Our Big Day - 4/14/12

Happy Wednesday!  (turned out to be a super long post)

Better late than never - I want to talk about our big wedding day!!!!! We just celebrated our 2 month anniversary :)  Yes we are dorks and went out for cheap Mexican food last week (6/14/12) ha  It was a fun date night. 

Here goes...

We had our rehearsal at the church on Friday & it was pretty chaotic, but not as bad as I had anticipated, I mean you can never be that organized for something you have never done in your life before!  Our priest took the lead & we just followed.  After rehearsal we went to a bar/restaurant that Ryan and I LOVED in college & still do today.  It was so fun to have all our closest friends together & our amazing families all in one place :)  It was nothing fancy, but that is not who Ryan and I are (more on that later).  We had a GREAT time eating, drinking & sharing stories.  

Once we said our good-byes at the rehearsal dinner we headed out on the town :)  The girls & I stopped to have a boogie bowl one last time as a single girl - sure why not was my thinking!  Then we jetted across the street to the piano bar to meet the guys for one last drink before Ryan and I said our good-byes until the big day :) 

I was so thankful Melina, Ashley, Dawn & Calc all spent the night with me in the hotel suite.  I demanded to sleep by myself, bc I knew I would not sleep good & sure enough I tossed & turned all night......o well. 

We woke up bright & early, 7am to be exact.  I jumped on the bed to wake Ashley up bc I was so excited!!! She didn't think that was the best way to be woken up :) haha

We met everyone at salon to get our hair & make-up done @ 8am.  It was starting to rain, but I didn't even care if it rained on my wedding day to be honest.  (brings good luck right?!?!) It rained the whole time we were in the salon & then right when we left it stopped :)  Turned out to be a beautiful day.

When I was getting ready is when for the first time ever during our engagement I was getting nervous.  Like really nervous.  Like almost pass out nervous! ha I had to take my dress on and off 3 different times! ha I sat by an open window all by myself trying to calm myself down.  I wasn't nervous about getting married, I was nervous for everyone to be watching me walk down the aisle & when we were on the alter :)  You see, you dream about walking down the aisle your WHOLE life & then BAM - you take your shoes off 3 seconds before the doors open & then trip on your dress!!!!! Laughs were heard instead of tears as I walked down the aisle! haha Only me! BUT good news I did not pass out :)  I was SO close though!!!

Our wedding ceremony was beautiful, just perfect for Ryan and I.  The love & support we had on that day was just unbelievable!!! Standing on the alter & seeing SOOOO many people that love us was overwhelming.  We are so very blessed & appreciate of all our friends & family.  We are so thankful for all that came & shared our big day with us :) From near & far!  Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

We hopped on a bus and drove around Springtown for a couple of hours & took pictures.  We even stopped at Ryan's old fraternity house were our LOVE began :)  It was surreal to be there in my wedding dress where it all began almost 7 years ago!!! Special moment for us!

The reception was SOOOOO fun!  We danced & drank & danced some more!  We were sweaty messes by the end of the night :) The food was awesome.  The speeches were funny.   Our guests seemed to have a great time.  We got to see so many people that traveled in for our big day.  So great! 

Our day was perfect.  It was perfect for RYAN & I.  It was just what we wanted for US! We are so thankful we had so much help from family & they did so much to help make our day perfect!  Thank you a million times over!

Whether you have plastic solo cups or glass.  Fine china or plastic plates.  Budget or no budget. Florist or no florist.  Band or DJ. Grooms cake or no grooms cake.  Open bar or cash bar. You get the point......we made our wedding about RYAN AND EMILY.  We didn't care if people would judge (we know EVERYONE judges weddings) guilty myself, but I have a whole new perspective since I have been in the same shoes of many brides :)  We didn't care if people made fun of our decisions.  We didn't care what others had done in the past.  We didn't care if our wedding was the laughing stock of Springfield.  We didn't care what the "Jones" did for their wedding.  We CARED about what would make us happy :)  We were completely successful.  We had the BEST time TOGETHER!  We followed our hearts & stayed true to us & loved every single minute of it!!!!!! We are so blessed our parents were so generous & loving - can't even thank them enough!!!!!!!!!!  We even had a table without a centerpiece bc I - Emily the bride - miscounted & you know what - that table of people had an AWESOME night.  I didn't even care they didn't get to look at my beautiful flowers or wine corks in a vase with branches sticking out :)  hahah THANK GOD I am not a wedding planner! hahah I would be fired after the first hire!

On a serious note - I love you Ryan (not that you even read this blog) & can't even wait for all the wonderful memories we are going to make as husband & wife :)

Here is to the next chapter in our life TOGETHER! 

Love,
Emily