This delightful couple is tying the knot next year (coordinated by the fantastic { Tara Jordan }), and we had to schedule our photo session around the fact that Katie is about to move to Bordeaux, France for a research position. So exciting! We shot everything on the Biltmore Estate, and here is what they have to say about the wonderful journey they are on together:

Q. What were you each doing when you started to think, maybe he/she is "the one"?
Katie writes: I was never really one to daydream about weddings, and much into my 20s I was not sure I would ever get married. That's not to say I didn't love John with all my heart, just that for a long time I didn't think about our love in terms of, 'when is he going to pop the question?' It wasn't until Christmas 2008 when John had planned an elaborate scavenger hunt for my Christmas present that I started to think, "This might be an engagement ring!" and I realized how much I wanted to be married to this man. Alas, it was not an engagement ring, but a beautiful diamond necklace. Nonetheless, I had come to the realization that I was ready to be married and he was the one. Less than a year later he asked for my hand in marriage after a beautiful hike to our favorite spot. Now I often find myself daydreaming about our wedding and upcoming adventures!
John writes: I think it was during our road trip from North Carolina to Washington state. I had just quit my job in Raleigh and made the bold decision to move across the country with Katie after only 6 months of dating. With no job and no real plan, I knew it was a big move but I wanted to give us a chance. During our move I realized what a wonderful, adventurous, and fun girl she was and I knew I had made the right decision.

Q. Has a book or movie ever changed the course of your life? If so, which one and how?
Katie writes: I would say there are two books that have made a difference in my life. The first is my all-time favorite book, The Sound and the Fury. Faulkner has a way of writing which really allows the reader to understand the psyches of his characters, and I really found I enjoyed getting into the characters' heads. The second book was a gift from John's mom, The Time Traveler's Wife. I found myself reading this book late into the night, completely engulfed in the lives and loves of the two main characters, and crying my eyes out at how beautiful and fleeting love is. After closing the book each night I would roll over and watch John sleeping. It was while reading this book that I realized how lucky I was to have found him: the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, and to feel the heaviness that comes with a full heart.

Lila and A. were married in Raleigh, and we have stayed in touch since then -- my own daughter Lila Mae is named after this lovely Lila -- and she is a Shutterbabes graduate, as well. Now that Lila is expecting her second child (a girl!) in November, it was time to get the whole family together for a session and to check in with their lives and marriage. Be sure to check out earlier installments of this series HERE

Lila writes:
"I'm not sure if there was a blinding moment where I instantly knew that A. was "the one". I would describe it more of a feeling that I had from the very beginning. There is no other way for me to describe it other than to say it felt like I was home.

For me, the single most memorable moment of our wedding day was right after we were married and we walked out of the doors into the stone breezeway at the church. We had that tiny little brief moment together before the rest of the wedding party poured out. It was February and cold. It had just begun to snow and the world seemed quieted by the snowflakes. There was an electricity in the air -- and for me it spoke of the exciting world that lie ahead of us.

Life for us now is just as good as it was that day. I couldn't ask for anything more. Is it possible to change while staying the same? That's kind of what it feels like. So many things have happened but we are still the same Lila and A.

Being a parent has changed a lot of things in our marriage. It presents constant challenges. There is no room for selfishness. The desire to do the best thing for your child usually makes compromise easy, though. There is also less time for each other so you have to stay aware of the amount of time you have spent together. It's important to realize if you need to take time out for the two of you to reconnect and share a laugh or, even better, a bottle of wine!

One thing I know for sure that I didn't know before having our son is how to appreciate things. Small things and moments become so valuable once you have a child. I notice and appreciate things that I would have overlooked before.

If I had to give advice to couples starting out it would be to take your time with everything. Don't rush -- enjoy each stage of your marriage and/or parenthood. It all seems to be happening so fast -- you'll blink and five years will have gone by."

A few years ago I began a project called "People of Faith," where I interviewed and photographed people about their faith traditions and stories. Here is another installment -- you can read some others here.

Steve Ervin was a tough, drug-dealing outlaw biker who didn't give a lick about society.
And then one day something happened.

"My grandmother took me to church as a little boy, but we didn't attend church on a regular basis. At a very young age I began to get into some trouble and I left home. I got involved in motorcycles and was involved in that type of lifestyle. I joined the Outlaws, a motorcycle gang which is one of the largest -- the Hell's Angels are their rivals. I became very, very hard and cold. I hated everyone and I began to turn my back on society. I didn't care if I lived or died, so I didn't care if anyone else did. I just hated society. I sold drugs, I sold women -- I was part of a lifestyle that was very abusive to women.

But all that time, my grandmother had never quit praying for me, and God answers prayer. My mother had went to her church, too, and told the ladies about me, so they formed a little group and they met on Tuesday night for eight years just to pray for me. And on Friday the 13th, 1987, He answered their prayers. That morning, my wife and I knelt beside our bed and we just started saying "Jesus." This feeling came over me that day that I'd never had before. Somehow I just knew I had to talk to God. Every time I would say "Jesus" all this hate and coldness in me began to come out. It just changed.

My wife and I started going to the church where Mama and the group of ladies had been praying all those years and we began to just seek the Lord and church was good, but it just seemed like there was something else. One day I came home from church and I just felt so empty. I cried to the Lord and I said, "Lord, there's gotta be more, is this all there is to Christianity?" and He said, "No, put your leathers back on, go back to the streets, and go tell 'em I love 'em." And that's how the ministry was formed.

I've still got a beard, still got long hair, still got tattoos, but my heart has changed. I have Jesus Christ inside and that changes everything. I know what I used to be and I know who I am now and it's because of God, not because of anything I've done, it's because of the day that I cried out "Jesus" it changed my life."

Many thanks to Summer Watkins at Grey Likes Weddings for featuring Melissa and Walter today! (We like "Grey Likes" since we BOTH obviously like yellow and gray. :)

"The dog was created specially for children. He is the god of frolic." ~Henry Ward Beecher