August, you were so good to us!! Plenty of time to play with our favorite girl and soak up some great weather. I know I shouldn’t be wishing for fall, but those crisp couple of days we had were simply glorious!!

This month Elodie has taken a serious liking to her books. We can’t read just a few anymore – we have to get them ALL out and either read them or stack them all up… and then transfer the stack one-by-one to another location or lucky house guest. :-)

She LOVES any kind of fruit and dessert, but knows she has to eat her food all gone before she gets the sweets. Thankfully, she also enjoys brushing her teeth and flossing. (I hope that lasts!!)

Her latest animal sounds are: monkey (eee), chicken (bock bock), elephant (bbbbb), and frog (biiiiit). She finally has a name for Grandma (nama), and she can bark like a dog and say baby (she knows there’s one in my tummy) all day long.

There is a special place in my heart for brides with style like Jen’s. The soft ruffles at the bottom of her dress plus her GORGEOUS flowers… I was in love! And so is Wade – just wait until you see their first look!!

They had planned to wait until the ceremony to see each other, but then decided walk up the aisle together, so we did a very quick first look right before they walked outside to get married, and I LOVE that I could capture that excitement for both of them in one photo! :-)

Jen couldn’t stop smiling – and neither could I!!

Shawn + Christie’s river-side wedding was beautiful and casual at the same time. The River Rock Lodge has the most scenic overlook to the Missouri River, and the set-up made the day feel more like a family reunion where guests could mingle, eat, wander, and enjoy the breeze on the patio.

Another example: Christie’s TOMS wedges = comfy… Christie’s wedding gown = GORGEOUS

How often do you see a bride get down on the floor to put her own shoes on? LOVE!!

A sweet first look and a big gust of wind. :-)

I do love the Black Hills, but East river isn’t so bad…

Christie and her dad were the most smiliest father-daughter duo I’ve ever seen walk down the aisle!

I LOVE that when I told Shawn + Christie to ‘do a little dance’ on the dock, they did THIS!!

When we got back to the lodge after doing photos down by the river, the lighting was so beautiful and the sky was like cotton candy, so we just *had* to take a couple more photos. (All of my couples know that I’m never done with portraits until I say “just one more” once or twice.) :-)

A final example of how this wedding was both beautiful and casual… belting out their first dance song under cafe lights and a twilight sky.

Shawn + Christie – Thanks so much for bringing me out to Pierre for your wedding! I may have cried big tears over leaving my baby girl for a couple nights, but you and your love + excitement on your wedding day made being away the best it could have been! Thanks for being so wonderful!! :-)