If you don’t like having fun, you probably would not have enjoyed Melanie & Aaron’s wedding at Le Beaux Chateau in Flowermound, TX.  Seriously.  These two know how to have a great time and I think they only invited fun people to their wedding.

I walk into the guys room and find this: grown men playing video games.  Yes, please.
(I think I can now convince my 12 year old son to assist me on future weddings.)

The best thing is not that Aaron plays video games.  The best thing is that Melanie “gets it”.  Here are the cufflinks she gave him on their wedding day.

Cake toppers are better when zombies are attacking.

Every groom needs groomsmen who will pull out a knife and cut your shirt and pull out a comb and brush your stache.

Sometimes First Looks are full of weeping and holding.

The beautiful people.

Sometimes the beautiful people turn into the pouty people.

She was a bit bored with the whole thing.

Unity candle? Nope.
Unity Sand? Nope.
Unity Beer? Yes please.

Of course they made a Black & Tan.

With this ring, (and these bottle caps) I thee wed.

Melanie & her dad CRUSHED a dance song mash up.  So, so many good moves.

Speaking of crushed…. The bouquet toss went well. :)

Of course their grandmother did the Nae Nae.

Of course they preformed an impromptu “Shut Up & Dance With Me”.

Last dances in an empty room are the best.

You thought it was over?  Wrong.  Here are some of my favorites from the Mug Machine.
Featuring Melanie & Aaaron kissing poorly and the hair from that girl that got crushed trying to catch flowers.

Thank you guys for an amazing day of fun, love, and laughter.
Also, I’m still kinda mad that after you got married, you got to go to Disney World, and I had to come home and edit these pictures.

Wow, last weeks Top 10 contest was the biggest ever. There were over 4,400 votes cast. (You people have a lot of friends.) The bridal category had close to 600 votes and was decided by only 1 vote. Anyway, here are the winners for this past year. Be sure and shake hands and say good game before you walk off the field. You couples that won, you can go to bed tonight knowing you are champions. You couples that lost…. you can go to bed tonight complain about the officials.

Engagement: Band
Marriage is tough.
Balancing marriage and work is tougher.
Balancing marriage and work when you work at the same high school is tougher-er.
Balancing marriage and work when you work at the same high school and both your jobs depending on how well the halftime performance goes is the toughest.

So glad that Katie & Joe trusted me to pull of this shot. I love it.

Rings: Tweet
Nicole and Tyson met on Twitter. Yeah. Twitter. 140 characters at a time they fell in love. I would love to be there when one day they have to explain to their grandkids what Twitter was.

Brides: Emily
I’m sure many an Aggie bride has dreamed of drinking a pitcher of beer at the Dixi Chicken in a wedding dress. Emily actually pulled it off.

Mug Machine: Hair
Amanda and her friend had a KILLER wedding reception. It only makes sense that one of their Mug Machine images won.

Random: Flower
This may honestly be my favorite “lucky” photo I’ve taken this past year. You can never predict what little kids will do. I never expected her to jump in the air as she tossed petals left and right.

Wedding: Hug
It’s a bit ironic, but last year’s winning wedding image was also a hug that took place shortly after the ceremony. That’s such an unscripted time. It’s always full of so much emotion. I saw this moment unfolding and was so so glad that I was able to do it justice. Anytime part of your day involves the rebuilding of a family, I’m all in. Thank you Caleb & Sarah for trusting me with your wedding.

Thanks again to everyone who voted. It was fun. Let’s do it again next year.

It’s that time again. It’s time to look back at some of the best photos from 2014. Everyday we’ll be taking a look at a new category. Voting is open till midnight and the winners will be announced Monday. The winning entries will each receive a 16×20 print.

Today’s category: Random

Take a look at the entries then vote at the bottom of this post.

Let’s be honest. Wedding days are long and strange. Sometimes odd things happen. Here are some of my favorite random moments from the past year.

1. Jogger: That moment when you just got married in the park and are having a romantic moment and some dude just jogs over near you.  Because physical fitness is important.

2. Bored:  The reason kids are so great at wedding is because they will do and say the thing that most adults are thinking.  This guys is wondering is there is any possible way this could take any longer.

3. Drink:  When you are thirsty, you’ll drink anything.

4. Dance: The first of 9,532 times that a woman will drag this dude out onto the dance floor over the course of his life.

5. Dino: You spent 3 millions hours on etsy finding the perfect program, but one thing you didn’t count on is how it would look next to your guest’s dinosaurs.

6. iPhone: That moment you realize you and all your bridesmaids are iPhone users.

7. Bite:  I think I could take this photo at almost every wedding.  No matter how proper you ladies are…. there is always that moment where you break and say; “Screw it, I’m starving.  I’m shoving food into my mouth right now.”

8. Ink: You planned on having fun,  you never planned on your buddy getting a tramp stamp at your reception.

9.  Click: I love watching kids watch their parent get married.  I love it even more when they decide they should be documenting their first dance.

10. Flowers: The reason this moment is random is because it rarely rarely happens.  Little girls typically just walk quickly down to the front, barely remembering to drop a handful of flowers.  This one was fully engaged, in the air, smiling, and jumping the whole way down.  I’ve never seen a better flower girl.  She should be giving lessons.

Such a perfect day.  I love when I leave a wedding and feel, “it would be impossible for them to have had a better day.”  That’s exactly the feeling I had at the end of Hilary and Kirk’s wedding.

It kicked off at the Magnolia Hotel in Dallas.

This is Hilary and her sweet mother. Everything I have ever achieved or will achieve is due to the connections and opportunities this lady has given me.  Thank you. ;)

Last year, I photographed Hilary’s brother’s wedding and took the image on the left.  Fast forward to this wedding… As a bridesmaid was handing Hilary a bite of food, it’s like I was suddenly in the Matrix.  I could not believe it was happening again and that I was given the perfect photographic bookend.

On to the venue.  The Trinity River Audubon Center in Dallas, TX.

Kirk was on the phone, when someone came in to pin on his boutonniere.  He asked me if he needed to put his phone down.  I said no, then he proceeded to big shot all of us and started yelling “BUY BUY BUY!  SELL SELL SELL!”

Of course they had a First Look.

It’s always great when a bride chooses me to document their day.  It’s even greater when families have me back for another wedding.  Thank you so much Loyd’s for having two awesome kids, and letting me take photos of you and them, the day you handed them over to another.  That is an honor and a privilege.  Your kids ROCK and that means that you guys are pretty swell parents. ;)

Here comes the bride.

Hilary and her father took dance lessons and came up with a choreographed father daughter dance.  I know I was supposed to be watching and shooting them, but I kept being drawn to her grandparents who just kept cheering and clapping during the whole dance. :)

I don’t even know why Bridesmaid # 1 is poking Bridesmaid # 2 in the mouth while #2 spills her drink as Groomsman #1 creeps in the background but I felt it was worth documenting.

Couples take note.  THIS is how you stand next to your wedding cakes.

Rings are fun.  Mother’s dancing is more fun.  Pouty flower girls  are fun to make fun of.  Half eaten wedding cake is the most fun.

To Hilary & Kirk:  Thanks for rocking my socks off.  You guys were amazing.

If I had to pick a couple to get a bit of rain on their wedding day Lauren & Alex would be my 1st choice.  :)

Lauren totally has a go with the flow mindset and Alex played a few years of college baseball so he’s also accustom to rain delays.  I loved every minute of their day and I hope these images can give you a small glimpse of how amazing these two people are.

Lauren has a few nieces and nephews so there were plenty of great little people moments.  This may have been my favorite of the day though.  Everyone was getting ready and there were about 10 ladies in the room.  They start to look for one of the flower girls and can’t find her.  Turns out she was hiding in the corner eating candy.  Once she realized she had been busted, she stayed in the corner, finished eating, then ran out smiling.

I loved the small touches of personality they sprinkled throughout their day.  Alex had some cufflinks that made from MLB baseballs.  Lauren’s hairpiece had once belonged to her grandmother.  And the bouquet had photos of her with her mom who she recently lost to cancer.

This is the part of the wedding where Lauren’s niece tried to steal her shoes.

Such a great First Look.  Anticipation, followed by joy, then jumping and screaming, and ending with a hug.

Lauren’s nieces completed the flowergirl hat trick.  One was literally only up there for 2 seconds. (I somehow pulled off a photo.)  Another managed to fall and cry a bit. And the third was a tiny princess always ready to pose and smile.

It had been overcast most of the day and then finally 20 minutes before the ceremony was supposed to start it really started looking bad.  We all ran outside in hopes of getting this wedding done and keeping everyone dry.

As Lauren was about to walk down the aisle…  The drops started coming.  Totally in stride, her father reaches over, grabs an umbrella and they keep going.  Lauren’s heart was bursting with laughter all the way down the aisle.

I don’t think I’ve seen two people smile and laugh so much during their ceremony.

Alex jumped the gun and got busted for stealing first and then got to kiss her again.  Officially.

On the the party.  Hey look, it’s Angela & Spencer.

This little man’s go-to dance floor move.

I really can’t believe Alex’s mom didn’t make us all buy tickets to the gun show.

That tender moment when you leave a little cake on his face and decide to suck it off in front of everyone.

If you can catch a bouquet while holding a small child, you make the blog.

I loved their last dance all alone.  Just perfect.

BOOM Mug Machine Goodnesss!!!!

Ok guys, let me be straight with you.  Your wedding day was the perfect example of what marriage holds in store for you.

There will be days filled with dancing & laughter.
There will be days when everything just seems perfect.
There will also be days when the storms come.

They always do.

Great marriages are not ones that avoid the storms or ignore them.  They are the ones that look at the rain, grab an umbrella, and march forward with their commitment to one another.

It was an honor to capture the very first storm your two weathered as husband and wife.