Jessica Simonton Photography

04/12/2025

Shep turned 3 months 12 days ago, and my birthday was yesterday. I meant to post on both days, but you know… 😅

Last year on my 37th birthday, I found out I was pregnant. After years of trying, praying, and waiting, it was the most perfect birthday gift I could’ve imagined.

Fun little story: in the days leading up to my birthday, I kept seeing clovers everywhere. Not because it was St. Patty’s season, but in totally random places—on a car, on the sidewalk, in someone’s tattoo. One day at the gym, a guy walked in with a 3-leaf clover on his water bottle. I asked him about it, and he said it symbolized the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—but also that God would be at the center of his future marriage.

I told him how I’d been seeing them constantly and didn’t know why. He stopped right there, prayed over me, and even prayed that Eric and I would become a family of three.

Little did I know—I already was pregnant. I found out just a few days later on my birthday. Those clovers felt like God’s little wink, a quiet “I’m doing something beautiful… just wait.”

Motherhood has painfully revealed my weaknesses—but in the most sanctifying way. It’s shown me that the only way through this is total dependence on my Helper and Comforter ✝️

Through the refinement by fire, I’ve started to see life more clearly: what actually matters, how to spend my time, the value of true friendship, and which relationships to release with peace.

One of the sweetest surprises of this season has been the friendships formed with other moms—even if it’s via voice notes and text chains! It’s amazing how quickly other moms become your cheerleaders and prayer warriors because they’ve been in the trenches too. No more petty, surface-level connections—just the real stuff. And honestly, it’s been such a beautiful picture of how the body of Christ works together.

Eric and I love Shep more than words can express. Our life has changed in a much bigger way than I expected—but it’s been so good. So hard, but so good.

This birthday was just another reminder to praise God for His faithfulness… even if His blessings hate sleep, spit up on you, and treat you like a sacred dairy cow.

03/28/2025

Head over to one of our Instagram profiles and vote for which branding you like best for Eric’s future chiropractic business in Montana 🎉

03/07/2025

2 MONTHS (7 days ago 😜)

Absolutely in disbelief at how fast these milestones are coming 🥹. Why didn’t anyone warn me 😉?

I roll from my belly to my back, but Dad caught me trying to roll from my back to my belly this morning (hoping he holds off on this one for a bit). I’m talking in my own gibberish all the time and have discovered how fun it is to touch things—like Mom’s face, my own fingers, my toys, and especially my heavy dumbbell! Mom took me outside for a picnic the other day, but I couldn’t open my eyes because the sun is soooo bright after a loooong winter cooped up (so excited for nice weather next week!!!).

I’m 13 lbs now and eating like a wild animal. Mom cried today when she left me for the first time to get her hair done, but I was perfectly happy with Grandma , so she has nothing to worry about!

I hate when Mom eats dairy. I love funny sounds and songs. My bedtime routine—when Mom brushes my hair while Dad prays for us—is the best! Bath time is lots of fun, and I need it often because my hands and creases get soooo smelly.

I giggle in my sleep and grunt really loud when I’m going #2. I love wrapping my hands around Mom and holding on for dear life. I have a resting grump face but smile often when people talk to me. My eyebrows are very expressive like Dad’s because I’m his mini-me (with Mom’s nose) 😆.

Next up, moving to 🏔️ and my first ✈️

02/10/2025

Big decisions ahead… Will our little one be a Bobcat or a Griz fan? One thing’s for sure—we’re coming back to Montana! 🏔️🐻🐱 While we’re excited for this next chapter, leaving O-H-I-O and all the incredible people we love here makes this move bittersweet. Ohio will always have a special place in our hearts!

We’ll be making the move back mid-April to May and are currently looking for a rental—so if you know of anything, let us know!

As we head home, we’re also stepping into something new—Eric is opening his chiropractic office, and we can’t wait to serve the people of Billings, Montana. Here’s to new beginnings, old rivalries, and a future full of adventure!

02/07/2025

People do not drift toward Holiness. Apart from grace-driven effort, people do not gravitate toward godliness, prayer, obedience to Scripture, faith, and delight in the Lord. We drift toward compromise and call it tolerance; we drift toward disobedience and call it freedom; we drift toward superstition and call it faith. We cherish the indiscipline of lost self-control and call it relaxation; we slouch toward prayerlessness and delude ourselves into thinking we have escaped legalism; we slide toward godlessness and convince ourselves we have been liberated.
D.A. Carson

02/02/2025

1 month already 🥹

01/27/2025

The sweetest little boy 🤗

We are learning new things daily about how to care best for our little dude (like waiting until he’s completely done pooping before changing that diaper at 2am 😂). God is using this new chapter to do a work in us and though it’s taken us out of our comfort zone, we know it’s for something greater!

Shep’s heard lots of Psalms and Acts read out loud. Met our mentor, Fred, last night via zoom. Heard podcast/sermons from and Jon Courson. We’ve danced to (lesson learned in overstimulation). Watched and at the inauguration on the same day that THE won the National Championship. O H - ….

Thank you for the most special photos and for letting us use her beautiful Airbnb space. If you ever need a place to stay, good cup of coffee, or an amazing baked good then check out her shop just south of Columbus in Ashville.

01/20/2025

Shep’s first time at church outside the womb 🙌 At just 2.5 weeks old, it’s so special to see him surrounded by the sounds of praise and the body of Christ. What a sweet moment! 🤍✨
eric.simonton

11/17/2024

If you know them, you love them ❤️ Brandon and Kate own and manage and (The best gym and wellness center in Ohio). It’s truly more than a gym. They have physical therapists in house, transformative lifestyle, nutrition, and workout plans, excellent staff, and coaches. In addition to having regular CrossFit classes (for regular folks like me and separate classes for the more competitive type) they also have that’s an entirely different part of the gym that’s dedicated to some unique classes like their REV, and my personal favorite, Conjugate Strength training.

Their coach led conjugate strength classes blew my mind. I had been doing CrossFit for 6 years prior to moving back to Ohio and was obsessed with how it changed my life for the better. I was more fit in my 30s than I ever was in my 20s. However, I hit a plateau with my strength after a couple years. Conjugate training was the solution! I quickly added 75lbs to my deadlift through consistently showing up to those classes and doing what the coaches said. I also loved that I could still jump into a CrossFit class whenever I felt like it. It’s exactly what my body needed in preparation for my first pregnancy at age 37!
I couldn’t imagine what my body would feel like right now at 35 weeks pregnant if I hadn’t built a solid foundation first.

I’ve also had the privilege of working for Brandon and Kate these last couple years and they’ve been so good to me. They take good care of their staff and care deeply about their members. I’m sad my last day is next week🤰!

That being said, this was my last session before baby comes, and I’m officially on maternity leave!!! CrrrrAzy!

11/06/2024

Bennett Extended Family Photos 🍁🍂

11/06/2024

Bennett Extended Family Photos 🍁 🍂 .

Amelia is the cutest little thing I’ve ever seen 🥰 ! (how could she not be? Look at her momma )

…and she’s fast 😂 This shoot proved that now is a good time for my official maternity leave. It shocked me how out of breath I got just chasing her around. Luckily, I still had some mobility left!

I actually did Amelia’s newborn photos, too, and I can’t believe how quickly she’s growing up. How is she even walking already!?!

Time truly goes so fast and it’s such a wonderful reminder for me to slow down and enjoy these last weeks of pregnancy and cherish all the newborn snuggles when he gets here.

10/25/2024

I know sneak peeks are supposed to be just a few photos but how could I possibly narrow it down more from all these adorable shots?!? We had so much fun with this family and it shows :)

08/26/2024

God is doing a work in me through this pregnancy. He is giving me such a contentment, a desire for simplicity, and most importantly a reliance on Him to provide all I need physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

Or maybe it’s more of a return to Him. How true it can be that we are prone to wander. Wander to things that can never bring true contentment, peace, or happiness.

Not a vacation, job, new house, bigger yard, gym PR, or a like on social media.

He deserves the worship, time, and attention that I’ve shamefully given to too many other things over the years. Things that only steal my peace, things that won’t be going with me into eternity, things that make me restless and worried.

Just wanted to share my heart today! Hopefully it speaks to someone else and gives God the glory that He deserves. In my wandering He always comes to my rescue and brings me back just like He says He’ll do in the parable of the lost sheep.

Also!!! So glad I did these photos. I almost didn’t because it was so cold and I was grumpy about it 😂 🥶 .

I brought my cameras on our trip through Glacier and offered to do family photos for the friends we were with. After I did a few for them, I had the mom (one of my best friends ) take my camera and snap a few for us. They turned out so beautiful and I especially love the ones she got of Eric snapping a few photos of me. If you didn’t know this, he was always my second shooter for weddings, and he is SO good! Thank you, Tiff! We’ll cherish these photos FOREVER!

08/16/2024

Glacier National Park Elopment
8-8-24
Brett + Lisa

08/12/2024

What a special last day in Montana ❤️ We attended , the place where my photography journey began back in 2012 during the Easter Service for For King and Country. What started as a hobby turned into a career and brought me back this weekend from Ohio to photograph a Glacier elopement 🏔️.

We went with some of our best friends, who we actually met at Fresh Life back in 2012. It was such a joy to catch up with many brothers and sisters from our time living in Montana and attending Fresh Life ❤️.

The experience was so nostalgic, like a homecoming of sorts. The message was 🔥 as always, and the worship moved me to tears, reminding me of how great our God is. If this felt like a homecoming, I can only imagine how much more incredible it will be when we finally get to heaven, to be with all our brothers and sisters and our good, good Father!

08/10/2024

Congrats and .p.hayes 🏔️ 🌲 Made me so excited that you asked me to come out to GNP in Montana to document your beautiful day. Eric and I are so happy for you both!

.eric.simonton

07/10/2024

Wedding Day Sneak Peek
Guy Kolberg + Cassy Haffner
06/29/2024
Glendive, Montana

Feel free to tag others and share ❤

07/10/2024