Whoa baby!!!

Life with baby Emmarie has been a bit rough these first few weeks. We battled a case of thrush, constant crying for 3.5+hours a day and acid reflux. We think we finally have the pretty little thing figured out - it makes me feel so good to know that a little bit of medicine can really ease the pain that she was feeling in her belly.

So now with a sleeping baby and a well-behaved 3.5 year old I am able to finally update my blog!

I am so excited to start my shooting season with Crystal and Greg's May 1st wedding tomorrow. The reception will host over 400 guests - the largest event I've ever been to!

Earlier this week I became an accomplished speaker with the Professional Photographers of Michigan. I presented a boudoir program and hands-on demonstration to a group of 50. I had a great time speaking and think I may have found a new niche for me! I'll blog more about the event with more details and photos over on the boudoir blog at www.unveiledportraits.com

And, just a reminder to become a 'fan' or 'like' both Ardent Photography and Unveiled Portraits on Facebook... I will soon release the dates and availability for High School Seniors as well as specials and a BIG announcement!

Happy Friday!

Drew 3.5yrs Emmarie 7 weeks - snapshot with a mommy-cam

Announcing....

Emerson Marie
"Emmarie"

Sunday, March 14, 2010
1:12 am
9lbs 8.2oz
21 inches

Emmarie - 1 day old...

Being over due with a baby over 9 pounds is not fun. I was on a self-prescribed bed rest the week that I was overdue. It was really hard to move, sleep and pretty much do much of anything. The day I went into labor I decided that I had to just do something... get out of the house - anything.

Saturday we went and saw Alvin and the Chipmunks as a family. I was pretty emotional at the theatre thinking this might be the last time we are a threesome. I was really uncomfortable during the entire movie but found comfort in eating the yummy theatre popcorn.

That evening I was even more discouraged with sitting on the couch. I got up enough courage to go to a store to pick up a few things. I was scheduled for induction the following Monday and knew that if I didn't buy my last minute things I would never have another opportunity.

While at the store Andy texted me to take my time - I ended up going down almost every aisle! It was fun to wander and look at things... I bought Drew some big brother toys, some lip gloss and some baby necessities. A labor inducing shopping spree?

Later that night during Saturday Night Live I felt a small pop... when I stood up I realized that I my water had broken and that I would soon be feeling contractions. Within 10min I was feeling contractions about every 5 min. We called my midwife and mom. About 45min later we were on our way to the hospital.

We arrived at Mercy around 12:15am on Sunday, March 14. Luckily, the staff on the OB floor where aware of my quick deliveries and had already started filling the water of the birthing tub. Grandma and Auntie Trish arrived to help watch our 3 year old Drew - who by the way was a champ at the hospital in the middle of the night! When the tub had enough water in it I was able to enter... about 12:50am. Emerson was born about 20min later. It was an awesome experience. Even though she was 8 days late, her quick delivery made up for it all.

Now we are adjusting to life with a newborn baby. I just love having a little girl in my life. Drew is a terrific big brother... always wanting to hold, kiss and hug her. Andy is a great hubby - helping at night cooking dinner and with middle of the night diaper changes.

Waiting for baby...

Well, my first due date was March 1 - but I guess my "official due date" was March 6. Either way I am overdue and patiently awaiting the birth of my sweet baby girl. It is so hard to sit and think it could happen at any moment.

During my wait I'm taking a bit of time for myself. I'm finishing up a few projects in the studio and getting closer to finishing her nursery. The image below is a collage of some of the things in her room. The theme is birdies surrounded in soft pink and buttercup yellow. I just love the look of stylized birds... I love that my grandfather made birdhouses almost everyday... I love the sounds I hear of the birds that live in the bushes on the side of our house... So I concepted this design. My mother created the custom bedding, I painted a 20x40 canvas and made the mobile, Andy re-did the electrical and all the hard labor in the room. Overall I'm so pleased and can't wait to show it to baby G2!


Keep checking here for updates and baby photos. Let's all hope she comes real soon!!!

2009 :: A look back

I'm sooo excited for this new year... before the clock strikes 12:00 I want to recap the wonderful adventures of 2009...

An Ardent Photography Photobooth

2009 was a terrific year for Ardent Photography... I started out the year shooting a wedding with Rachel of www.mergeweddings.com in Key West Florida. I flew to the island in a ridiculously small 8-seater airplane - in the co-pilot seat! I knew from that moment it was going to be a fantastic year!

In March I returned for my second straight year at the WPPI conference in Las Vegas, NV. I had a blast rooming with Molly Michel of m three studio and participating in classes and shootouts all week long. I bought my first "real" purse and necklace at Tiffany's... thank Molly for introducing me to nice things.


That Easter Andy and I took off to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for some along adult time. It was so very relaxing to have nothing to do besides sit and soak up the sun.

Shortly after our trip to Mexico I was hired to shoot my first destination wedding in the Dominican Republic. I brought along friend and photographer Miranda Zynda-Kneeland of Reminisce Photography to be my second shooter. It was a true honor and privilege to photograph Robin and Justin's wedding in Punta Cana.

My busy wedding schedule only allowed me to take a limited number of High School Seniors. This year I shot 10 sessions and had a blast photographing seniors from Xavier, Appleton East, North and West as well as a senior from Winneconne High Schools.

The summer's weddings brought lots of joyful moments in couples lives - and I loved shooting at many new locations. I especially loved shooting for Tracy and Tim in Pembine at the Four Season Resort and in Door County for Kirsten and Andrew at the family's private residence. Thank you to all of my wedding couples for making 2009 such a fantastic season!!!


The most joyful news of the summer had to be finding out I was pregnant with our second child - a GIRL!!! Drew will finally be a big brother - our due date is March 1, 2010. He wants to name her "Cook"... it's actually quite cute, we are calling her that for now... but we do have several cute girl names on our list!

In other business 2009 news... Unveiled Portraits - my boutique boudoir photography venture has been such a dream come true. I've shot more than 75 boudoir sessions total and in the month of October I raised $900 for my first ever Boudoir for Breast Cancer fund raiser with the help of matching funds from Invitation Consultants.

I was also featured in Wisconsin Bride Magazine as an expert in boudoir photography. I am beyond excited to continue photographing boudoir session in 2010 and continue to make Unveiled Portraits the best boudoir photography studio in the state of Wisconsin. Thank you to all of my wonderful ladies!!! Here's to a new year of loving your sexy-self just the way you are!!!

This year was also a great year for my family. We took our very first family vacation in December to Disney World. Seeing Disney through the eyes of a 3 year old was definitely magical.

Drew had the most fun on the Triceratops ride at Animal Kingdom and getting his face painted up like a dragon. For Andy and I, our favorite part of the trip was getting selected to see the fireworks show as VIP's at Epcot. We were the only people in the entire park that got to sit alongside the people who designed the show and just yards away from where the fireworks are shot off.

To help make way for lil' sister "Cook" Drew said goodbye to his toddler bed and hello to a big boy bed. He is doing great in the bed and hasn't fallen out yet... He also was bumped up in his swimming class at Swimtastic Swim School. He can swim all independently for 3 feet, he is also jumping into the pool and swims to the side - all by himself!

Andy caught the biggest fish at my brother Nic's bachelor party in Pickerel Lake, WI - the thing was a HUGE 42" and very very tasty ;-) He has also been very busy playing in his softball and pool leagues. We are very fortunate his company has been so successful this year and are looking forward to what the future holds. We are both so lucky to have careers we love and a family that we adore!


Have a very happy and prosperous 2010!!!!

xoxo Amy

Happy Fall!

This shot was taken just for fun before an annual fall photo session. Summer has ended and fall is upon us!

It's a......

Perfect timing for wedding season!!!

Ardent Photography is up to some pretty amazing things!!! I have some more wonderful news I cannot wait to share with you all... hopefully soon. Stay tuned!

Pink??? or Blue???

Andy and I are finding out if we will be having a girl or a boy today!!! Drew really wants a brother... I'd love for him to have one. But I'd also really, really be happy if it were a girl!

Stay tuned to find out!!!

Think Marriage...

I've been following a relationship blog called www.thinkmarriage.org for a while now. This is a great informational resource to all kinds of people in relationships. With all of the wedding planning and decisions to make it is a true value to invest into your relationship. There is a section for singles, engaged couples, married couples and so on...

The blog also features events such as "10 great dates"... The Thinkmarriage.org blog itself is a value to add to your RSS stream.

License to Cruise...

Erica and Eric's wedding party stopped for drinks at Anduzzi's before their wedding reception on Friday night. College Ave. was just revving up for it's annual "License to Cruise" car show the night before the famous Octoberfest.

There was a staff photographer from the Post Crescent taking shots... he saw me setting up the wedding party and took a few shots. I am actually surprised the image was published in the paper... I wish I could have sent them the kick butt shot I took!

Enjoy!

Amy Gaerthofner of Ardent Photography photographs a wedding party in front of a vintage Chevy Impala along College Avenue in downtown Appleton during License to Cruise on Friday, September 25, 2009. Post-Crescent photo by Kirk Wagner Kirk Wagner

Image Source

Happy Friday!

I wanted to share a few images of me and my growing belly... and give you a bit of a status on how my pregnancy is going.

I am still feeling great! In fact, I have two weddings to shoot this weekend and my son's 3rd birthday party on Sunday... It should be a whirlwind of a weekend! My ultrasound is in a few weeks, we will find out if we are having a brother or a sister for big-bro Drew.

Side note: I was really sticking it out here, I'm only about 17 weeks in this image... These photos are going to be used in our Holiday cards and I wanted to look a bit farther along than I was. ;-)

This image was taken during our annual fall photo session. This year the Spottswoods took some amazing photos of my family. I'll post more of these fabulous pics closer to the Holidays.

Have a great weekend!

We're expecting...

Our second baby! I'm excited to make this exciting news public! I am currently 15 weeks, and I am due on March 3, 2010, which happens to also be my husband's birth date. So far I'm doing great and have not been feeling any morning sickness.

We are really excited to be using a midwife again. If any of you are prego or thinking of becoming prego soon you should look into alternatives to OBGYN's. Our experience with a midwife is a bit more personal and they less likely to use drugs or any interventions. Another thing I am excited about is using my Hypnobirthing Techniques for a drug free delivery. Now I know what to expect and I know I can do it again.

Enough of the baby talk... what does this mean to you? Well, fortunately I don't have any weddings booked for 2010 until May. I am still booking weddings but I am taking a new approach... I will be able to share this exciting news very soon.

I am excited to continue to offer Unveiled Portraits on a monthly basis and up to 20 Senior sessions.

I hope to post a photo of me and my baby bump soon. Thank you all for your well wishes!

Reunion...

Last weekend the Mustang Fillies reunited for a routine at the Milwaukee Iron game. For most of the girls in the group it has been 8+ years since they were on the dance team.

I was a member of the Mustang Fillies in 2000 and had a blast performing at the games. Here is a photo of me when I danced on the team.

I'm the second from the right.

Most of you may not know this... but I have been a dancer my entire life. I danced on the NCAA ranked dance team at UW-Milwaukee for four years, I was on the professional dance team for the Mustangs and then I taught dance for about 4 years.

Here is the video of my girls... I am so very proud that after all of these years they were able to pull off a half-time routine!

Family time!

I just wanted to take a break and show you some photos from our Fourth of July long-weekend in Pickerel.

Drew just loves fishing... he is only 2.5 years old and is hooked. Pardon the pun ;-) Just look at his face when he caught this whopper of a perch!



Andy, Drew and I even had a picnic on a fishing boat.

This is the cutie pie face that I love sooo much!

All images shot with a Nikon point and shoot camera... It was nice to take snapshots like a regular mommy ;-)

Fun Fact Friday - A piece of family history

Fact: I love churches and their history....

Last weekend while shooting the ceremony in St. Mary's Church in Menasha, I noticed a particular stained glass window with a recognizable name. The window read "in memory of Mrs. John Oberweiser".


My husband's grandfather was named John Oberweiser but his grandmother May is still alive and well. And obviously the windows where crafted when the church was built in the late 1800's.

So I asked Andy's mom and dad who are genealogy buffs. We found out that the Mr. and Mrs. John Oberweiser are indeed relation and are my son's Great, Great, Great Grandparents.


Such a fun find! St. Mary's Catholic Church in Menasha is gorgeous... look for Michelle and Andy's wedding day blog post coming soon!

My pre-wedding season vacation

*** note ***
we are healthy and not affected in any way by the swine flu. We returned to the US on April 16th far ahead of the outbreaks.

In the last 12 months I've traveled quite a bit. I've even been to a few sunny locations like Hawaii and Key West. Even though it might seem like I've been on lot's of "vacations"... none of them can measure up to 5 days of nothing-ness all while enjoying it with your husband.

We stayed at the Riu Palace all-inclusive resort in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. The weather was between 80-84 degrees and the only cloud we saw in the sky was on our last day. It took a good day for us to both unwind and actually believe that we were BOTH on this vacation with no responsibilities. No child to potty-train, no dog to feed, no dishes to do, no emails to write... by the second day I told Andy that I had nothing on my mind. No images in my head and no thoughts coming to mind; this has not happened for me in at least 3 years.

Besides laying in the sun we both read 500(ish) page books. I read Twilight and Andy read a thriller. If you know me, I do not read books very often. I'm more of a magazine or blog reader. So for me to finish a book in that short of time is pretty cool. (I could do an entire Twilight review post...)

We also tried out boogie boarding. My friend Marina Miller from Honolulu would be proud that I caught the very first wave with my "rad moves". We only had a little bit of time in the ocean but it was sooooo much fun!

The Riu Palace was excellent. The food was great, the service was amazing, the rooms were modern and soooo comfy, the room service was so much fun and free... I could go on and on.

The only downfall of our entire trip was on the flight from Chicago to Puerto Vallarta... the airline maintenance crew missed flipping a switch that flowed the water to the plane's restrooms. About one hour into our flight the captain came on "we are headed back to Chicago". We had to land, wait almost 2 hours and get on another plane... United Airlines made good on the blunder by offering us $150 towards our next ticket purchase and a free cocktail.

Here are some snapshots from our trip... taken with an 7 year old digital point and shoot camera.

My next "vacation" is only a few weeks away... I will be shooting a destination wedding in Punta Cana for an amazing Kaukauna couple. I am taking Miranda of Reminisce Photography and Design as my second shooter.

If you are looking to book an awesome vacation check out Funjet Vacations online