Friday, September 13, 2013

Amanda & Tim - Baby on the Way :)

For those of you who don't already know, Amanda is my sister. My little sister. If you have a little sister of your own, perhaps you've also had one of those moments in life when you suddenly notice that she's not a kid anymore. Somehow - without you noticing - she's gone and grown up. I was living with my sister when she graduated college, and when she and Tim decided to move in together. About a year later, they moved away from Toronto into their own house in Tim's home town of Lancaster. A couple of years later, they got married. For some reason, none of these events were "the moment". Not even when we were sitting around my moms' kitchen table and she told us all that they were pregnant. It was less of a milestone than any of these.. it was one evening when she was visiting, and the two of us were up later than everyone else. We were just sitting on the couch, talking. She was talking about morning sickness, and how she couldn't stop burping. And it hit me - this person, my sister, is going to be someones mommy. I found myself studying her face.. trying to figure out how she had - secretly and without me knowing - turned from my little sister into a woman.
It's been months now since that conversation, and in spite of all the pictures I've seen and taken of her as her belly grew it still took a long time for it to fully sink in that soon there will be a baby in our family. We went with Tim & Amanda when they did their hospital tour, and actually had the amazing experience of photographing a birth just a couple of weeks later, but it wasn't until I saw a friend's pictures last week of her holding her new nephew that I thought: "that's going to be me. I'm going to be an auntie!" and now I'm pretty much doing a constant impatient dance, calling every day to see what the heck is taking that baby so long to get here..
Anyways - a little while ago we went out for a visit and to do some maternity photos :) While I was looking over the images afterwards, I couldn't help but notice that Tim makes my sister laugh a lot. Pretty much non-stop giggle fits. Of all the things I like about Tim, I think this is the best :)
 {these wicker chairs are the ones my grandparents used to sit next to each other on, for the warm summer evenings on their front porch at their farm}
As much as I love Toronto, I have to admit this is a pretty great front yard to have..
 pregnant Charlie's Angels pose - of course ;)
tattooed wedding bands still fit when you're pregnant! 
Amanda & Tim - I don't know what to say.. I'm so proud and so excited for you guys, and absolutely cannot wait to meet the newest member of our awesome family! We love you guys so much, and are eagerly anticipating our visit in a couple of weeks :D (p.s. there'd better be a baby there by then!)

xoxo!
Jessica + Norman

{if you're expecting a tiny new addition to your own family and would love gorgeous maternity and newborn portraits of your own - email us now for more information! We also do gift certificates and registry - inquire for details!}

Meg & Frank - Awesome Steampunk Wedding at La Maquette :)

You know when you meet a couple, and you very quickly realize they are absolutely perfect together? That's how it was when we first met Meg & Frank :) They both have amazingly warm and generous personalities, and they share a very goofy sense of humour. One of my first questions for couples is: "do you have a theme for your wedding day?", and when Meg's answer was "Steampunk!" I knew this was going to be fantastic. I went to The Beguiling on Markham St. and found myself a copy of The Steampunk Bible (yes, it exists, and yes, it is awesome). I loved getting updates from Meg about what she'd found on etsy, or what she'd thought of to make next, or which friend had volunteered their talents for what. The end result was a day that was full of laughter, close family and friends, and very personal details :)
Here are some of my favourite images from the day..

Meg's friend Carrie designed and made her gown - including a stunning corset - it was gorgeously Victorian and modern all at once!
Frank's brother and sister-in-law Aaron & Jenny read a passage from The Velveteen Rabbit during the ceremony (the part about becoming REAL - a total tear-jerker..), and Meg's friend Janet had hand-embroidered their hand-fasting ribbon :) My favourite part of the ceremony was when Meg & Frank read the vows they'd written for each other - they literally had all their guests laughing out loud! 
Not only was La Maquette a visually amazing venue, but it made it possible for Meg & Frank to have an outdoor wedding in the middle of pouring rain..
 Among the long list of personal details, Meg's sister-in-law Andrea not only made the cake - including making gears out of icing - but also did a fantastic job on Meg's make-up, Laura arrived early to make sure everything was set up, and Meg actually made the stamps they used to tag the favours (tiny bottles full of gears, with skeleton keys attached). I also loved the vintage apothecary bottles used for centerpieces!

One of my favourite parts was how amazing everyone looked dressed up - even Meg's grandmother had a tiny top hat :) Meg's brother and sister-in-law Nate & Andrea and their son Logan looked like they just stepped off a movie set! (I love this shot of Meg's dad giving Logan "high-fives" for being so good during photos..)
 more yummy details... :)
As much as I loved all the fanciful and imaginative details of Meg & Frank's wedding, what really struck me was how personal their day was. I noticed just before everyone sat down to lunch that all the place cards were first names only. And in a way that I can't fully explain, that really captures the essence of what it was like to be at Meg & Frank's wedding - there was a strong sense that this wasn't just about two people dedicating their lives to each other, but also about the amazing community of family and friends that will be there with them along the way :)

Meg & Frank: you two were so much fun and such a delight to photograph! Your creativity in planning this wedding was only surpassed by your joy in marrying each other - thank you so much for allowing us to capture it all for you :)

xo
Jessica + Norman

{We love photographing fun and alternative weddings, especially with awesome themes :) If you've got one in your future, please get in touch!}

special thanks to Ange at La Maquette for general awesomeness!