I met Josh and Trish about a year ago when they booked me to document their day – they shared their vision of a big wedding and lots of guests… a couple months later I got a call and they wanted to chat about changes. The planning was becoming stressful and not fun… they just wanted to be married! So they changed to a simple wedding – just 25 people present – and they just wanted to be married outside by a tree. It was beautiful. I loved that they followed their hearts – not only to each other, but also to their perfect day! All week it called for rain on Saturday – even when I went to bed on Friday it was calling for rain. Woke up to a perfect day – what a gift!

Josh and Trish have been good friends since grade 4 (my daughter’s age – hmmm….) and so they are completely comfortable around each other and have a great relaxed chemistry. They are so fun to be with – Trish’s crazy, quirky, laughing personality and Josh’s calm and serene presence.

You may remember from Josh and Trish’s engagement session – their love for books! So I tried to incorporate books throughout the day’s images.

You can’t really tell – but I know – I put the rings on the page in Pride & Prejudice where Darcy proposes to Elizabeth (the first time). This quote is there “…allow me to tell you how ardently I admire and love you.”

Trish and her girls went to the Farmer’s Market the day of the wedding, bought flowers and then arranged them by themselves – they did an amazing job!

Trish had her good friends come from Georgia – and they gave them this great wedding gift! A wreath made of pages from one of Trish’s favourite books (The Historian). What a beautiful gift!

The beautiful dress. Loved the simplicity of it and how you could change the look with it so easily!

Trish had not planned to wear a veil – but her mom repeatedly asked her to. Whenever she would go for a dress fitting her mom would sneak one on her. Trish knew it was important to her mom, and so she surprised her by wearing a small one she ordered from etsy. Her mom was thrilled!

The beautiful bride!

The girls are READY!

Trish’s dad was so sweet when he saw her for the first time!

And time for the ceremony! They got married at Osler House in Dundas which was beautiful!

We got to the part in the ceremony when they were having a “hand fasting” ceremony… and Trish realized she forgot the rope she had made! In the relaxed feel of the day she yelled out – “I need a tie! Someone give me their tie!” Ricardo was quick to offer his tie and it made for a laugh during the ceremony!

Husband and wife!

This is one happy bride!

Trish had asked for some photos of her and Papa as he is very special to her and his memory is starting to go. It was a good day for him on the wedding and he knew exactly who the beautiful bride was. This is the traditional portrait of him and her….

But to me – this moment where he is congratulating his granddaughter, is much more special (and what I would have loved with my own Grandpa).

The grounds were beautiful at Osler House, and we had lots of fun with the wedding party taking photos.

Oh Trish – I just love you!

And then some time with just Josh and Trish….

High fives – they’re married!

And then we went inside the house – so beautiful!

Josh and Trish – congratulations! Thank you for letting me be a part of your Big Day!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

I’ve been on a bit of a personal project lately to document some of my neighbourhood and community that I adore so much. In the Fall, I sometimes feel like I’m going to burst with looking at so much beauty. It’s like eye candy overload! Not complaining – I just simply LOVE Fall. I’ll be sharing some of these images periodically here on the blog.

On Saturday, I was heading to a wedding and so I had all my gear in my trunk… and I passed the Monthly “Horse and Hound Hunt” that happens on the road I live on. The red coats against the Fall colours was just gorgeous! I drove 5minutes before I realized I had my camera with me ready to go! I quickly turned around and grabbed just a of images. I’d love to document them more sometime, but I had a wedding to get to!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

Megan and I have been emailing for months… so it was great to finally meet her and Jamison last weekend! And to find out Megan is also from Thunder Bay and shares a love of persians (not the cats). Mmmmmmm…..

We met in Toronto around the corner from their condo. It was such a gorgeous day – and fun to wander around and explore!

The middle high rise in the background is their condo… for another week! Fun to document this stage of their lives.

And Jamison and Megan are both huge Phoenix Coyote fans… so we had to do a few in their jerseys!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

I am SO thankful to you for nominating edison photography in the Reader’s Choice awards in the Hamilton Spectator! Over the last 5 years, we have been astonished to not only be nominated but to win awards each year. Wow. Such a HUGE honour – to be chosen and awarded by you! Thank you so much!!

If you feel we deserve your vote again – I’d love to have you vote for us. We are nominated for best Photography Studio under “Business Services” and best Photographer under “People”. You can vote here.

Again – THANK YOU!!!

9 years ago today, I became a mother. We named our little gaffer “Madison” as it means “Gift from God” and my goodness she is just that! This girl has taught me so much about caring, kindness, generosity, laughing, dancing, Justin Bieber, horse facts, and how to love people 150%. She is at an amazing stage in life I’m really enjoying. We can sit and have a good chat and with her quick wit, we always enjoy a laugh. The next minute, she’ll crawl up in my lap or hold my hand. She will put music on and dance with her friends – looking more like a teenager than a 9 year old… and then turn around and play Barbies. I’m loving this mix of grown up Madi who is maturing before my eyes, and little girl Madi who is disappearing before my eyes.

Tonight, I picked Madison up from school. We went through Tim Horton’s drive thru and she got a Smoothie. “You’re the best mom ever!” Then we went to the pet store and she got to pick out a Beta fish as her gift from Eden. “This is the most amazing birthday ever!” And then we picked up KFC for supper (she begs for it all the time and it’s always NO so we promised for her birthday) “I am so happy!!” This kid is so easy to please!!

Then when we got home, in the driveway (in the pouring rain) was my family. Not a huge crowd – just a few of Madi’s family… and she was so shocked and excited. SHe said “What the crap?!” And then jumped out and hugged them all. All night Madi said “This is the best birthday ever… I’m so happy…”

To Madi, it’s about people. She could be thrilled if we had stopped there without gifts. Her “love language” is the gift of time. She just wants to be with the people she loves. She was just beaming. It was such a fun night!

One new tradition Madi started at Eden’s birthday, was everyone writes down something we love about the birthday girl. Then they’re read aloud and she guesses who wrote them. It was such a great idea that we’re doing it at all our birthdays now! Such a great way to honour the birthday person! Hannah (her cousin) read them all aloud… and Eden did the drum roll before each one.

(Eden took a LONG time writing hers out – she said “I love everything about her.” and then filled the entire page with “X”‘s and “O”‘s. Hope she always feels this way!)

Happy Birthday Madison! I love you dearly and am so honoured God chose me to be your mom!

Celebrating life, love and Madison,

Krista

On Facebook and Twitter everyone has been talking about Pumpkin Spice Lattes, bundling up cozy with sweaters, baking, etc. and it put me in the mood for Fall! So, today while I was out grocery shopping I decided to grab the ingredients to make the girls some pumpkin cookies. (Disclaimer- by “ingredients” I mean a pillsbury package where all I do is pop them in the oven. And by “pumpkin cookies” I mean the ones with pumpkin faces on them). I imagined the girls coming home to the house smelling of baking and enjoying a warm cookie on a cold, wet day. Some dreams never come true I’m learning. Me being Martha is one of them.

Can you see the cute pumpkin designs on them? No, me neither. Too much black! ha ha

Whoops!

Hope your Fall preparation is going better than mine. Happy Monday!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

I love to travel. Probably every single day at some point I’m dreaming up a vacation I’d love to do someday. But – I’m a nervous flyer. Makes no sense, but I am. So when my dad built his plane I said right from the start “That’s great, I’m proud of you, but my family is never going in it.”

Well, in this house of young girls – we listen to a lot of Justin Bieber. And in his words… “never say never”.

Yep, tonight we each took a turn in dad’s plane… and yes, I was nervous. But I did it! And it was great. Our family rates everything on a thumb scale – and each of us as we landed gave two thumbs up! It was great to fly over our own home and neighbourhood! I didn’t take too many pictures as we flew – hard to get a good picture with plexiglass windows. I did open the window at one point – but just as quickly closed it! Not THAT brave!

When we got to the airport Eden RAN to the plane and jumped in. Guess she wanted to be first to go!

With firm instructions from me not to scream of touch anything… my baby was off!

See that up there? That’s my heart. Sigh. She came back to me safely though!

Two thumbs up!

Madi is like me – much more nervous. She got the low down form Eden before she jumped in.

Looking confident.

Then she got a little nervous – ha ha.

Two thumbs up!

Mark was next. Mark had never flown before we started dating. His first flight EVER was in a little Cessna plane my brother was flying… and my brother, Dave, thought it would be neat to cut the engine and put the plane into a nose dive spin. Surprised Mark ever got in a plane again! Actually I asked him if was nervous to which he replied “I’ve lived a full and happy life, I’m fine whatever happens.” Love him.

Another happy flyer!

Eden kept trying to sneak in for another turn… such a daredevil.

ANd then it was the moment of truth. I asked Dad to show me what to do in case something happened. “Just open the door” he answered. I kept saying “No, I mean if ‘something’ happened.” Finally he caught on… “You mean like I die up there?” Um, yeah. So he gave me a crash course on steering and throttle and… well, I would have had no clue how o land the plane but felt better.

I was nervous taking off (on the grass runway!) and nervous when we turned that I’d fall out the door (again – no logic). But then it was so beautiful seeing homes I recognized and flying over our home, and seeing the beautiful Grand River and…. it was great.

And survey says…. two thumbs up!

Please tell me this is not foreshadowing things to come!

Thanks Dad for a fun night and making me get in and face my fears!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

Ever since I have met Glen and Dorothy I’ve been excited for this wedding. Dorothy has a head full of ideas and I couldn’t wait to see all her planning come together. They are such a fun, quirky couple… I knew the day would be a lot of fun. As a wedding gift they were granted the only nice day of the entire week – it was a beautiful day!

The first thing I saw was the amazing boutonnieres that Dorothy made – they turned out great!

But Glen is crafty too – he made the programs for the wedding and kept with the “rustic chic” theme of the day.

My lovely assistant (and very pregnant cousin!) Kathryn stayed over at the guy’s place while I went on to see Dorothy and the girls. She got these great captures below!

Glen’s initials…

Meanwhile… over at Dorothy’s I found more gorgeous details (and girls – but first the details!)

Dorothy made this awesome brooch bouquet! It includes a brooch from her mother-in-law and one that her bridesmaid Caren had custom made for her (with her initial “D”).

Did I mention these two are quirky? Look at this garland with the gun holster and gun that makes a real noise when you pull the trigger. ha ha!

And the beautiful dress!

The bridesmaid dresses were made by Dorothy’s mom and the bridesmaid’s each had a custom designed purse that were all slightly different.

FInally time to get ready!

Glen gave Dorothy a beautiful necklace – from the gift shop of the Art Gallery of Hamilton (where their reception was)

And the moment you have all been waiting for… the stunning bride. In Glen’s words as she walked up the aisle “Wow.”

And the big reveal to dad!

Time to climb in her Godfather’s vintage Camaro and head to the church!

Dorothy and her dad were so cute as they climbed the steps to the church

The ringbearer Harrison was beyond cute!

And as he ran to mom’s arms – he took time to give Glen “props”. Adorable!

Glen was just beaming as Dorothy came up the aisle!

Married!

This moment seems so symbolic to me as they step out of the door of the church for the first time as husband and wife… entering into their new life ahead!

We then went on to a Stables nearby that was just gorgeous… and the horses were more than friendly (and like the taste of the bridesmaid’s dresses)

Dorothy packed a little picnic for the two of them – girl after my own heart… cupcakes and Coke!

Glen and Dorothy are both internet, technology, gadget freaks… so it made perfect sense to get a photo of them playing on their iPhones. Perhaps changing their Facebook statuses?

And then we wandered the fields a bit… again, with those friendly horses!

And the light in the barn was so beautiful!

And then, back at the Art Gallery we slipped across the street for a few more photos in and around the Gallery downtown Hamilton.

And on to the cocktail hour!

I loved their fingerprint tree for a guest book!

And on to the reception!

The large custom decal behind the head table was a brilliant touch!

Glen’s mom made all the jam! ANd their “kissing game” was a version of MadLibs (fill in the blanks) that was a lot of fun!

The main couple arrives!

The reception has some of Dorothy’s Polish traditions incorporated… they were presented by the parents with salt and bread. The bread represents the parents are hoping that their children will never be hungry or in need. And the salt, they are reminding the couple that their life may be difficult at times, and they must learn to cope with life’s struggles. They are also given a choice of two glasses – one will get vodka, the other water. Whoever gets the vodka will have all the fun and the other… will get to watch. I’ll let you guess who got the vodka.

And another tradition is someone steals the bride’s shoe… and the groom has to buy it back with… vodka.

It was a fun reception!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

A couple week’s ago I shared some of my favourite moments from Jared & Martha’s wedding… but I need to share more. These two are so in love they just beam. They are so adoring and sweet with each other. Gorgeous to watch and inspiring to be with!

We started our day at Martha’s parent’s beautiful home in London.

Thought the tattoo on the makeup artist’s neck was fitting!

One thing Martha repeatedly told me was how very important family is to her and Jared. Her identical twin sister Monica and her mom were on hand to help her get ready.. and her dad’s reaction to her as a bride is so touching.

Beautiful bride!

Meanwhile, over at Jared’s the guys were getting ready. Remember how I said Martha said how important family is? Jared and herself bought a house about a two minute drive from her parents! (Handy for photos of both of them getting ready too!)

“Getting ready” for guys can mean a lot of different things… like playing poker.

And then it was time for the ceremony! When I asked Martha what she was most looking forward to on her wedding she told me “Besides marrying Jared, I’m excited about the mass.” First time I had heard that! But Martha wanted everyone to know and feel God’s love – and I think they did!

Husband and wife!

I just love these two together! They just naturally love – no direction needed!

Love these two moments Carolynn caught!

Had to catch a few of Martha and Monica together too – identical twins!

And then inside to get ready for the reception!

I’ll leave you with this one of them and their great cake – mmmmm…..

Celebrating life and love,

Krista

Today always feels like a New Year to me. Full of hopes, anticipation and wonder of what lies ahead. I love the first day of school. Not because my kids are back at school – I love having them home – but because of a year ahead of question marks waiting to be answered. What will they learn? Who will they hang out with this year? How will they change? What routines do we want to put in place? And so on…. it really does feel like standing on a threshold of change. And I love it. As much as I hate to see my babies grow up, it also excites me to see them develop into the people they are meant to be. And to have a hand in guiding them, is a task that is overwhelmingly huge and a joy at the same time.

My girls love going to school – Madi woke up and yelled out “I’m so happy!!” They could not be more excited to go today. I love seeing them stretch themselves to step out of their comfort zone (especially my shy Madi) and make new friends, enter new situations and embrace life on their own.

So, I send them off to school today with a heart full… and look forward to when they come home and we can hear all about day one in grades two and four!

Madison, going into grade four. She was up a lot last night with jitters – mostly worried that today wasn’t in fact the first day of school and we had gotten the date wrong. She has definitely got her own style now, and knew exactly what she wanted to wear and how she wanted her hair.

And Eden is going into grade two. Eden is so excited as she loves spending time with her friends and learning! She thinks she looks part cheetah, part panther in this outfit.

My four girls.

We weren’t totally sure what time the bus would come so I let them feed Juliette as we waited.

And they’re off!

Celebrating life and love,

Krista