Heather and Stephen Wedding – 6.22.19
Posted on September 11, 2019
It’s not every day you get to see a Disney fairytale come to life, but that’s exactly what happened with Heather and Stephen’s wedding! Throughout the day, there were so many special moments and I was so honored to have captured them. Not to mention, more of the Disney theme came through as the day continued, and put a smile on guest’s (and my!) faces. From the magic mirror photo booth, to the Disney castle sign in heart blocks, and even a Disney themed candy bar, these two went all out with their theme! To begin this fairytale, I started off the day with getting ready photos with Heather and her bridesmaids. Note those amazing hangers! A super touching first look with Heather’s dad, had everyone a little teary eyed.
Then we all headed over to the church so these two could get hitched! St. Joseph’s is a truly stunning church, and built in 1882, it’s the oldest Slovak Roman Catholic Parish in the Western Hemisphere. I met with Stephen and his groomsmen to get some getting ready shots behind the alter before everything got started! The service was a traditional Catholic service, with many of their friends and family doing readings, rose gifts to their mothers, communion, and of course, their ring exchange and first kiss! We all headed outside afterwards for a fun bubble exit and then proceeded to take family shots inside!
After the ceremony, we made a special stop to visit Heather’s ill uncle in the hospital. The look on his face when he realized they had stopped to see him was a priceless moment. There were some truly touching moments caught on film with the bride and groom as well as his family. It won’t be a moment any of them will forget soon.
Next we all headed to our final destination, the reception at Edgewood Country Club! The place was DECKED out in Disney themed decor! The guests enjoyed a cocktail hour on the patio while the bridal party and myself headed out on golf carts to get some lovely photos of them on the grounds. Guests walked in to pick up their seat cards with a mirror mirror on the wall, little wooden hearts to sign and put in a Disney castle, Disney themed cocktails, a magic mirror photo booth, stunning Beauty and the Beast rose centerpieces (that the bride and groom made themselves!), a Disney cake, and even a Disney themed projection on the dance floor above the sweethearts table. We proceeded with entrances and the couple had their first dance as husband and wife, followed by the bride dancing with her mother and father, and the groom doing his mother son dance! After dinner, we did a cake cutting and then headed out to do some nice sunset shots. It was the longest day of the year, so sunset wasn’t until almost 9pm! The couple then had a lovely dollar dance or shots with the groom, and shortly after that, I bid the couple ado and headed out! Congrats to the happy couple and here’s to many more years of happiness! So without anymore delay, Stephen and Heather’s wedding!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com
(p) 610.762.7810
Venues: Edgewood Country Club
St. Joseph’s Church
Catering: Edgewood Country Club
Cake: Edgewood Country Club
Videography: Heisey Productions
Flowers: Smilax Floral Shop
Alia and Ryan’s Wedding Celebration – 4.12 & 13.19
Posted on June 16, 2019
It’s not every day you get to photograph someone getting married that you’ve known for over 20 years (and who lived right up the road from me growing up)! But, that’s exactly what happened with Alia and Ryan’s wedding! I met Alia way back in grade school riding the bus together, and when she wrote me to see if I could shoot her wedding, I was thrilled! This couple met when Alia put the call out with her friends for a Salsa dance partner, and while Ryan was unable to go, he invited her to a BBQ the next weekend and after hitting it off swimmingly, the rest is history! These two live in Alaska, so not only was it quite the hike, but they brought their dog, Cooper, to serve as ring bearer too! Friends and family flew in from all over the country and the world to share in this couple’s special day (all the way from Australia!).
I was there to shoot two days of their wedding celebration. The first being the Mehndi (which is a pre-wedding ceremony), lots of blessings for the couple from family and friends, feeding of sweets, dancing, and henna! Each Mehndi I shoot is different, and this one was no exception! These two are big foodies so they had all sorts of fun food stations, from make your own Hakka noodles to a Dosa station! The bride and the groom were adorned with flowers before guests lined up to give feed the couple sweets and give them their blessings. While they waiting, people could get henna done in a pillowed sitting area or munch on apps! Towards the end of the celebration, they had live musicians and one of their friends performed a dance for them! What a fun night to remember! And did you check out those rain shot?! These two rocked those photos!
The next day the official wedding ceremony took place! Tables were set with a bit of a nautical theme, with the couple’s love of water, and all tables were named after famous ships! The ceremony went off without a hitch and then guests were wined and dined with a cocktail hour followed by an entrance by the bride and groom! Dances were had with their parents, which led to a cake cutting. The cakes were done just for the bride and groom by one of their friends! They were a mermaid themed cake and a Jaws themed cake. How cool is that?! Following cake cutting, another wonderful meal was had along with three great speeches for the bride and groom! I snuck the couple off for some more night shots. It was sadly too cloudy for some good sunset photos! Coming back inside, we had another live dance done by one of Alia’s close friends and his wife. This started dancing for the rest of the night!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com
(p) 610.762.7810
Venue: Holiday Inn Allentown I-78
Catering: Moghul Catering
Decorator: Pendurthi Swaree Events (Aruna is the decorator)
DJ- DJ Bhupi
Lauren & Bram’s Wedding – 11.24.18
Posted on January 16, 2019
2018, what a year you were! And it ended on a high note with me getting to photograph the marriage of Lauren and Bram. Not only are these two beaming with love, but they have quite an adorable love story! They actually met the first day of college orientation, which was a hiking trip! They became quite inseparable and one thing led to another and they both knew they had met their lifetime match. At the peach orchard they both worked at, they planned a sunset picnic and that’s where Bram popped the question; Lauren of course said yes! And that’s what led us to their magical day!
A perfect combination of old soul and quirky, these two got ready at the home Lauren’s grandfather built for her grandmother. It’s been a central hub for the family ever since! Lauren’s parents even got married in the backyard, so needless to say, getting ready there was a must! It has a great old world charm that you rarely see in homes and seriously, check out some of the amazing chairs and staircases we used as props, it was a great setting to be sure! Following party and couple shots at the house, we headed over to Heidelberg United Church-Christ in Downtown York for the ceremony, right across the street from their reception location at the Central Market House. Two great old buildings with lots of history and flair! The ceremony went off without a hitch, and everyone applauded as these two were announced as husband and wife! Despite the pouring down rain we had all day, we managed to capture some shots of the couple running from the ceremony to the reception hall.
Following the ceremony all guests went to Central Market to begin the reception. Yummy hors d’oeuvres were passed around as guests begin to mingle, catch up with friends and family, and dance! If you’ve never been to Central Market, it’s quite a cool building, and most people in York know it as the place they buy farm fresh produce, locally made food, and artisan’s works. This pair is so loved by everyone that attended and, if the looks and laughs didn’t give it away, the speeches people prepared for them would have! Glasses were raised, hugs were had, and touching words were spoken. Lauren even prepared a little surprise for Bram and serenaded him a song as she played the guitar. Following dinner, the cake was cut, parents were danced with (Lauren and her dad killed it!), and then everyone got out on the dance floor. It finally stopped pouring about twenty minutes before I was supposed to leave (figures!), so we were able to go outside and get some rain shots! As I left, the bride and the groom were out on the dance floor having the time of their lives surrounded by the people that love them most! So here’s to the happy couple and many, many more years of happiness! Without further ado, I give you Lauren and Bram’s wedding.
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com
(p) 610.762.7810
Venues: Central Market House – Reception
Heidelberg United Church-Christ – Ceremony
Catering: Mountain Laurel Catering
Officiant: Kait Verkest of Sealed with a Kiss by Kait
Flowers – Foster’s Flower Shop
Wedding Planner – Kristine of Stylish Soirees in PA
Hair and Makeup –
Cake-
Dresses-
DJ-
Chelsea & Brandon Wedding – 7.22.18
Posted on September 5, 2018
Bowling alley, Elvis, mariachi band?! Yes, yes, and yes! Not only did Chelsea and Brandon seriously plan an epically unique wedding, but these two and their guests were a blast to photograph! This was definitely a first for me, shooting in a bowling alley, but I hope it’s not my last! To begin their day, I started off at South Bowl Philadelphia, where they had rented out the event space on the top floor. Not only does it have ample seating space indoors and outdoors, but their guests got to play old pinball games, bowl at the private lanes (complete with Chelsea and Brandon graphics), and snack on finger food and a tower of pies that the groom drove all the way from New York!
Not only that, but the groom and groomsman were decked out in sequin jackets, while the ladies rocked more rockabilly type dresses. Chelsea and Brandon were all about the details from the wedding program they designed to look like a bowling score sheet but with all the wedding details guests needed, to the ‘gif’ video generator guests could make on a green screen, even down to the bowling sock take aways, and the bowling pin guests got to sign as a ‘guest book’ when they arrived. Once the wedding begin, Elvis serenaded guests as everyone took their seats and then the mariachi band played in the party and the bride and groom. After a hilarious service with plenty of Elvis puns, these two love birds were hitched, much to the cheers of their family and friends. The couple then walked down the aisle and did their first dance along with the bride’s parents (whose anniversary it was) to a rendition of their song by the mariachi band. Following some family and party shots on the bowling lanes, I headed downstairs with the happy couple to get some shots of them at the shoe check out and the vintage dining area with a huge light up ‘SPARE!’ sign. With our couple shots done, the bride went to change into her second party dress while I went upstairs to grab some detail shots.
The night continued with guests dancing, bowling, and pin-balling the night away. The couple fed each other pie (they even had a custom ‘pie cake topper’ featuring them), took group photos, and tore it up on the dance floor. As I was leaving, the bride and groom were having the time of their lives dancing with guests on the dance floor. To quote The King, “When I get married, it’ll be no secret” and with these two, it definitely wasn’t a secret, and their family and friends will certainly always remember this day of awesomeness! So here’s to many more years of happiness for this wonderful couple!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com
(p) 610.762.7810
Venue: South Bowl Philly
Catering: South Bowl Philly
Pies: Lemon Meringue Pie from Beiler’s
All other Pies from NYC – Rudy’s Bakery and Cafe
Mariachi Band: Mariachi Villasenor
DJs: Mon Amie – Kyle Art Threat – Edan
Officiant: Ryan Downy as Elvis
Dresses: Bridesmaid’s Dress from Asos
Flowers – Matlack Florist
Hair and Makeup – Pretty on Arrival
Lindsey & Shiraz’s Wedding Celebrations
Posted on August 11, 2018
It’s not every day you get to shoot two different wedding celebrations for the same couple, but that’s exactly what I got to do with Lindsey and Shiraz’s marriage! This awesome couple planned two wedding celebrations, each one bringing a bit of each couple into it! Not only were both ceremonies lovely, but many of their friends and family got to experience both! The weather was completely the opposite on both days also. The first ceremony everyone rocked, despite the rain, while the second ceremony was bright and sunny. Both were outdoors at lovely venues and both featured this amazing couple and their love for one another!
The first ceremony took place at Jacob’s Resting Place Bed and Breakfast. It was a traditional Islamic ceremony, complete with a beautiful dress that the bride handmade by herself. You heard that right, the bride MADE her dress and it was absolutely stunning! Did you see her beautiful henna too? Absolutely gorgeous! Despite the drizzle of rain we had, everyone beamed on as these two became husband and wife. All of Lindsey’s bridesmaids came too and coordinated all their outfits! Not only did everyone look lovely, but the venue itself was a green paradise. I couldn’t get enough of all the lovely foliage backgrounds offered here! Did you see the size of that magnolia tree with family portraits?! The reception was held under a large tent, complete with chandeliers and a delicious food spread for guests! Family photos were had, congratulations were given, and everyone was relaxing and taking in the views of this happy couple! Check out the first half of their wedding celebration!
Stunning right? You can see all that happiness with everyone right after Lindsey and Shiraz are officially married and everyone just lines up to congratulate them. Makes your heart happy 🙂
Onto the second wedding celebration held at the stunning and newly renovated Allenberry Resort. It was my first time shooting here since the renovation and wow, it’s an absolutely beautiful venue! I started off the day by getting shots of the bride with her bridesmaids getting ready, popping some champagne, getting into that gorgeous wedding dress, and getting some great reactions from the gift for Lindsey, sent over by Shiraz (a portrait of her dog). We even did a first look with the bride and her dad. Many happy tears were had! After all the ladies were done, I headed over to the groom and his groomsman getting ready, to get some shots of them, as well as some family photos! He had just come in from fishing in Yellow Breeches Creek (running right through the venue) and we even incorporated his love of fishing in some later photos!
Onto the ceremony, which was held on a beautiful terrace over looking the creek and wildlife. Under an arbor, these two tied the knot surrounded by their party and all their friends and family. Following the first kiss and walk down the aisle, we headed onto family photos and then the lovely Allenberry staff golf carted us around to get some photos of the bride and the groom at all the prettiest spots on the grounds. That fishing shot cracks me up every time, especially when you compare it to the American Gothic painting. These two are doing their own modern wedding day twist! After photos were done, we headed to the large tented reception area where the couple’s signature cocktails were served, guests danced to live music, and they even had a place for guests to take photos with an old Fuji Instax camera. The party and couple did their entrance, had some wonderful toasts given by the maid of honor , bride’s father, and the groom’s brothers. This led into dinner and then the couple had a beautiful first dance, followed by the parent dances. And guess what? In lieu of cake, these two had a doughnut station!? Yes, you read that right, DOUGHNUT STATION. After doughnuts were had, I grabbed these two to head off for some sunset and backlit shots. With a venue like this, the possibilities were endless and the whole place is almost lit up with lights everywhere. It was stunning! As the night began to end, I left to the happy couple dancing the night away with friends and family. So here’s to this lovely couple, Lindsey and Shiraz, I wish them nothing but happiness for many years to come!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com
(p) 610.762.7810
Rings: Mountz Jewelers
Venues:
- First Wedding – Jacob’s Resting Place Bed and Breakfast
- Second Wedding – Allenberry Resort
Catering:
- First Wedding – Zahra Restaurant
- Second Wedding – Allenberry Resort
Doughnuts at Second Wedding: Duck Doughnuts of Mechanicsburg, PA
Band for Second Wedding: Cruise Control
String Ensemble for Second Wedding Ceremony: Vivace Strings
Officiants:
- First Wedding – Rizwan Moosa
- Second Wedding – Reverend Susan Olson
Dress Maker for Second Wedding: Essence of Australia
Kelly & Sarah Wedding – 6.9.18
Posted on July 17, 2018
So how often do you have jousting bride’s at a wedding?! For me, it was definitely a first and I couldn’t have been more excited to photograph Kelly and Sarah’s wedding! Not only did these two throw a kick ass wedding, but they also made almost all the decorations! From a popcorn bar, to ring boxes, homemade wedding benches (that were signed by guests!), and even a cake piñata, these two made it all by hand! Not only that but Kelly had a custom Celtic knot belt made for Sarah. And that pearl necklace Sarah wore!? Kelly made it from her late grandma’s pearls. Quite the beautiful touch right?
What a day this was, it started with a sage blessing to cleanse the space beforehand and then the ceremony began. All their children and their niece and nephew surrounded Sarah as she walked down the aisle to her beaming bride. The ceremony began, and they rock, paper, scissored to see who would give their vows first. Following the vows, they joined their family together by giving all their boys handmade bracelets to match their own. With a kiss, these two sealed their union!
After the ceremony and family photos, we headed back to their pavilion to ‘joust a bride’ where guests could joust a bride in their bouncy joust house! Seriously, is that not the coolest thing ever? Their guests got to enjoy a popcorn bar, some amazing bbq, a delicious cupcake tower, a photo booth with a green screen where they got to pick what background they got put on, and they even had homemade ice cream, made on-site complete with a toppings bar! What an amazing day it was! The guests wrapped up the wedding with the smashing of a homemade 3-tier cake piñata; now that’s what I call a cake smash lol! So let’s cheers to this happy couple, I wish them nothing but happiness! Without further ado, Kelly and Sarah’s wedding:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com
(p) 610.762.7810
Rings: Brides made their engagement rings at Jared the Galleria of Jewelry. Kelly drew Sarah’s and vice versa.
Benches: Made by the bride’s brother, John
Venue: Lancaster County Park
Catering: Grandpa’s Country Catering
Cupcakes: Psycho Cupcakes
Bouncy House: Big Bright Bounces
Officiant & DJ: Sacred Ceremony’s with Sabrina
Nicole & James Wedding – 5.19.18
Posted on June 24, 2018
It’s weddings like Nicole and James’ that I look forward to. Not only were they an awesome couple with an amazing group of family and guests at their wedding, but it took place at a petting zoo!! I seriously have the best clients! We started the day off with some getting ready shots with both the guys and gals. Needless to say, the groom and the groomsman had me laughing the whole time. The groom pranked all his groomsman the night prior and brought a whole stack of suits that were incorrect and mismatched! Also, let’s talk about the awesome T-Rex bride and groom shirts that these two were wearing! Not all my couples can be this awesome sauce.
Following getting ready, everyone headed to Green Meadows Petting Farm to get hitched! Guests got to wander around to get to the ceremony barn to the calls of peacocks, and were also able pet goats, sheep, not to mention piglets, and even a baby kangaroo! The ceremony went off beautifully, with the bride riding in on her horse! These two even did their own lovely vows. After they kissed as husband and wife for the first time, they were led off to do photos with the bride’s horse, and then we headed down to the petting zoo barn to get some photos of Nicole bottle feeding a baby kangaroo, hold a baby goat, and pet the most adorable baby cow with huge ears! Her horse was even a bit jealous of the other animals getting pets and got in on the photo action!
After family photos, we all headed to the reception for the couple and their party to make their entrance. The couple came in last and began their first dance. These two have quite the moves! They pulled off some spins and dips beautifully! Dinner was served shortly thereafter, and guests raved about the food. Nicole and James went around to greet all their guests, and get hugs and congratulations from all their family. We even pulled off a huge cousin photo with all the groom’s cousins! He wasn’t kidding when he said he had a lot of cousins! Once the sun had started to go down, I pulled these two away for some backlit shots, which they champed through despite the rain that had been going on all day! After that, these two headed back into the reception to dance the night away with their guests, who all were obviously of the dancing persuasion. As the night ended, I bid these two goodbye, and I wish them nothing else but happiness! Congrats to the happy couple and without further ado, I give you this awesome petting zoo wedding of Nicole and James!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com 
www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue: Green Meadows Petting Farm
Catering: Carterque
Cake: Eds Country Bakery
Flowers: Blossom and Basket
Kristy & Ryan’s Wedding – 9.16.17
Posted on November 5, 2017
It’s not every day I get to photograph a wedding at a gun range, with Miller Lite incorporated in wedding vows, a giant fake cow, and a bride and groom donning jeans and flip flops. But let me tell you, it was certainly a wedding I had a lot of fun photographing. This couple, Kristy and Ryan, were clearly planning a laid-back wedding that ensured that all of their guests had a great time . I heard many guests throughout the day say that this was one of the most fun weddings they had ever been to. From beginning to end, Kristy and Ryan kept everyone laughing, drinking, and having an all around blast at their wedding.
We started the day with family and party shots, which led to some fun couple shots on one of the shooting ranges, and then continued onto their ceremony. These two were a blast to photograph. I can honestly say I’ve never incorporated Miller Lite into wedding photos. But we did! Ryan even had some on hand for Kristy in the ceremony, saying ‘he’d always have a Miller Lite on hand for her.’ At which point, Miller Lite’s were passed onto the couple for their vows. The groom’s father married this wonderful couple and had the whole crowd in stitches with his humor and jokes throughout the ceremony.
Following the ceremony, the bride and groom had a receiving line for all their guests, which led into the reception. After the family and party entered, the couple began their first dance as husband and wife. Parent dances followed, which ended in a toast by the best man. We then captured some final friends photos, and sadly I had to take my exit. But here’s to many more years of happiness and Miller Lite’s for these two! Cheers to the happy couple and without further ado, Kristy and Ryan’s Wedding!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue: Ridge and Valley Rod and Gun Club
Catering:
Cake:
Flowers:
DJ:
Alexandra & Mike Wedding – 8.25.17
Posted on October 15, 2017
Vineyards are quickly becoming some of my favorite venues to photograph at, and Alexandra and Mike’s wedding was no exception! From when I arrived, to when I left, this couple and their family and friends were nothing but smiles, laughter, and love. Not to mention Alex and Mike’s two adorable dogs who sat patiently for pets and had their own roles in the wedding procession. This wedding was a stunner, with shades of gold, light pinks and white throughout, it certainly all came together beautifully.
After getting ready, the couple and their party headed down to the ceremony area, a large oak tree hung with lanterns and lights, overlooking all the vineyards at Monterre Vineyards. Their children and dogs brought up the end of the processional before the bride made her appearance. Each dog had a sign, one reading, ‘I’m just here for the cake’ and the other ‘I loved her first.’ It was truly a charming moment, and left all guests laughing as they made their way down the aisle.
As guests looked on, Mike beamed as he saw Alex for the first time all decked out in her dress. After her brother gave her away, these two had a beautiful ceremony and when their first kiss was had, guests broke out in applause. As they walked down the aisle, as husband and wife for the first time, we all headed right into family photos and couple photos throughout the vineyards. Guests headed right to the cocktail hour, filled with his and her cocktails, yard games, and laughter. As the cocktail hour came to a close, and the sun began to set, the Monterre staff led guests up to the main banquet hall where dinner, dancing, and the reception were to be held.
Seats were taken by guests, as the couple’s family and party were introduced, before Alex and Mike made their entrance and began their first dance as husband and wife. They were serenaded by their aunt, as they spun around on the dance floor. As the song ended, the couple took their seats and the toasts began! The bride’s sister and brother gave a joint toast followed by the groom’s best man. Glasses were raised as guests applauded the couple!
After a lovely dinner, the couple headed down with me to get some night shots under the oak tree they had gotten married under. Now all the lights were lit up and some beautiful night shots were had. After we were carted back up to the reception area, dancing began! The groom and his mother shared a touching dance, while the bride invited everyone onto the dance floor in memory of her dad. Dancing ensued as guests gathered on the dance floor to show their moves. As I was heading out, I left behind a dancing crowd, with a glowing bride and groom, surrounded by friends and family who so clearly love them both. So here’s to Alex and Mike, to many more years of happiness, love and laughter! And without further ado, Alex and Mike’s wedding:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue, DJ, and Catering: Monterre Vineyard
- Special thanks to all the wonderful staff of Monterre Vineyards who helped me get photos throughout the night!
Flowers: Ruby’s Floral Factory
Cake: Granny Schmidts
Kayla & Matt’s Wedding 5.28.17
Posted on July 19, 2017
So this blog post has been a long time coming! I’ve been busily second shooting, photographing families, and packing for Japan which I leave for in the AM… today now, I guess lol. But these two love bugs, Kayla and Matt, are clearly two peas in a pod. Not to mention, their family and friends really knew how to throw a party! They had to reschedule the venue unexpectedly THREE DAYS before the wedding took place. And holy cow, did they all come together as a family to pull this event off! We started off the day with the women getting ready at Kayla’s grandmother’s house. Everyone enjoyed subs and chit chat, as everyone’s hair and makeup was done.
After the lovely bride was put in her dress, I headed out to the groom’s mothers home to get shots of her with the men. She sadly was unable to attend, so the couple wanted to include her in photos! Everyone piled in their cars and headed to the lovely Banana Factory in Bethlehem. Family members and friends showed up with cookies and desserts in hand for a dessert cookie bar (which was also served with gelato, yum!) after dinner. Soon, the family was all hands on deck to put together the stunning arbor for the ceremony.
With everything put together and decorated, the go ahead was given for the ceremony to start. Guests were seated as the groom and groomsman walked in. Kayla, being given away by her father, led to chuckles as they circled the sign post a few times before heading to her soon to be husband. And let me tell you, Matt was beaming as soon as he caught a glimpse of his stunning bride headed down the aisle for him. The ceremony was lovely, and guests looked on as these two got hitched. Rings were exchanged, a sand ceremony (where sand wasn’t exactly ‘combined’ like it was supposed to haha!), and a first kiss were had! The couple was announced as husband and wife for the first time and headed down the aisle and right into their couple pictures.
With two super handy bridesmaids to help, we went all around the Banana Factory property, capturing these two in the scenery. You couldn’t ask for a more photogenic couple, could you? And both are so clearly in love with one another in every single photo! With couple photos checked off our lists, we all headed inside to prepare for the party’s entrance. First dance and father daughter dance commenced, followed by all guests joining in on the dancing festivities. There were some winning dance moves by some for sure, and I caught a butt grab or two 😉
The best man and maid of honor stood up and toasted the couple in two sweet speeches. Glasses were raised and clinked, while guests blew on noisemakers to signal that the couple should kiss! The bride’s father followed up with a thank you speech as guests were then asked to make their way to the dance floor for the garter and bouquet toss. There were some awesome dive bombs from both the men and women for these and the reapplication of the garter left the room in stitches! A touching ‘longest married couple’ dance began and the winner’s were presented with a plaque as they gave marriage advice to the newlyweds. Cake was cut (and smashed in faces) and guests were served gelato and tons of yummy homemade cookies before we headed out for some lovely night photos. These two rocked it, even though it was raining outside. They win some of my favorite photos ever! Just look at how in love these two are! The night wrapped up and I headed out, but not before exchanging some hugs and congrats. So three cheers for this lovely couple and to many, many more years of happiness. Now enjoy, Kayla and Matt’s wedding:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue: The Banana Factory
Flowers: Flower Essence of Easton, PA
As well as the expertise of Aunt Shelli and bridesmaid Melissa.
Cake And Catering : Simply Smooth of Allentown, PA
DJ: Laser DJ of Bethlehem, PA
Rachel and Josh Wedding – 4.30.17
Posted on June 9, 2017
A Sunday brunch wedding with a doughnut tower, spin art, piñata, and lego place holders! Yesss!! It’s not every day I get to shoot a wedding as awesomely unique as Rachel and Josh’s wedding! These two certainly had some wonderfully unorthodox components to their wedding day. The day started off with these two getting ready in their perspective corners of the lovely Stone Mill Inn.
Let me tell you, an awesome set of bridesmaids and groomsman surrounded these two. Just picture four groomsman all getting knives as party gifts. Now picture posing them with said knives. It was awesome! They even pretended to do a little barber work on the groom!
Guests then began to arrive and file into their seats for the ceremony! As the party walked to the altar, a string quartet (missing one member, who happened to be the bride’s mom!). The bride’s parents walked her down the aisle as the grinning groom looked on. The ceremony began, and was being performed by the groom’s sister. It was lovely! And then, after some heartfelt personally written vows, these two donned full body smocks and began to do a unity spin art. Not only was that awesomely unique, but the groom himself built the spin art machine! Talk about being a handy-man to have around!
The ceremony ended with a ring exchange, lovely kiss, and everyone exited to be led into family and couple photos. I mean seriously though, could you ask for a more beautiful place to do wedding photos? The estates at the Stone Mill Inn were just stunning. I think the couple’s photos look like they are in a woodland fairy tale. Those wooded areas are the places wedding photographer’s dream about for couples photos! It also helps when you have a couple so plainly in love that it shines through in their photos!
Following a lovely brunch cocktail hour (with mimosas, of course!), everyone headed into the reception area, grabbing their Legos place cards as they went. The guests certainly enjoyed those, as much as the bride and groom enjoyed putting them all together! The groom’s best man introduced the couple and they danced their first dance as husband and wife. Speeches were had, guests were greeted and thanked, and an epic doughnut wedding dessert tower was cut! The groom had a special dance with his mom before everyone headed outside to SMASH A PINATA, of course! Guests took turns spinning and swinging until finally the piñata was obliterated! Guests scrabbled with their candy gift bags to get some tasty treats. The day slowly came to an end as everyone posed for photos, said their goodbyes, and exchanged hugs and well wishes. There was even a guest cheerleader pyramid at one point. These were some great people, guests, and a couple to spend the day with! So here’s to many more years to this fun couple! And without further ado, Rachel and Josh’s wedding:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue and Catering: The Stone Mill Inn
Flowers: Moonchild Floral Designs
Doughnut Cake: Centercut Doughnuts
Nish and Hamza Wedding – 4.21.17
Posted on June 3, 2017
Take an elegant wedding with a modern twist, add in a wonderful couple, lots of bright colors, and a stunning venue and you have Nish and Hamza’s wedding! A wedding for the photo books for sure! Not only did I have a great couple, but it was held at the beautiful venue, The Waterfall. The Waterfall, decked out in purples, golds, and reds, with fresh flowers draped throughout, two exquisite stages, and dreamy outdoor spaces for photos provided a lovely backdrop for their big day!
Nish was surrounded by her closest friends and family throughout the day. Her two aunts, who are like second moms to her, flew in from India to share in the celebration with her! You could tell by all their love and support throughout her day that Nish is certainly cherished by all who know her!
These two lovely people came together to create a truly memorable wedding day! They have quite the back story too! While both vacationing in Florida, fate collided and these two met! Nish went back home to Pennsylvania and Hamza went back home to Texas. These two continued to talk and spent a year flying back and forth between the states to see each other! Soon after, it was clear that these two were meant to be! Hamza came with his family to formally ask for Nish’s hand in marriage! Nish accepted and they had a traditional formal engagement. This leads up to their beautiful wedding day!
Following the lovely traditional ceremony, everyone gathered for photos, while guests sipped on drinks and enjoyed appetizers. With Grecian columns, fountains, and waterfalls, there were certainly TONS of great photo opportunities. The couple was then led to the reception area, where they were formally introduced and shared their first dance as husband and wife. The maid of honor, Valerie, gave a beautiful speech, to be followed by professional dancers preforming for the couple and their guests.
Dinner was served shortly after as guests wandered up to take photos with the couple on stage, and others headed to the photo booth. Once everyone had their fill of all the delicious food, the couple headed to center stage to cut the cake! The DJ began the music, and the dancing began! Everyone headed to the dance floor to dance the night away! I snuck away with the couple to take some night shots (which ended up being some of my favorite shots of the night!). As guests slowly began to call it a night, the couple was presented with gifts, adorned with flowers blessed by their family, and the couple and groom’s family headed out for the night in the luxury car waiting for them. A stunning end to a beautiful day! So without further ado, Nish and Hamza’s wedding! Congrats to the happy couple!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com 
www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue: The Waterfall
DJ: DJ Ravi Jackson
Flowers:
Bouquets – Patel Flowers
Sweetheart Table and Sign-in Table – Rhoads Garden
Cake: Isgro Pasteries
Decorator: Wedding Design New Jersey
Catering: Palace of Asia
Nicole & Jim Wedding – 12.17.16
Posted on January 27, 2017
It’s not every day that one of your best friends gets married. It’s also not every day that you have the honor of photographing their wedding. But this is exactly what happened with Nicole and Jim’s wedding! First, let me say, that I love these two to death and this wedding has been a long time in the making. I’ve known Nik since I was young.. like… awkward brace face, acne, middle school young. We’ve been through a lot together, from breakups and heartache, to becoming coworkers, to being roomies who share a love of Taco Bell and pizza. I have so many memories with this lady and I’m so happy for her in her marriage to Jim. It was hard walking in at the beginning of their wedding day and NOT crying when I first saw her… and that’s saying something as I’m not a cryer.
When I arrived and valiantly composed myself to avoid tearing up, all the ladies and gentleman were getting ready in two separate rooms downstairs. Everyone looked stunning. The red colors, lights, and wreaths everywhere certainly emulated the holiday spirit. Now the day was a bit of an ugly one weather-wise. It had iced and snowed overnight, so roads were a little hairy and I gracefully glided on concrete more then once trying to photograph shoes and flowers. But it definitely helped to give the photos a little “White Christmas feel.” I only wish it had been snowing big fat snowflakes when we were doing some couple shots, but a photographer’s dreams can not always be met, haha!
The morning went off smoothly with hugs and greetings to be had with all family members. Nik’s mom and mother in law helped her get in her dress, while bridesmaids helped button her up. The dress was stunning! A flowing, strapless dress, with a gold highlighted waistline, and a sweetheart neckline, it was beautiful! Nik looked incredible and again…. photographer waterworks threatened to occur. The bridesmaids all gathered around to ooo and aww, and I headed over to the groom’s room to see the gift exchange of sports themed shoes. Not as amazing as Nik’s sparkly Christian Louboutin stilettos, but hey, can you tell these two share a love of shoes too?
And with that, the ceremony was officially ready to begin! Now, as many of you may or may not know, my mom and I have actually ‘worked’ a few weddings together. She is a Dr. Rev. and occasionally, when the stars align, we actually get to work together. She marries them and I shoot them! All we need is a caterer and a venue and we could be full service organization haha! My mom led in the groomsman, to be followed by the bridesmaids, and then Nik and her dad. The moment Nik walked down the aisle and Jim saw her was one of those moments that make a wedding. So many happy emotions and just a truly beautiful moment to witness. This was it! Game time. The ceremony went off swimmingly and ended with two happily married people grinning at each other as they walked down the aisle for the first time as husband and wife.
The rest of the night flowed by. Dances were had, speeches were given, and laughs were exchanged. One of my favorite moments was when Jim gave a little speech, thanking everyone and Nik for everything they had done to make their wedding day so special. And then he said, “Everyone kept asking me today if I was nervous, and I can honestly say, I am not, because I have never been so sure of anything in my life. I am so happy to be married to Nicole.” And that folks, is true, happy, butterflies in the stomach, love.
The rest of the night was filled with dancing and a LOT of it. This was a dancing crowd! Everyone was out on the dance floor at least once. Even grandma was a dancing machine! Garter and bouquet were tossed (and there were battles for both)! And the night wrapped up with a lovely dollar dance. Nicole’s dad was the last to dance with both of them and that was a precious little moment. All in all a truly wonderful wedding. I couldn’t be happier for these two and I can’t wait to see what the future holds for them! I wish you two nothing but the best! So with lots of love, I give you Nik and Jim’s wedding.
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue and Catering: Wyndridge Farms and Winery
DJ: Klock Entertainment – Josh Wagner
Flowers: Wildflower
Cake: The Couture Cakery
Videography: JKM Productions
A Food Tour of Denver
Posted on January 17, 2017
Looks good right? I could have stayed here all afternoon and sipped on cocktails but we had places to be and more food to sample! The nice thing about the tour is there is A LOT of food you get to try. Everything is small bites, not like full blown dinners, but it’s filling. I promise. Plus, after each restaurant, you get to walk to the next place, as your guide talks about the history and city around you. You’re getting to learn, burn off some calories, and eat all at the same time. It’s pretty fantastical.
Our next stop was Euclid Hall Bar & Kitchen. The building itself is rich with history. As Chamae told us all about the building we got to sample their house made Beef Short Rib Kielbasa as well as their house-made mustards and kraut. True story, all the meat from here comes from Colorado animals. They make and cure almost all their meat. They also have a wonderful drink selection. We got a coupon for a free drink and we used it! We came back and sampled some more food and drinks later that evening and it was worth it.
We left Euclid Hall to be greeted by Christmas carolers dressed to the nines in 1920s garb and makeup/hair. The city really goes all out during the holidays and everywhere was decorated beautifully. Chamae continued to tell us about the history of many of the buildings and city as we made our way to our next stop, Little Owl Coffee, a cute little coffee shop with baristas who know their stuff and do some killer coffee art. The hot beverage on a chilly day, was a perfect break before we started in on some more food. I had a macchiato, while Kate opted for a hot chocolate, and Chamae had a latte.
After warming up we headed to our favorite stop. And no, it’s not what you would think. And trust me, everything we had was awesome, so this was a hard decision buutttt after much discussion we both agreed EVOO Marketplace was our favorite stop. Not your usual food tour stop either, which was why it was so memorable. It’s a family run shop and the brainchild of a husband and wife team, Mick and Carolyn Major. The whole store is based on the concept of ‘taste before you buy.’ And taste we did. All their olive oil and balsamic oils are the highest quality you can buy. From pressed and infused oils to a HUGE variety of white and balsamic vinegars. It was so much fun and Carolyn gave us a wonderful lesson before tasting about the processes of their different products. Then the sampling began, you take a little cup and pour yourself a little oil or vinegar and taste away. So many flavors all in one place, we couldn’t get enough! We loved it so much I got a whole case of different varieties for Christmas gifts.
These aren’t your ‘everyday’ oils and vinegars. I fell in love with their Sage and Wild Mushroom Olive Oil. Kate leaned more towards white vinegars while I loved the darks. All the vinegars are aged in barrels and are either infused or pressed (either aged with the product, or pressed into it in the beginning). We loved the Cara Cara Vanilla Barrel Aged Balsamic as well as the Grilled Pineapple Balsamic.
After EVOO, we headed out again! This time, Chamae took us into some historic buildings and bars before we headed to our next destination. Seriously, aren’t some of these places stunning?
Where ‘pearl’ buttons were first invented for cowboy-ware was in Denver, this is their store now.
Next on the docket was Zoe Ma Ma – Super Yummy Street Food. And yummy food it was! The owner, Ma Ma, was on hand to talk to about her food. It’s some of the best Chinese food I’ve ever had. And it’s all handmade with recipes from Ma Ma herself. It’s high quality ingredients include fresh homemade organic noodles, cage-free eggs, and all-natural meats. Not to mention the ‘sauce bar’ they have where you can mix and match different sauces to top all your food with. We got to indulge in Za Jiang Mian. It’s a Classic Northern noodle dish with fresh egg noodles, ground pork sauce, and julienned veggies. Kate and I almost licked the bowls clean. Plus, the vibe of the whole place was wonderful. It was like you were stepping into a little restaurant in China. I wish we had a few weeks in Denver because I would be back here every week just to try different dishes.
Ma Ma and our guide, Chamae.
Following happy bellies full of noodles, we headed off to Mercantile. It’s kind of like an open air market that specializes in cheeses and meats. They also have a wide variety of sandwiches, soups, salads, and pastries. It’s one of those places you’d want to come study or read a book so you can keep going back and getting little snacks all day. It was lovely. I wish we had time to sample everything, because let’s be honest, cheese is quite frankly one of the greatest foods in the entire world. We got to try Sheep’s Milk Ricotta from Fruition Farms, it came with little crackers and house-made jam. It was super yummy.
Our last stop (sadly) was Union Station which was a plethora of different food shops. We ended with dessert at the Milkbox Ice Creamery. It was pretty good in the ice cream front. It’s gmo free, 100% natural, and all sourced from local farms. I had salted caramel pb cup while Kate had Mocha Chip.
And with that, it was the end of our food tour. Sad day. Chamae was nice enough to walk us back to EVOO so we could continue to taste test. But what a great experience! Tons of good foods and off the beaten path food stops. Literally the cat’s meow of foodie tours. If you’re in Denver look up Taste of Denver. They do all sorts of food tours too! So you can pick and choose what works best for you.
Following our full bellies and food coma, we headed to the Parade of Lights! What a wonderful holiday tradition! The city is all lit up and the whole parade is filled with lights! They have lights on horses, dogs, even Santa! You name it and it most likely has a glow stick or lights attached. A fun little excursion that day and a cool thing to see in the city! It happens every year and even if you miss the Parade, the city itself is all lit up and is lined with little shops all decked out in holiday gear so that’s a pretty photographic experience too!
Now aside from the food tour, Kate and I seriously ate like queens for honestly, really cheap. We probably didn’t spend over $50 a day for three square meals and that’s pretty freaking awesome. We had three favorite places. Cafe Paprika was seriously the best. It’s a little hole in the wall and as soon as you pull up you’re hit with the wonderful smells of Mediterranean food wafting in the parking lot. Mediterranean food and me is like white on rice. I’m still thinking about the gryo meat (house-made) and mint tea that they pour from authentic teapots wwaayy up in the air. We also tried a dish called Bastilla which is like nothing I’ve ever had (which is rare). It’s layers of puffed pastry filled with spiced shredded chicken, nuts, savory herbs and topped with powdered sugar and more spices. Now sounds crazy right? But honestly, it was soo good. If you’re here in Denver and you have a love affair with Mediterranean food like I do, go here. You certainly won’t be disappointed!
Next on our list was the the The Denver Biscuit Company. Confession. This was the only place we ate at twice. The biscuits were that good. They have appeared all over various tv shows, probably most notably Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. The biscuits are almost the size of your head and literally melt in your mouth. The sausage gravy would have any Southern Grandma begging for the recipe and the jams and butters will make you want to get another biscuit just to use them. If you looked up biscuit in the dictionary, The Denver Biscuit Company’s photo should be there. They’re that good.
Yes, be jealous of that biscuit. I’m jealous and I already ate there. Excuse me while I lick the screen. Last, but not least, on our list was the Boulder Dushanbe Teahouse. We went here during our day trip to Boulder. Starting off we drove Boulder Canyon, which is stunning in itself and has great hiking/biking trails as well as a number of pull offs to stop and absorb the beauty around you. If you have a few hours to spare, take the drive up Boulder Canyon and stop off and hike a bit.
The Dashanbe Teahouse is kind of a combo food, drink, architecture and artwork visit. The building is breathtaking. The whole building was created by 40+ artisans from several cities of Tajikistan. They created the decorative elements the Teahouse, including its hand-carved and hand-painted ceiling, tables, stools, columns, and exterior ceramic panels. It’s absolutely stunning. I’d recommend going here even if you’re not hungry. The craftsmanship of this building is so unbelievable. But we did eat there. And drink there. They offer unlimited chai. YES. YOU HEARD RIGHT. UNLIMITED CHAI. You empty your coffee mug and they REFILL IT. FOR FREE. Put that in your pipe and smoke it. We were in hog heaven. Add that to the artistry around us and the yummy small plates we had of hummus and veggies and a little sampler plate. People come here for tea (obviously) and the tea sandwich sit down experience. You have to have reservations for that, so plan in advance people!
Is your mouth watering yet? Mine is and I’m the one writing this! But, in all fairness, I also got to eat all this deliciousness too. Hopefully that was a good little food tour of Denver. You can eat like kings and queens for cheap. Plus, there is soooo much to see! The scenery is breathtaking, the locals are wonderful, and there are more craft breweries and wineries then I could count! But go to Denver! Seriously. You won’t be disappointed. Especially if you’re a crunchy granola foodie like me! Until next time! -Alysha
Photography and Writing By:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
(i) www.instagram.com/ayoderphoto/
A Taste of Ghent
Posted on December 2, 2016
Sooooo… this post has been a LONG time coming. Between travel, weddings, holidays, and all around no free-time I have just not had the time to write this post. I’m sitting in front of a large fireplace in Denver at this very moment and thinking about how blessed I am! My sister is interviewing for different residency programs all over the US and I’m so, so, proud of her (and my brother too) and when she asked me come down to Denver during one of her interviews I jumped at the opportunity. It also helps that it coincides with both of our birthdays, so after interview’s we’re going to hit the town and celebrate (and we’re always open to great places to visit, eat, or enjoy here).
It’s crazy how quickly life happens. 4 years ago, we were celebrating our birthday’s again, this time in New Orleans, as she interviewed for medical school and now here we are. On graduation’s door and here I am again, being able to enjoy this exciting moment in my sibling’s life and I couldn’t be more proud. I’m glad all of my siblings share my travel bug. None of us stayed close to home while studying, much to my mother’s dismay, though we visit regularly. We’re all always learning, traveling, and growing in our professions. This leads me to my wonderful learning and travel experience to Ghent, NY with the lovely team of the Made in Ghent farm, and our teacher’s Michael Piazza and Kevin Masse.
From the moment you pull up to the lovely Made in Ghent farm, you’re greeted by farm dog, Bumble, and the farm owner’s, Richard and Mimi. Warmth and homeyness emits from this place like you wouldn’t believe. It’s like a little slice of paradise complete with wildflower fields, chickens, and Mimi’s fresh made sour dough bread (that I’m still dreaming about). They have a wonderful set up kitchen/store that is the first building you pull up to. Here, Mimi and team make TONS of farm fresh food, from jams and ice cream to pork rillettes and breads. It’s also the perfect setting for classes, with cooking books lining the walls, kitchen props, tables, and chairs. A breeze blows through the open space with a pond in the back to gaze at as you sip coffee and snack on homemade yogurt and granola. I was in foodie, photographer, traveler heaven.
Through corporate photography day job, I had signed up for the “How to Create Magazine Quality Food Photographs’ 2-day course. We learned photography and styling from Michael Piazza and social media and networking expert Kevin Masse. In between lectures, Mimi and team cooked us up spectacular meals (that still make my mouth water thinking about them) and we were also free to wander the farm and take photos of all the livestock, wildlife, and meal prep. Our group was small and filled with everything from food stylists, to lawyers, to bloggers. It was such a great plethora of people passionate about food and photography. These are my people! You know the ones?! The people who get you…. when you start talking in depth about how beautiful pastries look when lighted correctly and who get excited about shooting food tablescapes. Those people. My people.
We started the day off with tons of delicious breakfast, meeting and greeting everyone and literally breaking bread (sourdough, yes!). Michael led us up to the main house, i.e. natural light photographer’s dream. Seen in photos above, I swear half of it was windows, with a stunning open kitchen (with a blue-tiled back splash I was obsessed with), HUGE farm table, beautiful prep and sitting area, and a garage loaded with food props for us. We started with basics, natural lighting, and learned Michael’s favorite food photography techniques.
Isn’t that backsplash dreamy?
Experimenting with different light setups.
Another bomb-diggity meal done by Mimi and crew.
Wandering the farm post-lecture.
After a day of lecturing. We took a break. We wandered the farm, conversed with each other and waited for the feast that Mimi and her team were making. Everything was sourced from less then 10 miles away from the farm. How awesome and local is that?! Here we got to shoot tablescapes, from prep to sit down. The best part? We got to eat it after we photographed it all. Probably my favorite photographic part of the whole workshop. I mean, this was the food spread and location of dreams.
Mimi cutting all the yummy chicken straight from their backyard!
Dreamy right? And ohhh sooo delicious! We all left full of inspiration and satisfied bellies! Day two was just as exciting! If you wanted, you could come early and get photos of some of the farm-hands helping out on the farm as well as take a walk with Richard into the produce and wildflower fields (which then are sold as bouquets in the shop)! Of course I was there bright and early! It was such a perfect day for it too! With tons of photo ops!
Jen, our ‘chicken whisper’ and catcher for photos (thanks Jen!)
Richard, leading the tour and posing for us in the long grass.
Bumble in all her glory, exploring with us!
The group experimenting with reflectors in the woods.
Robyn, Michael’s trusty assistant who helped with EVERYTHING throughout the day.
Cornish Meg, who regularly helped with all the food prep, arranging the flowers picked from our walk.
After the walk and breakfast, we headed back up to the house. Michael focused more on helping with styling and telling a story for this lesson. We photographed galettes from start to finish while learning how to show the story of food being made.
Following Michael’s lesson, Kevin Masse arrived to give us his lecture on social media. How to use it successfully, what you can do to improve yours photos, and how to get more followers. All very interesting and I learned a TON! Especially with Instagram, I was a bit clueless when it came to all things hashtag and @. Kevin helps tons of brands with their social media presences and it was so great learning from someone with some much experience in this. It’s what I seriously lack in.
We followed Kevin’s lesson up with a photo session for ourselves to use what we had learned an implement it. Shooting galettes in different lightings and environments. Also, the spread that Mimi had left out for us.
With sadness, we all had to say goodbye to each other. But we left with lifelong friends, great experiences, and tons of food photography knowledge! I couldn’t have asked for a more creative retreat! I can’t wait to visit Ghent again and stop by Richard and Mimi’s shop, of course to get some of that sour dough and I would highly recommend anyone in the area do the same!
**Special thanks to the wonderful team that put this together and made the experience so great! To find out more info about the teachers or Made in Ghent Farm I’ve listed their links below!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
(i) www.instagram.com/ayoderphoto/
Shannon & Josh Wedding – 10.15.16
Posted on November 21, 2016
Two families coming together in love, life, and faith. That’s what the lovely wedding of Shannon and Josh was. Taking place at the stunning St. Patrick Church in Carlisle, light streamed in through the stained glass to reveal this church’s humble 1779 beginnings. Shannon and Josh’s closest friends helped these two get ready before they took their plunge into marriage. They chose a purple and white color scheme and peppered these colors throughout from the bridesmaids dresses, groomsman’s ties, flowers, and even the mother’s dresses.
With a traditional Catholic ceremony, Shannon and Josh’s day was filled with tradition. An especially wonderful family touch was the bride’s brothers and mother played music and sang throughout their ceremony. How wonderful is that? Following the ceremony and family photos, we all headed down to Thornwald Park to take fun party and couple photos! These two and their party both rocked their photo session! The sunlight coming through the trees lit these two perfectly in all the fall park beauty. Between brick walls, gazebos, and a forest backdrop, I couldn’t have asked for a more stunning backdrop for this wedding party.
After we wrapped up their photo session, we headed over the St. Patrick Activity Center where the family had set up lights, banners, and backdrops to create a perfect setting for a reception. Dances were had, speeches were given, and dinner was served. Following dinner, guests danced with the happy couple for their dollar dance, the bouquet and garter toss were held, the cake was cut, and HUGE family photos were taken with just about everyone in attendance. Before I left the happy couple, we stepped outside to catch the perfect golden hour light and these two just glowed with happiness. So here’s to another 100 years of happiness to the happy couple, and without further ado, Shannon and Josh’s wedding.
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venues: St. Patrick Church of Carlisle
DJ: Payne Hurley
Flowers: Royers
Caterer: Kathy’s Deli
Cake: Carlisle Bakery
Tricia and Tor Wedding – 10.14.16
Posted on November 14, 2016
Fall weddings always leaves me breathless and Tricia and Tor’s wedding was no exception. The lovely fall colors, a wonderful wedding, and a beautiful location, I mean… does it get any better then this? Now this wasn’t the first time I’ve photographed these two, they had a wonderful fall engagement shoot last year with their fur babies. Seriously though, does it get any cuter??
Lucky for everyone, they picked the most beautiful fall day for both shoots! Not only did we have a fantastic first look overlooking the Blue Mountain ridge on the eastern edge of the Appalachian Mountain range, but we got to get four-wheeled up the mountain to get some spectacular scenic shots as well! It’s not every day you have a bride and groom who are willing to four wheel up a mountain in full wedding garb! Also, special shoutout to the wonderful bridesmaid and driver, who helped us make all our mountain photos!
This kickass couple also added so many touches to this wedding to make it their own. The bride hand crocheted little pumpkins as guest table seatings and rocked some rockabilly shoes. The groom and groomsman rocked funny socks and an orange bow tie. These two had the ring bearer don a Star Wars themed ring pillow, their dogs and cats made for their cake topper, and awesome take-away custom chapsticks for their guests.
Following their first look and photos, these two got married at a beautiful outdoor ceremony at golden hour. With a waterfall and mountain range behind them, guests looked on as these two read their own vows, and got hitched right as the sun set. The cocktail hour followed with bonfires, human sized checkers, and lots of laughter with friends. As the night became chilly, everyone moved inside for the reception.
Dances were had and speeches were given. One of my favorite quotes was the MOH giving her speech and saying, “these two were such a perfect match, even Obi One Kenobi couldn’t have made it!” And it’s true, the love and affection these two, and their family and friends, have for one another is infectious. With each little photo session we snuck away for, these two kept each other, and me, laughing with their contagious happiness and love for one another! So here’s to that love and laughter for this wonderful couple for another 100 years!
Notice the ‘butt grab,’ these two had me laughing hard behind the camera!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue, Cake, & Caterer: Blue Mountain Ski Resort
DJ: Robert Cline
Flowers: The Potting Shed
Sam and Von Wedding – 10.1.16
Posted on November 6, 2016
You ever meet two people that literally might change the world with kindness? Well I have, and it’s these two fantastic people. Sam and Von. One of my favorite aspects of their wedding day was on each table at their reception, they put photos of dogs that were up for adoption at a local shelter. I mean seriously, if that is not one of the most wonderful things ever, I don’t know what is! Their fun and loving attitude was evident throughout the day. Case and point, someoneeee forget their wedding bands, these two just laughed it off and had a good chuckle at the alter when they ‘exchanged their rings.’
The whole day was filled with that laughter. Despite Mother Nature deciding to make it rain all day, these two (and their party) rocked it! Sam pulled out rain boots for all the ladies and umbrellas were held as props. These two and their party certainly made the best of everything that was thrown at them! Purple accents highlighted almost every small detail from dresses, bouquets, the cake, and even small touches handmade by family like pumpkin decorations made by the bride’s mom.
The couple’s Best Man and Maid of Honor touched everyone with their wonderful speeches, even some happy tears were shed. The shoe game left everyone in attendance laughing. Not to mention, the looks of disbelief on both the bride and groom’s faces with their answers to some of the questions. We lucked out with some rain for their night photo session. Now most would not consider the rain ‘luck’ but wow! These two got a little wet, and we rocked some umbrella and rain night shots! Some of my favorite wedding photos to date!
The night winded down with a cake cutting and a very polite cake smash. With family and friends shots done, these two and their guests danced the night away. Von’s grandpa led the way with some of his moves! So here’s to another 100 years of laughter, love, and happiness to these two love birds! Without further ado, Sam and Von’s wedding.
Vendors:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue: The Susquehanna Club
Cake: The Pennsylvania Bakery
Cupcakes: Lori – The groom’s talented mother!
DJ: Rick Hansberry of Sound Waves DJ Entertainment
Flowers: The bride’s mother and grandmother, more family talent!
Caterer: The Susquehanna Club
Jodi and Mary’s Wedding – 9.10.16
Posted on October 12, 2016
It’s not too often that you get two wonderful people coming together to celebrate their love while also almost making everything for their big day! You want to talk about DIY, these two nailed just about every part of that! From signs, to their ring box, and even cupcake toppers, these two made it all! Not to mention, they picked just about the most perfect day, and such a beautiful location to get married.
A backyard wedding, right on the shore line of Deep Creek Lake, MD. Sun streaming, friend’s laughing, and brides smiling. It couldn’t have been a more perfect day. As opposed to getting walked down the aisle by their fathers, these bride’s opted for ‘first looks’ with their dads. As they ascended down the stairs, each of their father’s beamed. Hugs, kisses, and tears were all exchanged before the ceremony began.
The bridal party were all decked out in blue dresses with lovely sunflower accent bouquets. Walking down the aisle, the brides rocked custom Converses that said ‘2gether’ and ‘4ever.’ How fantastic is that?! There was a wonderful moment when Jodi was waiting for Mary as she walked down the aisle, and as she looked up and saw her bride, the love shining in both their eyes was beautiful.
There were a lot of unique wedding traditions during their ceremony. Jodi’s mom did a beautiful Polish wedding blessing as guests passed around their rings to bless the couple and think positive thoughts of love for their marriage. The bride’s each wrote their own vows and as they read them to each other, guests looked on with tears of happiness in many of their eyes. Rings and a kiss were exchanged before these two lovely brides walked down the aisle for the first time as a married couple.
Speeches, dinner, and dances followed the ceremony with lots of hugs and laughs exchanged between. People loved the s’more bar and camp fire as kids spent time swimming in the lake and walking along the shore. As the sun began to set, these brides stunned in an evening photo session. Jodi even changed into a fantastic tuxedo t-shirt. Isn’t that just awesome sauce? As I was packing up to leave, I left with hugs, congrats, and a smile on my face. This is how Mary and Jodi’s whole day was, and I can’t imagine that any of their guests left without joy in their heart. What an honor it was to photograph these two and their wedding day. There aren’t too many couples who genuinely light up the place when they’re together. These two brides lit up the whole wedding and this was clear to everyone in attendance. I hope that this joy is obvious in the photos below, and you can see the love these two have for each other. So without further ado, Mary and Jodi’s wedding:
Vendors:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Venue: Over the Rainbow in Deep Creek Lake, MD
Cupcakes: Mountain Flour Bakery
Cake: Kelly the Cake Lady
DJ: 1st Dance DJs
Flowers: Farmhouse Fete
Caterer: Archie’s BarbeQue
Ashley & Jonathon’s Wedding – 8.26.16
Posted on September 25, 2016
It’s not too often that I get lucky enough to shoot courthouse weddings. I know they are on the rise, but they’re usually 10 minutes, just the couple, and people don’t bring a photog. Thankfully, this was not the case with Ashley and Jonathon’s wedding. These two brought their families and friends, and then we got to go to the fire company where Jonathon works and shoot their couple session with FIRETRUCKS! I know, freaking firetrucks! I’m pretty sure I was just as excited about this as the couple!
We all met up at the courthouse and waited while a hearing finished up. Family and friends slowly streamed in and hugs, kisses, and smiles were exchanged by all. Who says you can’t have a fun wedding if it’s at a courthouse?? These two knew how to make this a special and intimate ceremony! The presiding judge, Judge Masland, was wonderful! Leading a quick and lovely ceremony he posed for photos, joked with the little kids, and made sure the couple had everything before we left for the firehouse!
I mean seriously, could it get any more fantastical then a couple session at a firehouse? The guys working were great too, helping turn on lights, and holding cords. Not only could you tell that these two were surrounded on their wedding day by friends and family that loved them, but also by Jonathon’s coworkers at the firehouse. These two lovebirds had so many fun ideas too, and their love and affection for each other hopefully shines through in the photos. Congrats to Ashley and Jonathon and many, many more years to come! Now check out this lovely courthouse wedding!
Special Thanks To:
The Cumberland County Courthouse Staff and Judge Masland
The Citizens Fire Company of Mount Holly Springs and Staff
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Peru: Part 3 – Lima
Posted on August 29, 2016
I know, I know what you’re thinking. Holy cow, you guys actually got to Lima without any problems. Yes, yes we did. I’ll tell you what though, we actually made an under-over bet in the terminal if our Lima guide would actually be at the airport. We had a moment of panic when we stepped off and no one was there, but we just got off the plane a wee bit early. Shortly after, our guide arrived and led us to our transportation. The airport in Lima is situated a good 45 minutes from the city center so we were lucky enough to get a scenic drive alongside the Pacific Ocean. The water was loaded with surfers, as it’s rough surf with lots of waves (apparently people come all over to surf here).
Ironically, though right by the ocean, Lima is actually pretty much a desert. If it wasn’t for the watering of the trees and wildlife in the area, it would actually be quite dry. Now unlike most places we stayed, Lima is actually a modern urban city. This does however come with lots of traffic, but also a plethora of yummy food destinations. Lima is actually a bit of a foodie mecca. So this post will of course feature RECIPES!!! Get excited!! I know that’s why you all stopped by today anyway!! Those promises of recipes are finally coming to fruition! The dishes they are most well known for are ceviche, pisco sours, and guinea pig (or cuy in Spanish). While I am a very adventurous, guinea pig was a bit much for me, especially as it usually comes out fried with a little veggie or fruit ‘hat.’ When you grow up with that as a pet, it’s a little hard to stomach eating one of them.
Getting to Lima later, we got settled in the adorable B&B, Quinta Miraflores Boutique Hotel, where we were staying and headed to Amaz for a truly spectacular dinner. If you’re ever in town, I’d highly recommend it. It has different dishes for just about any kind of eater. Plus, the Pisco Sours are to die for.
Something we booked ahead of time (as we both enjoy different culture’s foods) was a guided food tour of Lima. We started our tour with a brief stroll in the city and some great info from our guide while walking across Lima’s famous Bridge of Sighs. Legend has it that a wealthy man’s daughter was forbidden to see the man she loved because he was a street sweeper. Heartbroken, she would stand by her window and sigh within earshot of those who crossed the bridge, hence the name. Tradition states that when you walk across, you hold your breath, and make a wish. If you can make it the other side without taking a breath, your wish will come true. It’s also good luck for lovers to hold hands and hold their breath as they walk over. Pretty cool right? The bridge has a pretty cool view of some art work as well as a beautiful garden next to it with statues of famous Peruvians.
Our first food stop was a little coffee shop called, La Marzocco. It’s a funky little eclectic shop that is a hub for artists, writers, and coffee lovers. They actually get their coffee straight from the rainforest and they hand sort and roast the beans right on the premises. We got to choose from a wide variety of coffee drinks, espressos, macchiatos, lattes, americanos, etc. which were served with little biscotti and sweet potato bread (think pumpkin bread and delicious). The hubs and I went with an espresso and latte. Everyone in our group tried something a bit different but the consensus was positive. Loved the vibe of this place, you could just tell the owner loved the arts!
Coffee beans growing on the back patio. Even though they don’t grow well in this area (it’s too dry and cool) the owners wanted to at least try to grow some.
Filled with some caffeine, our next stop took us to a little brunch place where we got to try a fruit smoothie. And no, not like smoothies here. This was made from the fruit called Lucuma. It actually kind of looks like an avocado and a mango had a baby. The inside is orange and has a texture kind of like a semi-cooked sweet potato. It’s packed with vitamins and minerals, rich in antioxidants, and low on the glycemic index. However, truthfully, I thought it tasted like mango flavored Pepto Bismol. It was very chalky. Our group seemed to be split 50/50 with likes vs dislikes.
Our next stop was, eeekk, a local Peruvian market. Filled with allll sorts of goodies. We went to one of the best fruit and veggies stands in the market that is known throughout the region for the quality of the owner’s goods. There, our guide told us about all the local fruits and we got to try about 15 different kinds! Custard apples were Sean’s favorite while the mango (I know.. boorrring) was my fav. Seriously one of the most juicy and sweetest mangos I’ve ever had! We also go to try a smaller avocado that doesn’t have seeds?! Imagine that? But seriously, how pretty is all this produce!
In the same market, we headed to the seafood stand. The fish in Lima is soo fresh every day that Peruvians joke that you can’t have ceviche for dinner because the ‘fish isn’t fresh.’ Such a variety from octopus to shrimp, even scallops and oysters. How fantastic is that octopus?! Photo shoot idea… maybe?
From the market, we headed to our recipe spot! We pulled up to Embarcadero 41 Fusion and headed inside to learn from the restaurant’s chef and bartender how to make both pisco sours and ceviche! You’re getting excited aren’t you? Well you should be! It was amazing! First on the lesson plan was pisco sours. Now a little bit about the main ingredient, pisco. Pisco is a white brandy made in Peru from muscat grapes. Pisco was developed by 16th century Spanish settlers as an alternative to orujo (their traditional brandy). There are a TON of different piscos in Peru, from different grades and processing to a huge variety of flavors. A lot of places will soak pisco with different foods like passion fruit or peppers. Each pisco variety helps make the house’s ‘specialty drinks.’ We were given straight pisco and then pisco flavored with peppers to taste the difference. Now be careful, this is a STRONG drink and it doesn’t taste like it’s strong. The pisco sour in it’s most simple form consists of five ingredients, pisco, lime juice, simple syrup, raw egg whites, and bitters. It’s a very similar flavor to margarita with just a little more sour. It’s delicious. The hubs and I couldn’t get enough pisco sours on this trip. But enough talking, grab your shakers and let’s learn to make pisco sours!
Traditional Pisco Sours
- 1 oz of lime juice (if you like lime add 1.5 oz, it’s yummy)
- 1 oz of simple syrup
- 3 oz of Pisco (get crazy and try different flavors)
- 1 oz raw egg whites
- 3-5 drops of bitters
- Ice and a shaker
Measure and pour first four ingredients into your shaker. Fill with ice, make sure you have a good seal and shake away. You’ll need to shake for 1-2 minutes to ensure you get good foam on the top of your drink. The rule is that the foam on the top of the drink should be at least as thick as your thumb. Once shaken, pour half the drink in your chilled glass. Now, carefully, without spilling any (it’s bad luck), slowly swirl the remaining liquid in the shaker. This ensures you get all the foam that has settled on the sides of the shaker. After you have collected all the foam, slowly pour the remaining liquid into your glass. At this point you should have a nice foamy top. Sprinkle top with 3-5 drops of bitters and ahhh enjoy this nice, cold, refreshing beverage. Yuuuum!
So you pumped? You enjoying your drink? Next on our game plan was to learn how to make ceviche from one of the restaurant’s chefs. I’m not even a fish person and this was delicious. They even let me make mine with mushrooms, which is not only an awesome option for non-seafood people like me, but also all the vegetarians and vegans! Now the fish they recommend is very fresh white fish. Like sea bass or sole. No fatty, crappy fish here. The fresher the better! Almost every restaurant you go to will have a different ‘sauce’ they add to theirs. The one we went to called theirs ‘tiger milk.’ It did contain some ingredients that aren’t available here in the states, so I’ve mixed it up to make it my own. The tiger milk recipe will follow. Also, Peru, unlike a lot of ceviches in the world, traditionally serves theirs with their local large corn kernels and boiled sweet potatoes (they boil them in a ton of spices like cinnamon, all spice and chilis). This is not a ‘must,’ but adds a unique Peruvian twist on your every day ceviche! Now onto recipe two, let’s get crazy!
Traditional Peruvian Ceviche for 2!
- 7 oz fresh white fish such as sole or sea bass (use sliced mushrooms for vegetarians or vegans)
- 1/4 cup of thinly sliced red onions
- Juice of 3 limes (this ‘cooks’ the fish so don’t skimp on it)
- 1/2 of finely chopped Aji Limo Pepper (if you can’t find here in the states, use a jalapeno), if you’d prefer it not spicy you can deseed and devein the pepper
- 1/4 cup of tiger’s milk (recipe to follow)
- 1 tsp finely chopped cilantro (this is to taste, I don’t like cilantro so feel free to eliminate it or use parsley instead)
- 1/2 cup of boiled sweet potatoes
- 1/4 cup of cooked corn kernels
- Salt to taste
Cut up fish into small bite sized pieces. Place in bowl and season with salt (don’t worry you can add more later so don’t get crazy), stir and then pour in lime juice. Add tiger’s milk and stir until fish is well coated. Add cilantro and finely chopped peppers to taste (this can be very spicy or mild, chef’s choice!). After combined, slowly stir in most of the thinly sliced onions (save some for garnish). Now, taste the ‘sauce.’ This is where you can add more salt, seasoning, or peppers. Spoon ceviche on plate, make sure it has a little rim as there will be a lot of ‘juice.’ Once plated, top with saved onions, a few peppers or a spring of cilantro. Place sweet potatoes on one side and corn on the other. Serve and enjoy! Traditionally, you take a small piece of the sweet potato, corn and ceviche. The sweet, salty, and savory combination is what makes this ceviche unique! Make sure to get a lot of that yummy ceviche broth too! Enjoy!
Tiger’s Milk
- 1/4 cup of lime juice
- 1/4 cup of water
- 1/2 of a deseeded and deveined jalapeno
- 1/2 of a small banana pepper deseeded and deveined (or aji amarillo if you’re able to find)
- 1 stalk (single rib) of celery
- 2 T fresh grated ginger
- 2 cloves of garlic (or more if you’re like me!)
- 4 T of red onion
- Salt and pepper to taste
Place all above ingredients in food processor or blender and blend until smooth. Great for a marinade as well! Will also freeze very well or keep in fridge for up to a week.
Mmmm, now aren’t you licking your chops? Seriously, this is sooo good. The flavors are unbelievable and the freshness is unmatched! Now you’re thinking; wow, you ate so well! You’re right, seriously but WAIT, we’re not done yet! Our last stop was one of the most well-known restaurants in Lima. Many celebrities stop here when in Lima and their photos are all over the wall. It’s known as Restaurant Huaca Pucllana and is built right next to Inca ruins. Known for it’s great adobe and clay pyramid, as you dine you get to look out and see the ruins as well as some of Lima’s skyline. It was a treat. They brought us out so many different dishes, I couldn’t even begin to tell you my favorite.
The national dish of Peru Lomo Saltado (we had two versions, the traditional version made with beef, but also the vegetarian version made with mushrooms.)
And whew, that’s a wrap folks! I hope you enjoyed this three part series on Peru. It’s such a wonderful country and there are truly sooo many things to see, learn, and eat. We did it on a whirlwind tour in 8 days but you could easily spend months here. Hopefully this gives you a little idea of the country! Until next time and another recipe, cheers!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Peru: Part 2 – Machu Picchu & Puerto Maldonado
Posted on August 26, 2016
Let me start off by saying that Machu Picchu will probably be one of the most beautiful sites I will ever see in my lifetime. I’ve traveled all over the world and the view of Machu Picchu, with the endless Andes in the background, ruins in front of you, blue skies and clouds, will forever have a place in my memories. I mean seriously, does it really get a lot more beautiful then this?
To get from Cusco to Machu Picchu we had to climb aboard the Vistadome train. That was a fun experience in itself with it’s glass ceilings, spectacular views and ‘fashion and history shows’ put on by the attendants (to show off the different clothes made from alpaca wool). There was even the Peruvian version of the “devil” who came out decked in a colorful outfit, mask and got everyone to dance with him. He even made this crazy bird noise while doing it. It had everyone on the train busting a gut. It was an experience for sure.
Quite frankly, we were actually very lucky to get out of the Sacred Valley when heading back to Cusco. The day after we left, there was a strike which led to the trains not running, getting cancelled, or not having any seats left. When we actually showed up to leave Manchu Picchu, there was a mob of people yelling and fighting to get through. It was a little scary and enough to create some nervous energy about whether the train would leave or not. Our guide told us when we arrived in Cusco, that many people were actually stuck in the Sacred Valley who were supposed to leave the day after this. That my friends, is pure luck.
Because of this, the second day we were supposed to up to Manchu Picchu, the line took us 2.5 hours to get on the bus (the previous day it had taken 15 minutes). The same was true for the trip down, a 2+ hour wait in line. It left us without enough time and unable to hike up to Huayna Picchu (the highest point where you can look down at Manchu Picchu) or even the Inca bridge which was a little easier hike but still had a spectacular view. That was kind of disheartening but we did go up and down the mountain twice which was worth the trip in spades.
The bus trip is crazy. Literally 2 inches from going over the edge and the bus drivers even reverse to let other buses pass (it’s too narrow at a lot of points for two buses). The bus drivers (we were told) are actually some of the highest paid people in Peru because it’s such a meticulous job and there CAN’T be any accidents.
We were lucky enough to have two perfect weather days. Blue skies and puffy clouds every day. Manchu Picchu literally took our breaths away the moment we saw it. You have to go through a ticket gate house and walk around a corner to see Manchu Picchu, but VOILA, it just opens up and it’s just mountains upon mountains of breathtaking views. There’s actually even a little place to stamp your passport with a Manchu Picchu stamp.
A few cool facts Manchu Picchu. It’s actually only recently been ‘discovered.’ Locals have known about it since it was built (circa 1450) but it was only discovered by historian Hiram Bingham on July 24th, 1911. It was overgrown and virtually untouched since the Incas abandoned it many years prior. It’s home to over 150 different buildings ranging from houses to baths, temples and sanctuaries. There are well over 100 different flights of stairs (and I climbed a lot of them!). Unlike most cities built by the Inca civilization (which were destroyed by the Spanish conquest), Machu Picchu so hidden and virtually invisible from below that it wasn’t found by the Spanish. This makes it one of the most well-preserved Inca cities and an archeological treasure. Llamas walk throughout the area and are the natural ‘lawn mowers’ helping to keep overgrowth from taking over. Soon, Manchu Picchu will not be accessible for tourists to walk through. The weight and numbers of so many people is slowly starting to destroy this site as it was never built to support that vast number of foot traffic.
Seriously, an awesome place and I’d recommend everyone to see it. The view alone is worth the trip. Now you want to see some photos? I know you do. Though, truthfully, no photos can truly capture how absolutely stunning Manchu Picchu truly is.
Arriving in the town of Machu Picchu, and looking up at the mountains from the streets and riverbed.
A tiny replica of the buses we took up the mountain and one of the many stray dogs in the area looking at us as we waited in line.
Driving up the mountain the views were just spectacular.
You crest the walkthrough and this is the first thing you see. Stunning.
Some of the llamas.
Second day now, this fantastic older couple just sat on the top of a lllooong flight of stairs and encouraged everyone who made it up. It was a wonderful showing of humanity at it’s finest.
Just breathtaking right? I don’t want to be any more ridiculous and just post a thousand photos of this place but… I could. Seriously. From there (and that gazillion hours line) we headed back on the bus to catch our train, to meet our guide in Cusco. Now this is where the magic stopped. This was where we showed up to the airport and discovered we were ticketless and spent the next 30+ hour waiting to hopefully catch a flight. We missed A LOT of what we were hoping to capture in the Amazon but we literally crammed as much as we could in one day. Our guides in the Amazon were amazing at least! They tried to give us as much as they could we the time we had.
We started our journey landing in the VERY small airport of Puerto Maldonado. Literally. It’s a one plane airport. Our guides picked us up and took us to their office where we stuffed a day’s worth of essentials and gear into a duffel bag. You then hand them to of the the lodges associates and he literally lugs this around through our journey. It’s incredible. We first catch a long boat and head down a tributary of the Amazon river for about 40 minutes, then we have a 3.4 kilometer hike through the Amazon jungle, where we end up in a marsh of sorts and we get on a long canoe. From there, our guides paddle and the marsh opens up to the HUGE Sandoval Lake located in the Tambopata National Reserve.
This reserve represents such a huge diversity of living things from native flora and fauna with 165 species and 41 families of trees to 103 species of mammals, 1300 species of butterflies and 90 species of amphibians. It’s incredible. It’s also home to the Giant River Otter, with only about 2500 left in the world. They are about 6 feet long and one of the most unique creatures I’ve ever seen in the wild. I mean these things are so large they actually attack and eat Caymans. Freaaking CAYMANS.
Upon docking, you hike up a long flight of stairs where it then opens up to this absolutely stunning Sandoval Lake Lodge. Sitting back and thinking about them having to drag all the building materials, beds, stove.. everything to this place on that hike and lake it’s just mind boggling. Since we lost so much time, our guide immediately took us on a sunset night tour so we got to see some monkey and birds. Followed up by a night walk where we go to see scorpions, tarantulas, and lots of other cool insects. We only had power twice a day for a few hours. Everything else is powered by gas (hot water, stove for cooking, and the lights outside the lodge to keep the caymans away at night). We slept under mosquito nets with the sounds of the jungle as our backdrop (and the hub’s snoring.. which when you’re sleeping with open roofed rooms.. the comments of your neighbors are quite amusing). We woke up at 5am to see the sunrise and the OTTERS!! Only to get back on the trail by 8 am to canoe and hike our way back to the airport. Talk about a whirlwind of less then 24 hours. I wish we had seen all the wild parrots and macaws but we lost that in our missed day. We did get to see lots of other water birds on the lake though which was stunning. I’d love to go back and just photograph all the different birds and butterflies. We’ll see about that lol. But now, enough describing! Onto our Amazon journey photos!
The boat and banana leaf lunch on our river ride.
Our sweaty hiking. It was around 100 degrees and as humid as humanly possible. You were drenched by the time you were done.
Those are bees on the leaf, isn’t that crazy?
Termites nest and wild tomatoes.
This guy was literally right on our trail. The guide almost stepped on him. He hissed at us. Like a cat. This is the spotted cayman as opposed to the black caymans which are more popular on this lake.
The ‘marshy’ area where we loaded into long canoes.
The lake just opened up. It was stunning. Notice the small snake hiding in the leaves by our boat.
The lodge is all it’s beauty.
Our little room + mosquito nets. And the hubs enjoying the lake view.
Our sunset tour started with monkey spotting in all the trees. These were a mix of Capuchin Monkey and Squirrel Monkeys.
Our group on the catamaran (just two canoes topped with a ‘deck’). And that SUNSET.
Black Cayman spotting with a flashlight on the boat. The guide was looking for the ‘red of their eyes.’ Kinda creepy right?
After we left the boat, we immediately started the night hike we had missed the previous night. Black scorpions and tarantulas.
An early 5 am rise to see if we could see the Giant River Otters.
And we have otters!!! Since it was a preserve, we weren’t allowed to be within 50 meters of them with the boat so they’re pretty far away.
They’d dive down and grab fish and come back up and eat them on their bellies!
We immediately got back to the lodge, grabbed my backpack and headed down to do the hike again. Lots of cool wildlife and we even saw Scarlet Macaws WAY up in the trees along with more monkeys.
Holy cow, what a 20 hour trip the Amazon was!
So many wonderful people we ran across too, sitting in the lodge after a long day and chatting with people from all over the world. It was a little slice of paradise. Back on the river boat we went to catch out flight to Lima! And until the next post this week, that’s where today’s journey ends. Next post I’m going to show you how to make Pisco Sours (a favorite drink of Peruvians) as well as the famous CEVICHE! So until then, cheers!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Peru: Part 1 – Cusco Region
Posted on August 22, 2016
I know, I know. I’ve been a slacker. Like a HUGE slacker. I dropped off the face of the planet for a few weeks. Frankly, I’ve been super duper busy with just life stuff. Between traveling, tons and tons of email inquires, siblings in from out of state, a workshop in Upstate NY (there will eventually be a blog post for that too) and sick doggies.. I’ve been a busy bee. Not so much in the photography or blog sense, but more in the, ‘there is soo much going on in life right now and I’m like a chicken with my head cut off.’
But PERU! Whew, what a trip. And with sooo many details, experiences, and photos, I’m breaking this up into three different posts! If I tried to fit it all in one, this might be the longest post in history or qualify as a novella. I’m also going to share some Peruvian inspired recipes too! Hopefully bringing together some of our favorite flavors from our journey, stay tuned for more of that deliciousness!
This trip, we had some close calls, wonderful tour guides, three different climates, a BIG mishap by the travel agency we booked with (which caused us to get stranded) and many, many beautiful sights and sounds! There was just sooo much experiences crammed into eight days. Not to mention food! We seriously ate like kings and queens! And hey, if you want to skip to the photos feel free, you’re about to hear all the good, the bad and the ugly of this trip. In my mind, we start with the worst and go to the best of our experiences!
Now hey, HEY YOU! The one reading this who is sitting behind their computer screen saying to themselves, wow, what an adventure.. but I could never to something like that. Let me say, if my curvy girl self and my 6’5″ hubby can cram ourselves in planes seats for 13+ hours, climb all over Manchu Picchu and survive at 13,000+ feet…. let me tell you, YOU can too. And with places like Peru and much of the Central/South America’s where the dollar is far superior with ratios of 3 and 5 local currency to a dollar, you can travel very very cheaply!
We ironically chose to do it all our bookings through a travel agent to take the stress out of planning. Hopefully to ensure that everything taken care of and we didn’t have to think about all those details. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Half way through our travels, while waiting at the check in airline counter, we were told we didn’t have tickets on this flight. The travel agent had booked our tickets on the wrong day. Normally, this wouldn’t be a huge problem, we’d just find another flight… freak out later.. and catch our next transfer. However, this wasn’t the case. We were stuck in a tiny airport, in a solely Spanish speaking area, with no more flights leaving that day. Thankfully, we were able to get a hold of our last guide who came to try and help us to no avail. We caught a taxi back to a crappy hotel and literally spent the rest of the day by the phone waiting for the travel agency to figure out what was going on and if we were even able to get to the Amazon. It sucked. There wasn’t even a lot of worry or apologizes on the agency’s part that day either. They didn’t help us find better accommodations, or get us dinner, or even have someone there to help us translate. The whole thing sucked.
For once, I took the travel out of my hands and gave it to a company who was supposed to take care of everything and they didn’t. They failed miserably. And I can’t lie and say this didn’t put a damper on our trip. We missed going to the clay picks (which I was most looking forward to) where we would have gotten to see tons of parrots and other birds in the Amazon, i.e. literally a photographer’s dream. With very limited bags too the jumbo lens I lugged around this whole trip just for that opportunity wasn’t used as much as it should have been. We missed a once in a lifetime sight of a Giant River Otter family attacking a Cayman on the lake we were supposed to stay at. Not to mention missing more then 30+ hours in the Amazon, as well as our nice hotel, guided tours, and pre-arranged meals. It sucked. Like bad. But let me tell you, it could have been worse if we didn’t keep our heads together. It would have sucked more if there weren’t any flights the following days. And the final icing on that cake would have been if the strikes in the Sacred Valley (that started while we were there) made it impossible to get out of the area we were in. There were lots of obstacles thrown at us throughout this trip. But thankfully, our travel smarts, ability to separate ourselves from the situation until we got back on our home turf, and resilience definitely helped us out here.
But whew, that’s my angry spiel about the whole thing. Now onto Peru, the good, great and awesome parts! Day 1, we started our journey in BWI arriving in Lima, only to catch our connecting flight to Cusco. Ladies and gents, that’s like going from sea level to 13k+ feet. I would not advise this as altitude sickness will kick you in the ass, but hey, it’s how our journey began. We arrived and were immediately given coca tea (a remedy to altitude sickness as well as nausea) as well as advice on eating habits and physical activities. What is altitude sickness you might ask? To me, it’s like being a drunk hungover baby. Dizzy, headache, shortness of breath and your balance is all wonky. But for a more ‘clinical definition’ it’s defined by google as, “illness caused by ascent to a high altitude and the resulting shortage of oxygen, characterized chiefly by hyperventilation, nausea, exhaustion, and cerebral edema.” And yes, it happens to just about EVERYONE who doesn’t live up that high.
We met up with our guide who took us on a tour of some of the ancient terraces in Cusco. Cusco, literally translated means, “navel of the world.” This was once the holy city which was the nexus of the Inca Empire. Our first stop was Sacsayhuaman, built by the Incas starting around 1200BC and it overlooked the whole city. Followed by Korikancha, known as the Temple of the Sun during Inca Empire, now the site of the Santo Domingo Convent. The Cathedral, which faces the Plaza de Armas in the heart of downtown Cuzco. As well as many different Inca stone ruins including Q’enqo, Puca Pucara, and Tambomachay.
At one of the many stops we made with locals selling their wares. How lovely are the colors and backdrop?
Looking out from one of the ruins where they preserved the bodies of royalty. The dry cool air up in the Andes greatly helped this process.
Couldn’t escape the weddings, even at 13,000 feet haha!
Now Peruvian food is now seriously in my top three favorite foods! So many fusions of so many different cultures. It was awesome to try to figure out different influences in each dish. This foodie was in heaven. Did you know they have over 5,000 varieties of corn and potatoes in Peru?! How nutty is that? By far, one of our favorite places we ate the whole trip was Morena Peruvian Kitchen. Asian Peruvian Fusion with to-die-for drinks (frozen lemonades, actually confusingly enough made with lime.. were one of our favs) as well as one of the best salads I’ve ever had in my life. Sean fell in love with their rice bowls. We loved it so much this is where we ended up again after we got stranded here. Seriously, check out all this goodness.
Walking up from the city center to our hotel after dinner. This is where altitude sickness hit me the hardest. Every like 20 steps, I had to stop and breathe. I hadn’t adjusted to the air yet. A very odd feeling to be that weak, when you normally aren’t.
Day 2 was followed up Chinchero, Maras, and Moray. Our first stop was a local artisan who showed us how they harvested and dyed llama and alpaca wool as well as how they made the blankets and textiles Peru is known for. Our next stop was a local market where we learned about local wares, produce, and various local specialties. Sooo many colors, it was a photog’s heaven. Following a beautiful country drive, our guide took us to Maras, a village set on a plateau, famous for its salt mines or pans. The salt is drained into separated shallow pools built into the hills, where it then dries in the sun before it is harvested. It’s fed by a natural salt water spring running down the mountain. The salt has been extracted this way for hundreds of years, even during the reign of the Inca Empire.
Funny story, as some might know, almost every place I visit, I bring back fun little souvenirs for my creative team coworkers. Nothing ever too big because we travel very light. At the salt mines, you could buy little flavored salt bags which seemed to me to be a perfect gift! That is, until we tried getting through security back in the states. Where they thought we were packing cocaine. Yes, cocaine. Not only was my hub’s bag searched but they also took some of the salts out and chemically tested them. Lesson learned. Small bags of salts make you look like a drug mule.
Our next stop was Moray, which is one of Peru’s most popular tourist stops. Here we learned how the terraces were used to produce different types of crops and cover a range of microclimates. We ended at a Peruvian buffet, Tunupa, where we were able to try local favorites like ceviche, alpaca, and dulce de leche cake. They also had llamas in the back with a stunning garden, wildlife, view of the mountains and river running through the property. The whole trip was breathtaking as well driving from location to location with the Andes in the backdrop. We ended our day in the heart of the Sacred Valley at a beautiful hotel with an Andes sunset in the background and surprisingly enough, even sported a brick oven for pizza for dinner.
This was actually one of the craziest naturally found dyes. Here our host was pulling a parasite from the cactus (it’s that small white critter in her hand). Once harvested, it’s smashed and produces that BRIGHT red color. Below, is how it looks once dyed into wool.
The sheep blocking our path on the way down to the salt mines.
The quinoa. The freaking QUINOA pretty much harvested in the backyard. I was in heaven.
And that’s all for this post! Stay tuned for TWO more this week. Until then ta ta for now!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Jackie & Mike – 6.11.16
Posted on July 18, 2016
Down-to-earth couple, beautiful farm location, lovely outdoor ceremony, does it get any better then this?! It certainly doesn’t with all the many wonderful little touches that Jackie added throughout the day. From the welcome sign when you walked in, to bride and groom cows, even down to little honey jar and milk jug favors for their guests! You sense a theme going on here? Mike is a dairy farmer! Farm couple meets stunning farm venue!
These two love birds have a very cute farm engagement story too! While making a pit stop at their dairy farm on Christmas Eve, Mike had lit up a field with a BIG, “Will you marry me?” made out of rebar and Christmas lights. How fantastic is that?!
The country rustic wedding theme was evident throughout the day. The bride and bridesmaids donned some killer cowboy boots while the groom and his party rocked some fancy looking blue jeans. They had some touching moments too. Jackie gifting Mike with a pin with Mike’s late mom, as well as a candle lighting ceremony for her with the family and even a sand ceremony combining Mike and Jackie’s love and families.
These two got married in a beautiful outdoor ceremony surrounded by friends and family. Despite the heat, there was a light breeze and sunshine streaming through the trees during the whole service. They walked down the aisle with all their guests blowing bubbles their way. They received hugs and well wishes from everyone in a receiving line before they started their photo session. What a lovely couple, day, and venue! A photographer couldn’t ask for better! Dinner, speeches, cake cutting and dances were had! How cool is it I could get up in the farms loft to take cake cutting photos?? A different view from the normal for sure! With the little touches all over the barn and the stunning natural light streaming through the barn windows this was a photog’s dream. It was such an honor to get to photograph this wonderful couple’s big day! Here’s to another 100 years of love for these two! And without further ado, Jackie and Mike’s wedding!
Vendors:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Wedding Planner: Toni Lehman
Cake: The Carlisle Bakery
Venue: Highland Vue Farms in Newville, PA
DJ: Tom Wickard
Flowers: The Whimsical Poppy
Nicole & Caleb – 5.28.16
Posted on July 3, 2016
Nicole and Caleb, a clearly very in love couple with a fantastic sense of country and chic backing them up. As described in one of their toasts, Caleb always said Nicole was the one that got away. As fate would have it, the two reconnected and the rest is history!
This wedding had a few firsts for me as a wedding photographer, first tattoo ring (very freaking cool), first dog ring bearer (yeeeesss!!!), and first bride ‘almost passing out at the alter.’ No lie. And hey, I don’t blame her. It was probably the 2nd hottest day of the summer, add in some nerves, and a heavy wedding dress and boom, pass out time. Thankfully, that didn’t happen! After some water and fans everything continued to move smoothly! One of the funnier moments was in the receiving line when their grandma started heckling them, “Well I never! In all my years, I’ve never had a bride almost pass out at the alter!” Everyone laughed as hugs and kisses were shared.
These two rocked their couple session, even breaking out some fun veil shots and cowboy boots! Even the flower girl had some boots on! One of my favorite shots from their day is when all the ladies showed off their boots and the flower girl looks up at them like, ‘Are you kidding me?’
The reception was lovely. Tons of tiny details with their initials, a beautiful memory table, even a tree stump cake! The groom’s mom did a lovely reading for the couple before the groom and her took the dance floor. The dollar dance was filled with tons of laughter and hugs. Clearly these two are loved by their family and friends! To date, these two also had one of the best cake smashes I’ve seen. I’m pretty sure they both were cleaning cake out of their hair later that night! All in all, a wonderful wedding affair! I wish these two nothing but the best! And now onto Nicole and Caleb’s wedding!
Vendors:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Officiant: Sharon of Ceremonies by Sharon
Cake: The Pennsylvania Bakery
Venue: The Masonic Temple in Carlisle, PA
DJ: Brian Adams of DJ Hollywood Live Productions
Molly & Paul -5.27.16
Posted on June 24, 2016
So truth be told, there are two weddings that I always look forward to photographing. Offbeat Weddings (because frankly they’re awesome and unique every time) and small intimate weddings. Now… I’m not saying I don’t enjoy every wedding I photograph, but there is something wonderful about having less then 25 people at a wedding… and that’s including the bridal party! There just tend to be more little moments throughout the day, less timeline rushing drama and a loving bond is always evident in everyone that’s attending.
Molly and Paul’s wedding was just that! I mean, we fit all the guests in one photo and you can see everyone! That’s definitely not something you get at every wedding. Check out all these lovelies in attendance, seriously, aren’t they fantastic!
I’ll tell you though… this was probably the hottest wedding I’ve shot to date. I mean it was a good 98 degrees.. plus, like a gazillion percent humidity. This photog had to go home and wring out her clothes afterwards not to mention, chug like 10 gallons of water. It was nutty! Everyone was a trooper though, I mean, look at all those smiles!
Molly and Paul were perfect too! They champed through the heat and absorbed some sunshine for their photos. These two both have a love of the outdoors, hence the beautiful estates of Allenberry Resort Inn and outdoor ceremony, small ring box made to look like a tree stump (with their initials carved into it), and a beautiful flower covered arbor. Paul also has a love of fishing (note Yellow Breeches Creek in the background). He makes a lot of his own flies too. They even incorporated a fly into his boutonniere. How cool is that?!
Their ceremony was beautiful from beginning to end, starting with the groom’s son leading both mom’s down the aisle followed by his daughter with a huge bouquet of flowers! The bride’s father gave her away under that stunning arbor, much to the smile of her groom! The vows went swimmingly and everyone had a chuckle when the ring bearer struck a pose handing off the rings. The first kiss was had and the couple, all smiles, walked down the aisle for the first time as husband and wife. A tiny intimate reception followed with unique candy apple favors, a lovely three-tiered cake (the kids helped pick out the flavors!), ‘butterfly kisses’ and lots of laughs! What a wonderful day it was for these two! I was so honored to be a part of it, so without further ado, I give you Molly and Paul’s wedding:
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Vendors:
Venue: Allenberry Resort Inn and Playhouse
Cake: Snickerdoodles Bakery
Flowers: Royers
Lizzy and Nate – 5.21.16
Posted on June 17, 2016
Oh man.. Lizzy and Nate’s wedding! Sometimes… just sometimes…. one of those couples comes around that are just so unique and awesome that when they ask you to photograph their wedding… you start doing a happy dance in your living room. THIS was one of those couples. And THIS was one of those weddings. I mean, two people that met at an invitational board game convention, does it seriously get any more offbeat and up my ‘favorite wedding alley’ than that?
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Vendors:
Venue and Catering: Knoebel’s Amusement Resort
Cake: La Dolce Vita Bakery
Coconut Corn Flake Kisses
Posted on May 17, 2016
Are you guys ready? Ready to have your mind’s blown with this crazy recipe??
I’m not joking. This is like a French Macaroon, meets an American coconut macaroon, meets rice crispy treats (just made with corn flakes). Your brain and tastebuds are about to go… BOOM.
Grams was the queen of baked goods. Cooking in general. But man, every time we came to visit, grams was always sure to make your favorite meal and dessert. There were always cookies, pie, cakes, you name it… it was there. She loved experimenting in the kitchen and her desserts were no exception. I couldn’t even tell you how many different types of grandma cookies I’ve tried over the years. This recipe is one of my kitchen experiments. I’ve never seen anything like it, so what the heck?! Figured we’d give it a try.
This is actually perfect for kids. It’s a fun interactive recipe and it kind of like a healthier version of rice crispy treats. You know pretty much everything that is going in it. You could use any cereal for this and make it gluten free too!
Cornflake Coconut Kisses
- 2 eggs whites, beaten very stiff (stiff peaks)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups of “Kellogs Corn Flakes”
- 1 cup of unsweetened shredded coconut (found it very cheap in the bulk bins at Wegmans)
- 1 tsp vanilla
Preheat oven to 350°. Separate eggs. Beat egg whites to stiff peaks. Whip in one cup of sugar. Carefully fold in corn flakes, coconut and vanilla. Make sure that everything is combined and coated well. This is a very ‘loose batter.’ Don’t worry. Trust me, as long as everything is coated, this will cook.. puff up and stay together. Once everything is combined, drop balls of about 1-2T of the mixture onto parchment paper. Make sure to space out drops evenly. Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes until golden brown. Let cool and enjoy this craziness 🙂
Ever wonder what it looks like when we’re shooting? Here’s a bird’s eye view. Anyone who tells me their space is small hasn’t seen where I shoot. Especially when the hubs is 6’5″ and sitting on the floor lol. He’s doing such a good job hand modeling though, isn’t he?
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Joan and Tim – 4.16.16
Posted on May 11, 2016
What a wonderful wedding to start the season with! These two lovebirds have been together for 17 years! After a long romance in the summer of 2015, Joan proposed to Tim on their boat with the light of a thousand candles and their children’s cheers from their dock. While neither was looking for love, Joan and Tim met out on the water where Tim was captioning the boat Joan had been assigned to. With a mutual love of the water, biking, and hiking, it was a match meant to be!
There wedding day couldn’t have been more beautiful (especially considering the previous weekend it had snowed!). Along with their family, they made a lot of the decorations too! Even creating custom cocktails for the event (mojitos and Italian guava bellinis). They even had the florist create a beautiful floral piece around a piece of driftwood they had found. The wedding was held in their backyard right on the water in beautiful Calvert County, Maryland. It was rustic, but chic with tiny touches of elegance throughout. They even set up a popcorn machine with Italian sodas and a movie screen to boot!
Guests watched these two get hitched, with heartfelt speeches from their children and touching moments between them. Joan’s grandson even walked her down the aisle. After their first kiss was shared, a big family hug was had by all! Hugs, laughter and smiles were shared between friends and family at the reception. You couldn’t find a sad face in the crowd! At one point, Joan even tried to pull Tim into the water! What a fun wedding this was! I couldn’t have been happier to have this be my first wedding of the season. So without further ado, I give you Joan and Tim’s wonderful Maryland wedding:
This is one of my favorite wedding moments. The bride’s granddaughter had drawn her a picture and she’s giving it to her grandma right before the wedding. The look on her face as she gives Joan the picture is just priceless.
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Vendors:
Fresh Basil Dressing
Posted on May 5, 2016
So yes, I’m a little late this week. I know. Here in PA, it’s been rainy, gross, and all around dreary the past nine days. Not only am I sluggish, but my motivation has been literally… nothing. So I slacked. Fail Alysha. But I hope I can make it up for you with a summer family favorite. I figured, if it can’t be bright and cheery outside… at least I can make something a little bright and cheery for you!
Now, when tomatoes are producing a million a minute in the family garden, we ate this every other night growing up. Sometime this summer, I’m going to show you all the different ways this recipe can actually be used. It’s like a miracle dressing, and it’s super super easy to make. It can stay in the fridge for a week or if you’re a busy parent, like my mom was, she’d make HUGE batches and freeze it.
Full disclosure, this recipe did not come originally from grandma. Although she definitely made it. My mom originally got this from her friend, Jean Barker. It’s been floating around the family ever since. If you’re looking for a fun and delicious recipe for Mother’s Day, this is certainly a crowd pleaser. Add some mozzarella and toasted almonds and it’s like a deconstructed caprese salad with a twist! The hint of sugar with some red wine vinegar makes this sweet and tangy.
Trust me. Pure dressing winner.
On the plus side, this is also vegetarian, and very allergy friendly. You could substitute soaked cashews, almonds, or pine nuts for the parmesan. Thus making it gluten and dairy free. So grab some fresh ingredients, and away we go to awesome dressing land.
Fresh Basil Dressing:
- 2 T red wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup lightly packed fresh basil leaves
- 1 clove garlic (who are we kidding, we always added enough so you could smell us for miles, 4+ will do for those who like it strong)
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/3 cup olive oil (I’m lucky enough to have some beautiful EVOO we brought back from Greece)
- Variety of tomatoes
- Mixed Green
Here’s the easy part. You literally put this all in a food processor and blend until smooth. Drizzle over your salad. Add other veggies and toppings to taste. Boom. Done.
Tips:
- If you want it to be more ‘liquidy’ you can add more olive oil or vinegar.
- If you don’t have a food processor, I use my Magic Bullet or my blender.
- Salad is awesome with mozzarella and toasted almonds or pecans. Capers also make a great addition.
Seriously, look at that olive oil. It’s a thing of beauty. I’m going to be sad when I run out.
This is the consistency you’re looking for.
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Cheesy Spinach Squares
Posted on April 26, 2016
Onto another one of Gram’s cook books. This time, it was one she happened to have a few of her own recipes in. I’m fairly certain that it somehow was connected to The Shriners. Both my grandfather (an actual Shriner, who also dressed up as a clown for many of their parades) and grams were involved in the Shrine. I mean, she still has ticket stubs to the ‘ladies luncheon’ she attended as a book marker… leave it to grams to keep something from 1986 haha.
Delving through the treasure trove of cookbooks grandma left me is pretty fun. It’s like a treasure hunt every weekend… looking for a new recipe that’s sucks me in. This one is no exception.
Now, for those that know me, they know I’m a HUGE cook. I’m always cooking and I’ve tried to recreate, remake, and frankly…. all around experiment with just about any food I come across. This recipe is a first for me. Seriously…. something I have never eaten or seen a recipe for. This is like a combo of a strata… cheese bread… and appetizer. It’s definitely unique and delicious. The recipe is called Spinach Cheese Squares and it’s from Mrs. John Carter.
Now just to be honest, I messed up and mistakingly only got one package of spinach to make this. In reality, I think that it is better with the one package. But feel free to use two packages. I also snuck in some garlic and onion powder to give it a little more flavor (and garlic makes everything better… duh) and I’m telling you… this is really good. You could also totally add in some chopped onions or sautéed mushrooms if you’re feeling crazy. I think either would be a winner. In reality, I don’t even know what I’d classify this as. It could be an appetizer, but you could also serve it as a side. Heck, if you’re not too hungry, it could be the main course. So without further ado, I give you…. drum rolllll… Spinach Cheese Squares.
Spinach Cheese Squares:
- 4 T butter
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tsp salt (we added a little more, but this is more to taste)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 lb sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 or 2 pkgs chopped spinach (depending on your love of spinach), thawed and drained
- 1 tsp of garlic and/or onion powder (optional)
First, make sure to pull out spinach to thaw. Preheat oven to 350°. In a 9×13 pan, melt butter in oven and remove. In a bowl, beat eggs, add flour, milk, salt, baking powder, and optional garlic/onion powder. Mix well. Drain spinach well. I find the easiest way to do this is with a dish cloth. Place spinach in the center, roll cloth around the spinach and squeeze until most of the liquid has been removed. Slowly add cheese and spinach, and make sure they are blending well. Pour mixture into buttered pan, spread evenly. Bake in oven at 350° for 35 minutes. Remove and cool 10 minutes to set. Cut into bite sized squares and enjoy! The hubs and I both agreed this was better warm. This also keeps in the fridge quite well and is easy to reheat. You’ll thank me later. This seems to be a good ‘veggie hiding’ recipe for kids too!
*For more info on the health benefits of spinach check out Helen’s article here!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Beach, Wedding, and Mai Tais
Posted on April 20, 2016
What a wonderful weekend I had! Not only was it my first wedding of the season, but I got to photograph a truly wonderful couple who’s love and laughter was contagious! I couldn’t have asked for better weather either. After last weekends freak snow which was then followed by a week of gloom, I was little worried.
The hubs, dog, and I all packed in the car Friday evening and headed down to Southern Maryland to a little town called Lusby. Since I already had to make the 3 hour trek to photograph this wedding we figured, what the heck? Let’s make a weekend out of it and go ‘off the beaten path’ to a little eclectic cabin right next to the beach.
After shooting a wedding, I’ve found the perfect cure for a tired body and achy feet. Beach sunsets. Could it get any more perfect then this?
The answer is yes! Yes, it can! What is the miracle after wedding cure you might ask? Well sit down, relax, and mix yourself up a fun fruity drink of course! Now for those who knew my grams, she wasn’t much of a drinker, but she sure was a partier. She had a roomful of just party decorations, linens, table settings, and serving dishes. No lie. Like… you literally could probably plan 100 different themed parties with all the items in my gram’s backroom. There’s a whole space her cookbook dedicated to drinks and I figured, what the heck? It’s been a long day, let’s sip on something cold and enjoy the weather. Right?
Flipping through gram’s notes, this recipe for Mai Tai’s stood out to me. Not because it’s a Mai Tai… but because it’s unlike any Mai Tai recipe I have ever seen. This thing could seriously take the paint off a car. So.. using the hubs as my taste tester, we started out with the base recipe (pictured below) and made our own modifications to make it ‘more fun sipping’ drink and less ‘my whole body is on fire’ drink.
Full disclosure, I was also very ill-prepared for drink making. We didn’t have a jigger (a bartending tool used to measure liquor). So, I used a rough estimation figuring a shot is 1.5 fluid ounces and this little bowl was a shot’s worth and went from there. So don’t judge. I know.. not 100% scientific by any standards… but seriously, this is a good freaking drink once it’s toned down some. That is of course.. if you like rum. If you don’t, move on lol, this is NOT for you.
Gram’s Mai Tai Recipe:
- 1 oz light rum
- 1/2 oz orange curacao
- 2 oz sweet & sour bar mix (gram’s originally called for a splash but it definitely needs a little more ‘non-alcohol’)
- 3 oz pineapple juice (again, gram’s originally called for a splash, but you need something to cut all the alcohol, otherwise we’re getting into shot territory)
- 1/2 lime’s juice
- 1 oz dark rum (floated, meaning carefully poured on the top to keep the liquors separated)
- Ice for 12-16 oz glass
Pour first four ingredients over ice. Squeeze half a lime into drink. Stir until combined. Float dark rum on top of drink (if you’re not a strong drink lover, you could also skip this step and just enjoy drink as is). Garnish with lime. Sip, absorb the sunshine and enjjjooy. Num num.
To ‘float’ liquor, a lot of people spoon it in carefully. We aimed for the ice on the top and slowly poured it in.
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Sweet Orange and Coconut
Posted on April 11, 2016
Last Monday would have been Grandma’s 82nd birthday. This was the first year I didn’t get to call her, hear her laugh, and share in another year of her life. Since Gram’s birthday was typically around Easter, we always double downed and did 2x the celebrating. If you’re part of the Yoder clan, every birthday my mother (or grandma) will cook you a dinner and dessert of your choice. Seriously, one of the biggest perks ever. Anything and everything. Nothing is off limits. My gram’s always requested orange cake with whipped coconut icing. It was her favorite. One of my favorite photos of her is two years ago blowing out the cake my mom had baked for her.
Today, in my little ode to grams, I decided to make her favorite. Orange cake with coconut icing. Now, in normal grandma form, I decided to spruce up something store bought. Yes, I bought a box cake. Sue me. I went with Betty Crocker Butter Recipe Yellow Cake. This calls for 3 eggs, 1 cup of water and 1/3 cup of butter. By changing the water into orange juice, a dash of orange extract and some orange zest… VOILA, awesome cake that NO ONE would be able to tell was store bought. Save’s you some time and money, which in my book is always a plus!
Now, I did make the icing from scratch. Cream cheese icings are always my favorite and gram’s LOVED whipped sugar icing so I combined the two into one awesome combo. I know that orange and coconut is not normally a combo most people are used to, but trust me, you’ll enjoy this! A little tangy with a little sweet. It’s the perfect combo for the wonderful lady that was grams. So without further ado, Orange Coconut Cake.
Quick Orange Cake:
- 1 box cake mix (I used Betty Crocker’s Butter Recipe Yellow Cake)
- 3 eggs
- 1/3 stick softened butter
- 3 Oranges (to make 1 cup of juice + zest)
- 1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice
- Zest of 1 orange
- 1/2 T orange extract
Preheat oven to 350 °. Open and pour cake mix in a large bowl. Add butter, eggs, and orange extract. Zest one orange into mixture. Juice three oranges to make 1 cup of orange juice (you could just use orange juice as well if you want). Mix all ingredients together well. Pour in pre-greased 8″ cake pan (make sure this is a tall 2.5-3″ pan). Put in oven and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until inserted knife comes out clean. Place cake on cooling rack and allow to cool completely before icing.
Make sure someone enjoys the batter with this one haha. Don’t worry, the hubs licked the bowl first. Now, onto the icing!
Coconut Whipped Icing:
- 1 – 8 oz package of cream cheese
- 1 stick softened butter
- 3 cups powdered sugar (or icing sugar)
- 1/2 T orange extract
- 1/2 T of vanilla extract
- 1-3 T of milk (optional, add to icing if you would like it more runny)
- 1-2 cups of shredded coconut (put more/less depending on taste)
Place softened butter in bowl. Beat until creamy. Add room temperature cream cheese, whip with butter until smooth. Add both vanilla and orange extract. Beat until smooth. Slowly incorporate powder sugar. If the icing is too thick, add milk a tablespoon at a time to thin out. Before icing cake, add wax paper around bottom of the cake. This will make sure that you don’t get icing all over your plate and create a picture perfect cake! Pour icing on cake and spread evenly. ***Make sure cake is completely cool before doing this. Once icing is even, sprinkle coconut on top and sides. Allow icing to set, remove wax paper, and serve. Enjoy!
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com www.alyshayoderphoto.com
(e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Cayman Islands, Jamaica, and Mexico… Oh my!
Posted on April 8, 2016
My oh my.. what a wonderful last week and a half it’s been. And what a week it’s been trying to get back into the flow of.. well, life. I tried my hardest to chronicle our trip but I certainly got sucked into the moment many times. So yes, long post, but trying to cram three different countries during a week and a half trip is seriously harder than it looks!
Our family always asks with any event, “What was the best part vs what was the worst part?” So in Yoder family tradition style, I’ll give you my run down. The worst, by far was our sucky transportation to and from home. A cancelled flight (getting there), a delayed flight getting back and a crappy car park service made the beginning and end a wee bit tricky.
My favorite part of the trip… that’s a harder one to narrow down. I always LOVE spending time with my little sister, it’s fantastic to catch up on life. We did a cave excursion in the Mexican jungle, which might be one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. We also ate soo many wonderful meals, I couldn’t even choose a favorite.
The hubs and I are truly blessed to be able to travel and explore like we do. We certainly both have the travel bug baaddd and before kids, we want to see as much of the world as we can! Now, I already covered the first 1/2 day that we were in New Orleans (check it out here). We couldn’t leave Nola without a little Cafe du Monde treat, so beignets and coffee au laits were had before we boarded the ship. We braved the rain in hopes of seeing a New Orleans Style Easter Parade, but sadly it was postponed due to rain. We did however get to see lots of people dressed to the nines, as well as a lot of ladies wearing some pretty fantastic hats!
Kate, shortly thereafter, dropped us off at the cruise port where we waited to board (excited waiting for our shuttle as you can see). This, unlike many cruises, started in fresh water. We spent sunset sailing down the Mississippi River, drinking Pina Coladas and went to the ship’s steakhouse for a truly amaaazaballls dinner. If you went the first night, you got a free bottle of wine, which is always a perk in our book!
If you look close in the first pic, you can see New Orleans off in the distance.
Caesar salad, french onion soup and lobster crab bisque.
Surf and turf, filet, hazelnut cheesecake and chocolate sampler.
After two days at sea, our first stop was Jamaica. We had a wonderful tour guide named Brooks from Real Tours Jamaica. We were picked up at port and headed out to swim with dolphins. I was so excited to test out my new waterproof camera! We got to swim and touch stingrays, get ‘kissed’ by dolphins, and see a nurse shark. Sadly, upon arriving, we realized that they wouldn’t let me take my camera in with the dolphins, instead, charging $100+ for a disc of our ‘dolphin photos.’ Now I’m all for supporting photographers (as I am one, duh), but this kind of seemed shitty. I literally had bought a camera for this, and I couldn’t justify spending more money on this excursion. However, I got to take some of the stingrays (which allowed cameras.. odd) AND the dolphins when we were out of the water. They also had a camel and ostriches, I know… super random on a tropical Caribbean Island. But it made us laugh.
After we dried off, we got back in our van and headed to Seven Mile Beach (we went to one in The Cayman Islands too so stay tuned). Our guide, Brooks, filled us in with little facts about all the island and it’s history. Seriously though, arriving on the beach, I swear, it looks like a post card. White sand, blue water. Perfection. Brooks arranged for our authentic Jamaican lunch (jerk chicken.. yeeeess), while we jumped in and pretty much floated away, enjoying this beautiful beach.
Sean clearly, very much in his happy place.
Our awesome lunch with the view of the beach.
Sadly, as anyone who cruises knows, you have to get back to the boat. If you don’t, they’ll leave you. I’m not kidding. You miss getting on board, you’re left behind. Now granted, I could have stayed on that beach for a few days.. well.. weeks lol, but we had other places to see! Off we went for to our next port, the Cayman Islands!!
Us heading out on a tender and our ship, The Carnival Dream.
Now seriously, bit of cruise advice. Do your research. We really just wanted to head to Seven Mile Beach in the Cayman Islands (which is actually just 5.5 miles, little factoid there). It’s supposed to be one of the best beaches in the world, and we’re sucker’s for clear blue water. However, excursions on the boat were $40-50 per person. Now that’s all well and good, but being the travel junkies we are, a taxi there couldn’t be a ton. We had to take a tender from the ship, landed ourselves a taxi driver (they’re literally waiting for you with signs when you get off), and paid $4 + $4 tip to get to where we needed to go. Saved about $80. So just be aware, before your cruise or vacation, get to know your port. The beach lived up to it’s reputation. While there were more people (lots of ships docked that day), there was plenty of sand for us. We even had a few tropical fish follow us. One wouldn’t leave Sean alone and just circled his legs. Got to play with the new camera and got some pretty unique shots. Almost looks like the fish are swimming in the clouds, cool right?
All in all it was a blast. We definitely stayed a weeee bit too long in the sun; and paid the price for it later that night. It is harder then you’d think to lay in the bed without anything touching your shoulders. I’m pretty sure we were both putting off nuclear heat lol. But onto our last port, MEXICO!
This was my favorite port by far. This is also completely and totally because of the AWESOME excursion we did. We booked this one with our cruise ship and it was run by Cancun Adventures. Stepping off the boat into Mexico is an experience in itself; from all the tequila, street vendors, and hilarious huge statues to take pictures of from a ‘zonkey’, to a life size cake you could climb in, to huge gross feet you could ‘pretend were you own.’ We went for a photo in front of the town marker, but hey, to each their own lol.
The port itself is beautiful though. All the water and sand. Stunning. We met up with our guide, and headed for a 20-30 minute ferry ride to the mainland. It was rough. Like seriously rough. They were handing out barf bags. Annnndd selling tubes of tequila, which they referred to as ‘Mexican Breakfast.’ It was an experience.
That yellow and blue boat in the background was our ferry.
Our first stop was to go snorkeling with tropical fish. Some cool facts, where we swam, fresh water and salt water met. The two don’t combine and instead stay separated. When you’re swimming it actually kind of looks like there is a layer of ‘oil’ in the middle of the water. It’s very cool. But you’ll see a bit of a blur/distortion in some of the photos, and that’s what it is. We were also told not to put on sunscreen or insect repellent, as it affects both the fish and the coral/plants growing in the water. It was the hubs first time snorkeling, so a new cool experience for him too!
And at that point, I was in hog heaven and was thinking, ‘seriously… this can’t get any better.’ Well guess what?! It did. It got SOO much better. The photos on Carnival’s website don’t do this justice. I thought we were going to strap on a hard hat and go into a lit cave and walk around. No, no, NO. First we head in the bus for about a 30 minute drive. We actually passed Nicolas Cage’s house. For real. Here it is.
From there we head into the jungle. Yes, the Mexican jungle (you know jaguars, iguanas, snakes.. jungle). There are still native Mayan’s living in this jungle. Our guide pointed out their homes and school. They use this cave as revenue for the village. Here’s one of their traditional homes.
After that we arrived at the cave or as they call it ‘canote’, which refers to a natural pit or sinkhole made from the collapse of limestone. Most of these places are sacred to the Mayan people. We straped on hardhats with lights and life jackets and just jumped in. The water itself was quite cold, but it was beautifully clear and blue. There were tons of little fish, and a few medium sized black catfish swimming around.
After everyone in our group was in, our tour guide proceeded to lead us deep into this cave. Bats have also made their homes here. They are flying throughout, and occasionally you can look up and see large groups of them. Stalagmites and stalactites are everywhere. Did you know it takes them 100 YEARS to grow 1 centimeter??? At some points as we’re swimming through, they’re only a few inches from our heads. The cave’s bottom is sandy and rocky and sometimes will just drop. So you could be walking and then end up in deep water. It was pretty awesome. I felt like a bad ass adventurer for sure!
Various clusters of bats hanging from the ceiling when you looked up.
Believe it or not, these are actually tree roots that have grown from the surface.
No…. lol, I know what you’re thinking… the tall hubs didn’t break that off. Limestone is so soft that when they have earthquakes some of the stalagmites and stalactites snap. They actually have to close down the caves for around 2 weeks to make sure everything is still stable. A few different kinds of stalagmites and stalactites are shown above. The curvy one is the drapery variety while the very thin pointy ones are the straw variety.
One of my favorite shots from the trip. The water droplets on the lens add a little something.
I don’t know if the photos do it justice, but that was one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. I’m also glad I didn’t get eaten by a python or something, but all in all a wonderful, wonderful excursion. After returning our gear, we headed back into town for some authentic Mexican food (soooo good) and got to see some cool shops. Also, we indulged in a margarita and a mojito mmmm.
Sadly, that was our last port for our cruise. This was followed by a day of relaxing back on the ship and heading back to New Orleans! We lucked out that my sister had the week off from school (this almost never happens). The ship docked early, and we immediately got picked up, and decided to go explore the Oak Alley Plantation. It’s actually been nominated as one of the most beautiful plantations in the world. Man oh man, would I LOVE to photograph a wedding at this venue. Talk about just drreammy wedding photos.
That large metal bowl with fish in it at the top? That’s what they used to make molasses in with the sugar cane harvested at the plantation.
We took the tour inside the house, where we learned all about the plantations history. At one point, the house was even abandoned and cows took over. No joke, cows. They ruined all the Italian marble that had been on the first floor, which is why there are hardwood floors today.
These were various examples of what the slave quarters would have looked like. Fun fact learned, they actually had a master grafter (who was kind of a big deal back in the day) on the plantation. Pecans, at the time, had a hard shell that made it difficult to crack and process at a large industrial scale. He grafted plants together, so the pecan’s shell became soft, helping to make it easily processed, eventually getting it to where pecans are today.
Now, if you know anything about New Orleans, you’ll know that there is pretty much a festival going on every day. No joke. 300+ a year. It’s definitely a happening place. We were lucky enough (as were our stomachs) that it was Foodfest. All kinds of food vendors placed along the Mississippi River. The smells alone were wonderful. Luckily, there were three of us so we got to try A LOT of food. The hubs also had his first crawfish experience, and being a good ol’ crab breaking, shellfish loving Baltimorean, he was in hog heaven.
Bacon wrapped hot dog, brisket, and sausage after getting smoked, double chocolate whiskey brownies.
Custard, bacon bloody marys (with bacon vodka), meat pies, smoked oysters, crawfish boil.
Delicious right? We left with full bellies, crawfish salted hands, and in need of a nap. Our last day consisted of catching up on some sleep (as we had a long drive ahead of us that night). We spent a lazy morning walking through New Orleans, as I love capturing photos of all the old houses, and stopped at a fantastic doughnut shop (District Doughnuts and Sliders). This place not has only has some pretty fantastical doughnuts, but they also have things like Vietnamese Coffee on tap. Yes, TAP. Along with amazing sandwiches (lots made with doughnut dough), beers, and sliders.
The last stop on our journey was at the best fried chicken establishment in America, Willie Mae’s Scotch House. No lie, it’s won a James Beard Award, been featured on just about every food show (the Travel Channel was filming the last time we went), and usually has a line out the door. We lucked out and pretty much walked right in. Last time we waited an hour. Soooo lesson is… if you want some fried chicken and don’t want to wait – Monday at 2pm is primo time!
And that’s a wrap folks! I hope you enjoyed the read and the photos. Seriously, I urge everyone to travel. You can do it on a budget… do a long road trip… grab some friends for an adventure… and get to experience a little more than a 100 mile radius where you live. Getting to learn about new cultures and meet new people is truly humbling. Every time I get to see somewhere else I realize how lucky and blessed my family and myself are. What a wonderful world it is out there! Get out and enjoy it! Until this weekend – Alysha
Photography and writing by:
(b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
New Orleans in Half a Day
Posted on March 27, 2016
So let me start off my saying… what a freaking 24 hours the hubs and myself have had. If I can give advice to anyone, it would be that you should never.. ever.. EVER… even if the price is awesome… fly with Allegiant Airways. Not only did we drive three hours to get to Pittsburgh, but upon arrival, got delayed, sat in the terminal for 2 hours and then were told our flight was cancelled. No apparent reason was given, and we were given a crappy $8 voucher for food (which is like… half a beer at an airport) and a hotel room for the night. We lost out on a whole 24 hours with my sister (who I only get to see twice a year), a corporate world vacation day, and all the money we had spent on a fancy hotel room. It all sucked. The whole situation. And in talking to the customer service line at the airport, they didn’t even know the flight was cancelled. I’ve never dealt with a more incompetent business.
That being said, lessoned learned with Allegiant. We did make the best of the whole situation and tried to remedy the night. Being an ex-Pittsburgh native, I got to show the hubs a little of the city I love. We got to go to the Andy Warhol Museum and a great restaurant called Butcher and the Rye. It did turn out ok in the end but we’re still bummed about what we missed.
We did make a lot of friends and comrades sharing in our misery at the airport. I’m pretty sure we all would have rented a bus and pulled a 16 hour drive today if they had cancelled our flight again. This picture says it all… we’re finally getting to board a plane.. the hubs still questioning whether we’re going to actually take off and me… happy that we’re on our way.
Buutttt we finally made it! 24 hours later then expected, but here! Kate picked us up at the airport with a list of restaurant suggestions in hand. These are moments when Yoder genes come out strong with our love of food and it’s wonderful! Now, I’ve been here three times and New Orleans is just one of those destinations that you look forward to your eating. Kate’s top pick and recommendation was K-Paul’s Louisiana Kitchen and man, I don’t know how anyone could be disappointed with a meal here. I’m seriously still in a delicious food coma. We had the most wonderful waitress named Sheila. She gave recommendations (Kate asked her to pick her favorites and surprise her with dinner), showed us how the chef wanted us to eat meals and made the whole dining experience amazing. Every time a new round of food came, forks were passed around with little bites of everyone’s dish. I’m pretty sure we would have licked the plates if it wasn’t frowned upon.
If you had a gun to my head, I still probably couldn’t decide what I liked the best here. The decision making process to even pick an item on the menu was hard enough. See this intense pondering?
K-Paul’s is this wonderful mix of a little bit eclectic and a little bit classy. It still has that Southern Charm too. I loved all these illustrated recipes both framed on the wall and on the tablecloths.
So what did you finally decide on you ask?? Here was our lineup:
- Apps
- A bowl of rolls (yes, a bowl) with hot jalapeno cheese rolls, cornbread muffins and a sweet dessert muffin.
- Rabbit and Veggie Sausage with Creole Mustard Sauce
- Chicken and Andouille Gumbo
- Cajun Jambalaya
- Main Course
- Blackened Stuffed Pork Chop Marchand de Vin
- Eggplant Pirogue with Seafood Atchafalaya
- BBQ Shrimp (and I honestly can’t remember the name of it but it came on a bed or rice, with sautéed veggies)
Our wonderful waitress, Sheila, showing us how the chef recommends eating these meals. She was without a doubt one of the best waitresses I’ve ever had in my life.
- Dessert
- Sweet Potato Pecan Pie
- Custard Marie Crème Brûlée with a Praline Bottom
- Espresso
A few of you might ask, “Why the lemon rind?” Well, I have an answer for you on that. In America, serving Espresso with a lemon rind is often seen as a “classy addition” as well as a means to dampen it’s bitterness. It is served this way in North America and sometimes in France, but never in Italy. Outside of Italy, this is called an “Espresso Romano.” It actually does seriously alter the espresso flavor. I haven’t decided if I love it one way or another.
Dinner was followed by a good stroll through the French Quarter. Street performers, Pat O’Brians, people watching, and weddings.. yes, even weddings. I can’t escape them, even on vacation. What a lovely bride and groom though! I loved their umbrellas, especially the ring bearers lol.
Here’s some New Orleans trivia for you. Wedding and funerals typically have a “second line.” This refers to the brass brand parades held for these events. The “main line” or “first line” is the main section of the parade, or the members of the actual club with the parading permit as well as the brass band. Those who follow the band just to enjoy the music are called the “second line.” The second line’s style of traditional dance, in which participants walk and sometimes twirl a parasol or handkerchief in the air, is called “second lining.” (source: Wikipedia)
Pretty cool right? Pat O’Brian’s was, of course, a place we always stop (and the husband’s personal fav), so we swing by to grab drinks before we continued our walking tour of the Quarter.
We stumbled across a street performer we had seen the last time we were in New Orleans. This wonderful older gentleman who plays songs by request on various sized glasses. He even got Kate in on the action, letting her play one and showing us how you can ‘see’ the tone of the glass in the water. Certainly one of the more unique performers, but New Orleans is loaded with them. There is no city like it and being a photographer, walking around taking photos at night, is a dream.
Our journey continues tomorrow! We have high hopes that the rain will hold off and we’ll get to see one of the Easter Day parades here. Fingers crossed! I’ll then be taking a hiatus for a week, as we’ll be out of the country cruising. So clients, have no fear! I’ll get back to you as soon as I have internet access. Until then, cheers from The Big Easy. – Alysha
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Berries and Custard
Posted on March 20, 2016
This is certainly a VERY old school (80+ years) family favorite that I’m about to share with you this chilly Sunday. It’s so old that the recipe is in both grams and great grams cookbook as well as a recipe card. I guess gram’s REALLY didn’t want us to forget this one lol. She certainly had it memorized.
Now if you know anything about the large Pizor-Yoder (and now Bailey clan), our family… aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings all get together every Christmas (and really as often as we can) and pretty much cook, play cards, laugh, and have an all around good time. You’ll certainly see some fun blog posts around that time (definitely including some mojito recipes… yummm). Our family ALWAYS make this custard recipe whenever we’re together. It’s actually my great-grams ‘cornstarch recipe’ and is known by just about everyone. Anyone who ever tries it wants a copy of the recipe. I even remember making this for my sister’s host family in Scotland, so it’s been shared in multiple countries too! It’s a truly amazing dessert and is comprised of fresh, simple ingredients.
In the summer, we’d go pick fresh berries off our neighbor’s bushes or get peaches at the farmer’s market and serve them over this custard. When the custard’s still hot everything kind of melds together in a truly magical way. We always had the ongoing tapioca vs. no tapioca argument in my family, as we were always 50/50 split on the matter. Grams and mom also used this as a pie base or custard base, which is fairly easy to do. Here’s some tricks of the Pizor-Yoder custard trade:
- Add 1 T of good cocoa to make chocolate custard
- Add 1/2-1 cup of shredded coconut to make coconut custard
- Do both of the above with a tsp of almond extract to make Almond Joy
- Add zest and juice of one lemon to custard, pour in baked pie crust. Add whipped eggs whites (meringue) to the top and bake for lemon meringue pie.
- Add a cup of quick tapioca (or a cup of large pearl that have been soaked overnight) for tapioca custard.
- We substituted coconut milk for regular milk before to make lactose free custard (also makes it a little more primal/paleo if you use coconut sugar instead of white sugar)
- My grandpa’s favorite was always to put pitted cherries on the bottom of a baked pie crust, cover them with tapioca custard and have custard cherry pie.
It’s seriously one of the best base recipes that can also beautifully stand on it’s own or be whipped up into any manner of desserts. I have so many memories of gram’s stirring this on the stovetop for all the grandkids. This has always been a staple in our households, and hopefully it can become one in yours now too!
**Also, as a side note, the hubs and I are taking a little hiatus the next two weekends. I’ll be doing a little post on New Orleans next weekend but then we’ll be out of the country so a fun island post to follow soon! However, gram’s recipes will be postponed for our little break! Check back soon!
Old Fashioned Cornstarch Custard:
Now, we always double this recipe (cause the family can never get enough of this) but this will make roughly 3 cups of custard by itself so plan accordingly!
- 2 rounded T cornstarch
- 1 pint milk (2 cups)
- pinch of salt
- 1/3 cup sugar (can add more or less to taste)
- 2 egg yolks
- 1.5 – 2 T of butter
- 1 tsp vanilla
Mix together cornstarch and sugar until combined well. Slowly add milk and mix well to ensure no clumping (with cornstarch). Separate eggs, add yolks and salt. Stir everything until combined well and place on stove at medium high heat. Continuously stir mixture to avoid scorching until mixture thickens. Once it thickens, add butter and vanilla. Remove from heat and still until well combined. My family can never wait for this to cool and pretty much eat it as soon as it doesn’t burn our mouths but feel free to cool and serve cold as well or make a pie! Enjoy!
Funny moment is always when Gizmo comes in and looks at us making food sitting on the floor. I’m pretty sure he thinks we’re nuts. Captured a little moment of that today.
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Strawberries and Cream
Posted on March 14, 2016
It’s curious, every time I sit down to write out a recipe, I spend a little time thinking about what grams would say. What memories would she remember about these recipes that I don’t? How did she create or find a recipe? I would say a good half of all the recipes in gram’s books are from friends, relatives, or other cookbooks and this one is no different. It’s on an old piece of type paper from 1978 from her friend Shirley MacKay. Gram’s binders are filled with torn out pages from magazines, recipe cards ‘from the kitchen of’ various friends, or jotted down notes from a restaurant she’d visited where she convinced a chef to share the recipe with her. Grams was funny like that. She could pretty much talk anyone into giving her a good recipe.
Today, with the dreary rain and all around blah mood, I couldn’t ask for a better day to make ice cream, right? Perfect comfort food (other than pizza of course). Now two things. One, this ice cream recipe is actually a ‘vanilla base.’I chose to make strawberry ice cream, as it’s one of my favorites and the berries at the store looked great. I can’t wait until summer when I can mix and match all sorts of fresh fruit. You could hypothetically add just about anything to this recipe though. For example:
- Crushed up cookies = Cookies and cream
- Almond extract and toasted pecans = Toast’y nuts
- Coconut, crushed almonds & chocolate = Almond Joy
- Blueberries and Lemons = Summer Fresh
- Cookie dough and caramel = Serious awesomeness
It’s a great recipe for kids to experiment with different flavors too. And heck, if you’re just a HUGE vanilla ice cream fan (like my husband), feel free to keep it as is. You could even scrape some vanilla beans in it to give it a little extra boast.
Two, I received these hand-made pewter spoons that I’ve been oogling over for a while from a little Etsy shop CrosbyandTaylor. They’re just so stunning and have just the perfect rustic look I wanted. Seriously, isn’t this the most fantastic set? I love them. I couldn’t wait to photograph them this weekend.
Now, if this is your first time making ice cream at home, you should know that it’s not going to come out super firm and scoopable like the gallons you get at the store. Homemade ice cream is like soft serve. It’s freaking delicious, but if you’re looking for some hard scoopable ice cream, this is not what you’re looking for. You can also get it to the “soft serve consistency” and put it in the freezer if you’re a fan of the very scoop-able.
This is a fairly easy recipe in the sense that it’s a matter of mixing everything in a bowl. Ice cream recipes however are a little time consuming in the ‘waiting’ process. After everything is mixed, you will have to refrigerate for 2+ hours. Then place the mixture into the ice cream maker for around 20 minutes. Depending on if you have an ice cream maker or not, it might take longer (for my purposes below, I used my ice cream maker). If you don’t have one however, you can use a 1 lb coffee can and a 3 lb coffee can. This was not the method I used, but you can find a good little tutorial here (Ice Cream Can Method).
Now…. I know you’ve been anxiously awaiting this ice cream recipe, so without further ado, STRAWBERRY ICE CREAM (you know you’re just as excited as I am).
Vanilla Ice Cream Base:
**First place ice cream maker base in freeze overnight. It MUST be VERY cold and frozen before it will make ice cream.
- 3 eggs
- 1.5 cups white sugar
- 2 half pint cartons of heavy whipping cream (or 2 cups)
- 1.5 cups milk
- 1 pint carton of half and half (or 2 cups)
- 2.5-3 T of vanilla extract
- Optional – 1 to 1.5 cups finely chopped Strawberries
- Optional – 2 drop vanilla-nut flavoring
Beat eggs well. I also remove the little white ropes called the chalazae. They gross me out if I get a little white chunk in my ice cream. But for a little cooking trivia, the chalazae is what anchors the yolk to the egg shell and prevents it from bouncing around in there. Gradually add sugar and whisk until smooth and creamy. Slowly stir in remaining ingredients. Stir well until combined. Place in covered bowl in the fridge for 2+ hours. Once very cold, slowly pour into ice cream maker base. Be careful not to overflow. All ice cream makers are different so you may have some mixture left over. If so, just eat what’s frozen and add more. Enjoy!
**Also, two notes. First, a money saving note. If you have a membership to any club stores (Costco, BJ, Sam’s, etc.) get the half & half and whipping cream there. It is TREMENDOUSLY cheaper. Second, some people really don’t like cooking with raw eggs. To each their own. This can also be made in a sauce pan over the stove. Whisk it all together and continuously stir until boiling. Remove from heat and cool in fridge. This will take a LOT longer to cool for the ice cream machine but just gives you another option.
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
White Peaks and Zest
Posted on March 6, 2016
Man… I have had a craving for something like this recipe for a long time. Plus, I picked up these AWESOME bowls at Costco this weekend and I couldn’t wait to get them home to photograph. It looks like I had someone make them for me. But between you and I, this will be our little secret as to where they were purchased from. I’m thinking an ice cream recipe will have to be in the making for next week. And yes, solely because of these dishes. Don’t judge. I’ve photographed things before based around an entire found object. I have this lovely old used “made in Vermont stamped” cutting board I found at Roots Farmer’s Market. It has all these wonderful knife marks and wear and tear. Props are a very important part of the business and finding little beauties like these just make my day 🙂
As many of you know, gram’s was literally involved in EVERYTHING. From volunteer work, to bakeoffs, to fundraisers, she was there. Even from a young age, this was true. A few of the books that I inherited from her were various cookbooks that she had worked with, her mother worked with, they were in, or they’d helped to get published. This was one from her mother’s young days growing up in Vandergrift, PA. Her church put together this fantastic cookbook. It’s from 1923 and the front has a little handwritten “Barclay” in it (my gram’s maiden name). Now the recipe I’m doing today isn’t gram’s or my great gram’s (it comes from Mrs. W. W. Poorman, thank you!), howwwever, it was from a book that the family helped get published to raise money for her church, so I think it counts. Plus, this book is a treasure trove of old school recipes. There is one in it for squirrel. Seriously. I’m not lying. Freaking squirrel. And no, I’m never going to go out and butcher a squirrel for this blog, but that was a surprise.
Anyone who knows me, knows I have a soft spot for what I consider “PA Dutch Recipes,” if the last name Yoder didn’t give you a clue lol. I’m pretty sure the love for PA Dutch food runs through my veins. You wait till New Year’s, and there will definitely be pork, kielbasa, and sauerkraut recipes up on here.
There is a farmer’s stand about 3 miles from my house where Mennonite ladies lay out their fares of assorted homemade pies, breads, and jams. Lemon sponge pie is always among their wares. It’s where I was first introduced to this sweet treat and man, I LOVE lemon sponge pie. With the whipped peaks of egg whites and lemon zest, it’s like springy freshness all in one delicious pastry. Whenever I go pick up some veggies from our farmer’s stand, I always save a little room for one of those sponge pies. When I came across not one, BUT TWO lemon sponge pie recipes, I was ecstatic! Now these recipes do take a bit to figure out, as there aren’t a ton of instructions AND there is a lot of old terminology that I have to google just to know how to prepare them exactly. Here’s a little old school baking knowledge I’m about to throw down.
This recipe calls for ‘sweet milk.’ Any guesses? This is what used to be the common name for ‘whole milk’ or ‘regular milk’ to distinguish it from buttermilk. For baking, all it says is to ‘bake in a slow oven.’ This references the cooking temperature. Cooking in a ‘slow oven’ is anything in the range of 150–160°C (300–325°F). Who knew? Now alas, this didn’t actually have a cooking time, so it took a lot of toothpicks to figure out just exactly how long to bake this bad boy.
Also, props to my husband who is starting to get into this. He’s learning how to cook and getting baked goods and pies out of it lol. Talk about a win freaking win. Today’s lesson was whipping egg whites to stiff peaks. His hand modeling is getting better too! Now he’s learning how to bake and in the process, getting more comfortable in the kitchen. It always makes me happy when I can help someone enjoy baking. Without further ado, I give you this weeks recipe. One of my favorites, Lemon Sponge Pie.
Lemon Sponge Pie
- 1 unbaked deep dish pie crust (feel free to make your own, I just happen to be lazy about pastry crusts and buy the pre-made ones)
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 rounded T flour
- 2 eggs (separated into yolks and whites)
- 1.5 cups milk (use something with fat, don’t use skim)
- 1 T melted butter
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon (I added the zest because all my favorite lemon sponge pies use the zest)
Preheat oven to 325°F. In a large bowl, mix together the sugar and butter. Add in flour, milk and yolks. Mix well. Zest and juice lemon, add to mixture. Beat egg whites until they form stiff peaks. Slowly fold egg whites into mixture. Once smooth, pour carefully into pie crust. Place in oven for a 1/2 hour at 325°F. After 1/2 hour turn oven down to 300°F and cook for 1.5-2 hours (or until top has browned and toothpick comes out cleanly). Now this is important, there shouldn’t be a lot of ‘jiggle’ left with the pie. A little is okay but the first time I attempted to take this pie out of the oven the top almost rolled right off. Be careful and don’t take it out before it’s ready. This is definitely a slow cooker and oven times may vary based on pie dish used and how well oven cooks. Let cool completely. Cut and serve. Best kept in fridge. Enjoy! Until next week. – Alysha
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Sunshine and Coconut
Posted on February 28, 2016
What a lovely day it has been! After a dreary, rainy, cold week of crap, today the sun was shining and a hopeful spring breeze was in the air. I’m nursing a migraine but still enjoying my time in my hometown. Who knew my mother would be the perfect photo assistant? I should have come to that conclusion on my own as she’s half the reason I’m a great cook AND she also knows what I mean when I ask her to ‘separate an egg.’ I guess it’s also a bit easier photographing with someone who’s right handed (my hubby is left handed and proves to add a level of difficulty when photographing with him).
Today we’re making a grandma staple. Gram’s loved coconut. Every year for her birthday she asked mom to make her favorite coconut cake. It always consisted of a citrus center with whipped icing covered in coconut. Coconut was her jam. She’d always have these little chocolate coconut clusters in the house hidden in her cupboard. Not to mention, macaroons. Grams has a plethora of macaroon recipes, so much that you could probably make a book just on those lol. I know her favs involved almond extract but I have yet to find that in her piles. I just grabbed one of the first ones I found, but who knows? Maybe in the future I’ll make some others and you can compare and contrast.
A perk about being home (other than of course getting to spend time with the fam and new puppy) is getting some farm fresh eggs from my dad’s chickens. They even have some lovely blue green eggs from their pair of Americanas. I also have a huge back porch to photograph on. Hence the lovely sunshine lit photos from today’s post. So without further ado, I give you one of gram’s MANY coconut macaroon recipes.
Coconut Macaroons:
Preheat oven to 325°.
- 1 1/3 cups flaked coconut (I used unsweetened shredded coconut. You could also use the sweetened stuff, just know it will make them very sweet.)
- 1/3 cup of white sugar
- 1/8 tsp salt
- 2 T all purpose flour
- 2 egg whites
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Mix together in a bowl until combined coconut, sugar, flour and salt. Stir in egg whites and vanilla. Mix well. Drop rounded teaspoons onto baking sheet (either grease or use parchment paper). Bake at 325° for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack. Yields about 1 1/2 dozen macaroons. **Also, just a note these aren’t super sweet like a lot of macaroons since you’re using unsweetened coconut. Enjoy!
Seriously, how lovely are these eggs? I can’t get enough of them. Those orange yolks are definitely something you can’t get at the grocery store!
As mom says, “This is separating eggs the ‘old school’ way.”
Isn’t mom the best food model? Even has great hands for it. I jokingly said I’d come up every weekend just to get shots with her but now I’m half thinking that might happen.
You see this wonderfully aged and old looking cooking rack? That’s grams… or great grams. At this point it could be both but I know that at one point, gram’s used it regularly.
Aren’t these just adorable? The blues and golden browns make me want to plan a party. I certainly have gram’s party planning running through my veins. So until next week, cheers! – Alysha
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Rain with A Craving for Peanut Butter
Posted on February 22, 2016
What a beautiful Saturday, but terribly gloomy Sunday. As I sat on my couch sorting through the piles of gram’s recipes, I came across two matching cards. One for Peanut Butter Cake and one for Peanut Butter Icing. What delicious pairing for this gloomy day!
Now grams was a BIG cake person. She always had some lying around the house for ‘just in case anyone dropped by.’ My uncle Dave also has a mild obsession with angel cake with homemade sugar icing (heaven forbid it’s anything but homemade sugar icing, you’d never hear the end of it). I’m actually fairly certain that gram’s thought everything was better with icing. I’ll never be able to prove this of course, but it was her thing. Cake too dry.. add icing.. brownies too plain.. why not a good batch of icing? Almost every cake recipe in all her cookbooks and recipe cards include icing.
I have so many fond memories of grams pulling out the beaters and whipping up fresh icing for all her baked goods. Dave would always just ‘happen to wonder into the kitchen’ and be on hand to lick the beaters. Now I will ALSO admit my hubs had a little say in this selection, as he has a mild obsession with everything peanut butter based. As payment, he helped model for a few of my shots AND I made him homemade mac and cheese tonight, so double bonus for him.
So without further ado, I give you gram’s Peanut Butter Cake with Peanut Butter Icing.
Peanut Butter Cake:
Preheat oven to 350°.
Sift into mixing bowl:
- 2 1/4 cups Softasilk Flour (I seriously thought I wouldn’t be able to find this at the store but VOILA there is was. This is just fancy cake flour so if you can’t find Softasilk feel free to use other cake flour)
- 1 1/2 cups white sugar
- 3 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
Add to bowl:
- 1/3 cup shortening (I didn’t have any on hand so I used butter)
- 1/3 cup crunchy peanut butter (feel free to use creamy too!)
- 2/3 cup milk
Mix all ingredients for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.
Now add to bowl and mix till smooth:
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 eggs
Spray or butter a 9×13 pan and evenly pour batter into. Place in oven for 30-40 minutes until toothpick or knife comes out clean. Once done, remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
Peanut Butter Icing:
This was easiest to make while the cake was cooking and just cover it until ready to use.
Mix together the following ingredients until smooth.
- 1/4 cup crunch style peanut butter (or creamy, your choice)
- 3 cups sifter confectioners sugar
- 1/4-1/3 cup milk (add more if icing too thick)
Once cake is cooled pour icing over cake and spread evenly. Cut and serve. Enjoy!
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Love and Pecan Tussies
Posted on February 15, 2016
Sooooo…. Happy Valentine’s Day everyone! Not only is it the cheesy Hallmark day of love but also my dad’s birthday (Happy Birthday Dad!). Two reasons to celebrate in my book! Plus, I get some yummy Wockenfuss chocolates and roses from my hubs… so double bonus! As I munch on pistachio marzipans and admire these beautiful roses, I’m baking one of my favorite grandma recipes.
Now something that gram’s did for everyone, regardless of the holiday, is she’d send cards. I’m pretty sure she had a closetful of cards for every and any occasion. Halloween, 4th of July, Valentine’s Day.. it didn’t matter. You got a corny card with a little heartfelt message inside signed with love from grandma.
Who knew greeting cards would be one of the things I missed the most? Those little notes from grams just letting you know she cared in her own little way haven’t arrived in my mailbox for 1/2 a year now. This doesn’t stop me from still checking my mailbox every holiday and smiling a little, thinking about and remembering her cards.
This Valentine’s Day annnd first official recipe post I’m making one of my favorite sweet treats gram’s used to make. Pecan Tussies (also known as nut tussies by many). Now I know most people say Tassies, but that’s not how gram’s rolled and I sure as shit am not going to change her recipe name. I even dug out one of gram’s old mini-muffin tins I had hiding in my cupboard. I love it’s old texture. I’m sure it has to be over 40 years old.
These tiny pecan pie bites still manage to bring a smile to my face whenever I make them for Christmas cookie plates or just because. So bake up a batch! This is a great one to do with kids or as a couple. Share them with your sweetie (or sweeties) and enjoy your Valentine’s Day!
Pecan Tussies:
Crust:
- 1 stick butter (1/2 cup) – Gram’s recipe calls for Oleo… but they definitely don’t make that anymore
- 3 ounces of Philadelphia Cream Cheese
- 1 1/4 cups of flour
Mix all above ingredients together and put in mini muffin tins. Use about a tablespoon of dough for each muffin cup.
Filling:
- Finely chop 1/2 cup of Pecans
- Put about 1/2 tsp in the bottom on each muffin cup
Mix together the following ingredients by hand.
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 1 T butter
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg
After throughly mixed, fill each muffin tin (about a tablespoon of filling).
This will make roughly 24 pecan tussies. Put in oven at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until tops start to brown. Remove from oven and cool until filling has set. Use a knife and carefully run around the tussies edge to remove from tin. Serve and enjoy!
-Alysha
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
An Ode to Grandma
Posted on February 8, 2016
Welll…. this has been a post long in the making. Now stick with me. I know it’s long… I know it’s a little deep and sad but I promise, we’re going to come out of this tunnel and you’re going to be glad you read through to the end. I’m taking a dramatically different turn from weddings and writing about something that I’ve had on my mind and heart for a while now.
As many of the people close to me know, one of the most important women in my life passed away August of last year. It wasn’t that my family didn’t know it was coming, as she had been diagnosed with a fairly aggressive form of breast cancer. Being a Pizor (who are known for their mule like stubbornness), she exceeded the doctors expectations ten fold and shared her laughter, love, and encouragement with us triple the time that had been given to her. Grams is the one who gave me a love of cooking, much of my artistic talent, along with an appreciation for family and friends above all else.
Grandpa and Grandma shortly after they got married and grandma’s high school portrait.
The last few years as a photographer, I’ve tried to document the time I’ve had with her as much as I could. From every day things, when we visited, to our last holidays and birthdays together, I’ve been snapping away, hoping to have some visual memories to hold near and dear to my heart. My husband and I moved up our wedding day so she could see one of her grandkids marry. Even though at that point, she was near the end of her life, grams champed through, beaming the whole time.
Our last family Christmas at Grandma’s House.
The last family trip to Washington, DC. Grandma’s pick to share her love of America and patriotism with all of us and all the ladies at my bachelorette party.
All the fun Pizor Yoder Christmas traditions. The last time the whole family is together.
Our wedding with the grandparents and me with grandma taken by the fantastic Heather over at Dreaming Tree Studios.
Honestly, if she knew I was writing this… and giving her all this credit, she’d wave it off with a smile and a hug. Grams was never one who liked being in the spotlight regardless of her many achievements, the lives she touched, and the countless people’s days she made. Whether you were getting a ‘Dodi Pizor’ dinner delivered when you were sick, reading a handwritten card in the mail, or helping her run a Special Olympics event, she truly touched so many people’s lives.
Gram’s at David’s surprise party with my Uncle David and my sister Kate.
One that many people don’t know about would be Penn State’s THON. My grams, who was a huge advocate for people with special needs (because of my uncle, David, who I have written about before), helped implement what is known as THON today. Gram’s family and childhood friend, Dr. Lear, asked how he could help with David and the many special needs things grandma was running. Soon after friends, family, and students (including my mom and uncle) piled in some buses and vans and headed down to dance and raise money all night. Thus creating what is known as THON today. No joke, she was a pretty amazing, awe-inspiring hell of human being and the world is a sadder place without her in it.
Gram’s teaching all her techniques on the whole Yoder clan’s last Thanksgiving together.
Now… onwards to some more happy thoughts! From the first memories I have of grams, she was cooking. I would sit up on the countertop and just watch in wonder as she’d whip up dish after dish. She’d always include all of her grandkids, teaching them the art of ‘a little bit of this.. and a little bit of that’ cooking. Not only was love in every recipe, but half the time… there wasn’t any recipe at all! “You just keep adding until it tastes good,” she’d say.
One of gram’s last birthday’s with her favorite cake mom made.
Much of my childhood was spent helping mix cookie dough, chop ingredients, and figuring out her cooking style. On most occasions, she’d pull out her mother’s handwritten cookbook or one of the mountains of recipe cards she stockpiled from her many friends. “They were a good base,” as she’d put it, “you can always add ingredients later.”
This all helped transform me to where I am today. If you didn’t know, when I’m not photographing weddings, families, or babies… I’m photographing and styling food for Ahold USA. It’s my normal 8-5, Monday through Friday gig. I’m a creative corporate warrior (yes, I know the irony there) and truthfully I don’t think I’d even be close to where I am today if it wasn’t for this incredible lady.
One of my favorite photos ever of grandma when she was posing for my portraiture class and her smiling for the camera at Thanksgiving.
Upon her passing, grams had asked that I get her mother’s cookbook, one of the cookbooks she had helped author, along with a few binders and boxes full of recipe cards. It’s like a treasure trove of everything grandma loved to cook, bake, or had enjoyed eating. All of these have little ‘grandma notes‘ in the seams or quantities scratched out and replaced with something she’d found more favorable. Various recipes she’d collected over the years… a party hors d’oeuvres she’d had on New Years or a cake recipe from an Aunt’s dinner.. why not?
So I’ve decided to honor grams and all these recipes. Share them… share them with your family… share them with the world, if you will. Whether it’s something grams cooked for me growing up, or a recipe from the 50s, I’m going to make it, photograph it, and publish it on this blog. I’ve come to the conclusion that I can’t help but share these. Gram’s fed anyone and everyone she ever met. Sharing food, conversation, and laughter was kind of her thing. By cooking these recipes, photographing them, and sharing them with you, I feel that it’s the best way for me to honor her. I can only hope that all of you can enjoy some of grams favorite recipes, spend time cooking them with your families, and begin to add your own notes and scribbles to the sidebars. She’d smile at that. So without further ado, a little of my family to yours. This one’s for you grandma.
With the Super Bowl in mind, here’s a quick and easy recipe for all those ‘unannounced guests.’ In grandma fashion, she could whip up anything and everything for anyone who stopped by. You never left gram’s hungry.
Quick Cheese Ball for Crackers (or veggies):
- 2 large pkgs Philadelphia Cream Cheese
- 1 teaspoon of horseradish (or more if you like some zing)
- A few dashes of Worcestershire sauce
- Onion and garlic salt to taste (I used onion powder and garlic salt)
- Optional: About 4 T of chopped green onions – in typical gram’s fashion I added these and tweaked the recipe instead of putting them on the outside.
- 1/2 cup of pecans
Mix together all the ingredients well, except the pecans. Put chopped pecans in a bowl and set next to cheese mixture. Coat hands in a little oil (to avoid sticking) and create a ball. Roll ball in bowl of nuts and VOILA. Quick and easy cheese ball. Serve with veggies, crackers or chips and enjoy!
Now, I’m going to try and post at least one recipe a week. So stay tuned for more! I’m actually pretty excited about this project. It’ll be good to have a little grandma cooking reminder every week. Until then! – Alysha
*Special thanks to Heather at Dreaming Tree Studios for the awesome wedding photos!
Alysha Yoder Photography (b) www.alyshayoderphotoblog.com
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Jen and Joe – 12.19.15
Posted on January 20, 2016
What a fun and long brewing romance Jen and Joe had! This couple, originally both Carlisle natives, had a thing for each other in high school. It fizzled out and both went their separate ways. Fast-forward 35 years and BAM! They reconnected, had a whirlwind romance and before you knew it, wedding bells were ringing!
While these two both call Atlanta home now, they came back to the Carlisle area to celebrate with everyone they grew up with and got to show off their hometown to their Atlanta friends in the process. And what a party it was! Nothing could have gone more smoothly and look more lovely (thanks to the awesome planning and design of Tracy over at La Carta Luna Planning and Design). Seriously, did you see these venues and all the decor? It was stunning!
Jen and Joe’s wedding began with the ladies all getting ready at the beautiful Fallen Tree Farm B&B. Lots of laughs, smiles and dress adjustments were shared. Everyone exchanged small talk while oohing and awwing over dresses, shoes and accessories. The bride’s mother even matched her shoe and hair piece, how fun is that?
Shortly after, we all headed over to The Carlisle Ribbon Mill. The ladies freshened up in the bridal room while finishing touches were placed throughout. All the small details were just stunning, from the Gingko leaf earrings the bride wore, to the flowers frozen in ice centerpieces, little flower and feather bundles for each guest with their place settings and a beautiful ribbon alter piece to pull all the colors of the wedding day together!
As the groom and his groomsman started to arrive, they shared handshakes and hugs with all the wedding guests. The ceremony began shortly after. The lovely bride walked down the aisle escorted by her uncle as the groom looked on, beaming with a sheepish grin. The ceremony was beautiful with some tears and hand holding being shared by the audience. Everyone applauded as Jen and Joe were kissed for the first time and were announced as husband and wife.
While guests sipped on drinks and enjoyed a lovely cocktail hour I got to go out with Jen and Joe to get some outdoor shots. Despite the cold, the bride and groom champed through and Jen even rocked a little bridal overcoat! Their brother and sister assisted me through the whole thing. Who says iPhone’s aren’t good for some front lighting lol! Upon returning, while waiting for their entrance, Jen and Joe indulged me in a little one on one photo session with all the cool backgrounds The Carlisle Ribbon Mill had to offer! One of my favorite photos from the whole night is them against the white wall, holding hands and looking at each other. It’s just adorable and puts a smile on my face 🙂
Following their entrance, speeches were given. What a wonderful job all the speakers did! From a brother, sister and uncle, all of them had the crowd in stitches over childhood stories and relationship advice for the new couple. A beautiful dinner was served by The Uncommon Caterer prior to dancing and what a dancing crowd this was! After the couple’s first dance everyone joined in and got their groove on! From slow dances to disco this was a party crowd! Shortly thereafter, the beautiful cake was cut and guests enjoyed this delectable treat from The Camp Hill Bakery.
What can I say? This was such a wonderful wedding. The couple, their friends and family were just all so lovely. Happiness, love and laughter enveloped Jen and Joe’s whole wedding day. I am so thankful to be a part of it! Here’s to a long lasting a beautiful marriage! Enjoy all the photos celebrating Jen and Joe’s big day!
Vendors:
– Wedding Planner – Tracy at La Carta Luna – Wedding Planning and Design –
– Venues – The Carlisle Ribbon Mill & Fallen Tree Farms Bed and Breakfast –
– DJ – SpiritSound Production Services, LLC –
– Caterer – The Uncommon Caterer –
– Bartending – Just Bartending –
– Cake – Camp Hill Bakery –
– Flowers – Sarah’s Floral Designs –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
James & Ashley – 10.31.15
Posted on January 4, 2016
Talk about a wedding for the offbeat books! Halloween wedding + gas masks + zombie cake and Beetlejuice ring hand.. it had it all! For a themed wedding this was definitely one of the more rad weddings I’ve done. James and Ashley LOVE Halloween and what a better way to share your big day then theming it around something you’re both passionate about??
Ashley rocked her little white dress, fringed in black lace with a orange accent while James looked sharp in his suit. The bridal parties wore a purple and black combo with highlights of orange throughout. This was one of those weddings that was just a blast to photograph. When James pulled out his gas mask groom’s gift I can honestly say this was, not only a first for me, but one of the most unique and awesome wedding gifts ever! Each mask came in a military type bag, personalized with the groomsman’s names on them. Talk about a crazy cool gift right??
There were so many priceless moments too. When I was positioning James for the couple’s first look… seeing how nervous he was until he saw his stunning bride in her dress and all his nerves melted away, to the look on the officiant and crowds faces when the groom’s brother pulled out the box containing the wedding rings… and a zombie hand lol! James recited some Beetlejuice references much to the amusement of all the guests. One of my favorite shots is the reaction of everyone to the zombie hand. The bride hand-painted the cake toppers (for their spiderweb Halloween cake) to look like a zombie couple with their dog and what an amazing job she did! The groom even rocked some pumpkin cufflinks for the occasion. Not to mention, the party ALL donning masks for some post-ceremony shots. This was only highlighted by the very “Shining-esque” Globe Inn Hotel, with old photographs, decor and dim lighting.
The warm fall colors played off not only the color themes but the warmth the couple and their close friends and family have for each other. Every time I turned around someone else was laughing and joking with the couple. So here’s to many more Halloween’s together you two! May your treats be better than you tricks 🙂 I couldn’t have asked for a more fun bride and groom to photograph! Enjoy!
Vendors:
– Venue – The Globe Inn –
– DJ – Holiday Sounds –
– Caterer – Catering by Royal Gourmet –
– Cake – Granny Schmidts –
– Cake Toppers – Hand Painted by the Bride herself! –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Cari & Mark – 10.24.15
Posted on December 11, 2015
Cari and Mark, talk about a relationship that’s been in the works for a while. Originally high school sweethearts, fast-foreword to now and voila! A match that’s been smoldering for a while and it finally caught fire. Not to mention their son, Gavin who now is just as tall as his parents (who are aren’t shorties by any means)! These two could not have picked a more perfect day to tie the knot. All the leaves were still on the trees but had changed to fantastic shades of orange, reds and yellows. It was sunny but cloudy, a light breeze and an all around beautiful day for a wedding.
Vendors:
– Venue – The Iron Master’s Mansion –
– Caterer –Redd’s Smokehouse BBQ –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Abby & Tyler – 10.17.15
Posted on December 3, 2015
When two loving families come together to create a memorable night for a loving couple that would perfectly describe Abby and Tyler’s wedding. Add a splash of chic and a little bit redneck and you’re in business! From the moment I arrived to find Abby waiting for her brother to see her in her dress for the first time (only to share some tears shotgun beers together) to the ‘ball and chain‘ garter removal this wedding was one for the books!
Vendors:
– Venue – Fallen Tree Farm Bed & Breakfast –
– Caterer – Crider Meats –
– DJ – Brandon Beam –
– Florist – Blue Mountain Blooms –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Kulthum & Sean – 10.11.15
Posted on November 24, 2015
Kulthum and Sean. What a wonderful couple these two are (not to meant like SUPER photogenic)! From the moment I arrived to experience and photograph their official Islamic wedding ceremony you could feel the excitement in the air. Sean couldn’t even sit down. While laughing with close friends and family he eagerly paced for his bride to arrive. As Kulthum pulled up and walked through the door everyone greeted her with smiles and hugs. Sean was seated waiting for her and was grinning from ear to ear. As soon as they saw each other the bride started to tear up. It was a beautiful moment.
Vendors:
– Venue & Dinner – Yianni’s Taverna –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Ali & Mike – 10.9.15
Posted on November 16, 2015
Talk about a fun, quirky couple! Ali and Mike were a couple that I had the pleasure of photographing previously in their engagement session. These two agreed to get photographed at the Magic Garden in Philly (which in itself is a pretty awesome setting) so I knew right off the bat that Ali and Mike were going to be a fun couple! Talk about a few states love affair. These two met in Philly, recently moved to Boston and had their wedding in New Jersey!
Vendors:
– Venue – Valenzano Family Winery –
– Caterer – Summit Catering –
– DJ – Stew of Time Productions –
– Officiant – Irene of Journeys of the Heart –
– Wedding Planner – Matt and Dory of Summit Catering –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Kristen & Ian – 10.3.15
Posted on November 6, 2015
Kristen and Ian’s fall wedding. What a magical day! It might have been cloudy with 100% of rain but these two champed through! You want to talk about compatibility, look no further. Kristen and Ian have that in spades! What a blast their bridal party was too! From fedora’s and mobster poses to champagne toasts and a ‘wheel barrow’ entrance, this was a fun crowd.
Vendors:
– Venue & Food – Cameron Estate Inn & Restaurant –
– Cupcakes/Cake – The Flour Child – Alixe –
– Flowers – Floral Designs of Mount Joy – Jill Erb –
– DJ – Soundwaves Entertainment – Chris Pyle –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
Amy & Daniel – 9.19.15
Posted on October 22, 2015
Amy and Daniel, talk about romance meets Southern Charm! I honestly couldn’t even tell you which one was more excited to get married! There was a point when I was photographing the groom with his groomsman prior to the ceremony and one of them said something to the point of, “Are you ready to do this?” Daniel responded with, “I’ve never been more ready for anything.” That was how the whole night was.
Vendors:
– Venue & Food – The Barnhouse Village –
– Cake – Eastern Baking Co –
– Flowers – Julie Jarrah at All Seasons Florists & Gifts –
– DJ – Troy Taylor at Holiday Sounds Disc Jockeys –
– Photography – Alysha Yoder Photography –
www.alyshayoderphoto.com (e) alyshayoderphoto@yahoo.com (p) 610.762.7810
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