Sue and Darrell Blount – 11-25-06

About a month ago now, i was out in vegas shooting my aunt sue’s wedding. My new uncle darrell is everything she has ever wanted in a man…not to mention everything we have wanted for her! He genuinely loves and cares for her…and it shows. From sweet kisses, to winks from across the room, to passing hand grazes, they are everything you would imagine a newly in love couple to be! I was so honored…and a bit surprised…when sue called me 6 six weeks prior to the date to tell me her and darrell were getting married and they wanted me to photograph it for them! I was so excited to have the opportunity to photograph such an intimate and important event for someone so dear to me…not to mention the rest of my family that would be there! It was a beautiful backyard wedding at sue and darrell’s home with their closest friends and family there to support them, with my cousin, sue’s daughter, Rayne as the maid of honor and darrell’s son, Ricky, as the best man. Before i get to the photos i have to give my mom some public credit for being the wedding planner and decorator, most of which she made herself, for not only my aunt’s wedding…but mine too! You’re amazing mom and you dont get the recognition you deserve for being so creative and such a great party planner! (email me if you have any party decor needs…i will pass them on to my mom). ok now for the reason you are here….the photos!! enjoy

click here to view the slideshow!

i have to start with this image! me as a blonde?? i dont think so!

my aunt started to cry when she was explaining how perfect darrell was to her.

we did all the preceremony shots at a little pond around the corner from sue and darrell’s house. i loved the weaping willow tree and all the large stones! they made for perfect backdrops and seating.

from left to right…my dad, he walked sue down the aisle…Ricky, darrell’s son…and darrell, the love of my aunt’s lifetime!

this little one is darrell’s granddaughter…how cute is she!?

right after their first sight of each other

sue and her daughter rayne

the wedding party being their REAL selves!

pro models?? could be!

i love the way darrell is looking at sue as she helps him with his new gift

this image shows the true bond sue and rayne have…combining their relationship as mother/daughter, friends, and women

ceremony table decor and guest favors

notice darrell winking at his bride

classic sue moment…teary eyed

darrell didnt let sue see the ring until the moment he put it on her finger…how special!

my favorite ring shot so far!

they had a whole dance choreographed for their first dance!! show offs

very intimate and romantic!

this is my brother randol helping me out with some bubble effects…thanks ran!

and last, but most certainly not least…mom and aunt brenda doing their best to show how “gangsta” they really are.

being stuck in aspen isnt so bad

mike and i just got back from a trip to aspen colorado with his parents. the original plan was to stay there from wednesday to monday and then head over to disneyland for a couple days. well needless to say…that wasnt the same plan the weather had. after sitting at the airport on monday for 5 very long…very boring…hours, we were finally told the flight was cancelled and we could either reschedule our flight for another day or drive to another “nearby” airport…the closest one being 2 hours away in grand junction. well as you can imagine, after 5 hours in the airport the last thing we wanted to do was drive! so…we nixed the trip to california and decided to just spend the next few days as an extended vacation in aspen. it turned out nicely cause mike and i got to go snowboarding a second time and his parents got to go snowshoeing in the mountains…which isnt the best choice for us asthma sufferers. so here are a few photos from out trip…

the first night a snowman competitions had already begun between mike and his dad

the second day started with a gondola ride to the top of aspen mountain and then we went snowmobiling…mikes first time ever and my first time driving all by myself!

the most unique thing we did was a dog sled ride. it was so beautiful and the dogs were so fun…they were so talented they could poop and run AT THE SAME TIME! i spared you a picture of that…although it could be funny

saturday was our first snowboarding trip…and then we got to go again once we were snowed in

 

ice skating was a bit more challenging for me…but i had the basics down by the third day

 

and since we didnt have our christmas photo in front of the disneyland christmas tree…we had one in front of our hotel christmas tree instead.

The Bille Monster

Ever since mike, my husband, moved out on his own he has wanted a puppy of his own. after we got engaged last august, we decided that we would wait until i moved in, in april. we wanted to make it a part of our family, and if i didnt live there the puppy would get to know mike and by the time i moved in i would practically be a stranger…and i didnt want that! finally april came, the wedding happened, and we were ready to start our search for our furry little baby. it took us a while to agree on what breed we wanted, but once we did, we had our hearts set on an english bulldog. they fit us perfectly! they are known to be playful but still content with just lounging around…they are a nice medium size…and their funny little faces give you plenty to laugh at! on an unplanned stop at our local pet store i saw the most adorable little rolly pollie bulldog puppy. she was fat, wrinkley, and had a face you just wanted to kiss all day! mike was against holding her, “if we hold her we will want to buy her. we’re just looking,” is what he said. well it only took a few more minutes before he asked me if i wanted to hold her. he was right! we spent about 15 minutes in the room holding and playing with the clumsy little puppy when mike looked and me and asked, “you wanna buy her?” and the rest is history. we took her home that day and she has been a joyful little menace ever since. they were wrong about one thing…she doesnt like to lounge much…playing, eating, licking, and farting are among her favorite activities! so now i want to introduce you to our little bundle of joy…BILLIE!

she looks so grown up here…like a real bulldog! even though she is a real bulldog…she just looks different

look how proper she looks…who knew she was such a good actress!??

this is her favorite toy. we play a game called “hot dog” where i basically chase her and try to steal the hot dog from her…its a nice way to tire her out

“I got your hot dog!”

“Ok mom…SERIOUSLY! are you done yet?”

we think she might have some cow in her bloodline

how can you not smile when you see these teeth?

can you tell shes a daddys girl?

i guess she got bored of just sitting there…”ok time to play!”

Rockin’ out!

A few months ago my younger brother, james, became the lead singer of a band called Our Next Eternity. The band is made up of 4 guys…james (my bro) lead vocals, nate on bass, angelo on guitar, and johnny on drums…and one girl…mie also sings lead vocals. My husband, mike, works as a producer at Arrowhead Studio…and as our christmas gift to my brother we paid for the band to come into the studio to record a 3 song demo. pretty cool gift huh?! while they were there i stopped by to take some photos of them to use in their press packs and for promos…check ‘em out!

james on a smoke break…nate let him pose with his bass

johnny catchin a nap

what a cute kid!

i love this shot of the board

james, johnny, and angelo trying to absorb energy from the candle…9 am is early!

mie was feeling inspired

aaahhhh…serenity!

nate likes it!

angelo…coke should be paying us for this!!

this is mike…he makes the best pouty frown ive ever seen…it gets me every time

mie already laid her vocals…but she wanted a shot of her in the booth…looks authentic right?!

james and johnny…look at the way they stare deep into each other’s eyes

Our Next Eternity (left to right) – johnny, james, nate, angelo…not pictured – mie

Cody…Cassie…Corinne

Ive gotten to know Callie, the kids mom, over the past couple years at church, singing on the worship team and in the choir. I actually knew her when she was pregnant with the youngest, Corinne. She even brought her to rehearsal right after she was born…beautiful baby from the start! When Callie asked me to do a session with her kids i was super pumped! She was willing let the kids have fun and be themselves…making for photos that really show their personalites…even if that means never looking at the camera or eating playground sand ok well enough background…lets get to the photos!

click here for their slideshow

you wouldnt believe the miracle it was to get all three in one picture…especially one this adorable!

this yellow cone connects to another one on the other side of the playground where cassie would call out to her brother cody

i love how corinne is looking up at her brother and sister as if saying, “Hey what about me! I wanna swing too!”

baby feet…is there really anything sweeter?

Corinne prefers to lay in the sand while she plays in it

and this is what happens when she gets up

cody is the big brother every girl needs…loving, protective, and super fun to play with!

Cassie…enjoying a little time alone

i love this one…again the miracle of all three kids in one shot each being themselves

corinne is completely entertained by the experience of mixing cake batter

cassie in anticipation of her first taste of the batter

the funniest part is if you look through the wisk, you can see cassie’s mouth is open too!

finally the work is done…now the girls watch as their batter transforms into a real cake!