I'm the owner + photographer at Anne Casey Photography — serving Maryland & Pennsylvania

Hey friends. It’s time to get real around here. Want to know why my blog has been extra quiet lately? I have been completely and totally overwhelmed. I’m sure you’ve been there too, right? I’m going to be a bit vulnerable and put it all out there today!

September is the start of a really crazy season for photographers. Most photographers have tons of weddings on the weekend and are shooting engagement sessions all week long! And I totally get it- who doesn’t love fall? Cozy sweaters, blankets, gorgeous leaves; it all makes the perfect backdrop for photos. But what comes after all of that shooting? Editing! Which definitely takes time. I’m working on streamlining my process so I can rock that out even faster. A lot of brides book their wedding photographers the fall before their wedding year… so that means I have been meeting with lots of potential 2017 couples, too! I also was able to squeeze an afternoon of mini sessions and a few extra sessions throughout! I’ve had boudoir shoots, meetings and calls with fall brides; fall is insane for photographers!!

On top of my crazy work schedule, I have been trying to plan my own wedding! I guess I may have possibly underestimated how long every little detail would take… We waited a little longer than I realized to start working on our custom invitations. They need to be sent out in about a week and we don’t have them from the printer yet! The decor is starting to come together, timelines are being made, lists are being checked and double-checked, fittings are scheduled… but we still need one main thing- a wedding ceremony! One of my old friends will be the one performing the ceremony so we’ll need to pick our vows and any readings we might want. I’m going to make all of the signage, figure out the seating chart, purchase the decor, finalize a surprise for our guests for the reception. We’ve also been making plans for our honeymoon! For my bachelorette party, a few of us will be heading to Chicago in October! My maid of honor, Jess, lives there and we’re so lucky to be able to crash at her place! I’ve been looking forward to this trip since we first started talking about it! We just booked the plane tickets so it’s feeling more ‘real’ now! 🙂 The wedding to-do list is daunting and seems endless!

Adding to all of this is our basic day-to-day home life! Luckily (I guess..?), Brody hasn’t started playing any sports so we don’t have to fit that into our daily routine. Chris works six days a week usually and his hours vary, but he’s typically out the door by 7 am. We just started renovating our basement so occasionally we’re needing to spend a few hours together out picking tile or fixtures or whatever else a basement needs! Chris and his father are doing most of the work so that takes up extra time, too. Today was a big day though! I outsourced my first thing ever! HOUSE CLEANING! Today we met and hired a really sweet lady that will be coming at least once a month to give our humble abode a little TLC. We decided this was an important investment to make during this season of life. We decided it was one reasonable expense that would save us a lot of time and stress. Additionally, we’re helping another small business owner provide for her family!

The long and short of it? I have to seriously power through until December 5th! Ha! Our wedding is on December 3rd, we’ll likely spend the next day with friends and family, and hopefully things will calm down by that Monday. I can already tell a nap is in order.

Work-life balance is HARD. Harder than I originally imagined. I took my business full-time six months ago and I totally thought I would have had this all figured out by now! HA! There is a seriousssss learning curve! I’ll be editing away in the office and on the flip side, I’m feeling guilty about the laundry that needs to be folded. I’ll be gardening and my mind will be on my business to-do list! Who’s figured it out? Anyone? I’m hoping I will soon! Or at least get a little more organization and a clearer head!

If you’ve got any tips to share, I would LOVE to hear them! Leave a comment below! <3