Abbie + Taylor – First Baptist Church of Sharon – Laurel, Mississippi

Happy Sunday, my friends!

Oh, how I’ve missed writing to you! If you follow me on social media, you may know it’s because I’ve been runnin’ like a chicken with my head cut off lately. And you know what, it has all been 100% worth it!

After all, for the past week, I’ve been living and breathing this beautiful wedding!!

Last Saturday, Abbie and Taylor said “YES!” to forever at the beautiful First Baptist Church of Sharon in Laurel, Mississippi, where Taylor is the youth pastor! Not only is he the youth pastor there, but that’s also where he proposed to Abbie in front of the entire congregation. How incredibly special for them to stand in that exact spot and commit to spending forever together in the presence of their families, friends, and fellow church members.

As is a common theme with my photography (and I LOVE it!!), I’ve known Abbie for many years. She was a few years younger than me in school, so I’ve always known who she was. She reached out to me early in their engagement and asked me to be a part of their big day. Obviously, I was going to say yes anyway, but when she said the wedding would be in Laurel, Mississippi, I knew that was going to be a blast! (If you don’t already watch the show “Hometown” on HGTV, you should. Great people. Love small towns. Love America. Do it.)

You may have seen their engagement photos back in June. We had a lovely time walking around their quaint little city and Taylor’s hometown taking pictures when I saw something that jumped out at me. For Abbie’s bridals, she chose to have those done in our hometown of Thomasville, Alabama, (coming to the blog soon, I promise!), so we braved the August heat for some really beautiful shots. So, with the wedding at their current church, I felt like the photography for their engagement and wedding season captured their backgrounds well.

The wedding and reception showed that same detail and infusion of their backgrounds. From her grandfather’s keys tied to her bouquet (She didn’t know until she picked them up and began to walk to meet her bridesmaids! We had to have a little moment in the hall. It was so sweet!) to the coffee they gave out as favors, every part of the day incorporated details special to them and their families.

I hope you enjoy this little peak into their wedding day!

Abbie gave Taylor a book of letters she had been writing since she met him. Talk about a tear jerker! She wrote the last letter the morning of the wedding. Her prayers had been answered in Taylor.

Abbie is the oldest of three sisters. Her middle sister, Alex, was just married 6 weeks ago, so this had been a very special season for the two to share!

It was so sweet to watch Abbie’s bridesmaids react to seeing her for the first time. The entire day was such a heartfelt moment for them all. You’ll notice the tears shed for her throughout the day. Abbie, you are very, very loved!

And here we are… Abbie’s dad is a gem of a man. When we first began preparing for her bridal portraits she admitted to me that she hadn’t quite felt like a bride just yet. She said every important dress she had ever bought involved her dad being there with her, but not this one. He hadn’t seen her yet, so she was eager to have his opinion. Throughout the entire engagement, she would tell me things about her dad that told me Taylor would have big shoes to fill as the #1 man in her life.

Having lost my own dad at a young age, father daughter moments are the ones that get me mostly because it was a moment I never got and reminds me of all the moments I’ll never share. However, it also excites me for the moments I hope Seth to have with our kids one day. After all, I know how emotional he was on our wedding day. I can only imagine what that would be like if we were to have a little girl for him to escort down an aisle one day.

When Abbie’s dad turned around, he just couldn’t get over how beautiful she was. Through his tears I could hear him say, “You look like you’re out of a magazine!” Y’all. I melted. A puddle I’m tellin’ you.