No post is complete without a photo,  so here’s one of our Lilly enjoying some of her Christmas presents!

To see the full set – please visit this gallery: http://photos.christopherwrenphoto.com/Engagements/Nancy-and-Iyad/

After the shoot, we went back to her parents’ house and they had a rockin’ “engagement blessing” party. This thing rivaled most weddings! It’s a Jordanian tradition that was a pleasure to attend.

The food was nothing to complain about, either!

Contact me about your wedding – See my portfolio

Click below to see a 5 minute slideshow with music:

And on to some favorites. 50 of ‘em!

Contact me about your wedding – See my portfolio

Click below to see a 5 minute slideshow with music:

And on to some favorites. 50 of ‘em!

Free fresh fruit! Both decorative and practical.

I love sunsets. This one didn’t require a sunset-lover to appreciate it!

Their dance floor had no lack of participation like some “white people” weddings I have been to in my time. They got right down to business.

Table decorations – TO. DIE. FOR.

The vendors involved were:

• Venue – Strawberry Farms
• Dress and Veil – Ferndale Bridal
• Hair – Teresa Hill @ Helmet Salon
• Makeup – Janette Garcia
• Videography – Sager Productions
• Tuxes – Men’s Wearhouse
• Bridal Accessories – Royal Accessories
• Cake – Amazing Cakes
• DJ – Dance Syndicate
• Florist/Event Designer – Ellen Manalo (family friend – amazing!)

Another great barn wedding. Went off without a hitch, I had a great time!

Contact Christopher Wren – See our portfolio

We headed out to a 4th of July BBQ and fireworks show at a local winery and had a blast.  Pun intended.

Contact Christopher Wren – See our portfolio

We arrived at St. Joseph Hospital in Orange at 6:30 AM for an 8:30 AM C-section. We were having a C-section because our baby was breech, and one leg was up and one leg was down. A Karate Kid crane kick, if you will. We learned that one of the risks with this kind of pregnancy is that the baby can have hip and/or neck problems, something we had been praying God would allow her not to have.

We arrived on time, and Masha was fitted for all the connections she would need to get her lower half numbed and the baby removed.  We have been waiting for this day, with smiles on our faces. Our doctor, Dr. Linzey, was amazing. He is like a father to every patient, and really knows what he is doing. They got the spinal block put in while I waited outside, and by the time I was invited in, they had just begun to make the incision. I knew it would be bloody, but I watch CSI in multiple cities, so I’m used to it. Once all the incisions were made, the doctor reached in, and grabbed a foot! As he carefully puled her out, Lillian began to appear, and she was peeing and pooping as her rear was coming into view. Pretty soon, he had the whole baby out, and we all cried tears of joy.

She was cleaned up, weighed in at 7 lbs 1 oz., and measured to be 20″ tall.

The pediatrician confirmed her neck and hips (and everything else!) were in perfect shape. We praised God for that!

Much like on a wedding day, that first look is such a powerful moment. Here is Masha’s reaction to seeing Lillian for the very first time.

Our first family portrait!

Here is our proud doctor. He was genuinely excited to meet our daughter during the weeks leading up to this glorious event.

Our nurse Liz was so supportive, and they gave us 2 hours of time alone with the baby right after the surgery. That’s part of the new “baby-friendly” method many hospitals are using to encourage bonding with the parents.

At around noon, my family was finally allowed to see her, and they were all so overjoyed that everything went well and that our daughter was so darn cute!

Here she is in the hospital room not enjoying the feeling of air against her skin.

Her first bath.

First nap.

I love watching her try to soak in the real world.

My sister Pam made these spunky onesies for us with iron-on prints!

Proud grandpat.

This is my favorite shot of her so far. I used my Canon 35mm F1.4L the whole day, and I don’t think there’s a better lens than that!

Mom and baby were both exhausted.

Our friend Matt made us these letters for her nursery. They even adorned the hospital room for a day, everyone was so impressed.

She passed her hearing test, which is important if she is going to learn the piano by age 2.

On Saturday morning, we were discharged (honorably) from the hospital. We couldn’t be happier with all the care from the doctors and nurses at St. Joe’s. We highly recommend them!  Once we got home, we gave Lillian a tour and introduced her to our chihuahua Jasmine. We got out one of Masha’s baby books and put it on the bed. The photo on the left is Masha at 1 month. Striking resemblance?

A few days later, she got to take a short trip in the car! She loves her new car seat.

She has been recently supporting her head with a closed fist, which is super cute and I’m sure she’ll be a supermodel someday.

Other than that, she loves to sleep. Especially during the day, she’s some kind of vampire I think.

I want to remember all these little details…

She came out with this amazing hair!

So that’s been our life for the past 13 days! We are so thankful to everyone for all their support, gifts, meals, visits, and prayers.

• Ceremony – First Christian Church of North Hollywood
• Reception – The Globe Theater at Universal Studios
• Coordinating - Mimi Events
• Floral Design – Rhonda Burton Designs
• Video – Cinevent Productions
• Assistant Photographers - Sarah Barnes and Kristine Ko

Click below to see a 5 minute slideshow with music:

And on to some favorites.  This was tough to narrow down!

I have a thing for “bride in transit” shots.

Their first look – truly memorable.

You guys look amazing!

Look at those eyes – they remind me of a disney princess.

That’s a good-looking group!

This church is used all the time in TV shows and movies.  I caught in a sitcom just this past week!

A proud moment for dad.  Since I’ll have a daughter soon, this is something I can hopefully take part in someday!

The reception was held inside Universal Studios, at the Globe Theater.  They had a red carpet entrance and an incredible ballroom.

Look familiar?  It’s Melissa and Walt!

We snuck out of dinner for a 10-minute sunset session. I highly recommend this if the schedule allows!

Themed wedding favors… very classy.

With a red-carpet-streamer-popper-assault grand exit, no less.

What an elegant and stylish wedding this was. Thanks to all involved, it really was a great day.

Contact Christopher Wren – See our portfolio

• First footwashing in the ceremony
• First powerpoint during a toast (Father of the bride was a teacher)
• First encounter with the police (don’t worry, this ended well!)
• First ceremony where the bridal party (except the best man and maid of honor) got to sit down during the sermon.  They brought ‘em back up for the last few minutes of the ceremony.

Click below to see a 5 minute slideshow:

I love the clear heels

Their first look was truly amazing. I think I teared up a little!

Just about every bridesmaid is crying here. Classic.

The footwashing was a really nice touch.

Seriously beatiful!

Turns out the previous photo should have cost a $500 fine! This cop let us off since it was her wedding day.

He carried her like this over about 150 feet of dirt. Stud!

Breathtaking bride.

My favorite of the day.

I will definitely be submitting this one to a few bridal magazines.

Here’s the PowerPoint I was talking about. It was hilarious!

They rode off into the night on their beach cruisers with bubbles behind them.

Book Christopher Wren for your wedding – See Christopher’s portfolio