10 years & counting...

I am so happy to announce that our Shabby Vintage anniversary ceremony and photo shoot went off with out a hitch. Our memories are beautiful due in large part to our photographer and the scenes created by the picturesque vista, that we have the privilege of calling home.

Now, I must say, that being in photography my self and having spent the last 4 years making memories for others, I was quite picky, not to mention anxious about what I wanted to convey and present for such an important event.

We had to do the shoot a little ahead of our actual anniversary due to other obligations and events so the date to get it done was super important. Then there was all the planning that went into creating just the right atmosphere and mood that would capture the fantasy of a ten year anniversary. All year long I gathered and planned...accumulating all the components for our ten year ceremony. The theme was a Shabby Chic, Fantasy with a little bit of Nashville country. The result was sheer perfection.

I organized, then set up for the event. I put everything in just its proper place and I finished decorating, paying attention to every detail. I was praying too. AND I was fretting all the while as ominous clouds threatened to tear it all asunder. We even moved the shoot up 4 hours in hopes of beating the rain. Amidst the threat of rain and my anxiety, with cool and calm our photographer arrived EARLY ready to make it happen.

As the "groom"  and I added our finishing touches, she utilized empty time by snapping candids of the "flower girls" and when we were finally ready, she hit the ground running...

Though I had a very specific vision in mind, I am grateful she was able to climb right into my brain, be my hands and execute her craft just the way I would have if I had been photographing my own self. At the end of the ceremony and shoot, I sat back satisfied and plump with fulfillment and contentment that this day was indelibly captured on film and in our hearts and minds...

Below is just a peek at our 10 year anniversary shoot (in random order). There were over 600 pictures...but I'm sure you get the point...

Thanks to Tabitha Thorman for her patience, skill and expertise (as well as her pleasant spirit) in creating a precious anniversary shoot we will not soon forget :). 

Looking at the past and the present...

The flower girls

In Nashville, brides wear cowboy boots

"Why you tryin' to take my knife, man? This cake is good!"

Watch that hand...the children are watching :)

7th birthday...check...up next THE ANNIVERSARY...

Click the link to see her cute bday collage: http://video214.com/play/Cat3cKSWRPA66s0Zm1U9mg/s/dark


She had a blast!


Now, my focus is the dress. Have mercy!

Count down...from Dubai to Brazil

Let the count down begin! The new year always holds new adventures and exciting possibilities for our family, especially because our favorite oldest daughter was born just two months into the new year.
Therefore things always start off with a bang.

This year the 6 year old traveler wants to return to her roots and go back to Kiawah Island for her 7th birthday (where she spent her fifth birthday). She loved the luxury, the food, the beach. Now she wants to indulge in the spa and the new shopping centers they have added since we lasted visited. What she does not know is while there she will get to enjoy the Pirate and the Princess by Disney (shhh, it's a surprise). A show she has been dying to go to for nearly six months. We will cap it all off with a visit to her Mimi's house. Oh what fun!

But this year is a highly anticipated year for more reasons than just the fact that the 6 year old traveler will be turning 7 in style. This year also marks our ten year wedding anniversary. Now, because I love to celebrate, I have foreshadowed the coming of  this day (in various posts) for quite sometime. We talked about our ten year dating anniversary, our ten year engagement anniversary and our 7 year wedding anniversary (completion and fulfillment). Yet, all the prior conversations were always just a practice run, warming me up for the event I have been planning since my new husband and I left our reception at the iconic Charlotte Motor Speedway on the night of June 27th, 2004.

I knew then that I would have to find some way to re-capture at least a snippet of the bliss we felt on that precious day. And ever since that moment I have planned and wondered how we would make our ten year anniversary special. Would we renew our vows? Would we jump out of plane? Would we have another child? What on earth could we do that would be as special as the day he sang to me, "The Closer I get to You" with over 250 guests gazing on at us teary eyed at the spectacle of new love...

I finally came to the conclusion that we could do nothing more special. We could never re-capture that moment nor did we need to. It was ever seared into our hearts and minds. And the fact that we love each other much more now than on that special day is really all the celebration we really need.

With that said, being who we are, we could not let the day pass with just dinner and flowers. So we decided that we would do something special after all. We were going to spend our anniversary doing one of our favorite hobbies-traveling. We recently decided that we would pick up our journey in South America (making this our 4th continent. We plan to see all 7 before we die). It had always been our plan to go to Brazil and see the Christ, but we modified those plans to go to Dubai and Abu Dhabi instead (2013). We are glad we made the detour because it was our most decadent trip to date. However, now it is time to realize our dream of standing at the foot of Christ the Redeemer. We may even commemorate the event by exchanging our vows again at Christ's feet. What better way to begin the next decade of our lives together?

Once we reach our anniversary a few months later one more huge milestone awaits - I turn 35. Surprisingly I am not at all depressed about it, although when I was 16, I remember trying to imagine what 35 would be like and could not even fathom it. I never thought that approaching 35 I would be this young or this smart or this full of life.

So once again the count down begins. This just may be the most special count down yet. Follow us as we live life to the fullest and make dreams come true...Brazil here we come!

Stay tuned for count down to the dress on Examiner.com!