One of the things that couples planning a wedding tend to forget is that they might want to plan for their marriage. :)

Today’s post touches on that a bit.  Who better to teach us about marriage than The Huxtables. (Danielle & I LOVE us some Cosby Show.  We have all of them on our AppleTV and have mini dates once or twice a week where we fix a desert and watch an episode once the kids have gone to bed.)  Take a look at this clip. (The sound does not work for the 1st few seconds.  Stick with it.)

A big part of marriage is planning for situations BEFORE they happen.  Knowing how much money you are going to spend on a vacation.  Your method of buying a car.  How you plan on splitting up family time during the holidays.  These are just a few things that sneak up on a couple and can turn into huge issues.  When we were first married Danielle and I had talked through some of these but other things caught us off guard.  Over the years we have learned to not commit to anything without checking in with each other and it has saved us from many “discussions”.  Take some time to plan for these things now so that when they come up you are both on the same page.

Katie’s wedding is just around the corner and we had perfect weather for her session last week.  She met her fiance at Texas University where he played baseball for the school.  Here are a few of my favorites from her session at the Villa di Felicita.

What up party people?  Happy Monday and welcome to another installment of The A List.  My semi regular rants and raves about what I’m liking.

1. TSA

These people are crazy.  I’m not sure how much you have been keeping up with the new security measures that our airports have taken too, but  this is a good time to take notice.  Many have installed new body scanners with essincially produce a naked image of your body.  (awesome right)  You can “opt out” of the body scanner but you are then subjected to a pretty intense pat down.  These pat downs involve being touched in many places you don’t want to be touched.  In the past week alone we have seen a 32 year flight attended be asked to remove her prosthetic breast,  a TSA agent pop a urine bag a passenger had due to a medical condition, and confiscate a pair of nail clippers from a U.S. soldier returning home from Afghanistan. (Even though he was allowed to carry on his rifle.) That last story is so great you have to go read the whole piece.

We won’t even go into what’ happening to kids who are being asked to remove clothing and have pat downs in public.

A great place to find out more and keep up with what’s happening is a new site called flywithdignity.org They have links on how to get in touch with your Congressmen & Senators as well as where to file complaints.  There is also a plan for a National Opt-Out Day  on November 24.

I know many of you will be flying in the next few weeks so I just wanted to raise a bit of awareness as to what’s going on.  Happy flying. :)

2. Grandmother Superhero
One of my favorite brides sent this to me and I thought it was too good not to share.  Here is a teaser image.

Go to the photographer’s site to get the full scoop.

3. Sara’s thinking about marriage.
Danielle & her had this conversation 3 days ago.  I should probably start talking to her about having a First Look.

Sara: Does everybody have to get married?
Danielle: No, some people don’t.
Sara:Why did you and dad get married?
Danielle: Because I prayed that God would give me the perfect man for me.
Sara: That’s why you got married?
Danielle: Uh huh. Because we liked each other. You both have to want to get married
Sara: So who wanted to get married first?
Danielle: Daddy.
Sara: Ha. That’s funny. Usually it’s the girl who wants to get married. But daddy is a silly dad.

Castle on the Lake is one of my favorite venues in the area and it’s located just outside of Jacksonville, Tx.  I love when brides choose to get married at wedding venues because they are well… wedding venues.  They are built and put together to help your day go smoothly and their on site staff help take care of so many things you did not plan for or expect.  Here are a few shots of it as well as a new promo video Vanessa McKellar just put together for them.

One of the coolest things about Castle is their HUGE bridal suite.  This thing just blows away every other location.  If you have ever been a bridesmaid you know just how crowded these “prep” rooms can get.  Not the case with castle.  I shot a wedding with 10 bridesmaids getting ready in this room and there was still plenty of room for moms, aunts, and grandparents to come in and visit.  It’s awesome.

They have a couple of options for your ceremony.  One is a big a big tree.

The second is a cool rock wall they just built.

Finally, here is a video that Vanessa McKellar just shot.  Brittan is the bride you’ll see.  (La Tee Da Flowers did the flowers.)She’s also the owner and runs this place day in and day out.  She is super nice and will totally become your BFF as she helps you put together your wedding day.  Give her a call and get this placed booked! 903.721.3593.

Castle on the Lake
http://www.jacksonvillecastle.com/
903.721.3593.

We had all kids of fun exploring around Melissa’s home.  I am so looking forward to this wedding.  We’ll start off with a strange shot.

This patch of dirt is where their wedding reception is going to be. :)  They are having their ceremony at a church and then we are all heading over to her home for a laid back intimate reception. (Including Mug Machine!)  In the next few months a pavilion is going to be built in this spot and I hope to be able to re-shot this with them in their wedding clothes and all kinds of fun wedding stuff happening around them. :)

We also explored the hay barn.  I almost sat Melissa in raccoon poop. :)

Can’t wait for your wedding!  Thanks for a great session.