Alycia + Casey | engaged love! | cedar falls, ia engagement photographer

Darlin'

will you let me call you darlin'?

when will you let me call you darlin'?

it's what i need.

josh ritter || darlin

these two. they make even a dreary winter day in iowa look good! they're such a riot and kept me laughing despite my frozen fingers during our shoot;) thank you two for trusting my crazy ideas + having an adventure with me. those cops don't even have a clue how much fun we had! [don't worry, y'all. nothing happened...much.] oh, and alycia...coffee dates for sure next year. congrats, you two!

xoxo,

amelia renee

living in this season | personal

I'm so thankful that learning is a constant thing—something that we'll never stop doing as long as we live + breathe this earthly air! this past week has especially felt like a time of learning + realizing things in my own life, and although some of them have stung a bit, they all have been a blessing.

just one thing I'll share is that I'm learning to live in this season. It's sooooo easy for me as a dreamer to try to plan out the future—and then get upset when that's not where I'm at today, or tomorrow, or even next month. Impatience and discontentment settle in and take root, and then grow inside my soul + attitude with the additive nutrient of complaint. and that, my friends, is not fun for me or for you. and it's not who we were created to be!

To live in this season is: 

to rejoice daily in the fact that He has given me life + breath today.

singing along to Burning Lights on repeat x129 during my daily commute all over town.

sometimes staying up until 2 am. hello, college. or just photo editing. or blog reading. ;)

to kiss the babies at church + that come in to school. [this girl has baby fever bad!]

realizing that I'm called to live generously, and I'm a selfish person, but God has grace + power to chance me in my weaknesses.

drinking green tea + liking it!!!

to be as excited + emotional as I am, and be okay with that!

learning that I'm a cat person. never did I ever think I'd say that.

praying more. learning to listen in prayer more.

that saying yes to one thing means saying no to another. [tough lesson]

and,

realizing that no matter what, I can't plan my life.

and I'm actually thankful for that. if I planned my life, it'd probably be pretty boring! I mean, I'm not the most creative person out there. and God is the one who made all those creatives...and He plans my life, sooooo...yeah. it's a blessing in disguise. ;) Proverbs 16:9 has been telling me this since I was little girl, but I'm starting to believe it, I think. :)

the next season will come soon. and it will be just as lovely, and just as full of challenges. so i'm going to be thankful for this season. of making + deepening relationships here. of seeing my family daily. of working with people that I'm learning to love more like Jesus would and less like I can on my own. of taking photos in the studio and hanging out in the lab with Mariah or Paige. of being a hop, skip, and drive across town from people who have more of my heart than they know. and most importantly, of learning what it means to listen to what God has to say to me about who He's created me to be, what He's building me to do [someday! and I don't even know what that is yet!], and to ignore all the other junk + lies that Satan and the world push at me.

if anyone has read this far besides my mom or best friends, I'm surprised and maybe just a bit flattered. ;) thank you for listening to my heart today, because sometimes...this blog is where I babble! leave a comment if you'd like to chat, or feel free to email me. I'd love to listen to your thoughts!

and, since you stuck with me all this way, here's a photo that's got me pretty excited about a few who are in love with Jesus, and each other. you'll hear more about them soon. oh yes, you will.

xoxo,
amelia

just one image | engagement sneak peek

Life will never leave us alone, 

So I'll never leave you alone. 

Dave Barnes—You Do the Same for Me

I adore the fact that photography allows me to meet people—amazing, crazy cool, wonderful people. Each one is different, as is each love story & couple that I get the chance to interact with. And sometimes, you just have a feeling...that this is going to be more than a business relationship, but a friendship.

That's the bestest.

More of Alycia + Casey coming soon!

announcement | spring mini-sessions!

I am SO excited to announce my first spring mini-sessions! These are the perfect opportunity to get out in the fresh air & have some photos taken—of your family, because you're in love, or just because you want to celebrate life! These will also be helping fund a handful of college students traveling this summer to share about the love of Jesus with people in many countries, and I'd love for you to partner with me! There are a limited amount of mini-sessions I'll be accepting, but if you're interested, shoot me an email! 

xoxo,

Amelia Renee:)

Lijah + Mary | Engaged | Cedar Falls, IA Engagement Photographer

Lijah and Mary met at the University of Northern Iowa, so it was perfectly fitting that we shot their engagement session there! Although we had plenty of fresh snow to tromp through, we were blessed with a gorgeous sunny evening and no wind. A true February miracle. ;) These two tie the knot this summer, the weekend after the 4th of July—and I love how they incorporated their colors into this snowy session! 

















xoxo, amelia renee

UNI Dance Marathon 2013 | Dance Marathon Event

UNI Dance Marathon 2013 was an incredible event. This is only the 2nd year that it has been put on at the university—and this school is blowing the other schools out of the water!  For those of you who do not know what Dance Marathon is, it's an event put on separately by universities throughout the country during the school year. Started in 1991, it has reached from one university to over 150 schools in the U.S.! Students fundraise for pledges from friends and family, and the money then goes to the Children's Miracle Network—where it is used to help make life in a hospital just a little bit easier while in the hospital with a child. Many of these children are facing extreme diseases, such as Leukemia, other cancers, or who are in need of transplants. Students that participate in DM do not sit for the 12 hours of the event, and are not allowed to consume caffeine! Trust me, it's difficult—I was there for the majority of the event, and even with breaks sitting with my equipment or just watching the action, I was (and am still!) sore.  I could tell you more with words, but I think I'll shush & share some images. A few words will be sprinkled throughout to explain. If you want, turn on Imagine Dragons or some other dance tunes to help you soak in the experience a little:)







beloved President Allen shared a few words.
the three amigos/MC's: Michael McAndrew, Logan Mundt, and Ian Goldsmith start off the activities.



the kids and their families walked down the "orange carpet" & made their way to the stage.


high-fiving the executive gals.

students split up into their morale groups to meet their sponsored families.

morale captains performed the "morale dance" which was then dance at the beginning of every hour. dancers learning the morale dance. each hour had a theme + the morale captains dressed accordingly. so much fun!





lunch time! Panchero's sponsored lunch + Panda Express provided dinner. lucky kids;)

besides dancing, there were rooms with all sorts of fun activities! (just no sitting!)







aaaand lots of fun musical performances! here DJ Pei and the Brazilian 2wins perform together. 

Dell and Kay Rhythmz showed off their song & dance swag!



at the beginning of each hour after the morale dance, led by freshly costumed morale captains, a family was introduced and encouraged to share their + their child's story. they were often very moving, and each family displayed their gratitude towards all the students.


then back to dancing! (zumba time! ole!) 

the last hour of the night was deemed POWER HOUR! one last hurrah before the amount fundraised was announced. it was some of the most energetic, craziest, most fun dancing I've ever witnessed!

























finally...sitting down! ready to hear some exciting news?! the goal was to raise $61,000 (10,000 more than last year!) and ended up raising $101,379.02!!!!


emotions flowed freely.




a moment of silence to reflect... and then it was over. this event was so amazing to be a part of, even from the viewpoint of a bystander. [may or may not be considering switching over to full-time dance party photographer! ;)] I am SO proud of each and every participant, and the effort they put into the fundraising, the long hours, and the day in general. it was so neat to see them come together for a common cause & help out families from our area!
if you'd like to stay current with UNI's Dance Marathon group, and maybe even get involed this next year, like their page here. I know I'm super excited to see how much they raise at DM 2014! and finally, thank you to Lottie Staggs, Amy Stoll, Rob Wirtjes and all the other executives that made me feel welcome at the Big Event this past weekend. I had no idea what I was getting myself into--but I felt instantly comfortable and had a blast!   xoxo, Amelia Renee