Happy Birthday to me...... here's a gift for you!

Today I am feeling rather old. I am officially in my "late 20's" & I don't like it a bit. Oh well, life goes on.

Anyways, to celebrate my birthday... I'm doing a GIVE-A-WAY! Yah! My first ever blog giveaway.... Here's how this works:

Send an email to: amanda@donahophotography.com with the subject line "Happy Birthday" and then tell me what you'd love to have photographed in your life.... your kids, yourself, your wedding... whatever! I will randomly draw one email & that person will receive a $150 photog credit (read: a FREE session or a discount on your wedding package!)

So get emailin'! I will accept emails until Sunday night (August 31st) at midnight...

(A photo of my dear hubby & myself headed out to my birthday dinner last night.....)

Personal stuff.

This weekend is the first in two or three months that I haven't either been traveling, moving, or working, so we decided to relax together as a family & spend time with our friends!

Friday we went to the Taste of Blue Ash with our friends Jeff & Olivia... We sampled lots of different treats from local restaurants... Unfortunately the weather (which has been oddly cool & beautiful for August) decided to crank up the heat on us this weekend & has been steadily in the 90's, so Noah was SO HOT. I told his daddy to go grab him a drink (thinking he'd buy a bottle of water or something).... he comes back with THIS.


Yes, that would be a snow-cone almost bigger than my sons head. All I could think of was all of the sugar packed in that thing. I don't want to think about what else daddy gives him when mommy isn't around.....

Saturday afternoon & evening was spent in Indiana with our friends Alan & Erin. It was a bittersweet time for us because they are preparing to move far far away and while we're totally psyched for them & what God has in store for their lives, we are bummed to not be able to spend as much time with them as we have in recent years... Here's a photo from this weekend doing what we do best together... playing cards :o)

We're now accepting applications for a replacement couple to play Phase 10 & Nertz with. Just kidding guys, no one could ever replace you! We'll miss you like crazy!!

Sunday - We're attempting to find a church. This is hard work people! We moved to the Cincy area in June & have only had the time with me being gone shooting weddings so often over the last few months to just now begin the search. We went last week & this week to two different churches around town & it was very cool to experience such different churches. If anyone in the area is reading this & knows of a great church that we should check out, give me a shout-out!

So that's it! Our weekend in a quick summary..... This week I'll be blogging photos from Heather & JP's Wisconsin wedding.... so stick around, folks!

The "B" Family

Last year I shot some maternity photos for this sweet couple & it was time for updated photos where the little man, previously hidden, was much more present :o) Judah (who's name I absolutely love) is SO ADORABLE. There aren't words for how cute this kid is. He is such a perfect combination of his parents... When he was first born I really thought he looked more like his beautiful mama, Kalena, but as he grows older I for sure see alot of his daddy, Dallas, in him. He is a perfect combo of the two & I must say that they make some pretty babies!

Here are just a couple shots from our shoot while in was in Tulsa, Oklahoma last month

I realize I haven't done any personal blogs as of late & really want to begin doing so a little more... I often send my future clients to my blog to "get to know me & my style a little better" and while I feel like I represent my style here, I'm slacking on the "get to know ME" better part.... So soon I will start sharing more about me, what's going on in the Donaho household, and any other random fun things I can think of :o) So prepare yourselves!

Michelle & Savaday - Wedding Celebration!

You may remember Michelle & Savaday from their engagement session back at the beginning of the year (they bore the cold weather so well!). Well, a few weeks ago I was honored to also capture their wedding in Tulsa, OK at the Dresser Mansion. They went with a totally non-tradition funky feel that I (of course) absolutely LOVED. Michelle, who's already a striking beauty (go ahead, look for yourself!) wore an awesome Betsy Johnson dress that she looked amazing in. Savaday (who's quite possibly the most trendy groom to date... no offense to the other grooms in the world!) looked equally as good as they celebrated their new life together as Mr & Mrs. Here is a quick look at their day...

Details, details!

Entering their event & being announced for the first time as Mr & Mrs!

Love this cake!

Their ADORABLE son, Trace...

Note to all upcoming couples: One of my most favorite things about photographing Michelle & Savaday is how incredibly comfortable they are in front of my camera. I HIGHLY recommend engagement sessions to all my couples for this reason.... after spending time with me then & getting used to how we can work together, that makes it that much more comfortable on your wedding day & allows me to capture the two of you even better!

The beautiful Dresser Mansion...

Michelle & Savaday - Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your beautiful day. I am SO thrilled for your life together and all the excitement that is ahead of you both!
xoxo- Amanda

3 (Pregnant) Women & a Photographer

So also during my time in Tulsa a few weeks back I did THREE maternity shoots! I don't do a whole lot of them, so to have three over a course of 2 days was pretty crazy for me. I learned more about pregnancy than I expected to! :o)

We'll start off with Chrissy.... Chrissy & her husband Tim are expecting their first in September. They're both SO excited about their little man's upcoming arrival & I KNOW will be amazing parents. Chrissy is a teacher & has so much patience & Tim is a jokester, so I know he'll keep things fun even at 2:00 in the morning during feedings :o) Congrats guys - I'm thrilled for you!!!

Next is Tanisha... have you ever seen a pregnant woman glow like this?! She looks amazing & I know will have such a beautiful little girl in her arms soon. I was able to sweet talk the daddy-to-be into a few pictures, but promised I wouldn't share them with the world (but aren't they good, Dale?!) They too will be such loving parents & I can't wait to see their bundle of joy!

Finally is Cora.... A very dear friend of mine (her son calls me "Auntie" if that tells you anything :o) expecting her precious baby girl in September as well. Like the other girls, Cora too is carrying so beautifully and actually makes me WANT to be pregnant! She's had an amazing pregnancy & is just so eager to have her baby girl here already to dress her in all her super cute outfits :o) Jeremy is an awesome dad & has no idea that he's about to be wrapped around little Lydia's finger for life..... For two already amazing parents, I am so happy to see them receive this blessing.

One more, because Lydia truly is a....

Getting caught up.....

Greetings folks! A few quick photos as promised for you today!

A few weeks ago I was in Tulsa shooting a wedding & several other sessions..... I had the pleasure of spending time with the Biddle family while I was there. We did their photo session at their home which I thought was so great & will really give them great memories of their children in their home during this phase of their life.... Here's a quick preview from that session...



Also while in Tulsa that week, I caught up with Heather to do a bridal session! Heather married her man, JP last week in Wisconnsin... stay tuned for photos from their beautiful big day soon! Here's my favorite shot from Heather's session.....



And one more for today.... A photo session from here in the 'Nati.... (Well, actually we shot in Northern Kentucky.... close enough).... Kelly & Bobby are old high school friends of mine who wanted to do some updated photos of themselves & also Kelly's brother who was in town visiting. We had lots of fun with this shoot & here is one of my favorites from their day..... I love the crazy lighting in this one....



Within the next few days I'll be posting photos from three maternity sessions & an awesome wedding in Tulsa..... Stay tuned!

Coming soon....

Just a super quick post to say that I have NOT dropped dead, nor have I forgotten about my beloved blog or my readers.... I've been going non-stop for the last month & just haven't taken the time to update my blog lately! I promise to post a new blog with LOTS of photos within the week.

Stay tuned for:
Maternity photos galore
A funky un-traditional wedding in Tulsa, OK
Family shoots
A romantic & beautiful wedding in Kenosha, WI
....and more!

I am in Tulsa again at the moment (just for one day) to photograph a wedding at the Belvedere Mansion in Claremore this evening.... can't wait!