When I first heard that Mark had asked Sabrina to marry him I was so excited for them. They are both amazing parents to their sons and genuine people that deserve happy endings. I was hoping that I would be asked to shoot their wedding but I understood if they didn’t want to mix friendship and business.

Rewind to a July 4th party where they went from asking for referrals of wedding photogs to by the end of the party booking me. Previous clients and good friends, Josh and Nikki were at the party too, and  weren’t shy about giving them their opinion on my work. It was humbling to hear them talk me up like some celebrity. In the end it all worked out and I had a wonderful time documenting their special day.

My good friend and amazing photographer, Carrie Pratt of Studio Blu Images was on hand to second shoot with me and here is a link to her favorites from the day which she blogged about earlier this month. I want to thank her for doing such an amazing job of capturing the groom and his attendants as well as the awesome details. I can’t wait to repay her this spring when I help her by second shooting a wedding.

The ceremony took place at Without Walls International Church and their reception was held at The Lakeland Center.

So the lesson in all of this may be that it’s ok to break the rules of life sometimes. That you just might walk away with something magical.

Here are a few of my favorites of their day.

Congrats again, Mr. and Mrs. Lever.

They surprised their guests with a special first dance that started out slow and ended with a choreographed dance Sir-Mix-A-Lot’s, “Baby Got’s Back.”

“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given,” Isaiah 9:6

This time of year I always find myself thanking the Lord for all he has done to bless me and my family. I may not always go to Mass or say my prayers but I do feel a strong connection to Jesus and my faith and know without him none of this would be possible. So, on the eve of Jesus’ birthday my family and I would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas. If you celebrate this blessed holiday please remember the reason for the season and say thanks as well.

I’m so sorry it has been a couple of weeks since my last post. I promise to be better. I took some much needed family time over Thanksgiving and I have been swamped with the last of my holiday sessions. I am also having a fun time creating holiday cards for all my clients. This winter has been such a wonderful blessing for me, my business and my family. I can’t thank you all enough for all your love and support. I saw an email recently that had a logo on it that read, I love what I do, because I’m good at what I do, and that is how I feel about my family sessions. I really enjoy them so much and I couldn’t be more tickled to get referrals from my amazing clients.

Last Friday I had the pleasure of photographing the adorable Everding family outside the new Glazer Children’s Museum in Tampa. It was a crisp December morning with blue skies and a feeling of the holidays upon us.

Chad and Avi have the cutest little girls, Kayla, 3, and Elise, 18-months. They have another one due early next year and I hope I get the chance to photograph her when she arrives. We had a great time running all over the place. Those beauties have tons of energy and I think you can see in my photos. I have to thank my dear friend, Jaymi Butler for introducing Avi and I and making this happen. This was their first photo shoot as a family and I hope the experience was fantastic and that they will give me a ring when Sydney is born.