By Monique

I started this blog post of the groom, Kurt, dancing with his mom, Marie, as a dedication to her. Marie died unexpectedly after a short illness only 6 months after the wedding. I have waited a long time to do this blog post because I wanted to let some time pass out of respect for the couple and their grieving process. Having lost my own mom in 2012, I know first hand how devastating it can be. As Mother’s Day approaches in a little over a week, it can be a bittersweet time for those of us who have lost our moms. But I am also a firm believer in keeping their memories alive with stories that we remember and tell about them and photographs that we keep and look at often. I myself have several photos of my mom on my desk. I hope that this post can be a reminder to the couple of the hapiness that they shared with her on their wedding day.

It is hard to transition into a typical wedding blog post after that, but I will give it a try. This was a beautiful wedding I did at the Winters Creek Lodge at the Mount Rose Ski Resort. Kristy and Kurt had their first look on the patio and then we drove down to a nearby Aspen grove for some portraits before the ceremony. Winters Creek Lodge, at an elevation of 8,260 feet, has mountain and forest views of the ski resort itself, and sweeping valley views of the Washoe Valley to the east. Every time I photograph a wedding at this venue, I seem to have the greatest luck with getting amazing, fire-in-the-sky sunsets, and this wedding was no exception. And we even got a bonus rainbow for about 5 minutes during the dinner hour. It was an honor to capture this day for Kristy and Kurt and their families.  And these images are a reminder to me of how important my job is to capture these moments that become a part of their family history, a record of their loved ones.