Happy Friday! Can’t believe Friday is already here… the weeks just fly! Although I am excited for wedding season to start.. .I am loving the time to work on the business and behind the scenes stuff… b/c that is just as exciting to me.  :)

Speaking of business… some things to come on the blog next week…. The awesome marriage book that I am reading and have to share with you, another room from the Pittsburgh house tour, perhaps another recipe, and some pics of the new displays that we will have hanging as of tomorrow! I am so excited. I have been totally obsessed with the tracking b/c I can not wait to hang up some new client displays!  On top of that…. there are a few new projects in the works that I am hoping to share news of in the coming months!

And, I know I mentioned on FB that my new website should be launching soon…Well, I really hope that is the case…. It has been such an incredibly long road. Some folks have told me that that is typical in working with designers….I don’t know…. I think a year and a half is pretty awful, but I CAN”T WAIT! It has been way, way too long….

On a brighter note, I wanted to share some images of my beautiful sister in law! These are actually from August…when she came in town for Ainsley’s birthday party…. shortly before she and I moved to Pittsburgh (Josh was already there). The day she was getting ready to leave we decided to go on a super mini photo shoot… and when I say mini I mean, about 10 minutes, if that. We loaded the car, ready to drop her off at the airport…. drove down a random road on the way to the airport…. jumped out of the car when I spotted some pretty light…. and then I put Ainsley in the Baby Bjorn… and we had a few minutes of fun!

Allison lives out in LA…. She used to live in NYC and worked at Laura Geller while doing freelance makeup on the side (like MTV Music Awards & Rachel Ray makeovers….yup, she is pretty awesome!)….. Then she moved to Redding, California and went to Bethel for a few years, and is now in LA… probably for a long time. We miss her lots… but California stole her heart, and I can’t blame her. She is amazing! Check out her website!

Ps… single guys… She is an Ah-mazing woman….incredibly gorgeous…. and she just happens to be single.

Ok… so here goes our 10 minutes…. We just did a nice little series…

Love you Allison!

m.e.

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I just wanted to give a little shout out and congrats to one of my couples Kristi and Jason! A photo from their wedding was in the latest issue of Baltimore Bride… Just because!

So excited when my awesome clients get their photos published! It is exciting for us of course… but how cool is it for them!?!? So much better! If I were  a bride and I was in a magazine.. I would be totally stoked!

Want to see their awesome wedding at the Grand Lodge? Click here.

Happy Thursday!

m.e.

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I know I missed a few days on my blogging. I have been lost in the world of wedding albums, new samples/displays, chasing a 1 1/2 year old… and being a good wife (at least trying)…

A book that I am reading, which I plan to share a little blog post about has challenged me to be a better wife by…. putting my husband at the top of my priority list. Probably sounds silly…. but on a day to day basis, it is really easy to take care of Ainsley…. take care of my clients/business…. and then give my hubby my leftovers (which are generally sparse)…. Saying that out loud actually sounds really terrible…

This author basically says, that if you make your man a priority, he will slay dragons for you. Sexy, huh? Well, I am finding that to be true! For the past several weeks, I have tried to make my husband my priority of the day… which has mostly revolved around food. Making him dinner each night, iced coffee in am… and packing him lunches….. and as silly as it might sound… the last few weeks of our marriage  have been totally amazing! All because I took some time to put him first and let him know how much I love him and appreciate his hard work… Simple, yet amazing. It might seem like a no brainer to you…. but it has been very easy for me to slowly let other things become my priority…. but enough about that! I will share the life changing (yes,  I said life changing) book with you in another post this week. So you’ll have to come back to read about it…

This post is actually to share one of the awesome recipes that I have discovered on my new…trying.to.be.a.better.wife.adventure.

Blueberry Muffins…. b/c everyone loves them….

And this recipe is Paleo! What’s Paleo?

I got this recipe at Wholesome Home: http://thewholesomehome.com/?p=803

And I made a few adjustments….

Here is what you need:

3 Eggs

3 T melted coconut oil

3 T raw honey

1/8 t almond extract

1/4 t sea salt

1/4 C coconut flour

1/4 t baking powder

1/2 C fresh blueberries

Preheat the oven to 400. Melt the coconut oil. Blend all ingredients except for the blueberries on high speed until smooth. Add blueberries. Pour the batter into muffin tins. Bake for 16ish minutes. Voila! Paleo Blueberry muffins!

Here are my changes/additions:

*I added cinnamon to the  mixture… probably about a teaspoon? Didn’t measure… just kind of put it in there

*I added double the blueberries.. b/c blueberries are amazing and a family favorite!

*I sprinkled unsweetened coconut flakes on the top for the prettiness factor

So here you go…  Paleo Blueberry Muffins.

m.e.

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I am so at a loss for words at what to post. Not because I don’t have any words, but mostly because I am emotionally drained…. There are actually so many thoughts running through my heart/mind that I couldn’t even begin to share them… and you most likely wouldn’t even want to hear them.  :)

I’ll keep this brief… and by brief, I am hoping to keep it to a paragraph-ish.

If you follow the blog, you might know that I am a Penn State Alumni… a VERY Proud Penn State Alumni. You can read a little bit here about my post in the midst of the recent mess at PSU. I still stand behind JoePa, and will support him… He has touched my life and SO MANY lives… and he truly made Penn State what it is today. He is soooo much more than football… and I would highly, highly encourage you to watch the memorial service that was held. He is an amazing man and he has done more good in his lifetime than you or I will ever do. There is so much more on my heart, but I am not here to provoke arguments, etc. All I know, is that Joe Paterno is a legend… that legends never die… that he inspired THOUSANDS…. and he knew that there was a greater purpose and calling in life. Some say that he died of a broken heart… I believe it…

Soo….I couldn’t not head to Penn State to say goodbye to JoePa. Was chatting with a great friend on Tuesday about going up to Penn State…. we talked about leaving super early on Wed am to make the last public viewing from 8am-12… and so at about 4pm on Tuesday we decided we should just go up that night… So, 3 hours later, Ainsley and I were packed and in the car and on our way to PSU. I am so incredibly thankful that we went…. It was truly amazing. So I wanted to share some pics from our trip up.

I will say…  at the same time that it was so amazing that I could take Ainsley there to see Penn State and to be there for such an amazing event… it was also very hard b/c the photographer in me wanted to document everything…. and capture all of the events and emotion on campus… but I couldn’t. I could barely even change my lenses…. I was either shooting over her head while she rode in the Bjorn… or I had the camera around my neck and was holding her hand as she toddled around….  I really wrestled with this…because I wanted to take all of these amazing pictures…. and I didn’t/couldn’t. But I will share what I was able to capture….

On to the adventure after my not-so-much-a-paragraph-ish-paragraph…..

We got to PSU around 10pm… and I HAD to go to the JoePa statue at the stadium… So Ainsley and I headed over there… and I was greeted by this cute face when I opened the car door to get her all bundled up! A Penn Stater at heart. She was so excited!!

Amazing…. I could have spent HOURS here…. HOURS…. It was just amazing… but I had a sweet little girl that I had to keep warm and it was waaaay past her bedtime.

This picture is in honor of actually using my degree! That is the Visual Arts building behind me…. where I spent many hours… and nights….

SBS (Student Book Store)

Heading towards Beaver Stadium for the processional…. Here’s the sign at the BJC

Beaver Stadium…..

Everyone lining up along the street for the processional…

Keeping Ainsley occupied as we waited for the processional to begin…

Adore her.

This is totally amazing. There was a rainbow straight down the street… right over the chapel where JoePa’s funeral was… This was right before the processional began. It was super faint….. but so cool….

One last stop before Ainsley and I headed home… the Nittany Lion Shrine for A’s first (of many!!) pic there! She just kept looking at him… and she made the lion sound! ha ha

WThank you JoePa. You inspire us… and We truly Are, because You Were.

And below is a slideshow of more of our day.. and please, please take some time to watch the memorial. I promise that your heart will be touched.

Slideshow: http://meaghanelliott.myshowit.com/paterno_

We Are…

m.e.

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I am excited to share my first official Pittsburgh Engagement Session! Yay!

Lindsey and Matt are engaged and are getting married this coming August…. and… I CAN’T WAIT! Totally love them and am so glad to be working with them. Their ceremony is at Shadyside Presbyterian Church and the Reception is at Soldiers and Sailors.

Lindsey was recommended to me by one of my high school friends (thank you Sommer!)… who does my hair, and also Lindsey’s mom’s hair…. You should check her out if you are in the Erie area… She owns SalonB.

And it turns out that Lindsey just happens to be from my home town and went to my high school…. and we both went to Penn State… heck we even took dance lessons at the same studio growing up. Small world… Now Matt….. I just met, but it is no secret why these 2 are perfect for each other. They are so cute together… and I had so much fun… even if we FROZE our butts off!

They wanted to do some pics in Market Square… specifically at night when it was all lit up. So we did! We started late afternoon to catch some of the daylight and then shot into the early evening…

LOVE that he gets this laugh out of her! It’s the best!!!

We went into this cute restaurant called NOLA on the Square. Looked amazing… Lindsey said it’s awesome… so Josh and I must go there! Loved watching them hang out and have a drink… So, so cute! I felt like I was watching some guy pick up a chic at a bar…

Seriously… how cute are they?!?!

I may or may not have convinced them to go Ice Skating at PPG Place….

They were adorable! So, so fun! And they weren’t too bad on skates either… from what I heard it has been quite a long time since they had gone ice skating.

Most of the time girls kick their heel… for pictures sake… but really this is just a reflex that Lindsey must have.  I think she kicked her heel every time that Matt kissed her. Every time.

A little dancing in the street…. Keep in mind, it was about 21 degrees outside, and Lindsey  is wearing high heels in the ice/snow with NO SOCKS!!!

We headed over to the Pennsylvanian for a few quick photos at the end…. She just loves the lit up building at night. Who doesn’t?? That place is Beautiful!!!

So sweet….

Thank you Lindsey and Matt for an awesome, awesome session!

m.e.

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If you have been following the blog for awhile, you might remember Monica and Josh’s Christmas wedding in 2010.  Here is a link to their wedding blog post.

Monica worked on so many amazing details…. and everything looked beautiful! So glad that all of her hard work paid off and that her attention to detail was showcased. Congratulations Monica and Josh on your wedding publication in the current issue of Virginia Brides! I really like that Virginia Brides really shares a lot about the bride and groom. Often times there is more focus on the photos… and I like that this is the opposite! It is a really nice article about Monica and Josh… and all that went into their wedding planning and beyond…

Here are a few wedding details for you all…

Ceremony/Reception Site/Catering: Belmont Country Club

Invitations: The Dandelion Patch

Flowers: The Flower Gallery of Manassas

Music: Kirkabee Deejays

Cake: Amphora Bakery

Favors: Kate Aspen

And now her feature!

Congratulations Monica and Josh on an awesome feature!!

m.e.

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So, last week, I shared my heart about a new series that I want to post on….. and so this week I wanted to share an awesome conference with you!

Josh and I went a few years ago… and by a few I mean 5. ha ha… Time goes by too fast. We loved it, and set a goal to make sure that we went to a conference a year… how many more conferences do you think we have gone to? Go ahead… guess.

a big, fat 0!!

Isn’t that awful! Goals gone bad…

Anyways…. We really loved it. They hold them all over the country… and I think we’ll try to go again soon. It is biblically based, but if that is something that makes you uncomfortable, just know that it isn’t pushed on you. The speakers just share from a biblical foundation, and it is awesome, real, and so practical.

Here is a link…

P.S…. We have a connection with this really awesome couple, and we can get you an amazing rate. And I mean Ah-mazing.

And just because a post isn’t a post without a picture….

AAn oldie, but goodie…. I mean who doesn’t want this kind of passion to stay in their relationship?  It definitely takes work to keep it there… that’s for sure.

So, if you want to go to the conference… for real, it is amazing, and please, please email me…. b/c I can make sure that you get an amazing, amazing, amazing, super cheep, almost free rate!

Now go smooch your man! (or lady)  :)

m.e.

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Hey brides! Not sure if you have heard about Aisle Style or not… but it is coming up shortly, and it is an event that you don’t want to miss!

It is put on by Baltimore Magazine/Baltimore Bride, and there are some awesome, awesome vendors there for you to check out… And it is full of wedding day inspiration… So go to meet some great people and get some great ideas! There are wedding dresses… makeup artists….

On top of that…. it is also sponsored by Charm City Cakes! Yup, you know who I am talking about….  Duff… Mary Alice, etc… Well, Mary Alice will be there to answer questions. Just to refresh your memory…. one of our past weddings…

And….(yes there is more) there are actually 2 events this year. One on January 29th at the Grey Rock Mansion (on of my FAVORITE places to shoot)… The second is on March 25th at Tabrizi’s! Go to one… or go to both! Tickets are just $10 for each event (if you buy now…$15 at the door), or $15 for both. Click here to buy your tickets now.

I am sad that I won’t be there this year…. since we don’t live there anymore. I had such a great time shooting it for Baltimore Magazine last year….

Here is just a teeny snipped of the event!

Sample tablescapes…

Just going from memory…I know that this tablescape was put together by Kate Beck Events & Crimson and Clover Floral Design.

This tablescape below was created by Bradshaw Styling, Carla David Design, &  Wicked Willow.

Honeymoon Inspiration…. I am sure any bride would be happy to walk into a room like this!!

Betsy Robinson’s had a lot of dresses to look at…. and there were a few ladies walking around modeling them as well….

Amazing music…. adds to the atmosphere….

Last year the special guest was Katie Martin from Elegance and Simplicity…

Here is a little slideshow with some more pics of the event! Be sure to check it out!!

http://meaghanelliott.myshowit.com/aisle_style_2011

Happy Planning Brides!!!

m.e.

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You may or may not know what eating Paleo is…. and I will be sure to share some more info with you about it over time. We haven’t always eaten this way but slowly transitioned to this new way of eating and are loving it. We aren’t 100% all of the time, and you’ll find us “cheating” the most on the weekends, but here is the short version of how we started eating this way, and then a paleo recipe for you to try!

We met at a gym in Baltimore… We started doing kettlebells…. We got into Crossfit…. Lots of crossfitters eat Paleo…. did some reading, and decided it was the way to go! We feel the best we’ve ever felt and we are pretty much the strongest we’ve ever been.

So, with that said, here is a pic of the Paleo Lasagna that I made one evening….  Love that the vegetables make it colorful!

And a close up….

And now for the recipe, which I got from Everyday Paleo. Awesome recipe book and blog!  Check it out!

I made a few changes… but here you go!

1 red onion (I used a sweet onion)

4 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 lb ground beef (grass fed if possible!)

1lb mild italian sausage

2 tablespoons dried  oregano

1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1  (14 1/2 ounce) canned tomatoes, juiced drained (I used fresh tomatoes, lots of them)

1 (6 ounce) can tomato sauce (I skipped this b/c I just read this article)

5 zucchinis, thinly sliced long way

1 cup sliced black olives (skipped these)

*I added roasted red peppers as well (make sure there isn’t any sugar) as well as diced yellow squash

1. Preheat the oven to 350

2. Saute the onions and garlic in olive oil for 3 minutes

3. Add ground beef, sausage, and brown

4. Season the meat with the dry ingredients, add tomatoes & tomato paste, mix well

5. Layer zucchini in 9×11 baking dish, then add meat mixture, and top with black olives, then layer zucchini, and them meat again…

6. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes, let it sit for 10 and then serve!

Happy Thursday!

m.e.

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I actually just shared their wedding with you, but never shared their engagement session…no particular reason, just lots of travel and the busyness of the holidays… So….better late than never right? This engagement session is near and dear to my heart. Most of you probably don’t know that I am actually a huge golfer….well….was a huge golfer. Played division 2… Was offered a full ride and then transferred to PSU to pursue photography. . I love playing golf but not as my job….  Haven’t played much lately, especially since having a kid, but will hopefully get back into it soon!

Anyways…..all of the golf talk because we started Kathleen and Zach’s engagement session at Fox Hollow Golf Course… It was a blast! Kathleen even let me hit a few balls…and I couldn’t resist.

They changed and we took a few more at the golf course.

Love that Kathleen giggles… A LOT. They are so cute together!!!

And Kathleen being the good sport that she is…. trekked across the field in heels for this one…. and on top of that it was actually really, really cold!!! So in a fancy sleeveless dress and in heels she went!

And then her prince charming carried her back out when we were done. It was incredibly cute!

then we headed to Harbor East to catch a few in the city…  We caught the amazing early evening light. The next few are some of my favorites.

And a beautiful sunset!

Thanks Kathleen and Zach!!! Have LOVED working with you!!!

m.e.

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