Hi there! Wow. It’s been an amazing month. I’m so excited to share with you!!

What I’ve been up to

Early Monday Dillon and I returned from Breakthrough, a marriage retreat hosted by our coach, Julia Woods.

At Breakthrough, you show up with a “tension,” or a tough conversation that you want to work through. Most couples have 3-5 conversations that seem to repeat on a loop. Imagine getting to the bottom of it–that’s what Breakthrough is all about! All 28 couples, ourselves included, experienced a breakthrough during the weekend.

It’s difficult to describe just how transformational and impactful the entire experience felt. Throughout the weekend there are “communication labs” where Julia teaches us tools to use in our conversations, and then couples volunteer to work through where they’re feeling stuck.

We had moments where we all burst into laughter, and moments where our hearts broke for each other. I don’t know if I’ve ever cried so much in a single weekend after watching so many people fight for their marriages.

We loved our Breakthrough experience so much that we signed up to go again next year before we even started our car ride home.

Also, if you’ve been following along on social media, you’ll already know that I met one of my heroes, Katelyn James. This was the cherry on top of the whole breakthrough experience!

I originally started researching marriage coaching after KJ shared her own experiences. And then God, working behind the scenes as He always does, had KJ’s marriage coach, Julia, follow me on Instagram!

There were moments were Dillon and I went back and forth about working with Julia, but we eventually committed, and it’s been the best experience. We seriously love her so much. If you want to get to know her, and here about our coaching experience, listen to our podcast episode with Julia here!

And, getting to meet the person that taught me so much about photography, created my community that I love in the wedding industry, and inspired transformational change in my marriage? Chills. I was not calm, cool, nor collected when I shared my gratitude with KJ. But she’s so sweet and welcoming that she cried right along with me.

All in all, it was simply amazing.

What I’ve been reading

Every year, I try to make it through at least one classic that I haven’t read before. I’m about a third of the way through George Orwell’s 1984 right now. I’ve been liking it, but between preparing for our marriage retreat, actually attending, and then coming home and getting back into our routines, my reading time is basically nonexistent right now.

I’m hoping I can dive in to the rest of the story soon!

What I’ve been watching

via GIPHY

Dillon and I are on our third rewatch of Brooklyn Nine-Nine. This is already on my website About page, but I’m a Jake Peralta fan girl. I laugh at all the jokes. I love the Jake-Amy story. And I can’t imagine the show without any of the main characters.

We are also only a few episodes away from finishing season 2 of Big Brother. We are so close. Maybe next month will actually be the month that I finish and can share my thoughts.

What I’m excited about

My season technically already started, but before my next update with you, I’ll really be getting back in to the swing of things!

On the docket we have:

-An engagement session at Hammond Castle. This is a bucket list spot for me, so I’m thrilled!

-A Grand View wedding

-A Bedford Village Inn wedding

-A test shoot (a creative shoot I designed to let me play around with new concepts) involving a Cape Cod sunset and bridal portraits with a horse. I seriously cannot wait to share more about this!!

-A trifecta maternity session…my little nickname for when a previous engagement and wedding couple returns for their maternity shoot. I LOVE doing these!

-My giveaway session to practice drone shots for engagement photography. I can’t wait to put all of my practice to good use!

-A welcome party at the International Tennis Hall of Fame

I am THRILLED to make the most of New England’s spring. Make sure you’re following along so that you don’t miss a thing! You can also sign up for my newsletter here so that you get all of the updates!

Until next time,

Christine