Life + Liberty + Happiness

I love the 4th of July. It’s such a joyful day … not only to celebrate this incredible country, but also to display our pride for the red + white + blue!

Vanessa & i have been collaborating for quite some time now & our very first photography + styling collaboration was for the 4th of July in Nashville, TN. We absolutely LOVE this shoot, so we enjoy sharing it, too.

In the past, a few of our favorite blogs featured it [Creature Comforts & A Beautiful Mess], so we knew we were on to something … definitely encouraging & inspiring to have such creative bloggers jump on board a project that we put our heart & soul into.

I adore Vanessa & her creative eye! We have so much more in store … we can’t wait to share what new creative adventures await!

have a WONDERFUL holiday with your family & friends. HAPPY 4th OF JULY!
XO

a collaboration between kelli trontel photography + butterflysparks

7.20.16

Missy - I don’t know anything about Quaker sacramentology, but this line stood out to me: “the rise in physicalism and the overwhelming challenges to these dualistic no2t;ns.&#8i21;I&#8217om curious what he meant, since reductive physicalism is not in vogue, but some kind of emergentism or property dualism (David Chalmers), or even functionalism is–if we’re talking philosophy of mind. How would that impact talk of sacraments? Do you need to have an immaterial “soul” for them to work?

BOOM! POW!

I can NOT believe that this image was taken one year ago today! I remember wanting to document this day, which was July 3, 2012….since my due date was the 5th and the only plans I had for the 4th was a low key day. Our day was low key alright….until this very firecracker that I am holding….was lit and it exploded…..resulting in my water to break. Funny, huh?!

No, Ezra was not a 4th of July baby…..he wasn’t even born on the 5th! July 6th is his ONE YEAR birthday. This subject will be its own blog post…..

This momma is getting a little sentimental….

7.3.13

Allyson - What a ham! You look lovely as well. 🙂

Allyson

7.9.13

Carrie - My heart is exploding! This is my favorite!!! I might need a print of him with that firework.

Red Caboose Photoshoot

We just launched our Red Caboose website, but I wanted to share a few more images that I love so much from the photoshoot we did with Jeremiah & Rachel!

Jeremiah & Rachel are local photographers who have become sweet friends to us….and who also support our little shop. They love coffee. They are creative. We are a perfect fit. They contacted me about doing a collaboration and we just so happened to be dreaming up ideas for a website- so we decided this would be the project. We had a blast with them…..it was an honor to have this season in our life documented. These photos mean so much to us.

They captured the core of our shop- the details, the community within our staff and of course, little Ezra. I absolutely love the Red Caboose. I’ve never questioned how special our place is, but these images really do remind me how magical things are inside the four walls. I pinch myself daily….I really get to own and operate a fantastic frozen yogurt + coffee shop in Whitefish, Montana! God is awesome. So good.

Thank you so much, Jeremiah & Rachel. We adore you guys. Thank you for loving us so well…and blessing us with your talent.

6.28.13

melissa pepin - Your shop is so so cute Kelli and all of your posts make me want to come to Montana so bad!

Eleven Months


My baby is 11 months old!!! Can’t believe this. I really can’t wrap my mind around this. Is this for real?

Oh Ezra….our love for you is great. We love to just stare at you. Your contagious smile is such a blessing to us. You are such a sweet-sweet baby, who is growing quickly. So quickly.

This month- you have spent more time in your crib than any other month. This has been good for momma and daddy, but we sure do miss you…..we miss holding you in our arms while you sleep…..but as big boys do….you want to sprawl out and just enjoy a good deep sleep. This is good for all of us.

We took a few trips with you this month, which included Southern California- you did great on the airplane! Always trying to make the fellow passengers and flight attendants smile. You achieved your goal….they loved you.

You love to explore. You are quick on your hands and knees….you’ll be walking soon! I love how interested you are in all sorts of things- everything is new to you. You love to share, especially new treasures that you find. In the photos below…you wanted to show momma blades of grass, rocks and sticks! You are such a BOY! And I love it!

Can’t believe that you will be ONE this month! We have lots of family coming into town to celebrate this day with us. Can’t wait!

Ezra, We love you sweet boy. You have certainly brightened our lives….you have taught us so much this year, especially in the area of priorities and focussing on what is most important. We pray for you daily….praying that you would come to know Jesus and be a world changer. You are special and we know you were created for a purpose….a very specific purpose. Our love for you has no limits…..

xoxo,
momma & daddy

Red Caboose Website!


I am so excited to announce the unveiling of the Red Caboose website!! We have been utilizing Facebook since we opened our doors in 2011, but felt it was time to have a personal site….that reflects who we are and shares a bit of our story.

A huge thank you to Tyler Thorney, who designed the site for us. He was awesome to collaborate with and we are really happy with our site. Simple, with a bit of whimsy was the goal…and he executed it well! If you are looking for a designer….he’s your guy! Check out his work here.

We also want to thank Jeremiah & Rachel for hanging out with us for a day….and photographing our shop & our staff! Jeremiah and Rachel are amazing photographers and sweet friends of ours. They are creative and have a passion for coffee- so it was a natural fit! The majority of the photos on our site were shot by them. Check out their work- be inspired!

Without further ado….go and check out our website. My favorite page is “Our Story.” Our employee Mikey had a blast writing all of our bio’s. So fun!

Thank you all for supporting our adventure!