A week before I was slated to leave for the California coast, I was talking with my family in an excited gush of adjectives how excited I was to be shooting this particular wedding. 
My mom asked, "So how do you know the couple?"
"We're friends," I responded breezily. "Or... actually... I suppose I first met Steve and Abbi when I shot their engagement session last year..."

It's not often (or ever) that I get to hold the reins to a full suite of theater lights. 
AND THEN REBA'S SENIOR SESH HAPPENED.

THINK FAST.
Hitting you with three reasons this afternoon why I love this anniversary session:

Motherhood is for strong, badass women.
(Don't even try to disagree, please.)
Maternity sessions are all about the celebration of the fact, honoring that feminine strength.
(Amen.)

Katie and Aaaaron
Sittin' in a tree[swing] 
K-I-S-S-I-N-G

You know the feeling you get when a season of one of your favorite shows ends with a most delightfully tantalizing cliffhanger?
Yep, me too.
It's exactly like shooting a pair of parents-to-be one sunny summer morning, then having to wait a whole YEAR for baby girl's first birthday. Ohhh, but little Evy was worth the wait! And Andrea + Tony are just as happy, just as loving as before, their sweetness only magnified by the little lady they've brought into the world. How's that for incredible?
Happy first birthday, Evy!

Wanna know what happens when you have a senior ready to PLAY during her session?
This.
Wanna know what happens when the rain pops in halfway, to encourage a casual 30 minute pop-wow in the car?
Still this.

HOLY WHAT.
Is that what you're thinking?
Because that's what I'm thinking + have been ever since Liz + Jordan's dreamy sunflower field session.

After a lifetime in the PNW, L + J are a couple of recent transplants to rural Wisconsin. In chatting about our session, Liz knew she wanted it to look + feel like the Midwest to mark this time in their lives with some new surroundings. In particular: fields is what were callin' her name. (Easy peasy round these parts, eh?) We scheduled a session for September and everything was set. Until Instagram ruined things in the best possible way. 

WHAT. I found a sunflower field 4 hours away in Wisconsin. WHAT. I'm free tomorrow + so are they. WHAT. This weekend is the last + only time the park is open. 

An impromptu road trip and spontaneous shoot later, this is what happened.
And it happens to be one of my favoritefavorite e sessions to date.
(Holy what. Holy scroll.)

Guys, I've mentally composed 24 different versions of this blog post in the past month. Since the good stuff went down. And each time I get reeeally excited. I take notes. Make sure to include clever phrases. But every time I get to the end, I realize that it's not enough. Not that's it's not good, but that it simply fails to encompass eeeverything.
Everything I heard.
Everything we did.
Everything I witnessed, and felt, and ate. (And eat I diiiid, mini donut bar, spoiler alert.)

As any wedding photographer will tell you, it is entirely possible to have a crush on a couple. It usually occurs during the engagement session, when everyone is relaxed and happy, yet just the right amount of nervous. It shows up in the way they laugh with one another, they way they laugh with you, and through the flow of easy conversation. The crush status then becomes solidified when your sweet couple is willing to run onto a roadway with big smiles + sparklers in pursuit of some ballin' photos.

ACTIVITY TIME!

K.

Imagine a world where weddings can be steeped in sweet tradition and raucous buckets of fun. Where introductions with the bride's family begin with hugs instead of handshakes, and letters between lovers come with an ounce of good whiskey. Picture for me a dance floor dominated by a fiesty grandma, pulsing with the sounds of live DUELING PIANOS. In the next room there's an ice cream sundae bar and later on, there'll be a late night pizza delivery and a large scale McDonald's run for trays of burgers and fries. Such a world does exist, my dears; Kelley and Carter created it.

And not only did they create this kick ass wedding with the help of one fantastic coordinator, they created something bigger. Something brighter, and even more beautiful than the bouquets. And I think you know where this is headed.

*Drumroll*

Once upon a time I worked at a portrait studio north of town. I was the Photoshop girl + a grad portrait photographer. Once upon a time, the same time actually, Miss Linnea was one of the hundreds of seniors that walked in the studio door and sat down in front of my camera. We ran way over time. We ran all over the gardens, through fields of wildflowers. And I had one of my faaaavorite favorite senior sessions of all time. &Do you wanna know how one reaches that hall of fame status? With sweet smiles, lots of laughter, and a "SURE, let's try it!" attitude. Seven or so years later and we're doing a round two, this time with a fiancé thrown into the mix. ROUND 3 (!!!) will have these same lovebirds hosting an elegant + easygoing party in barn for their closest friends and family. They're clearly my kind of people; June can't come around again quick enough.