Surprise 50th Anniversary and Renewal of Vows for Hexis and Jose!

Kevin called me about a month ago to find out if I could perform a renewal of vows ceremony at his parents' surprise 50th Anniversary celebration that he and his brother, Joe, were planning on July 18th. I was happy to be a part of this happy occasion! So, I wrote a ceremony for his parents, Hexis and Jose, and got Kevin's approval that it was just what they wanted.

When I arrived for the celebration, I could tell that a lot of preparation had gone into this event. There was a big tent with tables and chairs in the backyard and this gorgeous cake inside. I don't know who made it but it was lovely.

There was also a collection of photos of Hexis and Jose on their wedding day in 1959 (they had quite a large formal wedding), Kevin and Joe's weddings, and their grandchildren.

This is Brianna, flower girl, and Brian, the ring bearer and also the escort for his grandmother! Can you see how excited they are?

We were ready to begin so I took my place under the arch with Jose as everyone gathered around. Then the music played while the two flower girls came in.

They came in so slowly that their fathers--Joe and Kevin--were motioning them to hurry up!

Katelyn liked to inspect each petal before she dropped it on the ground!

Then Brian escorted in his grandmother, Hexis. He was so cute and was proud to have this big honor.

Kevin told me after the ceremony that his parents were so excited and thrilled. I could tell they were in a little shock during the ceremony but they did fine. They are a solid couple whose marriage has stood the test of time--50 years!

Joe and Kevin got special rings for their parents to exchange during the ceremony!

Congratulations, Hexis and Jose! What a great tribute to you from your sons and all the family members and friends who were gathered around to witness and celebrate this wonderful milestone in your lives!

Bright and Sunny Wedding for Beth and David at Sisters' Garden!

When I refer to Beth and David's wedding as "bright and sunny" I am not referring to the weather although we had a beautiful day on Saturday July 11, 2009. It was slightly overcast which kept the temperature down in the 80s and good for photographs--no squinting or harsh shadows. What I mean is that they had a very YELLOW wedding! It was so pretty. I remember the last yellow wedding I had was June of last year in the Rose Garden. Beth carried the yellow theme out consistently in her flowers, the boutonnieres, the programs, the petals lining the aisle, and the embellishment on the wedding cake. It was lovely. Well, I wanted to fit into the yellow theme so I found a pretty scarf of yellow and white and made it into a prayer stole for the wedding.

Beth makes her grand entrance with her proud papa, Alan. They floated down the petal-lined aisle as their guests stood in awe! When they stopped in front of me, I asked him and Beth's mother, Doris, if they would give Beth into the care and keeping of David. Of course, they both answered "We do!"

As you can see, David had 5 groomsmen and a best man and Beth had 4 bridesmaids and a matron of honor. Several of the bridesmaids were soon-to-be mothers and the yellow empire waisted dresses were perfect for them.

David's mother, Meghan, arranged for a friend and colleague of hers, Stephanie Rodelander, to sing Ave Maria as the parents were ushered in. Stephanie was accompanied by another friend of Meghan's, Jolene Miedema, on the keyboard. Stephanie also sang a Stevie Wonder song, You and I, during the lighting of the Unity Candle. It turns out that David's father, Franklin, and I had met before somewhere in past careers but we never could quite nail down where.

(This photo is courtesy of Bill Loomis, husband of Lynn, who made the gorgeous wedding cake!)

David was so afraid his nose was going to run, he carried a handkerchief, just in case--before the kiss! I carry a hankie in my ceremony book also, just in case the bride and/or groom sheds tears, or their noses run! It didn't happen though. I heard a few sniffles from Beth but when I offered my hankie during one of the readings, she whispered "I'm good!"

When I make the pronouncement of marriage, I place my right hand over theirs. Here's the big moment!

And out they go into their new married life! I know it will be a great and fun adventure.

Beth and David, you seem to be very well matched and a mature couple for your ages! Many, many congratulations!

Vendors:

Sisters' Garden: Sisters' Garden is a lovely setting for a wedding. The backdrop of lush green really shows off the colors. I always enjoy doing weddings there and working with Marc Dabagian, the wedding director for Sisters' Garden, who is a delight to work with. His years of experience and fine organizational skills make sure the wedding ceremony flows smoothly. We seem to see eye-to-eye on how a wedding should go!

Lynn Loomis of Lynn's Traditions: A fabulous wedding cake baker! I love to see Lynn and her husband, Bill, at weddings. Her cakes are always spectacular. She and Bill attend the reception so she can cut the cake for the bride and groom. I would not know where to begin cutting those multi-level creations!

Mark Edwards, Photographer: I always enjoy weddings with Mark. He knows exactly what shots he wants and how to set them up and make them happen. He may even send me some photographs of this wedding I can post here later.

U-neek Flavur: "The Best Party Band for All Occasions" is what their business card says. David told me that he and Beth went to a wedding where they played at the reception and knew they wanted them for their wedding. They are out of Charlotte. I did not get to hear their music because they were setting up inside during the ceremony and I left right after the photographs.

Baby Blessing Ceremonies!

November 22, 2009: I have created a separate Baby Blessing Blog today to feature just these sweet ceremonies. I have transferred the ones I had on this wedding blog to that blog if you are trying to find one of them. Please visit Baby Blessing Blog to view all these wonderful babies and families.

What a Wonderful Wedding Celebration for Melanie and Ryan at Fearrington Country Inn!

Weddings at Fearrington Country Inn are simply fabulous! It is a beautiful setting for a wedding and one of my very favorite places. There are four different garden areas for ceremonies. Melanie and Ryan chose to get married in the Pecan Grove on July 4, 2009 because it is shaded by old pecan trees. They had 145 guests from all over the country attending and I did not see one empty chair, in fact they had to add a couple more rows! As I told Ryan, no one turns down an invitation to a wedding at Fearrington!

Melanie and Ryan chose to see each other before the ceremony so they could take the majority of their photographs. Here is the couple and both their families who traveled here mostly from Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Ryan's brother came down from Virginia.

Here is the wedding party. The maid of honor, Kerri, is Melanie's cousin and her bridesmaid, Megan, is Ryan's sister. Both Melanie and Ryan have brothers named Michael and they served as Ryan's best men. See how patriotically they are dressed in red, white and blue for the 4th of July?

Just one more shot, this time with the minister!

After the photo session, we retired to our separate hang-outs to wait for the guests to arrive and begin the ceremony. When we were all set, Melanie's father, Anthony, proudly escorted in his beautiful daughter! What an exquisite wedding gown!

Their ceremony was very unique and I was so thrilled to be delivering it. Melanie and Ryan wrote in so many funny parts that it kept the guests laughing throughout! I love that and the guests were delighted. The bride and groom are both attorneys and met at University of North Carolina law school in 2001 and that is why they wanted to have their ceremony here in NC.

One of the best parts of the ceremony was thanking their parents for "spending hours in the backyard playing catch with Ryan, to patiently responding to endless questions from a curious young Melanie, to going out of your way to attend countless soccer and volleyball games, and to perhaps the biggest sacrifice of them all, dog-sitting Maddox and Wrigley whenever Ryan and Melanie are out of town." They also included the story of how they met and ended with "It is only fitting that they stand before you today, seven years, two dogs, and one house later, just down the road from Chapel Hill, to take these vows of marriage."

After making their vows to each other and exchanging rings, we closed with the breaking of the glass and the pronouncement. And they swept down the aisle together as their guests stood and applauded. It was time to celebrate so all the guests departed for The Barn for the reception.

There were two couples there whom I had married. One was our DJ, Bill Smith, and his wife Sandra. I married them in February of 2008, saw them again at Sandra's sister's wedding this past March, and was so happy to see them again. Sandra told me that she loves to accompany Bill when he DJs a wedding because it is more "together time."

The other couple, Amy and Brent, I married in September of 2005. Melanie and Ryan attended their wedding in the Raleigh Rose Garden. Amy and Brent found me after this ceremony to say hello. I knew they were there but could not spot them during the ceremony. They said they were on the back row! It was so good to see them again after almost 4 years! They haven't changed a bit, just mellowed out with their happy marriage.











Here is our photographer, Kristin P. Oguntoyinbo, who founded KPO Photo "Storytellers with a Camera." I have worked many weddings with Kristin through the years and was delighted to work with her and her associates on this one. Always a pleasure. She puts up with Marty, my roadie, running around with my little digital camera snapping photos for this blog. Here she is in action and one Marty caught of her in mid-sentence! Here is a link to her slide show of this wedding!













I stopped by The Barn on my way out to get a look at the lovely wedding cake and all the beautiful florals. Fearrington's chef made this lovely cake and Fearrington has an in-house florist who does all the florals--in the garden and at the reception. It is a grand place for a celebration!




Melanie and Ryan, what a great wedding you created for yourselves and your guests! I am honored to have been a part of your special day. I know you two will have a great marriage!

Vendors:

Fearrington Country Inn--my thanks to Cheryl who was the wedding director for this wedding and so expertly kept everything flowing along and got the ceremony started on time. It was great meeting you for the first time and I look forward to doing many more weddings with you.

DJ--Bill Smith of Magic of Music and his wife and teammate, Sandra, providing wonderful music for weddings. Bill sings too!

Photographer: Kristin of KPO Photo "Storytellers with a Camera"

The Little Wedding that Grew and Grew!

One of the soldiers that works with Ariel told him about his wedding earlier this year in my wedding garden. So, Ariel called me to find out if he and his sweetheart, Meka, could have their wedding here on July 4, 2009. I was available and delighted to have their wedding here. But, as time went on, the number of wedding guests grew and grew to between 60 and 70! Since I can only accommodate a maximum of about 20 guests in my garden, they decided to have their wedding in their lovely home in Willow Spring. They have quite a large backyard so they arranged for a large tent and a couple of industrial fans to keep their guests cool!

Here is the beautiful Meka being proudly escorted by her brother from the house to the altar under the tent where the rest of the wedding party and I were awaiting her grand entrance.

Ariel and his groomsmen were so handsome in their dark suits, boutonnieres and color-coordinated ties. I could tell they had rehearsed the day before because they knew exactly what to do! We had a family unity sand ceremony to include the couple's three children, two of whom were their attendants (see them in the turquoise dresses in the photo above). The baby was wheeled in by one of his sisters in a wagon covered with tulle. I know that he did not grasp the momentousness of this wonderful occasion but I am pretty sure his adoring sisters will tell him as soon as he is old enough to hear the story of this wedding!

We were all grateful that the predicted high for the day never really got up there, but we did not plan on being bombarded by those little gnats that seemed to adore us! I think they must have been attracted by the pretty flowers adorning the arbor. Some of the photos I had (and deleted) were of the groom and me occasionally swatting at them and we looked like we were having a fight! I was just trying not to inhale one of the little critters as I was speaking!

Meka and Ariel were glowing as they walked down the aisle as husband and wife, at last! Many congratulations to you both and your sweet family!

Wedding photographer for their big day was Kathryn Eitutis of Photography by Kathryn. Thanks, Kathryn! (The photos on this post are taken with my simple digital camera and do not reflect the professional quality that Kathryn's will have.)

I also want to thank the couple's friend, Liz, who coordinated all the music during the ceremony! Good job, Liz.