Katie and Jon's Sweet Wedding at The Meadows at Firefly Farm

Katie and Jon planned their wedding for Monday afternoon at a beautiful new venue in Raleigh: The Meadows at Firefly Farm. The owners bought up this beautiful farm and surrounding acres for the purpose of keeping it natural and undeveloped. I admire them for this preservation of natural landscape. If you get a chance to visit and be toured around, it is quite impressive!

Monday October 29, 2108 was a beautiful day for a wedding!

This archway of natural material was the entrance to the ceremony space in the forest. 

Look at this sweet spot! Huge logs were the benches for the guests who were beginning to gather. 

Our photographer, Alex Lassiter of A&A Wedding Photography, was getting some shots of our music-makers, The Grit Lickers! 

The "altar" was a huge circle of intertwined limbs decorated with greenery, flowers and a fabric drape which kept getting rearranged by the wind.  Every Bloomin' Thing was the florist.

The guests are waiting for the ceremony to begin while Jon and I gathered with Kelly Joy, our wedding director, in the house next to the glen.

She gave us the signal to enter and we took our places. There was no wedding party other than the three of us. Jon and Katie wanted their wedding to be simple and sweet. And it was.

I invited the guests to stand as Katie began her long walk down the aisle. Jon left my side and began walking toward her to meet halfway.

And so they make their way down as the guests watch them come together into marriage. 

They faced each other and held hands centered in front of me as I invited the guests to be seated. 

What a lovely setting for an small intimate wedding! 

I welcomed everyone and thanked them for being with us. 

I stepped out to the side and paid tribute to Jon's parents who were on the first bench. Then launched into a reading of Captain Corelli's Mandolin that reflects the couple's beliefs about love and marriage.

Jon and Katie love the ee cumming poem of I Carry Your Heart and so they alternately read lines of the poem to each other from my book where it was printed facing them.

I gave a brief synopsis of their meeting and falling in love then it was time for the handfasting ritual. 

I took the cord from around my shoulders and began wrapping it around their joined left hands then asked them to join their right hands forming the symbol of infinity.

Some tears slipped out of Katie's eyes so I blotted them with my hankie.  

Then while their hands were bound they read their vows to each other where they were printed in my book. Then I removed the cord and they placed their rings on each other's finger which are symbols of the cord. 

After a closing blessing it was time for the pronouncement of marriage. 

I was so happy to declare that they are now husband and wife. 

Their first kiss as a married couple! Everyone was cheering them on! 

The guests stood in their honor as I presented them for the first time as husband and wife. 

And they step into the next chapter of their lives--marriage!

It was such a pretty day and the wind had died down enough to stop blowing my hair in my face! 

Jon and Katie! What a pleasure to know you and an honor to join you in marriage. Your hearts are truly melded into that wonderful spirit of sweet love. I know you are so happy to be together forever!

Jackie and Dean Are Wed At Caffe Luna!

Jackie and Dean met with me on March 6th and hired me to officiate their wedding at Caffe Luna on October 15th, 2017. It was not a first wedding for either of them and they wanted a fun, laid-back wedding and Caffe Luna is the perfect place for that kind of wedding. I love weddings there. The staff is great to work with and the food delicious. Jackie and Dean and I got busy collaborating on the wedding ceremony. They each answered a questionnaire for me and from their answers, I put together the story of how they met and fell in love in a way no one had ever heard. They are both good writers and furnished lots of humor to sprinkle in.

Pinning the boutonniere on Matt, our best man. Every Bloomin' Thing was the florist.

Their friend Ingrid was their wonderful wedding director. She had no problem getting the procession organized and signaling people when to walk out.

I was the official boutonniere-pinner-on person at this wedding! 

This cake is from Wicked Sweet Cakes.

The reception area was ready.

Our DJ, Willis Buie with Willis J Entertainment, was ready. 

One more boutonniere!

Jackie's son, Braxton was in charge of the rings.

And so the guests are all seated and we are ready to begin. I walked out first and asked the guests to put away their cell phones and cameras so they could truly be with Jackie and Dean without the distraction of technology. Our professional photographer, Amy with Your Still Life Photography, would capture the wedding in images. (The photos on this blog were taken by my sweet husband Dave.)

Getting ready to walk in from the sidewalk area in the back of the restaurant.

Dean and his groomsmen and Braxton joined me up front.

The bridesmaids are in place, including our maid of honor, Lauren, Jackie's daughter.

Jackie is escorted in by her father, Nguyen. 

And so the ceremony began.

There was a welcome address and a family blessing including recognizing Jackie's children, Lauren and Braxton.

Now for the fun part: the story! They met just a few feet down the sidewalk one evening when they were out on the town with friends. The attraction was immediate. But Jackie was finishing up her degree, raising her family, and a very busy woman. Dean wrangled a date from her and they begin to get to know each other. Dean was born and raised in England but had been living in Raleigh for 3 years for business. Jackie was contemplating relocating out west but that notion disappeared as they fell in love.

They will be quick to tell you that the journey of their relationship was not without some bumps in the road but they will also tell you that their relationship was a great opportunity for mutual evolution.

They had each told me in confidence what they cherish most about each other and their hopes and dreams for their future together. It was time to share those words with each of them.

Their vows were printed in my ceremony book facing them and they read them to each other then exchanged their rings.

I made the pronouncement of marriage and invited them to share their first kiss as a married couple!

An so they did! 

Hey, we are married!

And away they go!

Jackie and Dean! What a great wedding! So happy for you. Thanks for being so creative and working diligently with me to create your wonderful ceremony. I wish you the best always!