I don’t think it was an accident that in 2004 this sweet red-headed girl walked into my classroom at Carver Middle School in Monroe. God had our paths cross and I’m so thankful that He did…because Elizabeth is now my daughter’s riding instructor, a fellow business owner, and a sweet friend. She and Luke are truly an amazing couple, and our family is blessed to call them friends. Luke serves as a firefighter in Walton County, and also runs a business—Smith Land and Farm. He’s incredibly talented working with wood and he even built the display wall that I take with me twice a year to bridal shows. Elizabeth is a riding instructor, horse trainer and runs the farm’s drill team program, the Diamond D Cowgirls. She has high expectations for her riders, and I can’t think of a better role model for my girls.
I’ve been privileged to be a part of their lives and capture their engagement, wedding and now anniversary photos! Elizabeth’s horse, Accolade, has been along for the ride as well. If you ever watched the TV series Sleepy Hollow, or the Goosebumps show that was filmed in Covington, you might recognize this beautiful white horse. He’s even been in a few movies. He loves the camera, and he REALLY loves Elizabeth. I remember shooting her engagement photos—Accolade wasn’t super thrilled to share her with Luke, and he even nipped at Luke when they were sitting in the pasture! When they were married, Accolade carried Elizabeth up the hill to the pasture where they exchanged their vows (still one of the dreamiest ceremonies ever—talk about fairy tale with white horse and all!)…and he wasn’t about to be left out of this session. When we went in his pasture to take some pictures, he eyeballed us for a minute then decided to come over and nudged his way into the photos.
We had so much fun hanging out and reminiscing about when we were shooting their wedding…at Accolade “smiling” in the photos, and Luke ripping his pants while climbing over the fence for photos. (Luckily that didn’t happen this time!) We caught the gorgeous sunset on the Dabney Farm at the end of the session—it really was a beautiful evening! I’m so glad I was able to capture this special time for Luke and Elizabeth, and we are so thankful for the impact they have on our girls and for their friendship!
