nina + patrick | on the bluffs! ~ rocheport, missouri

creative couples rock ~ this one LITERALLY!

patrick (aka Power Pop Pat from KOPN) married love of his life nina ("9-ah") of Apples + Cats Media ("music promotion with moxie!") the co-owner of Emergency Umbrella Records.

this wedding was so many firsts for me!

my first ever MONDAY wedding . . . ("my extended family is all Canadian, they'd be traveling for days anyway" nina explained way back when we she and i were first getting to know each other)

first CINCO DE MAYO wedding (again, in nina's words:)

"We are kind of doing Cinco De Mayo Light ... with little Mexican touches ... Sangria and Dos Equis ... etc. No Sombreros or burritos!!"

the red was popping-AMAZING with the lush green of the well-watered missouri fields seen in every direction from the Les Bourgeois' Blufftop.

and oh-la-la that lovely LOVELY afternoon sun just outside the School House B+B doors.

Les Bourgeouis is as beautiful as anyplace anywhere to say i-do, but you would be a silly, silly goose to not take advantage of School House bridal suite for your "getting-ready" chapter. it's the PERFECT room . . .

make-up mirrors, hooks for your dress, snacks, comfy furniture, squeeky clean yet charming and lovely, light filled AND you've got THIS right outside:

this was also my first wedding to work with the OUTSTANDING stephanie snokfe of simply elegant wedding + event planning. oh it was beautiful event!! AND first time to ever work with the SUGAR LOFT (i'm a sucker for a fun business name even before being blown away by the replication on the cake on nina's dress . . . whoa!)

these lovely red roses, luscious ferns AND the gazebo to boot were all provided by My Secret Garden. breathtaking!

but wait, more firsts, more firsts!:

nina's something borrowed: earrings from her mom. nina's morning-of-wedding conundrum: yikes, these are for PIERCED ears. nina's rocking solution (to appreciate this first, you've gotta see the visuals!)

LOVED my first time in Hollywood Rebels Tattoo shop!

AND

this was the first wedding i've documented with a professional photojournalist among wedding guests . . . 

nina's uncle, jim farrell, [Canada's Canwest News Service], talks about the Taliban with NPR's michelle norris (all things considered) from his perspective of being embedded with canadian troops in afghanistan * click HERE to hear what I mean*

During the wedding, even walking down the aisle and while being a "reader", jim farrell had a camera (though a video camera) the whole time. LOVE that! here's a smattering:

first 80's prom dance party theme

(citing (again, i just can't help myself!) nina's vision from an early e-mail: We are going to start classy and have classical guitar for the ceremony, and a jazz trio for dinner ... and we want to end everything with an 80's dance party ala Shattered in the Basement level of Les Bourgeois' Blufftop Bistro!) see what i mean by "rocking!" and what says 80's prom more than a photo-station under a balloon archway? - yep, this was our first PHOTOBOOTH WEDDING....take a look at the slideshow...and watch till the very end to get the full flavor :)

if it's not clear by now...well i was soo "out-cooled" by this crowd but oh do i adore that nina + patrick had me there . . . and as a special note (ok, plea) to the incredible women who wore red and stood by nina's side ~ pick-me, pick-me!!!

sidenote: soooo, i'm around a lot of couples. and crazy as sounds, i can generally walk into a crowded coffee shop and figure out who's getting married with a quick scan if the both members of couples are there and i'm thinking there are some weddings in the near future. i'd (with camera! no strap needed, jim!!!) climb any mountain to document your (yes, i'm being presumptuous on so many levels....but um, your upcoming) wedding days.

not wanting the fun to end!

~amy

PS, nearly forgot:

first red bridal jacket (LOVIN it!)

first kentucky derby hat....it's the real deal nina's mom is wearing...she her being oh-so-cute in that hat via slideshow