We were lucky enough to have two different wedding photographers at the wedding, each with a varied style. They both did a great job as I’m sure you’ll agree.

In my previous wedding photos post I talked a bit about how lame I feel in posed photos and how lame I end up looking. I blame my general dislike for posed photos on my short preteen modeling career.

We never do the portrait studio family photo thing (well, last year was the exception), we much prefer to take our own photos as the “in the moment” shots are usually of the most value to us in the long run… but with a growing family of young, squirmy kids, letting someone else take the photos is honestly less stress and headache.

So, to make a long story short, we were open to formal photography for the wedding because it’s one of those things you just do right? We weren’t so sure about how well the photos would turn out, considering the subjects (LOL)… but MAN were we pleasantly surprised!

Eric Cook Photography seriously blew us away with their ability to take formal, staged photos of us where we didn’t look all awkward and overly staged. Even the unstaged photos (like the bathroom one you see to the left) look super fabulous.

Below is a summary video made for us of the low resolution images that will give you a nice glimpse of the wedding:

I am personally in love with this family photo…

The post A look at the wedding though another photographer’s eyes… appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

Nathan has a funny story about the craigslist ads we placed, several stories actually. He should blog them… But to sum it up, we got a bunch of headaches and hate mail resulting from the ad and we also found many talented and passionate candidates.

We found a winner with Pretty Please Photography out of Flagstaff, Arizona because she has a great candid approach to photos which is key because at your wedding it’s all a total blur! Seriously, the day after the wedding when people asked how I felt about it, I couldn’t answer because I hadn’t seen the photos yet. I personally like the “in the moment shots” the best anyway since I often look like a fool in staged shots, so lucky for us we found TaNee’ of Pretty Please Photography.

The photos from TaNee’ are now unveiled and they look great! She got so many intimate captures and many special moments from the wedding, plus some truly beautiful formal photos that I never knew I’d be capable of appearing in (without looking “a fool”, LOL).

Here is a glimpse of what the she captured…

The post A look at the wedding though one of our photographer’s eyes… appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

Now that it’s over, I can’t really detect any major difference between pre-wedding and post wedding life… but we did it and have the photos to prove it so I feel better having done it.

It was a intimate family affair on the San Francisco peaks, in Flagstaff, AZ, where we became engaged 5 years ago.

Our girls helped get us down the aisle as our family watched. I wore my wedding dress that has been sitting in a closet since Everly began growing inside me.

We had a nice plated meal, gluten free wedding cake, some dancing (though not as much as I’d imagined) and took LOTS of professional photos. I feel like all we did was take photos. LOL! But the photos seem like they will turn out gorgeous. See:

Everything went smoothly, despite having planned the wedding from afar. My bridesmaids were the lifesavers that picked up all the loose ends. It was so freaking nice to be with my girls again!

We actually did have some fun on the whirlwind adventure too. The first photo in this post is some of the evidence. Some people had a bit too much fun the night before the wedding apparently. LOL.

Some things were a disappointment to us, others were a let down but all in all we went forward knowing we were doing it for ourselves, not anyone else.

The girls could hardly handle having so many people ogling them and trying to engage them as all the family came together… So the girls pretty much never left our side.

Adalyn walked me down the aisle along with my oldest brother, Gary. Gary’s daughter and Everly sprinkled flowers ahead of me coming down the aisle.

Nathan’s good friend officiated the wedding. We involved our siblings and close friends in the wedding party and had a blast coming together with them to make the wedding happen.

I feel like I didn’t have time to chat with anyone or to really take in the event, so I am relying on photos to help me fill in the missing details of the day. I know Nathan did tear up when he first saw me. I also did at one point before the ceremony.

The post We had OUR Wedding! appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

For our wedding, messy is key. But the updo part is still not selling me because I have so much darn hair! An updo with hair like mine means a full packaged of hair pins… and everyone knows that ISN’T comfortable.

In the above video, they have you tie the bottom part of your hair in a knot… Mine doesn’t tie in a not nearly as easily and it simply wont stay! This girl needs so hair tips.

So tell me, do you rock the updos? What are your tips and trick for a girl with like 8lbs of hair on her head?

Want more info about the Oil of Olay sweeptakes? You can find Sweeps rules here http://www.blogher.com/hair-sweepstakes-offical-rules-week-1 and Prizes & Promotions info here https://www.blogher.com/blogher-tv-weekly-hair-style-sweepstakes

The post Wedding hair trial: A romantic updo appeared first on Updates from Ryder Family Farm.

You already know, our very belated wedding is nearing, fast. Remember how we posponed it while pregnant with Everly? When it comes to important life stuff…

 “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong”.

Except, for us the “going wrong” isn’t really all that terrible, just inoppotune type stuff like infertility clearing up right after engagement.

Well this time, the money has been paid and we can’t back out now… but it’s about to get way more interesting around here thanks to ole Murphy.

As for the wedding, we’ve never seen the wedding venue we choose, so that makes things very interesting. I mean we know the property but have never toured the lodge we will marry & celebrate at… so we can’t visualize the flow of the day or knowledgeably plan for what will go where, or what we’ll need. We hope to have someone in Arizona to take us on a video or photo tour of the place though.

We do have a photographer, a videographer and a gluten free cake in the works. The menu is also decided, the guest list is shaping up and in a few short months our big day will be here.

Did I mention we are doing a waste-free wedding? We AREN’T buying a ton of decor crap that will later be useless junk that’s landfill bound. Instead we are borrowing what supplies we need. The wedding will be very rustic, not really “frilly” if you know what I mean.

I’d really like to find some wine crates, old wooden cable spools and some large wood stumps to use for decor… It will be an intimate, very small wedding. We are also doing this debt free! We are excited that the big day is getting so close but we are also starting to feel the stress of the nearing event.

Also, Nathan just spend all of Sunday out with our neighbor doing more “pond” cleanup. I’ve blogged about the pond that we share ownership of before… This time, they got an inflatable boat. Chainsaws, waders and hand clippers were involved. It was all quite ammusing but also insanely productive!

The garden is springing to life here, we anxiously wait and watch while the strawberries, blueberries & grapes set. Seeds are coming up in the planting beds, the peas are climbing high and we just can’t wait to be harvesting and enjoying our own fresh, organic produce again!

That is really all I have in terms of updates. What is cookin’ with you?

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