t seen it, you should. Meryl Streep, Kevin Bacon…how could you hate it with a cast like that?!
Okay, so I’m getting off topic. After we got past the rapids our guide told us we were at the deepest point in the river and that if we wanted to jump in this was our chance. I don’t know if she was being sincere or not, but Derek and I took advantage. We would never pass up the opportunity to swim in a river of glacier run off. I jumped off the side of the raft before thinking too hard about the choice. I knew if I did, I would rationalize just how cold that water would be. So I just hopped off. And yes, it was cold. Very, very cold. Like take your breath away, can’t move your arms and legs–cold. After resurfacing I tried to make some lame joke about demonstrating the proper rescue form for when you fall out of the boat. But my lips didn’t work, so it just came out in gibberish. My fellow rafters laughed, but I’m sure it wasn’t at my wit.
Derek jumped in too. He agreed, I wasn’t crazy, it was cold. After he’d had enough I hauled him back into the boat. See, the camera was a good idea after all.
After the rafting trip it was well into the afternoon, so we went back to our motel room for a very hot shower {to dethaw after our polar swim}. Then we went out for dinner at the Belton Chalet. I didn’t take the photo below. That’s from their website.
It’s fancy. Maybe too fancy for us. But the food was delightful and the view was fantastic.
We rounded our relaxing day out with a few hands of rummy by the fire place at our motel and a cozy effort to try and dry our shoes out before our final day of hiking…
Amy
