Closed for COVID-19

This picture will go down in history to represent utter chaos as Utah (and the rest of the country) is closed for COVID-19. I hope everyone is writing all this down. 😳 Sometimes I feel like I’m living in a dream and there’s no way this is really happening. (Anyone else feel that way?)
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One day I’m on the phone, email and Marco with a dozen brides and my photographers working out a game plan for their wedding changes, and the next day it all changes again. First a wedding under 50, then 10, then 8, then 6. First temples only open for sealings, then some switch to weekends, then some close, then only allow sealings in your district then they all close. Some couples switch forward to beat the closures, some couples switch back.
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And then throw in an earthquake and a snow storm just to keep people on their toes.
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This is the craziest history I’ve ever been apart of and I want to document every day of this madness. I’m grateful for how well our clients have adapted under such stressful times and allowed us to work with them to find solutions.
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So many people are sacrificing so much right now and it’s really humbling to see people coming together during hard and weird times.

I am a control freak.

Type one enneagram. The type that color coded her calendar and goal plans weekly. But right now I can’t plan. I can’t prep. I can’t fix it. I can’t change anything.

When the closures began, I went straight into hustle mode thinking…what can I launch? How can I feel these weeks off with work? Recordings? Interviews? Podcast? Daily lives? YouTube?

Not even an hour into planning what I could do, I stopped myself and decided that for the next two weeks I’m just going to be. I’m going to be open to all opportunities but not force any. I have taken each day one day at a time. No planning ahead. No working all day. Just being. And it has been the peace I’ve been missing in my life.

While everything is in commotion in the world, everything inside our walls is still (and also chaotic in its own way).

My kids are having the time of their lives home with their parents full attention 24/7. No school, events, work or social outings to distract from what matters more than anything.
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We’ve worked on house projects, played games, gone on walks, FaceTimed family, cooked meals from scratch, read, played outside, had dance parties, watched movies, cleaned and organized, some crafts and sensory, exercises, studied scripture and faced hard topics and conversations together. (Plenty of fights, whining and tears too.)
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This time in our lives is simultaneously the weirdest, worst and best 🖤 I just keep looking at my kids and their huge smiles, and feeling HOPE for better things to come.

Life is so weird right now.

Last month my friends got their first ultrasound photo and I sat in my car in my pajamas from 30 feet away to take a picture for them to announce the news to their families that they were expecting.
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Just a few weeks ago I had 12 models, their moms (or dads) and older siblings in my studio every hour. Now if a brand drops something off, I stay in my house and wait for them to leave before sanitizing the door handles.
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I saw a friend…and stepped away instead of towards her. Careful not to touch or get too close. Every conversation starts and ends with corona.
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There’s tape on the grocery store floor to make sure you’re 6 feet apart, and lines outside to keep limits on how many are inside at a time.
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The roads are empty. The parks are closed. Shelves are bare. It feels like a movie. Or a dream.

I’m not sad about school being cancelled for the rest of the school year…

because it gives me extra time to spend with my babies before they’re allllll gone all day long. Thinking of next year when piper starts kindergarten and we’ll just have lil Ro at home during the day makes me sad. How did I get to this place where all my kids are big and gone and my home is quiet so soon 😭

We have loved this simple, quality time together without too much work or busy calendars to work around. It’s a breath of fresh air for the entire family. And we’re finally getting the hang of it.

Kylee Maughan

Kylee started Kylee Ann Photography 9 years ago, and has since grown from a one woman amateur show to a full associate team. We shoot 50-75 weddings a year, and thrive on kindness and service. After a year of teaching Intro to Photography at the local technical college, she discovered that helping other entrepreneurs create thriving businesses is what fires her up! She hosts semi-annual Kylee Ann Sleepovers all over the US, speak at conferences and teach online courses about running a small business and marketing.

kyleeannphotography.com/kylee