It’s Monday and I want to share with you an interview with Amanda Nichols about marriage. Micah and Amanda hired me to photograph their wedding a few years back. I had known them before photographing their wedding and was beyond thrilled that they had asked me! Recently I got to photograph these two love birds again for a “styled shoot” I did with the always amazing Beth at Wildflowers Inc (one of my favorite flower artists). It was a huge honor to get to photograph them again. This photo shoot was featured on Smitten Magazine’s blog (so excited!!). You can read about it here.

My plan is to start most Mondays (not all) off with something helpful about marriage and I thought why not an interview with a past bride & groom that I’ve worked with?

Read on….

How long have you been married?  “3 years”

Do you have any regrets or things you would have done differently about your wedding? “It was an incredible day! Hindsight is always 20/20 though. First, I would have let my bridesmaids pick out their own dresses. After being in several weddings where the bride did this, it was awesome to pick out a dress that fits your body type, budget, and style. Also, I would have chosen a venue with more indoor options. As I mentioned, we wanted to get married outside. We chose the first weekend of November which historically is still warm in Charleston. The day before our wedding, the temperatures dropped drastically. We scrambled around to find heaters to keep our guests cozy! My maids froze, I froze, and then it hailed! Crazy Charleston weather.”

What is your best memory of your wedding day? “One of my favorite memories was walking down the stairs out to the lawn where my handsome husband awaited. My dad grabbed my arm and said, “Slow down. Take this all in. Smile at everybody. This is your day.” So special!”

What is some advice you would give to those currently planning their wedding? “Do your thing! Everybody has an opinion. There are lots of “standards” and etiquette you’re supposed to follow, but at the end of the day, its your day! Do what you want!”

What is the best marriage advice you received before you got married that has helped and/or advice you have for others? “Slow down and take it all in. It will all be over in a couple of hours. Something you’ve planned for months (maybe longer!) is literally done in a day. So take your time, dont get frazzled, enjoy all the little things.”

What was more difficult about being married that you didn’t expect after you got married? “Marriage is awesome. Its totally a gift from God. But, it takes work. You choose to love someone. You must also choose to work for your marriage. You’re picking 2 people that are obviously wired a bit differently and putting them under one roof! Men are men. They leave their sock and underwear on the floor. Women leave hairballs in the shower. We’re different creatures :)”

What was actually easy after you got married that you didn’t expect? “You get to spend as much time as you want with your best friend! We love just hanging out together. We love vacationing together. We love enjoying our city together.”

Do you agree with the statement, “love is a choice” and why or why not? “Absolutely. I already got on my soap box about this earlier :)”

How do you plan to keep your marriage strong? “Take time off together. Go on dates together. Enjoy being together!”