Sunny Afternoon Wedding Day

In my previous post I wrote about the morning of my wedding getting ready. Now I'm sharing photos by my photographer, Kellie Warren of KWU Weddings. These are only of the few images she shot and burned on a disc for me the night of the wedding. It was super sweet to be able to walk away with some images - something visual to recall moments that so quickly passed by. 

After we all slipped into our dresses, Kellie took some photos of us on the balcony of the hotel, as well as around the small town. My photographer led us around the downtown area, taking photos of us on old stairwells and cobblestone streets. We made our way back to the rose garden, which was on the way to the venue. While we were in the rose garden, some of my friends walked past on their way to the ceremony. We quickly exchanged hellos, as if the surprise was ruined, but it was still so nice to see familiar faces in my town.

And this is the part that I get stumped - I barely know what words to use to describe how I felt and how it happened. I enter into the reception room through the back in order to not be seen by the rest of our guests and my groom and his groomsmen lined up to walk the processional. Upon walking into the reception room, waiting to start the ceremony, I see all of my favorite vendors and all of my plans and ideas come to life. In that moment, it was hard to take it all in, it was hard to realize that everything was there because we planned it that way. It's still a hard thought to swallow. It was everything I ever wanted. 

I stood at the doors to the ceremony patio with my bridesmaids, peeking out into the crowd. I felt that if I didn't see the ceremony and our guests beforehand, that it would be too overwhelming. So I took a peek at everyone taking their seats. I knew in my head that we had a 5:30 pm ceremony start time. But at that point, I had no concept of time. Even when one of my bridesmaids told me we had 10 minutes, I couldn't comprehend. I just shook my head in understanding, even though I really didn't. I can't say exactly what was going through my head as I waited, I only know that a lot of it was breathe, bend my knees, cherish the moment. Smiling came easy, smiling was the effortless part.

Everyone lined up, my dad by my side, and we were ready to walk the processional. My coordinators assisted in sending everyone down the aisle. I heard the song change from the wedding party song to the song I chose for my dad and I. The doors opened, and we walked. At first, too fast and I felt my dad's pace slow down which was the reminder I needed to be in the moment and enjoy every step. I got 5 feet from S before I started tearing up. My maid of honor said she started counting how long it was after S saw me that he started tearing up, and she said she couldn't even count to 1 before he started tearing. My dad shook S's hand, I gave him a kiss on the cheek, and then S and I held each others hands. 

Our officiant, a friend, told all the readings exactly as I imagined he would. He told my favorite story, a 2400-year-old love story from Plato by way of Aristophanes, about the longing many of us feel for another half to make us whole, that you can hear here. Following my favorite love story was our vows. My vows were inspired by a contemporary poem, making promises like knife-fighting the snooze button to give S five more minutes of sleep. S's vows were inspired by luck and a chance at love. Then we did the rings, followed by the kiss, and then the party.

Our guests went inside the old train depot for cocktail hour while our photographers, family, and wedding party all took photos together. There was a patch of jasmine (most know how much we adore the jasmine that grows in our neighborhood) that looks as if it bloomed just for us to take family photos in front of. There also was the train tracks which run along the building, perfect for photos of just us. 

After cocktail hour and photos, it was time for introductions. We lined up outside of the reception room and our DJ introduced our wedding party, couple by couple. Then he introduced us and we walked in to many cheers to start our first dance that we practiced many times in our living room. Before we could start our dance, guests were already hitting their glasses with silverware - requesting a kiss. We dip-kissed in the middle of our dance floor, just like the movies, and that too we practiced in our living room. 

After our dance together, we took our seats and our toasts began before dinner. We started the toasts with S's younger brother, who spoke about how if anyone knows me, they know that I'm quiet at first, but as I get to know people, I open up and I have so much to say. Thinking of all our toasts now, brings happy tears to my eyes. My maid of honor, my best friend from high school, toasted next and reminisced about how she and I met just before S and I met so she was witness to our entire relationship, journey, and love story. Finally, we ended toasts with my older brother, who said how perfect it was that we ended up together, and that it wasn't a coincidence, that it couldn't have happened any other way. My brother held his drink up, and all of our guests toasted to us with his toast leading the way. 

We ate dinner with glasses of red wine and friends and family coming up to us to give hugs and kisses and well wishes. Our caterer was amazing because they would bring us different plates from each food station instead of us getting up which saved us so much time to enjoy our meals as much as possible. I knew the food was going to be great, but it was so nice to hear from our guests, even days later, how much they enjoyed the food. We  ate from  cheese and charcuterie platters for appetizers while servers passed chicken and onion cornets. For our entree food stations we had chimichurri flank steak, truffle mashed potatoes, grilled vegetables with an aoli sauce, goat cheese raviolis with a roasted red pepper sauce, and a sausage, chicken, and shrimp paella. 

After dinner I danced with my father, S danced with his mother, and I requested a surprise dance with my brother. His reaction was priceless and I picked the perfect song for us to dance together to. Halfway through, our DJ invited everyone on the dance floor to start the evening of dancing. We danced the hora, fan farra, and even the wobble. Desserts were made by our dear mutual friend. When she lived in town she used to have us over for dinner and make the most amazing lavender cupcakes with lemon butter-cream and also mixed berry tarts with lavender-vanilla cream. They were a hit and everyone couldn't wait to get their hands on one. 

Suddenly, it was our last song and we were all on the dance floor, a little sad, but oh-so celebratory. We did our exit and walked one block over to the hotel's honeymoon suite that we were staying at. I could barely fall asleep, details from the entire night ran laps through my head. I woke up the next day, my body tired from dancing, but my mind refreshed, still anxiously replaying favorite moments from the evening before. We sat on the balcony outside with coffee and muffins, as I tried to comb out all of the knots in my hair from a night of dancing and hugging. 

For a photo inside the reception room (we'll get more photos in a month or two from the photographer!) you can check out this Instagram photo from a friend during our toast, this Facebook photo of the room setup from our DJ, or check out our Instagram hashtag, #danielleandsteven. All of these lovely images were photographed by KWU Weddings. Thank you Kellie + Lindsay!

The Rainy Morning of Our Wedding

The weeks have settled down a bit and we've taken the weekend to do nothing (the advice of my boss). And nothing we did. We saw a The Great Gatsby and Iron Man 3 and drank mimosas all day on Saturday. I can't wait to write all of the details about the wedding itself. It's so surreal to see everything we've planned and hoped for come to life. It all seems like a hazy dream now, as if I'm still looking forward to it. Except now I'm looking fondly back to it. I hear that every time you recall a memory, it fades a little more each time. So I'm trying not to recall these memories all just yet.

I started my day in the hotel room with my maid of honor and a complimentary cup of coffee, orange juice, and muffins brought up to the hotel room. We enjoyed nibbling chunks off of the muffins while mostly sipping on coffee on the balcony as it rained. It was a misty kind of rain; the droplets so small it could have been snowing if it was colder. After my cup of coffee, we were ready to start the day with my aunts, my cousins, my mom, my mother in law, my grandmother, and my moms aunts too. We all went to the best breakfast place down the block from the hotel, within walking distance. We walked in the misty rain without umbrellas, hopeful that it would clear up. My maid of honor and I started early with blood orange mimosas to keep any nerves at bay, and it did. 

After breakfast we headed back to the room, all the while the sky was still misting on us, speckling my glasses. As soon as we walked back into the hotel room the phone rang - it was the front desk calling to let us know that the hairstylists arrived - we must have just missed them in the small lobby. We poured some mimosas for everybody that was there in glasses with everyone's names. My godmother is a calligraphist and so kindly scripted everyone's names on their own glass. Some saying Bride on one side and Danielle on the other, some just saying my aunts names and my grandmothers. 

Those who had to go to their hotel to get dressed got their hair and makeup done first, leaving me and my bridesmaids to go last since we had all of dresses in the suite which was only a block away from the venue, an old train depot. 

While everyone else got their hair and make up done, we played Sex and the City and then some music on Pandora. I used this time to take some photos like these and of the key ring. The room key came with a brass tag of the room number, and I added the giant engagement ring that my maid of honor gave me at my bridal shower. It was as if the ring key chain was made for the hotel room key.  

Sometime around 2 pm, I started having butterflies in my stomach and getting nerves. I was anxious to get started on my own hair and makeup, so I decided to take a breath on the balcony. I sat out on the balcony in the quiet, realizing that the sun had finally come out. Just in time for photos and for the wedding. I wasn't out there for more than 5 minutes when my hairstylist, my former boss, arrived to do my hair.

I still had nerves while sitting in the chair to get my hair done, but I felt more relaxed to hair my former boss there. I was working for her when I got engaged, and I worked for her for over 4 years so she had been there for most of our 6 year relationship. It was calming to talk to her, and it was eye-opening to think that the day was here that we talked about. It was hard to swallow. I tried to soak it all in in the moment, but I still feel that the entire wedding has only sunk in this past Saturday - a whole week later. 

My former boss did my curls perfectly and my gold headband sparkled like a halo. I then got my cat-eye and red lips done and was ready to put on my dress. Just as I took a breath, my photographer arrived to do some getting ready shots. We all dressed as quickly as possible. It felt a little hectic at that point, but my photographer assured me that it always is. 

These last three photos are of the next day, our first day as a married couple with our hotel robes on and breakfast on the suites balcony. 

I'm skipping the good stuff - everything from the group shots with my girls, to the ceremony, to the family photos, to the dances, to the food. Everything was perfect, all of my vendors were flawless, but I'll leave the details for the next post in which I share some quick photos that my photographer burned for me that night. The rest of the images will be coming in a few months, but I will share the quick pics in the meantime - in my next post.

Local Event: Symphony Under The Stars

Every year our university has an event outside on the lawn with an orchestra. The call it "Symphony Under The Stars" and we've been almost every year since we've moved to the area together. It's a nice little event that we've made a tradition of going to together. 

It's always a lovely time, sitting on the grass listening to good music. It's really relaxing and somewhat therapeutic to take a time-out to just sit, listen, and enjoy. With the wedding and all of the festivities last week, there are few chances to sit, listen, and enjoy. 

As my week unfolds into me getting back into a routine, I'm finding I am just as busy as before, except with new things.

One thing I wanted to accomplish this summer was to get back into the habit of reading on a daily basis. And by reading, I don't mean blogs, textbooks, or magazines, I mean some classic novels. There are tons of books I am in the middle of including Game of Thrones and Girl Who Played With Fire. Yesterday I started reading The Great Gatsby because it's a classic I never tackled. I adore the 20's so I am really surprised I never picked it up in high school. My plan is to read all 180 pages of it before Sunday when we plan to see it. I think it is definitely do-able at the rate I am going. 

I promise I will share some photos with you soon! If you're on Instagram, you're welcome to check out our hash tag full of images taken by our friends and family, #danielleandsteven. My photographer gave me a disk of some images before the night was over. I will share those with you soon enough! 

Splendid Opening Event

One of these past weekends, I was invited to the Splendid store opening in Orlando. I had never been to a Splendid before, but the shop was celebrating in style by having a card-making work shop and local stationary designer, Anna Rifle. 

I definitely had to go, and although I wasn't sure what to expect, I knew that it was going to be done well. The shop had fresh spring flowers, cupcakes for snacking, and washi tape for the cards. We made cards for two lovely ladies and they should be receiving them soon enough in the mail.

Speaking of beautiful flowers, last summer I really wanted to go to a flower arranging class and never had the chance. This summer my friend comes back from studying abroad and I think we'll make it our mission to take some classes together! Snipping and arranging fresh blooms seems like a really therapeutic process. I had a lot of fun arranging my simple lavender bouquets and the centerpieces for my rehearsal dinner too. I think it's a small hobby that I'd like to develop. 

The shop even had a calligrapher come in to address all of the cards for us! It was so lovely because we were able to pick our ink color and font and the calligrapher did it all on-site. That's a talent that I wish I had. 

Of course, you are all probably wondering how the wedding went and let me just tell you that it was so beautiful. Everything was exactly how I imagined it would be - except so much more real. It was such an indescribable feeling standing inside my reception hall before the ceremony. It was everything I dreamed up.