Monica & Amon’s Wedding | The Wedding That Healed My Heart

The wedding that healed my heart

My name is Danielle, the owner and lead photographer of BellaFoto Studios.  My husband, Kurtis, and I planned on starting our family in 2019.  After years of experience working with children, and with my auntie status already going strong, I felt well prepared for this next chapter of our lives.

At nine weeks pregnant, I agreed to take a prenatal genetic test during a routine doctor’s visit. I was so eager to find out whether I was having the little girl or little boy I had been dreaming about for so long. 

What no one prepares you for is the moment your dreams are shattered. 

We received the result in a phone call. There was an extremely high chance that our baby had Trisomy 21, also known as Down syndrome.

In that moment everything changed.

The Uncertainty of Waiting for Our Baby

I worried constantly and struggled with anger over the prenatal diagnosis.


Would my baby be okay? How could this happen? I’d waited so long for a child.


I prayed, meditated, and tried my best to accept the future, all while quietly grieving and struggling with my faith.  No one was the wiser.  I continued to remain professional for the couples and families I photographed that year, even as I worked through so much internally.

I’m someone who believes in God.  I believe in fate.  I believe there is a purpose and an order to everything and everyone we meet in this life.

Monica and Amon’s wedding was a perfect reminder of these beliefs.

A Place Filled with Meaning

At the time of their wedding, I was very pregnant, with swollen feet and frequent bathroom pitstops.  While I was secretly anxious, I was also excited to photograph their wedding at a location I hadn’t visited before.  When that happens, I go into a super creative mode, welcoming the distraction to my personal life.

Monica and Amon’s wedding was planned around the place where they first met at work.  I knew it was a summer camp, but what I didn’t realize was that is was a camp for people with disabilities.

This wasn’t just any summer camp for children. It was an inclusive, amazing camp serving people with disabilities of all ages.

I’d photographed hundreds of weddings over the years, but never at such a rare and beautifully symbolic location.

To me, this was definitely a sign.

An Unexpected Connection to the Name Asher

At the church, my husband and second photographer, Kurtis, spent some time photographing the groomsmen and ring bearer before the ceremony, which is typical of our wedding-day workflow.

After the ceremony ended, he rushed over to tell me about the most bizarre coincidence.  The ring bearer’s name was the same name we’d chosen for our unborn son: Asher.

It’s not a common name, and it’s biblical.  We chose it because it means “happy and blessed”.  

What were the odds of encountering another Asher that day?  I certainly don’t believe in coincidences anymore.

A Four-Leaf Clover and a Message of Hope

 
In this photograph, Amon is holding a four-leaf clover given to him by a wedding guest, perhaps as a wish for good luck in their marriage.


Some parents of children with Down syndrome refer to themselves as “The Lucky Few”.  


The signs were everywhere that day, reinforcing what I was experiencing and serving as proof to me that God had orchestrated it all.  For the first time since learning I was pregnant, I felt that we would be okay.


God was in control. This was meant to be.

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The Wedding That Helped Heal My Heart

I believe God gave me all the signs I needed that day.  My heart healed on September 7, 2019, while photographing Monica and Amon’s wedding.

Fast-forward to today, and my son Asher is thriving.

Like the four-leaf clover, we are lucky, and he is blessed.

This is the story of how photographing a wedding helped heal my heart.  Thank you for allowing me to be vulnerable and share it with you. ❤️

To learn more about Down syndrome, visit NDSS.