Happy Friday!!

Here is a gorgeous image from a summer engagement session in Orange County...can't wait to share more of this session and their wedding!!!

Nikki and Vance, thank you for allowing me to capture your engagement session and I cannot wait for your wedding!!!

Happy Tuesday!

This week for the Resource Room I want to share one of my favorite websites, Etsy...but not just Etsy....Etsy weddings!  There are so many gorgeous accessories and wedding day must haves that you can get lost in there!  Go ahead and check it out, but I warn you, you should clear about 2 hours off your schedule today :)

And because this is a photo blog, here is a sneak peek from Nikki and Vance's Charlotte engagement session!

More to come soon...!

Their beautiful wedding took place on July 16 in downtown Charlotte, NC with everyone getting ready at the historic Dunhill Hotel, the ceremony at historic St. Mary's Chapel and the reception following at RiRa's, which is such a fun bar and restaurant with a great atmosphere.  The day started out cloudy and it looked almost as if it could rain, but it didn't and the sun peeped out just after the ceremony, which I think is good luck :)  

Cody and Anna, thank you so much for allowing me to document your wedding day---it was beautiful and, just like you wanted, I'm pretty sure everyone had a great time :)

Anna's dress is gorgeous and she purchased it in Charlottesville, VA at West Main Bridal.

Nothing more gorgeous than a radiant bride on her wedding day!  :)

Bling!

I love the getting ready photographs, almost as much as any other part of the wedding day...there is so much excitement and anticipation and you can feel it in the air...

Cody doing his thing before the wedding...

I love capturing the groom's expression as his future wife walks down the aisle  :)

Anna is an only child and you could tell her Dad was happy for her but was also a little hesitant to let his little girl go...

Actually, this might be my favorite part of the day...right after the bride and groom have exchanged vows and are pronounced husband and wife...!

Oh! Y'all! Are! Too! Stinking! Adorable!

Anna and Cody held their reception at RiRa's in downtown Charlotte and it was so much fun!  

Delicious cake made by the chef at RiRa's...I'm talking rich, velvety dark chocolate with a rich, creamy, chocolate frosting with whip cream to boot!  Are you hungry yet?? :)

Gotta wrap up the post with an awesome reception shot of Cody and all the guys singing "You've lost that lovin' feeling" to Anna  :)

Happy Tuesday!

This summer we went to Ocean Isle Beach...

A lot of people who live on the west coast don't realize what the Intracoastal Waterway is...it's pretty awesome!  It's a narrow strip of water that creates little islands off the coast of North Carolina and in the summer is always filled with jet skiiers and boaters, etc.

Ah, so relaxing :)  Happy Thursday!

Lots of shooting and editing going on over here and I wanted to share a quick sneak peek of Cody and Anna's Charlotte St. Mary's Chapel wedding...more to follow soon!  :)

That's when I saw the news article...Royal Couple Visiting Santa Barbara, or something to that affect.

"Eek, Ahh, OMGosh."  I swooned and carried on.  I insisted that we had to go.  Mike didn't seem too concerned that the Royal couple was visiting and that we could have a chance to see them in person.

I realized this would call for some great persuasion on my behalf.  Donning a ridiculous beach hat, I pranced around the house using a horrible, fake British accent, "Oh, Michael, we must go to the royal polo match.  It's a once in a lifetime opportunity.  I shall just die if I can't go.  All the stars will be there, it will be educational.  It's a historical event, one not to be missed.  Also, I can see Kate's clothes in person."

Unfortunately, the evening ended with "uh, let's talk about this later."  Whatever.

A few days later after my shameless, British begging expose, I arrived home late from a meeting, starving and just ready to go to bed.  Mike decided he wanted to run out for a late dinner..."Come with me," he asked.  "Oh, alright."  I agreed.  I met him at the front door, sans purse.  

"Where's your purse?" Mike asked a little alarmed.  

"It's taking a nap.  I'm not taking it."

"I think you should get your purse."

"Why?"

"I, uh, just think you should have it in case we need your driver's license or something."

"Oh, I already have that on me."

"I'll be right back..."  as Mike runs up the stairs.

"Take your purse!"  he says.

Sheesh, I'm thinking.  He must really like this new bag I bought.  Maybe I should get it in the white color as well.

I look into my bag and there's an invitation...in honor of my birthday to attend the Royal Polo Match!  

You would've have thought the man was proposing again the way I carried on.  Excitement and near fainting ensued.  

Anyway, onto the good part.  Such a cool event and it really was a once in a lifetime event to be able to see Kate and William (I like to think that we're on a first name basis).

The week leading up to the polo match, I was so excited...so excited in fact that I couldn't stop using my fake British accent.  I'm sure Mike loved it :)

We were permitted to bring cameras so I was loaded down with my camera and Mike brought his trusty point and shoot:

The day started out foggy, but fortunately the fog burned off and the sun came out.  This is the infamous "June Gloom" of Santa Barbara that has spread into July.

They're landing!  You could feel the excitement in the air from the crowd and there was a murmur going through the crowd, "They're here, they're here!"

Prince William warming up on the field!!

Before the match, all the players rode around the field, were introduced and then the National Anthem played.  Prince William is #4.

This little girl brought her Kate doll along...I may have to go pick one of those up  ;)

Below is Melissa Ganzi, the only female player on the field.  She's an awesome and feisty player!

Melissa and Prince William tearing down the field...

Prince William is the player getting ready to hit the ball with his mallet...

After the match, Kate presented the trophy to William's winning team and gifts to the other team.  Mike and I were standing behind the press and I'm pretty sure the guys in front of me were a little irritated that I was asking them to move for my shot :)

A blurry close up from Mike's point and shoot, isn't she so pretty?!?

I'm still culling through the gazillion photos I took.  All in all, it was a fabulous day and thank you Mike for the wonderful/awesome/so amazing birthday gift!

Cheers!

Those who know me well know that I often purge things in my house or sell stuff online or load up a bunch of clothes and knickknacks and haul it off to Goodwill.  But there's this one shoebox that I keep around.  I place it on the top of my list of "stuff" to save if my house were burning down.  This shoebox is filled with what I usually consider junk...loose papers, random little knickknacks (like plastic sunglasses that light up and blink around the frames) and ribbons and bows and cards.  This is the kind of "stuff" that usually sends me looking for the shredder (OCD people unite!).  But this shoebox holds the most important memories to me, things that I want to keep around so that when I'm old and gray (well, the gray part is already happening, boo!) that I can remember all the sweet things Mike does for me.

It was around Sophomore year of college that I started keeping this box.  That was around the time that Mike and I started hanging out and he started inviting me to concerts, dinner, etc.  Mike would always give me a handmade invitation when he invited me to do something and it became the start of my shoebox.  

So, all these years later this box is about to bust...I need to get another shoebox for all the invitations.  I didn't think I was sentimental but I guess it turns out I am!  :)

Check back soon...I have a fun post coming up about an invitation I recently received from Mike for my birthday...to a certain Polo Match :)

I hope everyone had a great Fourth of July (yeah, I'm just a few days late on that...).  I had a fantastic 4th filled with lots of kayaking and beach going and eating and lots of reading  :)

Here are just two of the great books I read over the weekend:

In The Garden of Beasts, by Erik Larson.  This book is about a family that moves to Berlin during Hitler's ascent for their father's ambassador position...historical and suspenseful and sad.  But good...you should read it!

The Particular Sadness of Lemon Cake, by Aimee Bender.  Great read and very different from most novels I read.  The main character of the book can taste people's feelings/emotions through the food they make.

OK, so now onto the resource room part of the post!  The blog I'm sharing today is one that I recently found and they actually have a dedicated blog for Charlotte and Charleston, but I'm sharing the Charlotte blog today.  Go check out the Wedding Row!

Alex decided to be photographed near the beautiful, historic mission of Santa Barbara and she introduced me to a few neat trails nearby.  Alex is currently in France on a mission trip, but when she's not saving the world, she's an A+ student, amazing artist (she regularly has paintings on display around town) and is preparing for the next exciting 4 years of her life at Westmont!

Congratulations Alex and have a blast in France!!

I love them all, but oh, this is a fave!  :)  Rawr, Alex!

And here's a slideshow of the rest of the images:  CLICK HERE TO ENJOY!

Happy Hump Day!

Before I dive into my share for the day, I just finished such an awesome book last night.  It's been on my Goodreads list for awhile and Mike just happened to receive it as a gift awhile back....The Art of Non-Conformity.  He received the book right before he left on a business trip...and here's how this went down:

Me:  Oh Mike, I'd really love to read that book!!

Mike:  Yeah, me too.  So amped.  Gonna take it with me to Minnesota.

Me:  What? (as if he had just told me Santa Claus doesn't exist!)  But I'd like to read it now.

Mike:  Um, it's my book.

Me:  Gasp!  But I always read.  I'm the reader in the family!  What if I read it now, I'll finish it today (this happens all the time) and I'll fedex  UPS (that's right, I'm a die hard UPS fan!) it to you in Minnesota.

Mike:  That's just silly.  I'm taking with me.

Mike is preoccupied with something, so I steal (forgive me!) the book out of his suitcase.  Thief!  I smugly hide it amongst my other books thinking I'll start the book as soon as I get back from dropping him off at the airport.

I return home from the airport, pour a glass of Cab and happily make my way towards my bookcase.  Only to find that The Art of Non-Conformity is not where I had left it.  I frantically search (geez, didn't I have anything better to do that night?) all over my bookcase and I don't see it.  Then it hits me.  I immediately text Mike...

Me:  I know you have it

Mike:  What are you talking about?  I have to turn my cell off, we're getting ready to take off...

Me:  You have the book!!  You sneaky thing, you!

Mike:  Oh that, ha, yeah I have it.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

Me:  I may just have to go buy my own copy!

 

Anyway, I finally got to read the book and I loved it :)  So check it out!

But I digress...on to the Resource Room part!  Most of my friends and several of my clients have their own blogs now, which is fun because everyone can stalk each other in their own private way by seeing who is up to what.  So I felt this would be a great post to share with anyone who has a blog or is thinking about starting one.

I love reading ProBlogger...there's always insightful information for any blogger out there.  If you haven't heard of it, then what are you waiting for, go over there right now and read about how to be a better blogger!

Happy Thursday!

I have been wanting to attend The Simple Plan ever since it debuted over a year ago...every time it was offered I was unavailable or out of town, etc, etc.  But this time I made it happen and it was hands down, my favorite workshop of all time.  Maybe because I like crunching numbers and looking at the "back end" and inside of businesses or maybe because Michelle and Kelly are phenomenal teachers.  I recommend going to a Simple Plan the next time they plan one!  And even if you can't make the time, I highly suggest reading their blog, I think it's beneficial for any business owner.

And here's a quick sneak peek of a fun senior session I recently photographed :)

So what I have been up to?  Um, a lot!  Here's a quick rundown of all the personal, whitney-lately goings-on.  

Mike and I ran the Chardonnay 10 miler...lots of fun!  I pretty much signed him up about two weeks before the race so he didn't have much time for training, but we had a good, slow race:

We've been going to the beach a lot with sweet Bear and Charlie:

Having fun hiking the awesome trails (aka mountains!) of Santa Barbara:

Kayaking!  Mike and I used to have a sailboat (that's a whole other blog post!) and we unfortunately had to sell it but we vowed we would get a kayak or some kind of water toy, and we finally did  :)

We've had lots of fun family visits!

Mike and I have been training for a triathlon...are we crazy or what?!

I ran a half marathon with my dear friend Natalie....

And we celebrated with Mimosa's afterwards!

AND Mike and I celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary...woohoo!  

Thanks for checking in, until next time!  :)

When we first moved here, I naively assumed the weather would always be like this...hey, it's California.  But it's not.  And it made me angry, along with the ridiculous taxes, inflated rent, sky high mortgages and cold beaches.  But today I am proven wrong.  And I like it.