We are back from a few days away with friends. I did one of my 101 things in 1001 days (post coming soon!) and we are trying to catch up and get ready for busy season. Now for a little fun with things I have NOT done…

During our vacation this weekend, Cory and I did NOT go into the Pepper Palace hot sauce store and try the hottest salsa ever. No, we have way more sense than that. And, we didn’t have to leave the store after we tried the salsa because it was so hot we embarrassed ourselves. And we certainly didn’t start crying from how hot the salsa was and our friends were not laughing at us when they saw us crying. And Cory DID NOT go back into the Pepper Palace and purchase salsa for us to take home. No, we know our limits with hot food and would never do that. 

And while at dinner with our friends, we did not sound like a herd of buffalo as we entered the Apple Barn restaurant. And I did not continuously feed apple fritters to my children as a way to keep them quiet so the other guests could enjoy their meal. And I was not happy when the couple that was giving me dirty looks because we had young children at our table left and was replaced with a family with children. Just saying… that’s all.

And yesterday on our way home from the mountains when Sarah had a diaper blow out, I did not put her back in the car seat with just a diaper and a shirt on. No, I am a better mom than that. I, of course, unpacked the entire car until I could get to our suitcase and found her new pants. : )

This is my sister’s brother here. You would think that would make him my brother, but he isn’t. I will just let you figure that one out. I have known him all my life and have known for the bride for a while now, so it was just like family! Do you see the bride’s beautiful dress and veil? Her MOM made it for her in less than 30 days!! Can you believe it? I think this was the longest veil we have seen yet and I think it accents the dress perfectly. It was such a blessing to be a guest as well as the photographer at this wedding. Oh… and the cake was Red Velvet from Edgars… and it was TASTY!

One different thing about this wedding for us was out kids being at the wedding. Since we were also guests, we were asked to bring our kids and the bride had the BEST babysitter in the world for them. It was really neat that the room they were in had a wall of glass that opened into the chapel. Both of my children really enjoyed seeing a wedding and seeing mom and dad work. Elijah asked me a few times what I was doing and if I could hold him. I told him no that I was working to buy him more tractors. He seemed ok with that! There were a few times that I forgot they were there until I turned around to see two faces watching us, trying to figure out exactly what we were doing. After all the pictures were complete and we headed to the reception area, Elijah yelled “TIME FOR CAKE”. That’s my boy!

My handsome nephews with thier uncle. I love the lighting on this one! Cory did a great job here!

My sister and her family…. love it!

I am loving all the red and Christmas colors lately. You know these boys… my sweet neighbors! It is hard to believe how much the baby has grown. These are the 9 month portraits and of course, we had to make it a family session and get a few shots for the Christmas card! Big brother is smart, smart, smart… ask him about the presidents on Mt. Rushmore and at 3 years old… he can tell you! I am so in love with the eyelash picture of the baby. You can count every single lash… and check out the brotherly love in the pictures of them together.

P.S. Another couple married at Samford (10 years ago!) so we had to go back for a family session!

I have been looking forward to this session for 6 months! I talk to mom and grandmom on facebook (grandmom is a very TALENTED wedding planner!) and we talked about what they would wear and even changed locations a few times. I heard that the middle girl is a handful but I don’t believe it. She was a typical two year at our session but I think she did great. I mean, it is a little crazy to expect a two year old to look at a big black box (camera) and smile. But with Dad’s hilarious help (I could hire him, he was so good as getting the girls to giggle!), I think I really captured her sweet personality. I am so in love with the results…. I could do a blog post for each girl. Precious family!

I can’t even begin to tell you how special it is for me to shoot this engagement session. Cory and I have known the bride for a few years but lost touch in the last year or so. I heard she was dating a great guy and THEN I heard they were engaged. It is strange at times being a wedding photographer when your friends get married. We wonder… do they want us for their photography? We are totally fine if a friend chooses another photographer, I mean, there is SO much talent in the Birmingham area alone and there are so many weddings. It might be nice to just attend a wedding, but I am afraid I would be twitching without my camera…. but I digress….

When the bride called and said she wanted to meet…. it absolutely made my day! And when it was decided that we were the right fit; you just can’t wipe the smile off my face when I think about it. This couple was engaged just a few weeks ago and is getting married on December 12, 2009…. yep, you read it right…. just a few weeks away! It was so great to meet the groom and his daughters. We started with a traditional engagement session and then ended with his daughters coming in for a family session. I really love the results. But, what I love most is how happy my friend is when he is around. Doesn’t she just glow??? This is another reason why I so love my job!!