Meghann and I ran into each other at Boise Airport for our early 6 am flight. When we got to Salt Lake City, UT, we had a few minutes before our next flight, and we walked around and talked! (We had been following each other for a while, so it was nice to meet finally!) She spoke about this retreat she was planning and suggested I help design it with her. I, of course, said yes because it sounded like so much fun!

After a few weeks of planning, the day was finally here! We were heading out to Cascade around 9 am to scout out some locations for the shoots we had been planning. Unfortunately, about an hour into the windy drive, I decided it was the perfect time to get car sick, and I vomited! Don’t worry, I saved Meghann’s dashboard and threw up inside my shirt. It was the most unpleasant feeling ever, but we laughed about it for the rest of the way up the mountain!

We rented a beautiful Air BnB cabin on 5 acres in the woods. We planned to take engagement photos before scouting a location for the evening elopement shoot. While driving, the car suddenly stopped moving. We reversed and slid sideways into the snow. The owner’s husband and daughters helped us push the car out. I slipped and fell on the ice.

Once we finally got unstuck, we headed to look for a location and found this gorgeous place by the frozen-over lake. Unfortunately, it was a bit foggy when we went, and a mountain range was peaking behind the fog. After that, we went to a little grocery store to get some snacks and stuff for the cabin, and all the girls came to the retreat. Then we headed back to the house!

Everyone started showing up one by one, and we all shared our snow ventures, lol. It was now time to head out to the first location! As we were driving, it began snowing and was SO gorgeous! All of us started trekking out to the spot, and since it had begun snowing, the fog was heavier, and you couldn’t see the mountain range behind them! (Sad, but it was still breathtaking!) This location has its own FALLS. Literally, everyone fell. Especially me, lol. I went down about every 2 minutes and ended up crawling at one point! The snow was not your typically powdery snow; it was hard, crunchy snow. It’s NOT ideal for our shins, especially our model! That shoot was so much fun; we all made the most of it!

We edited photos while dinner cooked and had a good time chatting and learning about each other’s photography experience. Some of us brought our computers and started editing photos from the elopement shoot. After dinner, we went to bed early since we had an early morning ahead. Whitney, Selina, and I were scared upstairs, so we put the beds together and had a slumber party. We stayed up laughing until 1 am.

The next day, we all made our way to the kitchen for breakfast before the couple arrived for the engagement shoot! Once they came, we started shooting so we could get out by 10 am for check out. THAT SHOOT WAS ONE OF MY FAVORITES. I might say that a lot or even about every shoot I do, but this one was hands down one of the best. We all had the best time rolling around in the snow and teaching Meghann what the “fireman carry” was, hahaha! Once we finished, it was time to pack up and head back home! So glad Meghann had the idea to do a RETREAT instead of just a content DAY. It allowed us all to get to know each other better and connect on a bigger scale!

I would also like to shout out all the vendors and models because it wouldn’t have happened without them!

Special shout out to the girls who came out to adventure with Meghann and I! Whitney, Selina, Bri, Callie, you girls are amazing and I am so glad I met you!!