They were both told that they never smiled in photographs.  They could have fooled me!  Dan & Cindy could not STOP smiling almost our entire session.  And I even had to bring out my “kindergarten teacher” voice to get Dan to stop gazing at his future bride & give the camera a few glances.  These two kids could not have been more in love than what I witnessed this past Saturday.

Now I think all my couples are the greatest, and they are all madly in love with one another.  But I have to give Dan & Cindy the award for the most lovey dovey looks, most hands holding, most kisses, most spontaneous acts, and most energy!

Dan & Cindy I am honored to finally give you some photos of you both together.  And I cannot wait for all the surprises and acts of spontaneity that will no doubt occur during your wedding!  Enjoy your preview…

Okay…so I’m totally in love with these photos and it was waaaaaaay hard just picking a handful to show you in the preview blog. So, to wet your appetite even more (and basically because I’m in love with this song), here’s a slide show of Mark & Lindsey’s engagement. Go ahead, play it over and over again….goodness knows I have. Someone’s gonna take me and my husband out some day for some shots of us just so I can put them to a groovy song like this. Enjoy!

I have been checking the Weather.com app on my iPhone all week hoping and praying it wouldn’t rain this past Sunday.  The weather here in Maryland has been crazy unpredictable these past few weeks, and it was changing daily on my weather app.  Luckily, or by the grace of God, I was blessed with a mild, rain-free Sunday evening in Fells Point for Mark & Lindsey’s engagement photos.

I believe I met Mark when my family first moved to Maryland from Oklahoma and we began attending the same church as his family.  I’m reaching waaaaaay back in my memory here, but I believe I would have been about 8 years old then.  And I met Lindsey not too long after in the fourth grade at Belvedere Elementary School.  I remember that year well because I misspelled “chimney” in the class spelling bee and didn’t make it as far as I’d hoped.  Don’t worry though, I wasn’t crushed too badly.

Well, my point is, I’ve known Mark & Lindsey seperately for a number of years, but I always find it so neat when two people I know, who I didn’t know knew each other, find each other, fall in love, and begin a life together.  Isn’t it a small world?  They were such a great couple to photograph.  All I had to do was tell them tons of cheezy jokes and stories, and they just laughed it up!  Plus I think they were a little nervous being in Fells Point on a Sunday with tons of people watching them cuddle, kiss, and do engaged-people stuff.  But everything went great.

And what I loved was that Lindsey did some research on some ideas she had before we went out.  She’d found Max Wanger‘s site and loved the session he did of a couple with a huge balloon.  So, we tried some things with balloons and some without.  All the while, I felt like we could have been the pied piper and gotten little children everywhere to follow us with those balloons!  They were coming out of nowhere saying, “ball-oon, ball-oon!”

I had a smashing good time (like my new word) with you both, Mark & Lindsey, and can’t wait for your wedding this October.  I know it will rock!

My husband thinks this one would look appropriate with a pitch fork

Do you know what we spelled?

And I think this one has to be my absolute favorite!  Look at the way he looks at her.

Yesterday I was invited by Moses, Kim, and their little Dachshund, Chloe, to photograph some engagement poses at Sherwood Gardens in Baltimore.  I have never been to Sherwood Gardens prior to this, but you can bet I’m gonna recommend it to others.  It’s a beautiful piece of land surrounded on all four sides by large, historic homes.  And the flowers…ooo la la!  They are particularly know for their tulips in early Spring.

Moses & Kim have been engaged for a little over a year and are planning on tying the knot this November.  When I spoke with Kim about where she wanted to go, she asked if I’d mind if she brought her dog, Chloe.  I said, “Sure, why not!  She’s part of your family, too.”  Besides being madly in love with one another, Kim & Moses love Chloe as well.  The shots of them playing with their little gal are just precious.  And all those shots where you don’t see Chloe, rest assured, she is very close by looking at us with her sad doggie eyes, sending telepathic messages that she wants to be included too!

Here are Moses, Kim, and Chloe the Dachshund….enjoy!

Chloe in her favorite spot – on Moses’ lap

Could she be a doggie model?

I think Moses likes this….

Isn’t Kim a doll?

Laughing at one another

Behind every good man….

…is a good woman

I loved this tree!

Here they are having some alone time while I peek

funny faces

surprised faces

“I love you” faces

Well, it seems that photography season is in full swing.  I started my week with Mark & Jill’s engagment, and then yesterday I photographed the ever adorable Clara, and on Saturday I’ll get to witness Kate & Joey exchange vows as they commit their lives to one another.  (Not to mention the engagements for the next two Sundays, the family sessions coming up, and yada yada ya….)  But I’d like to pause and let you see how much little Clara has grown.

I first met Clara about 3 months ago when she was just a little thang, and she has blossomed and changed so much in such a short time.  She can smile, coo, kick the toys hanging from her play mat, and even produce the pouty lip!  It’s so amazing how children grow and change so quickly.

Clara was a real trooper, too.  When I arrived yesterday she was finishing up a morning bottle and then we put her through about 4 outfits, 2 head bands, one flower pot, and one beach towel…and she took it beautifully, all while looking good at the same time!  Here is little Clara…

Relaxing in the flower pot.

The famous “lip.”

Clara’s first headband of the day.

On to the bathing suit.

And these are my favorite series.  I can’t get enough of that headband!

And lastly, Clara’s tutu!