Mary Anne Morgan Blog

I met Salena  almost three years ago when she interviewed to be part of the dance ministry at 12Stone Church. We arranged to meet at the local Starbucks and I had not yet seen her in person but only communicated with her via email. When she walked in the door, I was taken with her sense of fashion and how put together she seemed. She was donning a sleek creme trench coat she had purchased while on a trip to London with her husband, Sean.  We hit it off right away. I found her easy to talk to and her laughter and heart for God contagious. I had not yet seen her dance, but I felt sure if she could dance even a little,  she would be a great addition to the wonderful team of girls I lead.  My intuition was right, and she soon became a team favorite, always keeping everyone laughing, and her dancing was so elegant and strong.

Now, she and her husband Sean are expecting their first baby. I was so excited when she asked me to do her maternity photos. I knew it would be fun. Salena and Sean love style so much it is their baby girl’s middle name. So, of course, we couldn’t do a typical maternity shoot for this fashionista.

See if you agree!

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Annie and I had SO much fun shooting Cory and Cami’s engagement photos at Piedmont Park last weekend. Before the shoot, we did some dreaming about what they wanted to do and what they loved. Eventually, we landed on the whole idea of doing a vintage shoot. I was so excited as that was something I have really wanting to try.  It was something we did at Love Affair this last fall. ( wow did I LOVE that workshop!) I had been wanting to try some new things but hadn’t had any real takers with my couples. Then came Cory and Cami! I love this couple! They are so fun and enjoy each other and life so much. This is part of what makes my life so enjoyable. Working with wonderful people who so openly and comfortably love one another.

I never had to pose them. We just gave them a few props and let them go. They did  the rest.

I pray many blessings on this beautiful and sweet couple and am so thankful I get to shoot their upcoming wedding in March.

Enjoy their sweet pictures~

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In the past month I have sent two daughters away to far away countries. First, Annie to Africa for a mission trip, and now Katie to Spain to study abroad for three months.

It feels like my heart has been pulled from my body. Hmm, maybe pulled isn’t the right verb. What is the right verb? Maybe the verb you would use to describe when removing gum from your shoe, or Silly Putty from the carpet. Ripped. Yeah, that’s better. Webster describes ripped as “an act of tearing something forcibly.” Other synonyms are “tear, wrench, wrest, pull, snatch, tug, pry,heave, drag, peel, pluck; informal yank.” Yes, that is it. Ripped. I think you get it. The feeling is very physical, and unsolicited.

These are the passages that  I have heard other mothers talk about. Letting your kids go, after years of, holding them close,  buying prom dresses, listening to them and stroking their hair, crying with them, praying over them in their beds, reading to them at night, finger painting, baking and decorating cupcakes, wishing they would potty train already, helping them pull that first tooth, keeping fevers down, watching them sleep. Oh, it goes on and on, the things we mothers do, just because our hearts will not allow us to do anything else.

So odd to me, I don’t remember much about my life before I was a mother. I do remember I was one of those people. You know the ones who talk about other people who bring their kids into nice restaurants and let them fuss and cry. Can you believe it?  I , at the ripe old age of 20, didn’t even have kids on my radar, much less in my plans. When my very new husband and I conceived, I was 21 and he was 25. We were clueless as to what was about to happen to us.

Then, it happened. I am not sure when it started. Maybe, it was at the beginning, when I went on a walk one night and I felt God spoke to me about her, that she was a she, and that she was mine, before I even bought a test kit. I ran home and wrote her a poem. Then I called my husband who was away on a trip. (he nearly fainted. We had only been married a month). Or maybe  it was when she would get the hiccups during my pregnancy, and I instinctively  placed my hand on my belly to comfort her. Maybe it was the vulnerability I felt mingled with fierce protection in the middle of the night.

I think it was most definitely the moment I first saw her black hair after hours of the worst pain I have ever known. Everything else in the room when into shadow as I saw that baby girl for the first time. Chris still likes to quote my first words before they even had her cleaned up, motioning his arms and mimicking me as he quotes me,  ” Give me my baby!”. When they laid her on my chest, I was at peace, and I knew we were meant to be together.

A new vulnerability crept in though, as I realized I could no longer keep her safe in my womb. There was a whole world out there that could hurt her, make her sick, or worst of all, take her away. These feelings were very real.  A good friend gave me a card at that time that said exactly how I felt. ” Having a child is like having your heart walk around outside your body”. Nothing could have expressed it better.

I realize now, that when I became a mom, God gave me some of His best qualities, and let me experience in the most intimate way a huge part of  who He is. As a mom I could now relate to a God who is fiercely protective, tender beyond expression, and doesn’t mind giving up His best for His children. He stays with us through the night, listens to us, hurts for us and with us, and thankfully better than our earthly mothers, He is with us always and can heal us completely.

I would not trade this journey into motherhood for anything, even with all the pain I have known along the way, and for the pain I am experiencing now. In fact, I highly recommend it. As I close out this blog, I am reminded of one of my favorite scriptures from Isaiah.

“But Zion said, ‘ The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.’ Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne?  Though she may forget, I will not forget you!  See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me.” ~ Isaiah 49 :14-16

Enjoy the photos from some of our most recent moments with our family and Katie girl.

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This is a leaving face.  You know the one. It says, ” I am sorry this is hard for you, I really am. I am doing my best to be sorry. However,  I am so excited about going on this trip that I am about to explode, so take the picture quick. I can only hold this pitiful face for so long.”

This is my Annie right before she left with several others from the Water’s Edge Missions Team for Liberia.

I have known about this trip for months, and have had an unsteady feeling in my legs, as if the earth were about to move. Africa, after all, is on the other side of the world. If not technically, it is to a mother’s heart. A little over a week ago, they each invited a person to come  to their regular prayer time to pray for each of them specifically. Annie chose me. I felt honored, because I knew she didn’t do it just because I am her mom. She knows and trusts that I will pray for her and her team. As we prayed, I felt convicted to repent of holding her too closely, and not wanting to share her with the world. As tears streamed down my cheeks, I opened my hands to signify letting her go, and I asked God to forgive me for holding on to my Annie bird, and gave her permission to fly. We have often called her Annie bird, and it seems so fitting now, as she literally is now flying around the world to touch other lands and faces. How I love my Annie bird. I have tried my best as a momma to entrust her to the One who loves her the most. My Father who sees all and knows all. I am so thankful He is also the One who is able to help her in her time of need, even when momma bird is still at home singing prayers to Him.

There is something else. The day she left, I had a strange sensation. I felt that God was opening her world to her like He never has before. This is not so strange in and of itself, but I also felt that He was opening MY world through Annie’s journey. Like she was taking steps that would lessen the chasm from here to distant lands for me as well. My daughter was paving a way for me too somehow. I cannot explain it, but I am grateful for it. She is preparing the way for many, and I am one of them.

Before they left, they tied colorful ribbon around all their luggage. Some of the parents put some on their wrists to help them remember to pray. ( As if we need reminders). Danielle, one of the team leaders, put one on my camera strap. That was a good place.

Here are some more photos of the team before they left. Looking forward to the fruit that will come from their journey!

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Every year for some time now I have been going out to my good friends Keith and Kelly Anderson’s farm to photograph their beautiful boys. I love it. When you see the images below you will know why. They are so full of life, and we always have fun running around her farm from place to place laughing and giggling.  I can’t help laughing listening to them talk to one another, drop right on the spot and wrestle in the mud, chase chickens, and sometimes, I get them feeling pensive. The youngest, Ethan, is an old soul. He is the most like his mommy, I think. I can usually catch him standing with his hands in his pockets thinking about something important, I am sure. He is a love bug too, and I could just squeeze and kiss him all day. The middle one, Jonathan, comes up with the most amazing things to say. When I told him I couldn’t go with them to see Santa that night, he quipped ” it is such a hateful world”. I laughed about that all the way home with my Johnny, who assisted me on the shoot. Their oldest, Jack, is so funny too. He also comes out with hilarious things that sound like they came from a twenty-something man. All of them, amazing, and adorable.

Their mom, Kelly, is one of my dearest friends. She is wonderful through and through. She is a veterinarian, and therefore an instant hero for me. I always wanted to be one when I was a kid, but lacked the chemistry grades in high school.  She has both beauty and brains. You can’t beat it. There is always a potpourri of different animals and rescues at her place. She has a heart of gold and the animals always seem to find her. I am always at home there myself. It is a good place to be.

Enjoy the beautiful Anderson boys.~

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If you follow my blog at all, you know I have two lovely daughters. It’s true. I don’t mind saying it. In fact, when I was pregnant with my second one, I was concerned about them comparing themselves to one another. So, I prayed. I asked God to allow my second to be equally as beautiful as her sister, but in her own unique way. Wow, did He answer my prayer. Katie’s features are dark and dramatic and Annie’s features are  fair and classic. Both beautiful. Both unique. Best of all, who they are outshines their physical beauty. Both of them care for people deeply and love their God. This they have in common.

The shoots below were  done on the same day, with the same roll of  hay in my pasture. You can see how different they are in these shoots. I let them choose their costumes (with a little artistic direction from me) and who they are shines through.  Annie will be heading to Liberia December 27th with the Water’s Edge Mission Team. Please pray for them  if you think about them. You can read about their adventures on that blog. Katie will be headed to Valencia, Spain, in January to study abroad. Please pray for her as well. Also, pray for this mother’s heart! I don’t know what I am going to do with myself. I am such a mom.

Johnny hid from my lens on this day, but hopefully I will capture him soon and post something on my boy in the near future!

Blessings~

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Jasmine and Jeremy were married on a beautiful Fall day this November.  I think it was God’s way of blowing them a kiss, giving them a kaleidoscope of colors in the trees and sweet sunshine.  They agreed to see one another before the ceremony and were able to share some sweet moments before all the busy plans of the day began. They truly are made for one another and it was such a blessing to photograph them in their joy as they made their vows and gave sweet kisses to one another.

Blessings, Mr. and Mrs. Curtis. May your life together be full of laughter, love and hope for the days ahead.

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We had so much fun shooting the Riley Family last week when the Sugar Maples were at their glorious peak in the season. Looks like fairy princesses were at their peak as well, as we stumbled upon a beautiful one with a lolliop as twilight began to settle in. What a beautiful day for a family shoot. I think they will have some wonderful memories from this season in their lives together as a family when they look at these photos.

Thanks for trusting me with your magical memories, Riley Family. Much Love!

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