Wedding Bells are in the air!!

In less than 2 days I will be in Charlottesville, VA prepping for Ellen's big day which is t-minus 5 days!  I have known Ellen since we were 5 years old where we met for the first time in Daisy Scouts (which is what you are before you are a Brownie/Girl Scout.)  She has always been more like a sister to me.  We were pretty much inseparable - we went to the same school, same after school program ... and seeing as we were besties ... we were in all the same activities outside of school (cheerleading, art class, horseback riding, camps, Girl Scouts, etc.)  One MAJOR perk of being an only child was that I was allowed to bring a friend with me on almost all our family trips.  Ellen has traveled the globe with us (Cabo, Hong Kong and many trips to Colorado!) I am so honored to be a part of her and Joel's big day and I am beyond grateful that we are still in eachothers lives.  When I went to boarding school in 10th grade, we went our separate ways for a few years but then seemed to pick back up where we left off (minus the slumber parties, dolls and silly boy troubles.)  She is my dearest friend who I have know the longest out of any friend (22 years!!) and I look forward to the many years ahead of us. In preparation for my Matron of Honor toast, I was looking through old photos ... I have gathered a few (embarrassing and all) for your viewing 'pleasure' ... sorry ahead of time :o)

Daisy Scouts circa 1988 - I'm lower Left and Ellen is lower Right (we are 5yrs old)

Off to Girl Scout camp! (Ellen in Yellow... I'm the tall one ...lol) circa 1990ish

Colorado!

Circa '93/'94 - 5th or 6th grade 'orchestra'

Circa 1993/94

1995 Cheerleading for the Irvine Chargers

1997 Hong Kong (14yrs old)

2002 Cabo

2007 my Bachelorette party

2007 My wedding!

All grown up!

* Ellen (yes, I'm one of like 2 people who still calls you that) - love you girl! I am so excited for you and Joel and I am so honored to be included in your big day!  I promise to do my best to make it special for you and as seamless as possible.  xoxo

I promise to post pictures of Ellen's big day next week!!

A rainy fall day ...

I was honored to be asked to do high school senior portraits for Bret (Class of 2011) which will go in his high school yearbook to be the picture that he will always look back on for his senior year.  (No pressure!)  Our shoot went off without a hitch ... well, other than the rain. BUT we had fun and it really wasn't raining too hard ... just your typical Seattle mist. 

One great thing about the rain is that the overcast sky is ideal for shooting because there aren't harsh shadows or highlights to deal with.  The fall colors were out in force which made for a beautiful backdrop.  Here are a few of my favorite shots from our rainy day portrait session ...

If you know of anyone who is looking for an affordable photographer, feel free to pass on my info! :o)

EFC Woodworking

Photoshoot in the woodshop!  I've been brainstorming ideas for a few weeks now on what I could put on Caleb's business cards for his woodworking.  And then I had the idea of shooting pictures in his woodshop while he worked on an order of custom boxes ... here are a few of the shots I got. 

Caleb's brand that say 'Hand Crafted by EFC Woodworking'

Pictures of the cards will go up when they arrive in the mail!

Pumpkin Carving 2010

We finally were able to carve the beautiful pumpkins that we got about a week ago, and let me tell you ... they turned out great (or at least Caleb's did!)  I have always been amazed at Calebs pumpkin carving skills.  I think this is probably the 5th or 6th year we have carved pumpkins together and each year his keep getting better and mine ... welll, not so much.  Then this year, as I watch him finish TWO pumpkins before I am even done with my one ... the light bulb goes on!  It makes sense ... Caleb is awesome at intricate woodworking, detailing, etc and it uses similar tools (ok maybe that is a stretch) but either way, he totally has an upper hand on me ... at least that is the story that I am sticking to! :)

This year we got smart and finally bought pumpkin kits ... sooo much easier!! 
And of course you need a yummy beer to help you carve!

The master at work ... removing the 'guts'

Prepped and drying out ... ready to cook tomorrow!

Tah - Dah!

Caleb's awesome bat ... isn't he cute??



Caleb's spooky tree and there is a wolf in the lower right but the angle isn't showing it well ...



My attempt at a witch cooking over her cauldron ...

The weather has officially turned here so it really feels spooky out with the heavy wind and rain we are getting with this 'big winter storm' that is hitting the PNW.  Glad the power is still on!  It has been flickering all day.

Pretty Dresses & Boutonnieres

I had SO much fun last Sat night.  Our dear friends Sandie and Scott have a daughter (Rachel) who is a freshman at Monroe High School.  When I found out that they were going to have a girlie day of hair/makeup before their homecoming dance, I knew I could not miss out!  It was such a great group of kids and I had so much fun shooting them before their dance.  It brought back such fun memories of high school and it made me a bit nostalgic, but the other side of me is so happy with where I am in life right now that I wouldn't change it for anything.  Here are a few highlights from the shoot (below) ... you can see the rest at http://www.elyssafreemanphoto.com/

Pumpkin & Produce

Caleb and I picked up our pumpkins today!  And I am happy to say that there is more than 1 week till Halloween so we are ahead of the game this year.  We normally go to a farm to cut our pumpkins but this year in an effort to save money and time we decided to head into Redmond and get our pumpkins at a little local market.  I have driven past this place for years but I have never stopped by, boy was I missing out!  They had a great deal on Red Bell Peppers and I was needing carrots to make a new recipe that I am trying tomorrow night, Carrot Soup!  Thanks, Shelley, for the recipe!



YUM! Fresh!!



Business Cards

 

My business cards have arrived for Elyssa Freeman Photography! I am so happy with how they turned out and I am so proud to have designed them myself.  I had posted this picture (a little blurry from my iPhone) last night on Facebook and I got a really good response of positive feedback.  This is just one step closer to having a full fledged photography business.  If you know of anyone who is looking for an affordable photographer, please send them my way! :) I feel so blessed to be doing something I LOVE for my job!