In 2021 we:

• loved the doggies
• went on two trips
• worked every other second

 

The end.

No but for real 2021 was a year of actual exhaustion . Looking back it’s such a blur of working 60+ hour work weeks, while simultaneously doing my best to take advantage of this downtime our world’s been given and prioritize some personal items. I’m trying to make this not sound like such a downer haha but TBH….I’m tired, emotionally and spiritually. Good news is that the season of wedding reschedules is over (hooray!), our other work obligations seem much more manageable and healthier heading into the new year. 2022 seems like it’ll finally be the end of the emotional rollercoaster whirlwind that was 2020 & 2021. A return to normalcy 🙂

But through the grind, were able to say goodbye to so many things that were holding us back. Making up in our 30s for what we did in our 20s. We’re SO thrilled to now be in a healthy position to start looking at homes this year, which we will begin the process next month. It took us forever to even figure out if we will be sticking to our Wisconsin roots or venturing off to the dreamy California, but we **finally** got some clarity (you’ll have to keep reading to find out!)

All the hard work in 2021 seems to be paying off. I can feel myself taking a deep sigh of relief. Some years are glamorous, and some years are those in-between, get in the zone and focus on your responsibilities type of years. After the past few glamorous years of travel, this year of staying put was SO necessary. And as someone who likes to always add adventure and new things and thrills, I’m very proud I finally put myself in check, and prioritized the hard things first.

Iceland

When we did have a break, we took full advantage! This year we finally crossed off our first international trip, to Iceland! To put mildly, it was INCREDIBLE. Hands down our favorite of all our travels thus far, and honestly there is too much I could say about Iceland to fit into this recap. So if you want the full breakdown, check out the 10 Days around Iceland blog where I dive into things like “Why Iceland?”, our packing list (did everything with no checked bags, also didn’t bring any of my professional cameras -eep! Can ya tell?). I include our 10-day Itinerary, why we choose to vancamp vs hotels, so many photos, and some of our most commonly asked questions. If you’re planning a trip to Iceland or have it on your list, definitely check it out. Otherwise here were some highlights of our trip!

Wedding Season

We returned to the height of our wedding season in July which brought us all over the state, from Milwaukee to Eau Claire to Up North. We even got to photograph a wedding just 10 minutes away from our house – so rare!

We always love a good road trip, and this year our drives to/from weddings became extra important. Our schedules were so busy in summer and fall that oftentimes the only time Alex and I could breathe and reconnect with one another was on these drives. 90’s jock jams anyone?

It’s already been two months since our last November wedding and I’m already missing the high and connection and purpose it brings. I know a lot of people won’t relate to this feeling, but as a wedding photographer, nothing beats arriving at the venue on a wedding day, walking in and greeting the beaming couple. We get to forget about our own lives and for that day, all our energy is refocused into capturing the JOY of another’s! No matter what is going on in our lives, weddings always feel like a mental release. There is truly no better energy to be a part of every weekend. This year, I think everyone was just so happy to finally reach this day and see extended family and long distance friends again, the energy was extra contagious!

Looking ahead, I am excited for a well-balanced 2022 season. I’ve found I truly love sticking to 10-15 weddings each summer because I can focus so much more on each couple with much more intention, so we continued with that mindset into 2022. We are now currently booking into 2023 and have some incredible venues and even a destination out to the East coast on the books! We are so excited to continue doing what we love and can’t wait to meet and work with all of you!

And of course, a very special thank you to all 2021 couples. It’s been quite the ride for some of you! We are so thankful to have been let into your special days, every couple blew us away with their kindness, grace, and warmth. I wish I could share so many details of each but this would get verrrrry long! So I’ll stick to just highlighting each couple 🙂 Cheers to another beautiful year of weddings! We all made it through the past two years of reschedules and everyone was happily married! Yay! Here’s a look back:

 

We also photographed some engagement sessions, lifestyle sessions, maternity photos, and a surprise proposal!

SWEET SUMMERTIME

In between weddings and editing, were so many backyard hangs. Grilling hamburgers, throwing the ball around in the yard, and getting out on the water as much as we could!

F I V E  Years Married!

We celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary in August by renting an airbnb in our favorite spot in all of Wisconsin. I almost don’t want to say cause it’s our secret spot!! If you’ve never been to the driftless area of Vernon County and you love rolling hills, you need to go! Ontario specifically holds a lot of meaning for us, so many memories of camping and Kickapoo River canoe trips! This is Amish country, so if you like having lots of things to do just be aware that this is more a place to seek out if you want some peace and quiet and nature. The rolling hills are so surprising, it reminds us of being in Tennessee. After a weekend of fully unplugging, it made us seriously want to live out on the country. We are always happier with less and less choices brings more peace and simplicity. We bought food at the only grocery store in town, and made all our meals. We watched the sun set and lightning storms and the sun rise. We hiked and kayaked and watched on top the hill the amish return home below us after a long day’s work. Cows moo’d and it never felt so…..soothing LOL. So typical Wisconsin, how could we ever leave this state?

 

2021 CULTURE

It wouldn’t be a 2021 year recap without mentioning alllll the other things that made up the year: NFT’s and Crypto becoming mainstream, Netflix shows like Squid Games & Bridgerton bringing in millions of views, conversations on mental health and normalizing therapy were at an all time high, the first same-sex dance couple were paired on Dancing with The Stars, Brittney is free!!, Chris Harrison exits Bachelor Franchise after defending racial insensitivity (as a long time Bachelor viewer this was HUGE), the realness of Cancel Culture, the Capital riot and Biden is president, continued polarization and The Social Dilemma documentary continuing to bring social media issues to light. The government finally confirms UFO’s are real and no one reacts lolol, burnt out workers, everyone (EVERYONE) is short staffed, workplaces reinventing the new workplace normal. The production and delivery of vaccines and boosters and reopening borders for travel, Jeff Bezos space flights begin, weather is more extreme and California is on fire….

Which leads me to our…

Cali Road Trip: From Vegas to Tahoe, Along Scenic Hwy 395

We just so happened to plan a trip through Cali along their current fire zone. It was a brilliant idea! To be fair, we had no idea when planning how badly the current fires would actually effect our trip. The month leading up, we knew there were some seriously bad fires just south of Lake Tahoe that did end up dying out thank goodness. There were still awful fires taking place further south in Sequoia National Park, but being that Cali is a large and long state, we truly didn’t think that we would be affected all the way up north. Turns out, when there is wind, we were way wrong.

California Fires are no joke, and although this trip was not quite at all what we had planned (for reasons I won’t mention like getting smoked out of Mammoth Lakes area where we planned to spend 3 days, poor visibility in Lake Tahoe, cancelling Yosemite due to air quality conditions – AGAIN lol some day we will get here, and lastly, having no good hiking air or visibility of the Sierra Nevada mountains the entire drive home – this was the main reason we chose this particular 395 highway road trip). For someone who is faint of heart and always thinks they’re going to die, this turned out to not be the best choice of location lol. If you’re trying to visit this California mountain area, it may be best to do so in June when fire season is less in full-swing.

After our first two nights in Vegas (one to sleep after a late flight, and 2nd night enjoying the night life), we were excited to hit the road. First up, Death Valley National Park just outside Vegas. We *finally checked this one off our bucket list* after being near this area so many times. If you are are on a road trip, and it’ll be faster to drive through it, definitely do it because although the connection in the park sucks, and the name of the place sounds frightening, it definitely offers some interesting landscape and views. Would it be a place I’d seek out more than a couple hours? Mmmm. Probably not. If you’re into photography definitely wait til sunrise or sunset. We traveled midday in the hot sun and the colors in Artist’s Palette definitely weren’t as vivid (normally it looks like pastel chalk covered the mountains).

As mentioned, there’s NO connection or radio stations whatsoever for four hours or more, so you’ll have to sing songs for like 4 hours, and then 4 hours more as you travel on the 395. This is a very desolate area so make sure your gas tank is full and you bring plenty of water in case of a breakdown. Especially at the end of the main road through the park, there is a lot of uphill climbing, and after spending 4 hours in one of the hottest places on earth, we definitely can understand why cars break down. There’s even a 15 minute section where they advise you to turn off air conditioning to avoid overheating. We took in the views and were very happy to make it out (alive) and with no car problems!

We drove along the gorgeous 395, with the Sierra Nevada mountain views waving to you along the left, and passed by the charming small towns. Stop in Lone Pine and check out the Alabama Hills if you have time. These rocks remind me of Joshua Tree and there are some picturesque views of Mt Whitney! We also highly recommend checking out some hiking around Big Pine, as seen in 2020’s Cali road trip. We were short on time so we kept going.

As we were finally approaching our first main location, Mammoth Lakes, we realized the mountains were looking really hazy. We kept traveling up the mountain, and the light between the trees was so eerie as the sun was setting. Almost like a heavy glowing fog in between the trees. I wish I would have stepped out for a picture. When we got to the top of the hill at our resort, the air was now thick and gray. No one was there except for one parked car, a complete ghost town. Out of curiosity, we covered our mouths from the smoke filled air and walked into the lodge entrance (half expecting it to be closed). The front desk man was busy answering calls on whether or not they were closing due to fires, and assuring people that he wasn’t sure, (LOL), and as far as he knows, they’re open. I wanted to leave due to my gut instinct, but we had spent $$ on this nicer resort lodge so we checked into our room, thinking maybe we’re just from Wisconsin and this is Cali-normal.

After 15 minutes kicking our feet up in bed, we realized our noses and eyes were actually stinging. Okay….probbbbably not healthy lol. So we looked up the air quality online and saw the chart below. We were at 172 – the highest on the chart for the entire area of California and definitely not healthy, and nothing freaks me out more than not being able to breathe. It was too late to fully leave the Mammoth Lakes area, I certainly didn’t want to drive in the mountains in the dark to reach Tahoe. But at the very least, we decided to go back down the mountain where the air quality was much less intense and I felt I could sleep the night.

 

The next morning, we lucked out with the air being good enough to get a morning view of Convict Lake followed by a little hot springs soak. There are so many hot springs in this area we would have loved to explore them all! We continued up to Lake Tahoe where we were optimistic air would be clearer. I forgot how beautiful the drive into Tahoe is, it felt so good to be back especially after the place almost burned a month prior. We checked into our hotel and decided to listen to some live music and grab a bite to eat at our favorite Base Camp pizza. The musician felt connected to Alex’s dancing enthusiasm lolol and after the show, he came up to talk to us.

We got into talking about the area and how we were considering moving here. And he basically told us how terrible the fires and evacuation process has been on him. He laughed and said rather seriously, we should sit tight in Wisco cause soon everyone will be relocating to us in the midwest. I left this conversation realizing this dream of living in California, would always stay a dream. The entire past couple years since visiting California for the first time, I dreamed of moving out here. And during quarantine when everyone was relocating and able to work from home, we actually were truly considering it. So much so that this vacation was actually half us deciding where (which mountain towns) we might want to live. There’s just not a ton of mountain hiking in Wisconsin LOL, and being such lovers of hiking and mountains it made sense to move to them. But it finally all clicked after this conversation from this local.

As beautiful as my California dream was, my gut instinct was telling me this is not where we want to invest or be right now, or even long term. I came to the realization I could not live in a place that I didn’t feel safe majority of the time. I’d much rather live where the clean air and water is. After months and months of long talks and agony over wanting to make up our minds, the smoke ironically gave me clarity. Wisconsin now felt more appealing than ever. We can always just visit Cali on vacays and it’ll be all the more reason to appreciate the mountain hikes when we are able!

So our mountain trip through Cali Hwy 395 filled with alpine lakes hikes and hot spring soaks suddenly was cut very short and turned into us bumming around Vegas not knowing what to do for the last 5 days of our trip (ps: turns out, one night on the Vegas strip is **definitely enough**). But it felt good to finally have this clarity and peace of mind so in a way this trip served a huge purpose. And we were still so happy to get some time away and in the mountains. We got to explore new hot springs along the 395 and revisited some our favorite Vegas hikes. I think we’re ready to hang up the Cali towel for a little while, but eventually we’d love to come back for a second try when there is less fire risk and check off more hot springs & hiking trails we had initially planned!

Closing out the Year

The rest of October/November was spent in a work/editing haze, wrapping up the wedding season and sending off so many galleries. Putting in the most hours ever worked **in my life** juggling meeting demands at my other job. But in early November we got lucky with beautiful weather for a much needed girls overnight getaway in the Dells. Spa, shopping, restaurants, hiking. A perfect 24 hour escape!

 

At last, December. It’s actually so funny to compare this year in review to last year’s, the effort given in Christmas 2020 was AT AN ALL TIME HIGH lol. Instead, this year I spent my time in recovery mode, focusing on personal projects that I love, like sending out client gifts, and finally going through our vacay photos and putting together our Iceland blog. We had a great time getting together with the full immediate fam this year in-person thanks to no positive COVID tests. I got dressed up for something other than a wedding for the first time all year, and spent New Year’s Eve grocery shopping with Alex for the perfect cheeses in preparation to stay in to watch the ball drop over a steak dinner and charcuterie board 🙂

Looking ahead to 2022

We are excited for a much more balanced schedule. And less vacations (woah did I say that). As amazing as road trips are, doing two 10-days road trips in the same summer/fall season was a lot to plan out. For 2022, I think our biggest priority will be on buying a house and making sure we have everything set for that!

Now of course we can’t go a full year without travel, so we did score some $100 round trip flight deals from Appleton to Denver for early June, where we plan to do another 10-day road trip (insert cry emoji….we just can’t get enough road trips!). While in Colorado, we’ll be seeing my fav band Lord Huron at Red Rocks Amphitheater, a venue that has been high up on my bucket list  am so stoked! Not sure what else we’ll do in Colorado as it isn’t fully mapped out yet, but we would love to do some hikes around Aspen and see what that fuss is all about! As well as Colorado Springs/Garden of the Gods, and the town of Ouray to try out UTV’ing for the first time. Overall, just take in the mountain views and hot springs. Hopefully being June there won’t be any fires in this area. We plan to do this by van again, since we have a voucher for Escape Campervans after we cancelled our trip to the Tetons in exchange for Iceland (are you sick of our van travels through mountains yet)? Maybe someday we’ll sit on a beach on a tropical vacation LOL.

As far as goals…we’ll have a bit more tangible goals for 2022 after this coming weekend. I rented a winter’s getaway retreat airbnb in the woods for Alex and I to just be still. I always love this quiet time after the new year. There’s less distractions and I have much more capacity to think clearly and creatively. So we’ll be doing a necessary lil detox from 2021, get some pampered massages at Sundara (which we have never been to before!! So excited), and use the stillness to brainstorm and listen to what we truly need right now, and from this coming year.

If I had to choose a word for 2022, it would be: Connection

Did anyone else feel a bit disconnected this year? It feels like 95% of my waking hours were spent working from home, so I guess it’s easy to see why lol. I spent so much of this year behind a computer screen, that at times, it felt my only connection to the outside world was listening to podcasts.. while at work LOL.

This was the year that therapy and mental health became normalized. It seemed everyone was using this downtime to really put in the work and challenge and grow themselves. I spent my workdays listening to so many podcasts on self-growth and life coaching this year that I’m a littttttle burnt out haha! But this was a goal of mine going into 2021, to further this exploration into thine self, and I will say, the hours put into listening to these types of conversations every single day (shout out to Jay Shetty’s On Purpose) have definitely helped tremendously over the course of a year. I was able to recognize and address some unhealthy patterns and realize that I do not always need to be *doing*fixing*planning* something. I can simply just be.

 

The biggest mental health takeaways this year:

A few stood out from the rest, so I wanted to share them in case anyone needs a lil dose of self-growth heading into this new year!

• You do not always need a plan. (MEEEEE MEE ME). It’s okay to sit back and just experience what comes.
• Your life is only as good as your mindset. If you’re not happy, change your mindset.
• Get inspired by your own story, your own vibe, YOU are all the inspiration you will ever need.
• Pay attention to what you feel like after spending time with someone. It’ll tell you everything you need to know.
• You are not responsible for other people’s happiness. Release this pressure.
• Just because you carry it well doesn’t mean it’s not heavy. Let it go.
• You don’t have a soul, you are a soul and you have a body. (I don’t know how to explain my feelings about this one without going super deep, but basically…this one helped me finally release the pressure of physical perfection most woman like me have. I realized the soul is just so much more profound than the body. Like, if you really think of it, the body is really just an outer shell, a platform that allows our soul to be in the physical world. I’m not saying don’t take care of your body and be healthy, but definitely don’t measure your worth or let anyone else measure your worth based on this outer shell).
• Setting a boundary is not being rude, sharing your feelings is not being dramatic, having needs or holding others accountable and having expectations is not being difficult.
• Don’t forget to drink water and get some sunlight. Because you’re basically a house plant with more complicated emotions.
• Just Be (thanking Alex for reminding me of this one when I need it most) 🙂

 

So many lessons learned this year, and I’m happy to have done self-reflective work, but now I am ready to expand outward again. At the end of the day, all I know is I am not my fullest, happiest self when I am in isolation 95% of the time. Is anyone? I want to build more connection with other people and things around me and outside my four walls.  I understand that I am who and what I surround myself with whether it’s the TV shows I watch, the podcasts I listen to, the people I follow, or the company I choose. I think the world can all agree we’re a little burnt out and we just want some peace, happiness, joy again. I’d love to start finding the connection and community again. Whether that’s getting back to sharing my purpose/ voice through my photography business, moving to a new area, finding new hobbies and meeting new friends, volunteering or helping out in a cause we believe in to make an even greater impact and connection to the world we live in.

So long 2021. You exhausted me and challenged me. But I’m ready to take these lessons with me in 22′. Cheers to everyone for making it this far! You are here. You are alive! Let’s hope for a lighter, more connected year!

 

Thank you all for following along with me another year!

As always, stay adventurous – Meghan

It’s going to be impossible to remember 2020 without looking back and remembering first and foremost, the Pandemic that turned our worlds upside down as we tried to grip onto any sort of normalcy. Add in an increasingly tense political atmosphere and the battle of two Americas, and BLM that had so many of us awakened of the systemic racism that exists in our country. With no distractions, and everyone tuning in, 2020 forced us to see the hard and uncomfortable truths in our society, and rather than continuing to turn a blind eye, actually become a part of the conversation. To do the work, to unlearn and to relearn. The best word I can come up for 2020 is “monumental” and for so many reasons, I know this year will be remembered for centuries to come.

Aside from everything going on in the outside world, it wasn’t always heavy! We welcomed a sweet floofball into our home, turned the key to our first non-apartment and non-wheeled living space. Celebrated 14 couples on their wedding days after lots of rescheduling and shifting and downsizing and re-imagining, and met my newly engaged 2021 couples! I turned the big 3-0 and we set out to California, spending 10 days scenic driving & living out of a converted van. I discovered the glorious world of podcasts while working from home haha (okay where have these been my whole life?! they kept me so feeling so entertained and educated and inspired each and every day!) I used the extra downtime I was given to try to process my feelings on a more regular basis, instead of always distracting myself. And I ended this year with a deep dive into self-discovery — understanding my motivations, fears, and everything in-between (aka I hopped on the Enneagram bandwagon & now am convinced I have been fully “seen” – where are my Type #7’s at?)

Anyways! I should probs share a few of the kajillion photos I’ve taken this year right?! Here are our top highlights that made up our 2020!

Lennie – The Best Quarantine Decision

Whenever I am going through something uncomfortable (aka a pandemic), I have a tendancy to busy myself with distractions. Not being able to travel or plan any future trips, I of course figured out how to bring adventure into our own living room! So meet Lennon aka “Lennie.” The perfect dose of happy distraction that lifted our spirits and kept us entertained all throughout those first months of lockdown – and onward! Our hearts grew 10 times bigger this year, and I seriously can not imagine getting through quarantine without this sweet boy and his mouth-breathing, slobber tongue, and playful cuddles the entire time! It was our first time raising a puppy together, and gotta say – I think we’re pretty good at parenting!? Gosh I miss these little legs.

A Wedding Industry Turned Upside Down

When the world shut down in March, immediately all I could think of was my brides, my weddings, what will happen to this year?! Will it be cancelled? Every couple had to make some hard and emotional decisions and I am so proud of each and every one for handling this year with so much grace. Some chose to wait it out and risk keeping their dates, hopeful they’d be able to still happen. Many had to cut their guest lists, some to just 4 people! Others chose outdoor and intimate venues in backyards or parks. And others rescheduled to later in the year or 2021 to be able to celebrate their day as planned when times would be safer.  There was tons of shifting and re-shiftiing but in the end we were lucky to still be able to serve 14 couples on their wedding day! Along with meeting some of our new 2021 engaged couples 🙂 Despite everything, love wasn’t cancelled this year and it was another successful, beautiful year of weddings!

A look back on all the couples we celebrated this year:

CHELSEA & RYAN | 1.18.20 | FETE OF WALES | WALES, WI

MEGAN & SPENCER | 6.20.20 | CHAIN O’ LAKES | WAUPACA, WI

HALEY & BRAD | 7.18.20 | GRAND GENEVA RESORT & SPA | LAKE GENEVA, WI

MELISSA & ERIC | 7.25.20 |BURLAP AND BELLS | BLACK RIVER FALLS, WI

CAITLIN & BEN | 8.08.20 | POP UP WEDDING | VILLA TERRACE ART MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI

KATIE & JOSH | 8.08.20 | POP UP WEDDING | VILLA TERRACE ART MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI

EMILY & RUDY | 8.15.20 | BACKYARD WEDDING | ELKHORN, WI

RAQUEL & TIM | 8.21.20 | INTIMATE PARK WEDDING | EAU CLAIRE, WI

LISA & MARK | 8.28.20 | MONONA TERRACE ELOPEMENT | MADISON, WI

AMELIA & TYLER | 8.29.20 | THE CARRIAGE HOUSE | OCONOMOWOC, WI

KATIE & ZACH | 9.05.20 | ST. JOHNS ACADEMY & CHENEQUA COUNTRY CLUB | DELAFIELD, WI

BRIANA & DYLAN | 9.19.20 | LILYDALE | CHIPPEWA FALLS, WI

ALYSSA & BRANDON | 10.09.20 | THE ATRIUM | MILWAUKEE, WI

KAITLYN & MICHAEL | 10.17.20 | WHISTLER’S KNOLL | HORTONVILLE, WI

And the new engaged couples we got to meet!

HAILEY & BRETT’S COFFEE SHOP ENGAGEMENT SESSION | BOXED & BURLAP, LAKE GENEVA, WI

BRITTNEY & ZACH’S NATURE STROLLS ENGAGEMENT SESSION | DELAFIELD, WI

LESLIE & LUKE’S ENGAGEMENT SESSION ON THEIR FAMILY LAND | WATERTOWN, WI

SARAH & ANDREW’S HARTMAN’S CREEK ENGAGEMENT SESSION | WAUPACA, WI

Special thank you to all the couples who made up this 2020 wedding season!

An Iceland Trip Turned Cali Road Trip

I entered the first two weeks of the year bedridden with some “unknown virus.” Hands-down the most miserable illness of my life, and looking back I had every single symptom of COVID. But I occupied my time by putting together a 2019 blog post on our adventures while spending a year on wheels, and creating a 2020 vision board. One of those visions was finalllllyy booking our first overseas trip. Destination?

I C E L A N D

I spent my days in bed planning out our itinerary: snorkeling between two tectonic plates, vanlifing around the island, endless waterfall and craters and volcanic activity, a world of lime green grass and black sand. Whale watching and remote camping, and hiking on top of Glaciers and into Ive Caves. This world looked like another planet and I was so giddy with excitement to turn the big 3-0 in such a magical way. Life was feeling too good. Something had to go wrong.

Well, a couple months later, the world literally shut down — eep, no big!?!? I remained hopeful but every week I would check Icelandic Air’s website for the latest press release with no good news.. Come June when we still weren’t allowed in the country, I had to admit it just wasn’t going to happen for us. It was onto a Plan B.

My days in June were now so filled between getting up at 5am to run and wear out a four month old Lennie so I could work a few hours peacefully at home before he’d wake up. And then I’d have to run with him again at lunch to exhaust him yet again so I could work the afternoon. Evenings I still had to spend all my free time wearing out Lennie and as soon as he would give me moments to breathe I’d bury myself into quickly re-imagining an entire 10-day trip in just two weeks time.

We shot our first wedding of the season at the end of June, and just a few days afterwards we were headed out west to California, back to the golden state that we still had so much left on our bucket list to see! I didn’t realize how hard it would be to leave my growing baby puppers behind, but Alex and I were so excited to have some time just the two of us again and felt beyond lucky to go on an adventure that didn’t involve our backyard!

We spent the next 10 days escaping reality and living out of a campervan and exploring all the scenic spots in central California, The Sierra Nevada Valley, Lake Tahoe (turned the big 3-0!), drove through Napa and San Fran and down the coast. Finally checked off our Highway 1 bucket list, camped near Big Sur, and completed our trip by spending the Fourth in one of my favorite places – Joshua Tree (View our full Cali trip HERE)

Our First Home for our Growing Fam

After our Cali trip, we returned home to what finally felt like a normal “busy season” again. Our world was slowly opening back up and weddings were happening again. Our growing puppy started to make it known that we needed a bigger living space to continue to grow our family. A few weeks later it was August, and after 10 years living in small apartment spaces or on wheels, we finally upgraded to a home ** with a fenced in and private backyard. Oh the glory!!! We had so many weddings stacked up this month from spring postponements, along with working our other fulltime jobs, but we grilled out in the yard and had fires and enjoyed our newly domesticated life as much as we possibly could before the inevitable cold weather would come!

The Changing of Seasons

With almost all our weddings of the year taking place in August, my months of September and October were spent in an editing haze, keeping up on my timeline for delivering galleries while shooting our remaining four weddings and balancing that with our other jobs. The air outside became super political and heated and it was harder to balance all that was going on in our society and work and keeping social lives. I tried to make sure I gave myself enough rest & relaxation – which ironically is not actually physically resting, but usually involves social activities and getting outside in nature.

We took the dogs to Rib Mountain at the peak of fall colors, I got to see a different side of Appleton and it’s scenic river walks with my sister, and we took a much needed girls trip to La Crosse where we hiked the beautiful bluffs along the Mississippi River. These times in nature and with loved ones are the moments that truly nourish my soul the most and allow me to reset.

Allowing Myself to Feel & Process

This year was heavy. And up until the last months I rarely allowed myself to process anything as it was happening – kind of like I just disassociated it. My life was busy and if I sat and thought about things too long it became too much for me. I couldn’t watch the news, and I could barely go on social media. In these times I turned inward, to my closest people, and focused on self-care. I didn’t realize that by not allowing myself to process my emotions I wasn’t truly practicing self-care. I was just escaping via other distractions. But with no more weddings in November and December, I found my mental capacity beginning to open up again and then all at once.

I started to really work on self-care through Enneagram and therapeutic podcasts. And I honestly have never felt more seen and heard. I recognized I have this wired-in need to endlessly achieve, and an inability to rest. That I am constantly focused on the next great experience or finding new ways to live the most meaningful life. And that this can also be a way of escapism. When life gets dark, or confusing, I love to alter that energy into something positive, and when I can’t turn a bad situation into an enjoyable situation, I escape to find joy and fulfillment elsewhere. Buying a puppy on a whim, planning our next trip, busying myself with home projects, anything to get me focused back on happiness and excitement.

I now understand that my biggest fears are being deprived, feeling trapped in negative emotions, or feeling loss of control. All of which made up 2020. 2020 was the most challenging but necessary year for my journey to growth, because through forcing me to give up control and forcing me to stay put, it allowed me to just BE here in the moments that make up my life. That it’s good to sit in the uncomfortable sometimes, as it allows us to fully listen and learn.

 

A Half Virtual Christmas

Come November, I found so much joy decorating our new home for its first Christmas and carefully planning out gifts for loved ones. We drove around and looked at all the Christmas lights in the area, made sugar cookies for the first time (and almost broke our teeth) watched so many holiday cookie challenge shows and Christmas movies (Klaus being a new animated fav!) Started collecting my Christmas Village set and broke last year’s new tradition of getting a real Christmas tree (we were scared Lennie would eat it LOL). When Christmas Eve and day came, we enjoyed necessary time with loved ones both in person and virtually.

New Year’s Hopes & Manifestations

I enter 2021 recognizing that it’s not an escape from the uncomfortable reality of 2020. For me it’s a continuation of constant self-growth and understanding. No concrete goals I need to achieve, just some fun ideas I’m *hoping* to be able to do! and if they don’t, I know I’ll be okay with that too.

A few things I’m gonna put out into the universe, in hopes they will happen:

1. Sounds so cliche, but I want to really make fitness a priority. Quarantine Nineteen is a THING, and we were so busy that we neglected our bodies more than we would have liked. Going into 2021 Alex and I have realized that our number one goal in LIFE is to eventually hike the Pacific Crest Trail – in **FULL** (from Mexico to Canada along the Sierra Nevada) This is a 4-6 month long excursion in a completely rugged terrain. And in order to be in a position to take this on within the next decade, we’re gonna have to start training our bodies and our minds. So going into 2021 we would love to start small with some weekend-long backpacking, working our way into week-long hikes. And tons of Pelaton and lifting weights 😉 Call me crazy for putting a 10 year goal on this list. I just know that you never get anywhere unless you start somewhere.
2. Sit down and do the hard stuff. Continue to work on myself. My responsibilities. The not-so-exciting stuff. Take care of these things so they don’t pile up and make me crave more distractions.
3. Get to a point where I can spend a Saturday lounging around and feel no shame, whatsoever.
4. Be able to take our pending Iceland Trip this summer?!? I still have the itinerary ready to go, the campervan booked, and all the activities paid for (vouchers) so I’d just really *really* like to see it all come true! If not Iceland – then I’d love to experience Wyoming and the Grand Tetons in fall when the aspen leaves turn yellow. We’ve found throughout the years that the mountains makes us most at peace. Perhaps do a couple weeks backpacking there? Weee shalll seee!

 

On a day-to-day basis I never feel like I do enough, and it’s not until I look back on an entire year that I realize woah- our lives now look so different. And although it takes a lot out of me, it’s why I find writing these year-in-reviews to be so necessary. A time for me to sit back and reflect and open my eyes to the truths that have been happening all around me and within me for the past dozen months. See what has changed, am I any different? What lessons have I taken away? It gives me a moment to feel proud. Especially in this year. Cause despite being in a pandemic, there was SO. MUCH. GOOD. So much growth. And not in the ways I was expecting, but in the ways that were needed.

I know going into a new Year can bring up pressure to be better, to set goals, and to achieve. Especially if you’re at all like me. But no matter where you are at going into this new year I want to remind you :

You are already enough. Remove pressure to endlessly achieve. Give yourself time to process things around you and heal and learn and grow, always. Continue to make self-care a priority. It’s okay not to have concrete plans going into 2021 but to instead just see where your ideas take you. Wherever you feel pressure, I hope you release it. And wherever you need more care and attention, I hope you receive that.

Cheers to surviving in this Pandemic , friends and happy new year!

YEAR IN REVIEW

JAN – APRIL

I don’t normally do an extensive year-in-review, but I decided this year was simply too incredible to not be documented in a special way.

We started 2019 with no idea where we would be (literally) when Dec 31 hit. Geographically & mentally speaking, it was all pretty up in the air. At the turn of 2019 we were brand spankin new at fulltime traveling. Only one month into our new living situation – our family of 3 in a 21 foot travel trailer – and settling down in the Southwest for the coming winter.

A few moments I will remember forever:

• Arriving into our first destination: Palm Springs, California. With all its palm trees that greeted us into our first long-term stay while living on wheels. And the feeling like we were homeless within this magical Hollywood getaway destination (Kris Jenner one of many that has a home here). Nonetheless it was the first and only place that made us feel home while away from home. The wind turbines, the joshua trees, the hazy purple mountains. The late night desert hot spring soaks and the cackling coyotes. Something about this place fascinated us and to this day is a place we often talk about visiting again. Also it had all the malls and restaurants and hiking I could ever dream.
• It snowing as we drove into Santa Fe, and later on the whole desert?!?! It seemed we were bringing the snow with us from Wisconsin everywhere we went. But it was actually really beautiful seeing the snow contrast with the red rocks and covering the palm and cactus landscapes. A different type of scene that was for sure.
• Breaking down Christmas Eve in LA and scrambling to find any available car mechanics, also breaking down Valentines Day in Vegas (why did we always break down in major cities and on romantic holidays?) Also our car being broken into and my laptop stolen while parked at Venice Beach. Good times had by all.
• Walking up to the Grand Canyon at sunset to get our first peek of it. We were so giddy to finally see it & I’m happy I got Alex’s reaction on video. His face as he looked back at me said it all.
• Conquering the climb up  to the top of Cathedral Rock. This was the first real attempt I made at conquering my phobia of heights  (which afterwards, created a whole new thrill for me in taking on more dangerous hikes)
• Driving through Joshua Tree National Park, the Doors album through the speakers, feeling like I was a 70’s California flower child
• Soaking in natural hot springs in the redrock mountains after climbing/descending chutes and ladders and ropes (by far the quirkiest hike we’ve done! We also had to dodge some naked men!)
• Driving through Slab City & seeing how the real deal hippies live. Being mind-boggled by the Salton Sea
• Stepping outside the camper at night and instantly being in awe. We were staying in the middle of nowhere near the Salton Sea and the stars were so bright they were actually twinkling and even seemed to be dancing. Alex spends many nights looking up at the stars, but this night he could see Orien in full for the first time. He pointed it out to me star by star, point by point, line by line, all the while as the stars twinkled and danced there way before my eyes until its figure was so evidently there. One of the most beautiful memories of my life.
• The old man who welcomed himself into our camper at 10:00 at night
• Camping alone in the red rocks just outside Zion National Park, and realizing the giant sheer mountain face just a few steps past the little river stream by our camper was the park’s iconic Watchman mountain (it took us going all the way in the park to realize we were camped right on top of it! Surreal)
• Taking a night swim in Desert Hot Springs and hearing a pack of cayotes howling/chanting/cackling – the most startling sound I’ve ever experienced.
• Celebrity spottings in LA – Chris Kattan literally running his face into Alex’s Belly as he exited a Rite Aid, not paying attention where he was going. Also seeing the Property Brothers casually leaving brunch across the street on Christmas Eve in Larchmont Village.
• Overall just everyone in California looking so chic and with perfect brows meanwhile I’m a dirty homeless hippy in need of a tweezers.
• Cash’s excitement to get into the SUV anytime we were packing up the trailer to go some place knew, also Cash’s excitement to get out of the trailer anytime we arrived some place new. Just like me, he never got tired of it.
• Anytime I realized we were living in a camper and traveling the country with my two boys. For the first time in my life there was simply nothing more I was searching for.

 

There are so many lessons and so many memories I will take from this experience that made me feel I was truly *alive.*  Full body, life changing experiences. They are also the hardest to put into words. Living on wheels is a challenge for sure, but no matter what happens this way of life for me anyway is **10 times more rewarding** because it creates deeper experiences and really creates a special bonds within yourself and the people who shared in the experience with you. I now get to share so many of them with Alex.

Lastly, I discovered that traveling fulltime is both a beautiful blessing and curse. When you’re going at it fulltime, you don’t always have the mental capacity to pause and reflect and truly appreciate these experiences the way they deserve. You’re too focused on the schedule ahead and the next experience. As incredible as it was to be traveling months on end, I am now a firm believer in doing everything in moderation. Even when it’s a good thing, you need to take mental breaks, and every once in a while you just need to come home 😉

MAY – AUGUST

After spending our share of time in Arizona, California, Nevada, Utah, back to Arizona, then New Mexico – it was April and time to head back to Wisconsin for wedding season <333! We were fortunate to work with 15 lovely couples + meet many more 2020 couples.

We kept our “home on wheels” travelin’ life still going strong back home in Wisconsin,  using each week’s wedding location as our home base for that week or two until the next came along.

Although I likely won’t do it again because it required tons of extra planning and coordination during an already busy wedding season, I am glad that we gave one summer on wheels a go. We were able to check off so much on our bucket list: Apostle Islands, Upper Michigan, the charm of Lake Geneva, +  finally got to check out Duluth where Alex used to live (pics of our Superior trip later down in this post!) We were able to see so much of our home state of Wisconsin + Midwest that we never saw before and might have never had the proper chance.

SOO without further adieux, here are 2019’s loveliest **newlyweds!**

KIM + NICK | CATHEDRAL ROCK | SEDONA, ARIZONA (FROM MARCH 30, 2019 )

MEGAN + DEREK | BLACK SWAN | MILWAUKEE WI | MAY 4 2019

KELSIE + JASON | THE LAGERET | STOUGHTON WI | MAY 24 2019

ALI + FATIMA | SHORES OF LAKE MICHIGAN | WHITEFISH BAY WI | MAY 30 2019

AMBER + RYAN | THE LAGERET | STOUGHTON WI | JUNE 7 2019

LEXIE + JASON | ST JAMES FARM FOREST PRESERVE | WARRENVILLE IL | JUNE 13 2019

LAKE SUPERIOR TRIP

This was the summer of work hard / play hard. During the off-weekends we made the most of it by checking off some long overdue bucket list items. We took a two week trip dedicated to Lake Superior, and involving three different spots: 1) Duluth, MN 2) Apostle Islands, WI and 3) Porcupine Mountains, MI.

Favorite memory: Chasing all the cargo ships coming into Duluth + biking Madeline Island after one two many drinks…but we stumbled upon the quintessential Apostle Island view!♡

 

We then got ourselves stationed at Neshonoc RV Resort near La Crosse – our favorite of all the WI Thousand Trails membership locations (pssst, if you’re going to be doing some fulltime RV traveling I highly recommend looking into a yearly membership through them) We enjoyed the view of the lake and got ourselves ready to photograph wedding #1 of 3 at Burlap and Bells this season. So many of our couples chose the forest to say “I do” and we could NOT have been more on board!

CAITLIN + ROBERT | BURLAP & BELLS | BLACK RIVER FALLS WI | JULY 27 2019

DANIELLE + ANDREW | WHITE OAK CHAPEL | BRILLION WI | AUGUST 3, 2019

GLACIER & BANFF

August marked 3 years of marriage & 10 years of Alex and I being together. I forced myself a year ago to block off this whole entire month so we could set aside time to take a major trip. We went with Alex’s location of choice and lifelong bucket list item — Glacier National Park. I won’t get too much into our time here because I wrote ALLLL about our trip in this blog post here. But basically, this place was insane. Definitely the highlight trip of the year and our new favorite place on EARTHHH. We’ve seen a lot of cool shizz this past year but if I could recommend just ONE place you see, it’s Glacier. HOLY LIFECHANGING.

 

SEPTEMBER – OCTOBER

We came back from our Glacier trip refreshed & ready for a fully packed fall season. 6 weddings in the month of September alone + meeting soo many of my new 2020 couples! I still need to get these lovely weddings on my blog so stay tuned this off season while I play catchup!

CARLY + DAN | MAXWELL MANSION | LAKE GENEVA WI | SEPTEMBER 1, 2019

BEKKA + NATE | BUBOLZ NATURE PRESERVE | APPLETON WI | SEPTEMBER 6, 2019

SARA + ADAM | BURLAP & BELLS | BLACK RIVER FALLS WI | SEPTEMBER 7, 2019

CHRISTINE + MYKAL | HARTMAN CREEK STATE PARK | WAUPACA WI | SEPTEMBER 19, 2019

AUBREE + ELLIOT | BURLAP & BELLS | BLACK RIVER FALLS WI | SEPTEMBER 21, 2019

JORDAN + ZACH | CASTLE FARMS | CHARLEVOIX MI | SEPTEMBER 29, 2019

During this trip to Charlevoix for Jordan & Zach’s wedding we also made a few stops along the way to Mackinac Island and Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes (but don’t go all the way down to the water, unless you want to spend two hours getting back up or pay to be helicoptered out!)

 

We had a month to play catch up on all the editing, and then last not but least we celebrated:

EMILY + DUSTIN | BRIGHTON ACRES | OSHKOSH WI | OCTOBER 26, 2019

+ SHOT MANY ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS AT SOME RAD PLACES

 

+ SHOT AN ANNIVERSARY SESSION WITH AMANDA + JOE BACK WHILE WE WERE IN BANFF

 

+ DAPPLED WITH A FEW FAMILY SESSIONS

 

NOVEMBER – DECEMBER

With the cold weather moving in Alex and I started discussions on what to do next. Another adventure down south, or put the travel trailer in storage and find an apartment around here to bunker down for the winter. For months we weren’t seeing eye to eye and it was so difficult to know what to do. I didn’t want all good things to end. I could have seriously lived on wheels forever. I didn’t know it a couple months ago, but now I know for sure that pauses are good and breaks are necessary. All good things must end– at least temporarily.

Alex has been simply amazing, always. He has encouraged me try out a lot of the things I wanted to do this past few years — like start up a biz and join me in my travel lifestyle, and now it was my turn to ask him what he needed – which was some serious structure and routine. In October we signed a year long lease to an apartment and although I went through a little identity crisis and may have cried a little (read: actually began SOBBING in a Best Buy parking lot on our way to get our cable router LOL), my anxieties quickly subsided when we began actually living in our new space and I realized how NICE it was to have things like a washer/dryer, full size fridge, stove, oven, SHOWER, couch to spread out our legs and hallways to move our feet from one room to the other. The finer things in life 🙂 Boy, looking back at this past year we were REALLY slumming it.

The first few days in our apartment (of course had to add in all the adventure decor/feels as possible).

 

SPONTANEOUS TRIP TO ARIZONA

My newfound love of bunkering down in Wisconsin for the winter was put to the test when our nephew Daniel asked us to join him in a road trip to AZ for a week. Part of me was worried I wouldn’t come back haha. But I am SO happy that we decided to do it. We stayed at the cutest hotel in Scottsdale for the weekend and checked off the Kasha Katuwe Tent Rocks on our way back home in Santa Fe (we happened to miss this gem while traveling through last year)! After Santa Fe I was actually missing home and just so anxious to get back and start decorating our new home for Christmas + get into the holiday spirit.  And just to simply enjoy a season of REST.

 

Right before we left for our trip to AZ we celebrated Alex’s 32nd bday at Lambeau Field (our first time seeing actual STARTERS play!) & ended up being a high scoring and *winning* game vs the Raiders. My sister and I also took a day trip to Madison to see Lana Del Rey, which is now about the only music I listen to while editing. After we got back from Arizona we celebrated my Grandma’s 80th birthday at the casino (and she won big!) and enjoyed the perfect Thanksgiving meal, plus Black Friday + Small Biz Saturday with the girls.

 

We started this Christmas season with a new tradition, Alex and I went to get us our first real tree. We spent a wonderful holiday with family and friends and it felt TWICE as merry as usual (to make up for our last doozy of a Christmas :P)

 

2010-2020, WOAH you were a crazy decade in the best way possible. I met the love of my life, graduated college, adopted our fur child, had multiple career changes, married the love of my life, started a business, took a chance living on wheels, and saw more places in this beautiful country of ours I never knew I’d see in my lifetime. People always ask older people “what were the best year’s of your life?” Well…my 20’s were simply the best + most rewarding years of my life thus far. But I’m hoping (and have a good feeling) there’s still more to this story 😉

Thank you so much to all the friends, fam, couples and vendors that I have worked with this past year and decade! You are all so loved and appreciated! Cheers to the NEW 2020 DECADE!

Happy new year (a tad belated)! It’s been a while since I last blogged, I’ve been enjoying some downtime and netflix and weekends sleeping in. But I’m excited to get back at it again. My mind has been busy lately reflecting on this past year, the whole insanely awesome ride. Last January I was a girl working a 9-5 office job, dreaming of a life beyond my cubicle. And in just a couple months I’ll be turning in my badge, and diving on into to the world of self-employment. A full-time wedding photographer and girl boss entrepreneur. Ready to share my journey of beautiful weddings and couples! It takes a lot for me to be proud of myself, but this year I built a successful brand and business from the ground up, while working full time. I’m literally typing these words and wondering if I’m in a dream. Don’t wake me!

I never would have predicted that this first year with a camera would already have taken me so many incredible places with so many incredible couples. That I’d max out my number of weddings for 2018 and be able to say “so long” to the corporate world. But as much as it oftentimes feels like a blur and that it happened over night, it didn’t. Looking back at all the in-between moments, it took major grit and determination and stamina. There were days I literally broke down to my husband, feeling so guilty that I didn’t make enough time in the week for him. Wrapped up in emails and editing and being home but not really “home.” Spending your first year of marriage starting a business isn’t exactly the most romantic way to enjoy newlywed bliss. But it definitely made us stronger, and I have been shown time and time again just how incredibly lucky I am to have someone so patient and supportive, who’d shake me out of any self-doubt that crept in. Although the lows were pretty low, the highs were incredibly freaking high. Just two weeks ago, all the successes of this past year came and hit me as I was inside Barnes and Noble. As usual I went to the magazine rack and picked up a few wedding magazines. I began flipping through but this time it was work I recognized. I was seeing my own work – printed in Wisconsin Bride Magazine. It still baffles me. This year was filled with so many incredible moments, rolling in this new year just wouldn’t be right without taking a moment to pause and look back at 2017 and thank ALL my amazing couples who helped share a part in my beginning!

So here’s a little recap of my favorite images from each session, in chronological order! I tried narrowing down to one photo, but you’ll see that wasn’t working too well 😉

 

ROMANTIC FOREST WEDDING INSPIRATIONAL SHOOT COLLAB at BURLAP & BELLS

See the full feature on Wisconsin Bride here.

 

 

WHIMSY ALPACA BRIDAL INSPIRATION – AMAZING GRACE ALPACA FARMS

Full blog post here.

 

BECCA + SETH

 

JULIA + ADAM

 

 

ALEX + CODY

 

 

LIZ + BRYAN – LOVELY LAKESIDE WEDDING – HEIDEL HOUSE

 

BRITTNEY + JACK

 

CHELSIE + TOM

 

JAY + RAE

 

SHAYLA + BRONSON

 

AMY + ANDREW

 

AMBER + CHRIS

 

ALEX + CODY – COZY WINTER WEDDING – YMCA CAMP ALEXANDER

(in early stages of editing, check back soon for the full blog reveal!)

 

2017, you were oh so magical!! But I have a feeling 2018 will be the year to beat. Between road trippin’ it to the Pacific Northwest with my husband, having the honor of capturing **16** weddings, and navigating the unknown territory of full-time entrepreneurship. 2018 is going to be FILLED with exciting new adventures! I am READY!!!

Thanks for following along!

xo

Meghan