'Tis the season....for holiday portraits!!!

I went shopping last week and actually saw Christmas decorations in the stores. Don't they know it isn't even Halloween yet!??

Yeah, but who am I foolin'? It is nice to know that you can get that pesky Christmas shopping done early, huh? Why not cross updating your family portraits off your to-do list?? You know you will be kicking yourself when you're clearing the Thanksgiving table, wishing you had booked in September.

And portraits make such great gifts for everyone in the family! Is Aunt Bee complaining that the last picture they've gotten is one of your 12-year old on the first day of kindergarten? Wouldn't you love to see a fresh picture of the family hanging in Grandma's house without your big hair? Imagine how cool you will look to your family and friends when they receive your custom holiday card featuring your portraits!

Beat the holiday rush with the special below! If you have any questions, just shoot me an email or give me a call! And while you're at it, why don't you head on over to Facebook so you don't miss any more specials!!

Congrats Monica and Curt!

Remember waaaaaaaaaay back when I wore those super-cute boots on the engagement session down on the farm?

Well, Curt and Monica finally tied the knot on August 7th, 2010.

They had a very cute and personal wedding at the St. Louis Catholic Church in North Star and then everyone went back to her parents farm for the party.

And not only do those Batdorf's know how to party, but there wasn't one detail skipped, missed or forgotten. Absolutely incredible. They were very attentive to pay homage to Monica's Mary Kay career, and Curt's important job as a farmer. Right down to the tractors as backdrops and the steer ear tags as name cards.

I'm hoping to get caught up enough to post some of my favorite images from this wedding. There are so many! But until I do, here's a slideshow:

Shawn & Holly 7/3/2010

Shawn and Holly's wedding was one of the most unique and personal weddings I've ever done. She paid attention to every. single. detail.

This was the first wedding I actually covered at the Willow Tree Inn (the other two times I was there was actually attending one). I fell in love with it when I first attended a wedding there a few years back, but I fell in love with it all over again when I was shooting there. The little nooks and crannies were endless for pictures. And the light was gorgeous...even well into the reception.

I've had a lot of questions about this wedding, so I've listed as many links at the end of this post as I could.


It was really hard for me to pull out my favorite images from this day....there were just far too many. But my favorite group of pictures were -- hand's down -- the dancing pictures at the reception. The way these two looked at each other -- ah, so in love! Even Holly's dad was beaming with pride.

Venue: The Willow Tree Inn, Tipp City
Dress: a Maggie Sottero from Emmy's Bridal, Minster
Hair: Chrissy, Traci and Angie from Glamour on Mane, Piqua
Rings: Harris Jewelers, Troy
Caterers: Batdorf's Red Barn Catering, Covington

an APB...on myself....

Yes, I'm still here. In case anyone is wondering...

If I could have skipped over the last few weeks and woke up like it's been a bad dream, I would have already. But it's just not that easy.

A couple of weeks ago, my family lost a little piece of us. A grandmother, a mother-in-law, a mom. The hole that is left has us all searching for ways to fill it. And I fully believe that our rockiest road lies before us.

I apologize to those of you who are waiting for galleries, albums, or even an email from me. As many of you know, I have always, and will continue to place my family first....before myself, and even before my career. Please know that my time away from my "job" has been spent with my family, who needed me.....and who will continue to need me. I've tried to notify most of you, but if I have failed, please know that I'm doing the best I can do with the circumstances before me. I am working a couple of hours each day to clear the backlog.

Thanks to everyone who sent messages, texts, called us or simply prayed for us. We sincerely appreciate all of you who have supported us over the last couple of weeks. Chris and I are absolutely blessed to have such amazing friends and family.