Introducing Advice for Brides

When my now hubby proposed last May during a beautiful hiking trip, I immediately started pouring over all things wedding - Pinterest, blog, photographers' blogs, bridal mags and more - as soon as I got back home. Deano was such a champ through the 7 months of our engagement. I mean, I wanted to know ALL the options on ANYthing before making a decision (including all the possible Save the Date options in our price range on Etsy. Let's just say, that's a whole lotta options!).

And I didn't know where to begin! Any brides feeling the same overwhelmingness? Deano & I had talked about marriage, sought counseling from our pastor & parents & prayerfully considered the commitment before we went ring shopping. But until the day he put the ring on my finger, I wanted to hold off on any plans of any kind.

I wanted to enjoy & be present for every moment while we were dating - not months in the future deciding what kind of flowers I'd have in my bouquet. For those of you that are able to be in the here & plan for the future, cheers to you! That was not something my brain could handle :)

In August I shared my heart with y'all about this very thing & gave a few tips for what I learned through our engagement. The more I talk with brides, the more I realized a lot of us were in the same place. We've never been engaged/planned a wedding before & then there's pressure to suddenly become the perfect wedding planning fiancee/bride. Here's something to keep in mind: At the end of the day, if you're more married than when you started, the wedding day is a success. Yay! Time to drink a big mug of coffee & cheers to that!

Although you'll still have many wedding planning decisions to make, the freedom that comes with knowing that is hugely awesome! And having been right there in those same wedding-planning shoes not too long ago, I'm starting a new weekly blog series about all the helpful hints & wedding tips I've learned: Advice to Brides, from one bride to another :) I'm so excited to passing along what has worked for our wedding & other couples' weddings, too! Check back on Friday for the very first post!

Sabrina + David | Wilkes Street Tunnel Engagement

Love makes the world go round. That's what I wrote on the sign next to our wedding guest book globe.

When I think of this sweet couple's relationship, it's more love shared across the world. Sabrina & David first laid eyes on each other in ... Ethiopia! That's right! When Sabrina left Virginia to study sustainable farming overseas, she had no idea that God had also lined up a meeting of her future husband, too. Isn't God the coolest? His love stories are always so much better than anything we could ever dream up. 

I met Sabrina at our church last fall & immediately liked her personable personality (she makes you feel like you've been friends for years!) & admired her heart for the Lord. When we first met to discuss their upcoming spring wedding several months ago, David actually wasn't even in America at the time! Because of the length of process & steps involved with David moving to America after their engagement in Ethiopia, we weren't even sure when we could take pictures! Or when the for-sure wedding date would be!

If any of you brides have planned a wedding in another state or back home, you'll know how much communication & diligence goes into working out all the vendors, finalizing appointments & catering tastings without actually being there. Now imagine not even KNOWING when your GROOM would be in the same time zone as you!!

Throughout it all, Sabrina & David remained steadfast in their hope & faith in the Lord. Though they primarily communicated through Skype or over the phone during the whole process, they continued to walk by faith & not by sight. Our church community, Small Group ladies & family/friends everywhere prayed for many weeks that ALL the logistics of David's move would come together. And they did!!! Praise the Lord! Dean & I got to shoot with the now reunited couple on a snowy Saturday in Old Town down by the Wilkes Street Tunnel. We loved the beautiful light streaming on the couple who was so romantic & playful throughout. David, we're SO glad you're here! It's been awesome seeing you & Sabrina together & the way you make her smile. We can hardly wait for this March :) 

{February Goals}

Photo by The Pinwheel Collective

Last month, I finalized my goals pretty late into January as I was still working through vision & long-term goals for the year & for my life. Y'all, it is so great to be intentional with each day the Lord has given us & to set aside time to visualize how to best use the time, resources & talents He's given you for His glory.

If you haven't tried monthly goal setting before, give it a shot this month. What things are you most passionate about? What areas of your life do you desire change or growth?

February Goals

>> Spend time journaling & expressing my love & gratitude to the Lord
>> Continue serving my spring bride well
>> Aim to be in bed by 11 & up to by 6:30
>> Put up a family prayer board in our home
>> Look for additional ways to respect & support Dean
>> Read The Meaning of Marriage by Tim Keller
>> Complete LMP business tasks & start new blog series
>> Plan styled venue shoot
>> Book new weddings & portrait sessions
>> Become more familiar with Mvelopes & track our spending
>> Schedule coffee dates with my SG ladies
>> Set aside time to truly rest each week
>> Finish styling our new bookcases & begin hanging photos/arts

"The key to not feeling rushed is remembering that lack of time is actually a lack of priorities.” Tim Ferriss

January Gratefulgrams

Blessed. Thankful. Grateful. That is an attitude I want to intentionally cultivate in my life. What better way to do that than a monthly recap of all the people, places & things that I most cherish?

Inspired by the fabulous Nancy Ray's monthly series that she started back in July, here are my Gratefulgrams for this month!

1. Got real with myself & my goals using Lara Casey's PowerSheets / 2. Shared about the lasting investment of wedding photography (Pt. 1 & 2!) / 3. Hosted brunch for my amazing SG ladies! / 4. Celebrated 2 awesome months of marriage :) / 5. SNOW DAY!! / 6. Blogged this beautiful couple's wedding

I'd love to hear your attitude of gratitude :) What are you thankful for this month?

Our home

It's been almost 3 months in our new home. And as my hubby & I both like to say, "Marriage is the best!" It truly is an incredible blessing to commit my life to Dean & spend our days together in this space. We are definitely not done decorating yet but it's such a blast to display our favorite memories, beautiful colors & patterns throughout each of the rooms.

Clearly, I have a thing for owl collectibles! The first is from Target's fall decor in the $1 bins last year & the ceramic owl was a wedding gift from our dear friends Amanda & Josh that is actually a West Elm teapot that we use a cookie jar :)