Every single small wedding I’m invited to photograph, I fall more and more in love with them! Dale + Shelley had an intimate wedding ceremony with just their parents and children at the Vertex on top of the Hotel Alex Johnson, followed by dinner and drinks. How special to have that time together to dine and celebrate with your closest loved ones!

Dale + Shelley welcomed everyone as the arrived at the Vertex, and helped put corsages + boutonnieres on. I love this moment between Shelley and her dad – everyone else was waiting outside, and they took the time to soak up this moment with each other before walking out to her groom! :-)

Dale + Shelley – thanks for inviting me to witness the beginning of your marriage! It was such a beautiful afternoon, and I loved watching your family catch up and enjoy the time spent together. I hope you will treasure these photos! :-)

Milo is rolling and scooting and army crawling. He sits up, but can’t yet sit himself up.

Elodie is expanding her vocabulary every day. Cake, cow, book, home, house, work, and says “I” instead of “me.” When she thinks, she looks up and says ‘hmmm’ or ‘umm’ and then answers with either a slow ‘nope’ or a matter-of-fact ‘yep.’ Sometimes when I tell her ‘no’ she says ‘hey’ real slowly and softly, as if I should reconsider my decision. When Lance comes home she whispers “oh, hide hide” and runs to hide in her fort, under her blanket, or if she can’t get anywhere fast enough, she simply covers her eyes with her hands.

Milo and Elodie are all of a sudden best friends. While cooking dinner the other night, I had Milo in the play pen in the next room, and Elodie went to keep him entertained and all I could hear was two giggling children!

Austin and Jill planned a brunch wedding and I couldn’t have been more excited for it! Breakfast food is my jam. ;-) Also, after the wedding is done, there is still so much of the day left for activities – like naps!!

Excited to start photographing the morning, I went to find Jill getting ready at the Homestead at Prairie Berry and THIS DRESS with LACE SLEEVES was hanging next to her!! And then someone handed me her shoes. PINK CONVERSE!!! I knew Jill had great taste planning a morning wedding, but her wardrobe was icing on the cake!

Also, morning weddings (or any kind of photo opportunity in general) give new life to the scenery around Prairie Berry. I’ve never been able to get a photo like this with afternoon/evening weddings here. I’m a big fan. :-)

Austin + Jill – thanks for having a fantastic brunch wedding (I’m still dreaming about that quiche), and for inviting me along to photograph the first day of your marriage! Big hugs and best wishes to you both. :-)

When planning a wedding, most people want the same basic things: a fun time, good company, and beautiful photos. Jayson & Jordyn achieved that wedding trifecta, with the help of Mother Nature sending a warm glow over the Black Hills from wildfires near and far. It was both erie and super gorgeous!

Side note: any other wedding photographers out there want to re-do their own wedding all the time? THIS DRESS made me feel that way – that blush layer under the lace was soooo lovely!

Of course, that lovely dress was even more jaw-dropping when it was on Jordyn. ;-)

The ‘group hug’ is my favorite silly/fun/somewhat candid photo for the wedding party – I love Jayson’s brother and Jordyn’s sister creeping behind them!! Hahaha!!

Jayson’s expression as they are pronounced husband and wife – priceless!!

More and more couples are opting to sneak away for a few minutes after the ceremony for some ‘just married’ portraits and I LOVE it! Who wouldn’t want to spend some quiet time together, walking, holding hands, dancing, and soaking in all those feelings together!

Jayson + Jordyn – I’m still feeling the love from this photo!! It’s couples like you who make this job so bittersweet – I LOVE spending time with you during your engagement session and on your wedding day, but I wish our time together didn’t go so fast! Thanks for being so fun and loving and for taking a selfie with my so I can remember how sweet and wonderful you both are. :-)

This might be a little premature, but this will probably be one of my favorite photos of them ever!!

Milo has officially started eating baby food, and he has eaten everything we’ve given him. If there are bananas in the mixture, we can’t feed him fast enough! He loves to be close to us, and his sister is still his endless source of entertainment. He even makes squeaks that sound just like her! Any chance he gets, he rolls to his tummy and spins around to find the closest toy to put in his mouth.

Elodie is two and a half!! She is saying more letters and spelling S-T-O-P at every stop sign she sees. She can also say the numbers 1-5 (in her own way). She loves helping (fill and empty the dishwasher & ice cube trays, getting clean diapers and throwing dirty ones away, giving Milo a toy or his pacifier when he’s sad) which is so cute and convenient! Her favorite spot in the house right now is the blanket fort we have set up behind the couch. When Lance walks in the door, she either run towards him with her arms wide open, or says ‘hide, hide’ and waits in her fort for him to find her. Outside of the house, her favorite place to be is the playground – she could swing and slide all day if we let her!

Both kids enjoy being outside – Milo watches cars drive by and also keeps an eye on Elodie, Elodie likes coloring with chalk and watering the flowers/weeds/sidewalk.