I told part of the story about how Julie was the first person I talked to about Eric, my husband, when I first “met” him on Facebook over 4 years ago. She was there when I finally met him in person. She was there when I decided to “accept” his offer to court me. Julie is special to me and holds a very dear spot in my heart. It was such a honor for Julie to ask me to document her love story with John Mark this December. I had an amazing time capturing their day and enjoyed seeing all my old college cheerleading buddies!

This segment of Julie & John Mark’s wedding only the first half… just up until the reception (which will be posted tomorrow, so come back)! I’m so proud of Julie for marrying a man that loves her like she deserves. John Mark is a wonderful man and a great compliment to my sweet and wonderful friend. I pray that they have a magical marriage, full of life and blessings. Thank you again John Mark & Julie for asking me to create everlasting memories of your big day! I love you guys!

I’m accustomed to being given a hard time while shooting the portraits. Guys are usually a hoot and give me a hard time and these guys lived up to the expectations. Even though they were “too cool” for pictures, I think these turned out pretty good!

The girls were full of laughter all day. I LOVE catching laughter!

I think Julie’s mom’s face is priceless! This is just when she saw Julie in her dress!

My favorite part of the ceremony!

Look how happy they are!

This is my favorite part after the ceremony… when they are first alone as a married couple!

The girls were hilarious!

They happy couple…

Remember, tune back in tomorrow for Part II, which inlcudes a dancing entrance!

My little baby Romeo was cold yesterday because it was snowing… so I thought I would put his hoodie on. I know he loved it. He told me…. by the way he was prancing around in it. He’s kind of a girlie-boy. And my hubs thought he needed his picture taken with his mommy. Oh yes, he definitely did.

Happy New Year’s Eve’s Eve!

Christmas is the most amazing time of the year. Everyone hangs Christmas lights and sets up Christmas trees, Christmas music fills the air, and I get to eat sweets… a LOT. Well, I already eat a lot of sweets, but I get to eat a LLLOOOTT of sweets. To top it all off, we got to experience our first white Christmas I can remember. On Christmas Eve it was like a blizzard outside, with the snow blowing sideways at 40 mph. It was AWESOME! So, on Christmas Day, everything was covered in white and I had a permanent smile.

We had Christmas at my mom and dad’s house like always. It is totally my favorite thing when we all get up early on Christmas morning and watch the kids run into the living room with amazement on their faces from all the things Santa brought them. I LOVE Christmas. So, I thought I would share a few of the pictures I grabbed on my favorite day of the year.

Santa always puts underwear on the tree. My niece (4) thought that was hilarious!

Kinzie and Austin

Austin and my hub

Pop (my grandpa) excited about a picture of the kids I gave him!

My mom snagged one of me (please excuse the hideousness). My mom’s dog Darlin is trying to get into my coffee. She must like it as much as I do… lol!

After presents and breakfast, there was a snowball fight and snowman making.

My dad is going to kill me for this one….

I think my mom’s dog looks like a skunk.

Kinzie helping Papaw roll the middle of the snowman!

Eric and Austin rolling the bottom of the snowman!

She got tired…

The bottom was getting so big that they couldn’t roll it!

You can see how heavy it is by the strain on their faces!

The reveal of the snowman!

The final product: 6′3″ snowman. Wow. And it’s STILL standing.

I’ve been accused of being the person that says “That’s funny!”… a lot. Let me explain. We something is funny, but doesn’t make me laugh out loud, I will say “that’s funny!” It’s not that I don’t think something is funny, because I actually am laughing…. on this inside. So, during a funny movie, I might one minute be belly laughing, and the next minute have a poker face. Eric has often looked over to say “Your not laughing!” To which I reply, “not on the outside!” I don’t know why sometimes I don’t laugh out loud. It just has to be THAT funny for me to laugh really loud. So instead, if something is funny and I’m not laughing out loud, I will say “that’s funny!” Yeah, I might we weird to some of you. Or maybe I just unveiled your secret, too. Hehe.

Well, I have to say, with Joshua and Lyndsey, I had a LOT of belly laughs. They are THAT funny. I seriously was laughing the whole time! I don’t know what it was they did or said, but they knew how to get it out of me. I also LOVED how Joshua would bust out some sort of joke and Lyndsey would affectionately giggle at her man. So sweet.

Lyndsey and Josh are an amazing couple. They are both students in Abilene and have a passion for the Lord. I’m SO excited to have met them and to be documenting their journey to wedded bliss! Thank you, J & L for the awesome time at Sundance Square (and for helping me not get lost)! I hope you love your pictures!!!

So cute!

I love the way he’s looking at her!

Scat Lounge, anyone?

They said this was totally like them… comfy with coffee. Yeah, we were instant friends.

I love love love this!

I told them I knew what they REALLY did when they were supposed to be studying!

A quick clothes change!

The location a family picks for a photo shoot says a lot about them. Well, to me anyway. Rustic? They’re a close, country-loving family and usually laid back. Downtown? A family up for adventure, close knit, and trendy. Parks/Play Areas? Fun. Fun. Fun…. Playful, Exciting, Adoring. I’m sure this doesn’t describe EVERY family, but it seems to be a trend among my clients. I LOVE each family’s different styles and characteristics. I also love new places to shoot, but these are the top 3 places my clients choose. The Clinkscale’s are the playful/fun family.

The Clinkscale’s have two boys. With boys, you KNOW there is always playing involved! They brought a football to toss around before/during the shoot which was super fun to catch. I also loved how they were intrigued by squirells… birds…. nature…. so boy-ish. I just adore little boys. Anyway, thank you Clinkscale family for letting me grab some shots of you guys this fall! I was so blessed by the time we spent together! I hope you find some pictures you love!

I just love how candid and playful this moment before the “real” shot was. Those are the best shots, in my opinion!

I told this little boy there was a monkey in my camera…. he SAW it. Look at those eyes! I promise, no retouching to the eyes! Oh, and for you photographers who love to hear nerdy talk… (like me) LOL… this pic was shot with my Canon 24-70 2.8… you can see how the left eye is DEF the focal point. I love to shoot wide open! That is TACK sharp!

Aren’t they sweet!?

I love this one!

Just the boys!

Are they not just adorable?