While in North Carolina earlier this week for Zach and Meredith’s wedding I visited Moore’s Creek National Battlefield Park. My Great, Great, Great, Great, Great Grandfather, Zachariah Harman, fought against the Loyalists at this battle under the command of Patriot officer, Richard Caswell.

For you history buffs, the battle of Moore’s Creek Bridge was a major victory for the Patriots and led to the end of British rule in North Carolina forever. I’m proud to say my direct ancestor fought to establish the freedom that we so often take for granted today. He fought for America before it was America, and for that I’m thankful.

The following two images show the reconstructed earthen mounds that the Patriots constructed late into the night/early morning just before the battle.

This is the reconstructed bridge over the creek. Its said that the Patriots removed the planking and also greased down the support railings making it difficult to cross for the unfortunate Loyalists.

The creek was so peaceful the day I was there. Must have been quite the opposite then, seeing the bodies of dead Loyalists floating in the creek after the smoke cleared.

Loved this monument under the big oak. The National Parks Service says, “The Heroic Women’s Monument at Moores Creek National Battlefield is believed to be the only monument in America to 18th century women and their sacrifices during the American Revolution.”

We were blessed with the most gorgeous Hawaii morning, but I suppose every morning in Hawaii is gorgeous!

These two were soo much fun to photograph!

found this row of kayaks and *had* to use them for some shots…

Hopefully I’ll get around to posting more from the trip soon!

Chicago is such a beautiful city. I don’t think I’d want to be there in the winter, but the spring sure was nice. Here is a view of the river with the train passing by and all the amazing buildings.

the city seal…

Kurt and I of course had to go to the top of the Sears tower….

Kurt under one of the train lines.

Factoid: Chicago is the only city in North America in which 6 Class 1 railroads meet.

Lastly, a shot of my good friend Jake who was in town for the wedding in front of none other than Gino’s East. This was my first time having Chicago deep dish pizza and it was fantabulous.

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This first shot is of Evie’s locket she wore the day of the wedding. Inside is a picture of her Dad who passed away a few years back. Evie’s aunt is holding it open so I can get the shot.

some of Evie’s creativeness…notice JD’s wooden ring!

Evie with her brother just as the doors to the chapel were opening…

lastly, a shot of Evie and JD just after being pronounced husband and wife! I’m not sure they could look any happier. These shots are often some of my favorite.

As some of you may know, I’ve recently returned hone from a trip to Shanghai, China with the staff of the Clark Howard radio show. My good friend Joel works for Clark and invited me along. I had such an incredible time. I think I could spend a full year or more in Shanghai and still not take it all in. Despite my camera breaking (shutter went out) while on the trip I was still able to get some stellar images. Thankfully, Joel had his Nikon D50 that I used for most of the trip, so I was still able to use my lenses. For you photographers out there…once again, its not about the gear. Fact: for the first full year I was in business I shot with a Nikon D70. Now…onto the images…

This first image may be my favorite from the trip. We were in town during the Chinese New Year and witnessed some amazing stuff. This celebration was insane. Special thanks to my friend and colleague Hassel Weems for lending me his fish eye lens.

some scenery mostly from the old town area I believe…

taking the ferry across the river…

a few ‘people on the street’ shots…

my favorite dumpling place…it was seriously seriously good…and super cheap!

workers making the dumplings right out front…

a street food vendor..there were tons of these places…

Joel in one of the many metro stations. The Shanghai metro was very clean and way easy to use.

couple shots of Clark around town…

a view of the city from the 38th floor of our hotel…

Be sure to check out the slide show for lots more! Be on the look out for my next post with highlights from Ross and Amber’s wedding.

A few examples of God’s creativeness…

Bethany took this one and is very proud of it!

Bethany enjoying the view…

Here are a few shots of our trip to Cabo which we were able to do for cheap (thanks Dale and Kathy). The beautiful lady in the pictures is my wife, Bethany.

The image above is the view outside our room.

This is land’s end. Its what separates the Sea of Cortez from the Pacific.

On our balcony…

Bethany at the Marina…

The Pacifica…an amazing resort next to ours….

another shot of us on the balcony…