...except for the rain. :(

Hellooooo, beautiful!

Times three. How much do I love how the bridesmaids' bouquets pops off those gorgeous eggplant gowns?? ALOT.

Yep, Dianna, I agree...bald guys are sexy.

Especially when they're sweet to their mothers.

I love it when brides and their moms start laughing during pictures. I like to imagine that they're releasing the tension that can sometimes build up between even the closest moms and daughters during wedding planning. Or maybe my jokes are just that funny.

OK, everybody: remember this photo. There's going to be a test later and it will be important.

"Daddy, hold my flowers."

Lyn at Fresh Affairs is the creative genius behind all the flowers. Orange, pink, purple & green: so modern for a Fall wedding. Love, love, L-O-V-E.

I like to stay with the bride right up until the walk down the aisle, so Frank gets to cover all the action leading up to the ceremony. Like grandparents laughing...

and ring bearers being generally adorable...

and teenage greeters being teenagers.

Dianna gives her mom a hug before she leaves to be seated. Moments like this are why I like to stay with the bride.

Single-but-not-for-long girl walking.  TO GET MARRIED!

Frank and Margaret, you're adorable.

This was our second wedding of the year at Edenton Street United Methodist Church. Remember Kendall and Jeremy's April wedding? Same rules applied here -- photography inside the sanctuary only from the balcony, so this is the best way to get a shot of the bride and her dad before heading down the aisle...and I love it.

It never fails that some of my favorite shots are those taken right after the ceremony where everybody's hugging, laughing and congratulating the newly-married couple.

 If you're stuck inside due to rain, Edenton Street is a good place to be stuck.

Than it was on to the party bus, headed for Woody's at City Market, one of Dianna & Todd's favorite places. Naturally, the champagne flowed.

Sweet Life does artsy-fartsy!

The reception was held in the Hanover Ballroom at the Raleigh Sheraton. I have to say how much I appreciate the staff here -- everyone was so nice and took good care of us. Definitely check them out if you're looking for a reception site. I was floored by how beautiful this room looked and what a huge difference the uplighting made. If I could, I would stand on a chair and yell, "If you want an easy way to make your reception stand out, use uplighting!" Love the flowers in the room too.

The cake, by Sweet Julia's, inspired by detail from the invitations and programs. So pretty!

Remember Dianna & Todd's engagement session and the motorcycle? Check out the cake topper!

The party begins with the introduction of the bride and groom -- look at the great color from the uplighting in the ballroom (and yes, I'm going to beat you over the head with it all through this post.)

Dianna and Todd are so wonderful together. Photographing them is such a pleasure.

Ladies, I've said it before and I'll say it again: always marry the one who makes you laugh. Todd makes Dianna laugh.

The wedding party gets into the First Dance.

Both sets of parents as Frank welcomes everyone to the reception.

Chocolate-covered strawberries...yum.

This ring-bearer thought so, too.

Dianna and her dad surprised us all by starting off their first dance to "Baby Got Back."

"I like big butts and I can not lie..."

Todd's turn with his mom, Barb. Todd, you're just awesome.

Dianna's sister Heather and Todd's best man Justin toast the couple.

This was a very special moment. Heather's husband David is serving in Iraq. Heather arranged a special message from him via video link. Here's David:

While he was speaking, he complimented Dianna and someone in the room yelled, "Does she have a sister?" David didn't miss a beat and responded, "Yes, but she's taken!"

Time to cut that gorgeous cake.

Then it was time for the party to really get underway. And what a party! Even the little ones got into the dancing with great enthusiasm.

Frank and Margaret burnin' it up.

Bill and Barb, bringing it in tight. (Notice the room lighting...just sayin'.)

Now this was something I can honestly say I've never seen. One thing that was clear: both families were very close, enjoyed themselves immensely and weren't afraid to show it. Apparently, there's a tradition among Todd's family to do this at every wedding: to the tune of "Rawhide," everyone gets on a chair and "rides" it around the room as if they were on a horse. Bizarre, hilarious and great to shoot. Dianna's first time on a "horse."

Everyone was having so much fun, thanks in large part to the skills of DJ Jason from Island Sound.

I love this shot of Dianna and Heather.

And Todd with his niece, Miranda.

Hmmm...wondering which song is playing in this shot? Could it be...YMCA?

Time for the bouquet toss.

The DJ Jason said we would keep repeating the garter toss until a single guy actually made an effort to catch it. If the garter landed on the floor, Todd had to do it over. We went through the process three times before one of the guys manned up and reached for the garter. But first Todd had to get it off.

Oy...such enthusiasm.

Remember the eighth photo from the top? Well, here's that move again...

And again...plus many other photos featuring "the move" that I didn't have the space to post. Guys, maybe it's time to find a new move?

You know it's been a good night when the ring bearer is so tired he can sleep on three chairs with a raucus party going on all around him!

Last photo of the night (for us anyway...I think the party rocked on long after we made our exit.)

What a great way to cap off a beautiful wedding. I have to say I've never laughed as hard as I did at this reception. We have the best job in the world!

Dianna and Todd, it was so much fun to be your wedding photographers. We wish you years and years full of love and laughter and we know you'll be doing "the move" at your children's weddings, too!

And one of mine:

I can't think of a better way to close out an amazing 2009 wedding season (hello, Christmas!) than sharing the day with these two lovebirds and one of nicest, most laid-back and FUN wedding parties we've had the pleasure to work with. I had to include one of everybody.

Michelle and Frank, thank you -- we wish you a lifetime full of love and happiness! (And the food was so good -- thank you for feeding us the "real stuff.")

Have fun in Fiji (how jealous are we?!?)

When I first met with Kendall, she told me that when the sales lady at the gown boutique brought out this dress, she was completely unimpressed...

until she put it on.

I think she made the right choice!

Reading a letter from her soon-to-be husband, Jeremy.

Jeremy is the brother of a former Sweet Life Bride, Mariah (who remains to this day one of my favorite people on the planet.)

Rick Ward covered this wedding with me since Frank was still recovering from surgery on his patellar tendon (happy to say that he's completely better now!). Since I didn't take this shot of Jeremy and his best man, Jay, I can't say for sure, but I'm guessing there's a story there and that maybe it has to do with football??

The groomsmen...too cool for school.

Edenton Street is a lovely old church in downtown Raleigh. Wedding photogs around here classify it as "hard-core" -- meaning, very strict rules about photography during the ceremony and don't even THINK about breaking a single one of them. The church coordinator was lovely to work with and we were sure to let her know we were not there to be a distraction, but to cover the wedding in a way that would make our clients happy. Once Kendall and her dad started down the aisle, those doors closed and I retreated to the balcony where Rick had things well under control. Since there was no way to get a shot of Kendall from the front as she made her way down the aisle, I had the two of them turn around and give me a grin before setting off.

Love this shot of Rick's. He waited until just the right moment when Kendall and her dad stepped into a pool of blue-tinged light from one of the stained glass windows.

Kendall and Jeremy: married!!!

Beautiful flowers by Kelly Odom.

The light was just right when we went outside for shots of the wedding party after finishing up the family formals inside.

What a fun group! I love informal group shots. I knew we had the classic stuff taken care of, so we just relaxed and had fun outside.

Love that sweet light!

Soon it was time to make the short and sweet trip to the North Carolina Museum of History for the reception. Best man Jay arranged some first-class transportation from Raleigh Rickshaw.  One of the greatest things about having two dedicated photographers to cover your wedding is how it increases your coverage: Rick walked on ahead as I was finishing up with Kendall and Jeremy to just the right spot while I followed behind. Rick's shot is on the left; mine is on the right.

Loved the beautiful white cascading flowers on the cake and the candles on the grand staircase.

Kendall and Jeremy are fortunate to have a close circle of family and friends, including two of my favorite people, Mariah and Robert. Frank and I shot their wedding in November 2007. They are just so adorable! One of the things I love best about my job is getting to know the couples we work with and adding them to our circle of friends.

Time to cut the cake!

Thanks to DJ Steve Stowe with Bunn DJ Company for providing the tunes to raise the roof off the History Museum. Jeremy's grandmother lead the charge to the dance floor.

I love this sequence of Jeremy removing Kendall's garter!

Success!

All too soon, it was time for the last dance.

A quiet moment on the staircase before their grand departure, sparkler-style.

Kendall and Jeremy, thanks so much for allowing Sweet Life to share your wedding day! We wish you a future full of happiness and adventure!