Wedding Florals | Columbia Photographer

"I must have flowers, always and always." {Claude Monet}

From a gorgeous bridal bouquet to romantic aisle decor, your wedding flowers truly impact the tone & feel of your wedding day. Whether you prefer classic elegance roses, whimsical arrangement or romantic blooms, your bouquets, boutonnieres & centerpieces are a fantastic way to incorporate what most reflects your style.

Hiring a fantastic florist, who really understands what you want, your budget & in-season flowers, is such a wonderful way to make your floral dreams come true. They will guide you to the arrangement style & color scheme you've always dreamed of.

Swoon-worthy peonies.

Bunches of long-stemmed roses.

Sprawling wild flowers.

I always say the bigger the bouquet, the better!

What better way to add a beautiful pop of color to your wedding photos with bright bouts (can we all agree with bout is SO much easier to type out than boutonniere??) or tone down your colors with soft, pastel centerpieces.

The combinations of beauty & photograph-worthy moments are endless.

{August Goals}

"There is no life like this life. There is no hope like this hope.
There is no God like our God." {Dr. Owen Strachan}

In what & in whom do I have my hope? Where am I seeking to find my life? What does God want me to be about? These are the questions I ask & want to continue to ask when thinking of each new day, week & month ahead. Fixing my eyes on the Author & Perfecter of my faith, faithfully running the straight & narrow path He has laid before me.

"Christ crucified & raised for our justification is intended to unleash us, embolden us & put us to work. Christianity is much more about serious adventure than sentimentalized safety. It is much more about faith in suffering than ease in prosperity. It is much more about death - death to sin & self - than it is about personal affirmation & precious moments."

August Goals

>> Study & journal about an attribute of God
>> Commit new verses to memory
>> Love, serve & respect Dean well
>> Enjoy a schmancy dinner date out with Dean
>> Be an intentional mama & point Madison to the Lord
>> Take a daily walk with Madison, weather permitting
>> Eat no sugar - refined or natural (For anyone interested in IQS, Sarah Wilson has great tips & recipes here)
>> Join a local MOPS group
>> Lovingly serve our LMP clients
>> Attend a coaching session with Cheyenne Schultz
>> Order new LMP equipment
>> Treat others with an abundance of kindness
>> Review our budget & plan for September

What are your goals for this month? I'd love to know what your aim & focus is set on!

Madison's Newborn Session | Columbia, South Carolina

A few days after our Cinco de Mayo baby was born, we scheduled to have Casey Edwards come by our home to photograph Madison in all her newborn wrinkliness.

Even though I had picked out several outfits before Maddie was born, there was no way to know if the outfits would be the right size for her til the day of. After a several morning wardrobe changes all around, we finally settled on two sweet outfits for Maddie. And one ginormous bow :)

Casey drove all the way from Greenville to capture these special moments & we're so delighted that she did! Here are just a few of our favorites of our new family of 3 (plus a cameo by Granmom!).

July Gratefulgrams

"The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances."
{Elisabeth Elliot}

Can I get an amen??

I often think, "Well, if God just changed this & this & this, then my attitude would be different or I'd have more joy..." But the truth is, I'm called to be content & have a joyful heart despite all that may be going on around me. Easier said than done but that's where His grace is. Sufficient for my life.

1. It's hard to believe our little Junebug is already 3 months old! / 2. Photographing sweet friends-turned-engaged-friends is the best! / 3. Zoo dates with Hubby / 4. Keeping a right perspective about the craziness that can be wedding days / 5. Getting back to Virginia for this lovely couple's engagement session / 6. Storytime snuggles

Advice for Brides: Keeping perspective

Throughout our bridal advice series, I've talked about making decisions, deciding on your bridal party, The Top 5, seeing your groom & more (to see past blog posts, check on this link!).

And now, let's chat about when things go wrong on your wedding day.

It sounds like just about the worst thing I could share with you, right? Way to bring us all down to Debbie Downerville, Lorin (I don't think that's a thing but we're going with it!). But the truth is, there will probably be something on your special day that doesn't go according to plan/gets left behind/doesn't quite work out like you had thought it would.

Photo by: The Pinwheel Collective

Here's the secret: When something does go array, it's likely that only you, your groom & wedding planner/coordinator will even know about it!

Having been a bride who planned her wedding day down to a T, I couldn't have anticipated the few small not-according-to-plan things that happened on November 11 almost 2 years ago.

Photo by: The Pinwheel Collective

As part of our ceremony, we had decided to tie 3 cords together to represent the strength & unity of the relationship between Dean, myself & the Lord & asked our pastor to read Ecclesiastes 4:12: "Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken."

Well. In the midst of transferring boxes & boxes of decor to our venue, the lovely Cloverdale Barn, the beautiful woven rope Dean & I had picked out online & had shipped to us. somehow. went. missing.

Ahh! What's a bride to do? Insert incredible wedding planner! She pulled together 3 long pieces of beautiful gold ribbon that we were able to tie instead. And none of our guests knew the difference. Just another reason that having a planner/coordinator/day-of coordinator is so crucial to making your wedding day a success!

So what if something happens that your guests do notice? It can make for a great story to laugh about later on!

Like I mentioned in this post about remembering your wedding day, as my sister was carrying the train of my wedding dress, she lost her footing and fell, scraping her knee in the process. Just seconds before she was supposed to walk down the aisle. Once again, incredible wedding planner Sam to the rescue! She quickly wiped off Chelsea's bloody knee & set her on her way.

Because the bridesmaid dresses fell just to the knee, however, Chelsea's freshly scratched leg was visible for our guests to see. I was later told that one of our guests sitting near the bridal party kept trying to pass along a handkerchief for Chelsea's wound. Right after the ceremony we were all able to laugh about the situation & give my sister a big hug for being such a trooper. And to this day, it's still one of the highlight moments of our wedding.

Another not-as-planned moment: after I finished walking down the aisle with my dad, our ceremony playlist continued playing, switching from A Fine Frenzy's sweet ballad "What I Wouldn't Do" to our upbeat recessional song, "Ho Hey" by The Lumineers. After the music was quickly shut off, our witty pastor addressed our guests saying, "Ho hey ho, everybody!" Such a fun, nerve-squashing moment that really helped to set the mood for our ceremony. Otherwise I know I would have cried my happy tears the whole time, instead of just most of the way through.

If something on your wedding day doesn't get delivered in time, or goes off schedule, or gets lost between your getting-ready location & the venue, or if your music continues on, or if your MOH trips & scratches her knee, don't sweat it.

It secretly happens to most of us brides & makes for the most memorable stories to share & laugh about for years to come!

Advice for Brides: Bridal details checklist

Advice for Brides: 8 Fabulous date night ideas

Advice for Brides: Making Decisions

Advice for Brides: Get more sleep

Advice for Brides: Seeing your groom

Advice for Brides: Your bridal party

Advice for Brides: Putting the wed in wedding