You can carefully plan every single moment of your wedding day, but the one variable that no couple can control is the weather.

And believe me, the weather definitely showed up in a big way at Raelyn and Clayton’s beautiful wedding at Elkin’s Grove in late June.  It wasn’t rain, or storms; it was a beautiful and HOT sunny day.   Did I mention that it was really hot?  I just don’t have the words for how impressed I was that Clayton kept his suit on, even though it felt like 120 in the shade.  And Raelyn was equally impressive because she looks like it’s a light 75 degrees in every single photo.  I guess that’s where a photo can be deceiving.  And even with all the heat I’ve gone on and on about, this was simply a wonderful, beautiful, and joyful wedding.  I was incredibly honored to be there, and none of us stopped smiling the entire time.  That hot weather didn’t hold a light to the joy that flowed all through every part of their day.

Raelyn and Clayton are the sweetest couple.  Their love for each other shines through in every decision they make, the way they look at each other, and in the tears that nearly brimmed over Clayton’s eyes as he watched his beautiful Raelyn walk down the aisle straight into their future.  Their big smiles and light steps said it all as they came back down that same aisle as husband  and wife.  We all know that you make a vow to become husband and wife, but it’s renewing that vow every single day that makes a marriage real, and makes it last too.  So my challenge to you, Mr. and Mrs. Blankenship, is that every day, you renew your hearts and find the same love you felt as you promised forever on a beautiful hot day in June, 2024.

Thank you both for asking me to photograph your wedding.  It was a blessing from beginning to end.  I’ve adored you both for years, and you can bet that I’ll ALWAYS be over here cheering you on, and praying that you have the future of your dreams.  I know that you are both tough as nails, and together you are unstoppable.          Love and blessings,   Pat