The Southern Swoop Blog

Morgan & Jake

2012-02-06T21:56:00.000-08:00

Messy desk and bad posture

2012-02-01T12:45:00.000-08:00

Lets not forget the messy hair. Story of my life.

Mary-kate & Jacob

2012-01-29T21:46:00.000-08:00

Mary-Kate literally couldn't stop smiling...Jacob makes her incredibly happy, and you can tell:

xoxo

Brent & Jordan

2012-01-28T22:05:00.000-08:00

First wedding of the year:

Hope you have as much love in your weekend as this wedding had <3

Beauty

2012-01-27T09:43:00.000-08:00

... is in the eye of the beholder

Happy Friday

Concrete Jungle

2012-01-22T23:48:00.000-08:00

Here are our days in the Bumble and bumble University learning some pretty awesome stuff from some of the top stylist's in the country. And some snap shots of our few hours out in the city:

Until next time NY...

we are in...

2012-01-17T17:39:00.000-08:00

Thats right, we're in the big apple. Were here for a couple days hitting up Bumble&Bumble University for work. Were undergoing back to back classes, then back to the work on Saturday. So we're soaking up the city every chance we get.

We are E.X.H.A.U.S.T.E.D.

But in heaven :)

Disneyworld Vacation

2012-01-15T20:36:00.000-08:00

Where do I start? Robbie and I went on vacation with his large family to Orlando Florida. We spent 4 days back and forth to all the Disney parks and 1 day at Sea World. From spending much needed time laughing, to walking endlessly, to eating until we puked, and to even his cousin Derek proposing to his awesome girlfriend... Robbie and I had the best week ever! We celebrated the national championship AND his cousins engagement and the other cousins birthday all in the same week! We just got back into town yesterday and I'm missing it already. We made this little video to remember what some time away with each other can do :)

(Please excuse my husband eating through out this entire video--also, after watching it numerous of times...it just hit me, there is a lot of me in this...I apologize)

Disneyworld 2012 from joanna cuamba on Vimeo.

Music:

Passion Pit- little secrets & dream

Happy ~~Sun~~ ...Monday!

Danny & Haley

2012-01-06T11:28:00.000-08:00

xoxo

Happy New Year!!

2012-01-02T17:48:00.000-08:00

Here is to 2012... may your new year bring you great blessing and opportunity!

What are your 2012 goals????

Bridal hair & make-up inspiration

2011-12-30T23:49:00.000-08:00

Arial is on land...

If I had beautiful natural red curly hair, I would wear my hair like this on my wedding day. Would you?

A real engagement

2011-12-28T18:32:00.000-08:00

Several weeks ago Dustin (one of my husbands close friends) contacted me to tell me he was proposing to his girlfriend, Katie. As I squealed, we talked of a way to do it. He mentioned he wanted me to capture it while it was happening. So I set up a "shoot" with Katie, telling her it was a styled shoot for my salon. We did her hair and make-up and headed out to our location to snap a few "shots of her hair" ...

Ps. Isn't she just gorgeous!?!?

Meanwhile, Dustin was hiding in the trees a few feet away...

Then I kept getting close and closer to where Dustin was, I told Katie to keep her head turned away from me so I could get a few "hair shots" Then when it was time, I asked her to turn around and come towards me...

Her reactions

Dustin leading them in prayer...

He was happy she said yes to say the least :)

Happy girl :)

Congrats guys!! SO happy for you!!

puppy love

2011-12-22T22:37:00.000-08:00

Happy Thursday.

The Sweet Couple

2011-12-14T12:48:00.000-08:00

Happy Wednesday

Bridal hair & make-up inspiration

2011-12-13T09:11:00.000-08:00

Hair: me

Make up: Molly Barksdale

Would any of you do make-up or hair like this for your wedding day? or if you're already married, doing it over again like this? I would love to know :)

Once upon a time...

2011-12-08T08:59:00.000-08:00

There was a beautiful bride...

Hair: Me

Make-up: Molly Barksdale

Hopefully this helps some brides for some hair & Make-up inspiration!

Would you do anything like this for your wedding?

Tomo & Phil | The Wedding

2011-11-29T08:19:00.000-08:00

This wedding was exceptionally beautiful, not only because the wedding was lit beautifully by an overcast rainless sky, and not because an American family and Japanese family came together in unison, but because Tomo & Phil were obviously madly in love. Here are a few shots I grab while second shooting for the wonderful and lovely Kelly Cummings.

The beautiful veil...

Moments before the bride walked down the isle

Enjoy your life together in Japan <3

Maternity|Britney Tanner

2011-11-26T22:26:00.000-08:00

I'm beginning to love these. Just something special about pregnancy. My friend Britney was 5 1/2 months when we took these...yes, she's a tiny little one! but the little nugget was popping out just enough to snap some shots!

Jeremy & Nedra

2011-11-01T08:21:00.000-07:00

Are having a sweet little girl in december...

Nedra makes pregnancy look so beautiful. And also, makes me want to be pregnant for a living.

Can't wait to meet that little bundle of cuteness soon!

Happy first day of November!

Sweet little:

2011-10-31T12:32:00.000-07:00

Little children are the Lords little Gems.

brother & sister

2011-10-24T17:55:00.000-07:00

More sibling love. I love doing these sessions, mainly because I get really lucky and get siblings that love each other. So stinking cute.

Happy Monday :)

Amanda and Andy

2011-10-19T14:32:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Amanda married her sweet Andy last weekend in his beautiful backyard, that is seriously to die for. Its amazing that this is literally nothing but a backyard. The small wedding was decorated beautifully, that no matter where we took a picture, it was perfect. The day couldn't have been any better, the weather was blissful, and the sunlight was warm. Andy and Amanda (and little Ben) Your life together was wonderful before, but now...you have no idea what the Lord has in store for you.

Happy Wednesday :)

Lauren & Cary

2011-10-18T07:41:00.000-07:00

This wedding was a small, quaint gathering of close family and friends in a little white chapel out in the beautiful country side. On that beautiful day Lauren and Cary vowed to keep each other safe and loved for eternity. I was so glad to have met these two, they are the nicest people and so relaxed and laid back! L & C thank you for letting me capture your best memory yet, I say 'yet' because together, you'll make endless amount of them...

Lili & Jane

2011-10-06T07:41:00.000-07:00

Sister's should always be like this.

One of my favorite sessions, these sweet girls were so pleasant to work with. They were so happy and sweet to each other. It made me miss my little sister. Hope this brought you as much smiles as it did to me :)

Happy Thursday friends!

Its Fall!

2011-09-23T08:54:00.000-07:00

And I couldn't be any more excited!!!! Time to bring out those scarves and hats and cute leggings! (well...if you're in Alabama, you might want to wait just a weeee bit longer, its gonna get to 80 degrees today) BUT that wonderful pumpkin spice latte is out and halloween and thanksgiving is right around the corner. Which also means- you gotta get those Christmas cards out of the way. So If you want a nice little styled shoot for the holidays, send me an email and we'll chit chat about what that means. I'm only offering a limited amount of shoots for the fall and winter- things at the salon are about to get crazy, and I love spending time with my husband... So first come, first served :)

Have a lovely start to your weekend friends!

Baby love

2011-09-22T08:25:00.000-07:00

Today, on this beautiful last day of summer, I bring you sweet little:

Hope you had a lovely summer- tomorrow is the first day of fall, I couldn't be any more excited!

Happy Thursday

A lovely day in the park with:

2011-09-21T10:11:00.000-07:00

Can't wait for their beautiful wedding coming up soon :)

Hair: Me

Make-up: Molly Barksdale

last day in black in white

2011-09-15T12:58:00.000-07:00

Overcast beach mornings

2011-09-10T12:03:00.000-07:00

day 1

2011-09-09T20:11:00.000-07:00

Robbie was a little excited to get in

Were out in beautiful Amelia Island enjoying relaxation with a few of our friends. So far- Its been wonderful! The weather is perfect! We'll keep sharing more snippets of our weekend here, but now...I'm off to bed. The sun can be so draining :)

Brrr...

2011-09-06T13:11:00.000-07:00

We've had a pretty rainy weekend, which has brought a nice little cold front... which we all love. Except its also brought flooding and tree's falling everywhere. (were fine mom) The salon is closed due to power being out through out Birmingham, so we're sitting around on our couch, in sweaters eating soup enjoying our chilly day off :)

Happy Tuesday

Springville, Alabama

2011-09-03T18:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Labor day weekend!

Domestic-ated

2011-08-30T11:29:00.000-07:00

Thats right. I cook.

Every once in a while.

Sarah & Caleb

2011-08-22T12:22:00.000-07:00

Sarah is a close friend of mine who deserves nothing but the best, and on August 12...that is what she got. I had a few moments where I could snap a pic or two, these were the last images I got to take before my favorite lens fell face down and broke :/ I guess its time for an upgrade :)

Happy Monday!

Sedona Arizona.

2011-08-22T12:10:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends Robbie and I flew to Phoenix to celebrate our close friends wedding in Sedona, Arizona. We stayed in a little winery lodge isolated in the mountains. We arrived a few days early to see my family and help out with whatever was needed for the wedding. Which was wonderful, because that meant more time with friends.

Taylor

2011-08-16T07:30:00.000-07:00

Just a little preview...

I would give my future baby for these curls. Just kidding. But seriously- I would.

Baby bump

2011-08-07T13:00:00.000-07:00

Beautiful Lindsay has a little miracle growing in her belly...

...and what a beautiful miracle it is.

not so little, little sister

2011-07-21T08:56:00.000-07:00

My little sister (who is 13 if you can believe that) is staying with me for the summer- sadly, she is leaving next week and I couldn't be sadder. (Is that a word?) She is a sweet little soul, with a big calling. She has the heart of an angel and she's the bravest little 13 year old I've ever met. And not to mention she has a sweet style that was better than I had when I was her age. I had what you call "The claw bang" a perm and a bang should never mix.

How To: Messy Bun

2011-07-15T08:39:00.000-07:00

It's been a while and we apologize! Things have gotten little crazy at the salon during this wedding season! Anyways, this how to is one of my favorite things to do- mainly because I'm lazy and I don't like to brush my hair. Let us know if we need to tweak anything!

Here is the outcome on the beautiful Beth!

Happy Friday!!!

a summer wedding

2011-07-13T12:51:00.000-07:00

These two are the sweetest people- with the sweetest little intimate wedding...

Here's to a happy, long, and full of joy life!

Miss Margaret

2011-07-06T13:39:00.000-07:00

Meet our sweet baby girl Margy! People always ask us, "so why a rabbit??" We're not ready for another dog and were not cat people- so husband surprised me with taking me to go get a little rabbit! She is the sweetest thing if you can't tell. Except she's still pretty cautious about us. We got her a few weeks back and she's actually gotten a little bit bigger so I wanted to snap some pictures to remember how cute and adorable she was as a little munchkin!

Especially for times like these, helps me remember not to throw her across the room - this next picture she looks adorable and suspicious at the same time...thats because as this photo was being taken she was also pee peeing. Little Terd.

and then she was happy again.

Happy wednesday!

A bit of our fourth of july weekend

2011-07-05T09:59:00.000-07:00

100 degrees calls for an afternoon in the pool with family

Then the next day we had a little slip N slide action in our backyard

Hope you guys had a great long weekend!

Jaimie & T.j.

2011-06-30T10:28:00.000-07:00

The day started with morning showers so powerful I considered moving my car away from the tree in fear it might blow on top of it. Jaimie came in to the salon eager and excited, nothing was going to hold her back from enjoying her day- not even the severe thunderstorm.

As the day moved on, so did the storm. By the time we got to the church the sun was shinning and the light was beyond beautiful.

Happy Thursday friends :)

Molly & Craig

2011-06-20T12:08:00.000-07:00

"For let him kiss me with his kisses of his mouth, for his lips are more delightful than wine..."

-Song of Solomon 1:2

don't you just want to go to this field and just lay there?

Hair- me

Make up- Jessica Tucker

Little miss caitlin

2011-06-17T12:08:00.000-07:00

I don't have time to say much, but I wanted to post this session really quick...here are some of my favorites from Caitlin's session.

Hair- Me

Make up- Celine Russell

Have a happy Friday! Off to a wedding!

Alana & Justin

2011-06-12T15:58:00.000-07:00

The sweet couple, Alana & Justin were nothing less than that- sweet. And they're beautiful wedding was to die for, every detail.

Walking towards her groom for their "first look"

The bride waiting anxiously to walk down the isle...

May your life together, be blessed infinitely.

Happy Sunday

Kristin & Todd

2011-06-07T10:58:00.000-07:00

These guys were troopers while out in the hot southern humid sun while shooting, Thanks for still looking good while sweating! :)

Happy Tuesday

1 year

2011-06-02T10:26:00.000-07:00

Of pure love and joy and tears and hugs and laughter and lazyness and crazyness and change. Thats what our first year of marriage was filled with.

We have been so busy this year with so many things that we hardly had time to take a little weekend trip to celebrate. I have a lot of sessions and pictures to share, so stay tune friends.

We celebrated by going to a quick beach trip down in Panama city beach, Florida.

Ps. We saw a lot of sharks and sting rays, and they were swimming pretty close to the shore...so be careful, jaws wants to play :)

Hope your first day of summer was wonderful!

sweet baby

2011-05-26T10:26:00.000-07:00

The beauty of being a child is innocence...

...and innocence of a child is priceless.

The best day ...

2011-05-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

...was May 15th. My one year anniversary was on this day, but robbie and I decided to celebrate that a later weekend (more on that later) because I took a little small trip to Phoenix to be present on the day my dad got baptized. Its a day that my family and I have been waiting on for years, thou my family is going through a rough patch, this day gave me hope. Tangible evidence the Lord is working to restore my family. If the pictures are blurry its mainly because I was crying too much to hold it steady :)

My dad is on the right, nervous but excited.

a few simple words before the baptism brought tears to all of us

. . l

My beautiful sister decided to take the dip with my dad too...

what a beautiful blessing.

May 15th was a beautiful blessful and hopeful day that refueled us for the rest of our family journey.

The Lord is good.

A sweet engagement

2011-05-19T16:31:00.000-07:00

He calls her "sweet girl" and gives her piggy back rides. She talks to him in "inside jokes" convo and he returns the answer with another inside joke. They share their meals at restaurant and high five each other at jokes. They are nothing but pure perfection. Brittany is one of my best friends from highschool and so honored to have met Stu, a perfect gentlemen. Brittany and Stu were on their way to New Jersey where they're going to be spending the first 4 years of their life together. They stopped in sweet Birmingham to see us and we couldn't have been happier.

So great to see you Brittany, I love you and wish nothing but pure happiness with your love, Stu. See you in November at the wedding :)

a little visitor

2011-05-10T08:17:00.000-07:00

well, she's not really little... but she sure is lazy.

Cayenne is our dog, but she stays with his parents until we have a good house and backyard for her to poop in. We've missed her so she stayed the weekend with us and she never left this spot.

What a life.

Tornado Relief Shirts

2011-05-06T20:28:00.000-07:00

First of all, not only are these awesome shirts.... they're also a way to help out. Help raise $1,000 to the tornado relief, while looking good in these.

Maggie Crisler is a designer I found through another blog, i found these shirts and couldn't not help myself right then and there to share these with you all. Click the picture to go directly to the link.

Good night!

sigh.

2011-05-06T09:03:00.000-07:00

Hello friends, its friday. Wish I sounded more excited but I'm feeling nothing but sickness today. Stomach is killing me. Wish I could go here for the weekend.

Hope you have a better weekend :)

Girls just wanna have fun

2011-05-05T09:17:00.000-07:00

Vicky Lynn being celebrated by her friends on her birthday.

Happy Thursday :)

Lovebirds.

2011-05-04T11:05:00.000-07:00

April 16 was a beautiful day. Meet Katherine and her new husband Jonathan.

Hope you had an amazing time on your honeymoon lovebirds :)

Disaster.

2011-04-28T11:38:00.000-07:00

We can't thank our Lord enough for keep us save. We were unharmed and our houses hardly untouched. But the rest of the state was not as fortunate. Family from back home, we are good and safe, we are healthy and alive. Thank you so much for the prayers and phone calls. Please keep Tuscaloossa, Birmingham, Cullman and every other city in between in your prayers. As of right now, they are still pulling people out of their flatten out homes and still counting deaths. Please pray for that number to not exceed. We're currently around 200 dead in Alabama. Pray for our friends and family and our friends families that lost so much last night, including their lives.

The tornado that came from mississippi into tuscaloossa, came to downtown birmingham...we were located in trussville, about 25-30 miles out of downtown. The tornado was headed to Trussville but lost its power once it got on top of us. Then unfortunately gained back after us. We are so blessed and lucky.

Unbelievable. Longest tracked tornado in u.s history. North western Georgia got hit too, so keep them in thoughts as well.

Ps. For those in Birmingham that are looking for a place to drop of donations, Morgan Ashley studio salon is being served as a donation center today. Clothes, towels, bottle waters, blankets, ect. The address is:

7350 Cahaba Valley Rd. Birmingham, AL 35242

205.995.2480

a big happy family

2011-04-17T19:20:00.000-07:00

Meet the Rodriguez family

This crew is unbelievably fun :)

pretty hair

2011-04-12T07:54:00.000-07:00

I had the honor to help out a local designer, Ashley Riddle with hair for her new fall line's photoshoot.

Happy Tuesday!

Beautiful

2011-04-10T19:49:00.000-07:00

What makes a person beautiful? Is it their pretty face or their caring hearts? Aimara, a sweet young girl (with an amazing ambition) got together with me to shoot the young women of Birmingham. To show that beauty comes in all shapes, sizes and colors. To showcase the beauty of young ladies that are ready to change the world and to celebrate God's creations.

Here are some of the pictures from the shoot, there were so many to choose from! and here are some of the answers the girls gave after asking them what beauty means to them, and what makes them feel beautiful.

"To me beauty means knowing that you are one in a million and there's no one like you."

"Knowing that God made me different from others and gave me the unique features that I have."

"Having a beautiful personality and a warming heart, I think makes someone beautiful"

"to me beauty means letting the world know that you love yourself and that you can go out into the world with no doubts about yourself . you know who you are and no one can stop your shine ."

"I think my swag and that certain air i have about myself makes me beautiful . i am an outgoing person and i dont care what people think of me . if i can go out in a t-shirt and baggy shorts , i am still beautiful starting from the inside out"

"i feel that the confidence and the way a person carries themself makes them beautiful"

I see a new generation stepping up to take ownership of their rightly owned beauty, and it's about time.

Donnie & Mallory

2011-04-06T12:25:00.000-07:00

Congratulations Donnie & Mallory! Donnie is our cousin that just married the beautiful Mallory, the bride and groom had a beautiful wedding photographed by the talented Sunny Jones, I just took some of my snapshots here, but to see the real pictures visit her blog!

Special moments with the Groom and mom

Time to party!

Sweet older man :)

umm yes please. Thats mine.

Donnie is Robbie's cousin, so robbie was pretty excited for them to get married....can't you tell? He was dropping it like it was hot!

We wish you nothing but the best Donnie and Mal!

a sweet engagement

2011-04-04T16:00:00.000-07:00

Molly is a sweet friend of mine, she's a stylist with me at Morgan Ashley. She's been dating Craig for a few years now. At the salon we've been teasing Molly about when she was getting engaged.... Little did she know Craig has been planning it for months. Craig contacted us at the salon to let us know he wanted to propose to Molly soon. He wanted all of her friends and family there. So us girls at the salon, decided to lie to Molly and tell her we were doing "staff pictures" at Mt Laurel on April the 2nd. We told her that we needed to dress up and fix ourselves for the "pictures", that we were all driving up to Mt Laurel right after work because it was a beautiful location. On April the 2nd, we all woke up excited for the big day. Molly woke up excited about her new dress she bought for "pictures". While we were at the salon finishing up and getting ready to leave, Craig and her family and closest friends were waiting for us to bring herr...Here is Craig waiting...nervous as ever with her new ring...

Everyone else waiting anxiously!

Meanwhile, the girls and I arrive at Mt Laurel and I tell them we have to walk for a little bit to the location I found, "it's perfect!" I said.

Molly walking, not knowing yet whats to come....

and I bring them to the location, where she sees her family and friends! waiting for her while hiding Craig right behind them

Mollys great reaction!

The crowed opens and there stands Craig...where he proposes

and she said YES!

AMAZING day it was. Congratulations Molly & Craig!!

A Southern Shower

2011-03-29T12:29:00.000-07:00

Katherine is the sweetest girl I've met here in the south. She is also surrounded by the sweetest people, loving and encouraging her on her upcoming marriage in April. Which I have the honor to shoot. This was such a sweet little shower on a wonderful Sunday afternoon...

This was Katherine's mother's veil, that she used on her wedding day. Isn't it dreamy and vintage?

These are the wonderful women in Katherine's life that created this wonderful day for her.

Such a pleasure to have taken your shower pictures, Katherine, and look forward to April 16th!

Happy Tuesday :)

Baby Colt

2011-03-22T08:41:00.000-07:00

This is for you Perry, for a memory. To remember how sweet and little your little baby was, since he might be your last one, he'll be your baby forever. For those days when you want to pull your hair out or hide for a couple minutes in a closet, remember how sweet your babies can be. How little and vulnerable they are. What a wonderful blessing that first day was, learning what to love about him. His little blonde hair, his little small toes, his little blue eyes. His little 9lbs and 7oz body...

NO ONE should look this fantastic hours after giving birth!

Welcome to the world baby Colt

my beautiful guests

2011-03-17T07:51:00.000-07:00

This past week has been so great, having my mom and sister here! It was nice to have that familiar smell in the morning of eggs being made while the coffee Folgers, which my mom has used for YEARS was on again. It was nice to see my sister brush her hair and complain it didn't look good afterwards. It was nice to smell my mom's same perfume she's used for years. It was nice to have my mom just rest. Give her a break from our family problems, love on her tangibly while she was here.

It was also nice, to have them love on me again.

They left this morning and my house still has a faint smell of Folgers coffee and eggs. So whenever I feel homesick, i'll pop in a cup of coffee and i'll make myself an egg, and sip on it while remembering my family. Knowing they'll be ok.

Peace

2011-03-10T13:42:00.000-08:00

Is such a wonderful blessing.

a baby shower

2011-03-07T09:27:00.000-08:00

My friend Cana and I recently did a baby shower. you may remember Perry from her maternity shoot a few weeks back. Cana asked me to help her with decorating and creating a baby shower that had a little bit of a unique flair to it. We started about 2 months out, meeting at coffee shops going through ideas, then we ended up in her mom's garage which if i didn't know better, it would be martha stuarts studio. A room filled with fabric, sewing machines, paper, yarn, needles, boxes full of materials, and a nice little background soundtrack to work with.

It all started with her invitation idea. "Celebrate the peanut!" So the peanut ideas started.

The creators at Dream Cakes in downtown Homewood, are beyond geniuses.

For the party favors we included the theme right in, with using mason jars as little planters. Soil and little different packages of seeds...from bright blue flowers to lettuce, all different with a little note that encouraged you to grow your little "peanut"

all the little added decorations were good lucky finds at different thrift shops

We placed pictures of Perry from a baby, to her recent maternity shoot

Thank you Cana and Perrry for letting me be a part of this perfect baby shower! I had so much fun decorating and digging through our brains for ideas. Lets do it again shall we?

He said to them...

2011-02-21T14:59:00.000-08:00

...“Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹⁵ Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” ¹⁶ And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them."

Mark 10:13-16 .

Childlike Love.

Warm light.

2011-02-15T11:58:00.000-08:00

It's just one of those days. Where I wish I could just sit in the warm sun and just be. To think, to process, and pray.

Happy Valentines day

2011-02-14T14:47:00.000-08:00

Robbie and I celebrated valentine's this past weekend, today he is working and going to school and today is my day off. So I'm spending it with my beautiful Cayenne. Just a nice little lazy day for us girls...

Enjoying the warm sun in our own way

Happy Valentines day friends :)

Dear Mom

2011-02-10T12:05:00.000-08:00

You are the strongest lady I know. You are so beautiful. You are so selfless. You are a wonderful mother, full of nurturing. You are an amazing cook. You are my nurse when I'm sick. You braided my hair when i was young. You held my hand on roller coasters. You overcame sickness. You open the jelly jars for me. You cooked me eggs every morning. You sewed my clothes. You made my dream dress. You payed for a million things that I didn't need. You SACRIFICED so much for me, and that alone is enough to bring an overwhelming tug to my heart. You are a woman. You are an amazing blessing. You are such a joy to be around with. You raised us so well. You taught me so much. You BELIEVED in me.

You are priceless. You are worthy of the love of our King. You deserve to have your door open for. You deserve to be spoiled. You deserve love. You deserve life. You deserve happiness. For this is all you gave us. Let us, give it back to you. You are loved, so loved.

Happy birthday mami, I love you so so much.

Enjoying...

2011-02-10T10:52:00.000-08:00

...the snow with friends.

Driving to work this morning through Birmingham, was absolutely beautiful. The hills full of white trees and muted skies. Roof tops full of snow, and cars topped with ice. A little fog this morning added drama to the sunrise. It was a beautiful white morning indeed. Happy Thursday friends :)

Lets Dance!

2011-02-09T11:50:00.000-08:00

We're getting snow today!

Well, at least they're saying we are. If we do, I'm going sledding again.

Blessings

2011-02-08T13:57:00.000-08:00

Come in all shapes and forms <3

Its Saturday!

2011-02-05T07:33:00.000-08:00

Its time to Rejoice!

My weekends start on saturday, so I'm so excited for my couple days off :) What are you guys doing this weekend? Its snow flurrying a little bit outside, wish me luck...I have a little photo session with a pregnant mommy this afternoon, so hope its not too cold! Enjoy your weekend friends!

Special Moments

2011-02-03T20:48:00.000-08:00

My wedding day was special for more reasons than one. One obvious, I was getting married. But, I was getting married hundreds of miles away from home; here in Alabama. Far for my bridesmaids and far for my family and friends. I was touched by the simple thought that they would do anything it took to fly here, no matter what the expense. So, when they actually got here and stood by me at my wedding and watched from their seat...I was speechless.

Here are all of my close friends, flying in from Arizona and Colorado. Here are all of Robbie's close friends, all loyal friends since wee childhood. The fact that they were all there made my heart so tender, they worked SO hard on this wedding and I can never ever thank them enough.

Believe it or not, this is the first family picture of all of us. The first. Everybody here except my sister in law(she was like 8 months pregnant back in AZ ready to pop!) and my sweet grandma, that passed and is with the Lord a few months before. My Grandpa and aunt and uncle came in from a different country to see me marry. I see them once every couple years, so this was such a beautiful treat. I miss them so much.

Seeing my Granpa Felix and Robbies grandma Sandy walk down the isle, two different cultures coming together, two different languages mixing and uniting into one family. Both their spouses have passed, so having them there healthy was SUCH a blessing.

Another reason why my wedding day was so emotional was because the farewell was really a farewell. I couldn't just wave and hug my family for that night, the next morning they were leaving back to PHX and knowing that I wasn't going to see my uncle aunt and grandfather next was so hard. Same with my mom and dad and brothers and my little sister. UGH so emotional! They mean so much to. This hug was ended with tears. Just so you know.

But the beauty as to why my family was here was to see me marry a wonderful man. Here is robbie, getting ready to receive me!

and here am I, so nervous! I remember this picture being taken. Our wonderful Photographers were getting ready to take me to the site where I was going to see Robbie for the first time!

I also remember this one. Finally being in his arms placed peace right in my heart. This was really our only time alone together the whole day. I wouldn't trade this for anything! Seeing robbie before the wedding ceremony let us just be and enjoy each other.

My sweet dad walking me down...

Now this, this was one of my special moments. My dad was a Marine for over 20 years, being hard on the outside but somewhat tender on the inside. This was one of the few occasions in life my dad was pure vulnerable.

Here I am realizing the sureal dream I thought I was having was actually true.

Our first dance, another little tiny moment with just us. Finally married. No more plane tickets every month flying from PHX to Birmingham or BHM to Phoenix. No more long weeks/months away from each other. This was the time I realized, "yup...we're good. Really Good"

I was feeling a little homesick, can you tell? I'm so thankful I had the photographers I had. The Sloan photographer photographed every little special moment and I can NEVER thank them enough. Times like tonight, where I can look back and have a little bit of my family and special day back :) Thank you.

Caves Cove in Gatlinburg

2011-02-01T10:45:00.000-08:00

We pulled over while driving through Caves Cove and found a precious peaceful horse.

We made a friend to come back to visit :)

Gatlinburg Tennessee

2011-01-31T07:42:00.000-08:00

This past weekend Robbie, myself and his parents drove up to Gatlinburg Tennessee. We spent the weekend hiking and exploring, and enjoying the most beautiful weather we've felt all year.

He was really happy about hiking :)

Downtown Birmingham has style

2011-01-28T13:53:00.000-08:00

Happy weekend!

Classic criminal

2011-01-27T19:47:00.000-08:00

When i was little, my parents set me out to play the Violin. I played for years. I practiced in my parents living room annoying the heck out of my dad while he was trying to watch his sports. I didn't mind it at all when I was in the confinement of my own home, but walking to school while carrying my case in front of all the other classmates...not so much. I was made fun of for being a dweeb for playing the violin. So what does one do to protect my middle school reputation? "accidentally drop your violin on the hard concrete floor" My parents didn't buy me another one because they thought it would be feeding into my irresponsibleness, is that a word? I took that as a success.

Looking back, I regret breaking my violin. I regret stopping my lessons. Every time I hear a violin or any string instrument, I cringe in remorse. I wish I had this talent, talent that takes years to build.

Check this video out. If this doesn't scream talent, I don't know what does. This is a perfect example of how classical instruments can be cool. So if you're currently playing a classical instrument, be encouraged. You're way cool and I envy the heck out of you.

Have a great night :)

How To: Blow Dry Your Fringe

2011-01-25T14:38:00.000-08:00

Greetings fellow readers! So sorry for the last 2 weeks of no How To's! To make up for the lack of them, I bring you this week: How to blow dry your own Fringe! Which by the way is your "bang" but to stay classy and to teach you new things, I'm letting you know it's actually called, your Fringe. So when you read it, you know what it refers to.

Here are the steps: (Know that this can be done when you get out of the shower and your hair is wet, or if its dry and need to volumize your bang in the morning really quick, or just a quick touch up.)

This is Amanda, our wonderful shampoo tech/front desk helper/cleaner/does everything else around here employee! See what a difference a simple touch up to the fringe can make?

Let us know if any of our How To's are helping you out, we're starting to take request's too, So if you have one; leave one in our comment box below.

Happy Tuesday!

Someone Help Me.

2011-01-20T14:19:00.000-08:00

Today is such a blah kind of day. Its gloomy and I'm wearing 2 scarfs. This is the 3rd day I'm wearing my leggings (STOP JUDING ME YOU DO IT TOO) and on my defense, I have 2 pairs I switch back and forth. Moving on. While wearing 2 scarfs, leggings, boots, 3,000 layers of jackets and a 120 dollar heat bill, I'M STILL COLD! Not trying to complain. Just super excited about spring.

I'm also on this rampage of saying the phrase "I NEED THIS ROBBIE" "No, Robbie...I really REALLY NEED this wallet" "Like If I don't have this wallet, life wouldn't make sense" "By getting this wallet, my life would be a lot more organized" "ROBBIE GET ME THIS WALLET"

I mean, I got a lot more reasons as to why I need this wallet and purse but i'll save you the read.

Maybe this should go on my new years resolution list of not to do.

Happy Thursday Friends :)

Update

2011-01-19T12:43:00.000-08:00

Hey Friends, how was your long weekend? Ours was full of relaxation and sleeping. Nothing too exciting. But all day yesterday was back to work and boy...did I work. We've been meaning to update our salon website and finally, we did yesterday...and still kinda doing some work here and there. Check it out!

(Click HERE!)

Have a happy wednesday :)

2011-01-14T09:27:00.000-08:00

Remember to Love and appreciate your Love today...

Have a beautiful Friday friends

My Friend

2011-01-12T14:06:00.000-08:00

Is cool. Basically because she is super talented and was such a trooper when we did this shoot. It was about 28 degrees, and she was wearing a thin layer of leggings.

She can pull off the "Im cold but I'm going to pretend I'm not" look

If you need any paper designing or any designing at all, this is your girl. Cana, our friend is a very gifted graphic designer.

Mackenzie & Madison

2011-01-11T12:00:00.000-08:00

Meet Mackenzie and Madison. Sisters.

These girls are beautiful inside and out

I'll leave you with this bundle of cuteness

Hope you guys are staying warm out there!

work was closed again due to icy morning roads, so I'm still in my pj's from sunday.

DON'T HATE.

Snowed/Iced In

2011-01-10T16:14:00.000-08:00

NO WORK OR SCHOOL FOR US!!!!

Thats right ladies and gentlemen, Alabama shut down today because of our winter storm! Looks like the roads are closing for tomorrow too since they're pretty icy still...

Since we're grown and there is hardly any kids in the family, we don't have any toys to play with when it comes to rare occasions like this. So what do you do when you want to play and don't have the right toys???

Use your back and get your sister-in-law to pull you around the ice.

Happy snow/iced in day :)

I do

2011-01-07T10:48:00.000-08:00

I need to put this on my mirror.

(Via blog)

How To: Runway Curl

2011-01-06T13:26:00.000-08:00

Hope everyone had a wonderful New Years! I'm sure everyone is back to their normal routine working and doing daily life! We are! So for this weeks How To we start the New Year with The Runway Curl.

(We like to call this the "Victoria Secret Curl" Just a little different version to spice up your curling technique)

Products we used: I'm sure you recognize our Bumble & Bumble Spray De Mode Hairspray, works great on curls. To the right, we're introducing our Bumble&Bumble Brilliantine- Its a creme like consistency that adds shine and is great with separating curls.

The steps:

Our beautiful Rebecca

Have a Happy Thursday!

Individuality

2011-01-04T11:27:00.000-08:00

is what these girls have.

Be inspired.

New Years Eve

2010-12-31T10:51:00.000-08:00

Winter Baby

2010-12-30T15:15:00.000-08:00

How To: Fish Tail Braiding

2010-12-29T11:34:00.000-08:00

Hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas, and now were getting ready for the New Year! Can you believe it, 2011 is right around the corner! Robbie and I are still trying to figure out what were doing. Any plans for you?

With parties and get togethers, theres always a reason to dress up and do a new hair do! So this week we bing you: Fish Tail Braiding! This is something that I LOVED doing when I had long hair. Its the perfect braid that is spiced up and can be worn so many different ways. You can wear it casually, or with a fun cocktail dress, your choice! AND you girls with curly hair, you CAN do this too :)

For this one, all you need is a little bit of hairspray and a little bit of back combing (teasing) and a curling iron (If desired)

Our wonderful Beth (who is a stylist here as well) let us use her long locks, which turned out beautiful!

(I just re-read it...PLEASE let me know if the directions do not make sense. I tried to explain it as best as I could but...It's a lot easier to do and I'm not really good at explaining myself...as you can tell. So If you have any questions, let me know and i'll try to clarify as much as I can! Its really simple and has such a huge effect, so please, let me know :)