We had a great trip to St. Louis for Christmas, getting time to spend with each of our families.  Seeing all of the little ones enjoy their time together was especially fun.  The food was great and I even came away with some cash and a Cabelas gift card.

I've spent the last couple days trying to get some things organized.  It's a long process but I am making some headway.  I came up with a clever solution to mount my modifiers to the storage room wall that freed up a lot of floor space.  After walking into our studio and being amidst the mess I made pulling everything out of the storage room, Jodi proclaimed I have way too much "stuff".  I take umbrage with that remark.  I just need to organize things better and that is in process.

   

It's getting closer to Christmas and I am looking forward to not just visiting with family for a couple days, but also the time off.  The plant is going to be down for an extra week after the Christmas break but unfortunately, I have to work that week, otherwise I would have a lot of time off.  As it sits, I'm still happy with what I'll get as I'll have 4 days off starting this Saturday before working two days, then I have 5 days off before working 4 days and then two more days off before the schedule goes back to normal.

My time off will be used to get some storage rooms in the basement organized, a new video and audio production room created and I will likely paint our bedroom and get the TV up and running.  Since we bought our 4K TV for the studio, we now have a 55" TV that needs a home, so our bedroom it is. We've never had a TV in the bedroom before so this will be something new for us.  Jodi will like it more than me as I'm not much of a TV watcher.

Our new intern starts with us January 10th and he has an interest in video production, which is one area I want to expand upon in our business, mostly for marketing purposes.  He will be with us 4 days per week and we are looking forward to working on some of my planned projects.  

Jodi's family left yesterday after a two day visit and had a nightmare trip home.  Spent several hours on the highway between Columbia and St. Peters not moving or crawling.  Long trip for them but they made it safely.  We had ice covered streets in the neighborhood when I got home from work.  We had accidents in our neighborhood and stuck cars on the hill by our street.  JD couldn't get to work and he didn't need to go in anyway with the condition of the streets.

It's a good thing we went to get the Jeep earlier in the day.  It's a 45 minute drive to the shop we are now using and it was misting when we went to get it so we lucked out and beat the winter weather. Jodi drove it home with her new fenders and late last night, I installed the JW Speaker LED tail lights.  They are nice and bright and I like the styling of them.

I'm working all weekend at the plant as they are trying to make up for some production losses caused by some equipment downtime.  This morning, they are short handed due to the road conditions so they aren't going to get the production volume they had hoped for.

Looking forward to the delivery of my new gun safe tomorrow evening.  It should adequately hold all of my guns, ammo, and other valuables for some time.  However, I know it will also challenge me to fill it up!  I will accept that challenge.  Looking at the CZ Scorpion to SBR, which will require a tax stamp.  I really want to start collecting NFA items so will need to set up a trust.

The JW Speaker LED tail lights arrived yesterday so I plan on installing those soon.  Still waiting to hear from the powdercoater that the fenders are finished and ready for pickup.  I got a quote from a shop to install them and it was quite a bit more than I had hoped for.  Going to get some more quotes!

We have been busy wrapping up our final sales sessions and getting products delivered.  We have one more sales session and one more photo shoot to do this month and that completes a pretty good year.  I've been buys prepping for our new intern who will be starting with us on January 10th.  I think we are going to do some pretty cool things leading into next year that will continue to elevate our business not only in our area but in the region.

We are registering for the Jeep Jamboree in the Black Hills today.  We will be going with my brother and sister in law and I know it's going to be a blast.  The Jeep is going to have the new fenders on soon and a set of 37" tires and accommodating wheels will be in place in the near future as well.  It's very tempting to go to 40's though. It would lead to some other upgrades but 37's don't really stand out much more over 35's.  

The hard top went back on the Jeep yesterday and we are ready for 4 months of cold.  The soft top actually is quite comfortable in 30 and 40 degree temps and I know many run the soft tops year round but the hard top is there for a reason and the rear window defroster and wiper will help at times throughout the winter.

I have to admit that I feel pretty good knowing that I don;t have any photo shoots for awhile.  Only a couple sales sessions left to do and then outside of some product ordering and packaging, we get to relax a bit and work on some projects that we want to work on, not "have" to work on.

Jodi's family will be coming for a few days later this month, as is tradition, to do some Christmas shopping.  Her Mom seems to be doing pretty well after knee replacement surgery which is good to see.  They always enjoy their time together when they are here and they also get to see Jayson.

We enjoyed our trip to St. Louis for Thanksgiving.  It is always nice to get out of town for a day for a break and being off work is an added bonus.  We got to visit some and eat plenty of food while there.  Jodi got to spend a couple extra days there while I came home to work the weekend and conduct a sales appointment.

On my way home, I stopped at a couple gun shops to see if there was anything I had to have.  At Black Rifle in Columbia, I saw a CZ Scorpion Evo 3 S1 carbine that was pretty cool.  It's a 9mm rifle and looks like it would be fun to own and shoot.  I now have a few on my watch list on Gunbroker.

Nearing Kansas City, I stopped in at Frontier Justice.  It's relatively new and it is absolutely huge.  Firing range, archery range, huge gun selection, clothing, accessories and more.  They have a lot of tactical weapons and there were many choices.  They have quite a few NFA items and I've decided that will be my next pursuit.  First, I'm going to establish a trust that will own the items so that they can be used by others and easily transferred to my heirs.

On Saturday, I bought my gun safe during a Black Friday sale.  I wound up purchasing a different one than I had intended because it was a better fit for the firearms I won.  Most are set up for long guns, which I don't own many of.  This one is has a better set up for the modern sporting rifles and handguns.  It's a 64 gun safe made by Liberty and weighs 1000 lbs.  It gets delivered in a couple weeks.

We also took advantage of the Black Friday weekend deals and ordered fenders, inner fenders, a skid plate and LED tail lights for the Jeep.  They arrive today and we will likely get the fenders powder coated in the next month or so and installed sometime this winter.  The tail lights I will likely install tomorrow as well as put the hard top back on.  Next up will be off road wheels and 37" tires.

It's Friday!  It actually means something this week because we don't have anything on our schedule until Monday, which kicks off three straight days of sales sessions for us. We are both looking forward to a few months where our schedule isn't very hectic and we can prepare for the Spring crush.

I will soon have some extra time to work on some things around the house.  Interior painting will be on the "To Do" list.  We also want to redecorate our bedroom and we are going to attempt to paint our existing bedroom furniture rather than purchase new.  Hopefully that project works out for us and we can save some money.  We really haven't seen any new furniture that we like better than what we have but the paint scheme we want to use won't work with the wood colored furniture.

I am hoping to go to the shooting range this weekend and shoot some with JD.  I won't be able to use my Smith AR with the Slidefire stock as that would give the range marshalls a coronary.  I still have to decide on some optics for the Daniel.  If I'm going to do some 3 Gun, I will likely want a scope.

It had been a bit since I added to the firearm collection.  Jodi's Jeep had taken over with my OCD and I had neglected my cache.  That all ended with the purchase of a couple new pieces.  I really wanted a nice and solid carbine to put my Slidefire stock on so I can burn through ammo at a high rate.  I didn't want to spend a fortune on a rifle that its sole purpose and setup would be for fast rates of fire.  The S&W Sport II was a good fit as it was moderately priced and comes with sights.  Nothing fancy needed when throwing up to 900 rounds per minute.

My second acquisition of the day was a Daniel Defense M4V11PRO.  These are extremely tough to find as demand is high.  I lucked out and got the last one on the shelf.  It's lightweight, has a full float barrel, Geissele Trigger, Cerakote finish and more.  This may wind up being what I use for some 3 Gun.  Now it just needs some accessories.  Looking forward to some range time with it.  

It had been a bit since I added to the firearm collection.  Jodi's Jeep had taken over with my OCD and I had neglected my cache.  That all ended with the purchase of a couple new pieces.  I really wanted a nice and solid carbine to put my Slidefire stock on so I can burn through ammo at a high rate.  I didn't want to spend a fortune on a rifle that its sole purpose and setup would be for fast rates of fire.  The S&W Sport II was a good fit as it was moderately priced and comes with sights.  Nothing fancy needed when throwing up to 900 rounds per minute.

My second acquisition of the day was a Daniel Defense M4V11PRO.  These are extremely tough to find as demand is high.  I lucked out and got the last one on the shelf.  It's lightweight, has a full float barrel, Geissele Trigger, Cerakote finish and more.  This may wind up being what I use for some 3 Gun.  Now it just needs some accessories.  Looking forward to some range time with it.  

Jodi and I received some pretty awesome news on Tuesday.  We learned that for the second year in a row, we had won the Hot 100 image competition and this year, we won in multiple categories and were awarded ICON status.  There were over 7000 entries this year and honestly, I didn't think we would win again this year, much less in multiple categories.  But we did and we were pretty surprised to say the least.  It's a great feeling and an honor to be ranked in the top of our field.

Our busy week has begun.  I have 5 photo sessions this week and I also have to work Saturday at my "day job".  Next week is going to be a better week for me because we have two holidays and I'm off that weekend.  I only have one photo shoot scheduled for next week as well right now as the season is drawing to a close and that will bring some much needed time to relax and work on other things I'd like to get finished.

Justin has been given clearance to play catch from his surgeon so that process has begun.  The season starts in 4 months and there are a lot of unknowns at the moment but the road back continues at this point. 

Last Friday, I sold my truck.  The guy showed up with cash and took it home.  I was a bit surprised but he said he had been looking for a clean truck for his business and he couldn't find one nicer than mine.  That made me feel good and we are now back down to 4 cars for three drivers.  

The weekend is in sight and I don't have any business related things to do this evening.  I guess that means I have the time to mow the lawn on my evening off.  Tomorrow we have sales sessions and then should be free the rest of the weekend to relax a little.

The audit at work went pretty well overall with only some minor issues found.  That's good news and tells us we are in pretty good shape overall.  I am relieved that it is over.

Jodi's mom is having knee replacement surgery early next month so Jodi will be going to visit her a day or two during the surgery and recovery.  Hopefully the surgery will help her mom get around better as she has had a lot of trouble with it for some time.

We have a big audit going on at work right now and I'll be very glad when it is over.  It's an outside company that has been hired to audit our processes.  Stress to the max.

Today is my third and final photo shoot of the week.  Tomorrow I have 4 consultations to do, I'm actually off on Friday and then we have two sales sessions on Saturday.  I average 3 shoots per week for the next couple weeks and then things slow down.  It's been another good year for us and I expect next year to be even better.

Here are some recent images of one of my model team members.  I don;t think she can take a bad photo.  

We've had some really great photo shoots of late and after two consults tonight and a sales session, I shoot 4 days straight, get one day off and then shoot 3 days straight.  We finish up the month after that with 4 shoots and start off November with 2 more before things start to slow down.

We are looking forward to our Florida trip in February as we head to a photo conference in Destin.  We haven't been to Florida since our honeymoon and it will be a nice winter getaway for us.  We are both taking a class prior to the conference that should benefit our business and then the entire conference is additional education on the senior business, from marketing to production.

When things slow down in the next month, I have some projects to complete around the house and our studio, namely painting and putting up some new displays.  I need to get a lot done this winter so that when the Spring rush hits, we can focus on that.  We are going to see about having another intern this year that can help us with our video and website too.

We've made it to another weekend.  Unfortunately, it is my turn to work Saturday so it will be a one day weekend for me.  It's been a busy week and the weekend will likely be the same as after work on Saturday, we drive to Maryville, MO to photograph two of our seniors with their livestock.  So, we will get our first opportunity to photograph pigs, sheep and cows as they both participate in FFA and show their animals at the State Fair.

This is the busy month for our business and we have 16 sessions booked so it will be like running the gauntlet.  Between session consultations, sales sessions and photo sessions, there will be no break until after the first week of November for me and it will stretch beyond that for Jodi.  It's very good though that we remain busy and popular with those seeking the type of service we offer and we expect that to continue for some time to come.  

My schedule has been pretty busy of late due to being gone 5 days and an upcoming audit at work, not to mention photo shoots, consultations and sales sessions.  It's been hard to find any time to post any updates.

Jodi and I really enjoyed our getaway to Colorado.  As a first time visitor, I was in awe of the scenery and cannot wait to go back.  Both of us drove a trail and we even managed to go through an obstacle rated at a 7.

I'll post more as I find the time but will leave a video I assembled from our trip here.  make sure to change the settings to 1080p by clicking the cog icon at the lower left and then on settings, change to 1080p.  The lower resolution video is garbage.

 

Wrapped up my last photo shoot for the next 10 days!  Two sales sessions tonight and one more shift tomorrow and then no work for a week.  Wednesday will be all prep and packing.  I have to get my drone and camera gear ready and we need to do a little shopping before hitting the road.

We are meeting up with some local Jeepers to run Twin Cone on Saturday.  The trail is apparently one of the best for fall colors in the area and should be a good learning experience for us.

Well, either I am sleep deprived, distracted, or discombobulated.  I see that I posted Photo Friday on the wrong blog!  Well, I'm not going to change it so it is forever immortalized here.

I am so thankful that we were able to dodge the rain here yesterday and get the final session of the week in.  It was really iffy even while we had the client in hair and makeup but it all worked out for us and now I can relax knowing that the only session we have next week before our trip we will be able to get in because the forecast is looking good for Monday.  Although I am stuck working today,. we have two sales sessions to get in this afternoon before I can kick back and relax a little.  I still have some prep for tomorrow's hippie shoot to do tonight but we are pretty well prepared in advance.

Next week will be prep for our trip.  I'm taking my drone and plan on flying it quite a bit and my camera and lenses are making the trip as well.  Needless to say, the trip will be well documented with photographs and video.  I was able to get a deluxe chalet for a few nights so we are looking forward to enjoying those accommodations.

 

Two sales sessions last night after work, a photo session today after work, another tomorrow after work and another Friday after work.  Then I work Saturday and then we have three sales sessions scheduled also.  We then have a Model Team shoot on Sunday and then another photo shoot on Monday after work!  Work, work, work, work.  

I am pretty excited about our Model Team shoot on Sunday as we have four girls coming for a "Hippie" photo shoot.  We have rented a campsite at Smithville Lake and have a 1968 VW Bus as a prop as well as some vintage fashion.  It should be a fun day.

Jodi is taking our Jeep to get the lift kit and suspension parts retorqued laster this week so we are ready for our trip to Colorado.  Still need to get a CB radio installed but haven't had the time.  I just don't know why! 

In the good news department, we discovered that if we back the Jeep into the garage, it fits with the Hi-Lift jack installed.  That will take care of the inconvenience of removing it each time we go in and out.  Here are some pics I took yesterday after a ride we took to scout locations for a theme shoot we have planned for next Sunday.

We shot 5 sessions last week and have 4 scheduled this week.  We have sold out of our typical photo dates for the Fall but if the weather cooperates, we may be able to schedule a few more sessions by using the days we set aside for rainout makeup dates.  Jodi is doing a good job of keeping up with me.  

If you want to check out the images from our 1960's themed GoGo shoot, you can view them here: 

http://www.maxxumphotography.com/senior-portraits/gettin-groovy-with-a-60s-themed-photoshoot/

In the good news department, we discovered that is we back the Jeep into the garage, it fits with the Hi-Lift jack installed.  That will take care of the inconvenience of removing it each time we go in and out.  Here are some pics I took yesterday after a ride we took to scout locations for a theme shoot we have planned for next Sunday.

We shot 5 sessions last week and have 4 scheduled this week.  We have sold out of our typical photo dates for the Fall but if the weather cooperates, we may be able to schedule a few more sessions by using the days we set aside for rainout makeup dates.  Jodi is doing a good job of keeping up with me.  

If you want to check out the images from our 1960's themed GoGo shoot, you can view them here: 

http://www.maxxumphotography.com/senior-portraits/gettin-groovy-with-a-60s-themed-photoshoot/

I need to get through one more 13-14 hour days and I'll get to rest a couple before getting back after it next Monday.  So far we have avoided rain outs but this evening is not looking very good.  If we have to reschedule, we will do it tomorrow as the weather is looking pretty good for the weekend.

We got Jodi's Jeep back last night and as luck would have it, the hi-Lift jack will not clear the garage door, by about an inch.  Now we have to sell our house!  :)  I had to remove the jack to get it in last night and that will be a major inconvenience to do all of the time.  I don't think we have the room to go horizontal behind the tire carrier.  Looks like we are stuck as the other mounting options don;t appeal to me right now.

I didn't get home until well after dark last night but after my late dinner, I went out to check out all of the add on's.  The LED light bar is pretty bright and I like the red back lighting that you can operate independently.  Combined with the J.W. Speaker LED headlights, it really lights up the entire street.  Jodi likes the rocker steps and grab bars.  We wound up going with the black ones and they look fine.  I found it much easier to get into the Jeep too.  I'm going to add an air tank for the compressor I think once I determine a good mounting location for it. I prefer to mount it underneath along the frame if possible but since I'm undecided on whether or not to put the cat back exhaust on, I don;t want to mount the tank prior to making that decision as it may interfere with the exhaust.

Here is a pic of the J.W. Speaker LED headlights I took during installation.  I'll get some pics of the Jeep this weekend with the new add on's and post them up soon.

It sure was nice to have a three day weekend.  We had a couple photo shoots during that time and we have 4 more sessions this week followed by 4 more next week.  I've broken our rule of 3 sessions per week so I might as well just blow it out for the remainder of the next two months.  Poor Jodi!  :)

Yesterday morning I got right out of bed and within ten minutes of doing so, I was in the garage removing the grille off the Jeep and beginning the installation of the J.W. Speaker LED headlights.  It went really smooth and quick and the entire job took me about 25 minutes.  I was kind of shocked.  After that, I installed the sill plates and then it was off to other chores that needed done prior to our photo shoot in the afternoon.

I am going back and forth on installing a Cat Back exhaust on the Jeep.  It's not all that costly and it looks like a fairly easy install, especially since the current exhaust isn't old and rusty.  Decisions, decisions.  The one I want definitely has some rumble to it when you get on it.  Maybe wait until the Procharger gets installed?  We shall see.

We are into September already and the real madness has begun.  I had pre-session consultations with 4 clients yesterday and I have another tonight.  We have 9 sessions in the next two weeks plus sales sessions and a couple more consultations.  We have only one available date this month and in October, we only have two and I expect those to be gone shortly.  

Our Jeep is in the process of getting the ceramic coating done to the exterior and the company has been sending me some before and after pics.  They took care of some swirl marks with some paint correction that were on the hood that must have been there from the dealer prep and have gone over the entire vehicle taking care of any swirls marks or items that needed attention.  They them applied 4 coats of the coating yesterday and the final high gloss coat goes on today. The wheels, plastics, windows and the soft top get treatment today and we should be able to go get it tomorrow.  Tuesday it goes to 4 Wheel Parts for some parts installation.  They will likely have it two days.  I'm trying to get Jodi to agree to name it "BLACK WIDOW" but she has arachnophobia.  The black with the red accents make that a good name and the wheels look a little like spiderwebs.  I may not win this one!

I worked Saturday morning and then in the afternoon, we had three models in for a creative photo shoot.  It was a 1960's theme with vintage styled dresses and Go Go boots.  Our makeup artist did a fantastic job on the hair and makeup and we had a lot of fun listening to 60's music, dancing, hula hooping, singing and more.  We even went out on location for a bit and the girls got a lot of attention when down on the historic square.  We've only edited one image from the shoot so far and here it is:

Sunday we put the soft top up and the windows back in on the Jeep in preparation for the ceramic pro treatment it will receive this week.  I took it out for some photos too as I just purchased some HDR imaging software and wanted to try it out.  My intent was to go photograph a high school football stadium to use the HDR images for our senior sportraits business but it was locked up so I used the Jeep.  I haven't had the chance to edit the images but hope to soon.

Our schedule is really filling fast.  I booked two more sessions first thing this morning and we are just about sold out for Fall.  That's a good thing.  The bad thing is that we could probably take on more if we had more resources available to us.  

We've had a pretty good week so far with a good sales session last night and we have a photo session scheduled for today, weather permitting.  It seems we are going into a wet weather pattern for the next week or so which will jeopardize several photo shoots but we will just roll with the punches should they come.  Our Fall is almost booked up and we may explore adding in some sessions to accommodate demand, although that will put quite a bit of pressure on Jodi.  Right now, I've lost my two regular photo assistants to college and finding replacements has been a struggle.  It appears that my new model team members aren't available to help much and that requires Jodi to tag along on shoots, taking away her editing time.  Hopefully we find someone who will be reliable soon.

I've been looking into ceramic coating for the Jeep.  A friend had his vehicles done and it makes them very easy to clean and you never have to wax.  Nothing really sticks to it and the water and mud just run right off of it.  It's pretty impressive but it isn't cheap to get done.  Unfortunately, the shop that does it here is booked through September but they are to call me if someone cancels their appointment.  I'd really like to get it done before our Colorado trip.

We kicked off our weekend Friday evening with a photo shoot that was followed by a consultation and two sales sessions on Saturday.  All went very well and we head into a new week with two shoots and two more sales sessions planned.

Sunday, I dropped the soft top and we installed the Spyderwebshade.  Afterward, we took a ride up north and watched an air show from a private lot across from the airport.  I don't have the gear needed to shoot tight from a distance but I managed to get a few cool shots even though we were some distance from the action.

We enjoyed driving around yesterday, actually taking a couple drives since it was a nice day.  We even did a selfie while rolling down the highway.  

Tonight Jodi and I get to enjoy an evening off and attend a Royals game.  A vendor at my work gave me tickets and we will be tailgating with the company prior to the game.  We haven't been to a game in the last couple years so it will be a fun evening and a nice break from our daily routine of work, work, work, work and work.  I'll be back to that routine tomorrow as I have another photo shoot to do.

JD is back in school and baseball practices have begun.  Although he can't do much, he is serving as the pitching coach as they do not have one right now.  He is also continuing his internship with KCPD and has completed at least half of his required ride-alongs.

We are awaiting word that our Jeep parts have all came in and it will be time to begin the installation process.  Our Spyderwebshade arrives tomorrow and we will probably get that installed this weekend.

I've spent the last two evenings photographing clients and tonight I only have a consultation to do before another session tomorrow.  We go to the Royals game on Thursday followed by another session on Friday and two sales sessions and a consultation on Saturday.  The next two and a half months will be very busy for us.

Over the weekend, we were able to go to St. Louis and pick up a used soft top for our Jeep.  Putting it on was definitely a learning experience and with some assistance, we were able to get it done.  It looks good and we are looking forward to some time where we can do more top down driving.

This past Saturday, we went to the 4WheelParts store and took care of some more wants/needs.  The sale wasn't what we had hoped for but we basically got things for what you can online and no sales tax so we bought locally.  Jodi needed a step to get into the Jeep so we ordered the Posion Spyder Ricochet rockers.  They will be powdercoated in a textured black.  We also ordered our Bartact seat covers, Posion Spyder differential covers, an ARB compressor that will be mounted under the hood, and a Hi Lift jack and mount.  I already have a Rigid 20" light bar and we think we came up with a way to mount it to the front bumper as I had hoped.  We will also get our SPOD installed and outside of a CB, I think we will be good for awhile.  I did order a Spyderweb shade also, which should be here in a few days.  Skid plates will come at some point down the road.  Jodi still wants half doors but they are a major investment.  I thought about trail doors but I don't see the point if she wants the other.  Maybe next year.  

The next couple weeks are really busy for us as we have 6 photo sessions, several sales sessions and several consultations.  I spent yesterday evening on a photo shoot with a fun client and her mom and today we have two sales sessions to complete.  

Yesterday, I booked two more sessions, both who live a distance from us.  The first client lives about an hour and fifteen minutes away from us.  That is outside of the normal area we draw from.  The second client lives six hours away.  It amazes me how far some people are willing to drive to be photographed by us.  That's 12 hours, round trip, TWICE they have to do because they have to return for the sales session as well.  Incredibly humbling to have people willing to do that!

We are looking forward to heading over to Kansas this weekend for the 4WheelParts sale.  I really don;t know what the sale prices are going to be but if they are decent, we will wind up purchasing some things.

One thing I have read is that the seats can get tears from sliding out of them.  I don;t know if it will help any, but I'm thinking of purchasing the Trek Armor seat covers.  They have Molle straps in the back of them so you can mount gear bags, etc.. to them.  We will definitely be getting a Hi-Lift jack but I'm still undecided on the mount.  It appears going the rear bumper route will have the jack riding pretty high and I don;t think it will fit in the garage that way.  Not sure if the hood mount is the way to go or mount it at the door/fender area.  I think of those two, I prefer the hood.  

We still need to figure out a way to mount the light bar to the bumper.  The options I've seen so far I'm not a fan of but we may have to go that route since our bumper doesn't have welded mounting tabs.  

We will definitely be getting a soft top soon.  I haven;t seen any OEM tops on Craigslist or anywhere else and a lot of people are running the Bestop Trek NX.  We may go that route.  It's a frameless top and has a slanted back.  It's available in the premium twill fabric, which obviously costs more but from what I've read, it's well worth it.  A Spyderweb shade is on the purchase list as well.  It's time to get the hardtop off.  

Jodi driving her Jeep.  I have actual video too.  :)

I didn't have anything business related scheduled yesterday so I took the evening to relax.  I probably should have mowed the lawn but chose to just relax for the most part.  Tonight, I have two consultations scheduled and maybe I'll get the lawn cut too.

I had a lot of trouble trying to install the grab bars on the Jeep recently.  I got fed up and decided to return them.  When looking at how to go about that, it said that I could return them to a 4WheelParts store.  I was a bit confused since I bought them from 4wd.com so I called the 4WheelParts store near me and they informed me that that is like a sister site to them and I could return them to the store.  I told them the issue I was having and they want to look at it for me.  So, maybe they will wind up on the Jeep after all.  We are going to their sale on the 13th so we will look at it then.

I've been looking at trail opportunities in Colorado around the Breckenridge area.  My gut instinct is to stay on trails rated 4 or less by Trail Damage.  I saw Peak 10, Boreas Pass and Crystal Lakes, rated 3, 2 and 4.  Elevation is 9,700 feet to 13,400.  They are all rated very scenic.  On the return trip home, I'd like to take a route that was recommended that goes to Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park and through Lyons and Longmont.

Jodi got to be my photo assistant yesterday evening as both of my other regular helpers were unable to work.  I think that's only the second time this year that we have worked together on a shoot.  It turned out to be a great one with one of our model team members and we even ran into a guy at the park that had a boa constrictor who let our Senior put it around her while I photographed her with it.

We only have one other session this week but we have a sales session this evening and then two consultations on Thursday.  We usually have three sessions per week but I'm kind of glad we don;t have one scheduled on Wednesday because it's going to be in the upper 90's until Friday, when it cools down to 90 for the session scheduled that day.

On August 13th, 4WheelParts is having their big sale of the year.  I don't know if it is an in store only sale or site wide too but we plan on heading over to the store and taking advantage of any great deals that may be had.  Our more immediate to do items are:

Differential covers
Skid plates
Light bar
Side rails/sliders
Hi Lift jack
Soft top
Hard top hoist

Jodi really wants the Mopar half doors which will be a major purchase, probably one we will do next year.  I still need to send in my rebate form for the free Warn accessory kit that we get with our winch purchase.

Jeep pics

Here are the pics of Jodi's Jeep.  Click on the images to see them larger.