Fourth of July

“We hold these truths to be self-evident,

that all men are created equal,

that they are endowed by their Creator

with certain unalienable Rights,

that among these are Life,

Liberty and the pursuit of

Happiness.”

4th of July is a very special day in our family.

This is the day my mom's family came through Ellis Island and made America their home.

My mom was too little to remember, but she crossed the ocean in a washtub.

Yeah, in a washtub.

Today, my parents are here, a few friends, Joe, and lots of beautiful weather.

You gotta enjoy these days.

Grilling out, sun, sports, rhubarb pie.

Happy 4th!

Jessica + Dan: Engaged!

Jessica and Dan are engaged!

Jessica and Dan are an awesome Baltimore couple!  They are fun and vibrant and totally in love! I was so glad that the rain held off and we were able to have a blast searching all of Baltimore for the best places to take photos... I think we accomplished that!

J+D, you guys rock and I wish you the best with your wedding in Michigan next June!  xo!

They named their dog after this beer, so it's only appropriate to get a photo here!

they both have amazing eyes!

I love these photos of J+D with their six month old puppy, Natty Boh!  :)

...and so you're looking at these photos and going, "hmmmm, she looks familiar!"  and you'd be correct!  Jessica is one of the meteorologists in Baltimore at Fox!

So, which photo is your fave?  

The photo that gets the most comments will be mailed to them with the rest of their goodies!

Nancy + Jim: Married!

so. much. fun. :)

Nancy and Jim had a fabulous wedding last night at their home in Bethesda. It was a sweet small group of people who came to celebrate. I loved all the details and thought that went in to everything.

A huge thank you to Pam Barefoot of A Trendy Wedding who made the whole event run smoothly. She is amazing at what she does!  And the food.  Ooooh the food.  Main Event Caterers brought the good stuff.  And also a shout out to E3, the amazing band who rocked the house (literally) all night!

And now on to the photos and slideshow!  :)

A Vera Wang dress and beautiful master suite = awesome.

Kim Steele did a fantastic job on hair and makeup!

The awesome pups!  Honey and T-Bone!

Grandma!

Nancy looked stunning walking down the stairs to the ceremony!

Jim's brother reading his notes before the toast

Nancy's sister gave a hilarious toast

The tent was so dreamy!

E3 Rockin' it out and Nancy with T-Bone

No house wedding is complete without a visit from the cops!  

Thankfully they were so nice and posed for photos!

Father's Day

Happy Father's Day!

Happy Father's Day to my amazing dad, who I adore so much! He's such a positive and calm voice in a world of negativity and panic.  He's a "glass is half full" kinda guy and he's passed that trait on to me, one that I am very grateful for.  He's also passed on a love for Notre Dame sports, the White Sox, golf (I'm finally coming around to it!), Seinfield and southside Chicago Irish pride. :)

I get to see him tomorrow on our mini roadtrip to the midwest and I'm excited!  

My mom and dad with me, along with my grandparents

I loooove this photo.  I mean, come on.  It's a classic.  Circa 1983.

Instilling that Chicago Irish pride!

My dad and I at American University at Parent's Weekend... those were the days!

Hon Fest 2009!

Well, this is a little late, but.... HEY HON! :)

I spent a hot afternoon with the blonde creative last weekend at the rockin' Hon Fest!  It was a lot of fun, despite the heat, and I loved seeing all my good friends and all the great looking Hons!

It's Quinn with her LIFE SIZED DOODLE OF A HUN!

And Jaime rockin' it out!

...and Jessi!

Hon of the Year 2009!

Washingtonian Bride & Groom

I am so honored and humbled to announce that Sara & Tyger's wedding is featured in the Summer 2009 issue of Washingtonian Bride & Groom!

I want to firstly thank Sara & Tyger, who have been such a dream to work with, and also had a dream wedding!  I also need to thank the Wish Special Events team (they'll be doing my wedding as well!), especially Jessica Harris for coordinating the wedding, and to the Washingtonian Bride & Groom Team, especially Jill, Erin, and Eleni for all their great correspondence through all of the chaos that is putting together a magazine.

This is such an honor- my work stands beside dozens of amazing vendors, including some of the best photographers in the country.  Congrats to everyone in this current issue!

Brandy + Charles: Engaged!

Brandy and Charles brought the awesomeness yesterday!  This was our 7,500th attempt at our session!  Seriously, it's rained and rained so much lately that we had to reschedule almost ten times!  But yesterday so beautiful, and it was a great time!  We started on U Street and then made our way to the Jefferson.

Brandy and Charles, you guys rocked it!  All the best to you!

Don't they have the best smiles?!

I loved seeing the Washington Monument between the columns!

An Ode to a Dog.

The other man in my life.

Oh, Gordon.  

You are hyper and crazy.  Silly and hilarious.  Sweet and cuddly.  You chew up the mail.  You eat our dinner when we turn our backs for one second.  You sleep just like us, with your head on the pillow and the rest of your little body under the sheets.  You bark whenever a doorbell rings, even if it's on TV.  You love to snuggle.  You love treats.  You love getting a bath and going on long walks.

You have been such a joy to have around since we adopted you in November.  We love your puppy antics and your love for us.

And now you're a year old!

Happy birthday, Gordon!  We love you!

Andrea + Marc: Happy Anniversary!

A Very Happy Terp Anniversary!

Yesterday afternoon I met up with Andrea and Marc, who drove to University of Maryland all the way from New Jersey!  They met at UMD, and since their story begins there, it was the perfect place to take photos for their anniversary!

I love doing shoots like this because the energy is different- beyond the engaged and anxious for the wedding stage, Andrea and Marc's relationship is sweet and loving, and they know each other so well.  I loved watching them interact and smile at one another.

I had a great time with you guys, and want to say congrats on another anniversary under your belts!  I wish you many, many more!

So, which photo is your favorite?  Vote, because I'm going to give Andrea and Marc an 8x10 of the one that wins!  Leave a comment :)

This might be my fave photo of the day :)

I'm kind of jealous that my college didn't have a quad/mall like this!

Get Married TV + Bloomingdale's = Awesome.

What a great event to have been a part of!

Last night was so much fun!  Here is my little setup:

The event had a great turnout, despite the crazy rain and cold temps.  I loved meeting so many awesome bride and grooms, the lovely DeAnna Pappas of Bachelorette fame, and now a co-host of Get Married!, and all the fabulous men and women of the Bloomie's registry of Chevy Chase.  Seriously, these people are amazing!

I also had a drawing for a free engagement session in DC!  I had fifty people enter- wow!  I had my fiance Joe pick a winner from the mason jar and the winner is.... MALAKIA COX!  Hooray!  Can't wait to see you again and meet up with your fiance for some fab photos in DC!

The event was a great success! Thanks so much for coming out!

DeAnna held a contest to see who could set the table the fastest...

The crew with DeAnna at the end of the night!