dk photographic

A wedding guest

This morning on facebook, I found this wonderful message from my cousin, Jodi.

And yes...  she's a favorite.  She called me Smokin' Fine....  DUH!!!  That TOTALLY makes her a fave!  Tee hee.  I just love me some Jo-deena!  She's very funny!!!  Every time my daughter laughs with her nose all crinkled up, I see Jodi's happy face.  That whole gene pool thing is so strange but it's so cool to see parts of my favorite people in my kids.

If you've read this blog for any period of time, you're probably aware of how much I love my family.  My cousins mean the world to me!!!  They are more than my family, they are my friends.  I would choose these people to be my family even if God didn't give them to me.  Next weekend, Jodi's little bro and my cousin Jeff is getting married.  You might remember their engagement session.

But 7/16/11 is the day and I have been looking forward to this for a long time.  Here's the thing....  I'm a guest!  It's funny.  When I tell people I'm a guest and not photographing the wedding, they ask if it bothers me or hurts my feelings.  Not at all!  I'm so flattered to document people's weddings---family and friends included.  It's an honor but it's also an honor to be a wedding guest.  And being a guest is a much rarer thing for me.  I think I've been a guest only three times in the last five years.  And one of those times, I was a guest for the last 30 minutes after I finished photographing someone else's wedding.  It wasn't enough time but it was a fantastic half hour.  :)

So I cannot tell you how EXCITED I am to be a guest.  I usually just get to watch everyone else have cocktails and dance but next weekend...  it's ON!  I will be in full guest mode!  I am going to eat a piece of cake, have a cocktail and dance slowly with my handsome hubby.  I am SO looking forward to hanging out with all my family.  There is no doubt that Jodi, Bri, Nicole, Jeri and I will dance (badly in my case) to "We are Family".  It's a tradition.  I'll try to get a photo of our motley crew to share with you all.

Jeff and Bri...   THANK YOU!  You gave me a great gift by letting me be a guest and I am so excited and thankful!  Love you both so much and you have all my BEST WISHES!!!!  In nine short days, my family expands by one FAB cousin.  Can't wait!