Showering Sara

SPRING IS HERE!!!
Officially, and hypothetically, that is... and this past weekend the REALITY of life in central Pennsylvania was even pretty SPRING-Y!  Finally!  Which is just one of the reasons that it was such a busy and special weekend...

As you may or may not know, I had a birthday on Friday.  Usually I am quite excited about birthdays.  About all holidays, really :)  But this year was a "BIG" (according to "THEM") birthday so I was a little apprehensive about it and all the surrounding hoopla...  Turning *30* was never on my list of Fun Things I'm Looking Forward to Doing but LUCKILY...
 My sweet family and friends, as always, made my day special and now that it's passed I realize it wasn't such a "BIG" deal after all - of course!! :)

Anyway, what is the point of this posting, you may be wondering?

WELL ~

My weekend was filled with all kinds of fun:  The First Day of Spring, a visit with my sister and brother-in-law (SEE PREVIOUS POST!), a delicious dinner at a darling Italian restaurant I'd never been to before, birthday gifts and cards of all kinds, AND (not least of all!) sharing in the *CELEBRATION* of a certain Bride-to-Be named Sara!
 I work with Sara's mom, Brenda, at Penn State, which is how I got asked to come be the photographer at this lovely First Day of Spring Bridal Shower!  But Sara and I have more than just her mom in common - we were actually born in the same year ... 1980!  Which means that I'm not the only one who's celebrating a "BIG" birthday this year...! :)

So in honor of Sara's impending nuptials *AND* of our "BIG" 30th birthdays this year... I have selected *30* photos from Sara's shower to share with you on the Blog!  Many more than usual, I know, but hey ... It was a special weekend for all of us!

THANKS for inviting me to the shower Brenda... I just love seeing Brides being celebrated by their family and friends!  ENJOY!!!

BALLOONS = FUN!

Getting set up...

The GORGEOUS flowers ~ courtesy of the Aunt of the Bride!

Here comes the Bride...!!!

THE CANDY ~ Pennsylvania K-I-S-S-E-S and handmade mints by Brenda! :)

Sara & Brenda

Bride & Mom-of-the-Bride!

These three lovely ladies are SISTERS!

(The sister in the middle is the Grandmother of the Bride!)

WHAT A CUTIE!!! :)

~~~It's party time!~~~

Assorted Bridal-Themed Games

The Littlest Guests :)

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Beautiful Guests!

IT'S PRESENT TIME!!!

Sara is apparently a *GREAT* cook and she got so much fun kitchen stuff at her shower!

(Look at that sparkly engagement ring ~ so pretty!!)

INTRODUCING: THE GROOM!!!

The lucky guy stopped by at the end of the shower to help His Lovely Bride pack up all their LOOT!

Saying their goodbyes ~

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Congratulations Sara & Brian!

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As Shakespeare said, "Now join your hands; and with your hands, your hearts..."

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HAPPY WEDDING!!!

newlyweds!

Last week J and I were lucky enough to have two very special visitors ... visitors you might remember from an earlier WEDDING post on this very Blog!  My sister Amy and her NEW GROOM (well, new as of 5 months ago, but that's still pretty new!!) Kevin were here for a quick visit to the Keystone State and we were so glad to have them!

Below, you will see their cuteness (and newlyweddedness!) highlighted in a few favorite photos from our tour of Penn State's pretty pretty campus last Friday. 

Thanks for visiting you two... we would love you even if you WEREN'T *super* *cute* *adorable* models... although luckily for us all, you are! ;-)

Everyone needs a picture or two (or seventeen!?!) with The Nittany Lion!

Downtown State College:

Puppy L-O-V-E!

This weekend I got to spend some time with one of my oldest and dearest friends, Miss H, and her fiance, Mr. M ... and their two gorgeous CANINES!!! 

I had a great time in D.C. playing with the people AND the puppies!  While Beringer, the older of the two doggies, is quite camera-shy (camera-TERRIFIED might be a more apt word, poor guy!!), Ziva, the baby, LOVES to model for the camera! 

We had hoped to have some nice weather so I could sneak H & M (with or without the puppies!) outside for a mini engagement photo shoot but alas... the pouring rain was not cooperating with that plan :(

Anyway, I did sneak some indoor photos of baby Z who (despite how big she is getting!) is only about 6 months old and still has SUCH a fun, energetic, puppy-like personality!  She doesn't hold still much so she's tough to photograph... but she's SO sweet and fun!!!!!

Thanks for a great weekend and a *GREAT* chocolate birthday dinner you two... Can't wait to see you again next month!!! :)

And now - LOOK AT THIS SWEET PUPPY FACE!!!

Such a pretty girl:

rain, rain, go away.....

A rare moment of stillness!

Big Brother Beringer; captured on film!  Aren't they sweet together??!?

Baby Ziva with Mom...

... and with Dad!

P.S. H & M are getting married in 40 days and 40 nights!!! :)  In honor of their upcoming BIG DAY, here are a few shots of their gorgeous, sophisticated wedding invitations!  Congratulations lovebirds - I am so looking forward to all the celebrations next month!

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Home, Home on the Range...

... for now, at least!  J and I have had the good fortune of living in this darling home for the past two years and when we move this summer, we will certainly be sad to leave it behind... Although we're SO EXCITED to be in the process of choosing a home of our OWN down in Fayetteville! :)

Since we're on our way out, that means that someone else is on their way IN!  This adorable house is now for sale and will soon be someone else's home sweet home! 

Throughout the process of helping D and L put this house on the market, a new photography job was (accidentally!) born for me!  The realtor had me take some photos of the house for the listing... and voila: a new subset of Kathryn McGill Photography - HOUSE PICTURES!  Turns out, it's FUN to take pictures of houses and (as J and I have been learning in our OWN housing - search - from - afar) it's *SO* important to have good pictures to go along with real estate listings!  How the heck else are you supposed to see if you like the house enough to go see it?!?

So this post is both a glimpse at our cute house - for - now (currently for sale!!! any takers??!) and also a note to all you blog-readers out there that I am now available for *REAL ESTATE photography* as well!  So all you realtors and people - who - know - realtors keep me in mind for all of your house - picture - taking needs!!!  Contact me for pricing!

Exterior View - corner lot!

Living Room - gorgeous wood floors!

Big back yard with detached garage

A view down the staircase...

 

Looking through the dining room archway into the living room

GARDEN!

The soil at this place is seriously magical... we had lots of garden goodies! :)

Guest Room (1 of 3 bedrooms)

Our Room (1 of 3 bedrooms)

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So the house is officially on the market and we've got one showing down, proabably 9,336,291 more to go... Please keep your fingers crossed for a miraculously FAST sale!

One more of the beautiful flowers in our yard:

HAVE A GREAT FRIDAY!!!