Colorado Monument • Anniversary

If you’ve wandered through my website and blog, you will probably recognize this beautiful woman. This is my sister Jodi and her husband Jayden.

This past week I got to meet my family up in Colorado and spend some time with them. Whenever we’re together I try to make sure I get Jodi and Jayden some updated family photos if possible because they are a blast to shoot! So I asked if we could head up to The Monument which is one of my all time favorite places to explore and shoot at. I have shot a surprise proposal and I have shots our family photos here before my brother left on his mission to Alaska!

I loved the light we had this specific night. It’s a little cloudy with the sun peeking through every couple minutes. As you can see it was stunning! I love Jodi‘s yellow dress. I felt like it was perfect for the backdrop we had. Little Myla-Jade is now two years old and I love her! She is so much fun to hang out with. MJ talks so much. I love seeing her be so talkative, especially for a two years old. I feel like I can have complete conversations with her.

I’ve honestly never been much of a baby person or a kid person in general. I usually avoid holding babies and kids and they were never a fan of me either. But when Myla-Jade first called me KeKe (that’s now my aunt name) I was hooked! She was one of the first kids who actually would come up to me and want to me to hold her. It has always been so special to me.

Enjoy my favorite Anniversary photos of Jodi and Jayden in Colorado! Their family photos are toward the end! (Saving the best for last!)

Jodi + Jayden • Anniversary

Colorado is seriously one of my favorite places. It's where my mom's family is from and it seems to be a mutual place of meeting. I knew Jacob and I would be traveling there for Thanksgiving, so I started mentioning it to my sister in hopes that she and Jayden would join. And thank goodness they did because it gave us the chance to have one epic anniversary session on the Monument. After shooting Kaden + Keely's Proposal I knew Jodi and Jayden's Anniversary session had to be up there too. Surprisingly it was a chilly night when we shot so I was wrapped up in my dad's coat most the session. 

Jodi purchased her dress from a boutique in Utah called Sew Trendy. Jodi said her customer service was AMAZING! She ended up adding some fabric to get the look Jodi wanted and she did it free of charge! And can we talk about how amazing this dress looks on Jodi?! Seriously, she is a model in anything she wears, but this has to be one of my favorite things next to her lace wedding dress. 

Anniversary sessions get to me. I love cerebrating love, especially when it has blossomed over the years. And when we're celebrating new life coming, it makes it all that much better. Jodi and Jayden will be giving my side of the family a niece and I cannot express how excited I am! In less than 2 months I will be meeting my new niece. For now, enjoy the best of the best maternity shots of Jodi and Jayden. :) 

Kaden + Keely • Surprise Proposal

OH MY GOSH!!! This shoot is one of my favorites for a couple of reasons. One, I'd never photographed a surprise proposal so it was definitely a thrill for me. Two, my aunt, Darcy (Ruby Plum Photo), was with me for the shoot. She actually was the one who mentored ME back in 2013. It was such a blast having someone there to get creative with. Three, I'd never been to The Monument. I've been to Grand Junction plenty of times to visit family and I can't believe two weeks ago was my first time at The Monument. I highly recommend checking it out if you haven't already. 

Huge shout out to Kaden for reaching out to me and making this happen. This shoot could not have been any better!

THE STORY A.K.A HOW KADEN PULLED IT OFF

When I found out I was going to take a trip to Colorado, I knew I had to shoot something epic there. I asked Darcy what was close in the area and she mentioned The Monument. Once I saw photos, I was hooked.
I then ran a couple model call for the area of Grand Junction and there was only one day we could do it. Keely and Kaden were tagged in my post by a friend for my model call and that's when Kaden messaged me. He asked if I shot proposals and how they turned out and if I would do his. I asked him if he could make the date and time work that we needed and he agreed. I was so stoked!
But Keely hadn't applied yet even though she was tagged. I told Kaden he would need to mention it again to her and have her apply so she'd have no idea. Keely applied, the date and time worked, and they were up for our creative shoot! 
I prepared for the shoot talking to BOTH Kaden and Keely. I told Kaden I didn't want to direct his proposal. I wanted it to still be his own and how he imagined it. I just wanted us to be ready when the time came. He said the ring was in his boot and he would mention something about his socks, which would be our key to be ready when he knelt down to fix them. And Keely had no idea I was talking to Kaden about his plans.
When we arrived to the shoot I saw Kaden and Keely's chemistry right away and it was exactly I wanted. We were able to just have fun and they laughed at our jokes which was a plus. :) Keely wore the most gorgeous white dress that just popped with the red rocks of Colorado. We were getting AMAZING shots while getting creative with our posing and shooting techniques. 
We moved to a spot with the full view of the monument. It was breathtaking for me as I had never been there. That's when Kaden mentioned his sock...
I hurried and backed up, pulled out my phone to start videoing, AND photographed as I was videoing. Kaden had such a thoughtful proposal and I could tell how much it meant to Keely. And she said yes!!! :) 

Thank you again Keely and Kaden for such a memorable and epic night!