2011 was an absolute whirlwind for us... and I am FINALLY getting this blog out out!  Let me give you a quick recap of the year…..

The main feature of last year was adding 1700 sq ft on to our adorable farm house.  After lots of planning and legwork in 2010, we actually broke ground in March.  It took four months to finish and it was crazy, stressful and exciting all at once!  Each day there were more challenges….one was my having to hobble around on crutches with a broken toe! We tried living in two rooms of our old house and it was so chaotic we finally had to move into my mother’s cottage with our three kitties and my visiting grandmother. It was a test of patience and co-operation for all of us! 

Our New Foyer

So the three generations of designing women went about the tasks of refinishing furniture, finding the right paint colors, picking cabinets and appliances, and were always on the hunt for special things for the new house. Meanwhile our front porches looked like the set of “Sanford and Son”…….it was embarrassing but a girl’s gotta do what she’s gotta do!  Of course, during the whole process I was shooting here at home and traveling to clients out of state.

But that isn’t all of it!  January started off with our annual Valentine Promotion, our romantic and ever popular “La Silhouette Feminine”,  when we once again captured some amazing women!  In February we rescued another furry kitty-kat baby…. We named her Gracie Valentine. She appeared on Valentine’s Day……… and……she has a heart shaped marking on her nose!!  We fell in love!  At the end of February I flew to Arizona where my mom and I photographed a beautiful wedding in Phoenix on one of the many fabulous golf courses. The weather made an unwelcome change with high winds and a chance of rain… but by the grace of God the skies remained calm and the images were stunning! Here is a shot of Gracie and one from the wedding!

Gracie Valentine

Randy and EmLee

We also had a successful event in North Carolina for Chanel and Dior which was a blast! I had a great time and met some lovely people. Here are some of the new clients I was honored to photograph and some pictures of the event!

Now even though I was on the road a lot… it was busy, busy in Tennessee. We had our limited edition series, a Lancome and 2 Chanel events….and a fabulous senior session summer!  By the way,… wow…..can I tell you, the seniors are so gorgeous and awesome!! We didn’t look like that “back in the day”!  Summer continued to sizzle ……we had a great session with Warner recording artist, Krista Marie, from “ The Farm”.   Be on the lookout for their hit single!! Another long time client, Oklahoma City’s Amanda Earhart, is an up and coming recording artist whose single “Hold On” is doing great!   We also had sessions with several new artists in the area.  One of our favorite clients, seven year old, Emily Faith, recorded her album here at our recording studio,… “Off The Row”.   We are so proud of her!  You go little girl….you go! Below is Krista, Amanda and Emily, and a few clients from OKC and Dallas!

Amanda

Krista

Emily Faith's CD Cover

A few of our wonderful OKC/Dallas clients

The Senior sessions continued into October which is when family portraits start, and when holiday gift giving is on everyone’s mind.  Rachelle and Ashley worked feverishly to create some stunning Christmas cards again this year! Thank you girls for all your hard work!! 

A few of this year's custom Christmas cards

We thank Heather and Jasmin, my two assistants for not only doing a great job with the ordering, packaging, and office work….but those little angels helped me during the stressful time of the house build. Jazzy has turned into quite the furniture refinisher and how many times did we move furniture from one house to the other……???  We are all so glad that it’s over.

We took part in some charity events this year, Ashley’s Children, Monroe Harding, and Mercy Ministries.....  We always want to give back to our community in any way we can. We feel very blessed for all God has done in our lives.

I will always remember 2011 as the year my sweet 1911 farmhouse had her 100 year old “facelift” and" augmentation! "It is for us the perfect Christmas house! And we so enjoyed our first Christmas in our new home.  I will also remember it as my Grandmother’s 95th birthday. We had a wonderful family reunion to celebrate our love for her. She is something else!!

Me and Grandma

I am so grateful to be able to photograph wonderful people who have become more than clients, they have become friends. Thank you to all of you for letting me share and capture the special moments of your lives!

Check out the website for some new and exciting changes for 2012!!