June 29, 2013
It's kind of a blur, but our wedding day was absolutely beautiful. Everything that really mattered was exactly as we hoped it would be, and those little things that weren't quite what I had planned worked out anyway. They really did, and we have some beautiful memories of our wedding day, and the reception. We were so happy that so many of our friends and family shared the day with us!
Just for those who are preparing for a wedding, and are detail people like myself, I'll get those pesky little flub ups out of the way first. If you are one of those detail people, you need to know that these things do happen, and at the end of that wonderful day you are married. And that's what the day is really about.
I little disclaimer before I begin: We were blessed to have so many friends and family members who were willing to help us with the preparation and set up of the reception. They did a great job, and we couldn't have pulled it off without them!
But I wish I had stuck with my original plan of paying for a wedding day coordinator, or as I like to refer to the position-- Stage Manager. That person could have been the one directing, and taking care of any crisis or questions and helping all of those family members. That person could have helped us get organized ahead of time, and I think it would have made everyone's job easier. But it still worked out. However, if YOU are thinking of hiring someone to do this job, it really needs to be someone who is not family or friend, because they need to be someone who won't care if they are attending the wedding. They need to be a person who can stay focused on the many details, be assertive in carrying out your vision for your big day, and insulate you from the stress of it. But those people don't come for free.
So, here it goes~
We had some snaffoos with transporting the flowers to the church. We needed them by 10 a.m. because our photographer was shooting the pics at that time. In hindsight I should have paid the $100 + to have them delivered, but by the time I was paying for the flowers I was ready to start cutting back wherever we could. Delivery was one place we cut. Our plan A for flowers became problematic, and we had to go to a plan B, with Chuck driving to Tacoma to pick them up. The flowers arrived slightly late, but it was still OK.
OK, except that the color of the orchids for the boutonnieres and the cake was wrong. I was tempted to put that sentence in all caps. (That is how I felt at the time, but I've calmed down.) It was very pretty as long as you didn't know that the color was off. I don't know if anyone else noticed. But I did.
Also, there were chairs at the reception venue that I didn't want to use, and so we rented white chairs to be used there. We had Robert, Chuck's nephew, drive to pick them up and deliver them to the reception venue. But as Chuck and I arrived for the reception, I spotted our white chairs in the back of our truck in the parking lot, and when we walked in I saw those ugly chairs I didn't want to use at every table. It was no one's fault. They didn't know what to do, because there were those ugly brown chairs already in the room when the set up the tables, and there was confusion about whether the white chairs were coming, etc. (Again--I should have paid a stage manager who could have cleared up the confusion about the chairs.) I'm still trying to get over that one, folks. I know that in the big scheme of things it doesn't matter, but it really sort of does, to me.
And I'll tell you why. And then I'll stop with the Negative Nancy bit. It still sort of matters to me because I worked for so long on planning, and searching for the best deals so we wouldn't have a $30,000+++ wedding and reception, and because in my mind I had visions of what our photos would look like with all of these little details in place. And we didn't spend a fortune on the chairs, but they weren't cheap either. And it made me frustrated that they sat in the back of a truck.
So there. All of you detail people will understand, and now I'll say once again that at the end of that wonderful day what matters is that you are married to the person you know is the right one.
And, if you're as lucky as we are, you have wonderful people all around you who are eager to help you, and you get to share that day with all of those AMAZING people.
Now I'll get back to how incredible the day was for us.
I had wonderful friends and daughters who helped prepare food for the reception the day before. We convened in the kitchen and got to work cutting and balling melons, and slicing cheeses. Gwen, Jewel and Lilly were on melon duty, and Shane was working with her food processor slicing cheeses while Karen was bagging those slices into gallon-sized ziplock bags. I was the runner, going to the extra frig to retrieve melons and digging through my drawers for whatever gadgets were needed.
We worked for a couple of hours here, and then the girls (Jewel and Lilly), Karen and I went to get our nails done.
(That's another story. But I will save it for another day.)
The day of the wedding we had family members working hard to help us get everything where it needed to be, and making sure that we pulled off a beautiful event.
I loved my dress, my hair, which Jewel did for me, and my makeup, which was done by a local Mary Kay rep. And I was very pleased with my veils. I was wishing for a full length mirror while I got ready, but there wasn't one at the church and I didn't think of that detail ahead of time.
Our photographer, Don West, was great. He worked so hard to get as many shots as possible before the wedding, and then during the wedding and the reception as well. We appreciated his time, as well as his wife, Shannon's. (P.S. He is a professional photographer, but he doesn't do weddings anymore. It was a favor for us because we are family.) He was patient as Sean had a meltdown and didn't want to have his picture taken. We took a lengthy break to wait for him to come back around, which he did. We just allowed him to skip some of the photos.
My brother, Marty, saved the day by answering his cell phone when I rang with a request to stop by the house to pick up a special bracelet. Sean had made a blue yarn bracelet for me to wear for the wedding. I had forgotten to pack it in my bag, and Marty happened to be near the house and was able to get it and deliver it to the church in time before the ceremony started. I have sweet pictures of Sean tying it to my wrist.
We had a very beautiful ceremony filled with God, love, family, and some laughter. Our vows were so beautiful, and I plan to get them printed and framed. Our guests were all people who are important to us, and we appreciated each and every one of them sharing that day with us.
The car that transported us to the reception was so much fun, and Chuck's friend, Mike, was so generous to give up his Saturday to attend the wedding and to drive us. Our car was a LeMay collection car. It was a 1937 Packard Touring Limousine, and we loved it!!
The silver trays I purchased for the food for the reception looked great, and I loved the way the food was displayed.
I loved, loved, loved my lace bunting flags. They looked beautiful, and I was so thankful to have my soon-to-be husband willing to hang them and spend time at the reception venue to be sure it was all coming together.
I loved all of the flowers in the vintage vases and bottles that Chuck and I chose to use. (I'm still trying to track down all of those jars and bottles. They are here somewhere) The cake was beautiful, and exactly as we wanted it to be with lovely details. And it was DELICIOUS. A local baker, Tortes and Tarts, made the cake.
I was really happy that I took the time to do some of the detail work ahead of time. For instance, I had a borrowed wooden box with a hinged lid on it that was perfect for cards. I printed the word "cards" on some card stock and cut it as bunting flags and hand sewed the letters onto a ribbon to hang on the open lid of the box.
Our chalkboards turned out great! I was so happy with the results. Wendy, the artist, did an amazing job. That room was fun, and we had some vintage props for people to use and a little space created in front of the chalkboard for a photo booth.
We were so happy to have so many great people around us that day. I felt so lucky to have a connection to a makeup artist at the last minute. Karen and Jewel helped to keep me calm and they took care of all of the little details~ Things you don't think of until the final moments. I was so happy they were able to be here to help make the day that much more special.
Karen took tons of pictures, and I so appreciated that! I'm currently still trying to organize photos on Shutterfly and I'm trying to create a site for our wedding photos.
It was a spur of the moment request when I asked that Jewel and Robert do the speeches for our toast. I was on the verge of tears as they each spoke.
Behind the scenes, Chuck's sister Cindy was in the kitchen making sure the food was replenished on the table, and my brother Marty was back there making sure the champagne and wine were being uncorked. Robert and Jewel were pouring, and taking orders for the sparkling cider for the kids and folks who don't drink alcoholic beverages. Our vintage, glass beverage dispensers worked out perfectly for that event, filled with organic lemonade. (It was a hot day, and that lemonade was a hit.)
Once people started leaving and things were winding down, we all headed out. We rushed home, grabbled our backpacks and David and Jewel grabbed their luggage and we all headed for Seattle. They were both catching flights that night back to Tennessee, and Chuck and I stayed at a hotel in Seattle so we could be at the airport the next morning at about 4:30 a.m. for our flight to Athens, Greece.
Look for posts about our amazing honeymoon coming soon...
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