In case you
don’t already know our history, you can read a little bit about how Brian and I
met and some other random facts here and you can read our proposal story here.
* * *
The morning
of our rehearsal I had tons of errands to run, and my mom was supposed to accompany
me to the flower shop to check on the bouquets and arrangements for the
ceremony. As I pulled into their
neighborhood to pick her up, she and my dad were leaving and my mom was driving
the car with my dad in the passenger seat.
I knew something wasn’t right about that, so I drove straight to their
house to talk to my brother to find out what was going on. He informed me that my dad was having severe
pain in his abdomen and that my mom was taking him to the emergency room. Oh boy.
I immediately
went into panic mode. B picked me up and
took me to check on the flowers but all I could do was worry about my dad, and
tears streamed down my face the entire time we were there. I continued to keep myself busy after we left,
and a few hours later, we finally got a call from my mom that my dad had kidney
stones. The doc had told him to chug a
ton of water and then to chug a ton of beer later at the rehearsal dinner
because beer is good for flushing out your system. He did just that, and he passed the kidney
stones that evening. Whew. I’m not sure what I would have done if he had
not been able to escort me down the aisle.
I’m so thankful that things turned out the way they did.
Anyway, our
rehearsal and wedding took place at the church where I have been going for my
whole life. It is also the church
affiliated with my grade school and high school (where Jacob now goes to
school), the church where my grandmother and momma both worked (and my mom
still works), and the church that we still attend to this day. Unfortunately I only have one picture from the
rehearsal itself being as how everyone who attended was involved. This one was taken after it was over... I'm still holding my practice "bouquet" made of all of the bows from the gift wrap on presents I opened at my wedding showers. :o)
B with 3 of his 7 groomsmen |
Me with 6 of my 7 bridesmaids |
My Maid of Honor and me |
My wonderful grandparents... Big Daddy, I miss you terribly. |
Daddy and me |
Daddy and Momma... the only pictures I had of them were blurry. |
Once everyone was done, the servers brought out trays of champagne and it was time for the toasts. And boy, do I regret every single day not recording each and every one of them. Brian, as well our friends and family members, said some of the sweetest (and funniest) things imaginable, and I will cherish all of their words forever.
Brian’s toast
was by far the best and there was not a dry eye in the room when he was
done. I won’t go into great detail, but
he ended by thanking my parents for raising his favorite person in the entire
world. Me. His words were so poignant that the priest
who officiated our wedding ended up mentioning that portion of his speech in
his homily during our actual wedding ceremony the next day. Again, not a dry eye in the room, including
mine. I sure do adore this man of mine.
Once the
toasts were complete – and boy, were there a lot of them – everyone was free to
mingle again. It was a time to cut
loose, and everyone was up to their typical shenanigans of being funny and
goofing off… a lot of it a product of the open bar, I’m sure. ;o) A
bunch of us also practiced our Soulja Boy Dance for the reception the next
day. Yes, Soulja Boy will forever go
down as our wedding theme song, and yes, I did do the Soulja Boy in my wedding
dress. Haha.
The rehearsal
ended around 9 and B and I, along with B’s cousin and a few of our friends
ended up at one of our favorite bars downtown for nightcaps, and then it was time
to hit the hay because…
The biggest
day of my life was the next day!
*Linking up with Jessi's Design and Going the Distance for What's Hap-"Pinning" Wednesday.
What a sweet walk down memory lane!! Ben and I were married 13 years in September!!
ReplyDeleteAw, happy late anniversary!! XO
DeleteYay!! I life reading recaps like this! So much fun! Happy almost anniversary. Your rehearsal sounds like a great time which means your wedding must have been a blast.
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun look back - I can't wait to read about the big day!
ReplyDeleteI always thought a winter wedding would be so beautiful & magical. I can't wait to see more of your big day! I'm so happy to be reliving your big day with you!
ReplyDeleteSo precious you shared this with us. You radiate such happiness and beauty!! So excited to read and see pics of your glorious day!!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Andrea! I'm excited to share it with all of you. :o)
DeleteSo fun! We did my bridesmaids luncheon the day of the rehearsal dinner and instead of doing a formal luncheon like a lot of people around here do, we did a day by the pool! It was perfect!
ReplyDeleteSarah at MeetTheShaneyfelts
Oh I love your flashback posts :-) totally laughed when I read about Soulja Boy..So funny how a song can get connected to an event and always make you think of it! Can't wait to see some of the wedding!
ReplyDeleteI'm so excited you're recapping all this!! (maybe I should get a clue, ha ha) But really, what an exciting and special day, and I'm SO happy your Dad was OK! Was he in a ton of pain at the rehearsal? He didn't look like it!
ReplyDeleteSuch a fun trip down memory lane and smart to document and have these memories out there. You guys looked great and how exciting your 9 year anniversary is coming up! I loved planning my wedding too and kind of missed it after. I keep joking around that we should just go all out and have a big 10 year celebration once we get there but for now I'll have fun planning the kids parties ;)
ReplyDeleteBeautifully Candid
Awe! This is so sweet, Lindsay!
ReplyDeleteYou guys look the same...seriously, you guys haven't aged! What are your secrets!
Love this little recap and the pictures!
xo, Lily
Beauty With Lily
Aw, what a special day Linds. And, wow what an amazing family you have. I love taking trips down memory lane and seeing pieces of your life. This is wonderful.
ReplyDeleteIsn't it insane how fast time goes? I will be with my husband for 9 years in the Spring! So insane that we are almost to the 10 year mark.
ReplyDeleteI love this idea of walking down memory lane! You guys seriously look like you got married last year. You haven't aged! Sounds like a great start to your wedding. I'm glad your dad got better! Your story reminded me of ours -- we got married at the same parish church where Matt and I both grew up, both went to elementary school there, and my mom works there. Funny!
ReplyDeleteOh my gosh your poor dad - I had no idea that beer would flush them out, but what a great excuse to drink LOL! xo, Biana -BlovedBoston
ReplyDeleteI love that you got back and blog about pre blogging things. I really need to do this with some of my stuff! Also I've said it before but did y'all get married last year :P. Neither of you look a day older!
ReplyDeleteI love reading about your wedding. Even this many years ago. So cool! So glad your dad passed his kidney stone.
ReplyDeleteI am loving these posts! Keep them coming!
ReplyDelete