It's MY day!

Or, at least it was 4 years ago today! Luckily, my wedding day didn't start out like today...me getting up at 2:30am to clean up Noah's vomit from his bunk bed, down the wall, and the floor. Yeah, pretty disgusting. Anyway, back to 4 years ago. I've been part of many many weddings, and I hope you'll indulge me a bit as I reminisce about my wedding 4 years ago. If you keep reading, though, I will make this post useful and share what I liked, and what I would have done differently at my wedding.

Btw, I'm posting these without photo credit because the photographer who took them is no longer in business.

Me and my two best friends. I loved that I had a pocket in my dress. I kept my lip gloss and a handkerchief in it.





Noah (who was 4 1/2 at the time), and my dad...Sadly, this is the only shot of the reception area that I have...


Spencer's only two requests about my get-up was that I have long gloves and a choker. :)



Spencer watching me walk down the aisle. My officiant, Rev. Marcie Brewer-McDonald (loved her!)


Noah walked me down the aisle, which I thought added a personal touch to my wedding...


My favorite shot of the day. That's how I remember him looking at me during the ceremony, and so I always try to get that shot in the weddings I shoot.


Since the photog didn't get any ceremony pics in color, here's one that my BM's boyfriend took...



He also took this one...


Spencer and his brother...



Me and my girls...



Hamming it up for the camera. (the post-processing (PP) was something I did in Photoshop just now)...


I asked the photog to use some infrared film. I love this shot, especially the clouds!


The second shooter got this one (my PP again). The photog didn't get any shots of us or the ceremony in color...



I had a boa at the ceremony. It was a big hit, and was passed around throughout the night.




The second shooter's shot...


The only candid dancing shot, but I love it (my mom and her dad, my Papa)...


Thank you for going down memory lane with me! Now, here's some hopefully helpful tips for you.

Things I did that I was happy about (besides marrying a wonderful man, of course!):

-I hired a professional photographer! (I'm not just saying that because I'm a photographer, but I know I would have been disappointed if I had just relied on guests for pictures)

-The ceremony and reception were at the same location, AND, we didn't have to do any of the set-up or clean-up. This reduced sooo much stress for everybody, and made it so we could just relax and enjoy the day. The place also included the food and cake, which was nice. If you do have multiple locations, then delegate, delegate, delegate!

-I kept the guest list to a manageable number. I know how the guest list can go from an intimate 50, to a huge 300 really quickly, but it was nice to be able to talk with just about everyone, and still enjoy being with my new husband. On the flip side, more guests = more gifts! :)

-I spent the money for someone to do my hair and makeup. If you're great at hair and makeup, then go ahead and do it yourself, but if you're like me, and pretty much suck at doing your own, then don't feel guilty about spending the money on professionals. It was so much fun going to the salon and having that stuff done with my girls. Plus, doing that keeps your schedule on track. Usually when people do their own, it takes so much longer than they think, then things run behind, and people get stressed.

-I hired a DJ. So many people overlook this important vendor. The DJ coordinates the reception, and makes sure everything runs smoothly, but most importantly, everyone has a good time. He also did the ceremony music, which was way better than just us turning on a CD player or something. Hiring a band is a great idea, too, though. Just make sure someone else can coordinate the reception schedule.

-I added some personal touches to my wedding: Noah walking me down the aisle, the boa, we got really creative with our music choices, too. The 13th was also significant to us. I wish I would have done more, but the wedding was the weekend after my finals week, so I guess I shouldn't get down on myself about that.

-I had fun with the camera. I am not the easiest person to take pictures of, but I wasn't afraid to show my emotions, or play to the camera. Photographers can try and bring that spark out of you, but you have to be willing to have a little fun...if you don't show it (emotion, happiness, etc), then the photographer can't capture it! However, you do need to find a photographer you feel comfortable enough to do this with.

-I didn't have a train. Trains can be a lot of fun (for the photographer, mostly), but they usually stress brides out, and it was really nice not to have to worry about carrying it around, or bustling it. If you do have a train that needs a bustle, then teach at least two people how to do it before the wedding.

-I ate! I made sure I got a snack before getting to the ceremony location (we stopped off at Safeway, and I got some deli meat). Even if you don't feel hungry, try to eat a little something so you stay in a good mood through the stress.

-We had breakfast with my family that came from out of town the morning after the wedding, before they went to the airport. It was a nice chance to relax and see them one more time before they left (I don't get to see my grandparents and aunts and uncles that often, unfortunately).

I'm running out of time (this post took forever!), so I'm going to quickly list the things I would have done differently, but plan on making future wedding tips blog posts.

-I wish I would have done what I really wanted to do. I'm too accommodating sometimes, and then I end up feeling disappointed. For example, the girls' dresses were purple, and my flowers were purple, not because I even like purple, but because we found an inexpensive dress for one of my bridesmaids, so I changed my colors. I wish I would have told them just to buy a nice black dress. Something that would have been a nice accent, but also something they could have worn again, and then had the colors I really wanted for my flowers. It wasn't her fault at all, it was mine.

-Also, the place was beautiful, but the words "country," and, "estate," aren't really me. I wish I would have found a place that reflected my personality better. Granted, my mother-in-law originally wanted to have it in her living room, so at the time I felt the place that we got married at was a huge step up from that.

-Instead of a unity candle, I wish we would have poured different colored sand or wax beads into a vase.

-If I were to get married today, I would have hired a digital photographer. We didn't get any pics of us or the ceremony in color (at least not from the lead photog), which was really disappointing. Also, although the photographer captured a lot of good emotions, she didn't get as creative as I had hoped with the B&G shots. All of the compositions were the same, and the shots taken from the same angle, and the same spot.

Overall, it was a wonderful day, and I couldn't have been happier. I love looking at the pictures, and remembering how I felt that day. We were surrounded by our family and best friends, and everyone had a great time (we bought extra alcohol! lol). What's even better, is that even though we've gone through a lot of ups and downs through the years, I'm so much more in love with my husband today than I was 4 years ago, and am extremely happy I get to spend the rest of my life with him...but right now I just can't wait until he gets home from work, and we get to go to our favorite Japanese restaurant! hehe! :)

Thanks for hanging in there through this very long post. Have a great weekend!

~Jessica
Jessica Watson Photography