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Cheers to Four Years of Marriage

Happy Anniversary Shawn

F o u r    y e a r s. I love doing one of these posts every single year. It's the perfect diary entry... only everyone can read it. Hmmm. Regardless, I love leaving a little piece of us within the blog. It's a great record of memories, and something I enjoy looking back on. We are celebrating four years of marriage. I don't want to say I can't believe it, because we took vows that said we'd be together forever, so this anniversary was bound to happen. But what I can't believe is all that we've done from year three, to now. It's just a single year, but so much has changed. We've moved, we've grown our business, the big boy job has been acquired. The list goes on and on. We are such different people than who we were at year three, and I absolutely love it.  I think the best part about this year, and every year, is that we get the opportunity to grow together. We are at the stage where we aren't so much learning, but understanding each other. It's a whole new level of excitement because it's so different, and we are going through it together.  Tears starting in 3, 2, 1... While this year has been great, I know that 2018 marks 10 years since I've lost my dad. A man you never got meet that meant so much to me. The immense amount of love and support that you...

Top of the Mornin' to Yah!

Ireland Adventures Part 1

How is it possible that an entire month has passed since our trip to Ireland? It feels like yesterday that we were driving through the green country, eating delicious Irish food, and singing Christmas carols in a castle. The trip was really remarkable and - no lie -  we wish we were still there. The most unbelievable part of our journey? We did it all with 1 carry-on each.  Adjusting to life back home took time. Even though we were gone for 8 days, we acclimated to the laid back living really quick. Who would have thought that relaxing would be easy to get used to (/s). But, now that wedding season is over and the holidays are packed away, we're so excited to share about our trip! The places we saw, the things we did, and ALL the photos are finally here!  Day 1 in Dublin Our flight got into Dublin Airport at 5:00am. I don't know why we thought it would be a great idea to land so early. We grabbed our rental car and headed to the city center. Since our hotel didn't do check-ins until 3:00pm, we decided to find a parking garage to sleep in the car. Yup, our first activity in Ireland was sleeping in a garage for 4 hours. You'll notice that the greatest memories we made were from small things like that, haha! Once we woke up from our nap, we headed off to the Jameson Distillery for a tour...

Time to Make Those 2018 Goals

New Year, New Everything!

Happy New Year! Not gonna lie, I've been battling with what exactly to put into this blog post. On the one hand, I want to be positive and joyful, but on the other, I'm kind of not feeling it. I remember being so excited last year when I was writing a similar post to this one. Even in January, our 2017 felt special. We were looking forward to 15 gorgeous days lined up, shooting a wedding in Jamaica, and branching out into the community more. This year, though, already feels a little less balanced. There's more of a shift in my 2018 goals toward personal areas rather than professional. Where as last year I was amped for all BCP was going to be doing, this year I'm more excited for what Britney and Shawn will be up to.  What's coming To start, we're moving! In about 2 weeks we will be upgrading from our very small apartment to a larger space. This has been an "every year" goal, but since it's finally happening, it's real 2018 goals, haha! We'll still be renting, which a lot of people don't understand, but we are really looking forward to it! We don't want to settle on a place we don't see ourselves being in forever. We don't want to be in a starter home for only a couple years, and we don't want townhouse living. Our dream is to get the house that will see future generations playing, growing, and thriving...

The Third Year of Marriage

You & Me...And Everyone We Know

Shawn, when I think about today being the official kick-off to our third year of marriage, I'm kind of shocked. It feels like three days ago we were exchanging vows in our 7 minute ceremony. Two days ago that we were adopting the only acceptable child for us (PONYYY), and one day ago that I posted about our second anniversary. You never believe a person when they say that the time speeds by, but it does. The moments and the years are gone in an instant, which is why I'm glad we spend so much time together. Whether that's discovering new places or just napping on the couch.  We made promises to each other 1095 days ago to always be there for one another, no matter what. Yeah, of course, we fight just like any couple. But the thing I love about us is that we communicate unlike anyone I've ever known. You're able to understand how I'm feeling based on my look, and allow me time to process, and then share with you my thoughts . You are never condescending, or snarky. Even though I'm sure it would be easy to combat my attitudes with your own, you don't. If I ask for help or just need someone to cry on, without a question, you are there. The amount of support you put into our family and friendships is unbelievable. When Brad and I came to you talking about audiobook reviews, you didn't stop us and tell us we...

Centennial Park Photo Party

AKA Weirding Out Strangers

Shawn has been sick the past few days, and I've been feeling a little meh myself. I'm not sure if I'm getting sick or just in a funk, but I'm loading up on Vitamin C, just in case. Either way, by Tuesday, I was pretty sure that this week was a bust. Truthfully, the whole month has been a little strange. I've been feeling a smidgen at odds with my camera, and I wasn't sure how to fix it. I never thought that a fun day of shooting was what I needed until after Marlayna asked if I wanted to go to Centennial Park (which you may remember from Alexa and Eddie's engagement session or Lisa and Michael's snowy shoot). Turns out, even as a photographer, you need to have non-serious shoot days! Who would have thought?! I know that I most recently went out for the snow day, but this week's adventure was different. It was fun and exciting to be shooting portraits, but also posing for them. Now, I'm not the most confident model, but I was feelin' it on Tuesday. I finally got to unleash my years of ANTM knowledge all over Centennial Park. I'm not entirely sure if I would have made it past the pre-prelimary cycle of any modeling competitions, but I made my attempts! Sometimes it's necessary to step out of your comfort zone and just be a goofball. At the end of the evening, I think both of us were feeling a lot...

Snow Day in Maryland!

Winter has Finally Arrived...in Spring

If you follow me on Instagram, then you've probably seen my rants about this winter. If you don't follow me on Instagram, why not?! (@britneyclause). The season has been lackluster to say the least. But, FINALLY: Winter. Has. Arrived! The weather channel was reporting a good 6-10 inches of snow for our area, which had me real excited. However, what we ended up getting was about 2 inches with a life time supply of sleet. I'm not going complain too much, though, because seeing the ground covered in crispy snowy goodness is still better than the naked ground. I'll take whatever snow Maryland offers, even if it is a bunch of slush! When the snow was originally predicted, I figured we would just stay inside, cuddled up with some hot cocoa. But then I thought that if this is the only winter storm we get, I want to take advantage of it! It's always easy to get Pony outside, but Shawn... he's a different story. Shawn isn't a big lover of the cold, so I was sure he would try to veto my backyard adventure. However, he great thing about him is that he is a wonderful husband and didn't fight me at all :D! The thing I enjoy most about a snow day is how serene everything feels. It always makes the world feel so quiet and calm. I remember as a kid going outside and laying in the fluffy snow just enjoying the silence. It drove my...

Baltimore Chef Shop Cooking Extravaganza

Family Fun!

Last week, we had the best experience ever! Before I dive into all of the excitement, I want to give a little background. For Christmas this year, Shawn and I decided to gift new experiences to people instead of good ol' presents. We thought it would be fun to spend time together, rather than just give something that may be forgotten about and left in a closet. For Shawn's family, we wanted to do something that would bring us together and bond us in a new way. It wasn't easy finding something that we thought everyone would love, but when I discovered the Baltimore Chef Shop and all of the classes they offer, it just kind of clicked. The Baltimore Chef Shop The owner of the shop, Scott, actually created this space for the every day person. He wanted to give people the chance to learn how to create meals that were sustainable and they could be proud of. There is a class for everyone at the Baltimore Chef Shop. From artisan chocolate to Thai street food, there are no limits to what you can learn. Bonus points for also needing no experience. Shawn has never had the chance to flex his cooking chops at home. I'm too much of a food control freak, so he has about 5 xp in that skill. However, he did an amazing job, and I don't think there was a single point where he felt he couldn't do what was asked. It was awesome...

What Do We Do in the Off Season?

A Little About Us

During the off season, Shawn and I like to take some time for ourselves. We usually spend a few days after the holidays relaxing in our pajamas and binging Netflix (I've watch The Crown twice already). However, we do have to get back to work at some point. Shawn goes back to the lab (literally), and I start making lists for the 2017 season. I plan website updates, restructure our pricing, and find some different business workshops to sign up for. The off season is absolutely not the most exciting time for anyone looking in from the outside, but for us, it's a time to dream big. In last week's post, I talked about our goals for 2017. Both personal and business aspirations were briefly listed, but there wasn't much said about them. Three of the biggest things I am looking forward to from that list are making improvements to the website, creating a newsletter, and unveiling the client lounge. Design elements make me the happiest to think of, and those three items are huge for us. They make me giddy to think about, so I definitely want to share them with everyone. The BCP Website With every passing year, there are new trends and updated styles. Over the course of 2016, I got really inspired by other creative uses of web space, and I began planning my own changes. Now, the updates I have in mind are not a design overhaul or anything crazy. I have plans for a...

2017 Goals to Elevate Our Business

Happy New Year!

Is it seriously time to start writing a new number on everything? I feel like 2016 flew by, and I'm not really sure I'm ready for the new year. I mean, I guess it doesn't really matter if I'm ready, because it's here. The time cannot go backwards, so it's time for me to think about my 2017 goals. I'm not really a fan of making resolutions. They terrify me and I feel they are counterproductive. You set a resolution once for the entire year. When the countdown hits zero, you either succeed or you don't. Even if you came close, you still feel the crushing defeat which is very demoralizing. Any deviations are just "excuses" for not accomplishing your predefined resolution. Basically, a resolution motivates by guilt and the negative feelings associated with anything short of success. That's not a healthy mindset when trying to grow and improve, since it's harder to take big risks when you have the fear of failure. Instead, I prefer to set goals for myself, which are similar but different than resolutions. Goals aren't all or nothing. You can come close to completing your goals, and still feel accomplished. They can adapt to any changes in lifestyle or priorities without having to feel like you failed and started over. Also, I feel like it's much easier to exceed your goals but keep going without putting your work down and feeling like you're done. Goals are just a nicer concept that - given the...