As I sit here on my first day of work in 2013, I can’t help but look back on the 12 months that have just gone by and feel like a decade has past. 2012 has been, hands down, the biggest year in the birdhouse, to date. January was spent meeting couples and vendor friends at Lovesick in Philly and traveling to California to film an Americana band and a wonderful, musical couple. February and March were a flurry of activity with time split between editing and last minute preparations for our wedding show, borrowed. When April 1st finally arrived, the day of our show at AVAM in Baltimore, I almost couldn’t believe we made it. Together, with the help of my husband, Mark, and my close family and friends (Kristen, Jillian & Ryan, Maggie & Jason, Sullivan, Danielle, Ami & Kristy) we spent 14 months prepping, planning, dreaming and constructing (bows upon bows, heart garlands upon heart garlands and walls upon walls) for borrowed. The day was a whirlwind of overwhelming success. It was such a privilege to meet so many vendors and couples, face to face, from all over the Mid Atlantic. Borrowed also gave us the opportunity to showcase the creative talents of my soon-to-be sister in-law, Kristen, of Molly Cat Designs. I am so excited to see where this new journey takes her…! To top it all off, at the very end of the show, we gave away a wedding cinema package (along with a photo package by Jillian McGrath Photography/With Love & Embers!) to two of the most creative kids we have ever met, Melissa & Tim.

Borrowed was such a high to come off of, but lucky for us, the exciting times were just getting started. Late April set our wedding season in full motion. From April to December, we captured nearly 20 wedding stories, 8 of which you can see below. :) Since late 2011, we have been branching out more into travel wedding films. 2012 took us and our cameras to California, Vermont, New Jersey, D.C., Maryland, Massachusetts and the Hamptons. We are so grateful for the ability to travel, especially for our work, as it gives us the chance not only to experience new landscapes and new people but also the ability to delve deeper into the films we are creating. This year really solidified our love of travel weddings and we’re so excited to continue the journeys this new year in Virginia, West Virginia, New York, North Carolina & Minnesota.

Adriene & Kyle at the Magic Gardens (Philadelphia, PA)

MJ & Dave at Liberty House Restaurant (Jersey City, NJ)

Jordan & Nate’s Up Inspired Wedding

Gina & Tim at the Hermitage Inn (West Dover, VT)

Anna & Matthew’s Vintage Wedding Trailer

Bethany & Jonathan’s British Humor Wedding Trailer

Liza & Joe’s Scranton Cultural Wedding Trailer

And then there was October. October 2012 was one of two months in my entire life that I’d pay a large sum of money to revisit again. Having experienced nearly 50 weddings behind my camera over the past 3 years, I’ve seen enough to think I *know* what a wedding really feels like. But I never really, fully did until I experienced my own. Mark and I were married on October 20, 2012. It was, for lack of better words, a dream. So many elements of our day came together in ways I never imagined… and a few little things slipped through that I wish I could go back and fix…! Haha. Really though, the weather was perfect, the trees were stunning, the Healy ran smoothly (sans brakes, woops!), the food was delicious, the band was killer, Maggpie made us a surprise movie sign (!!), there were horses in fog in the morning……..! (one of my favorite things), I could go on. It was a day unlike any other and one I want to relive over and over again. That’s what the wedding film and photos are for though… ;) We’re so excited to see what Paperback puts together. Such fans of them. Now, for a few stunning photos by our dear friends Jill & Ryan (With Love & Embers)

But enough of my waxing poetically about last year. We love change at the birdhouse and 2013 is sure to bring much of it. This year, we’ll be launching a brand new site, traveling to a few places we’ve never been, adding members to our team (!) and capturing dozens of new stories beyond the wedding world (under a new company we’re excited to put into motion). We’re excited for so many of our friends and business partners to set new plans into motion, too! What are you most excited about this year?