Kaitlin and Chris' Fabulous Wedding at the Park Alumni Center!

Kaitlin and Chris' wedding was on a beautiful fall day--October 20th 2018 at the NC State Park Alumni Center on the Centennial Campus. It had rained the day before but the grounds had dried out and the ceremony site was all ready to go.

Their guests filled every seat! 

Kent Blom with Bunn DJ Company was our expert DJ for the ceremony and the reception. He was all set up and ready to go too. 
Erin McCauley with Chestnut and Vine Wedding Coordination was our wedding director. She specializes in "day of wedding coordination." This was the first time Erin and I had worked together and we both had been looking forward to this wedding. We look forward to many more too!

While the guests were assembling for the ceremony, the wedding party was gathered together out of sight and Erin and I had a chance to sit down and chat before the processional began.

The English Garden provided the florals for this wedding. Pretty pots of bright red lined the generous wide aisle. 

In between the pots of flowers were plaques with verses of First Corinthians about Love. 

I processed in from the side and took my place in front of the guests. Then Chris and his parents, Jeffrey and Joan, entered. His parents were seated and Chris stepped up to join me up front.

The groomsmen then entered one by one.

They made their way down the aisle to join Chris. 

Groomsman David and bridesmaid Emily entered together.

Our best man, Matt, escorted in Chris' sister Meg (maid of honor) and Kaitlin's sister Jess (matron of honor).

The guests are invited to stand in honor of the bride. 

Kaitlin's mother, Melissa, is in a wheelchair but that did not stop her from joining Ed, to escort their daughter down the aisle. 

When Kaitlin and her parents reached the front row, Kaitlin stepped forward on her own and joined Chris and they turned and faced their parents. Then I asked their parents: "Who supports and blesses Chris and Kaitlin as they join together in marriage?" Of course they answered "We do" and everyone was seated.

Chris and Kaitlin wanted to pay tribute to key people in their lives: their parents and their sisters. I addressed each one of them individually identifying their attributes and thanked them on behalf of the couple. It was so touching and a sweet surprise to each of them. We also recognized and thanked their grandparents who were present and acknowledged those who have passed away.

Kaitlin and Chris have been in love since they met in high school in 2010. Their story of meeting at a movie night at Kaitlin's house one night when they were both 16 was so much fun to learn about and then tell to their guests who had never heard their story all put together from both perspectives. Kaitlin realized that she had more than high-school-crush feeling for Chris first. Eventually he caught on and asked her out by placing an origami heart on her windshield for her to find after sports practice. And, as they say, the rest is history!

The story generated lots of laughs. Most of the wedding party had been with them in high school as their romance developed and could relate to most of their experiences.

Kaitlin and Chris enjoyed hearing their story and watching their friends and family enjoy it too. 

Love the laughter and fun! 

After high school they both went to NC State and graduated which brings us to this wedding day after many months of very careful planning.

Kaitlin is hearing for the first time what Chris told me in confidence he loves about her and what he is looking forward to in marriage. They are both really good writers.

Then Chris gets to hear what Kaitlin told me about her love for him. 

They read their vows (secret from each other) to each other from my book while placing the rings. 

Kaitlin's turn!

I pronounced them husband and wife and invited them to share their first kiss as a married couple. 

Everyone was cheering them on! Their photographer, Faith Teasley, moves in for a closer photo. 

I introduced them to their guests and invited them to stand and join me in congratulating them!

Some photo-ops on the way out! 

The wedding party then exits. 

Kaitlin and Chris! What a wonderful wedding you put together. I am honored to have joined you in marriage. Thank you for the opportunity. I loved working with you to create your very unique ceremony. I wish you all the best! 

Very Romantic Wedding for Alla and Thierry!

I recently had the honor of joining Alla and Thierry in matrimony at  The State Club. Christobal Perez with Azul Photography was recording the wedding in photographs and my husband Dave snapped these photos for the blog.

 

After introducing them, Por Una Cabeza (Tango from "The Scent of a Woman") began to play as they swept down the aisle and began dancing to the music! They were fantastic and it was ever so romantic!!

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Ali and Landon's Incredible Wedding at The State Club!

Ali and Landon's wedding ceremony "takes the cake" for the wedding with the most laughter of any other wedding I have had the privilege of officiating! And that is due in large part to their fun-loving personalities. I got to know them pretty well because they took my Marriage Optimization class.  I loved teaching them about what to expect in marriage and answering their insightful questions. It was no surprise that they are very compatible and a great match.

Marty and I arrived on October 11th 2014 at The State Club to find Landon and his guys outside the club but there were no chairs set up for the ceremony. I  found out they had checked the doppler for weather predictions for their start time of 5:30 that afternoon and spotted a very large dark cloud headed their way. So, they wisely "called" the wedding and moved the ceremony indoors. And it was a good thing because we found out later it started raining during the ceremony.

Best man Zach, Ali's brother, on the right, and one of our ushers relax before the ceremony. You can see their photographer, Cara, with f8 Studios and her second shooter in the background. Cara and I have done a lot of weddings together through the years.

 View of the ballroom from the second level all decked out for the reception. 

 The room for the ceremony is ready to go! 

 Monica Noa with Nouveau Events has everything under control! Such a pleasure to work with her. 

 Such a pretty wedding cake by Edible Art! 

A table full of photos of their parents' and grandparents' weddings and a headpiece from one of the brides. 

 Their guest book made with photos of their travels. 

 Engagement photo!

So the guests took their seats. It was a "kid-friendly" wedding and one of our small guests is having a  great time already!

Monica has us all lined up beginning with the four grandparents. Mitch with Joe Bunn DJ Company is providing our music. 

 Landon and I in line waiting our turn to enter.

 Andrea, Landon's sister, is Ali's Maid of Honor. Kelley with Teacup Floral provided the pretty flowers. 

 Ali's father, Rick, brings Ali in! That is Wendy, event manager for the Club, in the background.

Welcome to all, opening prayer and tribute to the parents first. Then a reading of "I Carry Your Heart With Me" by ee cumming was shared by Christy.

Then their story. What fun! The day they met is a clue to their fun personalities and why this ceremony was so funny. In 2009 they were with a gathering of mutual friends at the Flying Saucer, sitting at opposite ends of a table. Because neither was interested in the conversations around them, they amused themselves by making funny faces at each other. Eventually they got around to talking and getting to know each other. After a few months they began to hang out together and developed a close bond which blossomed into romance.

Ali was working on a horse farm and pursuing her master's degree at NCSU. Landon had recently gotten out of the military and was unemployed. When Ali graduated and got her first "real" job, not wanting to be a slacker, Landon got a job with a crane company which he soon discovered was not for him. He promptly quit and began pursuing a degree in electrical engineering and will graduate next May.

They love to travel. In fact, two months into their relationship they took an 8 day Caribbean cruise. Landon spent four months earlier this year on an internship in Switzerland and of course Ali went over to spend a few weeks with him so they could explore Europe together.  In fact, they worked on putting the first draft of their ceremony together from my material while sitting in a beer garden overlooking Prague.

 The proposal story was quite funny as Landon's proposal did not go as he had planned! 

 Whew, getting married is hard work, isn't it, Landon??

 So, now for the secret paragraphs and their vows to each other.

 The rings were exchanged, then a closing blessing. 

Landon kept sniffing during the ceremony so I had to check to make sure everything was good for the kiss that was coming up after the pronouncement!

 The pronouncement! 

 Off we go! 

We gathered in the room where the groom and groomsmen and fathers hung out before the wedding. It was supplied with nerf guns (I think that is what they called them!) and so Ali and Landon had a good time playing with them as Cara and Marty got some good pictures of them. When all the guests had gone down into the lobby for cocktails, we returned to the ceremony room for photos.

And so it is!! Congratulations, Ali and Landon. What a fabulous wedding for a fabulous couple who are so attuned to each other! All the best to you!

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