Well ladies, it’s that time of year again.  And, just like last year, I’m here to help you out through what could be a rough couple of weeks in your relationship.  It’s March Madness.  The next few weeks will be filled with tons of college basketball, lots of ESPN, and very little alone time. :)  So, rather than fight it, why not embrace it.  That’s right, fill out your own bracket.  It’s OK if you “don’t know” anything about basketball.  Just pick your favorite teams, schools, states, or colors.  Whatever you want to do.  The best part is your fiance will totally love you more for trying.  (Just don’t beat him or he might like you less.)

Here is where you can go to download your own bracket.

I have listed a few ideas/rules for you to try out.

1.  Only pick one round at a time.  That way you get a fresh start and are always still “in” the game.

2.  Set up the prizes ahead of time.
You can do a general 1st and 2nd place prize or be more specific and say if you win you get this and if he wins he get that.

3.  If you see him turning into a competitive “guy” then just let him win and know in the back of your mind that you are better than him.  

Also, just to give you a head start, I have uploaded Luke’s Midwest picks for you.

Hurry up.  The first games start Thursday!

Heather & Blake had a great wedding at Castle on the Lake in Jacksonville, TX.  Those of you who have never been there, it’s really one of the more unique wedding venues in the area.  It’s really worth looking into and you’ll learn more in the next week or so when I run their vendor interview.

I overheard Heather tell someone that her favorite thing about her ring was how you could see the “whole” diamond.  She really has one of the coolest rings I have ever shot.

This was a wedding first for me.  The groom was getting his hair done while the bride got her makeup done. :)

Designs by D’Anne did the cake and Flowers by Janae did the arrangements.

Blake had his son to keep him company while he waited on Heather for their First Look.

I finally got a shot of him without hair in his face.  (I’m sure his mom will appreciate it.)

We grabbed their boys for a few family shots.  It was so stinking windy.  That top hat flew off on it’s own and probably traveled another 10 feet before landing.

Boys + Canes = Sword fight.

As they started their first dance, it looked like it would be your “typical” stand and sway dance.

At the end they broke into a little swing routine and impressed all of us.

Come back tomorrow for some Mug Machine goodness.  (It’s gonna be good.)

Hey, just a quick heads up.  This coming Sunday, March 21, The I Do Bridal Show will be held at the Longview Mall from 2-6PM.  It’s hosted by the lovely folks behind VOW.  (Read their vendor interview here.)  Anyway, there will be all kinds of prizes and goodies to win.  (Vanessa McKellar will be giving away about 1,500.00 worth of video goodness.)  The Mug Machine & I will be there in full force as well. :)

Come on by, say hello, meet some great vendors.

See you soon.

AlexM

I had such a great time getting to know Angela & Spencer.  These two have great chemistry and style so photographing them was something I had been looking forward to for a while.  These two met a few years ago down in Austin.  Spencer works at a music institute that Angela’s sister was attending.  Soon, Angela started to come around and “check in” on her sister’s music.  Spencer decided to ask Angela out, and Angela said yes, but she wanted her sisters to come along.  Once Spencer left, her sisters pointed out to Angela that he was asking her on a DATE.  :)  After a bit a of clarification, the two finally had an “alone” date and they have been giddy and in love ever since.

If you know these two you know that music plays a HUGE role in their lives so the studio where they first met seemed like the perfect place to start the session.

Fun with piano reflections.

Next we headed out into Austin.

Fancy shiny limos are everywhere.  This is an Austin-style limo.

If you are in the Austin click here to book the Dirty Limo.

These two were a bit nervous in front of the camera.  I have no idea why.  They are naturals.

Angela hooked us up with private access to this football field in town.

Spencer accomplishes things Colt McCoy & Vince Young never did on the field.

One of my most-est favorite-est ever.

Thank you guys for an amazing time.  I’m stoked about the wedding.  See you soon.

I just got a new sample album in and wanted to show you a few images of it.  This is what my Linen album look like.  They are the same 12×12 size as my Leather albums only the pages are a bit thinner.  The print quality is the same and they are perfect for parent albums.

Here are a few images.

Again, just like the Leather albums, they have a seamless lay flat binding system.

To give you an idea on the thickness of the pages, here they are with a dime placed between them.

Here is the Linen album stacked on top of a Leather album.  (These two albums have the same page count, but the Leather ones pages are a bit thicker.)

And, just to prove that both albums are friendly.  Here they are giving each other a hug.

Most of my brides end up with a package with an album in it, but those of you who do not have one it’s never too late to add one. :)