Tony and Alicia’s family

How cute are our friends Tony and Alicia?!?!


They invited Alicia’s family from eastern Iowa to come to Ames so we could capture all of them! I was super excited to meet little Abby and Landon as I have heard so many cute stories about them.




I wanted to get a picture of just the adults so Eric was put on kid patrol. Well, the patrol lasted about as long as ….well…let’s just say it didn’t last. Before I could even get all the adults set up, this is what happened! I love happy accidents!! How perfect is this?!?! Abby with her shades on in between all the adults legs! Hilarious!


Landon was a busy little guy, and I love this capture! Such a perfect way to capture him at this age….he has MUCH better things to be doing than hanging with the family for a picture!


I can't leave this post without showing you this super sweet moment between Abby and her auntie Alicia...


Thank you all for making the road trip to Ames and letting us capture your family! Abby was hilarious, I still can’t get over how matter of fact she is when she talks! She is certainly wise beyond her years! Landon, Landon, Landon, I think we all need to take to your simple way of life in finding such joy in the small things in life. I may start knocking down chairs just to see if I start laughing as hard as you! What a hoot!

Kendra and Nick

are engaged! I am sooooo excited about the sunset session engagement session we had with them at Okoboji and I couldn't wait another second to share some of the images captured.

There will be more from our 2nd session during the day to share later. In the mean time enjoy a little 'boji sunset!!







This marked a first for us....an engagement session captured on a boat in the middle of the lake!! Fun!!

John and Sarah are married!!

I'm not quite sure where to start with this wedding. Each time I try to talk about it my mind moves faster than my mouth can talk and then I find myself creating words that make perfect sense to me...as for everyone else understanding me, well, that's another story!!

How about I just start with a picture....ok, deep breath, here we go!


Stunning!!! Alright, I got one word out, let's see if I can continue...

In case you were wondering about the common thread post below, this post is your answer. John and Sarah were married on the beautiful, stunning, amazing grounds also known as Rolling Green. Holy buckets, the location was simply amazing. Oh, I already used that word? Oh well, it was amazing and I don't care how many times I have to say it...don't dare me, because I'll say it again....amazingamazingamazing! I apologize to all there who had to witness my jaw dragging on the ground the majority of the time. I attempted to pull myself together from time to time, but for the most part I couldn't help myself from being totally in love with everything that day!

Here is the guest house on the ground...where Sarah and John stayed on their wedding night!


Oh and there were cows...

The capturing of this cow picture was quite possibly the funniest thing we have ever been a part of! I'm pretty sure I had tears in my eyes by the end. I don't even know what the head count was of people around for this picture, but there was ALOT! And everyone was making an animal noise of some sort to get the cows to look in the same general direction. When I say everyone....that included Eric too!! Later that day he told me he just couldn't help himself from joining in....I'm telling you, it was like peer pressure...everyone was doing it...and I was left crying! I am pretty sure I saw some video camera's around, there is footage to prove it!

I'm in a lotta like with this wedding party! Seriously, how much fun are they?!?! I would totally pull out the big "L" word to describe my affection towards them, but I feel like it may just be a bit too early in our relationship to bring in the big guns....ok, ok, ok....well maybe I'll just say it really fast and they will just go along with it....i'minalottalovewiththisweddingparty!


I'm loving this dip next to the 150 year old oak tree! We were told it is the oldest oak tree in the county!! Cool!


After all the fun of the morning and early afternoon, it was finally time for daddy to give his oldest daughter to the man she will spend the rest of her life with...


And I'm loving this un-prompted moment we captured right after the ceremony!


I'll leave you with one last sweet moment...


Sarah and John - we can't thank you enough for choosing us to capture your wedding day! We had soooo much fun with you and discovering Rolling Green! It served as the perfect backdrop for your beautiful day! I am so excited about all the images and can't wait to show you more!!

Shaye "Open Up"

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh!!!! Remember when we had a session with Shaye to create images for her new album coming out?!?!? Well……IT’S OUT!!!


I swear I was like a little kid on Christmas morning when she gave it to me!! I ripped the plastic off as fast as I could. And then I was greeted with that pesky little sticker that seals CDs closed. You know the ones I’m talking about…the ones that NEVER come off without a little frustration! Ok, ok, ok, I finally got past the sticker and opened the case in all her beauty! I think I wanted to cry out of excitement for Shaye that all the pieces came together so perfectly!!

The images, the artwork, Shaye’s music all together in a little 5x5 case! It's beauty to your ears and eyes!

And look what we found in the thank you’s….our names!!! Shaye, you are too sweet!!


You have to check her out! You will soon be able to buy her CD at www.cdbaby.com! In the mean time you can hear a sneak peak on her MySpace page.

Last word I heard is that she will be playing in Ames at the half shell on July 3. Go see and hear her in action, you will not be disappointed! You can also hear her first release "Open Up" on Channel Q 105.1!

Cali

turned one on the very day we photographed her! Her parents agreed they weren't quite sure where the time went! Remember meeting her when she was only 4 months old?

She sure has grown up in the last few months! How adorable is she?!?!




These animated images crack me up! They just sooooo scream, "I am one year old and I am on the MOVE!" I love how she drops the flower and walks a few steps before it occurs to her to turn around and see what happened to it. It 100% cracks me up!


How very sweet is this family time we captured?!?! I love, love, love how Cali is giggling soooo much she can't help but lean into her mommy and daddy can't help but smile at his sweet girls! Come on, where is the collective awwwww from everyone...go on, I'm listening. :)


We haven't done an outtake in awhile and I found a new favorite so I have to share. The girls are taking care of their hair....with a little help from daddy! Oh my goodness....such sweetness!!


Little Miss Cali - We were so excited we got to celebrate the morning of your birthday with you!! You are definitely a go-getter and had so much fun running around with you and capturing you smiling soooooo much!! You are totally adorable and we can't wait to continue capturing you as you grow up! We can't wait to hear more about your 1st birthday cake...we hope the report is a very messy one!

Common thread

All of these share a common thread....believe it or not, they really do!! I know 4 of them seem like an easy match, but all 5 have something in common. Stay tuned for more to come!

It's been fun mom but...

it's time for you to go back home! We can't keep up this pace for any longer!

In case you were wondering if we fell off the face of the planet....have no fear we are still here! We just haven't had much time behind the computer to answer emails.

In the last 4 days this is what we have ALL accomplished...
- finished prepping and sanding the house
- replaced all the trim on the garage...and caulked it all (that was a 100% fiasco, but I won't go into all the gory details)
- painted the exterior of the house and garage....TWICE
- removed and washed all the shutters
- trimmed all the hedges...and when I say trim, it was more like an Edward Scissorhands trim
- cut down a tree...not a big one, but it was definitely twice the size of us!
- replaced all the window well covers
- painted the exterior doors
- washed the interior and exterior of every...single...window in this house
- and here's the kicker....we even busted out painting the kitchen!!!
F...O...U...R days all that was accomplished...this insanity cannot be made up!

Eric and I started these insane tasks, then mom came on day two and then Matt and Laura totally surprised us on day 4 and that's when all common sense went out the window and we decided it would be a fantastic idea to start painting the kitchen!

Thank you soooooo much mom, Matt and Laura! There is no way we could have gotten this all done without you, but seriously I'm not sure how long it is going to take to recover! It's been so much fun and we LOVE the finished product...but it's time for life to return to normal....that is, if there is anything normal about our day to day life! :) We love you!!

P.S. we did take a really great self portrait of all of us in our finest paint clothes, but I can't get it to upload and this girl is far too tired to troubleshoot. Goodnight!