melissa + guy ~ oh, it is love . . . plus a few thoughts on childhood, neighborhood, motherhood

melissa + guy . . . i am still walking on clouds after their wedding . . . what do a treehouse, sushi, sidewalk chalk and pinatas all have in common? ALL were part of the joyous, spirited, INSPIRED neighborhood bash that was melissa + guy's wedding. their wedding got me thinking about so many BIG things . . . like childhood, neighborhood, motherhood.

on celebrating childhood . . . the child you were, the child that lives inside you, and the children that surround you . . . how's THAT for a wedding theme?! melissa grew up playing in this treehouse where the ceremony was held . . .

. . . remember this poem by Shel Silverstein?

A Tree House

A tree house, a free house,
A secret you and me house,
A high up in the leafy branches
Cozy as can be house.

A street house, a neat house,
Be sure and wipe your feet house
Is not my kind of house at all~
Let's go live in a tree house.





~ the rehearsal dinner the night before included sidewalk chalk with drawings that covered guy's folks' driveway


~and melissa remembers birthday parties with pinatas . . . so bring on the ice cream cone, the shark and the butterfly




~ and heck, bouquet and garter tosses are really just big kid games . . . check out the woman aiming for the knee-level tackle!



on neighborhood . . . sometimes you gotta travel across continents and oceans to find that guy, and sometimes he's right around the corner . . . melissa + guy grew up in (practically) the same neighborhood, and so, HOW PERFECT that their wedding was at melissa's childhood home.

and i love the challenge of a new location . . . check this one out: while melissa and guy's guests started in on the sushi, we crossed the cul-de-sac so the two could exhale after the ceremony. amy and i have found that couples so appreciate having even just a few brief, quiet moments to themselves after the ceremony to connect AND (ok, our not-so-ulterior motive) to get these shots:




on motherhood . . . i know both melissa's and guy's mothers through Rock Bridge High School where they (and my husband, David) have worked. take a look at these pictures . . . i'm betting you'll be able to tell why they are both educators TO THE CORE and why i have deep admiration for these two women. here's melissa's mom:


(the picture below was made by Jennifer Brown who assisted that day. i love this picture, Jennifer!)




and here's guy's mom, who organized a delightful Friday night picnic that included a game of hokey pokey! :')




and speaking of motherhood, here's guy's grandmother with a face full of love:

and other faces filled with love and joy . . . (amy and I are often asked by brides: "now, i know you take a photojournalistic approach, but do you do group shots?" and to that we say: "Yes! Absolutely! and we work on bringing out the life and personality of the people in those shots.")

~ melissa just before the wedding

~melissa + guy, loving, and living to the FULLEST, every moment



there are many many more pictures to see, so click here for melissa + guy's wedding slideshow. guy said during the wedding, "we got a good vibe going here." he was so right, and I gotta tell you, I'm still feelin' that vibe!

~kim