{Colten & Kourtnee}

 Nature provided a beautiful (although chilly) December day to capture Colten and Kourtnee's rustic and completely adorable wedding. We have known Colten since he was a baby, so it was an emotional day for us as well, to see him as a young man at this milestone! Almost immediately, I was taken with their decorations, the party favors, the cake, and of course the dresses (sigh). Almost makes me want to have another wedding ceremony...almost. A big thanks to Colten and Kourtnee for letting us be a part of this beautiful day, and thank you Kourtnee for enduring all the cold weather and accommodating a couple of crazy photographers!

(above taken by Amy)

(above taken by Ginger)

{Carson & Bethany}

Saturday was the perfect Fall day to capture a couple of cuties....I've had the privilege to be at the birth of both Carson and Bethany and have watched them grow up and into their own personalities. They were a bundle of energy and kept me on my toes, but I loved it :) And I even got a few shots of mom too....she is an amazing mom and a woman of incredible strength.

{Dustin and Melissa-The Bridals}

In a perfect world, bridal pictures are taken before the wedding...but, since we are a different breed of photographer (and since before their wedding, we had record-setting heat indexes for about two months straight), we decided to combine a "trash the dress" session with bridals! Way clever, no??  Dustin and Melissa, you guys are so much fun to shoot!! Really, I just want to take you both home with me and keep you in a closet so that I can shoot pictures of you any time (but that would be kidnapping, and thus illegal).

Just another note:  Melissa chopped off her hair and dyed it before these pictures...personally, I think she is totally hot as a redhead!!

{Family Pics 2011}

I took these pictures of my two younger children and my granddaughter at Lake Frierson State Park Saturday and let me tell you, the weather was perfect!  I had also forgotten how quick 3-year olds can be...thank you, Chris for jumping up and down behind me so I could get this shot!!

 

(Just a note, Brayley fell on the carpet the day before this shoot and got a huge bruise on her chin...thank heaven for photo-editing software!!!!)

Karena, practicing her "supermodel stare".

(above photos taken by Amy)

{Austin S.}

I am so excited to post these pictures!  I have known Lauren and Sam for nearly eight years, and when I found out they were expecting, I stalked Lauren until she agreed to let me take her baby's picture...ok, maybe "stalked" is a little harsh, but I did hound her quite a bit :) Here are a few tidbits from today's session.  Big thanks to Sam for his patience (I hope you bought something good from Bass Pro Shops) and also to Lauren for indulging a crazy photographer's ideas.  

{Bull Shoals Trip}

My family has grown up on the water.  Fittingly, we decided to lump the celebration of all our July/August birthdays and go to the lake.  I won't overwhelm you with the 175 pics I took of everyone riding on/falling off of the tube, but I wanted to share a few of my favorite pics from the day.  I also discovered that the best time to take pictures on a lake is about sunset (or at least when the sun is low in the sky). 

I took this picture before we even got on the boat.  Something about the tires and their reflection in the water spoke to me (no, not literally).



My daughter Karena watching her brother Luke (waiting to see him to wipe out).  Nothing like a bit of sibling love!



These are some cliffs that we decided to swim around. 



I saw these trees on the bank and thought it was neat how they are spaced almost equal distances apart.

The day was too much for JonJon.  Fell asleep with an Oreo in his hand!

{above photos taken by Amy}

{Blake-Sixteen}

Saturday we were able to get away as a family and I snagged a couple of pictures of Blake to mark his 16th birthday....these were taken at the Land Between The Lakes Nature Station in Kentucky.

You can read all about our trip at my personal blog and enjoy an overload of more pictures, including some amazing sailboat pictures :)

{Dustin & Melissa}

I love it when a bride and groom make the ceremony fit their personalities.  I absolutely loved, loved, loved the details of Dustin and Melissa's beautiful day, especially because it fit them so well!  From the awesomely creative bouquets (that one of the bridesmaids made!) to the rockin' bridesmaids shoes (I wonder if they have my size), this was just a picture perfect wedding.  Really, I wish it hadn't been so horribly hot outside, because I probably would still be camped out taking pictures of these two.  Many thanks to Dustin, Melissa and their friends for letting us share their day!

{Are these not the cutest shoes?? I totally want a pair!}

{above photos by Amy}

{last two photos by Ginger}

{Josh & Karla}

Last weekend I had a unique opportunity to capture the memories of a "dream come true." Josh & Karla were married 5 years ago, but due to circumstances (including a deployment) they weren't able to have a wedding at that time. Last week they renewed their vows at Southside Community Church complete with a gorgeous bride in a stunning white gown, a dapper groom, decorations, flowers, cake, and plenty of friends to help celebrate this renewal of love and commitment. They wrote their own vows, which were incredible and extremely heartfelt. I felt so privileged to get to share in such a special day.

The joining of hearts and hands in front of the Military Prayer Wall at Southside Community Church.

Karla was absolutely stunning....she has to be one of the most beautiful brides I've photographed.

Karla coaxing a smile from this adorable flower girl, Destiny

Josh & Karla, thank you so much for letting me share in your beautiful day.

Enjoy the sneak peeks :)

{Lincoln pictures}

We took a trip to Lincoln recently to say farewell to my beloved Grandma (mother to six children).  Personally, I think she probably needs to be recognized as a saint, since my Grandpa was actually more like her seventh child, but I digress...my aunt thought it would be neat to put all the kids' baby shoes on Grandma's casket (and thus I'm sure a new trend has begun), and wanted a picture of it.

{OK, I have to admit that I felt REALLY creepy carrying my camera over to my grandma's casket to get this picture, but my aunt wanted it, so...}




My daughter and I took a break from sorting through things and had a quiet moment on my grandparents' deck.  Wanted more sunlight to filter through, but couldn't seem to get the tree to cooperate.



She loves to have her picture taken, can you tell?
{photos taken by Amy}

{Andrew & Brittany}

This couple was so much fun.....their personalities were woven through every part of the ceremony & reception...from the cowboy hat to the cowboy boots to the cowboy & cowgirl cake topper.

The wedding was originally scheduled for outside, but Arkansas heat proved to be unbearable for this June bride and the event was moved indoors....but we still managed to get some great outdoor shots after the wedding and BEFORE the freak thunderstorm hit.

Here are a few sneak peeks and so far...my fave shots of the day :)



{above photos taken by Ginger}

 So I have to add my two cents worth (which if you figure inflation, comes to...oh, wait. Pictures. Right).  I have to say, this was a hugely FUN wedding to shoot.  Capturing the love shared by Brittany and Andrew was totally worth sweating and working around an immense amount of goose poop.  I mean, really, who knew birds could poop that much??



{above photos taken by Amy}

and just for the faint-hearted out there, photography isn't for everyone.  There are hazards lurking everywhere...like...um...mud, for instance!  Random spots of unseen mud can wreak havoc on unsuspecting individuals, so beware!  (this is for you, Ginger :D)