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December 10 = Jeremy D. Cherry proposed and I am to be the newest Mrs. Cherry in the family. It was more than a dream I could have ever dreamed and I can’t wait to marry my partner in crime. So..now I know you’re wondering, WHAT’S THE STORY!?

As I said above, I had planned on volunteering in the morning and then heading to lunch around noon. So, at noon, I left the help-portrait event and headed home. I called Jeremy on the way and we agreed to meet at my house and then go to lunch since Phil was still getting ready. So, I decide to call his sister Shannon on the way home and we chatted until I arrived. She never even let on that this was going to be a big day, she just told me to have a good time and lunch and to tell Phil and Jeremy she said hi. (This still makes me laugh that I’m soooo oblivious!)

Then, I slowly walk in the door and quickly I knew that I wasn’t going to lunch. (Cue: Start Crying) In the middle of my living room was the most beautiful bouquet of flowers I’d seen with a beautiful note from the one and only Jeremy Cherry. (See the images below)

So, of course I watched the video. 3 times. I was so happy and excited and full of tears that I just couldn’t comprehend it all. He was so excited in the video and you could just see him full of joy. (Little did I know that the day before he got up at 5:30 a.m. to film the video!) He was taking me on a scavenger hunt to Bicentennial park downtown. He told me to go to the “1796″ column and continued to show me the path to follow in the video.

I get in my car and start driving downtown….balling the entire way. I really am glad I’m new in town because it would have been an awful time to see anyone, as I couldn’t stop crying. I probably scared anyone I did see on the road!

I finally arrived at the park, but in my excitement went to the “1976″ column instead of the “1796.” But, the park cop found me as I was walking on the sidewalk and asked me if I was looking for anyone. I said “Yes, my boyfriend,” all the while still crying. He told me to go up further, since there was someone waiting for me. I got in my car and drove up a little and Mark from our small group was waiting with a sign pointing me where to go. But he wasn’t the only one…Renee, Ann-Christen and Joanna were all there with signs (on the pathway in the photos below) pointing me the way to go.

I stop to cry and hug everyone as I go. Then, I finally get up on the hill and look down into the beautiful ampitheater downtown where my future husband was waiting center stage for me.

I ran. I jumped….and I cried.

I’ll save the sappy details and keep it as a special moment for us, but Jeremy got down on one knee and said “Amy Nicole Gwaltney, will you marry me?”

(PS–This ring is his Granny’s ring from the 1940′s. It took months to be restored and it’s absolutely priceless. It’s beautiful, it’s perfect and I’m so incredibly honored!)

As soon as I said “YES!,” I hear kazoos and tambourines. It all didn’t make much sense but I looked to my right and saw Mr. and Mrs. Cherry. Then I saw my brother…then my Mom + Dad…and my roommate, and our dear friends Chris + Adrienne Scott. I was FLOORED. And you thought I cried enough earlier…..

He had arranged for my family and special friends to be there for our special moment to celebrate. We had our moment and then had the chance to share it with so many people we love.

It felt like it was all straight out of a movie. But really, it was SO much better.

We spent the rest of the day celebrating and making special calls…he even had planned an engagement party/dinner! Thank you so much to everyone who was there to celebrate with us. It meant the WORLD to us!

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Jeremy D. Cherry, let’s tie the knot! I’m so excited to be your wife. I’m the luckiest gal in the world.

So, I haven’t been blogging regularly. There’s really no excuse, but I’ve been working through a lot of redesign and new ideas for Amy Nicole Photography.

I’ve been trying to plan big and dream up big ideas.  I could divulge it all here, but I’d rather just save it all for a grand launch. So, stay tuned! Or, just ask me about it and I’ll be happy to tell you some ideas for the new direction in Amy Nicole Photography! Nothing too major, but some definite ideas that will be exciting to see!

Until then, I figured I’d give you some lunch break photos! I absolutely LOVE Christmas, and Jeremy Cherry can totally attest to this. Seriously, I have an addiction. All the celebration and decorations just makes me so very happy!

So, to kick off the season, Jeremy and I attented the first portion of Nashville’s annual Christmas parade. We didn’t get to see the entire parade, BUT we did get to see Vince Gill. And if you know me, I have a fondness for Mr. Gill. My mom grew me up on his music and I’ll always be a fan!

Here’s the beautiful Nashville Christmas tree!

After pinteresting (follow me here!) for months, days and hours, I finally decided to make my very own Christmas wreath. It was so easy to make and all you need is a coat hanger and some ornaments! You don’t really even need a glue gun unless the ornament toppers come loose.

In addition, I decided to go peppermint crazy and make a cute little accent for our Christmas flowers. I originally wanted to make a cute wall decoration…but I quickly realized that peppermints get quite heavy when they are all glued in one spot.

Next Christmas activity: “Christmas Vacation” and Christmas cookies!

Seriously?

It feels like it’s approaching quicker than I can handle. And dont’ get me wrong, I love the holidays more than anyone you know. (Jeremy even refers to me in the same sentence as 50-year old at heart who wants to make macaroni garland and christmas ornaments.) I can’t help it…..I just LOVE this time of year. And the reasonI said it’s coming quicker than I can handle is because I want to enjoy every. waking. moment!

I want to soak it in. Love as much as I can. Give as much as I can. Celebrate as much as I can. And celebrate what CHRISTMAS is really about!

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So…I wanted to blog today about something I truly believe in. A genuine, loving, worshipful Christmas.

Below is a link to a video put together by a group called Advent Conspiracy. Before I tell you what I think and go on with this post, I want you to pause and I want you to watch this video.

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$450 billion a year on Christmas. What would the baby King in the manger think of that?

This makes me so very sad. It hurts. Extremely deep down, it hurts. What have we done to the day we celebrate the birth of our SAVIOR?

I’m not calling anyone out, believe me, because I’ve always been a part of this. And, this group isn’t starting this campaign to say “stop spending money and stop giving gifts.” They created this video to get our attention!

Simply, we need to cut back. We need to run full force into what Christmas is about. The miracle of it, the love of it, the joy of it.

I don’t know about you, but I am making my gifts this year. I don’t want to spend money on a gift that someone’s not in love with. I want to give my time, I want to spend time with the people I love. I’ve never felt such a draw to simply relax with my family and friends until I moved away. What I’m going to treasure this year is the music, the joy, the celebration and the love of having family around me.

Isn’t that what it’s about? Because we always say it, we hear this lecture over…and over….and over…and over….but we STILL fall into this trap of spending tons of money  and time all the while filling our hearts and minds with stress.

If I do nothing else this Christmas, I’m going to get this idea through my head and enjoy the simplicity of worshiping and being joyful.

Will you join me?

And not only that…let me know you read this. I’m not looking for readers, I just want people to hear this. The message didn’t come from me by any means, but I just want to see that I’m not the only one out there that was moved by this. So, if you’re in, leave a comment and let me know what you think!

Anyway….besides the fact that it’s Friday, Griffin makes the end of the work week even sweeter with awesome meals. So today, I’m literally sharing a photo of my lunch. It’s thanksgiving next week and we celebrated accordingly:

But also, I want to share the toy I get to play with this weekend. A co-worker of mine was ever-so-kind to let me borrow this little Holga since I hadn’t ever used one. Sad, I know. But, it’ll be fun to see what I can come up with!

Anyway—Happy Friday! Enjoy the weekend!

For my birthday, she sent me the sweetest gift. And part of that gift was a skirt of hers that she’s graciously let me borrow for a little while. I ADORE this skirt. Every time she wore it, I would comment on it. Not only did she remember that, she sent it to me to enjoy for a little while…how cool is she?

Kelly is an intern for Reformed University Fellowship at TCU in Fort Worth right now. I miss her dearly, but I know she’s rockin’ those students’ socks off. They are so lucky to have her and I know she’s doing some awesome things for God down there. If you’re interested in hearing about her time at TCU, you can read her fun blog, “The Frog Blog,” here: http://kellylersch.tumblr.com/

Kelly, I’m so thankful for you! You treat me better than I deserve and you’re the best friend a gal could ask for. We’ll rock the south from Tennessee to Texas.

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The lighting’s pretty awful, but thanks to my awesome roomie, here’s a pic of me in Kelly’s awesome skirt!

I had the opportunity to photograph the Dubois family this past weekend at Radnor Lake. I was so thankful for some great light, but also for such a wonderful family! There’s no way you can look at this photo without smiling…there’s so much joy!

Here’s a sneak peek!

Doubt you’ll ever hear someone actually say that out loud. And to be honest, I don’t really mean it. I mean…who really likes Mondays?

The only part I like is, it’s always a fresh start. And I do feel refreshed today, so I can’t complain. Monday–sorry for the bad rep you always get.  You’re not really that bad.

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Just to warn you, this post is a little cheesy. But Mr.Jeremy Cherry deserves a HUGE shout-out. He’s seriously the best.

I had a rough week last week for a variety of reasons and we always meet at my house after work. Well, to my surprise, I showed up at home and he came walking to my car with these BEAUTIFUL flowers and white chocolate. Because white chocolate is the BEST.

Well done, Mr.Cherry. Well done. I think I’ll marry you someday.

I forgot my camera, so instead, I’m going to share an awesome photo essay by the one and only, Jeremy Cowart.
You all know he is my favorite photographer. And once you see these photos, you’ll be reminded why.

He’s passionate + real. Jeremy takes photos of those who deserve it most and tells their story. Way to be a real artist jeremy.

See all of the images here: http://cnnphotos.blogs.cnn.com/2011/11/07/‘love-is-the-weapon-that-destroys-all-evil’/

So, this post isn’t very artsy today. Pretty much the opposite actually.

I’m not posting this to brag, because quite frankly, this little guy has been quite a love/hate relationship for the last month. I love the car….I just hate dealing with Nissan.

I’m not going to go into details. But, there was A LOT of miscommunication that made the car buying process even worse than it already is.

I’m on my third temp tag, if that isn’t enough explanation for you.

But, beyond the struggle with Nissan, I’m learning to love this car. The day my ’98 Bonneville died was a very sad one indeed….I LOVED that car. Seriously. It fit a family and got great gas mileage believe it or not.

But, without further ado, meet Vince.

This guy is my ride from now on. And he’s not too bad. He’s got a good amount of room for a compact and his bluetooth allows me to talk handsfree. I’m not liking the car payment, but I’m LOVING that when I turn the key…I know Vince will start right up and get me on my merry way.

Way to go Vince….let’s do this.