Padre, TX

My sweet girlfriends and I went down to South Padre Island, TX for a long weekend...we had such a great time!  We all originally met in the summers between our college semesters while working on the Junior Staff at the Cloister resort in Sea Island, GA.  "Working" those summers in Georgia was, hands down, one of the best decisions I have ever made for myself.  (I use the term "working" very lightly - it was hardly work - we basically played on the beach with kids all day).  The experiences and memories I have from those days are cherished and treasured.  I will never forget those days, but more importantly, I will never forget the friendships I have made from those days.  There are a group of us that are still very close, even though geographical distance plays a great role in keeping us apart (from Texas to London!).  But, when we get together, whether it be once a year or every other year, we know that we can pick up right where we left off - as though no time has passed at all.

So, there were 6 of us that were able to go this weekend (well, 6 + 2 halves - 2 are pregnant!) that came from all over the country to spend a long weekend at Sarah's parents' beach condo in Padre.  (Thanks Adele!)  We traveled from Baton Rouge, San Antonio, Dallas, Louisville, and Washington DC.  It was a super fun weekend, but I wanted to make it extra special...so I did some research and found a local photographer to document our special friendship.  I contacted Melissa Rodriguez in the hopes that she could photograph all of us.  To my surprise, she wanted to do a photo swap with her family (and what a precious family they were)!  I was so excited, I could hardly stand it!  The girls were excited too!

We battled the potential for rain (didn't rain a drop), a sudden illness by the little one (she was nearly back to normal on the day of the shoot), and everything went off without a hitch...except for a little extreme wind!  I'm a little nervous to see my hair from the shoot! :(

So, here are some sneak peeks of Melissa's family!  They were SO adorable, and they could not have been any sweeter!  Melissa was an absolute joy to work with - as a photographer and a client!  I count it a true blessing to have met Melissa and to be able to work with her.