A different kind of post today because I DID NOT TAKE THESE PICTURES!!! ….I did edit them but, I did not take them and for a very special reason….
It’s my BROTHER! He got married and my entire crew was in the wedding. I simply cannot shout enough praises out for two of my very near and dear photographer friends, Polly of Polly Bloom Photography (Fort Myers, FL) and Jessica of Viridian Ivy Images (Northwest, OH). They both do SPECTACULAR work and they both travel. Please if you are so lucky to live near them (or even if you dont) I encourage you to find them on the socials and enjoy their incredible work. I love you both so much and cannot thank you enough for this gift you have given my entire family. You absolutely NAILED it.
Okay now some sap….
We’re not sure exactly when things started moving out of the friend zone for Jake and Ashley, my very private brother wouldn’t give us the tea in the beginning. But when my husband got extremely sick and nearly lost his life in the winter of 2019, Ashley was THERE for Jake, and as his big sister, that’s all I cared about.
Ashley and Jake had known each other for years, here’s their origin story in their own words
” Our love story began back in 2013 at Grand Valley. We were introduced through mutual friends – although bridesmaid Chelsea B. will take all the credit for introducing us. After graduation, the stress of job prospects and long-distance between the two, the timing was not right for a long-term relationship. However, after a few years, we reconnected again in 2018. A few months of long drives, nights out in downtown Grand Rapids, and cold Bud Lights we knew we made the right choice to reconnect.”
I met Ashley for the first time in the summer of 2019. Within SECONDS of meeting her, my sweet son, Jax (who has autism), claimed Ashley as his own and immediately removed her from the room where everyone was so he could snuggle with her. Jax’s intuition is 10/10 and that was it for me, I knew she was the one. She has been with our family through the hardest years of our lives and has been a steady, calm, loving presence that we have all needed. She is a nurse and we all feel a little better when she is around. Without her, this year with my dad’s stage 4 cancer could have been so much scarier. She has guided our hands so many times. My kids adore her and she adores them right back. When we get together, there is no shortage of laughter and game playing, Ashley loves to play games. Her family is just as kind and open to laughter as she is, and truly have the mentality of we’re all family now. I didn’t just gain a sister I gained a whole nother family.
I am so happy for my brother and his perfect choice in a bride. You’ll see in the photos they both beam, they both just absolutely gush. This was such a happy day during such a hard season of life Tracy is a great editor. I could go on and on but I think the pictures say it all better than I ever could.
AGAIN, thank you Polly and Jess, you KILLED it <3
