sparkles, sparks + happiness

1. think: SPARKLE

literally, as in:

and figuratively,
throughout Ben and Tracey's wedding day:

above: former SilverBox bride Jena Gaines of Shear Madness is Tracey's stylist

Tracey sparkled coming down the aisle at the amazing and historic First Christian Church:

and beamed on the way back up the aisle as well:

This next one is in the "just married" series.

What happiness!~

below: and oh the sparkle on Tracey's face when she first saw her bouquet.
Rose from My Secret Garden continues to amaze + impress!!


WHAT's MORE:
Tracey + Ben's wedding had WONDERFUL little people! How cute is this next image!!

But look how many "little people" there were in all:

[pictured above: Ben's parents with their children and grandkids.
Imagine how fun Christmas must be at the Johnson house!!]

Though this next image is NOT a Johnson grandbaby, look how lovely Nora looks - even when being fed chocalate drizzled fruit off a toothpick. :)

What a wonderful sparkle-filled day!
For a slideshow of Ben and Tracey's wedding day highlights, be sure to click here and enjoy

2. think: SPARKS

[Rachael Sparks that is, who'll soon be marrying the fabulously fun Andy Miller]

Oh those smiles say it all!


Sure, this early evening stuff is fun...

and especially charming in black-and-white,


BUT...

voila! -- look at the sparkle NOW:




What a fun couple! Andy + Rachael and the stories they tell...oh, it's a laugh-a-minute!
Annika and I had a GREAT EVENING with these two.
The carnival pictures were taken at the Callaway County Fair in Fulton -- and this last one, a field across the way:
(an exiting car's headlights came at just the right time)

Special note on Rachael and Andy's slideshow.
No, there's no Valerie connection -- t's just that I'm LOVING this song. It's the song of the summer, I think. The good time soundtrack; kind of like funnel cakes at county fairs. It's just happy stuff. In fact, this song just delights me ~ makes me sing aloud and stand up and twirl and well....
being with Rachael and Andy has much the same effect. Click, spin + enjoy!

3. think HAPPINESS

Look what we gave my mom for her 6oth birthday!

She'd mentioned the blue bike she'd had as a kid and Avery & I knew then and there what the perfect gift for this milestone birthday might be.

Mom was COMPLETELY surprised...
She & Dad met up with us at the Rocheport General Store and we'd arrived early to park her new birthday bike right outside.

Would the word here be GLEE?



Mom jumped on and just took off down the street
as happy as well....
a kid with a new bike!!

Walt's Bike Shop here in Columbia carries Electra bikes...vintage coaster + cruisers.
We added the basket on our own (and how cute is it?!) and stuck the gerbera daisies in for a bit of perky fun...
We'd found Avery's bike (above, left) at Walt's last year:

and
BONUS! (#1)
my little brother and his girlfriend caught up with us outside the store:

(The bike had been a surprise and we knew we'd need a plan to help Mom get it home.
When you have a kid brother who has a truck, life is good.)


and BONUS #2!!!

Though we can't compete with the Johnson's in sheer size, multi-generational family shots become real family treasures. So here's my mom as we went to dinner that evening to celebrate her 60th. Happy stuff indeed!
Hoping your world is all asparkle, too!
~ amy enderle