Michelle and Steve's Wedding at Blackhorse Run Clubhouse!

Michelle and Steve came to see me on August 19th about officiating their wedding on September 18, 2010. It was short notice but I had an opening that afternoon and we were all happy that I could officiate for them. (They told me that the person that was supposed to officiate their wedding canceled. I did not question them but I suspected that it might have been someone who got ordained on line to do a wedding then found out it was not an easy task to write a wedding ceremony and rather daunting to deliver a wedding ceremony!) 

When we were ready to begin, Michelle was escorted in by her son, Josh. Michelle did all the flowers herself and they were so pretty. Her theme was hot pink, one of my favorites. The ceremony music was provided by James Mount, a DJ with whom I had worked before but neither of us could remember whose wedding!

The clubhouse sits on some land with a pool, tennis courts and a playground. Michelle and Steve chose a location that backed up to a wooded area and rented the elegant white columns that were decorated with mums and a large topiary ball of fabric.

Michelle's beautiful daughter, Kaitlyn, was her maid of honor. Steve's best man was his handsome son, Bryan. Josh, Michelle's handsome son who escorted her in, stepped over to the side as a groomsman. It was all family for this bride and groom. Both sets of parents were in the front row and we paid tribute to them.

Their guests cheer them on as they make their way up the aisle as  newlyweds!

Time to celebrate! Michelle and Steve, it was an honor to officiate your wedding and a pleasure to work with you. I wish you tons of happiness and contentment!

Wedding of Andrea and Michael at Caffe Luna!

Andrea and Michael chose to have their wedding and reception at Caffe Luna on Sunday April 18, 2010. Caffe Luna is a great place for a fun wedding. The restaurant is closed to the public on Sundays for weddings. Andrea and Michael chose to have only Michael's children, Autumn (age 12) and Andrew (10), for their attendants. 

 We did not have a formal rehearsal for the wedding so after Marty and I arrived and got my microphone plugged into the DJ's sound system, the DJ (Kevin Judicki, far right), Lee (friend of the bride acting as director, far left), Michael (groom) and I huddled together to get our signals straight. Andrew was listening in too.

So, when it was time to begin, Andrew escorted in his grandmother, Linda, then joined Michael and me up front.

Then it was time for Autumn to walk down the aisle. She looked so pretty but I think she must have been nervous because I could not get her to smile!

Here comes the bride! Andrea's father is beaming as he and the bride enter. (By the way, those empty chairs were extras that were already set up and not expected to be filled by guests!)

And, the ceremony began with a warm welcome to all the guests and a Blessing for the Parents and Michael's children, Autumn and Andrew. 

 

The ceremony included the story of how Andrea and Michael met and fell in love which guests are always eager to hear about. They exchanged their vows and rings.

 

The couple and the children poured their sand together as a symbol of family unity.

What pretty layers of sand combining the lives of this blended family.

Then followed the pronouncement and the first kiss as husband and wife! 

And out they go, husband and wife, now married! 

Andrea and Michael are just beaming! It was a great wedding. Thank you, Andrea and Michael for allowing me to be part of your special day! I wish you many years of love, peace and happiness!

Kevin Judicki DJ provided the music for the ceremony and reception.  Strother Floral Gallery provided the beautiful flowers. This beautiful cake was created by Ashley of Ashley's Cakes. The make-up artist was Unforgettable Beauty. The photographer was a friend of the family, Jon Sutphin.

Andrea and Michael creatively made the table top signs by taking different photographs of themselves as children and teenagers, labeling the numbers and cleverly standing them up on corks. Cool!

Lisa and Brandon Wed at Caffe Luna!

Lisa and Brandon were married on December 6, 2009 at Caffe Luna in downtown Raleigh. It was a wonderful wedding and the space was filled with their guests. Caffe Luna is a wonderful place to get married and have a casual but elegant wedding with the reception right there too. Ryan Hill, catering manager, was there to make sure everything flowed smoothly for the ceremony and reception. Thanks, Ryan. It is always a pleasure to do weddings at Caffe Luna.

Lisa was escorted in by her Uncle Joe who was a bit nervous but Lisa was such a beautiful bride radiantly sweeping down the aisle to her sweetheart!

Lisa and Brandon chose to have their guests facing the Hargett Street side of the restaurant and placed a drape behind the ceremony area for some privacy. The Christmas wreaths in the window remind us that it is the Christmas season. We paid tribute to their dear mothers which evoked a few tears and then asked their guests for a community blessing. Lisa was cool and calm until it came time for her to say the words to Brandon when they exchanged rings. She started choking up but after a deep breath she was okay. I could tell that Brandon just wanted to hug her and comfort her but I told him "no kissing yet!" which got a good laugh from everyone. We proceeded on to the pronouncement and then they kissed and I presented the newlyweds to their delighted guests. They wedding party and parents exited and the guests went to the two back rooms which were all set up for the reception. Then the staff started transforming the front room for the reception too. It was pretty busy and I joined the couple in the VIP room to congratulate them and get some photos.

Have a great time in Vegas, Lisa and Brandon! You are a dear couple and your love for each other is so evident. I wish you all the best ever!

This is one of the rooms in the back of the restaurant all set up for the reception. The owner, Parker Kennedy, is a dear friend and neighbor of mine and his talented wife, Nicole, painted all the wonderful paintings that hang on the walls.

Lisa and Brandon are big time Disney fans. See Mickey and Minnie topping the cake! They would have gone to Disney World for their honeymoon except that they had recently been there on another trip. So they decided to immerse themselves in the glitz and glitter of Las Vegas instead. This cake is by Lisa's friend, Melissa Taylor.

Melissa Taylor was also our wedding director. She did a super job directing the wedding party in. Here she is with Gene Raffel, our DJ with Gene's Mobile DJ Service  getting their cues lined up. Gene was really good to work with. Thanks, Gene and Melissa. Our florals were done by Ty Batista of A Floral Essence. Our photographer was Kelly Martin. It was good to work with her again.

See this Slideshow of Courtney and Denny's Wedding!

Hello! I just received a link to this fabulous slide show of Courtney and Denny's wedding that took place on November 7th done by their photographer, Robin Lin, and I thought you would have fun looking at it. http://www.robinlin.com/courtneydenny/

It shows the couple getting ready for the ceremony, the ceremony at All Saints Chapel and the reception at the Capital City Club. Looks like they had a great time! Notice the beautiful candles and fall leaves theme that is consistent with the altar decor at the chapel. Beautiful. Thanks to Fresh Affairs fabulous florals.

The original post of this wedding on my blog  is here. 

The thoughtful groomsman who sent this link to me is John Evans--the bald groomsman, he says! John was talking to a woman at Blinco's about starting his own wedding DJ business and this woman happened to be my daughter and so they made the connection with Courtney and Denny's wedding. John has been a DJ with a DJ company for the past 10 years and is ready to spin out on his own. He can be reached at johneraleigh@hotmail.com.

Fabulous Wedding for Nancy and Steve at Maggiano's!

I knew when I met Nancy and Steve that theirs would be a very special wedding. They have both been married before and have grown children. They were not expecting to meet anyone who would be so perfectly matched for them. But then Steve's brother, Ron, (now dubbed "St. Ron") arranged for them to meet each other and the rest is, as we say, history! Both Steve and Nancy wanted a fun evening with their friends with the wedding ceremony thrown in. They picked Maggiano's Little Italy in Southpoint Mall, Durham, not only because it is one of their favorite restaurants but because it was the perfect atmosphere for their wedding celebration. Steve is in the wine industry and he wanted to pick special wines for the evening and the food there is wonderful anyway!

After our meeting, I sent Nancy and Steve a proposed ceremony based on what they told me they wanted. They really wanted to emphasize their friends and family members and so they added a tribute to just about everyone there. Some were hilarious and others were tear-jerkers. I was looking forward to delivering this ceremony so much and it was such a pleasure on their wedding day.

The couple arrived together and most of the guests were already mingling around in the private dining room. Can you see the individual bottles of wine at each place setting?

Here we are discussing where we will stand for the ceremony and Nancy is pointing out people to me who are named in the ceremony.

Nancy's dress was stunning. The back of it was encrusted with Swarovski's crystals.

Nancy and her sister, Dori.

Now it is time for the ceremony. The DJ put on Canon in D and folks started gathering around. There were mirrors everywhere and this one liked to reflect the flash on my camera. (I am grateful that I can post these photos that would be unacceptable to a professional photographer!) Their wedding had many funny moments and parts of it were akin to a "roast" in good fun. Nancy is a "horse" person and her beloved horse is Pablo. One of the lines in the ceremony reads: "If Pablo was here, we would thank him too, but Nancy could not figure out how to get him through the revolving front door outside of Maggiano’s." I loved it and so did their guests. I doubt they will ever forget it.

And finally the big pronouncement of marriage. The deed is done!

Their first dance as husband and wife.

Are we happy or what! Nancy and Steve, I will never forget you and your wonderful wedding. Thanks so much for making me a special part of your special day. Congratulations!

This is Emily Slaughterbeck of Maggiano's that I am speaking with. She was in charge that evening and fabulous to work with. She took care of all the details and even sent Marty and me home with generous helpings of Maggiano's very delicious lasagna. Thanks, Emily! Thanks too to Michelle Castro of Maggiano's for making all the arrangements with Steve and Nancy to make this possible.

What an exquisite wedding cake! It is by Blue Moon Bakery.

Our super DJ was Frank Meldau of Joe Bunn DJ Company. Thanks for plugging my mic into your system and taking control of the sound, Frank!

Our photographer was Heather Swanner. Good to work with you again, Heather! Send me some photos!

Fabulous Candlelight Wedding for Courtney and Denny at All Saints Chapel!

Courtney and Denny and I met last January to plan their November 7, 2009 wedding at All Saints Chapel, one of my favorite places for weddings in Raleigh. They are a delightful young professional couple who are careful planners and knew what they wanted. All Saints Chapel was a perfect setting for them and their 130 guests. It was close to the Capital City Club where their reception was and they hired buses to transport their guests from the hotel to the chapel and then from the chapel to the reception.

After Courtney's grandparents and the parents and all the attendants and I had processed in down the candlelit aisle, it was time for our flower girl, Caitlin, to sprinkle the aisle with pretty fall leaves.

Here comes the beautiful bride escorted in by her beaming father!

Here we are during the ceremony. Can you see all the candles? I happen to know there were at least 100!

The deed is done and Courtney and Denny are husband and wife and so happy! They exited to the front of the chapel followed by their wedding party and parents and grandparents.

Then I asked all the guests to stand and turn around and fill in the aisle, being careful of all those candles in the aisle! Then the parents, grandparents, wedding party and finally the bride and groom came back in to stand in front of the guests while our photographer, Robin Lin, got a shot of everyone from the balcony in the rear of the chapel. (All the photos on this blog are with my point and shoot digital camera, courtesy of my "roadie" Marty!)

Then I invited the guests to proceed to the reception while we took some photos of the bride and groom and their attendants and relatives. Courtney and Denny had decided to have a "First Look" before the ceremony so a lot of their wedding photos were taken in various spots around downtown Raleigh. Courtney's dress was gorgeous! She has such elegant beauty.

Courtney and Denny, I wish you lifetimes of happiness and all the best life has to offer!


Now to let you in on a few behind the scenes scenarios before this beautiful wedding happened: When Marty and I arrived at 4:00 for the 5:00 wedding, the aisle and the altar area were filled with beautiful glass vases of water of varying heights with white floating candles. The above photo shows where the candles were originally placed. But, the problem was, and I am sure the florist had no idea where the bridesmaids and groomsmen were to stand for the ceremony, that the candles were positioned where the attendants were to stand and there was nowhere else for the attendants to be. To leave the candles where they were was to risk them getting knocked over or the girls' dresses catching fire. The florist (Fresh Affairs) was long gone, having set up much earlier in the day.

Here Andrew Martin of All Saints Chapel and I are discussing what to do about this situation. (Andrew was filling in this weekend for Sarah Morris who was away at a wedding. Andrew told us that his wedding was at the chapel two weeks earlier!) We had no choice but to move the candles. So, Andrew, Marty and I set about rearranging the vases--some were quite heavy--toward the back of the altar to clear the steps and front of the altar. The photo below shows the final rearrangement and it is lovely. I loved all the candles and the romantic mood they create. But wait, another problem presented itself once we got the candles in place. It was now 4:30, 30 minutes before ceremony start time, and time to light the candles. We discovered we had no way to light all these candles! Andrew searched the chapel for a long handled butane lighter and Marty searched my car. Nothing but matches and the short cigarette lighters turned up. They would not work because you cannot stick your hand into the vases and light the wicks without burning yourself!

So, at 4:30 Marty and I hopped in my car and drove three blocks down the street to Caffe Luna where I also do many weddings and found Ryan Hill, the catering manager, and hurriedly explained the problem and she gave me two long handled butane lighters. Ryan, you saved the day! Marty and I sped back to the chapel waving to the wedding party on Person Street having photos taken. Andrew and Marty set about lighting the candles which were not easy to light, believe me. There were hanging glass candle holders in the little trees on the altar and in order to reach them, I had to climb up behind the altar, unhook each one from the tree branches, hold for Andrew to light, then hang up again. The guests were arriving and being seated as we were diligently lighting candles and one nice gentleman helped us immensely. Andrew found one taper candle that we could use as a lighter so with 3 of us lighting candles, we were done about 15 minutes before start time! The bride and groom had no idea what had gone on until I told them later! It would have been a shame if we could not have lit the candles.

In December of 2008, I officiated the wedding of Melissa and Chris at Long View Center (unfortunately now closed) and their musicians were Gregory Dixon on piano and Phillip Jefferson on oboe. I told Denny and Courtney how spectacular and mystical the combination of the two instruments was and so they decided that was what they wanted. So above are Gregory (919 274-1041) and Phillip (919 604-2431) making their beautiful music. I wish I had sound on this blog! I was so looking forward to hearing this music again. For one of the processional numbers, Denny and Courtney chose the theme from Forrest Gump. I have never heard it used in a wedding before but it was truly magical and perfect! I hope to hear it again in a wedding.

Marty and I did not go to the reception at the Capital City Club although we were invited. I rarely go to receptions any more. For one thing, most of the time I really only know the couple and I want them to have fun with their friends and families and not worry about me. Another thing is that if I went to all the receptions, I would weigh about 400 pounds by now! Just too tempting! I understand that Courtney and Denny had Complete Music as their DJ and that Simply Cakes did their wedding cake. Courtney's make-up and hair were by Primp Salon and she sure looked fabulous!