The conversations were very interesting leading up to my final wedding before the baby arrives.   It seems like most people thought I was a little crazy to take on a wedding at 38 weeks, and I often felt I had to quickly reassure them it would be ok.    I constantly reminded myself that while teaching and pregnant with Gracie I constantly worked LONG days, on my feet, in a stressful environment some days.   Shooting weddings is our job, just like any other working mama, most of us work very close to our due date.  I had already booked the wedding and totally gotten attached to Natalie & Tyler before I became pregnant.    But a WEDDING DAY is a huge deal… and the couple is the most important factor.  There are THREE major reasons why I’m NOT crazy, and why this wedding was so incredibly successful.

1. PREPARATION.   From the moment I knew I was pregnant this wedding was already booked.   We waited for the estimated due date, and before I even told some of my family or close friends I emailed ALL my brides who were even a month with in my due date.   I would never want them to find out via social media that I might pop near their special day.   I assured Natalie that she would be TAKEN CARE OF.   That I had already secured my co-shooter Heidi, who I knew could handle this wedding with out me if I was thrown into labor early.   We even secured a 2nd shooter for Heidi if this happened.    Heidi has shot a whole year of weddings with me already, so she knows the workflow better than anyone.   This was all planned FAR in advance.   I had no intention of just assuming I would be ok at 38 weeks.  Preparation is HUGE and of course communicating that plan with the bride.
2. TEAM WORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK.  Even though I was perfectly healthy at 38 weeks and ok to shoot, I still put a lot of responsibility on Heidi.   I had her shoot the majority of details (that require lots of bending over, squatting, and generally uncomfortable positions).   She also did a lot of running up and down the stairs to get equipment.  I was very well taken care of!   I knew almost all the vendor’s working that day and everyone chipped in to help everyone else.  It was truly a great team; which always makes our life a little easier.
3. AMAZING CLIENTS.  Natalie was completely supportive from the day I told her.   If I had any inclination that she was uncomfortable or nervous I may have had different thoughts.   I had no worries that I would have her or the guests nervous that I would “pop” on the scene haha.  They were truly such a joy to work with.   For someone who is already a little awkward and self-conscious about being huge and preggo, I felt totally at ease.
   The bottom line is that our CLIENTS really are the most important in this situation (and always).  Yes I did spend more money making sure I had the best possible situation lined up, everything prepared, plan A,B,C.   But I had peace of mind that my completely awesome associate Heidi could rock this wedding if she needed to.   And I simply did the same for everyone else, that I would want done for me.   The golden rule always.

Thank you to the amazing couple, my kick butt sidekick Heidi, and our dream team that worked the wedding!