Sabine and Bobby's Joyful and Colorful Wedding at Brier Creek Country Club!

Sabine and Bobby chose the lovely Brier Creek Country Club for their wedding. I've been doing weddings there since it was built and the Jasmine Courtyard is always so pretty.

Catering manager Doranda Fitzhugh and her assistant event coordinator Shannon Donovan were busy putting out name cards for the reception when Dave and I arrived for the wedding.

The ballroom is all set up for the reception. 

The head table is ready. Fallon's Flowers did the floral arrangement. 

This cake was provided by Cakes by Marie and it is surrounded by these pretty flowers. The wedding colors are pink, yellow and orange.

Back down in the courtyard, I put the unity candle set up together while our DJ, Mitch Woodard with Bunn DJ Company, looked on. I brought my table and the glass container into which I placed their unity candle so it would be protected from the wind. And their wedding day of April 28th 2018 turned out to be a windy day.

The pretty floral arrangements flank the Unity Candle table. 

Mitch was ready for me to do a sound check after I plugged my microphone into his body pack. The sound was perfect!

There were 200 guests and just about everyone had arrived by start time. 

Richard Barlow is our photographer. His second shooter is Mandy! Love working weddings with Richard! He is really good.

When it was time, Doranda directed me and Bobby to enter and take our places. 

Bobby's parents, Shiva and Borhan, enter next.

Then Sabine's mother, Sirine, is escorted in by her nephew, Mark. 

Then their siblings enter: our best man, Sina, and our maid of honor, Sarah. 

I invited the guests to stand for our bride! 

Sabine's father, Elias, proudly escorts his beautiful daughter down the aisle. 

And now we are ready to get this couple married. A warm welcome to everyone present was first. 

Then I stepped out to surprise their parents with a tribute from their children. Always so sweet. Then I told everyone how our couple had met and some of their adventures together and concluded with words by Kahlil Gibran.

Then it was time for the vows, some of which were comical and we had some good laughs. 

The more serious promises follows.

Bobby placed the ring on Sabine's finger. 

Sabine puts the ring on Bobby's finger.

We stepped back to the table where there was a miraculous lull in the breeze which allowed us to easily light their candles from my candlelighter then together light the Unity Candle.

Successfully lit! And it was still burning after the ceremony ended. Amazing! 

I pronounced them married and invited them to kiss. 

I quickly stepped out of the way for the picture of the kiss! 

What a joyful moment!

I introduced them to their guests, Mitch started the recessional music, and out they went! 

After the wedding party and family exited, I instructed the guests to turn and face the portico and fill in the aisle because Richard was going to fly a drone over and get an aerial shot of the whole group.

Doranda and Shannon watch while Richard gets the drone cranked up. 

Right before take-off! 

It flies over the portico to the crowd.

At just the right moment, Richard told the couple to kiss. Perfect! 

Sabine and Bobby! What a wonderful wedding! Everyone loved it and so did I. Congratulations and best wishes for a wonderful live together!

Jamie and Marc's Fabulous Wedding at The Sutherland!

The Sutherland in Wake Forest is a beautiful wedding venue. The owner, Ashlee Adams, has carefully restored this old plantation estate to its current splendor. Jamie and Marc fell in love with it and booked it for their wedding on July 15th, 2017. 

This is an original cabin on the premises that is used for a place for the groom and his groomsmen to hang out in while the bride and her ladies are in the big house getting ready.

 It is a blazing hot day and the sun is as bright as it gets! But not untypical for a July day in North Carolina! 

 Inside the manor house here is an original fireplace in the old dining room that has been preserved. 

Off the dining room is a sun room where the cake is on display. The cake is by Ashley Cakes.

 The ceremony took place in the Walled Garden. 

 The Unity Candle ceremony is set up. To protect the flame, the Unity Candle is inside a glass lantern.

A new addition to the premises a few years ago is the Pavilion. This past year doors were added on all sides so that now it is climate controlled for the comfort of the wedding guests and wedding party.

Very spacious beautiful light-filled space to celebrate inside! The caterer, Donovan's Dish, is preparing for the reception.

 All is ready! 

We delayed the start of the ceremony 15 minutes due to an accident on Highway 1 which delayed one of the shuttles from getting to the venue. And now it is time to begin the processional.

 The guests are seated under the parasols to shade them from the sun.

Marc and I, followed by his brothers, Robbie and Andrew--his best men, enter from the side gate. I want to thank Alex Choi with Vox DJ for the music and for letting me plug my mic into his system. The sound was perfect! 

 The groomsmen and bridesmaids entered as couples followed by the Maid of Honor, Jamie's sister, Dena.  

They had six children in the wedding party and the last little girl, Emily, entered with a sign that said "Uncle Bubba, Here Comes Your Bride!" 

 Jamie and her dad, Ernest, entered around from the front door into the garden.  

 The guests are standing in their honor. The videographers  were Zach and Ethan with Bowtie Films. 

 Everyone is seated now for the ceremony. 

A welcome to all who traveled from near and far to be here. All of Marc's family came from New York for the wedding. We remembered those that could not be with us then began with a prayer.

Next was a tribute to their parents: Ernest and Francine, Robert and Mary Ellen. This is kept a secret so that it is a sweet surprise for them on the wedding day.

Then I got to tell the story of how Jamie and Marc met. Having no good way to meet people in person, they met on line, liked chatting with each other and decided to meet in person on July 11, 2015. The attraction was immediate, the dating began and they soon became a couple.

They found they had a lot in common, especially a love of football and their favorite teams. Marc supported Jamie in preparing for and running a marathon which showed her how supportive he was of her. Marc surprised her with a proposal of marriage on October 22, 2016 and Jamie of course said yes. Being a big Pinterest fan, she already had a lot of ideas compiled for her wedding so this wedding came together quite naturally.

Then it was time for them to hear for the first time what they each told me in confidence what they love about each other.

Their photographer was Ashley with Bowtie Collaborative. 

 They chose some funny questions for each other like:  

"Marc, do you promise to go to Target whenever Jamie wishes and even go towards the back where the seasonal section is located?"

 "Jamie, do you promise to let Marc buy Jeep parts on a regular basis?" 

 Then they made more serious promises of marriage to each other. 

 Jamie promises.

 Talking about the symbolism of these rings they will exchange.

 Marc: "With this ring, I give you my heart." 

 Jamie: "With this ring, I give you my heart."

 I invited the parents to come forward and light the individual candles for the bride and groom. 

 Then Jamie and Marc brought their flames together and lit the Unity Candle inside the lantern.

 Time for the closing blessing before the pronouncement of marriage.

 I asked them to close their eyes and feel the happiness and let it register in their hearts.

 Then they opened their eyes and I placed my hand on theirs to make the pronouncement of marriage!

 The customary kiss--long enough to get a good picture! Yay! 

 I think Marc is feeling a little sheepish about that kiss in front of everybody! Awww! 

 "Honored guests, please stand and join me in congratulating our newlyweds!" 

The music began and out they went! 

 Cheers! 

A kiss for the videographer! Christy Ethridge on the porch is our wedding director from The Sutherland. Great job, Christy! Enjoyed working with you!

 A photo of the Unity Candle after the ceremony. All the flames are still lit! 

Marc and Jamie! Congratulation on your marriage and a wonderful wedding! I wish you all the best!