T & J – I’m still dying over how gorgeous you are in each other’s arms! Your celebration was nothing short of perfect, and with the sweetest family and friends to usher you into this new stage of life as one. We were HONORED to be a part of it. And we are positively loooving these favorite image selects below! XOXO!!

There are no words for the genius that is Thalio Beckham’s hair and makeup artistry. Tina is a vision!

Caparros heels, a Pronovias dress, and programs via Etsy? Yes, please…

Tina and I worked together to create a timeline with a first look! It definitely helped the day flow smoothly.

Jin was SUCH a dress-carrying gentleman. :)

That assistant Kaley? She’s pretty amazing. I’m SO in love with this frame.

And throw in some nice Adirondack style chairs, why don’t you? I couldn’t love this place, or this couple, more.

A happy shout out to this incredibly good-looking wedding party!

T & J – Your taste in friends is impeccable. We had so much fun with you all!

Handsome men in their studly-pink argyle socks. ;)

The ceremony started off with the sweetest flower girls waving their pretty wands!

One of my favorite moments of the day… Tina, crying into her flowers as she walks down the aisle.

Ahhh, they’re MARRIED!!

Such swoon-worthy reception details.

The first dance was a crazy mix of classic dance moves. Soulja Boy included. But it ended in this moment.

Cake by Rustika Café & Bakery. And dang, it was goood.

Time for some bubbly!

And some tear-inducing toasts…

Congratulations all around!! Leave them love. :)

Yesterday I finally redeemed a one-hour massage gifted to me for my birthday. It was heavenly. Minus the parts that hurt like the h-word. But hey, I can deal with a little pain if it means the knots in my back perform a vanishing act! I’d originally thought the therapist would solely focus on my back (which has been funky for four months), but it ended up being a full-fledged body massage. And all I can say is, I’m SO glad I shaved my legs. Because that one time I got a pedicure, that pedicurian (It’s a real word, okay?!) wasn’t so lucky…

So I was laying awake in bed the other night when I realized May 7th had passed by with absolutely no recognition. (Which is strange when you consider my love for celebrating anything and everything.) You see, on May 7, 2008, Dylan held my hand for the first time. We don’t have an official anniversary-of-dating date, so May 7th is how we measure the years gone by. And as of the 7th of this month, we’ve been together for FOUR years. It’s so fun to think back to who we used to be and who we are now, together. I’m so proud to be with my man!

Song of the Week: Shine Into Our Night by Sovereign Grace Music. It’s no secret that the Kaleo worship team knocks my socks off. And particularly so with introducing me to this song. The chord progressions. The lyrics. The harmonies. This song is most certainly a brand new favorite. It draws me closer to Jesus in the sweetest way. And I’m BEGGING you to listen to it. Okay? Okay. :) You can find it on Spotify HERE…

This week’s the week! I’ll be sharing the full post of Tina and Jin’s wedding day this Thursday, and it is sweet, sweet, SWEET. Here’s just one more peek before showing you the whole thang! So come back and see!!

Happy Tuesday!!

Commenter #17, Heidi Frazer!!

Congratulations, Heidi!! I’m so excited for you to have this book on your coffee table. Please shoot an email to alyse@alysefrenchphotography.com to claim your win! Many thanks to those who entered this month. And remember that if you didn’t win this month, there is always next! :)

I’ve always had this vision for my life. I see consistency across the board. I see a girl who reads all sorts of invigorating literature every morning whilst sipping one of those half grass, half horse hay smoothies that’s supposed to be good for you. I see a girl who keeps strict office hours. Who shuts her computer after 5PM. Every day. Whose house is always clean. No, spotless… A girl who’s better at serving her husband and making him dinner more than once every two months. And a girl who loves God. No really – LOVES Him. More than her work. More than her schedule. More than her life itself. Because then? Life would be perfect. And I would be happy.

And then? A few revelations. (1) I don’t own a juicer, and I don’t read books. (2) It’s never been about MY life or MY happiness. (Who said my life was my own?) And (3) as the saying goes… GRACE, not perfection. I MUST. Hold myself to a standard of grace. Not perfection. This doesn’t mean I don’t try with all my guts. This doesn’t mean I don’t work tirelessly to get my priorities in order. It just means I can fall back on the grace of God.

On the perfect and completely satisfying grace of God…

• Each session will last for 30 minutes, and will be held one right after another.
• Time slots will be set for 5:00, 5:30, 6:00, 6:30, 7:00, and 7:30PM.
• There will be a $250 investment due at the time of your scheduled session in check form.
• All sessions will yield 15 high-resolution images on disk for you to print/post at your convenience.

If you’re interested, please send an email to alyse@alysefrenchphotography.com for a list of times and a bit more info. Slots are VERY limited and will go FAST, so let’s chat! AND! If you’re wondering what the location looks like, feel free to peruse one of my very favorite shoots of my brother and his hottie of a girlfriend HERE. :)

I want to make absolutely sure you don’t miss this month’s 1 For Me // 1 For You! It’s pretty sweet if I do say so myself. Long story short, this month we’re giving away a coffee-table-like book that you’ll ACTUALLY want to look at. Over and over again. Entering is also MAD easy. So read THIS post to find out more!! :)

Dylan and I watched The Lion King the other day. It was playing on ABC Family, and I sang every. single. word. I mean, seriously? Can we just talk a minute about the wonder and fabulousness of classic Disney movies? I love them. And it basically breaks my heart that Mufasa isn’t a real lion. He seems like the best dad ever. Also? There is something strangely endearing about Scar and his giggly hyenas. (Oh, but puh-lease don’t hate me…)

We are in major need of a new TV series. Ever since Friday Night Lights and Chuck both ended, we got NOTHIN’. God knows he didn’t care when One Tree Hill left us forever, and he refuses to enjoy Glee by my side. So we need something new! Well, new or old really. And we’re counting on YOU for suggestions! Aaand GO!

Song of the Week: Feel So Close by Calvin Harris. The best part about this song is that the title and artist’s name are so misleading. You’d totally expect some sort of western ballad about cowboys and their horses. But OH MY GAAAWSH. This song makes me dance. It is my number one favorite fist-pump inducing song ever, ever, ever. I’m listening to it as I type. And OH, if you could see me now… Listen to it! Then DANCE… :)

Wanna know a little secret? The reason I’m SO late blogging today is because I’ve been working non-stop on one of the sweetest weddings I’ve ever photographed. Tina and Jin were married this past Sunday and it was absolutely perfect in every way. Here’s a little sneak until their post is scheduled for the blog next week!

Happy Tuesday!

• What is it? It’s simple! If I have one of something that I find fashionable, functional, or just plain fun, I send the winner a duplicate.
• Who can enter? Friends, past/present clients, random readers, etc.! (Please see the not-so-fine print below for full rules and restrictions.)
• How long do I have to enter? You’ll have until next Saturday, May 12th at midnight CST to enter. The winner will be chosen at random using the random number generator at Random.org and announced the next morning, Sunday, May 13th.
• BAM! How do I enter? You must comment (and answer the specific question asked at the end of this post) to enter. It’s easy!! Comments left via Facebook, Twitter or elsewhere will not be taken into consideration.
• But why? Because Vivian is fabulous. And you need her on your coffee table…

Question to enter: Why would you like to win this book? My apologies… Any question of mine will pale in comparison to the depth that is Vivian. :)

Not-so-fine print: Only one entry allowed per person. All contestants must live within the continental United States and must be able to provide a valid mailing address upon winning. I am not responsible for items that are lost, stolen or damaged during shipment. The winner will have 24 hours to contact me and redeem the item or a new winner will be chosen.

Last Friday, Kaley and I had the opportunity to witness Rebekah and Matt’s wedding day at Hotel Derek… To meet so many of their wonderful loved ones.. And to make all sorts of pretty pictures in the process. We are thankful, R & M, for the honor of documenting your new beginning. And we hope you enjoy this sneak peek of our favorites from your day. Have a gelato (or 17) for me while you’re living it up in Italia, will you?? XO!!

All the lovely florals were designed by Tres’Bloom. And the bride’s Lela Rose gown had my jaw on the floor!

Many thanks to these five pretty girls, who were sweet as could be as well as positively breathtaking…

The dapper groom and his fellas.

R & M decided against a first look, but they DID want a few pictures using Matt’s tie as a blindfold. Then I had this crazy idea… WHAT IF I posed Matt so he wouldn’t see his bride, but we could still take advantage of the GORGEOUS light coming through those beautiful windows? To my great surprise, Matt was totally up for it! Yes – ALL of the pre-ceremony bride and groom portraits were taken without Matt seeing Rebekah. :)

See what I mean? This guy has self-control like I’ve never seen before…

This pictures is my favorite from the entire day long. I just love the story it tells. :)

And then it was ceremony time…

MARRIED!!

And now for some shots with a bit more drama. I accepted the challenge of shooting more bride and groom portraits after dark, and am pretty excited about the outcome. Because really? These two are way too beautiful!

A few more favorites…

Cake by Who Made the Cake and yummy cake balls by Norma’s Bakery.

And then they danced the best night of their life away. :)

Congratulations to Rebekah and Matt! Leave them love – and HAPPY FRIDAY!!

So what’s stopping me? I think it’s the concern that no one comes here to get a dose of anything serious. And if you suddenly see posts that DON’T highlight Sully’s latest weight gain (though he’s been on a diet for three months), my infatuation with avocados (I just scored TEN for $10 last night!) or my bi-monthly obsessions with contemporary Christian music from the 90′s (God help us all) – then maybe, just maybe, you’ll be all, “Whaaa?!”

And that’s what’s on my mind this morning. It’s taken all the courage I can muster not to delete this entire post with one fell swoop. But in the end, I know it’ll be worth it. Because this blog contains so much of my heart and soul. There’re just some things that’ve gone missing a little too long. Y’all cool with that?

After a rough day yesterday, I decided to cancel some plans I had last night and simply stuff ice cream into my face, along with Dylan. (Actually, I stuffed a whole avocado in it as an appetizer to the ice-cream main course. You know – to pretend I was making healthy choices or something…) Well, let me tell you, Willie Nelson’s Country Peach Cobbler ice cream by Ben & Jerry’s is the CURE for any tough day. I promise you.

We have this thing we do. Dylan and I… I call it Spiddly-Beat. With capital letters and a hyphen to designate it as officially awesome. It’s basically – no, EXACTLY – like THIS recurring sketch on Saturday Night Live. And it’s the most fun you’ll ever have. Especially when you’re as good at it as me. Or Kristen Wiig. ;)

Song of the Week: Find You on My Knees by Kari Jobe. This song’s resonated with my heart so deeply the past few weeks. I really cannot force myself to stop listening to it. Last night I tweeted about the correlation I’ve found between feeling inadequate and not spending enough time with Jesus. But the good and beautiful news is that He’ll FIND us in the place we’re in. When we feel we have absolutely nothing left to offer. When our makeup’s a day old, the apartment’s a mess, and we realize we just. can’t. do it all. He’s a good and faithful Father. And He’ll never leave us searching. PLEASE listen to THIS song and be encouraged by hope!

Last Friday, Kaley and I shot the ultimate modern wedding bash at Hotel Derek, where I ALSO had a revelation of sorts concerning clients who opt against a first look! There’ll be more to come on that once I post Rebekah and Matt’s full wedding blog. But suffice this picture to explain a bit. Matt didn’t want to see Rebekah before the ceremony, but Rebekah was fine with seeing Matt. Who says you can’t get cute portraits anyway?! :)

Happy Tuesday!!