Melissa and Corey Wed at Maggiano's!

Melissa and Corey came to see me and my wedding garden on February 6th and decided they wanted to get married there on April 3, 2010. Later, they decided to change the venue to Maggiano's in Southpoint Mall in Durham because they had more guests than my wedding garden could accommodate. So, on the morning of April 3rd, Marty I arrived at Maggiano's for the wedding.

 

Melissa looks gorgeous and her handsome escort is her son, Jackson.

I am embarrassed that I did not recognize Corey--at first. Must be because he looked so handsome all dressed up to get married. See the grin starting on his face? He was so happy to be marrying Melissa!

 I believe he is trying to get the ring on Melissa's finger here as Jackson is looking on. You can see the bottles of sand behind me. After the vows and rings, Melissa, Corey and Jackson poured their sand together as a symbol of family unity. They also presented Jackson with a special ring to commemorate the occasion.

"Jumping the broom is an ancient wedding ritual honoring and showing respect for your ancestors, their legacy, and your rich heritage from the African-American tradition.  This tradition is threefold: it is a leap of faith in each other that you take together; it is the overcoming of obstacles that you will face together throughout their lives; it is the cleansing of the spirit, both as individuals and as a united couple. Melissa and Corey will now signify their entrance into a new life and their creation of a new family by symbolically “sweeping away” their former single lives, former problems and concerns, and stepping over the broom to enter upon a new adventure as husband and wife."  

Married at last. Since I did not see Corey before the ceremony, I did not get a chance to pin his boutonniere on but  I  got it on him before the posed photos.

What a handsome family Melissa, Corey and Jackson make! They are also loving and incredibly thoughtful individuals. It was my honor to officiate for them. I wish you all the happiness in the world!!

Many thanks to Emily Slaughterbeck of Maggiano's Little Italy for all her help in putting this wedding together. Maggiano's is a great place for weddings--small up to almost 100 people in their private rooms which can be sectioned off. I also thank Kelly of Kelly Martin Photography for her talent in photographing the wedding and not minding Marty taking photos with my camera for this blog. The wedding cake was spectacular and was baked by a friend of theirs, Yelena Volchansky, who is just starting up her wedding cake business.