Personal

Life is a very precious thing. It's something we take for granted too often and something that too many of us allow to pass by without enjoying it. It's the little things, an elderly couple holding hands, children laughing, stopping to appreciate the warmth of the sun, sharing an ice cream cone with someone you love. It's why I love doing what I do.

True to life however, is that it's not always sweet. We all experience heartache, disappointment, frustration, and loss. But I believe that these things are also necessary and a very important part of life as well. They help bring perspective in some instances, other hardships let you know that people care and you are truly loved. Working through them makes us stronger and helps us to grow as people. I also believe that all of our hard times only make the sweet moments even sweeter and more precious.

We have recently experienced a very sweet moment in our family when, on December 1st, we found out we were going to have another baby. Our hearts and minds filled with joy and excitement as we told friends and family about baby number two. This week after a visit to the ER we discovered that we lost our little blessing. We would have been 13 weeks today.

Part of what makes life so sweet is being able to celebrate and even mourn with people who care about you. My hope and prayer for you all today is that you would take time to appreciate the people in your life that mean the most to you, the people who make you laugh, who you can cry with, or who just make you smile. Give your kids a hug and be thankful for every moment you have with them. If you don't have children, be thankful for your spouse or special someone. If you haven't found that person yet be thankful for your parents and siblings and certainly for friends.

This picture is of our son Graydon when he was just two weeks old. Next month he will be turning two. This picture always made me smile a peaceful kind of smile. I hope it does the same for you. We appreciate you all. Don't take the life or the moments it gives you for granted.

How Exciting...

...is it when our troops come home safe! On Friday January 8th the 335th Fighter Squadron swooped in perfect formation above the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base as many family and loved ones watched and waited anxiously to greet their hero's returning from Afghanistan.

I had the privilege of photographing this family back in August just before the husband and father of three was to leave for his deployment. I was invited once again to photograph them but instead of a regular family session they wanted me to document the long awaited reunion and I felt honored to be asked.

Truth be told, I love to photograph all kinds of things but I adore documentary! I have a degree in fine arts photography and my senior project was a documentary...maybe someday I'll post about that but back to my point. In studying photography, out of all the styles and genres there are I was always enamored with documentary. SOooOoo I'm very excited to share these pictures and timeless moments from this wonderful families joyful reunion! Hope you all enjoy the sneak peek!




Ok, I had to post that photo by it self because it's classic...now on with the sneak peek in the order of how they happened...starting with the oldest son watching his daddy's jet circle in for a landing!







Here is his jet...it was hard to miss with him proudly holding the University of Alabama flag after their win against Texas in the BCS championship the night before. Then I turn around and see his beautiful wife proudly waving the same flag! How happy is she that her man is home! His daughter too...









Here was the long awaited moment!











I love how happy and at peace the older two look holding their dad who is equally as happy...and the two year old is classic...no care in the world with her daddy safely home and some McDonald's fries in her hand!

Preview of Tomorrow's Post

I know, I know. I promised a special post tonight about a beautiful family that I have had the privilege of getting to know over the last few months. Even more, I was invited to come and document an intimate and special moment in their lives when the husband, father, and hero arrived home safely from his deployment with the Air Force to Afghanistan and was once again reunited with his wife and children. THAT post is coming......tomorrow.

I'm so sorry to the family and friends that expected to see the sneak peek tonight. I had a very long day and am not feeling very well. NOT that that should be an excuse but there will be a full "sneak peek" tomorrow night...AND...to help hold you over one more day here is a quick preview... Thanks for understanding.

Ohio Family

During our two week trip to Ohio I had the honor of photographing one of Jeremy's mentor and friend's family. The husband and head of this family has been a long time friend and encouragement to Jeremy for over a decade. I have met him before and heard plenty of stories, (don't worry all good), so I was delighted to be able to meet the rest of the family on this day. Here are a few pictures for your sneak peek! Hope you enjoy them so far! Thank you for inviting me into your home and your family...we love you.
















Anyone who is a pet lover knows that the pet becomes a large part of the family so we couldn't leave this guy out! This was one of the most beautiful shepherds I've ever seen...I think he might have a bit a wolf in him!

Winter and the New year

Ok, so I know these pictures in this post are not typically what you would find on my blog...because there are no people in them and people are absolutely my favorite thing to photograph...But once in a while I actually take pictures of other things, I just usually don't share them. Well today's post is different.

We spent two weeks in Ohio over the holidays visiting Jeremy's family and friends. It was really nice to have extended time there to relax and see people who we don't get to see very often. Among many things, one thing that made this trip special was the snow!!! For a lot of you who follow my blog I'm sure you don't get to see wintery scenes very often. I'm guessing this because most of you I'm assuming are from Texas or North Carolina.

We woke up Christmas Eve morning bright and early to a beautiful monochromatic winter wonderland. It was early enough that night time sky and fog that it had brought was still lingering and I HAD to photograph it! Later that morning the fog had lifted and the sun came out and provided a wonderful crispness for the rest of the day. I have some pretty magical childhood memories during the winter time having grown up in the north east so these moments, although there aren't any people in them, are still pretty special to me.

I hope you all enjoy something a little different to start off this new year. I'm looking forward to seeing what surprises 2010 will hold and sharing them with YOU as they come. God bless.