Easter Weekend 2008

What a weekend! I am totally exhausted!!

Here's a little slideshow I put together from the festivities at the church for your viewing pleasure:





If you are having problems viewing the above slideshow, please click here for the full page version.


Be sure to check back for the promised post from Elizabeth and Franks engagement session and the wedding this past weekend in Palmetto Bay.

Meet Judy: The Easter Elephant

Not the Easter Bunny, but the Easter Elephant. That's right. Judy is a 9,000 pound Indian elephant. She came to visit Church by the Glades this weekend to hang out.

So, yeah. Judy is pretty awesome! So, I know you're probably thinking why in the world would a church have an elephant on Easter weekend??? Well, the series they kicked off this weekend is called "Relationship Rehab". This weekend's topic was on Denial: Denying the Elephant in the Room. So, basically, the whole point of Judy being there was to ignore her.

Fred Uhl is one of the pastors at CBGlades. Him and I are blogging buddies, so one of his requests was that he HAD to have some pictures for his blog of him with the elephant!

Of course we had to get some fun pictures. I thought the sign I made him hold was very appropriate given the topic.

Then Pastor Tom got in on the action. He's not a blogger, but was volunteering as my "human light stand" for Fred's photos, so I made him take one too.


They have signs up all around Judy with different saying denying that there's and elephant on the front lawn.

My parents showed up to get a look at Judy. I made them get their picture taken. They probably are going to be mad at me for posting this, but I just couldn't help myself.

If you don't have any plans for Easter, come see Judy!! You can find out more info on the Church by the Glades website.

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So yeah. I'm pretty behind on posting. My life has been insane lately. There hasn't been a single day this week that I've gotten in bed before 1AM. Most nights I've been up until about 3AM. I still have some awesome images plus a slideshow from Elizabeth and Frank's engagement session to post for you guys.

I have a wedding this evening down in Palmetto Bay, so expect some awesome images from that.

Also, tomorrow I will be covering the Sunrise beach baptism at Church by the Glades, plus all of the Easter services Sunday morning! Expect a lot of posts coming up!

Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep (NILMDTS)

I am a volunteer nut. Its something I'm passionate about. I love being about to take my talents as a photographer and use them for the Greater Good. I've had on my heart now a super big challenge to undertake. Something that would be so deeply touching and personal for a family, that the experience of photographing it would forever change my life. Its been on my heart for awhile now, and only recently was I able to answer the call.

Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep is a non-profit organization that provides bereavement photography free of charge to parents experiencing the death of an infant or small child through illness, trauma or stillbirth and to help them begin their healing journey. Talk about no easy feet. Let me say that I have no children and have never been pregnant. I have never had to endure the pain of losing a little one. It is a loss so heart wrenching that my mind cannot even start to fathom the pain it must cause all of those involved. When I found out about NILMDTS 6 months ago, I knew I wanted to get involved, but I also knew, at the time, I just wasn't ready. Now, half a year later, I am ready.

All photographers that are affiliated with the organization must be approved. It is a lengthy process that takes several weeks. They investigate each and every photographer and don't allow simply anyone to belong to their organization. I found out late last night, that after 3 weeks of anticipation, I had been accepted. While I know that it will be very, very difficult to witness a family during possibly the most traumatic time in their lives, the intrinsic reward of capturing that precious little one and giving a family photographs of thier baby that will only be with us for a short time are more than words can say. Its going to be tough, but the gift I will be able to give will be irreplaceable.

Last week, the Today show had a segment concerning the organization appropriately named "Healing the Heartbreak". You can WATCH THE VIDEO HERE, but I must warn you, crying will not be optional. I sobbed when I watched it. Things like that are the reason why I know me volunteering to do this is the right thing.

If you would like to know more about the Now I Lay You Down To Sleep organization, please go to thier website at www.NILMDTS.org.

Santa Baby

What fun its been with Santa portraits the past couple of weekends! I loved seeing all the little one's faces light up when they saw Santa!! We had a few babies cry, but overall, everyone was very excited! What a great gift to the community.

If you haven't had a chance to order your prints, you can do so here: www.melissapowellphotography.com/cbglades

There were definately too many favorites to choose from, but I can say, I love this one of Pastor Rod with Santa!

Wreaths for charity

Hope everyone is having a fabulous weekend! I spent a good majority of my day today being creative for a great cause. The 23rd Annual Festival of Trees is accepting decorated wreaths which will be sold at auction. All proceeds go to benefit the Fort Lauderdale Museum of Art! How awesome is that? Its been forever since I decorated a wreath. I used to do it all the time as a kid when my parents owned their own business. We used to make them to sell in their store for the holidays. I was afraid I'd forget what to do, but once I got started it all started coming back to me. In the end, I was really happy with what I came up with!







Also, Christmas will be here soon! Do you know where you're taking your family for holiday portraits? I have only a few dates left this season, so you must hurry and schedule something if you haven't already. I know I have spoken to several people already that haven't picked a date for their portraits yet. Make sure you reserve yours before it's too late!

Look out for an announcement later this week if you have children that want to meet Santa Claus! I have connections with the big man up north! You might just have a chance to meet him and get your picture taken!! More news to follow! :)

Wow!

Church by the Glades has a link to my photos from the home page of their website featuring the latest beach baptism I covered last month! For a limited time, you can view the entire event straight from their page! How awesome is that! Go to www.cbglades.com to check it out. You can also view the event directly at http://cbg.melissapowellphotography.com. A special thank you to Church by the Glades for their continued support!

Baptism Part II

Church by the Glades had another beach baptism a couple of weeks ago, and I was there amidst the crashing of waves, recording the event. It was raining and the rip tides were horrible, but everyone still showed up. It's always awesome to see so many people show their obedience to God! Here are a few of my favorites from the event. The last one I did a funky color wash with. Let me know what you think!

Cavemen?

Sometimes you're camera is right there when you need it. I was on my way to church yesterday and saw none other than three cavemen standing near the corner of Atlantic and Sawgrass holding up signs protesting Church by the Glades. Yet another crazy idea from church paster David Hughes. One "caveman" said that they had almost caused several wrecks from people slowing down to get a better look at what they were seeing. Its not everyday you see a caveman in a sports jacket!

Life's a beach!

Every once in awhile, I try to make time on my calendar to give a little back to the community. Now those of you who know me, know that I love God! I am a devote follower of Christ, and celebrate when others seek Him! So when I found out the Church by the Glades (www.cbglades.com)needed a photographer for their beach baptism, it was a given that I had to volunteer.

There's something about baptism on a beach performed in the middle of the ocean that is enchanting. All the CBG pastors were lined up in the water and people were being baptized in numbers! Things were going on so fast that I was simultaneously taking a photograph with my right eye while watching another group with my left to make sure I wasn't missing anything. I had so much fun! I have posted up an album as a gift to the church. They are placing it on their website for the next month or so that way those that attended can download their photos.

Here are a couple photographs from the event!









You can see all the photos from the event here!