Yesterday, I had the exciting (and exhausting) pleasure of photographing Emily and Nathan's wedding with David Wright. It was exciting because we got to try a lot of new ideas, and it was exhausting because we worked for over 3 hours walking around downtown Nashville in the 94 degree heat! Then we returned to the church for more photographs, the ceremony, and then walked three blocks to the reception at the Country Music Hall of Fame. Emily and Nathan, and all their friends and family were such a pleasure to work with. Emily was willing to do what ever it took to get the shot -- anything that wouldn't harm her gorgeous Vera Wang gown, that is!

We started out where the couple got engaged -- the pedestrian bridge over the Cumberland River. What a great view!

Then we made our way down the streets of Nashville...stopping to look at cowboy hats, of course!

And of course we stopped by Merchants...

And the bride just had to show off her new rings to the girls on the way to the Country Music Hall of Fame...

By the end of the day, I had drank about 2 gallons of water, and my feet felt like one big blister...last night, I slept for eleven hours! But it was so worth it!

Many congratulations, and best of luck to the happy couple! It was a joy to work with you!

Some more from Florida...

Thought I would share a couple more from my trip to Florida. These were taken on the dock at the lake at about 7 p.m....I just love the one of them laughing...

I'm Back!

Well, I was out of town for a while. Went to visit my brother in Florida, and stayed with his family. My parents and my other brother came to visit, too. We had a really nice weekend, and my sister-in-law, Karen, and my brother, Jim, were wonderful hosts!

While we were there, I was hired by a friend of theirs to photograph their four children. The mom wanted very casual photos of her kids in their backyard, around their pool, their dock, in their boat, and on the lake. We had a great time, and the two older children were very willing subjects. Taylor was a complete ham in front of the camera! The little ones were not so thrilled, but we still managed to get a few great shots of them, too.

Here are a handful of my favorites, out of the 100 or so images I shot.

A Session with the Pettiskirts

Well, I finally got the opportunity to use the Kaiya Eve Pettiskirts I ordered a month ago. Little Sarah isn't much of a girly-girl though, and wasn't too thrilled with them! I spent most of the session with her running away from me or pulling on the skirt trying to take it off...I was able to get a few decent shots, though.

Going back to the archives...

The weather here has been downright depressing lately. Here it is the middle of April, when it's normally in the upper 70's, and it's 60 degrees! It's been cold for about a week now, and will continue to be cold for at least another week. They are saying we may even see some snow flurries tomorrow!

So needless to say, I haven't been out shooting much. In fact, I haven't picked up my camera in quite a while. So I went back through my archives for something to share, and found this gem from last August. This is my daughter, Parrish. She is a huge Audrey Hepburn fan, and loves the movie "Breakfast at Tiffany's". So she decided she wanted a "Breakfast at Tiffany's" style photo shoot. We have a Tiffany's store at the Green Hills mall, so we went there. Not the same as the street in New York, but we gave it a little more modern feel.

An important message...

Just wanted to post this message from one of my scrapper friends. She reminded me today of how important awareness is!

So, I know that not many would consider this reason to celebrate but for me this month is special. It is not only the month that my DS with PDD will turn three but it is the month that he will graduate from going to therapy 2 hours a day five days a week, to one day a week for an hour! Our son has come so far and at first we didn't even think that there was anything wrong with him until one of our friends who worked with autistic children pointed out that she had a tough time understanding him and her became very emotional. Autism affects 1 in 150 children with a majority of them being boys. there is no know cure or cause for Autism, it just happens to unsuspecting loving families everywhere.

My point of this message is to help educate and promote. You may be affected by a child of your own or a friend, but chances are you know someone out there that struggles the day to day basics of this disorder.

Not many moms of a two year old think that there may be something different about their child. whether they don't want to know or they just don't see the signs. I was always thought that my son would grow out of it. Everyone told me that his speech delay was due to his older brother doing all the talking for him, heck even my pediatrician said not to worry. But I did, and I called my local early intervention program and they were the ones that gave me the information that I needed.

early intervention is key and was a vital part in the success that we have had with our DS. In order to find an early intervention porgram in your area google or yahoo your county's name along with early intervetion. If you need help, pm me and I will find it for you.

here are some warning signs to look for if you or a friend may think that your child may be effected:

Does my child have autism or PDD?

According to the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development's Autism Facts, "a doctor should definitely and immediately evaluate a child for autism if he or she:

Does not babble or coo by 12 months of age
Does not gesture (point, wave, grasp, etc.) by 12 months of age
Does not say single words by 16 months of age
Does not say two-word phrases on his or her own (rather than just repeating what someone says to him or her) by 24 months of age
Has any loss of any language or social skill at any age.
Are there other possible symptoms of autism and PDD?

There are a number of things that parents, teachers, and others who care for children can look for to determine if a child needs to be evaluated for autism. The following “red flags” could be signs that a doctor should evaluate a child for autism or a related communication disorder.

The child does not respond to his/her name.
The child cannot explain what he/she wants.
Language skills or speech are delayed.
The child doesn’t follow directions.
At times, the child seems to be deaf.
The child seems to hear sometimes, but not others.
The child doesn’t point or wave bye-bye.
The child used to say a few words or babble, but now he/she doesn’t.
The child throws intense or violent tantrums.
The child has odd movement patterns.
The child is hyperactive, uncooperative, or oppositional.
The child doesn’t know how to play with toys.
The child doesn’t smile when smiled at.
The child has poor eye contact.
The child gets “stuck” on things over and over and can’t move on to other things.
The child seems to prefer to play alone.
The child gets things for him/herself only.
The child is very independent for his/her age.
The child does things “early” compared to other children.
The child seems to be in his/her “own world.”
The child seems to tune people out.
The child is not interested in other children.
The child walks on his/her toes.
The child shows unusual attachments to toys, objects, or schedules (i.e., always holding a string or having to put socks on before pants).
Child spends a lot of time lining things up or putting things in a certain order.

I got this from this website:
http://www.autismweb.com/signs.htm

Ways you can help:
PROMOTE
add a blinkie to your siggy, even if you aren't effected directly you can add it in honor of someone, If you still don't know anyone you could add it for me and my son. the idea is just to get the awareness that just about everyone is effected or knows someone that is effected. if you need help adding this to your siggy, let me know, I am here to help!

here are some blinkies that you can add to your siggys to promote awareness:

http://www.justmommies.com/boards/lofiversion/index.php/t483386.html

http://piecebypiece.bravehost.com/autismgraphics.htm

http://parentsandcarersofautism.com/autgraphics/autismgraphics.htm

EDUCATE

encourage your children to understand and accept the difference. with such a huge amount of us effected it is hard to have to explain.

DONATE

Ali Edwards has set up a badge on her blog that you can donate through. the minimum is $10. If you can't don't worry, but maybe you know someone who would like to know about this.

http://aliedwards.typepad.com/_a_/

Thank you all for reading this lengthy thread, this month let's be a MB that cares and promote something that is worth it.

I hope that others will do this with their own causes as well.

thank you for all the love and support you all give to me, I truly can say that you all have helped me through some of my tough days!

~Liz

The Petticoats have arrived!

I can't wait for my next session with a little girl! I just ordered a bunch of Kaiya Eve Pettiskirts, and they arrived yesterday. These are going to be too darn cute. Hmmm...which little girls are due for their portraits?