I had the BEST year. Nothing can live up to 2011 in my mind. I got married, gained a new family, my brother got married, we  got a puppy and we got our own place. It honestly was a jammed back year and I couldn’t have asked for anything more.

Besides all my personal happenings I got to photograph the most wonderful couples.  I was truly blessed with such wonderful couples this year that I don’t know how this year could get better!

Thank you to everyone for all your support! Here are some of my favorite wedding memories

Thank you to all my brides and grooms!!

People come along once and awhile and you know you just ‘click’. This was definitely the case with Carrie and Brian. I went to high school with Carrie and was able to meet Brian a couple months ago at their engagement session.

She has the type of personality that everyone wants to be around. She’s sweet, caring, funny and FUN! Brian fits her perfectly. He has such a charmingly sweet demeanor about him and in every photo you can see how much he is in LOVE with this girl.

I loved everything about this wedding. From it being in the winter to the snow on the ground  - everything was perfect. From getting ready to Sparty showing up at the end – the night was, simply put, perfect.

Honestly – there were too many amazing events to put into this blog! Here is just a preview!

My favorite dress shot!!

<3 this.

How beautiful is Carrie? Love these next couple.

About to see each other for the first time! The next four is why I love first looks!

Some bride and groom time

The beautiful bride.

The handsome groom.

Love it! SO cute!

Love that we had snow on the ground

LOVE.

The Men!

The Woman!

The whole party!!

<3

How funny is this?! Going after the beer

Dad giving away his daughter. 

This little guy has a future in photography!

I know it’s completely crazy but I just LOVE this!

Pure Bliss

We have to end on Sparty!! Go MSU!!

Congrats to Carrie and Brian!! Your day was perfect! Hope to see you guys again soon!

I had been looking forward to this wedding since Jes booked with me months and months ago. I knew Jes and her husband, Tim, from various things – one being that we all went to the same high school together (side note – Go Novi High!).

Everything from the day turned out perfectly – the bride, the groom, the bridal party and their sweet little girl – Molly. Now Molly could not have been more of a doll. She was incredibly patient, super sweet and out of this world cute. Her dress was TO DIE FOR along with her mommy’s. The two of them just looked SO beautiful!

We were able to secure a Fire Truck from Tim’s old stomping grounds and boy am I glad we did! It was so fun and added uniqueness to the day.  Speaking of uniqueness wait till you see a photo of their entrance! The whole day was perfect and I couldn’t be more thankful that I was able to be a part of it. You’ll also see some familiar faces in some of the photos as well!

Enjoy the preview!

Love it!

Some details <3

The stare down between the cousins!

The beautiful bride being a beautiful mommy

The boys making their way to the chapel. 

Ceremony Photos.

The beautiful family.

Some of the bride’s side

And some of the Groom’s side. 

The daughter and the niece

And, of course, the bride and groom

The GORGEOUS bride…

And her beautiful daughter and handsome husband <3

This is love.

The awesomely adorable ladies of the party!

One of my favorite guys pictures ever taken.

Siblings!!

Fire Truck time!!

A favorite.

Love this.

Yea, how awesome is their entrance?!

Some formal dances

The last of my sessions on Labor Day weekend was taken place at the Lyon Oaks Golf Club. These two weren’t going to get any photos of their wedding! Thank goodness the bride’s sister contacted me and asked if I could come along for a few hours to just get a couple family photos and such. I am SO glad she did! I had such a lovely time meeting and hanging out with everyone on such a gorgeous afternoon!

These two are clearly in love and I sincerely hope that they have the most wonderful life together.

Enjoy the preview!!

The lovely couple.

LOVE this bag!

<3

Loving the location!

A favorite

Love.

The bride and her boys <3

The two sets of grandparents and their grandkids!

Love this of the sisters!!

Helping his dad

Do these not look amazing?!

The New Mrs. and Mr.

Thank you to this wonderful couple for allowing me to take some photos of their special day! Now you will have some lasting memories on film! Also – thanks to the brides sister for inviting me out!

I am a sucker for weddings. Ask anyone who knows me and they are sure to say one thing – she’s a sucker for weddings.  It doesn’t have to be my own - anyone’s, doesn’t matter.

This was just the case with Sam and Richard. I met them earlier in the year and I knew then that it was going to be a fabulous day (even if it was in AA – I’m a STATE grad, leave me alone). The day started out lovely – I had the chance to get ready with the girls and see the groom before he headed down the aisle. Both the bride and groom were cool, calm and collected. They knew what they were doing was completely and utterly the best possible thing – they were in love.

After the ceremony it started to pour … lighting … thunder. It looked like our trip to the UofM stadium was going to be a no go. We took all the family photos inside the church and by some sort of miracle by the time they were done the clouds parted. We headed to the stadium with the whole bridal party. I was so lucky to be a part of Sam and Richards big day – it was magical from start to finish.

I hope you enjoy the preview!

The bride and her ADORABLE niece.

I couldn’t decide what dress photo I liked better

Getting the dress on!!

And there’s the Groom – all calm!

Love this!

Becoming Husband and Wife.

<3

I just love how happy they look!

Parents

The boys being all studly!

Sticking around the church grounds a little before the stadium!! The rain made everything look so green!

LOVE this

I swear – these two were fierce!

The Handsome Groom

And the Beautiful Bride

At the stadium!!  

Love this of the bridal party!! The colors are just fabulous! 

 Another favorite

 The ladies being awesome – love the flower girl!

Little more bride and groom time before we head to the reception

Love.

Another favorite

Time to cut the cake!

Dances <3 

 One of the best garter tosses I’ve had the pleasure of witnessing

And, of course, we are in AA why wouldn’t there be football players hanging out at the Sheraton?

Thank you to Samantha, Richard and all their family and friends for making me feel welcome throughout the night! I had a blast and I truly hope that you two are enjoying your honeymoon in AZ!! 

I want to start off by saying, once again, that I have the coolest and most awesome job in the whole entire world. I get to share and have a behind the scenes look at the most intimate and special day of your lives. There really isn’t anything cooler than that.

I was extra excited about this wedding because I knew the family – sort of. The groom’s sister got married a few weeks ago and I was their wedding photographer! It was great to see everyone again to celebrate another beautiful couple – Joe and Becky.

I met Becky at the beginning of the year when things with her other photographer didn’t turn out too well. I felt so bad for her BUT I’m glad it happened and brought us together! Becky has one of the most caring personalities I have ever come in contact with and Joe is honestly the same exact way. They both oozed everything a couple should on their wedding day – fun, friendship, family and LOVE.

I was so happy I could be a part of the festivities and I hope that you enjoy the preview!!

Just a few details

<3 these

The Precious flower girl!

Getting beautiful

While the ladies get ready the groom is hanging out as calm as can be.

One more deep breath and away they go!

First kiss as a Mr. and Mrs.

Married!!

Grabbing a hug from mom

The stunning bride.

And the handsome Groom.

Together. 

The bride and her ladies.

The groom and his gentlemen.  Also a favorite groomsmen picture

The whole party!!

Love this.

Bride and Groom time!!

Ummm… LOVE this!

Love the fact that Becky brought umbrellas!! 

Now that is one big group!

First dance as husband and wife.

Daddy and his daughter Love it!

And, of course, the gorgeous mother and her son.

Becky does Zumba all the time (she has lost 41 pounds – WOW!) and so they did a Zumba dance! Love it!

Love this – this is what every face should look like at a wedding. Happy.

The boys could not be out done by the girls!! Doing their own little dance!

This is one intense bouquet throw!

Ending the night with a little one on one time outside <3

Thank you, Becky and Joe! I had a fabulous time seeing and meeting your families and friends. I hope that you have an AMAZING time on your honeymoon and you enjoy every second of married life!

I met Jessica and Matt last fall for their engagement pictures and since then I was so excited to get to shoot this couple again. They have just a calm about them that can make anyone feel comfortable.

When I got to the hotel to start taking photos of the girls getting ready, Jessica was in basketball shorts – she is the type of girl that you know never compromises who she is as a person. You can see who she is no matter what element you are in. Once she got in her dress everyone just gasped – she looked beautiful. She let me know that the last time Matt would have seen her this dressed up would have been PROM! I knew he was just going to be floored/shocked/awed when he saw her.

They decided to do a first look – which was amazing. It gave us a ton of time for photos and after the ceremony was done – they were free to go mingle with their guests right away.

The whole day was a dream (even with the rain). Their family and friends showed their love throughout the night and the dancing never stopped!

Hope you enjoy the preview!

LOVED her shoes!

 Getting herself ready!

 Putting on the beautiful dress

This girl is pure gorgeousness!

A favorite!

The handsome groom!

The lovely ladies!

Another favorite

Waiting for his bride

So much fun

And here before the ceremony

Now husband and wife

Love it – married only a few hours and married the longest

I honestly cannot say enough good things about Marie and Jason. As I said in their engagement post blog, they are seriously one of the sweetest couples I have ever encountered. They both ooze love and affection, not only for each other, but everyone around them. A quote I remember from Jason right after the ceremony, “Can we take photos in a minute? I want to go hug our parents.” It’s honestly little things like that, that made me love this couple.  They care for so many people and you could tell that everyone cared for them.

They got married at Cobblestone Farms in Ann Arbor, MI. This place was BEAUTIFUL! SO much fun to have a wedding there. You get all the grounds to yourself – which includes a cute house, a barn AND – get this – a real live FARM! I was pretty excited when I saw that there were actual animals there. It just added another awesome element to an already fanastic day.

I hope the two of them are enjoying each other on their honeymoon and that these photos bring a smile to their faces while remembering the best day of their lives.

I will say this a million times, I love what I do.

The farm!!

Getting the bride ready! A little help from mom

LOVE the flowers.

Now that is one glowing bride.

Um, Seriously?! Marie, you are GORGEOUS!

<3

Love her bridesmaids! They were SO much fun!

Work it girls!

Jason’s brother helping him get his tie situated. Love it.

The handsome groom!

These boys were just as fun as the bridesmaid – just a little goofier :)

The groomsmen and ushers.

LOVE – getting a hug from his dad before the bride comes down.

Here comes the bride!!

His first look <3

The new Mr. and Mrs.!!

Bride Side

Groom Side.

Wedding party fun!

My favorite time – time with the bride and groom!

LOVE this! So natural – even though about a million bugs were attacking them!

LOVE. Marie made those herself!

A favorite for sure.

Love this of the bride and grooms parents! Cheering to a job well done.

LOVE how Jason is looking at Marie here.

The bride and her daddy.

Jason and his beautiful mother.

LOVE it.

Photos like this make me love what  I do even more.

And the dancing continued throughout the night!

Marie and Jason – Thank you for being such great people and allowing me to document your very special day. I had a blast meeting all your friends and family and spending the day with the two of you. I hope you are enjoying relaxing on the beach – on your honeymoon! Hopefully we can get together soon!!

There are just some moments that I feel so lucky to be a part of – Kim and Travis’s wedding day was one of those moments.

From the minute I stepped into Kim’s house till the last dance at the reception, I felt the joy/love/happiness. Kim is the type of person that absolutely everyone wants to be around. Her warm smile and caring demeanor that she has towards everyone makes you want to be her best friend. Travis is the also the type of person everyone wants to be around – his humor and ability to make any situation fun makes everyone want to be his best friend.

The whole day was just remarkable and made me really realize that through anything, if you have family, you’ll get through anything.  It made me love my job even more than I already did.

I hope you enjoy the preview!

Ok – I was looking HIGH and LOW for purple shoes and never found them. To say I was jealous of Kim’s shoes is a complete understatement.

This was Kim the whole day – smiley!

The ADORABLE flower girl!

LOVE this shot of Kim’s sister and mom putting on the dress.

The GORG bride!

Seriously in love with her flowers.

The beautiful bridesmaids

A favorite!!

How bad ass is this family?  Love it!

Can’t forget about the handsome groom!

L.O.V.E this of the groom and ring bearer!

Travis picked some pretty awesome groomsmen.

<3 she was all smiles when Kim let her hold the bouquet

The new Mr. and Mrs.!

The awesomely fun wedding party!

Time for some one on one time with the bride and groom!

LOVED Fellows Creek Golf Course!

Travis – you are a pro at this!

Beautiful couple.

<3

I LOVE first dances (their song was FABULOUS – wish I could remember what it was)!

Love this. Listening to the best man speech.

LOVE this of the bride’s mom and brother!

The mini bride looking adoringly at the bride.

This was one proud dad

Travis and his beautiful mother.

And the craziness begins!

Travis and his groomsmen rocked it out!

Congrats to the beautiful couple!

Kim and Travis – Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your special day. I honestly had a BLAST. All your family and friends made me feel so welcome – you guys have a GREAT support system! I wish you both the best of luck in Virgina!

This past Memorial Day weekend I had the opportunity to photograph an old friend from high schools wedding. Katie and I use to be super close in high school but went separate ways when we each went to different colleges.

When I found out she was engaged last year I was secretly hoping that she would ask me to be her photographer because I knew I wanted to see her be a bride. Katie has such a beauty that everyone has to stop and notice. The best part about Katie is that not only she is beautiful on the outside, she has the sweetest personality you will ever come across.

Kevin is her exact match. He is handsome, sweet and you can see how much he truly loves Katie.

They honestly go together like Barbie and Ken and I truly wish them the best of luck together in their marriage.

I hope they enjoy their preview!!

Katie’s mom and mother-in-law getting her in the dress.

Kevin’s niece was one cute flower girl!

Every detail on Katie was just perfect.

Signing the marriage license!

LOVE this.

Katie, you are FABULOUS!

And Kevin? You look pretty awesome yourself!

Kevin’s men.

The super cute ring bearer!!!

LOVE how happy and excited the three of them look!

Katie being walked down the aisle by her mom and dad.

Kissing the bride.

The gorgeous bride.

Husband and wife!

LOVE LOVE LOVE!

Beautiful

A favorite.

They honestly didn’t take a bad picture.

The awesome wedding party!

They look like they could be models!

The boys with the bride.

The girls with the groom!

Katie and her beautiful bridesmaids.

LOVE this one of Katie!

And LOVE this one of Kevin!

Beautiful lemon cake!

Love this moment with Katie and her dad.

Love how Kevin is looking at his bride here.

This picture makes me happy

Beautiful father/daughter dance.

Love this of Katie and her mom on the dance floor!

Love!

Katie and Kevin – I hope that your wedding was everything you both dreamed of. Every detail was just amazing and the love that surrounded you two was incredibly noticeable. I hope you have a fabulous honeymoon in the coming months.