Iā€™m Stephanie, a wedding + lifestyle photographer based in Colorado Springs, Colorado and Warrenton, Virginia. Whether Iā€™m by the mountains of Colorado or Virginia, my soul feels at home, surrounded by rural living and the raw beauty of nature. I genuinely love what I do, and feel so passionate to share the enthusiasm and joy of these celebrations with you!

DOCUMENTING LOVE'S UNSCRIPTED CHAPTERS FROM COUPLES & FAMILIES IN COLORADO + VIRGINIA

@stephaniemessickphoto

find inspiration

Gallery images

July 20, 2020

Coffee Talk Mondays

Coffee Talk Mondays

I took last week away from blogging because I hit the road and ventured north to see my SIL and sweet niece!!! šŸ™‚ After my trip, I realized how much I miss personable interaction with family and friends… This quarantine season is HARD, and with things not getting better here in Florida means that I’m on lockdown. Alex and I want to make sure to do as much as we can to ensure to protect others as well as our baby. It’s a struggle because when I travel back to Virginia in a couple of weeks to photograph sessions/weddings, all I want to do is plan on social gatherings with family and friends… But this trip will look very different from what I hoped. I’m looking forward to the day when this pandemic is no longer a thing, but rather a time we can look back and say, “remember when we were quarantined for MONTHS?” Haha!

On a happier note, a LOT happened the past couple of weeks! So let’s play a little catch up on today’s Coffee Talk Mondays post. šŸ™‚ I hope you all are staying well and healthy during this season!!!

COFFEE TALK

MOCHA MOMENTS
THE SWEETER MEMORIES FROM THIS PAST WEEK

1
ROADTRIP!!!

I made a quick trip north to visit my SIL and niece. šŸ™‚ It was so nice to have other interaction besides my pets and Alex (no offense to Alex at all)… HAHA! I missed them so much and was grateful for this quick trip away to spend quality time before things get super crazy!!!

Coffee Talk Mondays

2
BEACH DAYZ

Alex and I refuse to take this view for granted… We have NO idea where we will be stationed next year, so we are trying to squeeze in as many beach days as possible, even when it’s crazy busy. šŸ™‚ To complete our beach days, a yummy cup of acai bowl really hits the spot! SO GOOD.

Coffee Talk Mondays

3
PIVOTING BUSINESS

Despite not photographing weddings during this season, I’ve been busy photographing tourists in Florida! šŸ™‚ I had to pivot my business a little bit during this pandemic “dry spell” and take on portrait sessions around the Destin/30A area. It has been fun but I quickly realized how different it is to photograph tourists. I am missing the personable conversations I’m able to have with couples/families. But overall, I’m grateful to be here and working while weddings hit pause for a while. šŸ™‚ Soon, Ollie and I will hit the road to Virginia to photograph my first wedding of the season since COVID hit! I CANNOT WAIT!!!!

4
QUARANTINE LIFE

Quarantine life looks a lot like this… HAHA! And Ollie/Pixie love it!

ESPRESSO MOMENTS
THE BITTER MEMORIES FROM THIS PAST WEEK

1
OH, FLORIDA……

Soooooo… Florida is interesting. As I was moving some things around in the utility room for a plumber to access our water heater, I FOUND A SNAKE. Ugh…. So scary! But after investigating, we found out it was a corn snake that is harmless. šŸ™‚ WHEW! But we also have the King snake (nonpoisonous) and also the Coral snake (very poisonous) around here! Yikes!!! I need to watch my step… And speaking of steps, every time I take Ollie on a walk, we find that the neighborhood black bear must LOVE pizza! HAHA! We find pizza in the bear’s “grub spot!” And yes… we have black bears here as well as palmetto water bugs (HUGE)!!

Coffee Talk Mondays

2
I GUESS IT’S TIME TO “ADULT…”

The black bear isn’t the only one who loves pizza… But when I tried making Alex pizza for our Friday date night, we quickly learned something. Sometimes, you have to play adult and clean your oven… HAHA! Seriously, so gross… So you know what I’m working on right now! šŸ˜‰ Thanks, YouTube!

Coffee Talk Mondays

Happy Monday, everyone!!

Reply...