A Unique Idea???

I know, I know...technically I'm not a bride anymore. I'm a wife. But just like all good addictions, checking out wedding photographers isn't something that I've been able to completely tear myself away from yet. I unsubscribed to weddingbee LONG ago...but I still stalk a few photographers...one of them being my own fabulous photographer, Christina Carroll.

Imagine my surprise when I came across something sort of unique today on my stroll. Maybe you've seen something like this before, but I haven't. I don't know if the bride did this project DIY or if someone else did it, but I think that it really makes a statement.

It's a wreath hanging suspended over the dance floor (like a chandelier?) and hanging from it instead of lights are small tea light candles. They're hanging with plain twine, giving it a cozy-homey feel to it and making me think that this was made. Here's a picture of what I'm talking about, and since it's a collage picture you can see that the wreath totally fits in with the theme of the rest of the wedding decorations and there's a close up of the tea lights:

Here's another picture where you can see it in the background:Isn't that GORGEOUS?!?! You can find more of these awesome pictures here at Christina's blog - check out the rest of the wedding, I got sidetracked with the wreath/chandelier and couldn't focus on anything else...LOL!

GIVE-AWAY!!!

I know, I know...I never post over here anymore...I'm such a BAD blogger!


But if you'll forgive me, I think that I have something that might interest other brides-to-be (and really, women eveywhere!) out there...just

CLICK HERE

to find out some information about a give-away that I'm doing on my other blog! It's for 10 FREE photo cards from Shutterfly...and could really come in handy for party invitations, thank you cards, wedding announcements, and all of those other occassions that you need photo cards for!!


So jump on over and chekc it out...easy to enter, easy to win!

Meredith and Robert - Wedding

I don’t know about you, but as a bride, I went through several phases where I didn’t really want to look at bridal stuff anymore. You know, now that I’m not a bride. I cut myself off from Weddingbee several weeks before the wedding, and have not really looked at it much since then. Same goes for the other bridal sites that I used to visit…but there are a few that I still take a peek at every once in a while.

Pink Posh Photography is one of those sites. Truly, their work is amazing and sometimes just takes my breath away. I stumbled across this wedding the other day (now that I'm on partial bed rest with LOTS of time on my hands!) that they covered several months ago and had to share the pictures with you. Of course, these are just my favorites and you should totally go to their blog and check out the rest!

Every bride needs a shot like this one...

Love, love, LOVE her shoes!I love her color choices…probably not colors that I would have ever thought to put together, but they totally work together! Just shows the "shortness" of my own vision!And paired with something as simple as hypercium berries for the boys, the colors for the girls "pop" that much more!

A GORGEOUS ceremony site...

Stunning reception area...it really needed only minimal decorations...

And I LOVE this shot of their rings...
The wedding was really beautiful, and Pink Posh Photography did a fantastic job (as always!) of capturing their special day! Go on over and check out their other work if you an Austin/Dallas/Houston area bride...you won't be disappointed!

Ceremony Details

I’ve gotten a few questions about the rest of our ceremony and what it was like to undertake such a big task as writing your own ceremony. I’m not really a write, and I used a lot of sources for our ceremony to gather some inspiration, but there were two main ones: Mrs. Cherry Pie from Weddingbee (LOVED her ceremony!) and our officiant’s personal collection of ceremonies.

You see, we were lucky enough to be married by our friend, who just also happened to be a minister. It made the whole ceremony VERY personal, and you know that I liked having free reign to write up whatever I wanted and he would comply. No rules to follow or suggestions for improvement. He had three different scripts that he typically used for weddings, and gave me copies of those to choose from or told me that we could come up with something totally our own. He would just follow our lead. In fact, when I sent him the finalized ceremony script about two weeks before the wedding he emailed me back and told me that he and his wife cried when they read it! I was touched that he liked it that much.

Like I said before, I knew that I wanted to incorporate a hand fasting ceremony in lieu of a unity candle or sand ceremony...so that was set WAY before we knew what we wanted from the rest of the ceremony. And I won’t lie here...reading and following along Mrs. Cherry Pie’s wedding recaps and finding out that they too had chosen a hand fasting kind of sealed the deal on possibly using parts of her ceremony in ours! Instead of re-creating the wheel, and in an attempt to stay completely honest and not plagiarize anyone else’s work, here’s a link to her post about their ceremony...where she got certain parts from, how she wrote it and the whole ceremony in detail. Her ceremony was definitely a BIG inspiration for our ceremony!

I don’t have links to Dwayne’s ceremonies...or I would post links to them too. How frustrating!

In the end, I wasn’t 100% happy with Mrs. Cherry Pie’s ceremony, and I wasn’t 100% happy with our minister’s ceremonies. So, taking the best of both worlds, I combined the two (or three or four) sample ceremonies that I had found (though most came from the two sources that I’ve mentioned) and my own words and phrases and made something that was completely 100% US. B loved it. I loved it. That’s all that counted in our book.

In case you’re interested, here is our ceremony, broken out by segments:

I. GREETING/WELCOME

Family and friends, we welcome you today to witness the marriage of B and S.

Marriage is a promise, made in the hearts of two people who love each other. This promise takes a lifetime to fulfill. Within the circle of its love, marriage encompasses all of life’s most important relationships. A wife and husband are each other’s lover, teacher, listener, critic and best friend.

Today, B and S demonstrate their devotion to each other by dedicating themselves to a life together. And they show their respect for each other by setting forth to honor the vows they have created. Today, their lives, which began on separate paths, will be joined as one.

Who gives their blessing to this union?

Dad: “Her Mother and I do”

II. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT OF FAMILY/FRIENDS

Today represents not only the joining of B and S, but also the joining of their families and friends.

On behalf of B and S, thank you for joining us. They are delighted that you have come to share their joy during this special day. By your presence, you celebrate with them the love they have discovered in each other and you support their decision to commit themselves in a lifelong relationship. You have shared and contributed to their lives in the past, and by witnessing their marriage ceremony today, B and S ask you to share in their future.

B and S would like to recognize their parents on this occasion. They offer profound gratitude for all the love and care their parents showed in raising them. Parents, the unconditional gifts of love and support that you have continually offered have inspired them to become who they are today, and they thank you, from the bottom of their hearts. Without you, this day would not be possible.

They are blessed to share their wedding day with you, their family and friends, and thank each of you for making the effort to be here.

B and S have also asked that we take a moment to honor those loved ones who are not with us today.

Please take a moment of silence.

[Moment of silence]

III. STATEMENT OF INTENT

S and B, do you, with family and friends as your witnesses, present yourselves willingly and of your own accord to be joined in marriage?

B & S: “We do.”

B, do you take S to be your wife? Will you love, honor, and cherish her, in good times and bad, and do you promise to stay true to her as long as you both shall live?

B: “I do.”

S, do you take B to be your husband? Will you love, honor, and cherish her, in good times and bad, and do you promise to stay true to her as long as you both shall live?

S: “I do.”

Deep abiding affection, the magical and compelling shared impulse that makes us seek each others company, is among the greatest gifts of the human experience. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to find and express the kind of loving devotion that we are celebrating here today knows that it is an awesome and beautiful thing.

This understanding brings me to a few suggestions for you, B and S. First, be constantly grateful for the presence of this precious person who has chosen to make a life with you. For it is a choice that each of you have made, to combine your lives with one another.

Secondly, make each other the recipient of daily kindness. The world can be a tough place and any of us can be subject to rough handling. Be generous with compliments. Be attentive and helpful.

Last, but perhaps most importantly, make truth the unfailing bedrock of your lives together. A happy, loving marriage is built on trust and respect. That trust and respect can only be sustained if you are both deeply committed to always being open and truthful in every exchange, no matter how small.

My hope for you is this; that you have many long years to delight in each other’s company, to feel gratitude for your great good fortune in having found and loved each other, to make a home together that is both sheltering and welcoming, to each do meaningful, productive work at home and in the world and to love and be loved by the friends and family who have come here today to support you…

May you pledge to each other to be loving friends and partners in marriage. To talk and to listen, to trust and appreciate one another; to respect and cherish each other’s uniqueness, and to support, comfort, and strengthen each other through life’s joys and sorrows. May you promise to share hopes, thoughts, and dreams as you build your lives together. May your lives be ever entwined, your love keeping you together. May you build a home that is compassionate to all, full of respect and honor for others and each other. May your home be forever filled with peace, happiness and love.

IV. VOWS

S, B – please face each other and hold hands.

[bouquet hand off]

B, as you look at S, please repeat these words after me:

I B, take you S to be my wife / to have and to hold, from this day forward / to love, honor, and cherish / to comfort and respect, in sorrow or in joy / in hardship or in plenty, so long as we both shall live.

S, as you look at B, please repeat these same words:

I S, take you B to be my husband / to have and to hold, from this day forward / to love, honor, and cherish / to comfort and respect, in sorrow or in joy / in hardship or in plenty, so long as we both shall live.

V. RING EXCHANGE

The ring is a symbol of unity into which your two lives are now joined in an unbroken circle, in which, wherever you go, you will return to one another.

B do you have a ring for S?

[B gets S’s ring and takes her left hand]

B, please repeat after me:

I, B, give to you S / this ring as a symbol of my commitment / to love, honor and respect you.

S, do you have a ring for B?

[S gets B’s ring and take his left hand]
S, please repeat after me:

I, S, give to you B / this ring as a symbol of my commitment / to love, honor and respect you.

VI. HANDFASTING

S, take B’s hands palms up, so you may see the gift that they are to you:

These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and vibrant with love. They are holding yours on your wedding day, as he promises to love you all the days of his life.

Now B, take S’s hands, palms up, so you may see the gift that they are to you:

These are the hands of your best friend, smooth, young and carefree. They are holding yours on your wedding day, as she promises to love you all the days of her life.

Now, please join hands so that they may be fasted in the ways of old. Remember then as your hands are fasted, these are not the ties that bind…

[Cords are held aloft by Best Man]

The love already shared by your hearts has been strengthened by the vows you have taken.

You will be bound by your love as you are bound by your clasped hands from now until the end of your days.

[As the following is recited, the couples hands are wrapped with cords by Best Man]

These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch will comfort you like no other.

These are the hands that will work alongside yours, as you build your future together.

These are the hands that will hold you whenever illness, fear, or grief may find you.

These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it.

These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children.

These are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours.

[Binding is finished and cords are knotted]

Bless these hands that you see before you this day.
May they always reach out with love, gentleness and respect.
May they build a loving relationship that lasts a lifetime.
May they always be held by one another.
If you follow these words and heed this sacred binding, your hands will heal, protect, shelter and guide.
Now, you may remove the cords, but remember the knot as a lasting symbol of your binding and commitment.

[Cords are removed and stored]

VII. PRONOUNCEMENT AND PRESENTATION

S…B, may the love that has brought you together continue to grow and enrich your lives. May you meet with courage the problems that arise to challenge you and may your relationship always be one of love and trust. May the happiness that you share today be with you always and may every word that you have pledged here be a living truth in your lives.

May your home be a haven of peace and your relationship be one of truth and understanding. May you enjoy length of days, fulfillment of hopes, and peace and content as you, day by day, live and fulfill the terms of this covenant you have made with one another. May God bless and honor your lives together.

And now, for as much as you have made your vows, each to the other, and have declared the same by giving and receiving your rings, in recognition of the above, and in accordance with the laws and statutes of the State of Texas, I pronounce that you are husband and wife.

Groom, you may kiss your Bride.

[Kiss]

[B and S turn to face family and friends, collecting bouquet back]

It is my honor and privilege to present Mr. and Mrs. B.

[Bride and Groom go back down the aisle, followed by attendants and parents/grandparents]

The Bride and Groom would like to invite you all to stay for the reception that will begin shortly just across the way in Redbud Hall. We do have some quick pictures to take first, so we will ask the family to remain seated for those pictures, but the rest of the guests can go ahead and make your way across to the reception hall.

Thank you for coming.

In the end, the ceremony ran right at about 30 minutes...Dwayne was a little nervous and made it through the ceremony faster than any of the times that he had practiced at home. It was the perfect length, not too long and not too short.

I hope that this answers some of the questions that you might have had regarding our ceremony. Like I said, a lot of this came from Mrs. Cherry Pie’s ceremony and our minister’s own ceremonies...I hope that it helps some of you brides out there!

Our Grand Exit...

Yep, it’s that time…time to take our leave and say goodbye. I kid you not when I say that the night passed by in a blur. There were moments that the wedding and reception seemed to slow down so that I could take it all in, but at other times the night just FLEW BY! Before I knew it, a limo had arrived and pulled up in front of our reception hall. Since I knew that we didn’t get a limo, I was sure that he was at the wrong hall and I went out there myself to have a talk with him. Plus, it was 30 minutes too early…I still had dancing to do!

You see, we had a friend who’s brother owns a limo service. So we knew that we had a car coming, but G had already warned us that he would NOT be able to get us a limo for that night, just a car. That was fine with us, we didn’t care as long as someone else was driving – not that we were drinking that much, but we just didn’t want to have to worry about getting ourselves to our hotel. I went out to tell the limo driver that he was at the wrong hall and got the surprise of my life. Turns out that G’s brother had been able to pull a few strings (or had a last-minute cancellation) and was able to send a limo for us! Yippee!! What fun!!

He knew that he was early, and was fine waiting, so I trotted my happy self back inside to continue dancing away. Within about 30 minutes though, the DJ announced that this was the last song and then gave instructions for everyone to line up outside taking packets of rose petals along with them. I have to admit that I was sort of surprised at the lack of guests that formed the “going away” line…I’ve seen it repeatedly over the last few years, that it’s just not a trend for guests to stay and be there when the bride and groom leave the reception, but it was still a shock. The only wedding I can think of where I did that was when we had our kids with us and it was getting late…but whatever. There were still plenty of people left to form a good, solid line and we spent a few extra minutes alone on the dance floor to allow the line to form and the photographers to get all set up.

Oh, and in the 30 minutes that the limo driver was waiting on all of this to occur, our bridal party made quick work of getting our limo decorated for us. Check out their handiwork! I have to admit to being VERY relieved that all decorations were kept in the PG category, if you know what I mean!

Once the line was ready and we were given the signal, we rushed out and made our way down the LONG sidewalk to the limo…catching rose petals and goodbye wishes along the way… And yes, even rose petals thrown just so will hurt a bride and groom – did you see that look on my face? By the time that we got to the end, the petals were fewer and further between… But as you’ll notice, someone (REALLY don’t know who!) shoved a whole handful of petals down the front of my dress…I’m not really sure why? We said our goodbyes to the kiddos… One of them was completely ok with the fact that he was spending the night with Grandma…and the other one? Well, let’s just say that she had just put two and two together and come up with four. And four meant that she was NOT going with Mommy…and as fun as spending the night with Gigi and the girls had previously sounded, right at this moment it was NOT cool!

To try to stem the guilt flowing heavily through my heart, and to drown out the sound of her tears, I quickly made my escape into the limo…B on the other hand? Yeah, this was when he decided to make a “Thank You” speech to all of the remaining guests and to wish them all a good night. It’s too bad that the photographer didn’t catch me reaching out and pulling him into the limo and telling the limo driver to “GO!” on film…that would have been priceless! He was confused for a minute, until I explained about little J being so upset…then he settled in to play with all the buttons in the limo.

We had a good 30 minute drive to our hotel in downtown Austin that my new in-laws had gifted us with, so we settled in for the drive. At that point, the exhaustion was hitting me pretty hard and I was pooped! We talked about how great the wedding and reception went, how much fun we had and how much fun we thought our guests had, and of course we smooched a bit in the backseat. Before I knew it, we were pulling up at The Four Seasons hotel in downtown Austin and getting the “white glove treatment” from everyone that we saw.

Yes, it’s glamorous to arrive at your 5-star hotel in a limo…and a wedding dress…you’d be amazed though at how many people actually ask you if you got married. Nah, I just wore a wedding dress for a night out on the town…but I laughed each time someone asked us! We quickly checked in, went upstairs and settled in for the night…as man and wife!!!

**All photos courtesy of Christina Carroll Photography

Need to catch up? Here’s some links:
Girls’ Spa Day
Bachelor/Bachelorette Party
Setting Up the Venue…
Practice Makes Perfect…
Rehearsal Dinner
5 Minutes is All that I Need
A “Quick” Stop at the Hair Salon
A Sneak Peek at the Venue...
Arriving at the Venue...to Stay!
Getting Dressed
The Maids Pose for the Camera...
Oops - I’m Out of Order!
The Boys Smile and Say “Cheese!”
It’s Show Time!
Here Comes the Bride!
Becoming Man and Wife...
We’re Man and Wife!
Family Pictures
Now THAT’S Love!
The “Group” Says Cheese!
Now It’s Just Us...
It’s the Smallest Things...
Here Comes the Bride! And Groom!
Raise Your Glasses...
Our Cake Buffet
The Great Cake Cutting Debate
We Danced...
Two More Special Dances...
One Lucky Girl...and One “Excited” Guy!
The Many Faces of a Bride...
The Kids...
We Danced the Night Away!

We Danced the Night Away!

This will be a pretty picture-heavy post…I’m bound and determined to finish these recaps before I give birth…so cross your fingers for me that I make it!

I already showed you what a good time some of the kiddos had…but they weren’t the only ones! I think that our DJ did a great job of playing music that we requested, music that kept the people out on the dance floor, and taking requests from guests. Yes, there was a song or two that was played that Brent asked me “Why did we choose THAT song?!?!”…but it turns out that they were guest requests. But enough from me - take a look at what a good time was had by one and all...us girls got our groove on!




I’m really NOT sure how this one didn’t make the “funny faces” post…

And here’s the requisite picture of the bride dancing while holding on to her alcoholic drink for dear life!

At one point during the night, the boys took a break and toasted each other back at the bar when Brent's one music request "A Country Boy Can Survive" was played…


It was a tradition of theirs or something…but don’t be fooled – they tore up the dance floor as well…check it out!




Yes, the YMCA was done…

My Mom even joined in on that one!

And at one point there was a Congo Line…though I really couldn’t tell you why…

And there was line dancing too…

I even managed to get my new step-son on the dance floor with me…isn’t he cute?!?!


And at one point, Brent and I managed a quick two-step…

Then it seems that neither MOH or I could find our husbands, so we made do with each other…

Before long, the music got a little raunchier…and the dancing got a good bit dirtier…



And I got hot! That’s the one thing that no one told me about wedding dresses – they get HOT!! So I improvised a quick fan from one of our programs, and went on with my grooving…

Last, but certainly not least, a circle was formed at some point, and we all went out one by one (or in pairs) and strutted our stuff…The Bride took her turn…

…with my fan, of course!

And a co-worker really showed us how it was done…


But even with all of HIS moves, I think that the Groom and one of his guys took the cake!



That was B on the left...Yep, they took it “old school” and had a blast doing it.

I have to tell you that I danced so much that I literally could not feel my toes for three days after the wedding. I did take a break here and there, once to put on flip flops, but for the most part I was on the dance floor from the minute the dancing started until it was time for us to leave…

A blast was had by one and all, and our friends and co-workers are still talking about what a great party we threw at our wedding. To be honest, I don’t think that anyone could pay me a higher compliment. I worked hard to make our wedding special, meaningful and FUN…so to still hear them talking about what a great time they all had…well, it just melts my heart!

**All photos courtesy of Christina Carroll Photography

Need to catch up? Here’s some links:
Girls’ Spa Day
Bachelor/Bachelorette Party
Setting Up the Venue…
Practice Makes Perfect…
Rehearsal Dinner
5 Minutes is All that I Need
A “Quick” Stop at the Hair Salon
A Sneak Peek at the Venue...
Arriving at the Venue...to Stay!
Getting Dressed
The Maids Pose for the Camera...
Oops - I’m Out of Order!
The Boys Smile and Say “Cheese!”
It’s Show Time!
Here Comes the Bride!
Becoming Man and Wife...
We’re Man and Wife!
Family Pictures
Now THAT’S Love!
The “Group” Says Cheese!
Now It’s Just Us...
It’s the Smallest Things...
Here Comes the Bride! And Groom!
Raise Your Glasses...
Our Cake Buffet
The Great Cake Cutting Debate
We Danced...
Two More Special Dances...
One Lucky Girl...and One “Excited” Guy!
The Many Faces of a Bride...
The Kids...