Special wedding ceremony before Groom is deployed...

Kat and David contacted me about 10 days before they wanted to get married. David is in the Army and being deployed 5/21. They did not want to go to the courthouse and be married by a magistrate in a 5 minute standard ceremony but wanted to be surrounded by their family and friends to celebrate this momentous occasion in their lives. We made all the arrangements to have the wedding in her parents' front yard in North Hills and her sisters all managed to find lovely red dresses!

So, on May 17th we had a beautiful and memorable wedding celebration for Kat and David with their family and a few friends. They will take their completed marriage license to the Wake County Register of Deeds Monday and get it processed on the spot so that Kat can be recognized as David's wife by the military. Wake County also gives the couple a free certified copy because they are active military. All the best, Kat and David!

Weddings at Beautiful Crenshaw Hall in Wake Forest

At the invitation of Anna Aycock, wedding director at Crenshaw Hall on Old Hwy 98 just minutes from Raleigh, Marty (my roadie) and I were treated to a tour of the property. The old Southern Mansion and Estate was inherited by Joyce and John Bennett (read the fascinating history of this 200 year plantation on their website) and they have been working diligently to turn it into one of Raleigh's most elegant wedding venues. In the photos you will see the pavilion which is not quite finished, the bell tower, Louisa Room downstairs, and the Bride's dressing room upstairs--it's the photo that Anna is trying to back out of! (She did not plan on me bringing my camera today!)

I officiated the unforgettable wedding of Ann Marie and Sean Kernick there four years ago almost to the day (see photos) and wondered what had happened to the estate. Today I saw that since then lots of renovation and restoration work has been done to both the interior and the exterior including construction of a pavilion for outdoor weddings that can be moved to different sites on the 5 acres of land. The Louisa and Eliza Rooms of the mansion can accommodate lovely indoor weddings during the winter months and inclement weather. A large tent will be erected on the side yard for receptions and the original kitchen building is upfitted for caterers.

Brides planning weddings for the fall of 2008 and in 2009 and beyond should definitely check out Crenshaw Hall for their wedding!

A Sweet Thank You Note from a wedding couple...

I got a thank you note today from a couple whose wedding was on May 3rd. (See earlier post.)

"Kayelily,

Straight from our hearts

This thank you is sent

To tell you how much

Your thoughtfulness meant.

Thank you for the beautiful service.

Much love,

Dan and Muneeba

May 2008"

Thank you, Dan and Muneeba!

Sarah and Dustin married at Hudson Manor!

Dustin and Sarah have been together for seven years and created a special ceremony to celebrate their marriage on May 11th. Sarah is a gorgeous bride and her bridal gown was beautiful. In the ceremony we remembered Dustin's father who has passed on and then paid tribute to his mother and Sarah's parents. They asked me to read a favorite passage from The Velveteen Rabbit called "What is Real?" and a lovely poem by Kelly Spehn entitled "The Meaning." They read their personal vows from my book and then we closed with the Rose Ceremony and a prayer. Best of everything to you, Sarah and Dustin!

Hudson Manor is a wonderful location for a wedding. It is in Louisburg, about 40 miles north of Raleigh. Melissa and Glenn Cogliati, the owners, have done a lot of enhancement of the historic estate in the past few years. Melissa has added a reception hall and now has an second outdoor patio just outside the reception hall for weddings with a view of the lake where we were supposed to have Dustin and Sarah's wedding ceremony. Rain was threatening and it was chilly so we decided to have the wedding inside the reception hall where it was elegant, dry and comfortable for everyone.

I was delighted to see Marilyn Weinand there. She is one of my favorite harpists and I enjoyed doing another wedding with her.

It was good to see Rob Seelye again. He was the photographer for the wedding and I see him often at Hudson Manor. He is so easy going and takes a whole lot of pictures!

Lenny Fritts, Touch of Class DJs, is one of my favorite DJs and since we were inside, he plugged my wireless mike into his system and the sound was perfect.

Rainy Sunday Wedding moved inside.........

Larisa and Karl planned to have their small intimate wedding at a special spot on the campus at NCSU where they met but the pouring rain forced us to do their ceremony at their home. Nevertheless the wedding ceremony was no less meaningful and beautiful. Their wedding day, May 11, 2008, was exactly seven years to the day since their relationship began. Karl's mother and Larisa's parents were present as well as their beautiful and brilliant sisters, Casselle and Anna. Karl and Larisa included personal "speeches" to each other in their ceremony that celebrated their 7 years together. Karl smashed a glass in tribute to Larisa's Jewish heritage as we all shouted Mazeltov! Then Karl kissed his bride and I presented the newlywed couple to their families! Larisa and Karl, I wish you many happy multiples of 7 years together!