Dostert's 2010

Introducing the Dostert's. A brave brave family for standing out in the cold with me! :) 

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas from my family to yours.

A piece of the past

My computer is currently sick and at the doctors getting fixed! In the 3 years that I have had it, I have never had an issue with it except for a Windows problem which just involved a system patch and then I had more Ram installed to run my photoshop and movie programs. Then WHAM! all of a sudden this past weekend I got a virus called ThinkPoint on it! Nasty stuff-don't ever get it! I tried running my antivirus and malware programs to no avial only resulting in partial quarantine. So off to the Geeks2You shop in Kato it went! They promise to have it back today! Cross your fingers! I have to re-install my Microsoft Office/Student bundle and my Adobe programs so bare with me in the next few weeks as I get everything back up and running! The virus even affected my ability to blog-apparently it does a relocation link to just about anything Google! So this is coming via MNSU's campus computers!

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I did want to share with you a few of the photos I took while at the Bussert Auction!
Mark and I purchased a D case on the auction. An extremely rare tractor that rolled off Case's assembly lines in the 1940's. The D case we had on our farm orginally operated our Red River Special Threshing machine-which we still have. In the long run, Mark and I have the goal to get both back into shape (the threshing machine works, the tractor doesn't) and run them at the Rice County Steam & Gas Engine show and Pioneer Power. It was truely a sight to see all these tractors lined up out in the fields. Mark and I even took a walk around the Bussert Junkyard property and there were still tractors, trucks, combines, lawn mowers, etc. laying all around with trees growing through them or so delapitated you could barely recognize the brand on the side.

At one point, I even started tearing up just imagining that at one point, all these tractors were someone's livelihood. Someone's grandpa or great-grandpa, just like mine, worked the fields in all of these tractors that are now skeletons being auctioned off for just a few hundred bucks. One gentleman bought the back acres where they didn't drag tractors out for $80,000. Mark and I walked back in there and estimated he will probably make 300 to 500,000 just from scraping, restoring and reselling everything he ended up with.

There were 2 d's on this auction-something unheard of, if you are lucky enough to even find one, and as I watched the people who got the other one start to scrap theirs for cash right at the sight, I wanted to bawl. I wanted to yell at them and ask them if they knew what kind of memories they were destroying or what kind of Americana would be lost from their actions. I wondered to myself, who sat on each of these tractors? How did they purchase it? What kind of work did it do on the farm? How many times did it break down and get fixed? I'm one of those people who get emotional knowing that pretty soon, we will lose a whole generation of people, stories and memories and then what happens? We forget. I don't want to forget. That is why once my dad died, it was my mission to find a D Case on an auction and restore it. It was his dream and it has now become mine. Someday maybe in about 2-3 years, I will be driving this tractor down the middle of the road in that small town 4th of July Parade and inspire another little girl (or boy) to restore a piece of Americana.

Minneapolis-Moline tractors are a rare find because of their tie to Minneapolis, Minnesota. There were plenty on this auction, but almost all of them went for $1000 or above.

It was a graveyard of lost and forgotten tractors. This was on the 2nd day of pick-up and still many were waiting to be brought home to their new owners or to be scrapped. Some piles were marked "must be picked up by November 31,2010"

You can barely make out the CASE logo on the side of my tractor do to all the rust and lichens from sitting outside for 60+ years. Luckilly, Case makes reproduction manuels, logos, emblems and parts for restoration. We were lucky enough to find some of the original manuels on e-bay and lucky enough to have a friend who restores Case tractors on the look-out for original parts.

For any of you that remember Bussert's-its a hop skip and jump away from my house so we often went there for parts. Mark and I had gone there last spring/summer just to look (as a mechanic how could he resist?) and we were utterly AMAZED at how cleared out it was. But even here you can see the piles-they were spray painted and sold off in lots. Which in one pile we saw an old amazing ornate cook stove and unfortunately the auction company spray painted it in hot pink-what a sad day.

 

And this right here is my BABY. My pride and joy of the auction. She doesn't look like much now, but fully restored in all her glory is a beauty. Feel free to look up a D Case  (1943-1949 are the best years) in Google images. She truely is a beauty. My brothers were probably as excited as I was about the find. We all consider it our labor of love.

The Zoubek's

Sneak Peak!

Here is a quick sneak peak at a few of Bri, Ryan and Colton Prechel's photos! There will be more to follow in the next week! Enjoy! :)

I love this photo!

I was at my sisters house, leaving actually when my mom goes look at the old truck! I was like great photo op! Unfortunately, I only had my small camera with so not the best quality of a photo, but I absolutely love the old house in the background and the leaves just starting to turn color! I'm thinking the back cover of a magazine?

Just a quick update!

I have been super busy with school! I had the chance tonight to volunteer with the Taste of the NFL and the MN Vikings! It was AMAZING! I was literally a foot away from all the Vikings players all night! Crazy! I got to be a personal assistant to Mike Pomeranz from Kare 11 News as we taste-tested and judged the different foods from the Minneapolis Restaurants!

TomorrowI have an interview and will be volunteering with the Cleveland High School Athletics Department! It is also homecoming week for school! So I'm working on the can sculpture, the pep-fest, volunteering to set up for the comedians, and will be in the parade as well as do security for the comedians! WHEW! Talk about a busy week-yes, I still have classes and homework!

I also haven't had internet for the past week! We have had some issues with our current carrier at the apartment and are now switching to Charter! Hopefully it works out in our favor!

I will be doing some family photo sessions next weekend for my sisters and brothers! Aren't they lucky their sisters loves them and does photo sessions for them? Its okay, I need the practice!

I am still finishing up photos from Ben & Amber's wedding. I am supposed to meet with them this week...but it may be more like next week with my crazy schedule! That and my computer has been acting up lately! Time to clear up some memory!! Thank goodness for external hard drives!

Okay this is getting really long, and all you want to see are some photos! Enjoy!

-Sara

IRIS Pepsi Refresh Grant

Hey Everyone!

I wanted to let you know about the link on the side of my page for IRIS.

It is to vote for them to get the $250,000 Pepsi Refresh Grant!

It will help train volunteers across America to help families and parents during the death of their child.

I personally have close friends and family members that has had their child die either from being stillborn, SIDS, or miscarriage or even an accident later on in the child's life. Diana is right there every step of the way to help the parents with the grieving process, making memories, and helping with things like planning a funeral, etc. 

 I personally know Diana and have been to the IRIS office and she sure does a lot of work!

I really think this is a great non-profit organization, and I encourage you to take a couple of minutes, click on the link and vote. You can even do it by texting!

I remember how hard it was for me when my Dad died, and I can't even begin to imagine losing a child.

IRIS makes the whole process a lot easier.

North Shore 2010

I fell in love with this photo when looking at it later on after our vacation to the North Shore.

Does it look like that is in Minnesota? It reminded me of my trips out west when I would visit relatives in Idaho. Driving through the snake-backs and visiting places like McCall, Boise, Mt. Home, Idaho Falls & Sun Valley. This picture makes me miss it. To me it looks like something right out of a field and stream magazine-minus the fishing pole.

Ben & Amber Fjoser

Ben & Amber share an interesting wedding story. They won a wedding! And you say, they won a wedding? They did precisely that. They won a wedding through a contest put on by KOWZ radio station in Owatonna! But not just any wedding, they won a wedding on the stage of the Village of Yester Year at the 2010 Steele County Fair! They had the wedding ceremony on Friday night in Owatonna at the fair, and then had the reception for family and friends on Saturday in Mankato.

The number one thing I loved about this wedding party-was all the bridesmaids had similar, yet different dresses! I loved it! I also loved the flowers-fall colors are my favorite so those flowers spoke to my heart!

Here are a few sneak peaks at just a few quick edits I did this morning before class.

Congratulations Mr. & Mrs. Ben Fjoser! :)

 

Just a few more...

College starts on Monday...eek! I am photographing another wedding tomorrow, and I'm pretty excited to get some photos at the park that are shooting at.

I just thought I'd give another sneak peak of a few more of the photos from Iny & Dennis' wedding.

Introducing Mr. & Mrs. Dennis Schmidtke

Here are just a sneak peak at some of the photos I took for Iny & Dennis Schmidtke.

They were married at North Morristown on July 31, 2010.

Wedding Details

Mark's sister was married in June. She asked me to take some photos of the decorations and candy table before as she put it, "the guests destroyed them." So here are just a few snap shots of her wedding decorations!

Rock Climbing

I took this photo of rock climbers on Barn Bluff in Red Wing, MN.

At 1st, I was like the angle is kind of cool, but I don't really like the photo.

Then the photo kept growing on me, the way the leaves frame the outside of the photo and the climbers.

What do you all think?

Baby Tonya!

I got to do Kristian's maternity photos, and now I got to photograph her most beautiful baby girl, Tonya.

I love her baby blues! She is such a little Gerber baby!

This is by far my favorite photo from the shoot so far!

I just really like this photo. I'm not exactly sure what I like so much about it, but I thought I'd share it with you.

I said yes!

Some of you may have heard the exciting news! I am now officially the future Mrs. Mark Hewitt! :]

On Monday, Mark and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary. We had stayed in Red Wing the night before and had gone on a boat tour of the Mississippi. We did some shopping and hiked Barn Bluff.

On Monday we went to Frontanec State Park and hiked to Lake Pepin.

When we go to the shores of Lake Pepin, Mark popped the question!

I said yes :)

Spring :)

Spring means many things here in Minnesota. It means blossoms on all the cherry, apple and plum trees. It means prom time for the local high schools. It means new beginnings. It means rain & lots of it. It means farmers working hard to get the crops in the ground. It means garage sales & antiquing.

Here are a few photos of my Minnesota Spring!

I tried my hand at hair styling! :) This is the hair-do I did for Sarah Welander for prom!

It turned out really cute!

This is my pup, Rugby! I love his expression in this photo! He seems to be saying "Ahh, Mom, another picture?!"

This is the Grain Vac we rented from Smith's Mill in Janesville. Due to the strange fall we had, getting grain out of our bins has been a challenge. This thing has made it a breeze!

This is my mom's cherry tree in bloom! I love it!

We make a ton of cherry jam and jelly each year off of this tree!

Close-up of the cherry tree blooms! I'm hoping the frost we got a few days ago didn't nip these buds in the butt, and that we will still have a cherry crop!

Busy, Busy, Busy!

So I haven't had time to take any photos, but will get some on here soon, I promise!

I visited White Sands Dog Park with my puppy on Sunday. I didn't really like the idea of a dog park because I found it very stupid that our city couldn't put in a skate park for our youth, when childhood diabetes and obesity is on the rise, but after visiting the dog park I realized how many people take advantage of it! My dog absolutely loved it, although he wasn't too sure about the water and a Great Dane that we thought might eat him. But what I also realized was all the kids that were out there with there parents walking their dogs. I was also surprised by how clean the park was kept. I guess I thought there would be a lot of dog poop, but people really cleaned up after their animals. My view of the park after going there is definitely different. It just goes to show that the phrase "Don't judge a book by its cover" really is true!

Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone! I got to spend mine with all my family and eat plenty of good food! :)

I promised I'd try to update every week so here is my 2nd update of that promise! My niece looked absolutely adorable in her new Easter dress so I quick grabbed my camera and started snapping!

Time for Change

Spring is officially here! I hope! Minnesota weather tends to be quite finicky. I haven't had much time to update the blog or take many photos. But I have decided my new goal is to get an update on here every week! I can't believe my year at MNSU is almost over! About another month left of school, and then it will be summer break! Please stop by often and suggest it to your friends! I am really looking forward to doing some spring and summer shoots!

As many of you know, our dog Rugby has these amazing blue eyes. We thought that after a year they might disappear. But his blue eyes have stayed as bright as ever!

Kyle and Chrissy

I have been crazy busy with school and work lately and haven't had too much time to take photos, but I did squeeze in a photo shoot for my friend Kyle and his fiance, Chrissy.

This couple knows how to laugh! :) I couldn't help but have a fantastic time as they kept me

laughing and smiling the entire time!

It was a gorgeous day out, and we did some shots at the RBNC.

I got to get up close and personal with a deer as well!

Here are some of my favorites from the shoot.

Maple Woods Photography

Today, someone asked me why I decided to go with Maple Woods Photography instead of Sara Borchert Photography or something with my name.

I decided to share with you the story behind the name.

My family's farm is Maple Woods Century Farm.

We traced our family's farm back to 1906 with our own records, but it dates back even further with county records. We were inducted into th Century Farm program which is headed by MN Farm Bureau and the Minnesota State Fair Agriculture Dept. in 2006 in a ceremony at the Rice County Fair.

Most of you know that my father passed away in April of 2009. Every time I think of him, I think of Maple Trees. He always loved the way they changed colors in the fall and his favorite was a big Maple right in our front yard that has been there probably since 1906, if not before.

He was an avid Maple Syrup maker and loved to build many things out of his own maple logs cut from our woods.

The name of my business is in honor of my Dad, who named our farm Maple Woods Century Farm. I wanted to continue on the tradition of that name, even if the farm doesn't continue.

My main focus is outdoor photos and with the beautiful woods full of Maple Trees surrounding my house, Maple Woods Photography just seemed fitting.

Kristian and Brandon

I got to work with Kristian, Brandon and soon to be baby Tonya this weekend!

It was bitterly cold out so we did some inside shots. This can sometimes limit a photo shoot, but I am pretty pleased with the results!

I've known Kristian since freshman year of high school, so for her already to be having a baby just reminds me of our ages and that we are all growing up.

It was a fun, care free photo shoot. Here are a few of my favorite shots! :)