Coolest.shoes.ever

I just bought these fantastic shoes. I absolutely love them. Best $30 I've spent all winter.

If you can't tell from the photo, they're silver and sparkly. Oh, and they run about a half size big.

Michele and Joe's wedding at the Henry Ford

We're working on a sample album for the wonderful people at the Henry Ford - they loved what we did with this wedding, and they made it so easy to get good photos.

Click here to see.

A leap year

I love a leap year. I haven't told Joe there's an extra day in the month - hoping I can convince him to take a day off, since we've been working really long hours.

Is anybody doing anything special on Leap Day? Did you know that it's traditional for women to propose marriage to men in a leap year? Some think this began with Saint Brigid of Ireland.

Oh, and according to a 1288 Scottish law, if a man declined a leap year proposal, he could be fined, or be required to offer a silk gown to the lady, to soften the blow. Because men felt that put them at too great a risk, the tradition was in some places tightened to restricting female proposals to the modern leap day, 29 February.

Learn more than you could ever want to know about leap years here.

Window dressing

Click on photo to enlarge.

It's tough to photograph, but you get the idea. Black "silhouette" chandeliers and black crystals. We'll be adding feathers and beads when they arrive. Looks pretty cool in person.

Alternative wedding dresses

Did you know J Crew sells a few wedding dresses? And some really nice 'maids dresses, to boot.

Love this cotton one for a beach wedding. It's only $200, so you can set more aside for a really big album. :)

Oooh, I want one

If I didn't already have real headboards for all my beds, I would be all over this.

Before it was on sale, it was too much. One of my solid wood beds actually cost less. But now, at $49...

The CrockPot

The Crock Pot (registered trademark of Rival Corp.) is the bane of many a newlywed's existence. Almost all of my married friends registered for one of these slow cookers, and celebrate anniversary after anniversary without ever opening the box.

I, on the other hand, love my slow cookers. Yes, I have more than one, and they're both used frequently. The secret is this wonderful cookbook: Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook.

My favorites include "my" famous pumpkin butter (people freak out over this), baked potato soup, Lucky Chili (with black beans, cloves, and coffee), and french onion soup. Not one recipe in this book uses Cream of Anything soup an an ingredient.

If you're stuck in a cooking rut, give it a try - there is nothing better than waking up or coming home to wonderfully fragrant homemade food. And it's green - slow cookers use much less energy than a stove or oven.

(I'm not a Jeff Gordon fan, I just thought this Crock Pot was a crack up.)

This bed rocks!

I can't help but think this bed would be really fun. Comforting, like macaroni and cheese.

I found it on one of my favorite blogs, apartment therapy.

Another new look for the office

Debuting today. Just wait until you see our front window!

(We didn't use any tacky spray.)

Tacky spray

I found this at the craft store today, and I think it may explain some of the weddings I photographed when I started out, 15 years ago.

(I promised snarky observations! Sorry for the cellphone camera picture.)

Valentine the pit bull

Val has been through a lot in her short life, but her luck turned a month or so ago when a friend of mine rescued her. She's now just arriving at her foster home near Chicago, after a 2400+ mile journey.

I got to meet her yesterday, and got a few photos for her Petfinder listing.

For more info on pit bulls and other bullie breeds, click here.

The dog train stops in Toledo!

So I have these dog-rescuing friends who are cool enough (or is it crazy enough?) to drive a cargo van with 20-some dogs from southern Alabama to New Hampshire, pretty much straight through. They do this to give these shelter dogs a chance at great new homes, since there are so many more homeless dogs down south than there are in New England.

I've heard that, every time they make this trip, all of the southern dogs are snapped up by new owners in a matter of days. I'm sure the cute southern accents help. ;)

I'm meeting them today in Toledo, on their way to Chicago, to drop off their last passenger at her new foster home. I'll have photos of Val, the very lucky pit bull, later tonight, but for now, click here to check out their blog.

Oh, and here's their FAQ (how do you walk that many dogs?!).

New music on our new site

We just added new music to our new website. Go listen! Quick! www.dmoment.com

Wedding in a parking lot

One of the most riotously fun wedding receptions we've ever photographed actually took place in the parking lot at Levis Commons. You'd never guess it - everything was very elegant.

Click here to see Chelsea Dillin's (now McKone's) wedding album.

Cleaning before the housecleaner comes

Does everyone in the world do this? We semi-regularly use a housecleaner, but the house is too messy right now, and I don't feel like cleaning.

I also get pedicures, but I remove my old polish first, and I don't like to walk into the salon with my brows all ungroomed.

New album online

Joe designed this beautiful book for Lisa and Tony. Click here to peek!

Next up, Nancy and Karl, then Jill and Terrence! Stay tuned.

Rescue dogs!

For those just joining us, we spent our day off shooting portraits to help homeless dogs find their perfect homes. All of the pups pictured here are "between residences" and up for adoption.

Click on any photo to enlarge, email me at dmoment@mac.com if you want info on adoption! If you can't adopt, we plan to do shoots like these pretty frequently, and we always need volunteers.

AND we're doing our first portrait party on March 22, the Saturday before Easter, and we still have 30-minute mini sessions available. Only $99, which includes online proofing and a $50 gift card! Great for kids, pets, families, singles, couples... you bring it, we'll shoot it.

The twins

I'm going to let the twins' photos speak for themselves, because there are no words for the cuteness.

Shelby's shy

Shelby the chi is a bit shy, having just come from a puppy mill, but she did pretty well with all the chaos that was our photo shoot. I love how she has her little paw up, like a perfect lady.

Max

Max is a very special dog. He's a mellow fellow, a senior who gets around a little slowly - he lives for treats and neck scratches. Max really made an impact on us - I'm praying he gets as wonderful a home as he deserves.

Marty the party animal

This is Marty, a seriously cool dog. Marty brings the party with him wherever he goes.

Johnny Cash the pomeranian

Every time I see a pom, I think they look like stuffed animals. Johnny, here, is just gorgeous with that fluffy coat. He's about 1/3 the size he looks to be.

Honey the poodle

It was all I could do not to bring this baby home.

Even more: Cricket

I'm sorry, I just can't stop. They're way too cute.

This is Cricket. She has a lot of energy and she's uber-smart:

The people behind the dogs

These wonderful volunteers helped by chasing after, posing with, and cuddling the dogs.

Rescue dogs!

I am so tired! We just hosted our craziest photo shoot ever. There was poop, there was pee, there were some SERIOUSLY wonderful rescue dogs!

Just one shot to tide you over. This is Fudge (left) and his brother, Rascal (right). Together, they're maybe 8 pounds. Sweet, lovey, honestly the cutest dogs I've ever seen.

They're up for adoption together, if anyone's looking, but you should move fast - they're so handsome, I think their foster mom will be inundated with applications! Leave a comment if you want more info on adopting.

UPDATE: here's Amber, who I fell in love with. A toy fox terrier with the sweetest personality, and some spunk.

Hey! You out there!

I see you, reading this fascinating blog of mine... I have a question for you!

If you had an extra hour every day, what would you use it for? Come on in and let me know. My answer in the comments.

Looking for volunteers!

Any dog lovers out there? On Sunday at 6 p.m., we'll be photographing a whole pack of little rescue dogs for Littlest Angels Pet Sanctuary. We need a few volunteers to snuggle with and entertain dogs for a couple of hours.

We've been working with LAPS for years, ever since we adopted our Tiny (pictured) from them. Professional photos of homeless pets really increase adoptions, so that's how we're doing our part.

Comment here or email us at dmoment@mac.com if you can help!

My favorite holiday

is Valentine's Day. Red, pink, chocolate, champagne, sparkly things - what's not to like?

So, everyone, please have a happy one.


Above is a photo from Lia and Sam's wedding. I'm quite handy with a sparkler!

Savings for 2008 Brides!

If you've booked us for your 2008 wedding, we've already emailed you details on our special offer.

Pre-pay your balance during the month of February and receive 5% off. That's a savings of up to $260 for some of you! Give us a call at 419.243.2111 to make a payment. This offer is only valid for brides and grooms who've already signed a contract.

Stay tuned for more exciting offers!

Also, does anyone know how to fold a dollar like that? I would like to learn.

mmmmmm

There is no better candy bar. Don't worry, you can trust me, I've done a LOT of research. And it's really worth $5.

I kept trying to take a picture, but I ate it too fast.

A couple maternity portraits

Amanda was a DMP bride and now she's just so cute with that belly! She brought her sister along, so I grabbed a couple portraits of the mommy-to-be and the aunt-to-be.

Click on any image to enlarge.

The cutest couple!

Michelle and Greg were so much fun at their shoot. You can tell Michelle used to model, and Greg's just a natural.

Click on photo to enlarge.

That's a lot of pink!

We did some more traditional family portraits, but I think these, in which the girls styled themselves, have more personality.

I used to think it wasn't true, but I've become convinced some little girls naturally love pink.

Click on any photo to enlarge.