The Question: Erin and Tommy

I had the awesome opportunity to photograph Erin and Tommy in June out in Oak Ridge. Not only did I get to play around in the UT Arboretum out in Oak Ridge but I got a guy who tends to be on the serious side to laugh and actually enjoy himself! Mission Accomplished!! ;)

Erin is currently a Grad student down in Georgia and Tommy is a computer programmer...I know...they are smarty pants! But believe it or not, I actually had a LOT to talk with Tommy about! Yay! Since Robby is a software engineer and I was in the IT recruiting world for a short while, I know the buzz words, and it actually holds some interest to me. So off we went, traipsing through the forest, taking pics and talking computer talk. I hope you guys enjoy this super fun and relax engagement shoot! Erin and Tommy, I hope you guys have the BEST wedding out Cumberland Mtn!!!

Seriously?? How about this ring? I love something that goes above and beyond the traditional engagement ring! Erin said she didn't want a diamond...and Tommy listened and did a GREAT job!!

When I asked Tommy to tickle Erin...he was more than happy to do so! Adorable!!!

So stinking cute!! 

Little Man Lucas

This little guy, Lucas, and his parents are some of my absolute FAVS!!! When Ashley shot me a message saying she wanted some pictures of Little Man Lucas for his 6 months, I thought to myself "Its about TIME!!!" LOL! I did Ashley and Steven's Bump Photos back in October and have been itching to meet Lucas ever since I saw those big blue eyes on Facebook! So Ashley, Steven, Lucas and I hit up Concord Park for a little fun in the shade! Let me just say that I have yet to meet a baby that wasn't happy!! I don't know what it is about a camera, but they just light up! Lucas probably takes the cake when it comes to big boy smiles and insane fits of giggles!  

Seriously, little old man New Balances! I wanted to stick these in my bag so bad and make off with them!

 I just absolutely love this image...especially in B&W. I don't know what it is...but its so calming.

Lucas and his Momma...seriously, he was such a ham! It also helped that he is completely enamored with his Daddy and Steven did a great job keeping him entertained!!! 

I LOVE when a dad plays with his kiddo!!! 

I'm heading up to VA this weekend for a fun family birthday party and a 1 year session!!! So excited to see the family and finally chill out (or semi chill-out) for a weekend! Make sure to head back on Monday for an amazing engagement session that I had out in a little park in Oak Ridge! :)

Bleak House Sneak Peak

I am beyond excited to share this amazing little sneak peak of my gorgeous bride, Tiffany, and her bridal shoot that we did two days before her wedding at the Bleak House! Tiffany oozed vintage and sophistication and she stole my heart when I saw her vintage chandelier earrings, her handmade bouquet, and of course her open backed, lace dress! Check back in a few days to see her full post!!!

The Hodges and their Pups

So, if you know me AT ALL, you know how much I love puppers! I mean, look at how much I dote on my silly little Bean Butt, Diesel! So when my awesome friend Jessica asked me to do a session with her, her hubs and the two new additions to their family I was all on board!!! Seriously, how can you not fall in love with these fluffy faces?? I packed up my doggie treats (as is evidence by Tucker's little snout) and headed off! Lets just say, that I went home and took a very long nap after this session! I forgot how exhausting puppies are! 

Jessica told me that she and Brad hadn't had pictures taken since their wedding 3 YEARS AGO!! I couldn't believe it! So of course I had to shove a little bit of just the two of them in there as well!!! I'm just going to let the rest of the pictures unfold...because looking at them all over is making me tired again! :D

I can't help it...I love the one of their hind ends!

And of course I love Happy Puppers #1 and Happy Puppers #2!!

This final picture was literally pure and utter luck! With two puppies, not on a leash and with a large black noise box in their faces, they were not interested in sitting still. But boy was I excited when I saw some of these while editing! Yay!!!

Next week is going to be busy busy busy! Not only do I have my first bridal shoot, but I also have lined up an engagement shoot AND my first wedding for the 2012 wedding season!! I can't wait to bombard you with yummy, lovey dovey goodness! 

planning the big day | our venue

I don't know if I could be any more excited to let you all know where Robby and I will be having our wedding! I wanted to wait until our Save-the-Dates went out, but I cannot contain my excitement! Robby and I loved all of the venues we visited, but in the end, we couldn't get over how perfect Maple Grove Inn would be for the most important day of our lives!!!

Overall, the venue has everything we want! It comes with amazing landscaping, we can have our ceremony and reception outside (with an inside option and two tents in case of rain), the house feels like everything I have ever wanted, and above all, Diesel gets to spend the day with us!

In the coming weeks, I will talk about everything that comes along with Maple Grove Inn, especially when it comes to rentals and catering. Robby and I couldn't be happier that we found this venue and we can't wait to spend this day with our closest family and friends!!

Planning the Big Day - All the Places Part 3

Today is the last and final day of All the Places for this crazy wedding that Robby and I are planning. This is going to be a rather small post as I have two sessions that are calling my name to start editing! :D

The last venue that Robby and I went to look at (and absolutely fell in love with) was Mabry Hazen House right in the middle of Downtown Knoxville! We loved the idea of having a historic venue be apart of our wedding. Robby and I have a thing for history (especially me) so we were absolutely ecstatic to find Mabry Hazen House. I contacted Calvin, the director of the museum (YES, MHH is a museum), and we got to scheduling a visit to the house. 

It was of course, January/February when we toured, and AGAIN it was absolutely freezing (I didn't take any pictures on our initial visit, so all of the images below were taken in April). Calvin showed us the grounds where the ceremony and reception would both be and we could only imagine how much more beautiful it would be in May for the wedding. 

There is a gazebo on the grounds that has ample amounts of electrical outlets...a great place for the band or DJ to set up! 

One of my biggest requests is the fact that we definitely want Diesel to be there on our wedding day! Therefore, it is a huge deal to make sure that the venue is pet friendly. To our surprise, Calvin stated that the last owner of MHH, Miss Evelyn Hazen, was actually a pet lover. She occupied the house alone (along with many dogs and cats). In her will, she stipulated that if the house was to be sold, all profits would go to animal causes. This 100% stole our heart!!

This is the side of the house that would be in primary view during the ceremony and reception. Since the house is a museum, there only only about 2 rooms that guests would be able to see on the actual wedding day, and those would probably contain the remnants of what myself and the bridesmaids brought. However, we thought it would be great to have all of our out of town guests take a tour of the house on Friday leading up to wedding! :)

When Calvin took us on a tour of the inside of the house, Robby and I almost died!! There is so much history in this house from 3 different generations. Its absolutely amazing how much history one house can hold! 

Oh how I am in love with these doors...I could see many pictures right here on the big day!  

A little bit more history of the house: it was a vital part of the Civil War, both for the Union and Confederate forces!

As you can see, the venues that Robby and I looked at all definitely have a similarity. They are all historic homes that have amazing life around them. This is something that I have always seen as apart of my wedding day. I never saw myself in a ballroom or in a barn. I'm definitely a big old home kind of girl! :) 

Tomorrow, we will finally let everyone know which venue we chose for our wedding! We couldn't be happier with our choice and know our guests will absolutely love it too! 

Planning the Big Day ~ All the Places Part 2

I hope you all had a fantastic week! Mine has been oh so fun as wedding season is starting to swing back in full gear and I've dove a little bit farther in to the wedding planning world! Its insane being on this side of the process! You just really don't realize everything that is involved in planning a wedding! Wowza!

Ok, so I am absolutely in love with this next venue I'm going to share (what am I saying...I love ALL of these venues)! :) But this one is super special. I've known about Maple Grove Inn for about 5-6 years now. An old friend told me about it once when I was so keen on having my own Bed & Breakfast (any other girl who watched Gilmore Girls also had this dream at some point in time). Well, she told me about a quaint little B&B right down the road and told me I should just go check it out. Well, I drove down the road and could not believe what I saw...perfection! Literally, the exact Bed & Breakfast that I had always wanted. I was sitting in the parking lot, working up the nerve to go inside and ask if they were hiring when a whole slew of cars started pouring into the parking lot...it went from 1 little Suzuki to about 25 cars in 35 seconds! So my nervous little butt hi-tailed it out of there. Needless to say, that amazing little B&B always stayed in the back of my head. Fast forward 5 or 6 years to last summer. Jennie tells me I am going to be shooting a bridal luncheon at none other than...Maple Grove Inn!!! You've got to be kidding me! I actually get to see the inside! Yay!!!

I immediately fell in love with the house. A little history recap, the house was built in 1799 (ummmm thats 100 years before the Biltmore) and is one of Knoxville's oldest homes! I felt like I had struck gold...I probably just walked around the house for a good 10-15 minutes just taking all the antiques and oldness in! It was like being transported back to my Gammy's house, but much bigger!

Anyway, when Robby and I started talking about venues, I immediately wanted to show him MGI. Went went in...you guessed it, January, when it was bone freezing cold and walked around the outside of the home. Robby liked it...but I didn't want to get my hopes up. So we decided to make an appointment with Vicki and tour the house!

My favorite EVER!!! The driveway to the house is unbelievable...whether its winter or spring!

A week later (because I cannot contain my excitement) we went and toured the house. I was already hooked, but Robby fell in love immediately. Then, to top it off, Tom (the owner of the house) made Robby and I a cup of his own roasted coffee. Can I tell you how delicious this cup of coffee was?! I have never been able to drink black coffee, and I drank the ENTIRE cup, no problems! It was delicious!

Rob and I were excited, but didn't want to make any decisions until we saw all of the venues that were on our list (which weren't very many...you'll see all of them). We bid adue to Vicki and Tom and went on our way. Because I didn't have my camera with me on our initial trip, Robby and I decided to go back and have a gander at what Maple Grove Inn would look like in the spring. These are those pictures. Isn't it beautiful?!?!?!?

So thats Maple Grove Inn! Its definitely different than Watermelon Moon Farms which you can see HERE! So what do you think of Maple Grove Inn??

Next week, will be our last venue...its of course historic and an amazing home here in Knoxville! I can't wait to share the yummy gorgeousness with you! :)