happy halloween!

I promise that I am going to start posting some slideshows again soon. I have had so much fun taking costume pictures this week! Here is the cutest fairy in the whole town...our sweet niece, Alex. We were so happy that she let us go trick-or-treating with her tonight.

finally!

**I have added numbers to go with each sample to help with identifying the card when ordering!***

Here are the last Christmas card samples! I am also including the other samples at the bottom of this post. I know I have been promising more comprehensive information on how to choose and order so here it is...

All of the card choices are now in a gallery that you can use to see them in detail. You will be able to see them individually this way. If you have had a session recently or have one coming up before Christmas, I will email this link to you with your gallery link. If you are a current client and have had a session in the past few months that you would like to use for a Christmas card, email me and I will send the link to you. If you are not a current client but are still interested in viewing the options, drop me an email as well. There are still some sessions available in time to have Christmas pictures made. Please call or email me with any questions!

Just to confirm, here are the prices.

25 cards...$50
50 cards...$100
75 cards...$125
100 cards...$150
All prices include 5x7 flat cards and envelopes.


First, the new ones...

last call...

I just couldn't resist this one.

I have opened up a few more spots for costume pictures this week. Call me if you're interested!

I can hardly believe I've been photographing Grayson since he was 2 weeks old! He is growing and changing so much. These sessions with him are so relaxed and easy. Once we make it to a year, I'll have to post pictures as he changed every few months.

I wanted to try to get in an early post for the weekend. We're off to Athens for a wedding today. Looks like it's going to be beautiful...

It has been a cold and rainy day. Isn't it weird how all of a sudden you go from wearing your flip-flops to wearing your sweaters? I know that it's not really cold here. But it's plenty cold for me and it feels cozy to have the heat on. It's also making me sleepy...

In an effort to throw some color in an otherwise gloomy day, here are some cute girls I've photographed over the last couple of months.


Libby



Anna Kathryn


Both of these girls are beautiful and well-loved daughters. It was a privilege for me to get to photograph them.

i heart fall weddings.

I love engagement shoots. I loved the time that Corey and I were engaged and I think I feel like I can relive that time somehow by capturing it for others. I love the sweetness and anticipation of it all. April and Jonathan are SO much fun...we are really looking forward to photographing their wedding in a few weeks. They have one of the sweetest engagement stories of all time.

Wow. I can't believe I went a whole week without posting. It's been a busy few days!

I love this season. I have had so much fun lately getting to see familiar faces and meet new ones. I have loved trying out some new places for pictures and have been in disbelief that the sky and the leaves can really be this beautiful. I am going to try (I feel like I am always saying this!) to be faithful in updating the blog from here on out.

If you want to schedule a fall session and/or pictures for Christmas cards, there are still sessions available. As long as your shoot is done by the week of Thanksgiving (and maybe the week after if you ask nicely!), you can still get pictures in time for Christmas. That leaves several more weeks for you to schedule. Also, I will be doing several sessions the day before Thanksgiving for those of you who will be in town and have school-aged kids who will be out that day.

Here is a shoot that I love from last month. Gabrielle was SO much fun to photograph. When we arrived, her mom was sure that Gabrielle would not enjoy an afternoon of playing barefoot outside. At first, it seemed that her mama was right. However--to her daddy's delight--it was not long before Gabrielle realized that she LOVED playing outside and spent the whole session running around and exploring all that there was to see and do. Also, I have to say that the highlight of this session was the incredibly entertaining rendition of 'Twist and Shout' that her mom, dad and aunt performed behind the lens in their attempt to get some priceless smiles. I think mostly Gabrielle just looked at them like they were crazy but I can tell you for sure that they kept me laughing! It was awesome to see the way they adore this little girl and not hard to see why.

fall fun...

I am so excited to offer these costume sessions this year! Let me know if you are interested...

falling...

I guess today is a good day to post about change. It feels like fall outside. During my shoot this afternoon, I promise that you could feel a tangible energy in the air.

Today is one of those scary days for me. Sometimes I think maybe I shouldn't post this on my photography blog--that maybe I should just always act like I've got it all together and I'm moving through each day with the greatest of calm and ease. (I know that makes those of you who know me and my freak-outs want to laugh out loud.) Is it unprofessional to tell people that sometimes I feel like I'm going to throw up? I am excited to say that there are changes coming and that I am excited to finally be able to think about executing ideas that have been circling around my head for the last couple of years. I am excited to see how life will continue to unfold. If you had asked me even two years ago what I thought life would look like today, I have no idea what I would have said. But I am pretty sure that I would not have dreamed that it could have looked like this.

Brooke's mama came prepared for this one. She was loaded down with all the fun things that made this shoot such a special time. I loved seeing the sweet, sweet relationship between Brooke and her daddy.

This was one of my all-time favorite photo sessions. Beautiful family, incredible location, and a lot of laughter. Enjoy the McNaughtons.

the session that almost wasn't...

We worked hard for this one. I'm not sure who worked the hardest but I'm pretty sure that it wasn't me. Our first attempt was in the middle of July. It was thundering as we walked up. About five minutes after we started, the sky let loose and we had to make a run for it (though we did capture the above picture beforehand). It was one of those hard, unrelenting rains, the kind we haven't seen much of lately. Cade and Connor's sweet mama asked me if we could just try again a different day. The hard thing was that we couldn't reschedule until September! It did turn out to be a beautiful day and it gave me another chance to hang out with these really fun and super cute brothers.

I know. It kind of looks like I'm in a black and white phase. Really I'm not. But I do love these two pictures. Julianne was wide-eyed and sweet for our whole session. Sometimes I wish I could simultaneously photograph all of the people behind the lens who are working to make my pictures happen. Julianne had me, her parents, her grandparents, and the Golden Retriever all putting on a virtual circus for this one. It is clear to see that this is one loved little girl and it is not hard to see why!

it's beginning to look a lot like...

So, at very long last, here are the rest of the Christmas cards! I got my Southern Living Christmas edition in the mail today so I guess that makes it officially time. (It is, after all, the second day of October.) I really like these cards a lot and hope that you will, too. This will be my first year to offer Christmas cards but I am really excited about the possibilities. The prices for the cards are listed alongside the second group of cards above. As I offered last year, it is also possible to purchase a file from your session if you would like to have your cards printed somewhere else. Please contact me with any questions or more detailed information! I would love to know what you think! (By the way, the pictures do not have to be in black and white on the cards.)

fresh off the press...

I thought I'd be spontaneous tonight and post the show that I just finished working on. I love these pictures! These two were so much fun to photograph and I love the way the pictures turned out. I hope they show how much they love to laugh and how much they love each other. This was a really fun day...this might have to be a week of Huntsville pictures. Enjoy Ian and Ansley!

boys, boys, boys...

I guess this is a week full of boys! I guess that I have to admit that it would be hard for me to tell the truth if I'd had a particularly difficult photo session...but the honest truth is that almost all of the time, it is really really easy. And so...here's the honest truth...Henry was another one of those remarkably easygoing and happy boys. I loved getting to meet his mom and dad (and it actually turned out that his mom knew Corey from back in the day!) and as always I loved watching the way they celebrated the gift of their little boy.

Thanks to those of you who sent encouraging emails after my spontaneous blog post last night. I am excited about posting some of the recent shows. Here are two (since it is Tuesday, after all!)..

Little Michael is one of a kind. He approached our whole session with the expression in this picture...intent and trying to take it all in. He was a little stingy with his smiles but it was still clear to me that this is one content little boy. I wish that I had been able to capture his walk--I have never seen anything cuter.

And speaking of happy little boys, Wyatt was full of smiles during our entire session. I chose this picture because I love it so you will have to watch the show to see his all of his grins. Also, his mom brought this awesome chair for the pictures. I love it!

not responding...

I feel like the 'not responding' message is one that my computer likes to give me a lot these days. You know...the message that comes up in parentheses when nothing is happening even though you're pushing all the right keys. Like you don't know that it's not responding. I can kind of understand, though. I think I'm like my computer in this way--when I feel totally maxed out, I freak out. Though my computer seems to have the ability to just withdraw from me trying to make it do a gazillion things at once, I have yet to perfect the art of taking a break quietly. Instead, I go into emotional overdrive. And so, this is where you'll find me these days and why you haven't found me posting all of the slideshows that I promised. I feel like the theme of my life these days is my busy-ness. I don't know how to talk about that in a way that doesn't sound like I'm complaining. Trust me. I am not complaining! Starting this business and getting to do something every day that I LOVE is an amazing thing. Feeling totally energized and challenged by that love has been something I never would have dared to imagine that I would experience. Right now is just a weird, in the middle kind of time. I am still working another job and Corey is still doing all of our orders and processing stuff. We are busier than we ever have been and it is EXCITING stuff. I am so excited about what the future holds but know that the next few months will continue to bring lots of times where my scared, tired and untrusting self has a louder voice than I wish that it did.


Also, for those of you that don't know, Corey and I are in the middle of the adoption process. We are SUPER excited but also know that we potentially have a very long wait ahead of us. We are looking forward to the end of our paperwork being done this week. Also, we are renovating a house that we bought about a month ago. It was a fabulous deal and one that we were not looking to throw into the mix of our already chaotic life. My husband works miracles in old houses and I am amazed at what he can do. I do confess that the chaos of two homes, multiple businesses, an adoption, and all the other life stuff has been just as chaotic as you might think.
I know that I keep promising Christmas cards. I know that I keep promising one-year plans for baby pictures. I know that I keep promising a new show on the blog every day. Thank you to everyone who reads this blog and keeps believing me even though I continue to postpone everything that I say. Thanks for trusting me that my heart is to do all of those things and that every night that I go to sleep yet again without finishing those things leaves me with a sinking feeling. Thanks for knowing that one of these days, I am going to get to throw all of my time into this venture. And most of all, thanks for continuing to tell your friends about me. That makes me feel like the future is much sooner than later.


I have so many pictures of so many beautiful children to post. Here is just one:
Bradley and Emma Claire

I am admitting defeat. It has been an incredibly long day and though I had a LOT of fun standing inside of a fountain with two-year-old twins while they swam in their best Strasburg outfits, I am afraid I just can't muster posting a show tonight. Two to come first thing tomorrow!

weave me the sunshine...

Anyone who knows me well knows that the Perry family holds a place in my heart and life that is held by few others. We moved in down the street when I was in the 4th grade and though Lizzie and Jennifer and I weren't instant friends, it wasn't long before New Kids on the Block and Babysitter Club books sealed the deal (I know...we were really dorky. Really. We know that now but we thought we were REALLY cool then.) When you talk about the friends that you "grew up with," these will always be the friends that I think of. I will forever be grateful for all of the love and laughter and conversation and understanding and sacrifice that they--the whole Perry family--contributed to my life.

One of the sweetest things about this friendship is that it's one that my whole family shares with their whole family. My brother and Blair have been best friends since the first grade. In my head, Andy and Blair are both about 13 or 14 doing cannonballs off the diving board and playing basketball in the cove. I still can't believe that they are both married.

Getting the opportunity to photograph Blair and Kim's wedding last month was a huge gift to Corey and me. Their lives and the choices that they have made reflect God's heart for justice and I am grateful for their testimony of sacrifice and service. We loved photographing their wedding in the backyard of some houses in the neighborhood where they both live and serve in Memphis. It was also just really fun to get to see little Blair head over heels over his bride!

(I couldn't resist posting this cupcake shot...how cute are these????)

tuesday x2

Okay, I managed to pull it off! A two for Tuesday! Enjoy Mary Ashton and Will. For some reason, I really love this first shot. Something about the expression on her face just pulls me in... her baby brother is pretty darn cute, too! I wish I had more to write but I am falling asleep at the computer...

***Also, the rest of the Christmas cards will be launched (as well as prices and packages) by early next week. I love the second round even more than the first so stay tuned for those.

I'm in a hurry to get my Tuesday show up so enjoy cute Brennan today. Her name is one of my all-time favorites, by the way. I will try to write and post more later today...it just might be a two for Tuesday but it's too soon to tell!

happy monday!

I am going to try hard to post a session every day this week so be sure to check back! Here is a cute little family that I photographed a couple of months ago. Little Kaitlyn was one of those who loved the gardens and could not explore it all fast enough. It was a really hot day but we had a lot of fun!

coming out to play...

My favorite part of this photo shoot was the last 20 minutes or so, which is when we got both of these shots. There is almost always THIS moment in a photo session--when whoever I'm photographing finally settles in and I get the chance to really capture who they are right now, in this place and at this time. It's almost a tangible thing and I wait for it. Sometimes it happens really quickly and sometimes you have to just wait it out. Carter and Reagan were fantastic subjects--they sat wherever, smiled whenever, did whatever I asked them to do--you can't ask for more than that. But the best part was when they thought that we were done and the session was over! That's when their JOY came out to play.

delight...

Delight is the word that kept running through my mind during this entire shoot of Ann Harper. For one thing, she's an undeniably delightful girl...so sweet and happy. Her smiles light up the whole room. But this is one LOVED little girl. To see the way that her mama and daddy truly delight in her was such a picture for me of what love looks like. I still can't believe that this is supposed to be a job! Getting to step into people's lives in such a real way will never lose its wonder for me.

Well, at long last, here they are. Round one of this year's Christmas card samples! There are more to come, hopefully by early next week. When I post the next group, I will give all of the information as far as pricing and how to purchase them. I hope--especially after all the fan fare-- that you like them!

another rainy day...

Well, we are back home from Atlanta and trying to get back into the swing of things. There is lots to get caught up on. I know I have been saying for weeks how behind that I am on posting but I guess that is just how things are going to be for right now. I decided to switch things up a little bit and post a session from just last week. Kendall and Drew were an absolute joy to photograph, especially considering that over half of our session was in the rain and done in lightning speed. I LOVE all of their expressions...I hope their sweetness comes across in these pictures!

P.S. Baby Salem is recovering very well. She got to go home (well, home to the hotel) last night and is doing better and better! Thank you for praying and I can't believe some of you even posted on their website...that was a gift to me!