It’s finally Friday!! Hope you made it through the week and through Valentine’s day.  I’ve got a really special treat for you today.

With my first wedding of the year going down tomorrow, I thought this post was poignant.  There’s been several occasions when I’ve been asked about my wedding-morning routine.  It’s nothing too revolutionary, but I do believe it gives you a glimpse into who I am and the way I prepare for your wedding day.

Thanks to the mad skills of Miss Heidi Leigh, we were able to document the pre-wedding routine of my and Jesie’s last wedding together in 2012. You’re my girl, Heidi!  Thank you so much for your time and talent!!  These images will be forever treasured for so many reasons that I look forward to sharing with all of you soon.

So let’s get started!

6:30am – Arise!

After a wake-up shower, my day definitely starts with several cups of freshly ground, French-roasted coffee brewed by my Krups coffee maker.  Oh how I love that thing.  A little sugar in the raw and a splash of organic half-n-half is the secret to a smooth morning.  I’ll usually prep my coffee the night before, set an alarm for it to brew while I’m in the shower.  Then, by the time I get out it’s breathed and ready to be consumed. :-) Knowing there’s coffee waiting for me in the morning is a good motivator to not hit the snooze.  I almost always drink out of my large R cup from Anthropologie so I don’t have to run downstairs as often for refills. :-)

7:00am

Obviously, the majority of any woman’s morning routine  happens at the vanity.  This is a little piece that my sister gave me that sits on my vanity.  I really do try to read it as often as I can.  If God is love, I like putting in His name in these verses: God is patient, God is kind.  He does not envy…  And if I’m supposed to emulate Him, I try to put my name in those verses: René is not self seeking.  She is not easily angered.  René keeps no record of wrongs.

I do this often in the morning as I fix my hair and think about my sweet John.  Or anyone else I need to love a little better.

If you’ve ever spent much time in my home (or on my Favorite Things section of the web site), you’ll know I’m a bit of an Origins snob. Lotions, soap, and especially skin care products.  I’ve had a heck of a time getting my crazy adult acne in sync with the rest of my skin, but thanks to Origins, and a little Rx, it stays clear.

It’s really important to me to layer on the SPF 35 Brighter by Nature moisturizer, especially if the wedding is outside.  I’ll throw a bottle of SPF in my bag for my arms for those hot July, outdoor weddings, but this is what I use on my face.  And Lord knows I need a little GinZing to brighten up those deep set eyes of mine.

I let those creams do their work while I go to work on my mane.

More often than not, I’ll have a few pre-wedding jitters.  A little Fernando Ortega on the iTunes is a must for me.  Once in a while, if it’s not too early and I’ve had time to sleep in and plenty of time to get ready, I’m feelin’ pretty good and throw on some dance mixes and jam.  Just depends on my mood. But if it’s an early start to the day, the calming words and music of Fernando is what this introvert needs to focus and charge up for the day ahead.

You want to talk about morning routines, this is it.  Everyday.  I can’t walk into that bathroom without Calvin jumping up for a fresh drink of water. It’s not like he doesn’t get fresh bowl of water on a daily basis.

Regular occurrence. We are BFFs for sure.

The first priority is coffee, then hair and make-up, then breakfast.
I can always eat on my way to the wedding, but I can’t blow dry my hair in my car. :)

8:00am

Treats!! Gotta give him a little extra something to make up for being gone all day.

If you aren’t a cat person, perhaps it’s because you’ve never had one who’s as awesome as mine.  He is the coolest little guy ever. :-)

I’m usually pretty good about doing all my wedding day prep work on Friday morning, so I can chill on Friday night and Saturday morning.   However, the morning of the wedding, I always do a quick check of the road and traffic conditions.

Having breakfast like a normal person and not rushing out of the house is very important for me.  I’m an introvert.  I need my time to myself in order to feel like myself.  Rushing out of the house and skipping breakfast not only puts me in a rushed, anxious mood for the rest of the morning, and possibly day, but it’s also the most important meal of the day.  And even if I’m not that hungry, I still try to eat a big breakfast that will sustain me until I get to eat again — which on a wedding day, lunch isn’t always guaranteed.  I never go into a wedding assuming I’ll be fed lunch or there will be time to grab lunch. (Plus eating breakfast after all that coffee eliminates a shaky hand when shooting details. :-)

This particular day’s breakfast of champions consisted of over-medium eggs, toast, Greek yogurt, and Green Goodness juice.  If you haven’t tried Green Goodness juice you are missing out on like 1,234,908 fruits and veggies and other crazy things I can’t pronounce, but know are good for me.

Speaking of the unpredictability of lunchtime, I always throw a few of these in my bag.  And let me tell you, when shooting a wedding you need to be totally focused on what in front of you and what’s going on around you, not the next time you’re going to feed that grumbling tummy.

That part about being a normal person in the morning and having time for myself?  Daily devos are huge piece of that.  For posterity’s sake, I try to answer a question a day in my daily Q&A book, also from Anthropologie. :-)

In addition to that, a little Jesus Calling is definitely part of my routine.  Often times, the devo for the day will totally touch on something I’m anxious about regarding the wedding day, so I’ll bring it along and share it with Jesie.

Over the years, Jes and I have developed such a good working dynamic.  Without asking, she always let’s me know when she’s leaving so I can plan accordingly: load the car, make her a to-go mug of coffee, and usually brush my teeth and get dressed.

I know photographers go back and forth on the all-black thing, and once in a while if it’s a more casual wedding, I’ll wear brown and olive green attire to match our brand, but I just really dig black.  It’s so sleek, classy, and professional.  No one said it had to be boring.  Accessorizing is key.

Multitasking.

My favorite rings: Tiffany Notes ring and my James Avery Ichthus ring that I wear everyday. I love that James Avery ring not only because of what it represents, but the way it represents my faith: subtly that makes people think. :-) It stays on my right ring finger and is prominent when the camera’s up to my face.

Ah!  How totally lost I feel without my watch on a wedding day.  I hate using my cell phone to check the time because I think it gives off a I’m-not-really-engaged-in-your-wedding vibe.  Even if you’re only looking at it for the time.  People don’t assume that.  Girls, can I get an “amen” on all these new Michael Kors watches we’e been seeing?  Love his stuff!

8:45am

If we’re running late, Jes usually just texts me, “Here.” and I know she’s parked outside, putting on her make-up in the car, and waiting for me to come down and open the garage door.  But if we’re ahead of schedule, she comes in. It’s understood that Jes and I meet 15 minutes prior to our departure time.

We’re friends first.

Now USUALLY I have all my gear prepared the day before and I’m packed and ready to go.  But for the sake of photography and documentation, and the fact that Heidi was not there the night before, we showed a glimpse of this during the morning routine… :-)

Part of that Friday routine includes charging all camera batteries and rechargeable flash batteries, formatting the memory cards I know I’ll use (I try not to format over memory cards if I don’t end up using them – they serve as an additional back-up), printing out notes and schedules, etc.

Jes and I have the same camera bags, which I think looks so professional. Mine always sits on the left, hers on the right. :-)

We use LowePro’s Pro Roller Lite 250, which I love because they are carry-on size.  We do a lot of traveling and I know that these are never a problem to bring onto an aircraft.  We have the previous series of the Pro Roller which might be slightly more petite that the new series.  A lot of bags claim to be carry-on size, but these bags in particular surpass them all because they fit (albiet, barely) under the seat of those small regional planes where the overhead space accommodates briefcases and purses, rather than roller boards.  I never gate check my bag and know for a fact it fits under my seat – other roller boards don’t.  While we’re on the topic, I always try to reserve a window seat so the bag isn’t bothersome to my seat mates.

Stay tuned for a “What’s in the bag?” blog post.

That all black thing? Oh yeah, and that Calvin thing?  I buy lint rollers in bulk at the beginning of each year and distribute them all over my home and vehicles.

9am – Ready for an on-time departure! 

Upon arrival to the wedding, say a salon or the bride’s home, we always take 5 to give the day to the Man upstairs.  We pray for our couples, for their jitters, and for their marriages.  We pray over our equipment.  We ask for creative juices and the confidence and peace to know that it’s not just the two of us shooting a wedding but the Three of us.

And that’s that!  Major thanks again to Heidi Leigh for documenting what was a very special day for me and Jesie.   More on this later.  :-)