What a fun and crazy summer it's been! I've been running in and out of town-- to help care for an injured friend, to move my son to Brooklyn, to whale watch in Canada and now to catch up with old friends in the Pacific Northwest. I love how much flexibility I get with my job-- summer is pretty slow for weddings so I could take long breaks. But in between trips I returned home to perform weddings-- just last week I did five. Sure, it was warm, but we still had a great time. Now, Super Busy Season Part II is about to arrive (Part I is in the spring) and I'm already reminding myself strategies to stay well rested and fully present. Here are some pictures from recent weddings. Stay tuned for more in-depth updates, advice, and everything wedding when I return. 

Robert the DJ is super awesome. He had everything ready to go and the sound was perfect.  

Mercury Hall added a paved walkway from the chapel building out to the big trees.

Another lovely cake.

Mayfield Park-- this couple is so calm, cool and collected we didn't even feel the 100 degree heat.

But my phone confirmed that it really was 100.

I love creative centerpieces. 

Getting ready to say I Do at Umlauf Sculpture Garden.

Groom's cake. Hilarious. 

Even the flower girl got in on the photo action.

This is Evelyn. She is an amazing, amazing wedding planner. So chill. Click here to go to her website.   

Coffee and tea in the garden at Umlauf. 

They do!

Getting the Skype ready for an Austin wedding with a Tennessee bride and Spanish groom.

I love a barefoot bride.

I also love mixed culture weddings.  

The wedding party rented an entire B&B so everyone could stay together. Great idea. 

I never tire of the Caswell House-- so classic.

So ready she got married before start time. Really.

Whoever came up with this cupcake tower idea-- thank you! 

Sand ceremony to symbolize uniting of bride, groom, and bride's daughter.  

Congratulations!

View from the top of the stairs at Caswell House.

In Sickness and In Health

Gorgeous custom made rings feature the bride and groom's fingerprints.

So a couple of weeks ago, I was all set with a clever (I thought) post title: Five Golden Rings! You know,as in a partridge in a pear tree and all that. The idea was going to be that I had just finished five weddings in two days, launching the busiest time of the year. Now, technically, it would've been ten golden rings, and actually not all of them were gold. But the idea still felt good to me.

And then... And then, as Wedding #5 wrapped on April Fools Day, I fell ill. Very ill. You might think it's not a good idea for me to discuss such things here, that it might make you worry. Actually, one of the best questions couples ask me when interviewing me (and not enough couples ask this) is: What happens if you get sick the day of our wedding?


I have two answers to that-- the first is that I have one of those bodies that is healthy as a horse most of the time, but seems to just know when it's "okay" to get sick. In other words, the rare times I am under the weather, it's always in between weddings. I've done around 250 ceremonies now, and I haven't missed one. And I have no plans in the future to miss any. I just show up. It's what I do.

Okay, then, you might ask-- what if I break my leg? Well here's the second answer: in the past, I've always had two or three other officiants I knew I could count on to cover for me. And once, I covered for another officiant. These days, I have at least five backups, three of whom I trained myself, so I know that I have a plan B that includes someone with my sensibilities.

Remember that, next time you're interviewing vendors-- ask if they've ever had an emergency and how they handled it. It's a fair question.

Meanwhile, I recovered from my tonsillitis just in time to do another five weddings over the course of a single weekend. I'm telling you, it is busy busy busy over here. And so, herewith, pictures from ten weddings I performed over the course of eight days at all sorts of places including Chapel Dulcinea, Dunvegan Keep, Alamo Drafthouse, Barton Creek Country Club, Duchman Family Winery, and several backyards. I hope you'll consider hiring me to perform yours. More info at my wedding website: www.CustomHitchesWeddings.com