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love + sunshine + happiness = capturing subtleties photography :)

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a happy homecoming

May 17th, 2013

I had the honor to be a part of an incredibly special homecoming this afternoon for my friend Stacey and her family – most likely one of the most memorable days of their lives.  There is nothing that words can really describe to say how emotional and wonderful seeing their family of five turn into [...]

 

I had the honor to be a part of an incredibly special homecoming this afternoon for my friend Stacey and her family – most likely one of the most memorable days of their lives.  There is nothing that words can really describe to say how emotional and wonderful seeing their family of five turn into a family of SEVEN today was.  After months (and months…) they were finally able to bring home their two little babies (Cecilia & Henry) all the way from Ethiopia :).  It has been a long road, but oh so blessed.  I hope the photos do this afternoon’s homecoming a small justice… it was truly amazing.

Gerald R. Ford Airport…

Beautiful signs created by Hailey, Sophia & Dylan (sisters & brothers)!

The plane has arrived… still a little more waiting…

Here they come!

I had to hold back my tears when I saw her reaction :)

Meeting baby brother for the first time…

And baby sister…

It was the first time Cecilia and Henry saw balloons… to say they were a hit would be an understatement ;)

Those eyes…

The welcoming group :)

The ladies of the family :)

And strong, beautiful Stacey… you, my friend, are an inspiration to all mommies in the world.  Your babies are so very lucky to have you and Micah as their parents.

SO MANY MORE to share with you, but for now, sleep well on the eve of your family of seven!!!!  xoxoxoxo :)

breaker

married: melissa and joel

May 6th, 2013

Where to even begin on how much I adore these two?  This blog post may take the cake (pun intended) for the longest ever, but I cannot help myself!  Melissa and Joel’s wedding day was filled with so much happiness & love that I had a really hard time deciding which ones to use for [...]


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Where to even begin on how much I adore these two?  This blog post may take the cake (pun intended) for the longest ever, but I cannot help myself!  Melissa and Joel’s wedding day was filled with so much happiness & love that I had a really hard time deciding which ones to use for their preview :)  These two were married in early April on a what-should-have-been beautiful Spring day… but the weather kept us guessing with rain, SNOW, clouds and a peek or two of sunshine.  But this literally did not phase Melissa or Joel – I never saw either one of them without a smile.

I also owe a huge thank you to the wonderful Heather from Infiniti Photography – she captured so many wonderful details of the day with her creative and amazing eye – and awesome lighting skills on the dance floor!

***STAY TUNED for the end of this blog post to see some pretty awesome blooper photos ;)

Melissa’s day started out at the salon they’ve been going to since she was little!

And the day also started out with… well… snow. ;)

But Spring and happiness continued inside!

The beautiful Sophi, Joel’s niece and their flowergirl!

We continued getting ready at Melissa’s parents… gorgeous house & amazing dress = perfection!

Yes, I found a kitty and of course had to take some photos :)

I love these three!  hugs hugs hugs

Melissa looked absolutely STUNNING.

The snow turned to light rain… but no worries, pure laughter!

While I was with the girls, Heather was hangin’ with the boys!

A little Euchre, anyone?

Joel’s awesome cufflinks.  I love these!

Next stop… getting married!

A final toast before Melissa and Joel became husband and wife!

These might be two of my favorite photos… Joel’s happiness seeing Melissa for the first time… and Melissa’s dad’s happiness seeing his daughter so happy.  :)

Melissa’s brother sang – loved that part.

MARRIED!!!

We hiked out to a nature center in the freezing cold weather.  This entire bridal party & Melissa and Joel were so gracious and kind to me as I made them climb through the freezing cold weather for photos.  I am SO glad that we did.  Totally worth it.

The wind helped (and as you will see in the blooper section, hurt) us get some dramatic veil shots.  Melissa, you truly are so amazingly beautiful.

Just… wow.

Joel looked awesome!

I was glad that the rain turned back into snow… I think it’s just gorgeous :)

The reception was held at the Village Club.  I love it here!

They criss crossed these ribbons for every table!

Handmade “poppers” – the guests each pull a side and candy pops out!  This holds a special memory because it’s exactly how Joel proposed :)

Couldn’t resist a few more shots around the Village Club…

And let the party begin… best way to start?  Eat some cake!

Melissa’s parents…

Joel’s brother and Melissa’s sister :)

And Joel’s dad saying grace…

I love food, so I tend to talk about it a lot, but seriously… this was AMAZEBALLS.  So, so good…

Sweet flower girl Sophi TORE up the dance floor!

For the last photo of the night… can anybody guess this song? :)

Melissa & Joel (and family) – I can’t thank you enough for having me as a part of your gorgeous wedding day.  Sending all my love – I can’t wait to share ALL the photos with you!

 

So, as promised… a few funnies ;)

Joel’s dad and Melissa’s dad were pretty amazing cheerleaders…

Melissa’s response to “I’m just testing the lighting, don’t worry” before our family photos inside the church :)  For some reason this makes me laugh every time I see it!

Lauren, Melissa’s sister, was given the responsibility of keeping her dress and veil situated during the wind/cold/snowstorm photo session.  It was a hard job!

And the muddy field I made everyone with 4 inch heels walk through…

So, it was really, really windy…

I found this when I returned after a mini Joel/Melissa session.  The girls were a tad cold… :)

Lauren’s boyfriend got the lucky task of holding all the umbrellas AND scarves.  Poor guy :)

Melissa’s veil had a mind of it’s own :)

And for the last (and in my opinion, best)… a JOEL PHOTOBOMB!!! ;)

xoxoxo

breaker

meet baby willa!

April 22nd, 2013

You all may remember Marie and Peter (wedding) (engagement session) and how much I ADORE them… but beyond their amazing wedding and wonderful spirits, they’ve also become really, really good friends of ours.  For that, we feel SO lucky!  Every time I (and sometimes Mike) travel to the east side for weddings, we find excuses [...]


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You all may remember Marie and Peter (wedding) (engagement session) and how much I ADORE them… but beyond their amazing wedding and wonderful spirits, they’ve also become really, really good friends of ours.  For that, we feel SO lucky!  Every time I (and sometimes Mike) travel to the east side for weddings, we find excuses to go spend half a day with Peter and Marie, too.  Imagine my excitement when THIS visit included an extra special person… newborn Willa!  This little girl is one of the cutest, prettiest & sweetest little girls… it was truly an honor to take her portraits and spend time cuddling :)  I’m in love with her!

This next expression is an EXACT replicate of an expression of Marie’s… ha ha :)  Only when she’s being silly of course, but in this moment I realized how much they look alike!

“No, please… stop, paparazzi”

The beautiful family of three!

And new momma :)

Willa has some serious heart melting in her future… okay… she already is melting hearts ;)

and brand new dad!

The entire family :)

We moved inside for a few more :)

Peter and Marie re-did this entire room for her nursery… I love, love, loved it – so perfect!

It was truly such a treat to meet Willa :) – can’t wait to see her again and until then, thanks to Marie and Peter, I’m stocked up with dark chocolate covered pretzels from Trader Joe’s.  xoxoxo times a thousand!

breaker

married: monica and neil

February 25th, 2013

A few weeks ago, Monica and Neil were married in a quiet & beautiful ceremony surrounded by their loved ones… it was truly an amazing day to be a part of.  They were married at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor which could NOT have been more perfect for this time of year.  Warm, [...]


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A few weeks ago, Monica and Neil were married in a quiet & beautiful ceremony surrounded by their loved ones… it was truly an amazing day to be a part of.  They were married at the Matthaei Botanical Gardens in Ann Arbor which could NOT have been more perfect for this time of year.  Warm, tropical and full of blooms!  This, of course, did NOT keep us from tromping through the snow for some beautiful winter portraits as well :)  Monica & Neil – you two are so wonderful.  We feel so lucky that we got the chance to meet you both, especially on such a gorgeous & fun day!

We started out the day with their first look :)

This place is magical.

After our tropical photo shoot… we totally changed gears, pulled on the boots (most of us) and tromped around.  These two deserve an award for how sweet and wonderful they were with my crazy “let’s run through this snowy field in the freezing weather” ideas :)

Seriously, could they be any more adorable?  You two made me smile the ENTIRE time I was editing these :)

Monica looked absolutely stunning.  Her + winter wonderland + that sweet little bolero jacket = perfection.

That sun.  Winter light is my favorite.

If there were ever a sun bathed heaven, this would be it.  I was all over this sun!

It’s time to get married :)  Everyone’s getting ready!

What a place to get married.  And even better, being surrounded by their family members only – made this ceremony so touching & warm.  It was absolutely perfect.

Both families together :)

And of course, with it getting dark earlier… we decided it was the perfect opportunity to have some freezing cold winter fun!  Once again, these two deserve a medal for being so patient (when it comes to some of these shots, patience is TRULY a virtue).   We had so much fun & left with frozen fingers – but warm, warm hearts :)

Mike told me this last shot was cheesy, but hey, man.  It’s love.  That’s not cheesy :)  Monica & Neil – although I’ve said it a million times throughout this blog post, I can’t tell you enough how wonderful it was to be a part of your day.  Sending so many hugs & congratulations your way!!!

breaker

3 years old: my finnegan

February 12th, 2013

I still can’t believe it’s been three years since my favorite little person in the entire world was born.  Where did that time go?  How did I even live my life before he was here?  My cutest best friend, my reason for smiling, my sweet little soft hand to hold?  All I can say is [...]

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I still can’t believe it’s been three years since my favorite little person in the entire world was born.  Where did that time go?  How did I even live my life before he was here?  My cutest best friend, my reason for smiling, my sweet little soft hand to hold?  All I can say is that I know how extremely lucky I feel to be Finn’s mom and don’t go a day without realizing how special this boy is.  His warm heart touches everyone wherever he goes :)  And at age 3?  It keeps getting better.  And better.  We’ve got millions of imaginative stories, hugs, kisses, “I love you’s” – and some serious personality.  This boy is a sweet, shy and a wonderfully opinionated charmer.  WE. ARE. SO. LUCKY.

And of course, crazy person that I am – I decided to take Finn’s 3 year pictures on a warm but entirely rainy & foggy day.  As the rain misted down, I dragged Mike and Finn outside with the promise that “It would be quick!” – and it was, I swear!

At least he thought it was funny that we were out slipping in the snow and running through dirty trails :)

This is the look of mischief…

And this is a snowball coming my way…

And lots more laughter :)

Since day one, his eyelashes are my weakness :)

SOMEONE is being incredibly funny (cough, cough… DAD!!!).  I should have turned the camera around so you all could have seen Mike and his goofy dancing, jumping and laughing as well!  Finn loved it ;)

Happiest Birthday, my sweet little Finn!  You are so loved and such an incredible person!!!