What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, right? Not in Justin and Britney’s case. What happen in Vegas actually spilled over into Indiana and now resides in Arizona. See, they met as two total strangers in Vegas, both on a guy/girl weekend, never expecting that they would meet someone and fall in love. But they did and as the days and weeks went by, they talked everyday realizing that something grand was developing. Justin began making frequent trips from Arizona to Indiana, which turned out to be a wise investment on his part because when the time came to pop the question his ROI was “Yes, I’ll marry you”! Their story isn’t your typical wild and crazy Vegas story, full of embarrassing moments and pictures to help you remember what those embarrassing moments were. In fact, it’s the furthest thing from it. Still, their story and love is exceptional and will continue to be as they begin their lives together in Grand Canyon State. Congrats to Mr. & Mrs. Sexy Serious! (Yes, I’m allowed to have inside jokes with my clients).
Thanks to my partner in crime and AMAZING friend Natalie Smith for helping me document their day and putting up with me all day!
Dear Casey and Kerri,
Typically, I would attempt to write this witty, yet nostalgic summary about the couple I photographed. I would talk about who they are, where they met, and their distinct relationship. In essence, I tell their story. However, I just couldn’t do that with you guys. I sat at my computer 6 times last week with the intentions to write this blog post. All 6 times I found myself at a loss for words, which we all know happens few and far between. Nothing I could think of, nor the most eloquent of words could give justice to the journey you both have been on. So I gave up on trying, because unless you two write a book some day (which I highly encourage you do), I don’t think anything or anyone can do your story justice. So instead, Mark and I decided to write you this letter.
We never imagined that the loud, profane, tattooed dude and the quiet, graceful, tenderhearted girl that we used to see at the gym (and in Casey’s case, we used to hear!) would one day become a part of our lives. When you first started coming to church we remember thinking and praying that you would continue to come and that we would somehow be able to get to know you guys. And here we are, two years later…Casey, you are still loud and still tattooed, but the profaneness has been replaced with a strong desire to see others experience the same life changing love of God that you have experienced over the past twenty-four months. Kerri, you are still graceful and still tender hearted, but you have witnessed God answer your prayers and radically transform the heart of the man you have loved for five years. As a result of this, you have gone from knowing there was a God to trusting Him and surrendering your life to Him.
It has been a privilege to so closely witness the life-changing, transforming power of God that we have seen through the two of you. We’re confident that what we’ve witnessed is merely a glimpse of the tremendous things which God will continue to do in and through both of you. You guys are amazing and we’re honored to call you friends.
We love you both,
Mark + Patty
So here is some background info on yours truly that you may be unaware of. I, back in my glory days, played NCAA Division 1 softball. Yeah, that’s right, I proudly played left bench and base runner dummy…..and man was I good at it!!! I obviously wasn’t softball material, at least not at the D1 level. In fact, despite the great memories and friends I made, I absolutely hated it. What can I say, I’m a tennis kinda girl. However at the end of the day I can’t complain because it helped pay for college and some day I’ll get to tell my kids that their mom was a stud division 1 bench warmer. Hopefully they’ll follow in my footsteps, minus the bench warming part.
A year after I retired my bat and glove, better, more talented players were recruited by LU and one of those was a powerful pitcher from Indiana named Britney Morris. And when I say powerful, I mean POWERFUL!! That girl’s fast ball can make grow men cry and give you nightmares for months! It’s scary and I thank God I never had to face her nasty pitching. Anyhow, fast forward four years later: I marry this guy from Indiana and move back to his cornfields hometown. Fast forward 1 year after that: Britney and I connect on Facebook and I realize that not only am I living minutes from her but it turns out her and Mark (that guy I married) know each other and grew up going to the same church! Fast forward 3 years after that: Britney sends me a message and is all like “I met this ridiculously amazing and stellar man, and we’re getting married!”. So I’m all like ” Oh my gosh! That’s so great! Pay me big bucks and let me shoot your wedding?” and she’s was all like “Yes, I’d love to!”. All right, so it didn’t really go quite like that but I’d like to think it did.
More on Britney and Justin’s wedding and less on my failed athletic collegian career later, but in the meantime, enjoy some images from their engagement shoot a few weeks ago. Yeah, that’s right, if you decide you want an engagement shoot a week before your wedding, I’m your girl!
For 4 years they walked the same college campus completely incognizant of each other. They probably strolled the same halls, ate at the same places, and maybe even sat feet away from each other in the Library. As close as they may have come to each other while in China, fate, in all her irony, had them meet thousands of miles from home…at another college campus…in Urbana, Illinois. In light of the irony, they realize how evident it is that their meeting was truly a reflection of God’s will for their lives. She now crunches numbers and proves mathematical theories while he engineers html codes and develops complex web programs, but despite their demanding fields of study, they still find time to walk around campus….. hand-in-hand, in love, and completely cognizant of each other.
I didn’t waste time. Came off the plane from Hawaii on Thursday night, slept a few hours (I’m totally jet lagged) , ran a few errands on Friday, and took off to Chicago early Saturday morning. If you’ve ever driven the I-65 from Indy to Chicago, you know why I was banging my ahead up against the dashboard of the car an hour into it. Not only is it the most boring drive on the planet consisting solely of cornfields and windmills, but I was exhausted and wondering why on earth I had made commitments in Chicago after being gone for almost 2 weeks! My pouting stopped as soon as I arrived…..
Not only did I get to shoot a wonderful wedding with the amazing Kenny Kim in the Sears Tower of all places (more on that later), but I also got to attend the exclusive Grace Ormonde book release party at the Trump Tower the following evening. Grace Ormonde’s new book “Being In Love Never Goes Out Of Style” was released a few weeks ago and Grace Ormonde herself was there to meet and greet all of us. If you’re a bride or in the wedding industry you’ve GOT to get this book. It’s a work of art that oozes inspiration and worthy of anyone’s and/or any studio’s coffee table.
On a personal note, the energy that filled the room that night and the people that surrounded me was exactly what I needed! I had the privilege of meeting industry leaders and successful creative minds whose career’s were a reminder to me that you can truly Live The Dream. In fact, that’s what Grace wrote in my book. As I end my 6 year career in the pharmaceutical industry and finally begin my full time career in the wedding industry, Sunday night made it all that more real to me as I was encouraged and welcomed by such an amazing group of peers. So here goes nothing!
Here are some images of the event courtesy of the always amazing and my dear friend Kenny Kim.
Contrary to my love for photography, the thought of me being in front of the camera as opposed to behind it is mortifying. Call me weird, but I just can’t help becoming stiff and awkward the moment I see a lens pointed at me. Just ask Mark and my good friend Megan who had to endure 2 hours of me and my camera fright issues this past weekend. Despite how much I dreaded the process, I knew good images of myself were essential and one of the best branding/marketing decisions I could make as I get ready to launch my website and business as a whole. After all, if I’m going to name my business after myself, it needs to be personal and it doesn’t get more personal than my clients knowing who I am and what I look like. At the end of the day, the Patricia Karina brand is, well, it’s me.
Asking Megan to take my pictures was a no brainer. She’s simply one of the best photographers in Indy and the fact that she was able to make me look normal despite my awkwardness in front of the camera is proof of that. So it’s official, Megan Grandi is not only my friend, she’s my photographer too!
Check out more pictures of our photo shoot as well as more of Megan’s work here.
THURSDAY- March 4, 2010 (Part One)
I’m convinced I got a glimpse of what HELL is like. Eighteen miles of endless mounds of garbage, dead animals, and black smoke from fires brewing internally. The clouds are overshadowed by hundreds of vultures that swarm the skies and diligently monitor the scraps of rotten food below. Their only competition for the food supply below are dogs…..and 1,200 men, women, and children that call this place home.
It’s the municipal garbage dump in Managua, also referred to as “La Chureca”, and it makes our garbage dumps here in the states look like fields of green pastures. Not only do these families live here but they live off the garbage and depend on it for income and food. They scavenge for materials that can be sold for recycling, drink left over soda in plastic bottles, and eat what they can find in freshly dumped garbage piles. Women prostitute themselves for first dibs on garbage trucks as they come in and toddlers walk around naked and barefooted. I can go on. Instead, I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves. However, even the pictures below don’t come close to giving you a real sense of what this place is like:
The next two are pictures of “homes” inside La Chureca where people live.
But then there’s Wayne and Elaine MaGouirk from good ole’ Texas. An engineer by trade, Wayne had his eyes set on Colorado and was getting his fly fishing poles ready for retirement. Elaine couldn’t wait to spend more time with her grandchildren. However, God had different retirement plans for them and it was the furthest thing from the fly fishing streams of Colorado and their six grandchildren. In 2000 they took a trip to “La Chureca” that completely rocked their world. They tried going home and forgetting about it but the images of what they saw stayed fresh in their minds. They knew something had to be done for the children and families living in La Chureca, and thus Savior’s Tears was born. This amazing ministry started a school a few blocks from La Chureca which they appropriately named Oasis of Hope. The school consists of children who live in and near La Chureca and provides a Christian-based education, school supplies, uniforms, and two nutritious meals each day. They currently have 350 children enrolled in pre-K through 5th grade and will soon be adding 6th grade! We got to witness this amazing ministry ourselves and spend time with the children who you would have never guessed live in a garbage dump. They were sweet, well mannered, clean (as clean as a 6 year old boy can be), and we enjoyed every second with them.
It’s hard to believe these gleeful kids live in such a dreadful place. However, it settles my burdened heart to know that in the midst of their awful reality they’re being offered the one thing that will one day be their ticket out of La Chureca…..an education. I’m completely in awe of what Savior’s Tear is doing and am totally confident in their vision for these kids. I pray that you will join us in supporting that vision and thus continue providing a true “Oasis of Hope”.
Stay tuned for information on how you can help.
by pk
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