Graydon & Heather: One Year Strong

"Everyone says that the first year of marriage is supposed to be hard, but that's just not true," said Heather as they were getting our 'Year Strong' Photoshoot at the Biltmore for her's and Graydon's ONE YEAR anniversary.

The story begins here....I got an e-mail a few weeks ago from Heather's husband Graydon, that went like this:

Daniel and Candice,
"This is Graydon Tomlinson from ..... I was hoping that I could book a session as a gift to my wife for our 1 year anniversary. My wife found out about your blog and photography and has been following you there. She is a huge fan of yours, and I think she would absolutely love the chance to have you capture the end of our first year as a married couple! Our anniversary is .... and we will be going to the Biltmore Estate Inn to celebrate. Thanks for your time and I look forward to hearing from you!"

SO SWEET! As we swapped e-mails, we planned to meet at the Biltmore Estate at the South Terrace and surprise Heather there at 4:30 sharp just in time for sunset. I had never met either of them before...so I just sat under the vineyard next to the house chatting with my hubby on the phone (so wishing he could have joined me on the most GORGEOUS fall day). I texted Graydon to let him know I was in 'pocket' waiting to surprise her.

They walk around the corner from the house and he walked right up to me and introduced himself. Heather stood there with such confusion, surprise and just held her mouth open for a good minute.

Now ladies...you know you've got a good man when you say this, "I only mentioned it one time...and you remembered...I can't believe you remembered!" Great job Graydon! I pray that all of your years to come will continue to be as special as this one!

A Celebration!

Congrats to my WONDERFUL parents! Today they are celebrating 30 years of marriage!! I am so proud that my parents have loved each other, respected each other and stuck to it all of these years. My mother has taught me how to love a man...while my father has taught me how to be treated and loved. They have shown me what a loving relationship looks like. They've taught me what depending on Jesus looks like during the best of times and some of the darkest of times. I couldn't be more proud of my parents. I love them more than myself. **Pictures of them to come tonight**

Also...Daniel and I are so looking forward to going to the Free To Succeed photographers conference with David Jay tonight. Our new friend and talented photographer Cheyenne Schultz will be coming along as well. We can't wait to learn, soak it in and meet the people we admire in the photography realm. We are sad that we won't get to hear Jasmine* ...but it still is proving to be a fantastic asset for our photography!

One last thing...as we, at Elevation, are going through the Daniel fast...we are reading a chapter of John each day. We are on day 16...thus on John 16. There are a couple of things that stood out to me, that I would be amiss if I did not share. The first...I think its crazy that John 16:21-22 talk about giving birth to a child and how it's painful during, but you can get past that because of the joy of the child being born. Why is that crazy, because our Connections Pastor, Larry Brey, and his lovely wife Janet are having their baby girl, Daelyn today!!

On a serious note... John 16:33 it reads, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

Audio Blog, Anniversary Recap & March Badness

SO many things to talk about today…but I’m going to make it short. First things first….I had the honor of being a part of Pastor Furtick’s audio blog post for today. Vision Flows from the Top Down. Go check it out.
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Daniel and I had a fabulous time last night. Daniel of course spoiled me with flowers, poetry and a meal that only God could have created for himself. It was that good. We ate at The Capital Grille (featured in Shallow Hal). Our waiter Chris was fantastic…and even gave us a dessert in honor of our anniversary (crème Brule cheesecake with fresh raspberries/blackberries/strawberries and fruit sauce). The restaurant did a really nice job of making our anniversary special by decorating our table with a few anniversary style things. It was so nice, and we hope to send people there in the future. Our lobster and filet mignon was to die for. Ahhh…what a great night in Uptown, thank you Daniel for planning such a special night for us.

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Don’t forget to visit our March Badness pictures for your viewing pleasure.

Engaged...one year ago.

Hands 2 bw
Originally uploaded by Whitley

Daniel and I got engaged one year ago today. It' s nuts how quickly time has passed by. We have almost been married for 9 MONTHS!!! Wow. I remember it like it was yesterday. I have been truly blessed with the best man in the world for me. Ahhh. I'm so blessed. Below is the poem he wrote me for part of our engagement...he's been writing me poems before and ever since. I've got a good man! (ps. Click on the poem to enlarge and read)

I get married today.

So can you actually believe that I've stolen a moment away? I woke up at 6:00am (after getting to sleep after 1 am sometime. It's been great...I can't believe how quickly and how smoothly everything has gone by. Daniel and I have been relaxed and non-stressed this whole time...thanks to our friends and our family.....

So....at 2pm Daniel and I say, 'I Do' and then we are off....to our honeymoon destination point one!

Thanks to EVERYONE who is helping to make our day such a special one.