Two Amazing Women and Some Great Boots!

If you have not met The Skitzy Chicks aka Melinda and Carrie then you don't know what you are missing. These women have a gift for laughter, beautiful smiles, and most of all a heart for God that I can only hope to one day have. They were so much fun to photograph and I am sure I missed some great shots because I was laughing too hard to hold the camera stable. It was a great afternoon and I feel truly blessed to have been able to document it. Melinda had these awesome boots that she changed into and so we had to get some shots of those as well, I mean seriously....they were amazing :)

P.S you have to check out their weekly video blog if you get a chance, it's awesome!

Happy Thanksgiving

I hope that you all have a wonderful day and that you have a lot to be thankful for on the holiday. I am thankful for so many things that I could never name them all but I did want to mention a few that I have been thinking about a lot this last week.

I am thankful for my family and the fact that I am blessed with such a wonderful husband and son, for the fact that I can use my right hand and can still take pictures, that I am building a relationship with my Dad again and that my brother has done the same, that I still get to see my Great Great Grandfather and Ryan has gotten to know him as well, that God is always working on teaching me acceptance and that some days I actually feel like I have it, for all the friends I have made in the last few months, that we are able to support Ryan and his love of dance, and for each and every person in my life as well as thousands of other things I have not mentioned as I must go eat breakfast prepared by said wonderful husband !

Happy Thanksgiving to you all

I will leave with a picture from the first Thanksgiving Shawn, Ryan and I shared as a family

Blessings from Above

Sometimes God creates the most beautiful things out of hardships people face in their lives. Rylin is one of those beautiful things.

Contest

I have, on and off over the last year or two, really tried to figure out a logo for Mountainpony, or even just a stylized way to write it (which is a logo too but you know what I mean). I have finally come to the conclusion that I have a complete and total mind block when it comes to this and need help. This is where you guys come in, or anyone else that is interested for that matter. I am holding a contest for a logo design!

So break out your pencils, computers, or whatever it is that you use and see what you can come up with. At the end of the year I will pick my favorite, or if I can't decide, I will pick my top three and let you all in on the decision as well.

The winning design will receive

1. A photo shoot

2. Custom designed photo album

3. CD of 6 hi res images from your shoot

Please submit designs by email to jennifer@mountainponyphotography.com

And for all those people that wonder where such a strange name as Mountainpony came from and just have not asked.. here is a bit of the story behind the name. A lot of you grew up with me and so it just makes sense but all that seems like so long ago and almost in another life. I grew up in the mountains of MT and spent more time on the back of a horse than I probably did on my own two feet. This in itself would explain the name as it embodies who I am and the life that will always call to me no matter where I may be at any given time. One of my biggest struggles in life is to be content with where I am and God is always teaching me this or reminding me when I start to yearn for things I cannot have at the moment. If I was not on a horse when I was young chances were you would find me with my nose in a book or even hiding out in the bathroom reading when I should have been doing schoolwork (Mom knew this though so it wouldn't last for long :) On of my favorite books was this old paperback I found at an antique shop and it was called Mountain Pony and the Pinto Colt. The books are from 1946 and there are at least two others in the series that I know of. The book had loose pages in it but it was all there and although in very sad condition I still have it and cherish it in my collection. So it is through the combined title of a favorite childhood book and the fact that it also sums up everything I grew up with and love that Mountainpony was born. So there you have it lol, a country girl who loves the mountains, her horses, and her books.

Crystal & Kevin

"Sometimes your nearness takes my breath away; and all the things I want to say can find no voice. Then, in silence, I can only hope my eyes will speak my heart."
--Robert Sexton

Family time

Sunday Morning we skipped church (I know..we didn't want to) as it was the only time where it was actually light out that we could get all three of us together. Shawn actually skipped his college class as well so we could do the pictures. We ended up having a wonderful morning together and brunch at a nice restaurant close by to where we did the pictures. I was so excited when Shawn told me he wasn't going to class as it meant we could all ride in the same car together (its the little things), it really was a wonderful morning together as a family.

My boys <3

Being silly

The family (and no not the ones we used for our card, you have to wait to see those).

A bit of time and a great find.

This last Tuesday I had to make the trek to have my hand/wrist therapy sooo early in the morning (I was late too..I hate being late). After therapy I called my wonderful friend who I did know was awake and we decided that we would go to Ikea after I picked her up since she was without a car for the day. I was so excited to have therapy on a day when Crystal didn't work (it NEVER happens I tell you). Upon pulling up to Ikea and being thrilled at the lack of people in the parking lot it dawns on us it is only 9am (We really should be in bed!). With an hour to kill and my camera in the car we set off in search of some of the fun cowboy statues around the area that mark on of the great trails of the west that the cattle and horses used to be driven on. We never did find the particular statues of the horses that Crystal and I both remember seeing but we found this jewel of a park right in the middle of everything that was amaaazing. We walked around for about an hour maybe a bit more and it was the most beautiful day! I took pictures of Ryan and Crystal and she was kind enough to return the favor and take some pics of Ryan and I as well as some for my new business cards (you can't see those). Here is a peak into our day. I will write about the rest of our day in another post as we did a whole lot of other really cool stuff but that has to wait for another time.

No words...

On Saturday I was able to go and visit some friends of ours who were just blessed with a beautiful baby boy. Their story is not one I will go into on here but lets just say that God is so awesome in his glory and love. I was able to visit a bit and of course hold baby Rylin (who I didn't want to let go).  I also just happened to have my camera in the car and of course snapped a few impromptu pictures of the new addition to the family. Duke was not as willing to be my subject though. 

Sparkle, Sequins, and More...

The other weekend I was able to do a shoot for an amazing belly dancer and WOW! was it fun. Costumes, sparkle, headdresses, and even a mask coupled with a great model. I mean really, what more could a girl ask for? I definitely need to work on my indoor photography and what I have on hand as well as becoming more comfortable working in certain light conditions (*someday I will have the Canon 50 1.2!), but we made it work. 

Down in the City

I had the opportunity Sunday afternoon to go downtown and shoot a very talented group of young musicians. I thoroughly enjoyed this and could probably stay down there for weeks and not even come close to finding all the cool photo spots. I look forward to being in that area again some time in the future. I hope you all enjoy the preview shots.