Happy 2010!

Merry Christmas... and a happy new year! I hope Santa was good to everyone this year. I had a wonderful Christmas. My husband went overboard on gifts for me (per usual) but now that I'm over the guilt of it, I'm actually enjoying them. The best, by far, was a six month membership to Massage Envy. I usually get 1-2 massages a year. Now I get one every month! Woo hoo!

For all of you girlies who may have gotten a big ole diamond for Christmas... thanks for visiting! I hope you like my work. 2010 is booking up quickly, and I just wiped August off the calendar last week. This means January, May, July, and August are already filled. Outside of that I'm game :)

I have a wedding this Saturday for a couple whose groom may or may not be deployed for his third tour in Iraq at the end of January. I'm really excited for their wedding. We did a quickie engagemnet session in uptown earlier this week. Here are a few faves... and thanks for serving our amazing country, Dan!

Fa la la la la....

It's the time of year again... went up to the mountains with my family yesterday and picked out a tree. This is one of my favorite days of the year. Cut a tree, eat at a local restaurant, then shop Main St. in Blowing Rock. There was even a few inches of snow on the ground this year which our three year old thought was, of course, the best part!

So I haven't posted anything in almost a month... not because I'm lazy, but because I've been too busy! As you probably know, pictures make great Christmas gifts so naturally all of my clients have been ordering like crazy. On top of that I've had several portrait, engagement, and bridal sessions in the last month. To top it off, I've booked three more weddings for next year. Brides... book now! I am only accepting one wedding a month in 2010 so once they're gone, they're gone.

I made one exception to my rule and double booked for January. I've got a sweet bride who was planning on a June wedding, but her fiance is getting deployed to Iraq early so they're shooting for New Year's weekend. If you've followed my blogs you know I love our men and women in uniform... so much I give them an automatic 10% off right from the get go. I'm looking forward to capturing some great memories for this deserving couple.

Merry Christmas to all!

p.s. Here's a pic of my kitchen. Another reason I haven't blogged lately... discovered that the ice maker hose came loose weeks ago and has been secretly ruining our floor. Everything buckled on Thanksgiving day. We've had very loud fans blowing for a week straight (24/7) and will hopefully get a new floor laid this week along with new cabinetry to replace the damaged. Thank you homeowners' insurance!

2010 is Booking Quickly!

First and foremost, say a quick prayer of thankfulness for all of the men and women who proudly serve the greatest country in the world. We are forever indebted to them...

Hi guys and gals, brides and grooms... I hope you're having a great Fall and are deep in the swing of planning your weddings! I'm getting lots of requests right now, so I guess this is the last big push before the Christmas engagement wave hits in January. I just booked July earlier today. Another month bites the dust!

I've just finished up a few collections from two weddings and an engagement. This weekend I've got a baby shoot, then next weekend I'm shooting my final session of the year - a bridal portrait at Latta Plantation. I'm so excited to be nearing the end of my workload. It's been a wonderful year, and I'm thankful for all the business, but I'm ready to relax and enjoy the holidays :)

Here are some faves for your viewing pleasure:

Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden

Chillin' at T-Bones before the reception

Mr. & Mrs!

Love this pic... that boy wants to DIVE in. Mom's finger says it all.

My Wake Forest couple: shot at Jetton Park

Love me some leaves! This is why I love fall.

Dog Days of Autumn

I'm in power mode. I've edited four collections in the last week, and have only two weddings to edit before I can say I'm done for the year (minus two upcoming shoots, but I won't count that in my current workload just yet.) Woo hoo!

Amongst the babies and grown-ups, I had the opportunity to have my first canine shoot :) A sweet couple, Chris and Hannah, recently got a puppy named Henry. He was about 10 weeks old when we took this shoot and already around 70 pounds. He's on his way to at least twice that, so they wanted some images while he's still nice and "small." It was super fun though. I love dogs with all my heart, so this was especially fun!

Happy Birthday to Me!

Today is my birthday. I LOVE October, and part of the reason is my birthday. Who doesn't love their birthday? I don't complain about getting older. I'm thankful for it, afterall, it's another year on our glorious Earth. I think of all of our soldiers whose families would give anything for just one more day, so how can I complain about a few more wrinkles here and there, ya know? Happy to be 32!

I flew to DC and back today for work. I literally take ONE business trip a year, and it happned to fall on my birthday. This I can complain about. I had to eat Subway in Dulles airport for dinner, but my manager took me to a really nice Italian restaurant for lunch so I guess that makes up for it :) As well, my wonderful husband awaited me at home with roses, a slice of carrot cake (my fave!) and some super fun presents.

I'm super happy, because for the first time in five years of business I've taken the fall OFF! My last wedding was September 26th, and I'm on hiatus from weddings until January. Don't get me wrong; I love shooting weddings. But I also love college football and hanging out with my family watching my girls grow, so I'm happy with my decision to say "no" to all the 2009 fall weddings. This doesn't mean the works stops. I still have two weddings, one engagement, one canine, and two baby sessions to edit, plus a few more portrait shoots coming up. Never ending, I tell ya!

Speaking of, both January and May are booked for 2010. I've been getting inundated with inquiries for all the other months, so book soon if you're interested! I only accept one wedding per month.

Here are some faves from my recently finished collection of Baby Grant, taken at about 6 weeks of age:

Editing my heart out...

The finish line is near... ok, not really, but I tell myself that to keep the motivation up. Just returned from a long weekend in Jamaica with my wonderful hubby. It was gorgeous... beautiful beaches, great snorkeling, fresh seafood... take me back! No, really, four nights away from my kiddos was about all I could stand. Isn't it sad? You try so hard to have an adult-only getaway once a year then end up missing your kids so much you can't wait to get home and hug them!

So anyway, I'm still editing my heart out. Almost done with Lauren and Jesse's wedding, then moving on to my July brides. Here's a little collage I put together for Lauren in the meantime.



I have been up to my ears in portrait sessions, and it's not stopping anytime soon. In the next week I have one engagement, two baby sessions, and one "new dog" session...LOL! I also have a mountain wedding at the end of the month before hanging up my camera for the year. I love photography, but I'm happy with my decision to take the fall off this year and simply enjoy my favorite season without having to run to a wedding every Saturday or cram up my weekends with portrait sessions. It gets crazy, y'all! Plus, I'm ready to watch some college football this year. Boiler Up!


Here's some Jamaica for you: Couples Swept Away

Bring on the Fall!

Summer's been so busy, I'm ready for fall! I know I've been a slacker in posting, but I took a week of vacation (woo hoo!) and had wedding after wedding this summer. Since my last post I shot a gorgeous wedding at Daniel Stowe Botanical Garden. Other than that, my head has been to the grindstone getting weddings edited and albums designed. A photographer's work is never done...

So I'm trying really hard to edit the three weddings I currently have outstanding before I go to Negril, Jamaica with my wonderful hubby. We celebrate our anniversary every year (this is our 7th) with a trip to an adult-only all-inclusive. We try to go somewhere new, and this resort came highly recommended. I'll let you know my personal thoughts afterwards. I will miss my girls like crazy, but cannot wait to just sit on a white beach, sip some rum punch, and read pointless novels like Pat Conroy's new "South of Broad" uninterrupted. Please pray for the hurricanes to stay away! We've always lucked out.

Emily & Brian - Charlotte Whitewater Wedding

This past weekend I got to shoot a wedding at one my favorite Charlotte destinations... the US Whitewater Center! If you've never been, you really should give it a try. My husband and I have been hiking with our dogs and kids for a few years now out at the Whitewater Center. He's gone rafting with BoA, but my company's legal department didn't think it would be such a great idea (hey, we tried.)

Anyway, Emily and Brian are very adventurous people so the location fit them perfectly. You couldn't have asked for better weather, either. I was dreading a high-noon, outdoor, Carolina July wedding for the longest time, but it actually turned out to be the best of the summer! Cool breezes, sunny, highs only in the 80's... who could ask for more? The only part I didn't like were the swarms (and I mean SWARMS) of yellowjackets all over the place by the water. I've been here so many times and never saw a single yellowjacket, so be on the lookout. Those suckers are literally 2" long. I read in the paper today a well-known, local businessman was stung by one Saturday morning and sadly died! Anyway, I digress...

... the wedding was great! You can tell this is a very laid back, carefree couple who will have few moments of drama in their decades to come. They just let things roll off their back most of the time and laugh at everything else. I wish I could have stayed longer to witness Emily ziplining and rafting in her wedding dress (no joke.)

I caught this image of Brian before the wedding waiting for Emily to come out for the "first look". He was so relaxed!

I took this just seconds after Brian and Emily saw eachother for the first time

This is one of my favorites... chillaxin on the adirondacks.

Drew & Matthew - Charlotte Babies

In the past week I had the fun opportunity of capturing two cute Ballantyne kiddos, both recently turning one year old. I'm so flattered that their parents chose me to photograph this awesome milestone. I've been capturing Baby Drew since he was just a week old, actually. I was thumbing through some of my older shots of him from last year which just reminded me how FAST these sweet babies grow up. Having two beautiful daughters of my own (ages 3 and 5 months), I've learned first hand how quickly they change from squirmy, wrinkled newborns into fat babies full of personality!

This was my first time shooting Matthew, and he made my job very easy. He's very relaxed and easy going, and doesn't move around too much. He's very easy to make laugh and enjoys simple things like bubbles and playing peek-a-boo with his Mama. Speaking of his Mama, he's her identical twin as a baby. It's almost scary how identical they look! I wish I had a picture of her as a newborn to show you. You'd die!

My advice to any new parents out there: have your baby photographed all year long (newborn, 3 mo, 6 mo, 12 mo.) You will never get this time back and they change so much... it's worth every penny. I don't care who you go to, just have it done! You won't regret it.

This is my favorite of Matthew

I just want to SQUEEZE those thighs!

So innocent and pure

When Matthew gets excited, he gets excited!

Drew's playful side coming out. He is a silly boy.

Look ma... no hands!

I wish I were this flexible.

Drew LOVES his wagon!

Jesse + Lauren - Mooresville Wedding

This past weekend was Lauren and Jesse's wedding in Mooresville followed by a super fun reception at Birkdale Country Club. I'll admit that I've been looking forward to their wedding all year! They are a totally care free, fun-loving couple that I knew would throw a killer wedding. They didn't disappoint. Lauren was all over all the little details (lime green and hot pink!) and didn't miss a beat. So fun!

So some of you know I had our most recent daughter just four months ago. I guess I'm still hormonal because I could not keep it together at this wedding! The minute Lauren's Dad saw her his floodgates opened, followed by Lauren's, followed by mine. I'm sitting there thinking "I hardly know these people, and I'm crying" but what's a girl to do? Usually the processional gets me, but this was the first time I cried while my bride was getting ready. I really am pathetic!

So as you can tell from the pics a great time was had by all. These are the kinds of weddings where I sometimes want to just toss the camera and join everyone on the dance floor. What a great time!

Ok, kids, I'm off to the beach. Happy 4th of July!

This is Lauren's signature expression!

Straight outta a magazine...

Jesse's so excited to see his bride!

Bubbles on exit

Mooresville ARP Church. Too darn cute.

Birkdale CC. Love me some pink parisols.

It was a sauna outside, but the tables sure were cute!

Just one of their many favors: personalized golf balls. Tee it up!

Dancing to "Jesse's Girl". Could they really NOT play this classic 80's hit? I think not!