June Giveaway: Freedom

Giveaway is now closed!

I love a good giveaway. In celebration of our freedom, the following vendors have sweetly offered these amazing handmade products for one lucky winner. So, how do you enter? All you have to do is comment on THIS blog post explaining what freedom means to you and don't forget your email address so that I can get in touch with you in case you're the winner. That's all! On June 29th I will place all entrees' names in a pool via random.org to choose a winner. Winner will be announced on June 30th.

Who are the Vendors?

*First up is Christin from Struttin' Your Buttons. She has created these patriotic picnic placemats. There are 

  4 placemats, all of them have a pocket for silverware. How cool!

*Second, is Meagan from You've Got Megs. Meagan is such a talented jewelry maker. She created this

  beautiful red, white, and blue bracelet with a star clasp. It is so gorgeous!

*Next, is Kim from Sassy Girl Originals. Kim specializes in hair accessories. She has created a flowered 

  headband and a flower barrette. Both are adorned with flower buttons. I love her hair accessories :)

*Lastly, Gina from Silly Goose has offered a $25 gift certificate towards a purchase from her etsy shop. Gina 

  makes personalized applique/ embroidered clothing for children. Her creations are so cute for the kiddos. 

So, now that the introductions are finished how about taking a closer look at the prizes! I have linked etsy shops and facebook pages to each picture. Show some love and share this giveaway with your friends. Thanks so much for stopping by! 

Struttin' Your Buttons: Etsy

                                           Facebook

You've Got Megs:  Facebook

Sassy Girl Originals: Facebook

Silly Goose: Etsy

                            

**This giveaway is in no way associated or affiliated with etsy or with facebook.

Motivation for Monday: Your Season

Ecclesiastes 3:1, 2b ~ "There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven: ...a time to plant and a time to uproot."




Farmers work hard. I had no idea how hard until I moved here. There are so many factors that go into growing a good crop. A farmer knows when to plant certain seeds and approximately when he will be able to harvest his crop. There is an order of things. God created this order. The right seed has be planted in the right season. We can purchase apples through out the year, but apples are always best in the fall. It would rather silly for us to light a pumpkin lantern in the spring. Why? Well, the spring is when you plant the pumpkin seeds so that you can harvest your pumpkins in the fall. 
Consider that you are a seed and that God is our Farmer. If He created you to be a pumpkin, a lantern of Jesus' light for the world, then you're season is not the spring. It's the fall. If He created you to be a poinsettia, a festive plant to bring cheer during the dead of winter, then your season is winter, not spring. Our Farmer knows when to till the land to prepare for your time of harvest. He knows that the irrigation of God's Word and the Sun light of Jesus are going to help in our growth. God, our Farmer, created you for a purpose. Don't try to rush it. Your season is coming. Have a blessed Monday!

Weekend Wedding Editing!

How lovely are these ladies! I will editing Margaret & Jeff's wedding images most of the day today.
They had such a beautiful outdoor wedding by the water in Oriental, NC. I am so excited to share some sneak peeks. For now though, take a look at this. I found this wall mural on an old theatre on my way into town and had to take a picture of the girls in front of it. What do you think? Gorgeous colors, right!

Professional Photographer Magazine 2012 Cover Contest

Professional Photographer Magazine 2012 Cover Contest

Please vote for me!
I am very nervous about entering my very first photo contest. Contest ends August 31st. There are lots of opportunities to vote, so please take the time to vote for my photo. All you have to do is is "RATE" with the stars above my picture. Click the link and it will take you right to my photo :) Thanks in advance.

Vote here!

Wednesday's Printable Words: Ocean

Hello! I realize that Wednesday is almost done, but I wanted to post today's printable art. I've been thinking a lot about the ocean lately. The smell of the saltwater and suntan lotion, the feel of the sand between my toes. Beholding the beautiful colors, the sound of the waves crashing on the shore, there is healing at the beach. I was so blessed to live close to the ocean growing up. I miss it. This image was taken almost 2 years ago in South Florida at Deerfield Beach.

This is printable art. I sized the printable as an 8x10. Feel free to print and share.
**Right click, save image as.**

Let me know what you think :)

Margaret {Bridal Portraits}

Oh My Goodness! My palms have been so sweaty over these Bridal Portraits. How gorgeous is Margaret! I've had these in a folder for about 5 weeks. My pointer finger has been tempted many times to press send. Margaret's wedding was last night in Oriental. So, now I have the permission to share her Bridal Portraits with you.
I met Margaret & her sweet mama in New Bern at Tryon Palace. This cute little historic city by the river holds a special place in my heart. I am so blessed that I had the opportunity to photograph Margaret here. Tryon has changed quite a bit since Beau & I lived in New Bern. We were escorted by golf cart to the main entrance to purchase our tickets. Margaret changed into her dress while I walked around to take in the new fancy brick building. The new building holds the ticket booth, gift shop, and little interactive rooms with videos to educate visitors about Tryon Palace. I mentally checked New Bern on our "places we must visit" for the summer break.
Margaret walked out and looked stunning! She was so easy to photograph. I don't think there was a frame that I didn't use. Absolutely beautiful! Here are a few of my takes on her Bridal Session.

Flashback Friday: Sage

Hello & Happy Friday! {To see my post about the sage a year ago, click here.}
We moved here one year ago. It's crazy all that happens in a year, how fast a year goes by. Time seems to go faster now that I am older. Maybe it's being aware of time that makes it go faster. I don't know. Yesterday, the farmers began harvesting the sage. The fields of sage brought hope and comfort to me when we moved here. There is something about taking in the sea of purple hues that made me feel like I was beholding Majesty. It still does...make me feel that way. I am thankful for all that God provides. He ever so gently reminds me where I've been and where I am today. I have no doubt that He has directed every step. There is a divine purpose for our time in the valley, for our hike up the steepest of mountains, and for the victory of making it to the mountain top. We can't stay there though. Others need their time on the mountain top as well. Have no fear of the journey. His glory is with us wherever we go. He is with us in the valley, on the hike up that steep mountain, and the glory we feel on that mountain top is His. Enjoy basking in it!
Have a blessed weekend.

Wednesday's Printable Words

Happy Wednesday! For some it's already summer vacation, for others it's just another Hump Day. Whatever it is, I hope you make it a great day. May this wise proverb bring you some encouragement. Go ahead and print it. Frame it. Remember that whatever you do, do it unto the Lord.
{Right click, save image as. It is sized as an 8x10}
**digital elements were purchased from Sassy Designs.

The Davis Family

I had the privilege this past Saturday evening to photograph the Davis Family. We met up and drove to this great secluded location. We had the whole lot to ourselves except for a few kids fishing on the next dock over. It was so peaceful out there. This is the sweetest family. They've always made me feel welcome. We casually talked about our day and about our children. The little ones were so good. How gorgeous are they! They have the most beautiful eyes. We played with some bubbles and ran around in the grass for a bit. I absolutely loved the patriotic colors they chose to wear. They even brought flags. It was a perfect choice for this time of year. Thank you Davis Family for sharing this time with me. I am so thankful for you. I hope you enjoy your images; I surely enjoyed taking them!

Motivation for Monday: Real Life

Hello and Happy Monday! I was going to post about the gorgeous purple sage in my backyard and drop a picture of the sage in the sunset that I shot last night. I awoke this morning thinking about it and I strongly felt in my heart that God wanted me to be real with you this morning. 

 Before turning on my computer this morning I made chocolate chip muffins for my boys. They love muffins. As I sat them down to eat their muffins I took a look around at my dining space. This is what my dining room looks like 98% of the time. Sunday's coupons from the newspaper sit on the table collecting dust throughout the week until I make the time to cut them. I have miscellaneous items sitting at the end of the table. This week it's a small box, a book, a dvd, my cosmetic bag that I usually keep in my purse, a few press printed cards for an upcoming promo, my camera manual, and my new white balance lens caps that haven't made their way out of the packaging yet. Then there's more clutter on the floor. I get the idea in my head that I want to start something and it takes FOREVER for me to finish it. The scrapbooking, stamps, and other crafty things have been sitting on the floor of my dining room for about 2 weeks. Their rightful place is on a wire shelving rack in the garage. I'll make time to put them back when I conjure up the energy to clean the house. I've got my 2 camera bags resting in the chair at the end of the table because no one sits there anyway. I can easily tuck them under the table if anyone decides to pop by for a visit. I'm not too worried about that though because no one ever does just pop by. There's the other 2%, by the way. The percentage of time that my dining room doesn't look like this is when I clean my house, organize, and declutter. 

Am I complaining? No, not really. This is just our normal. I have had to rest in God's peace about the mess my house stays in most of the time. I am "type A", very particular, and a perfectionist. My dining room doesn't reflect those characteristics at all; I know. My husband has taught me to relax, rest, and not worry about such meaningless things. Beau often shares his godly revelations with me. This is what he shared:

"What really matters in life is not what job you had or how much money you made. What really matters are the relationships that you had while on earth. All the other stuff won't be remembered." It's true. I don't even remember whether my great-grandmother ever had a job or even what she did if she had one. I do remember that she loved to ask me questions and she liked to watch me and my siblings play on the floor when we visited. She used to make these amazing knitted and crocheted creations. She would let us pick what we liked to take them home. I especially liked the knitted slippers she made. I wish I still had some that fit my feet. 

This got me thinking about what my kids would remember about me. Whatever they remember, I want the memories to be good ones. Not that I had a clean & organized house, but that I let them play and make a mess without hovering over them with a grimace on my face. Not that I worked on my computer for 3 hours in the morning, but that I stopped what I was doing no matter how "important" to care for them. Not that I stood up all the time, but that I got down on their level to talk with them and to play and to read to them. This will be my meditation today, that the Lord would be so gracious to bless us with time and to allow us not to dwell on faults & imperfections. To have a thankful heart and fill our minds with good remembrances.