This was one of those weddings where I drove home with a smile on my face and had a hard time going to sleep because my mind kept trying to replay all of the joyous memories of the past several hours--the laughter, the gleeful embraces, the fearless dancing. :) Teresa and Brett are just one of those couples...you see them together at any given moment and it's like the very best scene out of a movie. Makes you want to drop whatever you're doing and drive across town to hug your loved one. But enough about the *love* stuff. These two people are just plain fun. They also have an insane love of baseball. Don't quote me on this, but I'm almost certain they've seen games at every major ballpark in the country. They even got engaged at a baseball game. For those of you big on details, each table at the reception was named after a ballpark and featured a photo of the couple in that particular stadium. You get the idea...

Teresa was rockin' 3 (count 'em!) shoe changes

Brett with his brother, David, and Teresa's son, Michael

Teresa and Brett doubled-up on the cocktail hours. :) The gathering and celebration before the ceremony even began added such warmth to the day.

And the awesome Jennifer and Matt, whose wedding I photographed just over a year ago. :)

Could these people be any more excited about marrying each other??

I love the feel of these next few

Game faces

Brett was not afraid to BRING IT on the cowbell

Congratulations, T&B! I loved loved loved being part of your day.

I had the pleasure of spending this past Saturday with a bunch of fantastic kids ...

What did they all have in common? They and their parents and their friends were all out for a fundraising effort for Mandala Adoption Services. Specifically, to support their humanitarian efforts with under-funded orphanages around the world. Not long ago, there was an article in the News & Observer that outlined some of the challenges facing the international adoption community right now. There are many sad outcomes due to these challenges - first and foremost, there are still 150 million orphans around the world, and that number is now simply increasing because of additional delays. Secondly, there are now related drops in funding of humanitarian aid that has been largely paid for by a percentage of agency fees. Why? With a slowdown in adoption comes a slowdown in client fees, of course - money that has enabled Mandala (and so many other agencies like Mandala) to support humanitarian programs throughout the world. Just a snapshot of some of the current efforts that Mandala is funding: --Providing direct support to children living in orphanages who (for a variety of reasons) are "not adoptable" and, thus, in legal limbo --Providing women's services in third world countries: job training, legal aid, grants for medical bills, donations for women's shelters --Offering scholarships for preschool and child care --Donating toys, food, formula, clothing, and medical necessities to children in foster care or in orphanages --Offering micro-loans to small businesses --Enabling clean water initiatives: i.e., digging a well. purifying water systems, etc. With humanitarian projects like these taking a big hit, Mandala is now fundraising for the first time in its history. The gathering on Saturday was obviously for a great cause, but it was also great fun...

There were games and prizes and raffles...

I missed the whipped cream dipping, but this smart one didn't...

It was also HOT! Water fun was out in full force...

Volunteers, sing-a-longs, toys, candy & smiles..

Clearwind is a horse farm, and they have some seriously sweet horses there and offer therapeutic riding...

Of course you can always practice your riding off the horse, too...

Little sister was so proud that her big sister braved the big, tall horse and gave her a sweet hug upon dismount :)

A big thank you to gorgeous Clearwind Farm for hosting this sweet, hopeful event...

If you are interested in learning more about about Mandala's fundraising efforts, you can check out more detailed information here. If, even better, you are interested in donating to their humanitarian aid efforts, you can make your tax-deductable donation here! In addition ... I will also be doing mini-sessions in the next couple of weeks (we are coordinating an exact date right now) with all proceeds going directly to this effort. We had initially thought we'd do some sessions at the farm but since we were all melting, we created a signup sheet there to do the shoots in the studio. As my calendar is booked out for 2008 (how crazy is that?), we are squeezing a few things around to make this work - if you would like to take part in our mini-session date, please contact the studio. After a quick tally of sign ups, it looks like we will have 2 spots for 20-minute mini sessions available!

Yesterday afternoon...in the midst of a very busy day...a small box is delivered to us. I have to speak for everyone here and say that just seeing the return address made us smile! In addition to our AWESOME new camera straps... our new individual flair... we received sweet little hand-made notes from Ms. Kaitlin Rogers. Kaitlin, you're the best! We hope you have a great time in Tanzania... and be sure to document ( I know you will) everything...so you can share when you return! XOXO, Courtney, Tamara, Rachel, and Lisa

Carrie & Jay live in New York but are getting married in North Carolina - more NY to NC! We were able to meet up during one of their recent visits for a sunny, gorgeously-lit morning in the park. Besides being ridiculously adorable together, they share a strong affection and respect for each other, while also sharing a darn good sense of humor :) But, more importantly than any of that: Is it just me or does Jay look A LOT like Wesley from The Princess Bride???

My very favorites!

I forgot to mention that they are also extremely hot, as evidenced by this very clear hotness:

Oh...And, as a comparison: