Tracy & Adam’s Somerset (The Coal Reserve) Engagement Photos

Tracy and Adam will be getting married this summer in Somerset, Kentucky and the whole SS&G crew is looking forward to their fabulous wedding day!

For their engagement photos we headed out to Somerset and to The Coal Reserve.  I have to say that I have seen a LOT of venues and this place WOWed me!  Brides in the area looking for a venue… we got a sneak peek of what I am sure will be one of the most sought after venues in the Somerset area and it was nothing short of AMAZING!

It’s always fun to work with couples whom we have previously met.  Adam was a member of Dackery’s wedding party a few years back at Cumberland Falls (Remember Chelsen and Dackery?!  They had a stunning wedding ) and Dackery (our former groom) will be a member of Adam’s wedding party this summer.

Adam is a Pulaski County Sheriff’s Deputy!  Obviously, from the photos you can tell that he takes pride in his work.  We were stoked to get to work with Adam IN UNIFORM!  I love it when couples prepare for their engagement sessions and have ideas that are uniquely them!  It was definitely a first for me but we loved it!  I think the pics of Adam in uniform turned out especially fabulous!

We even took a few just for the Sheriff! 

If you didn’t notice the “coal” theme… its there notice this pile of rocks in the landscaping?  Not just rocks… coal!  Even the “bark” around the landscaping was coal chunks!

Indoors there were these towering 20-30 foot walls that were made from stacked stone coal!  Even the fireplace had coal chunks in it instead of “glass”… All very special and amazing.

We are totally excited for their upcoming wedding day and know that it will be a beautiful and memorable event for all!!!

Thought of the Day – Henry Cartier Bresson

Congenital Heart Disease Awareness Week: February 7-14, 2011

So of all the things my clients know about me they all definitely know that Troy and myself have THREE beautiful children.  What many may NOT know is that our, Kyleigh, is a survivor of a great many things.  Unlike many childhood diseases or “birth defects” (I hate that by the way… I think every person in the world is fearfully and wonderfully made and NO ONE especially not my daughter! is defective)… which can be cured, my daughter lives inside a body that is much like a ticking time bomb.

Hello, my name is Amber Teater Schmidt and I am a “Heart Mom”.  I am one of the proud many who were told that our child might never “make it”.  One of the many who held vigil for hours on end through the long tedious surgeries.  One of the (far too!) many who sat in an ICU room for 21 days praying that God would allow my daughter to walk out of that room alive and well.  I am THAT mom… the one who people generally look at with “pained” looks as you try to describe the horrors and the victories.  The mom who instantly notices when her child’s “color” is off or when her nailbeds are blue.  The mom who sat straight up in bed with a cold sweat when she heard the monitor go off.    I am the mom who carefully measured medication after medication (up to 37 a day).  The mom who had to hear THOSE words “we need to talk” during her 16 week ultrasound.  The mom who prepared herself for anything and everything but believed for the best!  But most of all I am the mom who will NEVER stop fighting against this horrible disease or FOR hope that my daughter will some day have a REAL cure.

A little more about Kyleigh’s story.  (Pics are included but I will warn you that some may be graphic and MOST will rip your heart out.  If you are not good with needles, close the post now and visit us tomorrow when we are back to our regular scheduled programming!)

(This pic of Kyleigh was taken in the pre-op area about 15 minutes before they took her back to the OR for her first open heart surgery.  It is an image that will forever haunt my memories.  Eventually I had it printed and hung it on her ICU room door.  I wanted the nurses and doctors to know what my baby was SUPPOSED to look like.  At one point she was a bloated and disfigured version of herself that was simply painful to see.  There were many days when I wondered WHY she still hung on… I am sure it would have been easier just to give up but I am sure glad she DIDN’T!)

Kyleigh was diagnosed with a heart “condition” at our 16 week ultrasound.  I had a lot of time between that fateful ultrasound and her delivery to reconcile that my baby was not well.  Not only was she not well… she was, in fact, VERY sick.  The delivery day and we prepared as best we could.  There were neonatologists, cardiologists, pediatricians and so many other people that I cannot even begin to remember them all.  My daughter had a cardiologist before she was even born.  This beautiful woman had always given me reassurance that everything would be fine no matter what and she was right.  We were also presented with the fact that our daughter may need immediate transport to a different hospital for surgery.  We had NO idea what would transpire that day.  It was supposed to be a day full of joy and happy memories.  Unfortunately for us, her birth turned into an ongoing 3 year nightmare.

(A pic taken by my dear friend and fellow photographer Lisa Zanchi about 30 minutes after Kyleigh’s birth.  Kyleigh was already covered in lead, wires, tubes and lines by the time I got to hold her for the first time.)

Our daughter was born on July 13, 2006 a tiny little peanut, breathing beautifully and screaming loudly.  This was the most beautiful sound we had ever heard.  It was quickly discovered that her heart, was not her only issue and actually at the time of her birth, was a non-issue if you can believe it.  Our daughter’s heart problem is just a tiny part of an overall bigger set of problems which is labeled “VACTERLS” Association.  She was quickly rushed off to our hospital’s NICU and then later transferred to the local Children’s Hospital.  At that point they decided that she was far too sick and too small to even think about doing her surgery at the time of her birth, plus she had more “life-threatening” issues.  Hard to believe that there are things worse in life than a bad heart.

Kyleigh’ s heart was diagnosed as a Complete AV Canal (ASD + VSD) with involved valves which made it look more similar to Tetrology of Fallot.  She was missing nearly every structure in the center of her heart and would need a vast reconstruction.  We spent the first few months of her life nursing her 24 hours a day.  Our insurance company provided us 1 hour per week in Nursing care for a nurse to come, listen to her lungs, weigh her and “check” on us.  About 1/4 of our fridge was taken up by medications and every hour there was something to do to keep our child alive.  Kyleigh’s care was all consuming.  Heart monitors, apnea monitors, feeding tube lines… our daughter had so many tubes and leads on her at night that we could barely find her body.

The weeks faded into months, and the meds stopped working.  So we added more.  Stage 1 heart failure led to cold feet, hands and a blue mouth.  Enter more heart meds and Stage 2 failure.  Our goal was to get Kyleigh to 12 pounds (double her birth weight) before her surgery.  In February 2007, just 6 short months after her birth, Kyleigh was still only weighing 10 pounds but it was decided that she could not wait any longer.  She would need surgery despite not being to their “target” weight.   At this point everything became a whirlwind.  I knew things were “bad” when the open heart was scheduled in less than two weeks.  I didn’t even know they could get things done that quickly!

We were sent to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital under the care of Dr. Pirooz Eghtesady.  When we first met Dr. Eghtesady he assured us that children bounced back fast and that we would likely only be in the ICU for 3 days post op.  I knew, in my heart that this was not so.  I like to think that God gave me the heads up on that one.  I packed for 3 weeks.

Surgery day came and no matter how “prepared” you are… you never really ARE.  The night before her surgery I spent the night in the rocking chair, balling and holding my girl.  That night was the first and last time I ever allowed myself to ask the question “What if?”.  I knew that I could be holding my baby for the last time.

The next morning was EARLY.  The day BEFORE surgery Kyleigh had pre-op testing but we decided it would be best if we came HOME that night to spend time with our boys.  We also knew we had a long journey ahead of us and just wanted one last night in our own beds.  That meant, however, that we would have to drive to Cincinnati (a 1.5 hr drive) at 4 am.

Surgery day was possibly the most horrible day of my life.  13 hours of surgery led to “complications” including fevers over 106 and febrile seizures that ravaged her body.  Days went by and my daughter still had not “sinus” rhythm.  By Friday, the day were supposed to be discharged from the ICU, Kyleigh was still paralyzed and fighting for her life.  There were no explanations for why her body was reacting so violently to the surgery and pain afterward.  Only worried looks.  Whenever I would ask about the final outcome, the only thing I received for an answer was “Let’s just worry about today”… which I knew, meant that they did not know if there would BE a tomorrow to worry about.

(This photo was taken by another amazing photographer friend Julie Williams.  At the time I could not even think of taking a photo.  I was too emotional.  Julie promised me that I would want these pics after it was all over and I am SO GLAD that she took them.  People rarely get to SEE exactly what kind of horror we dealt with.)

(A few days after the surgery and my daughter was still being “paced”.  She had no natural heart rhythm.  It was feared that her heart was damaged beyond repair and she might need a pacemaker.)

Countless liters of blood, platelets and other transfusions went in.  Double collapsed lungs were tough to deal with.  But the PAIN was the hardest for me.  Knowing that my daughter was in horrendous pain and maxing out dosages of pain medication was the worst feeling in the world.  I was helpless to do anything but pray.   Finally things start to look up.

We were transferred to the “step-down” unit and were preparing to go home but our daughter was STILL having issues.  I kept telling nurses that I just KNEW something was wrong.  Finally, the night before we were supposed to be discharged to HOME, Kyleigh crashed.  She had a horrible night and her nurse knew something was wrong.  During rounds the doctors decided that an echo was appropriate.  What they found SHOCKED everyone except me.  Kyleigh had an 80CC pocket of fluid behind her heart.  In less than 1 hour my daughter was taken from the floor, to the ICU and back into an emergency open heart surgery.  The surgeons quickly decided that they would not be able to access her fluid through the chest and would need to open her up again.  This carried HUGE risks for a now 9 lb baby who just had another open heart less than a week prior.

(No matter what, Kyleigh always gave me a glimmer of hope.  The day I took this photo was around the end of the second week in the ICU.  I looked over and there she was, totally sedated and yet this hand was held high in the air as if to be a victory cry from a body that had all but given up.  I think it was her way of telling me that she had NO intentions of giving up!)

5 more hours of surgery led to a discussion with her surgeon in the post-op room where he described the scene as gruesome.  Kyleigh had an infection which grew out two forms of staph.  The fluid inside her chest was pus and apparently when he opened her the second time to clean her out, it was like something out of a sci-fi movie.  Just the week before, when the PA removed Kyleigh’s leads and wires I kept telling everyone that I SWORE I saw pus coming from her incisions.  They wrote me off as a “hysterical” mother.  I was right.  That day I decided that I would never again take “NO” for an answer until I felt that it was WELL with my SOUL!

(We started marking the tally on the wall.  Our nurses thought is was hilarious but at some point we lost track of what day it was, what the date and time were.  Troy said we scratched on the wall like prisoners!  LOL)

Since those open heart surgeries Kyleigh has had 10+ more surgeries on various different issues.  We are happy to say that she is doing well now.  She is growing and although she still relies on a feeding tube, she has not been hospitalized in over a year!  (Knock on wood!  PRAISE GOD!)  She will likely grow up happy and sassy as she always has been.  But we know, that she lives on borrowed time.  She, by all accounts, defied the odds against her and is alive by no small miracle.  She still relies on a feeding tube, but that, like everything else in her life, is minor in comparison to things that she might still face.

Congenital Heart Disease is a silent killer.  Most parents take their babies home with no knowledge of anything “Wrong” and end up with tragic consequences.  We were the lucky ones whose child had a heart that was BAD ENOUGH that it was detected before birth.  This gave our daughter the best care and best odds that money could buy (and that God could bless us with!).  We have far too many friends, all of whom, did not have that luxury.  It breaks our hearts to know that other children, with broken hearts, go undiagnosed until it is too late.  KNOW the signs and symptoms and if you FEEL that something is wrong… PUSH until someone listens.  My daughter’s doctors may think that I am the most annoying mother on earth but my daughter is ALIVE in no small part because PUSHED.  I refuse to be pushed aside.  I listen to myself and to that still small voice.  I pray and I trust that my Heavenly Father will go before me and Kyleigh just as HE always has.  Today, I pray for a cure.  I pray for research and I pray that I never have to see another day inside the walls of A6Central or the CICU.  We know that for Kyleigh, she may faced future surgeries.  We know that as she grows the patch work that is her heart may not grow with her.  We stand ready for this but EXPECT a miracle to continue in her.  We also know, that other families were not as lucky as ours and that breaks my heart.

Feel free to share Kyleigh’s story to help us raise awareness for this horrible disease!

Find out more about Congenital Heart Disease here:

Congenital Heart Disease Information Network

Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Heart Center

American Heart Association

OUT OF TOWN: February 2-February 15, 2011

Hello all.  If you are a bride who has found us on the web, or if you are a current client trying to reach us, please NOTE that we will be out of the office from:

February 2-February 15, 2011

to celebrate the birth of our Sister Studio’s (Kimberly Smoot Photography) baby boy.  We will, be answering emails and phones, on a time delay and will begin taking appointments again after February 15th.  We apologize for any inconvenience but as with everything in life, plans change   This tiny miracle decided 3 weeks early was a good time to make his appearance and we agree!

Feel free to wish our Sister Studio well on Facebook!  Search our friends for: Kimberly Smoot

Stuck.. on a plane… in a snow bank…in Springfield

That pretty much sums up my week.  Honestly.  One of my best friends decided that her baby needed to be born early (or rather Cade decided he wasn’t waiting any longer!) and Saturday, as I was photographing Maureen & Chad’s wedding, Cade was being born.  Sunday I booked my plane ticket to fly to Springfield, IL to stay with my friend for a bit and of course, I had to fly through Chicago.  Problem#1- Snowpocalypse 2011.  Chicago O’hare was closed for multiple days in a row and as annoying as it was I was just glad that I did not get STUCK… hah!

Finally, after two moved flights, and two more days of waiting, I flew out on Thursday.  It started with my flight out of Lexington being delayed by 30 minutes which was going to mean that I had less than 10 minutes to change flights in Chicago.  I was glad I had worn my Nike’s!  THEN when we get into Chicago we are made to wait on the runway for a good 15 minutes before we can taxi into the terminal to park.

God smiled on me though and magically, my flight TO Springfield was leaving from the SAME GATE that my flight into Chicago had come into.  I literally walked up the stairs, waited, and walked back down and out to the plane.  I was hugely relieved!

Flight was fine into Sprinfield, landing fine, was a little scared because their runways were still COVERED in snow!!!  They had piles of blown snow everywhere that were taller than me!  (Not hard to be when you are only 5’3″ but I digress).  The pilot turns to pull into the gate and “THUMP”  It felt like we ran over something but no one could really see what.  It wasn’t that we ran OVER something… we definitely ran INTO something.  Namely, a snowdrift / pile that was at least 4 ft deep.  And there we sat.  For 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes, and hour, 1 hour 15, 1 hour 30… FINALLY after much debate the airport officials decided that they would NOT be able to pull the plane out of the snow.  Enter men, and shovels…

(This pic was taken from the plane window the snow they were blowing was as tall as the plane shooting out of the machine… a wild sight I assure you!)

By this point people on the plane were less than amused. The people in my section were all joking around and saying we could call and order pizza.  Finally they realize that two men and shovels were not going to cut it through the FEET of snow.  The brought out a snow blower and managed to carve a path to the door of the plane.  They let everyone get off the plane walk down the aisle of snow (which was up past my CHEST) and then they escorted us via cars to the terminal.  Fun times was NOT had .. by all.

(Of note in this photo… do you see how the snow is ALL the way up to the nose of the plane?!!!  YIKES!)

I guess at the very least, I have a story to tell.  I mean I did get a newspaper byline out of it!  My first as a matter of fact.  Sad that my first byline came from an IPHONE pic I took as the officials were rushing us off the runway!

No one was in danger, thank God, was it was a huge inconvenience.  I landed in Springfield at 5:45 and after I got off the plane, and got our luggage (another long wait), and got to my friend’s house it was close to 9 pm.  Oiy… long day.  United Airlines… epic fail on your part.  Sprinfield Airport… even bigger epic fail on your part!  I never even SAW an official from your establishment.  Do better next time…

See the article below.  I was interviewed and landed in the paper.  Funny stuff!

I even got a blurb in the article… does that make me a rockstar?!!!  LOL