[2009.07.27] Monday Night Recap
- July 27, 2009 -
- [Texas Hold 'Em] I used to be a big Hold ‘Em person in college, and still occasionally watch the tournaments on ESPN every now and then. It seems to be a new craze among my friends recently, though, so I’ve played a few times again which has re-sparked the interest. Because of this, I jumped on the Hold ‘Em facebook app, which hasn’t been treating me too well. I don’t play too often, but the first day I quickly jumped to the 100k group, and quickly lost it afterward. So the good news is I have a PRO title…the bad news is I currently have under 15k.
- [Purity Code] If you’ve been my facebook friend for awhile, you probably noticed my profile pic at some point was this:
We’ve been holding a series for the high school/college kids at my church called the “Purity Code”, based around creating biblical relationships and fostering personal and relational purity of the body/mind/heart/eyes/etc. It’s been a very great series, and we had the wrap-up this past friday, where I spoke! I basically covered topics about how you know when you’re ready to be in a relationship, and characteristics to look for when choosing a mate. Attending the CFC Dating/Courtship series for 5 years sure helped me out there :) It might seem surprising (or might not), but this was the first serious ‘public speaking’ opportunity I’ve had (outside of sharing my testimony). Though the feedback I’ve received was positive (I think people are just being encouraging, which is great! :)), I’m still not sure whether I’ll chase more speaking opportunities. Only time will tell, we’ll see what happens!
- [Last Shoot] I posted earlier today a teaser from my Saturday e-session with Rolly and Ben. This was the last official shoot I’ve had scheduled before my upcoming wedding, which is a bit bittersweet. Definitely going to miss shooting but I love having the time as there is so much to do before the wedding! I’ll still be culling/editing for another week or so trying to get some sessions complete before I take a bit of a leave for my wedding, so still keep an eye out for that. It’ll be over before you know it!
- [Jen + Jon] Though Saturday was my last ‘official’ shoot pre-wedding, I got to second shoot with my friend Kenny Nakai on Sunday for the wedding of Jen and Jon. There will be much more to see from this wedding on his blog later, but here’s a quick tease from what I saw:
- [The Ugly Truth] Today was a ‘date’ day for my fiancee and I, as it’s the day before her BAR exam. (CRAZY FACT: The BAR exam is 2 days long, from 8-5 both days with a 1-hour lunch. Who does that!??!) My goal was to keep her semi-sane today as well as get her to relax, so we did dinner and a movie. We watched “The Ugly Truth”, which had its moments of humor, but I was unimpressed. I’ve seen better, and I think it was hyped up too much for me.
- [Cubbies] WOO HOO! Since the all-star break, my cubbies have slowly started making their move, and now sit atop the NL Central in first place! Believe It! And an extra joy is they just won in 13 innings today 5-1 by an Alfonso Soriano GRAND SLAM! (and yes, I did wait until the end of the game to post this just to include it)
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natemathai | 
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Rolly + Ben : e-session {teaser 2}
- July 27, 2009 -
On Saturday, we had the second part to Rolly and Ben’s e-session. I’m so excited to show you guys all of them, but for now…
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natemathai | filed under: Couples Lifestyle Sessions No Comments | add a comment
Raina + Libu : proposal {Evanston, IL}
- July 25, 2009 -
Shortly after Michelle and Suresh’s wedding, their family had a bit more excitement as Suresh’s younger sister Raina got proposed to! I had been speaking with Libu for a short while planning out the details, and the best option was the weekend of Raina twin sister’s engagement (you’ll remember Shaina from her proposal as well. Do you think they look alike?) , as Libu would be in town for that. He told her that they were going to be looking for e-session locations for later in the fall. Little did she know that I was being a ninja hiding out behind the trees and bushes :)
Libu’s brother was with me scouting the place before we got started, and wanted to get some personal photos taken as well, so I obliged :)
Now on to what you really wanted to see!
I think she said yes!
Right after we did a little mini-session for them. Why? Because we could.
Then it was time for the family and friends to congratulate the newly engaged couple and hear the good news! Raina could not stop smiling :)
If their bridal party is as fun and willing to do anything as these friends were, we’re definitely going to be having some fun times at the wedding. :) These guys kept ASKING for more pictures- gotta love that!
Congratulations again, and thank you guys for letting me play a role in such a precious moment in your lives. I’m looking forward to working with you more as we get closer to the wedding- it’s just the beginning!
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: Modern ProposalsMichelle + Suresh : wedding {Oak Brook, IL}
- July 21, 2009 -
Last fall I had the pleasure of shooting Michelle and Suresh’s formal engagement, and I was definitely excited to shoot their wedding recently. These two had such a great attitude from start to finish that made for an amazing wedding day. My friend, Steve Thomas, helped cover this event with me as well.
I started the day with Michelle getting ready…
While Steve was with Suresh for the morning. During the traditional Indian Christian ceremonies, the groom ties the minnu (threads from the mathrakodi/sari given to the bride) around the bride’s neck. It can be a very stressful time as there’s a specific way to tie it and such, so Suresh get’s his practice in on one of his groomsmen.
Before the ceremony, the bridal parties held a short prayer in their separate rooms.
I love this shot of Michelle’s dad getting ready to give his daughter away
Christ Church of Oak Brook is absolutely gorgeous! (I’m a little biased, as my wedding will be here next month :))
After the ceremony, we quickly headed out to the nearby Morton Arboretum for some quick portraits. Here’s a grab that Steve got of me setting up the bridal party.
The bridal party entrances were just the beginning of the party- this guy knows how to get down!
To limit the amount of ‘glass clinking’ going on, the MCs set up a challenge for anyone who wanted to see Michelle and Suresh kiss: Hula Hoop! The length of time the guest could keep it going would be length of the kiss. They didn’t realize these junior bridesmaids were pros! They had to force them to stop after 20ish seconds.
They also had a wedding slideshow documenting their lives, which brought many laughs throughout
Then came the dances!
Michelle and Suresh, you guys were a blast to work with! I’m looking forward to the post-wedding portraits once you guys get settled (and I get through my own wedding) :)
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: wedding[2009.07.20] Monday Night Recap
- July 20, 2009 -
- [Cubbies] After destroying the Nationals to start the second half of the season (woo hoo!) we got a quick dose of reality getting hurt bad by the Phillies today. I’m looking on the bright side though – we’re #2 in the Central and ready to make our move! Let’s Go Cubs!
- [To Catch A Predator] Have you guys seen these shows on Nightline? On MSNBC they’ve been showing these series from the Nigerian scam artists to men soliciting minors via internet chat rooms. And though its disgusting to see these stories, at the same time I keep getting entertained watching these men wait in a living room expecting to see a 14 year old girl walk out, and then Chris Hansen comes through and just starts talking to them. And they all sit there and have a pretty lengthy conversation too!
- [25] It happened. This past friday I reached the ripe old age of 25. It’s crazy! I mean, everyone thought I was old before, but now I’m actually 25. And in less than a month I’ll be known as a husband! What is this world coming to!? Thanks again for all the phone calls/voicemails/text/email/facebook/twitter messages- I definitely felt the love!
- [Birthday Dinner] Even though my fiancee is taking the BAR exam in a week and a half (keep up the prayers!) she still made time to take me out to dinner on Saturday evening. It was a great time for both of us to take a break from the madness of everything, and just relax and enjoy a meal and dessert. We won’t have too many moments like this before the wedding, so we’re definitely soaking it up.
- [Birthdays/Anniversaries] In addition to my birthday a few days back, my family has quite a few celebrations going on in the month of July. My parents’ wedding anniversary and my sister’s wedding anniversary was on July 14th, her in-laws anniversary on the 15th, my brother-in-law’s birthday on the 22nd, my other sister’s anniversary on July 26th, and her birthday on the 30th. That’s part of the reason why we scheduled my wedding for August :) To celebrate, the extended fam went out to Buca di Beppo for some good Italian dining. As an added bonus, my niece made me a birthday book! After reading it there, she also suggested I read it before I go to sleep. And read it to other people too. Consider this you being read to :)
be sure to visit the contact page if you’re looking for a chicago wedding photographer, available nationwide.
natemathai | filed under: [MNR], announcement
