Shane & Rhiannon: Engaged

I heard through the grapevine that our good friend/relative Rhiannon had gotten engaged! She's one of those people...you know...the kind you have a love-hate relationship with...because she's so darn cute and you always run into her when you have no make-up on with yoga pants and flip-flops! And yep, that's when I saw her after it was announced that she was engaged...in Walmart with no make-up, flip-flops, and yoga pants! And although I really wanted to duck behind the make-up aisle and pray that she didn't see me, I busted out with a huge CONGRATS on her engagement, because, not only is Rhiannon adorable, but she also has a great personality with a killer sense of humor to boot! She's my favorite person to stand next to in one of Lisa's aerobics classes...as Lisa's torturing us, we endure the pain with our cynical senses of humor!

We talked about the wedding day, their big plans, and then she asked me if I would shoot their engagement pictures...and I was all like, OF COURSE...and I'll even wear make-up that day too!

So, I met up with the ever-beautiful Rhiannon and the equally charming and handsome Shane a couple of weeks ago at the Ballard Nature Center for a quick engagement shoot in the heat and humidity. And, as you can see below, both are beautiful, fun-loving, and humorous...seriously, people, you know people are having a good time when they're laughing this much in the heat!!

Shane and Rhiannon, thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your engagement. I am SOOO excited about your wedding...and I'm planning on packing an extra towel...just in case! :)

Below are a few of my favorites. Click here to see a few more.

Kelly

The adorable couple.

Although Rhiannon's eyes are beautiful, it's her smile that's killer. It lights up her face.

What I love most about these two is that they're so happy just being in each other's company. And they make each other laugh.

Handsome devil Shane.

This picture made me tear up a bit. Every girl deserves a picture like this...with the man she loves looking at her with such love. Shane's look says it all: I love you and I will take care of you for the rest of my life.

Shane and Rhiannon, CONGRATULATIONS!

The Zoo

What do you do on a 100+ degree Saturday? Why - take your kids to the zoo! At least that's what me and crazy Carolyn did two weeks ago! We loaded Colby and Henry into the car and made the two-hour trek to the St. Louis zoo! It was so hot that we drank how many bottles of water...and I'm not sure we ever had to use the bathroom!

Colby and Henry loved it. We mapped out the animals that we wanted to see...at 18 months old, they didn't need to see everything....just the 'majors'. Below are a few pictures courtesy of Carolyn, because photog that I am, I forgot my camera in the car!

Outside the penguin house. Colby loved the penguins. The zoo strategically places gift shops outside a lot of the major exhibits. Colby would reach out to the stuffed animals yelling "this one! this one"...which translates to "I want one"...but a penguin was the only stuffed animal she scored that day.

Yep...still waiting in line to get into the penguin house. The air conditioned exhibit was well worth the wait in that heat though!

Colby and I inside the monkey house!

She loved the monkeys.

So much that she tried to climb in. Darn the glass!

The hippos were a hit. There was one that was quite the performer always swimming past the glass for the kids to see.

Waiting for more of the hippo.

At the children's zoo, there was one of those water fountains that springs up from the ground. Colby was a bit timid at first, but she soon got the hang of running through the water. Henry on the other hand was running toward the water before his feet hit the ground!

We had a good time!...but Carolyn and I agreed on the way home that for the rest of our lives, we're only going to the zoo in April and October! We'll brave the cold and rain....to heck with that heat!!! :)

The Evans Family

Remember the Carruthers family??? I had so many people commenting on their family pictures...how much fun they were having...the genuine smiles....that you can imagine how excited I was when daughter Terri called me to update her own family pictures! You see, there was a special occasion...ok, actually two of them. First, it was her wedding anniversary...and she wanted updated family portraits as part of her anniversary gift. And second, there's a new addition in her family! Her first grandchild...a beautiful boy, Harper!

Terri, thank you so much for calling me, working with my schedule, and for all of your genuine smiles! The joy of your family and your new grandson shines in your images!


Below are a few of my favorites. Click here to see a few more!

Terri, once again, thank you so much! It's been such a pleasure getting to know your family!!!

Blessings to you all!

Kelly

Matt and Sarah: Engaged

I met Sarah a month or so ago to talk about her wedding to Matt! They both live in Chicago, but she grew up in Anna, IL, and that's where the wedding is taking place. She happened to be in central Illinois; so, we met up for an ice tea to talk about the wedding and growing up in a small town...things we both love!

A couple of weeks later, I got to meet Matt when we met at Allerton Park for their engagement shoot. Sarah is a bit reserved...Matt a bit gregarious! They are each other's match in life!

Matt and Sarah, I'm so excited for your wedding! Matt, I'm hoping and praying nightly that you incorporate some of your family traditions into the ceremony...please, please, please!!!

Below are a few of my favorites...click here to see a few more.

As much as I love the landscaped gardens of the park, some of my favorite areas are off the beaten path...especially when the sun is beaming in just perfectly!

Sarah kept telling Matt to be serious about the shoot. But, Sarah, the not-so-serious images are the BEST ones!

Sarah - with her killer eyes....

...and killer smile.

Sarah's dad told Matt that he'd pay him $200 for every ornery smile in a picture. So....

.... I have a whole collection of these!!!

Luckily, I have a few of these as well. Handsome guy that he is!

I knew I was funny! I knew it!

Sarah and Matt, thank you...and I can't wait...and please, please, please do the bowing ceremony at your wedding (said in a desperately pleading voice!!!)!

Kickapoo Creek Winery Wedding: Tom & Jene'

Where do I even begin! I know! I know! I haven't posted in a month...I've gotten several emails this week berating me for it. But can you blame me? No, you can't...once you see the beautiful wedding I've been working on, you can't blame me one bit, because you'll get lost in the images just like I did each night sitting at my computer!!

When my sister Kim was growing up, she was friends with Clint McGraw...almost of the Tim McGraw fame in our hometown for his music abilities. I knew Clint, but I had never met his sister. Last fall I got an email from his sister Jene'....she was getting married and could we meet sometime to look through wedding albums, etc. We met at Panera and had so much fun talking about our hometown...we even made a trip to a custom invitation store, Fabulous Affairs in Bloomington, owned by another one of our hometown crowd.

I'll admit: I always get slightly nervous about meeting a group at an engagement session...what if we don't mesh and get along like the bride and I did? But, then I met Tom, her fiance'...who is handsome, sweet, ornery, and likes a good glass of wine. I was smitten....because seriously, who can pass up a good-lookin' guy who serves up a great glass of wine? Well, Jene' definitely couldn't! And over Memorial Day weekend, Tom and Jene' joined hands at the Kickapoo Creek Winery and vowed that for the rest of their lives they would be together...good glass of wine and all.

Tom and Jene', thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your wedding. It was beautiful...the details, your families, and you as a couple. Congratulations and Blessings!

Here is a slideshow with my favorites from the day!

Zach - 1yo

This little man is growing up SO fast. I can hardly believe that when he was born, he weighed less than five pounds! One year later...and after doing his newborn, 3 mos, 6 mos, and 9 mos pictures...I'm convinced that he is ALL smiles. He hasn't had a single session that's disappointed us in the smiles category! I think he gets that from his mom!

My favorites are below, and you can see a few more by clicking here.

Take care and God bless!

Colby

Sorry...this isn't the most exciting post! I tried to make it an actual story...but I'll be honest...I actually bought a new lens and was playing with it!!!

Hi. Did you know there is NOTHING more fun in the world than taking out EVERYTHING from my diaper bag?...or maybe my baskets on the changing table?...or the books off of my shelves.

Geesh. There are so many goodies in here. I could do this three or four times a day.

OK...maybe there is ONE thing that's more fun than emptying my diaper bag or baskets....watching ELMO on TV!!!

Is it over? Where did Elmo go?!!!

OK...it's on again! To celebrate, I will continue sucking on my fingers....another thing that I LOVE to do.