Guhlke-Falk Family

There are a lot of people who amaze me in life. Usually they are people who have kids, or who follow their dreams, or who just work really hard until they get what they want. Sometimes, in rare cases, they are people who do all three...

Carey and I played volleyball together in college. I have been around a lot of athletes in my life, but I can honestly say without any doubt that I have never seen someone work as hard as Carey and improve as much as she did in her four years playing volleyball at Whitworth. She went from never seeing the court as a freshman to receiving all-conference honors as our starting middle hitter her senior year. AMAZING!

Then she had her adorable baby boy, Jackson, who is now over a year-and-a-half old. Remember this post? Jackson was one of my first EVER photo shoots! Needless to say, Carey is such an incredible mom -- she makes it look so easy! On top of all that, she works full-time and recently started a Farmer's Market out of the big barn in the front yard of her home in Davenport. You know, in her spare time. ;) Her Farmer's Market is already up for awards, which is really no surprise! To find out more about the Big Red Barn Farmer's Market that Carey started, click here to become a fan on Facebook. And go check it out!

THEN... Carey met Chris, who has an adorable little girl named Lucy, who is just a few months older than Jackson. These two could not be more perfect for each other. Seriously... it's kind of sickening. :) I was so thrilled when Carey asked me to come out to her farm and take pictures of them. Rustic farm equipment? Awesome humans? Cute kiddos? YES, PLEASE! Here are a few Flat 4 favorites...

Thanks for an awesome afternoon, Carey, Chris, Jackson, and Lucy. I am already excited for the next shoot, whenever that might be! :)

Joseph - Senior Photos

It's always fun doing pictures of family and close friends because they are usually game for making a day of it, hitting multiple locations, and getting unique shots. Knowing that my brother-in-law, Joseph, was going to be a senior this year, I have been gearing up for a fun photo shoot for a while now!

Joseph is Jordan's youngest brother and he is a senior at Lewis & Clark High School this year. I might be a little biased since he's my brother-in-law, but honestly, Joseph is one of those awesome, well-rounded kids who is making so many opportunities for himself. Not only is he a great athlete, he is also a little smarty parts! And not to mention just a fun, easygoing, nice guy... he reminds me of Jordan in a lot of ways. :) But at the same time, it has been fun watching Joseph develop who HE is and is becoming. It will be fun to see what the next few years bring for him!

Joseph is a natural in front of the camera. He has a great smile and an even better "serious face." We had a blast roaming all over Spokane to get some great shots of him and even threw Joelle, his younger sister, into a few pictures too! Here are a few Flat 4 favorites... it was so hard to choose! Click on any of the photos below to view them larger.

Congrats, Jos! And here's to a great senior year!! GO TIGERS!

Summer? What summer??

I feel like I've been posting more about other peoples' lives lately than our own, which is pretty much a direct correlation to how our summer has gone.

September always seems to mark the beginning of a new season and a new start. I can remember at almost every phase of life being asked the same question each September: "What did you do this summer?" Besides being able to reflect, I think everyone enjoys getting to brag about all the cool stuff they did over the summer. I know I do... usually.

I've been asked this simple question a few times already this month, but for the first time in my whole life I can't really figure out a good way to answer. And there's definitely not a whole lot to brag about or fun pictures (of us) to post on my Facebook page. Sure, I could say something like, I went to... uh, well... photographed a lot of weddings. Or, I went to the lake... three times. Or, I helped my parents remodel their rental house every day after work. Or I could just be that awkward, negative person who self-discloses way too much and complains about how busy I've been and how I'm not great at being a "busy person."

I'm not a huge fan of any of those answers. And I doubt whoever asked me would be either.

The more I thought about my answer, I didn't necessarily think about the things I did this summer (or didn't do for that matter); I thought about the things that got me through the summer. Here's a small list in no particular order, just to give you a glimpse...

1. My husband. I've said it time and again, but truly, Jordan gets the best and worst of me, and let's just say that not very many people would put up with my worst. It's not pretty.

2. Starbucks and Diet Coke. Enough said.

3. The property. This is a tough one because us purchasing the property is about 95% of the reason we've "decided" to be this busy, but at the same time, there is nothing more relaxing and rewarding than watching a sunset up there and being reminded why we're working so hard in the first place.

4. My amazing boss, who also happens to be my Dad. :) How many bosses let their employees edit pictures and email Flat 4 clients when it's a slow day at the office? I would be completely buried with photography and photo booth stuff if it wasn't for him being so flexible with me at work.

5. Gradual tanning lotion. Needless to say, I did not see the sun very often this summer. I can just about guarantee I was (and still am) the whitest person in Spokane.

6. My Mom. Next to Jordan, she got to hear the majority of my venting and meltdowns... again, not a fun job. And when I was about to sell Max, our crazy puppy, to the next stranger who walked by on our sidewalk, she always swooped in and dog-sat for us.

7. Dry Shampoo. If you knew how many times I went multiple days without showering, you probably wouldn't be friends with me anymore. But dry shampoo works MIRACLES, people! If you've never tried it, you should. Unless you're one of those people who keeps up their personal hygiene on a daily basis...

I know seven is a weird number to end on. Oh well. The good news (and don't hate me for saying this) is that summer is OVER and we are nearing a light at the end of the tunnel of this crazy, busy phase of life in the Tampien household! Is it November yet?!

Maybe next summer I will post dozens of pictures of us at the lake or on a great summer vacation somewhere. Or just ANY pictures of us for that matter. :)

Chad + Michelle 7.18.10

The first time I met Chad and Michelle was a few months before their wedding for about 3 minutes over coffee. So needless to say, I was a little nervous and unsure of what to expect on their wedding day... Lucky for me, this couple was (and is) AWESOME! And Michelle's daughter Maia is awesome too. Honestly, if they lived in Spokane, I would be wanting to hang out and be friends with them. Yes, they're that cool. :)

Chad and Michelle live in Seattle but got married in Spokane. Their ceremony was at St. Al's Catholic Church and their reception was at The Davenport Hotel, although I only took pictures before and during the ceremony for them and then they used our Photo Booth at their reception! Seriously people, this is the way to go! Just sayin'...

Anyway, Michelle was one of the most stunning brides I have ever seen. And Chad looked great too. :) This wedding was just very classy and elegant, but still TONS of fun! See for yourself... check out their picture slideshow below with some Flat 4 favorites! You can click on the "box-like" icon in the bottom right corner to make the slideshow full screen.

To check out Michelle and Chad's PHOTO BOOTH pictures from their reception at The Davenport Hotel, click here!

And the best part? Some guests at Michelle and Chad's wedding loved our Photo Booth so much that they booked us for both photography and the Photo Booth for their wedding that we just did in Leavenworth. We love it when that happens... :)