September 7th

Caution: This one's emotional for me. You're about to enter a blog post filled with sentimentality, image overload, and surely some "sap." Consider yourself warned ;)

I'll start by telling you that today is the 7th anniversary of mine and Robert's wedding at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Forest, VA. There's a little bit more of a story to our marriage/wedding dates (as some of you well know ;) ), but for now it's enough to note that on a perfect late summer evening 7 years ago today, this 30-year old wife and mom was just a 23-year old girl in love, standing at an altar in front of friends and family, pledging her love to a man. And that man? Oh, he's turned out to be everything that girl could've hoped for. He is strong and gentle, wise and patient. He is steady and reliable, compassionate and peaceful, possessing an open heart that desires to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with his God. And on top of all of that, he is a romantic partner, and an amazing father. My breath still catches in my throat on a regular basis, at the realization of just how blessed I am to be walking through life with this good man. (And ladies, he's handsome too!)

Well, that turned into a bit of a rabbit trail! The reason I first brought it up actually is relevant to Red Dirt Girl Photography...stay with me for a minute.

See this picture?



Yup- that's me on my wedding day! But, that's not why I'm posting it. Do you see that other lovely young girl? That is my cousin, Rebecca. (And her fantastic brothers, TJ, Johnny & George!) Rebecca was a bridesmaid in my wedding, and was just 15 years old on that day. And do you know what? In these past 7 years, not only has she blossomed into a smart and accomplished young woman (who is beautiful as ever!); she's also fallen in love...And now she's the one preparing to pledge her vows.

So, it seems appropriate to post a sneak peek for Rebecca and Zach's engagement session today. Just as she stood in celebration of my marriage 7 years ago today, I'm posting these pictures today in celebration of her upcoming wedding, and the love she shares with Zach.

Hope you guys love these images as much as I do- I can't wait to show you the rest! (I've said so much here on the front end, that I'm just gonna hope these pictures can speak for themselves ;) ) ENJOY!



On fire!













Um, yeah....how GORGEOUS are they?!?





I love this moment, when serious devolved into silly in about half a second flat...

The Golden Hour

I know I mentioned that we recently returned from vacation. What I may not have mentioned was that it was almost entirely thanks to the generosity of my parents that we were able (for the second year in a row) to spend a week on the Gulf Coast in Florida, lazing about and forging a circular footpath leading from the house to the pool, from the pool to the beach, and then back again.

We slept soundly.

We read many books.

We all came home with tanned limbs, despite our religious application of sunscreen.

We watched spadefish circle our ankles in the water, and captured sand dollars and starfish in the waves.

Ella learned to swim fearlessly under water, and we delighted not only in her sudden progress, but also at the sight of her lithe little body wriggling like a fish beneath the rippling blue surface.

We cooked and shared meals with my parents and my sister's little family of 3.

We witnessed my niece's first flight in an airplane, and her first moments on a Florida beach.

We imbibed mojitos and pina coladas at sunset each evening...
...and we bathed in the light of the golden hour.





"small waves, slowly paced, broke lullingly along a thinning
beach; I listened to my child sing her part of this ceremony."

[excerpt from The Evening Light Presuming our Wishes by R.D. King]

Just a little nibble...

...to whet your appetite for what's to come.

After returning from a brief, (but certainly refreshing), end-of-summer family vacation, I've been bogged down with website building, session editing, and a whole host of other photography related tasks. Chained to the computer would not be an exaggeration. I've got a bunch of sneak peeks to post here in the next couple of weeks, but in the meantime, I thought I'd share this little nugget of deliciousness- to tide you over, and keep your attention ;)

This is my sweet friend Jen's little guy. He never fails to charm me with his flirtations, and this day was no exception. Just LOOK at those enchanting eyes!!!