Would you like some dust with your dust?

It's that time of year again. All the fields turn to barren wastelands so the winds can whip through my house as fast as possible....

You hear a noise, look out the window and see this in your back yard....

And breath dust and sweep dust and wash dust....

and more dust....


But at least someone is happy about it....

Trash to Treasure - Union Jack Dresser

About 2-3 weeks ago, I found this pretty cool dresser at a garage sale for not a lot of money. Very sturdy, needed love, but looked like it was probably a very nice piece of furniture at some point.

I could not decide how to revive it. I didn't want to just paint it white or blue or something uninteresting. I'd seen some dressers on better after blog that had some designs painted on the front. I wanted to paint something too! So as I lay in bed one night, I used it as an excuse to keep me awake.

It hit me...

I'd paint a union jack on the front! BRILLIANT!

How I did it, is below.

It took me about a week to do, painting 15-60 minutes at a time, then waiting for that coat to dry before moving on to the next. Definitely one of the better transformations I've made yet!

I really want to KEEP IT. hah. I'm still looking at my house and trying to figure out how I can work it in. I can do it... I can. I swear.

Please don't buy it.
;)

Little blessings come in big packages

{Missouri Sunsets are the best!}

Lately, we have been feeling pretty darn blessed in our lives. Good things keep coming our way in the best possible ways. I've learned over the past few years, that when I need/want something, I just put it out their to the universe and wait.

Sometimes it's a few days, sometimes it's a few months, but whatever we need just seems to come, and it comes at a great discount. I'm not sure why this has been happening so much to us except I'm not going to question it too hard. You know, gift horses' mouths and all.

So today something I've been considering for a long time has happened. To truly succeed at this business, I need to expand our coverage area. Don't get me wrong, my coverage area starts in Maryville, and ends somewhere around South Africa. I'll go just about anywhere except Iran or something.

Sorry our Iranian friends.

But the truth is, short of having a storefront in South Africa, it's really difficult to break into those territories with just a website. I have had some success in our surrounding large cities (Omaha and Kansas City), but I want to become a regular *force*.

About 2-3 weeks ago, I attended a conference held by the PPA (Professional Photographers of America). The ironic part of this is, they'd been sending me emails to attend for weeks, but a few days before, they offered me a free ticket. (thanks universe). I decided it was worth a trip just to see what happens.

What happened was there was a very successful photographer in a similar market as me. She is very good at marketing (and I LOVE marketing). She hit so many of my "buttons" that I realized we needed to pop on it and make it happen finally.

Sooooo......
Today, we signed a lease on an office space in St. Joseph, Mo. We'll be located at 7th and Jules in the Mo-Kan business development building. It will mainly be a meeting space to meet with clients before and after their sessions. We have an office and use of a big beautiful conference room for large groups families, etc. We'll sometimes be able to do small mini sessions if need to in this space.

We are so excited!
This is a big jump for us! We predict big things.
Photos coming soon!

But that's not all. In the spring/summer, we'll be breaking ground on our new studio right *HERE* at the Cease Fire Ranch. Yep folks, you'll be able to come right into our studio to have your portrait taken even in December - which is HUGE for us. There will also be outdoor studio spaces here which I'll work on over time including cool props that you'll only be able to get at Cease Fire Studios.

Photos with chickens are no extra charge.

How to set a light pole in 15 minutes flat

1. Get your ginormous drill lined up to where you want to drill using your handy dandy remote control gadget (and we thought playing atari would never come in handy as a life skill.)

2. Dig for a couple minutes until you can't see the drill anymore. Pull it out and spin it backwards really fast. Wheeee.

3. Use the arm that holds the drill, to pull a brand new pole off the truck. One lonely little guy aims it around as everyone else watches.

4. Little to the right. Little more.... sweet.

5. Line 'er up. Get it straight.

6. Dump the dirt back into the hole and use a jackhammer to jam it into place.

7. TaDA! Chickens will love that pile of dirt around the bottom. They'll probably love all the fat worms living in there.

Now... Who would like to come and dispose of the old pole for me?
Anyone?
Hello?

PS. No electricity to it yet. Just a pole.
Kountry life it is excitin'.

Bridges of Madison County

For years, I've had something simple on my "bucket list" that I've wanted to accomplish.

Back in the 90's when the movie/book "The bridges of Madison County" came out, I absolutely fell in love with them both. It's such a romantic and tragic story all at the same time that has stuck with me for years.

Since then, I've always wanted to visit the Bridges, which aren't really all that far from me (a couple hours) but I've never made the trek... always something more important going on. Always something needing done. Always think of it late in the year.

But not this time...
this time I was thinking about a trip we'll be taking later this year to the Amana Colonies and realized we'd be near Winterset, Iowa. While looking up the bridges, I found out that this past weekend was their Covered Bridges Festival.

Friday night I kinda hemmed and hawed that I didn't need to go, but Gene was hell bent that I was going - even though I'm positive he didn't want to go. (he was kind of grumpy, but kept it to himself lol).

We hit ever single bridge - all six of them, and saved the best for last.
Each bridge is in order of how we visited them, and my goal with each bridge, was to get a unique or different type of shot for each one.

The bridges are all covered on the insides (and some outsides) with graffiti, most of it is sweet and romantic.


I spotted this truck from across the bridge as we pulled up, and I said "It's just like the truck from the movie!" When I got home, I blew up the photo, and it even said Kincaid Photography on the side. Apparently, this truck sits in the yard of Francesca's house (we didn't go there :( )


The photo on the right was taken through a knot hole in the bridge, you can see the new bridge through the hole.


I could only find one.



I love this badass photo of Gene... in front of a romantic covered bridge.

That's his happy face.


Cedar bridge is featured on the cover of the book and also where Oprah filmed her show. It was also burnt to the ground by an arsonist and rebuilt around 2003.

I happened across a couple here, snuggling together. I asked them if they wanted their photo together and took her digital camera. I couldn't help myself, and taught him how to dip her. (it's an important skill all men need to know). I also made him admit - for the first time - that she was his girlfriend.

;)

Hi, my name is Lana. I stir the pot and make people get out of their comfort zone.
I'm also a pot stirrer.




It's also the only bridge you can still drive over.



In the book, Francesca leaves a note on Roseman bridge for Robert to come to supper any time the white moths fly. I spur of the moment decided that I wanted to leave the same note for Gene in the same spot that hundreds of others have left love notes.

I may or may not have gotten choked up and teary-eyed a wee bit.


This is the spot, where Robert Kincaid (Clint Eastwood) discovered the note on the bridge.



Gene left me a note, but said I couldn't share it on the internet. I don't think he wants anyone to know he's a romantic and a softie.
(please see: Bad ass photo).



We arrived kind of late. In fact, I thought Gene was going to wipe out on the backroads trying to get there (it's very winding and difficult to find - which is funny as that's how Robert met Francesca - looking for directions.) We arrived as the sun was just falling behind the trees and it was growing darker by the moment.

The up side to this, was after about 10 minutes, we were the last 2 people there.

It was perfect, and magic and I didn't want to leave. I had my very own Robert Kincaid, on my very own covered bridge. All to myself.


I love that guy.

Part of me wishes I'd fulfilled that little dream I had of being married there at Roseman Bridge. I'd thought of it for a long time. I still might make Gene marry me at that bridge. I'm thinking that if I marry him in every state in the country, he's stuck with me because it will cost a fortune to get a divorce. lol

Oh wait.. I already married him in Iowa.
damn.

It's not all sweet and innocent.
Gulp.

Well, it started out kind of nice anyway.