I will be offering a free cake smash session to the top two, Maguire and Cotes, since they both received more than 60 votes! Maguire now lives in Greenville, but I know his family is eager to return to Charleston for a visit. Cotes is more of a local boy — he lives in my neighborhood, so we may arrange his session a little sooner.

Late Entry Maguire Makes Major Comeback!

I’d also like to offer 50% off my session fee to the families of the other eight contestants. I hope some of you will take advantage because I would love to get my lens on your kids and families, too. The discount is good for either a regular family/children session or a cake smash session for the baby.

Thank you again to each of you who tirelessly campaigned and made my first giveaway a huge success! Stay tuned for pics of your fave babies… and kids, and brides, and scenic spots.

Join the fun by becoming a fan on my Facebook page. Then vote for your favorites by leaving a comment beneath the faces you think will look the cutest smothered in frosting. Votes accepted through March 7; winner to be announced Monday, March 8.

Let Them Eat Cake

The rain is forecasted to roll in tomorrow, so this was the perfect way to round out the weekend with more outdoor fun. As I pedaled along, grateful to be living near the sea, I shamelessly admit I became slightly annoyed by a few things.

Love the One You're With (even if it's just the iPhone cam)

Anyway, none of those petty grievances could encroach on my joy for long. Perhaps the only real bummer of biking along on such a fantastic day is that I witnessed some great would-be photos and I was camera-free. First, I glimpsed two adorable stringy-haired girls – one blonde, one brunette – hanging out in their soccer duds. Two giggly pals parked in the grass with their pink soccer ball next to a red fire hydrant. Carefree girliness personified.

Next, I almost ran over a group of birds by Fort Moultrie. I’ve had no success sneaking up on these long-beaked birds on the beach or in a boat, and here they were marching across the street from Stella Maris as if they’d realized a communion wafer was no substitute for a Sunday lunch. Make way for oystercatchers!

And finally, a vision that the men would surely appreciate. Seems I wasn’t the only one with spring fever. A group of superfit bikini-clad women was playing volleyball on a sand court in an Isle of Palms sideyard. My bare legs were frozen after pedaling into the chilly headwind, and these gals were just rockin’ their fit summer Olympian frames in a vision that screamed July.

Hmmm, there’s an idea. July. Bring it on!

So what photo-worthy visions have you seen lately? Please share your comments by clicking the link above by the title of this post.

Okay, each bundle o’ joy is The Most Precious to a bunch of people, so I’ll leave the choice to you. If you know someone whose child will be celebrating his or her first birthday between April and July, encourage the parent to e-mail a snapshot to me with the child’s name and birthday.

I’ll be accepting submissions until the end of February, then I’ll post them to my Facebook business page. You, your friends and your family members vote by making a comment on your favorite baby face. Anyone who “becomes a fan” of my Facebook business page is eligible to vote. Easy, peasy!

The winner will receive a free cake smash session valued at $100, plus a free cake to enjoy as a snack or use as body paint or shampoo. If we schedule the Charleston session a few weeks prior to the birthday, the winner can order invitations, stamps or thank-you notes with the photo. (Rest assured, there’s no obligation — I’m just eager to fill a b-day babe gap in my portfolio.)

Red rover, red rover, send those gorgeous babes on over! For questions or comments, click the handy “Leave a Comment” link above (by the title of this post).

Swept Off Her Feet

If you try this at home (which is encouraged), it’s pretty amusing to limit your one-time-bride friends to those whose weddings you didn’t attend. You can learn so much about a gal’s Aisle Style! (That clever phrase is credited to the current Charleston Museum exhibit of the same name.)

We laughed lots and learned plenty. One friend has a hubby whose middle name is an homage to his mom’s fave “Gone With the Wind” character. Another pal broke out a portrait of her dog sporting a bow tie. And a few 90′s veterans of wedded bliss kept us in stitches with their big hair and bigger crinolines. And with the Vancouver Olympics just a week away, the mothers of brides’ spangly gowns provided a timely reminder of the costumes we’ll see during the heated battle for the Ice Dancing gold.

Trust me, this themed gathering will have you giggling until spring finally appears. And remember, friends who don any portion of their bridal attire earn bonus chocolate-dipped berries!

Berry, berry good stuff

Sweet Cid Donned Her Gown for the Fun

Heart-y Laughs Were Plentiful

Care to comment? Share a funny wedding moment? Happy February!

New Friend at Middleton Plantation

Sorry my blog hasn’t been updated in a while. The Christmas season was so busy with sessions and card creation, and I couldn’t really give sneak peeks since I didn’t want to ruin anyone’s card surprise. Then with vacation and teacher workdays and sniffly season, I’ve been working on getting the new site going while minding the munchkins.

Anyway, please visit CarolinaPhotosmith.com and let me know what you think! I still have some tweaks to make and images to add (I can think of a few that are being held hostage on my old PC — just need to get to courage to wrestle that machine), but it’s ready for the most part.

And I’m eager to get out and about and start shooting fun-loving families and any signs of an early spring. I’ll have no problem bidding farewell to this frigid month!