October, 2011 continued... Mars Hill Bible School Senior Photographer | Florence, AL Senior Photographer | Madison, AL Styled Session Photographer | Madison, AL Children's Photographer | Huntsville, AL Event Photographer

So, here we go.  The rest of October was busy.  First off I had a gorgeous Senior from Florence's Mars Hill Bible School come up to Huntsville for her casual photos.  We played for about 4 hours and had a great time and her photos are STUNNING.

NATALIE RIKARD

MARS HILL BIBLE SCHOOL SENIOR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then I had a fun styled shoot with four of the sweetest  and cutest kids dressed in vintage styled clothing.  This concept came about when two of kids Mom contacted me about my Whoville Christmas Mini Sessions.  I noticed that she had some painted furniture on her Facebook page and I asked her if she did it and she said she does and she sells it.  So, after a few days of thinking about it, I asked her if she would be interested in doing some shots of her kids with an old dresser and she LOVED the idea so she actually painted a dresser in a beautiful golden yellow color for the shoot.  Here are the results of our collaboration:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Were you able to handle all of this adorableness?  I'm sure it was tough.  :o)

Another thing that I do in October is shooting the Army Aviation Association of American Ball.  I've done this for three years and very much enjoy being a part of such a big event.  Huntsville is the headquarters for Army Aviation and this even pulls in 4 Star Generals and other higher ups.  Here are a few photos from the night.

ARMY AVIATION ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA BALL

 

October, 2011 Family Vacation at Great Wolf Lodge

So, here comes October.  WOW!!  October is my absolute FAVORITE month of the year.  It always has been but since the birth of my daughter it forever will be.  On top of her annual birthday EXTRAVAGANZA, it's a busy month in so many other ways.  Fall Break lands in October; therefore, we usually take a family vacation not to mention fall festivities and people on top of people wanting  portraits made during the beautiful colors of fall.

This year we had planned a backyard movie party for my daughter's 9th birthday but in lieu of a much needed "lesson" we canceled her party (postponed is more like it because I now plan to have it as an end of school party - but we won't tell her that yet).  As disappointing as this was for HER, it was more disappointing to ME.  I put a lot into planning her parties.  I want my one and only child to grow up knowing that she was loved and that we celebrate every year we have her.  I tend to end each party with the pledge to make it smaller next year but that never happens.  I get an idea and it spirals into extravaganza before I can stop myself.   BUT, this year the absence of the party actually came as a relief in some ways too.  October was already packed with punch and here is a sampling.

VACATION AT GREAT WOLFE LODGE, MASON, OH

We began talking about a vacation during Fall Break but hadn't decided fully on where to go.  We LOVE Savannah, GA and Tybee Island and had considered going there but were there twice in 2009 so really wanted to go somewhere different.  We threw around the idea of going to Charleston, SC because the one time we went I wasn't feeling well and discovered I had a severe UTI when we got back home so it would be nice to go back and feel more like exploring.  But, that drive would take a full day there and a full day back leaving us only a couple of actual days there so we decided to look further.  We had just been to the mountains back in the spring so we didn't want to do Gatlinburg.  I remembered someone mentioned Great Wolf Lodge at a Girl Scout outing and decided to check it out online.  The closest one was near Cincinatti, OH, which was the same drive it would take us to get to Savannah so it was doable and Alanna would love the pools and slides.  I needed a resting vacation anyway and this would allow Alanna entertainment while I could sit in a chair and watch and relax.  So, that's where we went.  Cincinatti is full of things to do and we do plan to return and explore more but here is a peak into our fall vacation...

During our vacation I took these photos of Alanna in her pretty fall outfit so I'll start with these even though they were taken on our last day.   Isn't she pretty?

 

 

 

Lobby

Alanna seeing the water park for the first time.  We didn't tell her about this before we arrived.

Our room was huge and it was the smallest room they have.  We were very comfortable here.

This seating area was nice and the couch pulled out into a double bed so this room would easily sleep 6 people.

Alanna in the lazy river.

Grady even joined in the lazy river.

Alanna and Grady in the far back left corner of the wave pool.

The slides were fun.

 

Each night there is an animatronics show and a bedtime story.  Everyone gathers in the lobby with their PJs on.

 

 

On the 2nd day we went out exploring around the area and found this cute little garage made from a barn.

 

We had lunch at this cute little cafe and sat outside because the weather was so nice.

 

On the third day we went to the Sauerkraut Festival.  It was so crowded that you couldn't even get to the booths so we left and took a different path back toward Cincinatti.

We stopped at Blue Ash Chili which was a Guy Fieri stop on Diner, Drive-Ins and Dives.  Alanna and I really enjoyed the chili cheese dogs and I enjoyed the fried jalapenos.  Alanna said, "They are so small but so BIG."

 

Since my Daddy was a sign painter, I had to stop in the Sign Museum.  Unfortunately, we got there an hour before they were suppose to close but the man who run it was leaving early and we didn't get to tour it.  This was the only room we saw.  We did chat with him for a moment and hope to make it back there some day.

 

 

Everywhere we went we ended up showing up just before closing.  We went to the museum center, which was inside of a huge train terminal.  We were able to make it through one of the 4 museums there and it would be worth going back for the others.  This place was beautiful and was on a hill overlooking the city scape.

 

 

 

 

On the way home the last day we stopped at the boyhood home of Abraham Lincoln

Such a small cabin and it was actually a larger cabin that his birthplace, which you will see next.

 

This is the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln.  It is inside of a building to protect it and you're not allowed to go inside of it but you can see inside and it is very tiny.

The doors going inside the building where the cabin is located.

 

Tobacco hanging in a barn in Kentucky.

So, there you have it, highlights from our vacation.   I will finish posting about my work related endeavors tomorrow, it's time to get my girlie in bed for her first day back to school after the holiday.