The Root Photography Blog

Noelle + Phil : Royal Crest Room Wedding

October 16, 2020 by Jensey Leave a Comment

We went from March to September without a wedding. (Other than a sweet elopement Nate photographed on his own in Winter Park!)

I was *so* nervous to shoot again. Worried I’d be awkward and forget how to work a camera and the weather would be awful and it’d show how rusty we were. I wasn’t expecting it all to come back like riding a bike! :) Noelle and Phil’s wedding was our first “big” wedding back. These guys had to change plans a few times, but it all ended up working out great. They were married at the Royal Crest Room in St. Cloud. Their florists transformed the ballroom to look like a botanical garden, which is where their Plan A wedding was supposed to be. There have been some silver linings with this whole pandemic, and one of those was we weren’t a part of their Plan A, but we were more than thrilled to join them for Plan C!

Venue + Catering : Royal Crest Room
Entertainment : DJ Chuck Johnson
Videographer : Written in Film
Floral Designer : RJ Glamour & Innovation
Bride’s Dress : Martina Liana #1033, Ivory and White Boutique
Bridesmaids Dresses: Dessy gowns in Desert Rose – Bella Bridesmaids
Cake Designer: Bakers Cottage Cake
Fireworks: Orlando Special Effects

That little “Let’s try this again!” <3

First look with Dad. <3

No shortage of good luck rain for these two- We were on pins and needles through the ceremony as the darkest clouds rolled in! But luckily the “good luck” held off until after they were married and Noelle was all up for a rainy golf cart ride for some newly married portraits! <3

Noelle and Phil, huge thanks and love to you and your families for having us!! Can’t think of a sweeter way to kick off this crazy wedding season. <3

2019 Tennessee Trip!

April 9, 2020 by Jensey Leave a Comment

Before we became parents, I had dreams of grandeur of blogging monthly personal photos. Every trip being documented within a week of returning from home.

The reality is I’m constantly treading water when it comes to our personal photos. Our bests are *incredibly* patient and never complain about getting our fall trip photos uploaded in March. *facepalm* I go back and forth on whether it’s even worth the effort to share them or if it’s just wrong to because we’re off season. I can’t wait until *next* fall to post, because I know I’ll have another load of memories I’d rather share but be behind on (and Oliver will be a whole year older!), so I’ll end up putting THOSE on the back burner, and the cycle just never ends.

BUT. I’ve decided this year I’m going to try to share more of these photos, even if we’re 6 months behind. Because this was my favorite trip of 2019 and Ollie in Tennessee just warms my heart. <3 And sometimes we get reallllllly cute photos of our favorite people, like this one that just begs to be seen! :)

If you’ve been following for the past decade, you may remember our best friends who got married in Africa. If you ever wonder what became of them, Lorie and Jon are happily raising their family of chickens in Nashville! We don’t get to see them often, but I’m always so happy when we do. <3 <3

All their chickens have fun egg names, like Scrambled, Sunny Side, and Deviled! They’re also a few tambourines away from being the chickens belting “Zip-a-dee-doo-dah” at the end of Splash Mountain. <3

Ollie is *very* impressed and talks about them often. :)

Every fall or early winter we try to make a trip to Tennessee! I want to raise my Florida boy aware of seasons, and appreciating our favorite place- Dollywood!!

He’s already off to a good start and definitely appreciates a good carousel <3

On our way to Dollywood’s First Aid for a scary splinter!

Can’t you feeeeeel the bravery in this one?! <3

“Pooh Bear, is that you?!”

There is NOTHING like Dollywood at Halloween. We were so happy to share this magic with Tim and John!!

He’ll cry when he meets Mickey, but somehow this motley crew wasn’t scary to him at all!!

THE table at Dollywood’s DreamMore Resort where I filled out our home study papers to adopt!! I’ll cry if they ever get rid of this special little corner!

Favorite part of the trip? Nate was taking the above photo of Tim and John when Ollie proudly announced, “I want to take a picture with my uncles.” <3 <3 <3

We met this sweet couple taking photos with their phones in wedding attire! Nate made some friends and took some with our camera, too. :)

We loved getting a little taste of fall and can’t wait to go back!! <3

The B Family : Orlando Newborn Family Session

April 4, 2020 by Jensey Leave a Comment

I remember newborn Ollie life like it was yesterday.

The sleepless nights. My little chest space heater during long days on the sofa. Trying to cement in my memory how tiny his hands are. Smelling him as much as humanly possible.

The funny thing about newborn family life is you kind of slip into a family coma. Days blur together and you’re a puddle of emotions and you eat when you can’t remember when you last ate and your life consists of a pendulum constantly swinging from we’ve-totally-got-this-we’re-the-best-parents-in-the-world to ok-seriously-wtf-am-I-doing?!

Taylor is going through becoming a first time mom while self isolating, which I honestly think is the perfect time to become locked in and cozy with the new love of your life. <3

Taylor and Jeff, our hearts are so full for you. I can’t wait to meet the luckiest boy in the world… Welcome to the Root Lifers club, sir! :)