Yesterday was my dear friend Megan's birthday! 

I wanted to do something fun, so I walked into the grocery store with flowers on my mind and came out with 4 random massive singing balloons.

Oh, you should have seen me walking around the store with these things each blaring their songs all at once, the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song, Elmo singing happy birthday, Miley Cyrus singing some song, and these weird mini barbie creatures playing a techno happy birthday... I was trying to thwart off my embarrassment as I began the check out process. :)

So Megan got her happy birthday balloons and I got some ice cream cake. All was fair.

Happy Birthday Meg! I love you :)

nothing like some homemade sangria on a summer night! 

ok, completely unrelated... 

I purchased a new macro lens and was trying it out on my own wedding ring... oh isn't it lovely :)

AND!! looky what we have here!!! :) Is that a tomato? After two months of babying my garden, a little tomato-ling has emerged! I feel as though I have accomplished something big!

Yay! A new venue for me! :) 

I get excited when things are new! Lately I have been getting a bit frustrated with my surroundings. I feel as though I am running out of unique locations here in Colorado Springs. I don't like using the same place twice, although I end up doing it despite my best wishes.

I was very happy to hear that Shanyn and Kevin's wedding was taking place at a BRAND NEW Colorado wedding venue in Berthoud, CO (Berthoud is just outside of Loveland) called Brookside Gardens. I was a bit giddy thinking that I would have a brand new creative slate. The wedding was, yes, you guessed it... beautiful and gorgeous and lovely and all those adjectives... making my job easy. The bride, a photographer herself, had some fun ideas and was willing to do whatever I asked... lay in the grass, frolic in the field,  jump in the air, ... and she did! :)

Watching Kevin and Shanyn together inspired the unique kind of joy and innocence that comes with being in love. You could see it in their eyes as they recited their vows to one another. Looking over the hundreds and hundreds of photos I took, seeing their faces for hours on end on my computer screen, I noticed how... aware... they were of one another. Yes, in love, passionate, enamored, and all those things too, but they were so deeply involved with eachother, even during the most boisterous and distracting parts of the day... and that stood out to me. So many couples don't even give eachother a second look on their wedding day! They allow themselves to get so caught up in whatever is going on around them and miss out on what is in front of them. Some people decide to fret and worry about taking care of their guests rather than take care of eachother... believe me, I know! I am with them both the WHOLE time and I often see their true colors.

Shanyn and Kevin had some radiant colors :)

LOVE the back of Shanyn's dress

Brian, has been tearing it UP with the guys photos lately! Awesome Job B!

stunning

Since they were having all their photos taken before the ceremony, we arranged a special meeting for them...

can't go wrong with a red barn!

or a signature Colorado field!

a favorite candid mother daughter moment

1st dance- great natural lighting