Look how amazing these two are together! Tara and Tommy met me at my little farm, Creekview Farm, for their engagement session! We had such a fabulous time in the unreal warmth we were blessed with! I met Tara through her mother, Kathy. Kathy is an exceptional painter and wall paper hanger! We hired Kathy to paint the interior of our home when I was pregnant with Olivia, over four years ago! When Kathy found out I was a photographer she brought her granddaughter, Bella, to my annual Santa mini sessions. Her session was ADORABLE! I remember during her session she had on the cutest little pj’s and she was so excited to meet Santa! The very next year, Kathy brought along her entire crew for Santa sessions and I got to meet Tommy, Tara, their daughter Remi, Bella, Amelia, Amelia’s momma, Vaneta and Bella’s daddy, David. They are the most fabulous blended family and I loved photographing them ALL!
So, now that you know how I got to meet Tara and Tommy, let me tell you about how they met each other! Waaaaay back in eighth grade, Tara was the “new girl” at her elementary school. Tommy was the “cool guy” that hung out with a crew that he had known most all his life. While they both attended the same school, they didn’t really get to know each other until their Junior year of high school! Tommy would walk Tara to her 6th period class every day. They never dated but remained friends.
Tara ended up moving to a different high school for her senior year and once Tommy graduated he became a soldier in the U.S. Army. After two tours, Afghanistan and Iraq, a big move to New York and several huge life changing events, Tommy found himself on this new site called Facebook! As he was navigating through, finding old friends, he sent Tara a message, “Hey, we went to school together, right?”
Back in Georgia, Tara had just put her sweet daughter, Bella, to bed and was looking forward to some quiet time. As she pulled up her Facebook page, there it was! Tara was one click away from falling in love with her future husband! They chatted through messages for months and got to know each other all over again!
One day Tommy sent Tara a message letting her know he was moving back home to Georgia! Tara felt a rush of excitement and butterflies! It had been years since they had seen each other in person! After Tommy moved back it didn’t take long before they were dating and falling in love! Tommy accepted Bella, Tara’s daughter, and loved her like she was his own. The two moved in together and got the surprise of a lifetime - they were pregnant! Although they were scared, they were also very excited!
Just last year, on Super Bowl Sunday, while our Atlanta Falcons were doing their best to beat the Patriots, the halftime show was on and Lady Gaga was doing her thing! Tara was totally stoked and glued to the TV watching her performance when all of the sudden the TV gets muted and a different song replaces Lady Gaga! Jason Derulo, Marry Me starts playing and Tommy walks into the room. Shaking, he kneels in front of Tara and he asks her to marry him!!! Her response, “YES, YES, YES!!!”
As Tara put it, “We go together like peas and carrots. Okay, I wasn’t a fan of that combo growing up - let me try this one more time, we go together like sweet peas and mashed potatoes!”
