Amy was the first senior of the year for me – the shoot went GREAT!

Amy – I had such a great afternoon with you and your mom.

Thanks again for getting in touch with me.

We went mini-golfing with PM and her brother on Sunday – everyone got at least one hole in one – except me.

I worked at a local deli/meat/grocery during the summers and holiday breaks during college. Ted Clark’s was my first job outside of babysitting – I worked there for 4 summers and holiday breaks throughout the years. I worked in the deli department – which is how I met Anne – the bride from this weekend. Anne worked in the deli/meat department too – when I am visiting the valley I try to stop and catch up with the people working there. Anne had told me that she got engaged and I told her to keep me in mind for wedding pictures. After the ceremony, my friends James and Laura came up and asked what we were doing at the wedding – turns out that James works with the groom – small world. 

Guest book …

Beautiful cake …

JP …

Do you …

I do …

This was the bride’s granddaughter – Danielle – what a cutie.

My cousin and his wife are expecting a sweet babe at the end of September. My Gram hosted a baby shower for them on Friday night –

Jared got them this – he had to make sure the size was right for the election.

Soon-to-be mom and dad and Uncle M.

Aunt L – Gram to the wee one – trying to feel the babe.

*R* and *M* – you guys will be great parents – I can’t wait to meet the babe.

I will be leaving for Virginia on Wednesday the 27th to spend some time with a great friend from college – Trudy. Trudy was my RA when I was a freshman in College at Philadelphia University. Most of you know that I had a rough experience my first semester in college – and I transferred to Mansfield University that second semester. I believe that we all have God appointments in life – Trudy was mine – and I hers. Trudy took me under her wing and we became good friends. The summer after my freshman year in college – Trudy also became my sister in Christ. We have tried to see each other once a year since my freshman year – last year was the only year it didn’t happen. So to make up for that – and knowing that soon enough I will have babies that make those visits harder to happen – I am taking the train to Virginia on Wednesday to return Sunday. She took the days off work so that we can hang out and catch up. I don’t know that I will have too much email access – so please be patient with responses – I will have lots to blog about when I come back. If you NEED to reach me – you most likely have my phone number – if not – let Jared know – jdbarden (at) gmail.com – and he will get a hold of me.

Saturday I shot a very low-key wedding. The bride and groom arrived together and put the food out for the reception – then Anne – the bride called everyone over to the side of the pavilion where the ceremony was taking place. The groom’s brother stood up with him and the bride’s daughter with her – the rings were exchanged – the vows said – the bride kissed – and the license signed. Then we took a few pictures – ate – had a toast – had some cake and the bride and groom went around table to table to talk with their guests. I’ll post those pictures later – but for now – some of my mom and I.

My mom was playing with the mint wrappers – making bride and groom finger puppets.

My mom was my assistant for the afternoon – it was so fun to hang out with her.

Nice close-up Mom – This close-up shows the appliance that I am wearing on my bottom teeth. It isn’t nearly as obvious as I feel it is.

I have posted some pictures of Mauser before – Mauser is my Aunt L’s puppy – Saturday evening – he was all about giving me kisses – but I didn’t want any of it.

So he propped his sad little face on my legs – just waiting for me to give in. When I wouldn’t he ran to Uncle Bob to complain.

He is a cute little pup.

Friday night I headed home – to Athens – to attend my cousin’s baby shower – shoot a wedding on Saturday – and hang out with my family. Jared stayed in Mansfield b/c his company had their summer picnic on Saturday – which I was bummed to miss out on. When I got to my parents house on Friday night – I noticed two bunnies in a cage – turns out my mom’s friend found a tame bunny on her way home one night – ‘cus people always drop off animals on farms in the country – and she took it home with her. It was pregnant – with eight babies. So my mom and dad took two of them home. Smokey and the Bandit.

Bandit – she loves to run around the living room and try to sneak under the couch.

Smokey – he loves to chew – and hates going back in his cage.

Smokey – he would have ate my shoe if I had let him.

Labyrinth is one of my favorite 80’s movies – * not FAVORITE movie* – but favorite 80’s movie – completely different things. I can’t argue with the fact that it is probably one of the cheesiest movies of all time – but I love it nonetheless.

The movie is about this over-dramatic teenage girl Sarah who has to babysit her baby brother Toby while her father and step-mother go out for the night. She is tired of her little brother and begins quoting her favorite book – The Labyrinth – in doing the Goblin King comes and takes her baby brother away to the Goblin City. She must find her way through the Labyrinth in 13 hours – or Toby becomes a Goblin himself.

Jennifer Connelly plays Sarah and David Bowie plays Jareth – so of course he sings.

The Labyrinth might be a cheesy movie – but the special effects – for 1986 are pretty cool and fun and there are quite a few good messages.

1. Be careful what you wish for – it might come true.

2. (and I have to thank Aunt L for this one) – There are people in your life who want to keep you in the past – who want to make you forget and leave your treasures behind while you focus on the trash that sounds so appealing. When I was a freshman in college in Phillie – I was very homesick- Aunt L wrote me a letter in which she described a charachter in Labyrinth. At one point in the movie Sarah is given a peach that makes her forget what she is doing – saving Toby – and she wakes up in a junkyard where a woman leads her to a room – Sarah’s bedroom – with all her stuffed animals and jewelry and storybooks are waiting for her. This woman is bent over and has PILES of trash on her back – things that she has picked up and thinks she needs and adds to the pile – things that drag her down – things from her past that help her with grudges and selfishness – things that she will never need but cannot let go of. She tells Sarah that she is fine here with all her things – everything she has ever wanted – is right here – in her room. Sarah starts a ballerina jewelry box and begins to remember the masquerade ball with the Goblin King and that Toby is gone and she has to save him – she leaves all that she thought she needed behind to save him. Aunt L wrote to me about that woman with all the trash on her back and how she is so weighed down by the past and the trash that she carries with her. I will have to look for that letter and post what she wrote to me – her exact words flow much better – they always do.

3. All throughout the movie Sarah says – That’s not fair. At one point she says it to Jareth and he replies with – “You say that so often, I wonder what your basis for comparison is?” One of the best movie lines ever. That’s not fair – at PK on Wednesday nights I hear it quite a bit – so much so that we resorted to playing games that I named “Danielle Ball” instead of the correct game – because Danielle makes up the rules as we go. That’s not fair – she kicked it too hard – he bunted – she didn’t raise her hand that time – and yet every time “that’s not fair” is uttered – almost without skipping a beat – that same kid is doing the same “unfair” thing. I love that Sarah whines unfairness and Jareth just looks at her and says – you say that so often – i wonder what your basis for comparison is. So true – what is our basis for comparison. I find as the oldest of 3 children – things were never “fair”. Samm and Derek had different rules than I did – different times called for different measures. I remember when I went to college – my dad had moved into a better paying job – and the first time I came home my brother had a really nice leather jacket and I looked at my mom and said – that’s not fair – she said – we didn’t have that money when you were here – or we would have bought you things like that – I realized then that it wasn’t that they loved him more – but it was a different time – a different situation. When you say things aren’t fair – or when you think things aren’t fair – what is your basis for comparison?

If you haven’t gotten a chance to see this movie – check it out – don’t expect an Oscar worthy film by any means – just a fun 80’s movie.