honestly, i didn't know what to expect when we drove down to oklahoma to participate in my sister-in-law's wedding. in jeremy and my mind's eye, we still saw anna as a 12-year-old; full of innocence and immaturity. but what we saw when we arrived was this young adult, smitten with her husband to be, full of self-personality and an aire of maturity about her.

for the first time, i actually saw her. her as an adult. her as a wife. her as an equal and as i looked at her through the lens of my camera, i saw her radiant beauty that permeated her being.

it was hard to focus without tearing up.

i mean i had seen anna grow up for the past 13 years. never had i seen her with a boyfriend-or even talk about boys for that matter- and when she called and told us about sean, whom we never met, it was hard for us at first. once we met him and saw them together, however, i knew it would be alright. that GOD would bless them in their marriage and that anna had indeed found her soulmate.so here's to anna. my sister-in-law. the beautiful bride. the great woman and a gem in my heart.

may GOD bless you always.