I was so tickled to get to photograph Andrea, Carlos, Gabbie and Jeremy during my trip back to Arizona! Gabbie just keeps getting cuter, sweeter and faster! (Yes- I had to run to keep up with her!) Andrea & Carlos- Thank you for asking me to photograph your family again!
One of the first emails I received from Arizona was regarding one of my furry clients (Choco) getting a new sister (Chula)! John and Barbara just got a new poodle and wanted to do another session.
Just wait until you see Barbara’s vision for our next session in a few months! Here’s a hint: Hair will be blowing and I will be shooting at 30+ miles an hour. I can’t wait!
I’m about to jump on my plane to go back home, but today is Barbara’s birthday, so I wanted to quickly post a few from our session.
(I love the last picture because Chula reminds me of a playful, little child. She is chewing on Barbara’s necklace. Plus, look at the spotted belly!)
My first day in Phoenix got off to a GREAT start! IN-N-OUT Burger for lunch and a wonderful session with two beautiful little girls. Since I love photographing children so much, it always makes me SO happy when I get an email saying I wasn’t the only one who had fun during our session…
“Riley keeps asking to ‘see Christy again.’ Before we left the park last night she kept saying ‘I want to see Christy again.’ Then in the car it was “one more time.” Today she tells me a long version of ‘when it was the end of taking pictures and Christy and I were sitting by the water, the ducks were putting their whole head in the water and it was sooooo funny.’ We are very excited about the pictures and are sure you captured our family just right.”
I’m trying out a new blog-slideshow, so I’m posting a few more images than I normally do. With these adorable girls, I don’t think anyone minds seeing more of these super-cute faces!
Before leaving for Arizona, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with the ATLANTA CENTER for DENTAL EXCELLENCE. Howard Farran, DDS, MBA, MAGD (Owner, Founder and CEO of Dentaltown) and Breven Clark flew in to visit the ACDE and hear the board members (listed below) share their passion for the state-of-the-art learning center located in Suwanee, Georgia.
Frank Clayton, DDS
Brenton Young, DDS
Jason Luchtefeld, DMD
Dominique Ritter
Tamara Bailey, DDS
Scott Bridges, DMD
Molly Thompson
To learn more about Dr. Howard Farran, visit: http://www.dentaltown.com
To learn more about the Atlanta Center for Dental Excellence, visit: http://www.theacde.com/
Since I dedicated an entire post to Charlie a few days ago, I thought I’d share a few of her family members. Here is her cousin Wade…
And the wonderful Pierce…
In case you were wondering, here is where Charlie gets her good looks…
Charlie loves hearing her daddy sing and play the guitar….
When I started going through some of my favorite images from my session on Saturday, I realized Charlie was going to need her OWN blog post. Although there are many more to post of her mom, dad, grandparents and cousins… for now, it’s all about Charlie! 
Jenn has accomplished many of her goals this past year. Since I can’t take any credit for her internship with Disney or the children’s mentoring program she works with, I can at least pretend to be somewhat involved in her most recent goal to have professional pictures taken… 
This session was everything I love about my job and more…
I got to photograph one of the cutest little girls I have ever seen.
Her big sister even came along to keep us both entertained.
We laughed more than we actually took pictures.
We had such a fun time. I really considered taking them both home with me. 
I am really looking forward to my trip back to Arizona next week! Not only do I get to return to one of my favorite places in the world, I get to work with my favorite school on a fun project I look forward to each year!
Although I’ll be working on Friday and Monday for New Way, I planned on shooting a few sessions on the weekend. After a random post on Facebook a week before I was going to post the session times on my blog, all of my available times (plus a few more) were taken very quickly.
If you weren’t able to book a session this trip, this post is to let you know
I PLAN on RETURNING in the FALL!
This will be a perfect time to update your family photos
or get some great pictures for your holiday cards!
Check back soon to see some Arizona-highlights!
Here are a few things I know will make the blog:
a doggie-session…
horse headshots…
fun times at New Way…
all the food I miss from Arizona…
and spending time with my childhood friend and her kiddies.
I look forward to meeting some new families during my weekend sessions. I also LOVE getting to photograph past clients again. Speaking of which… here are a few I’ve photographed before and can’t wait to photograph again!
There’s nothing like hanging out at the snack bar with the sound of ‘Cotton candy, Sweet to go… Let me see that Tootsee Roll’ blasting in the background. Oddly enough, enjoying a frozen Mountain Dew and, yes, cotton candy!
Can you guess where Ross and I went on our date last night? Yep! The skating rink! We took my really old point-and-shoot camera where I could keep it in my pocket and not worry about it breaking or getting dirty. We had a blast together!
Before you read anything else, please take a second and send this link to your husband, boyfriend, dad, brother or any man in your life. If he happens to be in the same place as you now, tell him he’s got to sit down with you for just a moment. I am about to share some valuable information that any man could greatly benefit from.
Matthew’s brother-in-law wanted to plan a special birthday for his wife Michelle. Although it was hard to keep it a surprise, I was so excited to be part of this celebration for my sister-in-law!
I witnessed these events first-hand. So now, I have several tips to share with you on HOW TO MAKE THE GIRL IN YOUR LIFE FEEL INCREDIBLY SPECIAL & LOVED:
Months before the big day, start planning! Call everyone and tell them to block their calendars for the big surprise.
Have an Escalade stretch limo waiting outside your house. Go pick-up some of your favorite people to celebrate with. (That’s where we came in!)
Reserve a private room at Pappadeaux where you SURPRISE her YET AGAIN with her dad who is suppose to be at his house… almost 800 miles away! 
THEN, have her mom (also suppose to be almost 800 miles away) come out…
There’s more…
Ask everyone at the table to share the things they love the most about Michelle. Below is Jimmie’s dad telling Michelle she is everything he could have ever wanted in a daughter…
This is right after Michelle’s dad talked about how special she was as a little girl… and still is today.
As IF she needed more, Jimmie framed and read a poem he wrote to her.
It gets better… Jimmie actually apologized that he got a little choked-up. (How sweet is that?!?!) Curious what it said? Don’t worry! He gave me permission to share with the world…
“So Michelle… You are thirty-two
I think I have heard most of the stories about youFrom your boyfriends you’ve had since you were two
To all of the cars you’ve been throughFrom how much your daddy loves you
To finally getting that connection with your mama tooAnd not to mention all those fights with Matthew
As that relationship has come full-circle tooSpeaking of relationships… There are three where God’s perfect love flows through
From “I need help with my homework” to “Can I have a snack?”and all the boo-hoos and attitudes
Then it is finally, “Mama, I love you!”As for me, I know this life with you will be an exciting ride
As we travel through it side-by-side
So without further ado, Happy Birthday to You!”
As my in-laws listened to poem, I knew what they are thinking because I’ve heard them say it out loud many times before. They are so thankful Michelle is married to someone who loves and values her so much.
Time for ANOTHER surprise… Michelle’s cousin surprised Michelle at dinner. Jimmie arranged for her to come in from Chicago!
After lots of raw oysters and fried shrimp, we headed to The Punchline. Keeping-up with the careful planning of the entire night, we were on the front row. (At this point, Jimmie… I’m beyond impressed with you!) Here are the girls… on stage as they should be.
Jimmie made it clear this night wasn’t about a fancy car or a nice dinner. In the words of Jimmie, we all came together to celebrate Michelle.
Her compassion has given so many children a safe home and allowed many of them to feel love for the first time.
Her humor breaks the ice and keeps everyone around her laughing.
Her honesty never leaves you wondering, “I wonder how she really feels about it.”
Her love is what makes all want to come together and just celebrate Michelle.
Have you ever wanted to display the images you love, but needed some ideas on how to actually do it? If so, you are not alone. One of the most common questions I receive is, “How do I hang my pictures on the wall?”
Since a lot of you have told me how much you like the “Decorating with Photos” posts, I decided to share these ideas with everyone. I hope you find a few that inspire you to use your wall space to really make a statement!
