Our Wedding Weekend Novella: #YouHadMeAtLille
Long story short: We got married, and it was the best day ever.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
Continue reading if you want the full play-by-play.
Friday 4/7/17 – The day before the wedding.
At 6:00AM
Friday, my feet hit the floor, knowing that our busy, crazy, and fun wedding
weekend was about to begin. I quickly drank my coffee, ate a little breakfast,
and headed out the door to get the ball rolling on the day. I knew I had a lot
to get done before I hit the aisle in my white dress and Kate Spade heels
4:00PM Saturday.
Around
8:00AM I set out to find somewhere that sells sparklers for our grand exit. I
know, I know, getting those the morning before seems a little late in the game,
but oh well, that’s sort of how things were happening in the last couple weeks.
I’ll have to do another post about how my wedding was basically powered by
numerous Etsy shops later, especially after Ecoflower.com dropped the ball Big.
Time. #neverforget
Anyway, I
arrived at Party City around 8:30, only to find out they didn’t open until
9:00/9:30, and I had no time to waste. I decided to leave and go back to check
for sparklers later. On my way home, I got a call from the rental company that
they were about to be at the barn (our venue) with the tables, chairs, and
tablecloths. I had been waiting for their call all morning because setting up
the tables and chairs was a huge thing to check off the “to-do” list.
I got to
the barn before the rental truck arrived and called my dad and neighbors to
meet me there for extra help. (FYI, I have the best neighbor/fam ever. If you know them, you know how awesome they are.) My dad
showed up shortly after I called because he was already out and about, and
honestly, it was a good thing he did, or we might not have had tables.
Onto how
my dad saved the day…and he has a reputation for doing this often. Gotta love
awesome dads! The rentals truck shows up to deliver what I had ordered, and
they go to turn around in gravel driveway. The problem was, when they when to
turn, they ended up on a hill and couldn’t complete the turn to back into the
barn. (I hope this makes sense.) Basically, the guy driving the truck kept
trying to get up the hill, and the truck was like “yeah, no way…” and kept
shutting off and rolling back down the hill. This went on for at least 20
minutes, and meanwhile, my cool and calm dad (car mechanic/car restoration
extraordinaire) was like, “I think I can do it.”
Finally the
rental guys kind of doubtfully roll their eyes and tell him to give it a whirl.
By the looks on their faces, they thought my dad would be met with the same
result as their co-worker driving the truck. But to their surprise, not mine, I
had full faith in my superhero dad, my dad got the truck unstuck and backed in
on the first try. Thanks dad!
After the
truck was in, we quickly unloaded tables and chairs while the rental crew set
up the dance floor. (The barn had a hard dirt floor, but a dance floor was
necessary.) Then, we set out the tables to have a basic floor plan. We kept the
chairs stacked because they would be used outside for the ceremony, and then
inside for the reception.
This is
also about the time when things started to get a little too stressful.
Unfortunately, when I had ordered the head table, the lady had asked how many
people were in our wedding party, and so I said, “14”. The problem was, that
meant our wedding party was not sitting with their dates, and also, the bridal
party would be sitting on both sides of the table. This was totally my fault
because I didn’t convey my vision properly when ordering.
My feeling
about this when we were setting up was kind of like “we’ve got to work with
what we got.” There was no time to dwell on it because we had so
much more to get done. I knew we had enough seats for everyone, and I had
imagined people dancing and mingling throughout the night. To me, it wasn’t a
huge deal, and you know what? It wasn’t, and I think our bridal party liked not
being tied down to a particular table. Lesson learned: go with the flow, and
everything will be just fine.
Around this time, my BFF called to say she had just left work. I went to meet here at
the nail salon a little bit up the road, but stopped to get a quick bite to eat
first. I knew if I didn’t eat then, I probably wouldn’t have a chance to get
something until our rehearsal dinner. I get crabby if I don’t eat, so for
everyone’s sake, I ate.
While we
got our nails done, I got to vent about how stressful getting the last minute
wedding details done is. She had just gotten married in December, so she
completely understood how crazy the day before and day of a wedding can be.
After
getting my nails done, I headed back up to Party City to get those “grand exit”
sparklers. When I got there, I searched all over the store to find them.
I finally asked someone working there where they kept their sparklers. Come to
find out sparklers are also not sold in VA. I had known about fireworks, but I
could have sworn you could still buy sparklers. Luckily my awesome neighbor/fam
saved the day there by heading down to Southland in NC to get some.
#thanksSouthland State borderline living definitely has its perks!
At this
point, it was around 1:30, and I went to TJMaxx to get a new shirt for my dad.
I had told him I would do it earlier in the week, but I put it off because I
had grades to get in, report comments to write, and a wedding cake to finish. I
quickly found something for him to wear and took it to his house, but I
couldn’t stay long because I needed to go home to get ready for the rehearsal.
Around
2:30, I got back home to start getting ready for that night. I quickly showered
and got dressed. I had plans of curling my hair, but I didn’t have time, so
straight it was. I still needed to wrap my gifts for my bridal party, so I got
that done and we were out the door. We were meeting everyone at the barn by
4:30 to do the rehearsal, and dinner was at 6:00 at Rockefellers’.
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| Chris' sister, Heather, and myself at the rehearsal dinner. |
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| With a few of my bridesmaids at the rehearsal dinner. (Heather, me, Julie, and Amy) |
The
rehearsal and rehearsal dinner went really well. The food was delicious and the
room Chris’ parents had gotten at the restaurant had a great view of Rudee
Inlet. We had a great time sharing stories and laughs throughout the night.
After the
rehearsal, Chris and I headed back home. He gathered his things and went to
stay at his parents’ house for the night. My BFF came over to stay with me, but
there was no time to sleep because we had centerpieces to finish.
Around
10:00, we headed over to my neighbor’s house and got to work. It took us about
3 hours to get everything finished, and we were so exhausted. Then we went back
to my house and got some much needed sleep.
Saturday 4/8/17 – Wedding Day!
It was
another early start on Saturday. I was excited for all that the day had in
store, but also, a little stressed because a lot still need to be done. Table
centerpieces and other décor needed to be delivered, the cake also had to make
it safely to the barn, and donuts needed to be picked up from Krispy Kreme.
Around 7:30
two of my other bridesmaids arrived. We packed up the car with what needed to
go to the barn and planned to pick up the donuts from Krispy Kreme.
Once we
arrived at Krispy Kreme, I asked for my order that I had placed about a week
prior. When I had done my research on ordering donuts, they said they only
needed 48hrs notice, but I put my order in a week in advance. Anyway, the
donuts were not ready and I kind of think they lost the order. This irritated
me a little bit because we had to stand around waiting for about a half hour
waiting on donuts. I was hoping this wouldn’t impact getting our hair and
make-up done, and luckily it didn’t. On our way back to my house we dropped the
donuts back off at the barn.
Around 10:30, we went over to my neighbor’s
house because that is where all the bridesmaids were getting ready. Luckily
this is where we got ready because I had to send someone over to my house a few
times because I forgot multiple things: contacts, Chris’ card, etc. I would
have gone to get them, but Chris was “on his way” there to pick something up,
and I didn’t want to see him before the ceremony. Sidenote: He was “on his way”
for like 2 ½ hours, and his parents only live ½ hour away. I could have
definitely popped over to get what I needed myself, if I had known.
We spent
the next few hours getting ready and chatting away. It was definitely fun and
relaxing. My awesome neighbor even made a Whole30 breakfast casserole that was
really tasty.
When my
soon-to-be SIL arrived, she gave me a card and a gift. I didn’t put it together
that it was from Chris, so I accidentally started opening the card. Once I
figured out it was from him (two seconds later), I put it away because I wanted
to open it when my photographer got there for pictures.
This is
also the point I had realized, I had left Chris’ card over at our house. Oops!
I felt so bad because I had made such a big deal to him about how we must
exchange cards before the wedding. I sent a bridesmaid to go get it, then
sealed it, and sent it with a groomsman to deliver to Chris.
Another
sidenote: Chris already knew what his gift was, so that’s why he just had a
card. I had ordered tickets to the Mets vs. Nationals game back in December for
the July 3rd game. We have row E seats behind the Mets’ dugout.
While I was
getting ready, someone went over to my house to get the two-tier wedding cake
out of my fridge to take it over to the barn. I’ll do another post about making
my own wedding cake. It wasn’t the easiest thing, but it is definitely doable
with a little planning.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
About the
time we finished getting ready, my photographer and her assistants had arrived.
She captured some really great details shots of my shoes and jewelry. They are
definitely some of my favorite pictures!
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
While my
bridesmaids were getting dressed, I sat down to open Chris’ card and the gift
he had picked out for me. His card was so sweet, and I could feel his excitement
through the words he wrote. I then opened the gift, which I expected to be
something completely different. Instead, he had listened to what I had said I
wanted, and got me the most beautiful necklace with our wedding date on it. I
love it and wear it everyday. I’m so happy I waited to open the card and gift
for when my photographer was there. It’s so wonderful to be able to look back
on the memories of that day.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
Next my
photographer got a few shots of myself with my bridesmaids and my dad once we
were all ready. Again, these pictures are beautiful. I am so impressed with her
work. Although, I still need to print and display many of them!
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
Around 3:00
we were all ready to go to the barn. We hopped in my neighbors’ suburban and
took the 5-minute trip down the road. The boys knew we were on our way, so they
had to get out of the room in the second barn on the property where they got
ready. 
We stayed
in this barn and took a few selfies while we were waiting for all the guests to
arrive. I was so excited to walk down the aisle, but also a little nervous
because it was grass and my heels were definitely going to sink.
It was
finally “go time” at 4:00. Once the bridal party and Chris were in their
places, it was time for my dad to walk me down the aisle. Luckily my shoes only
got stuck a little, but one of my heels did get snagged on my dress. My dad and
I had to pause. I was laughing hysterically (probably a mix of excitement and
nerves), and my dad told me I better quiet down or everyone would hear me.
(haha)
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
I was so
happy to make it to the end of the aisle and see Chris. He looked so good in
the tux I had picked out. I could see in his eyes how excited he was that we
were about to get married, and I was beyond thrilled that soon we were going to
be husband and wife.
The
ceremony was perfect. I was glad we chose to get married by someone we both
know. He did a great job putting the ceremony together, and it really felt like
he tailored it to our personalities.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
We said, “I
do”, and had our first kiss as a married couple. It was perfect. Then we walked
back down the aisle together, with only a minor snag again of my heels on my
dress. I laughed it off, got unsnagged, and we continued down the aisle.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
We took a
lot of photos after the ceremony of family and the bridal party. Then our
photographer took some of just Chris and myself.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
After
pictures, we went inside the barn for our first dance and our dances with our
parents. Chris and I danced to Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love”.
Then my dad and I danced to Van Morrison’s “Tupelo Honey”, and Chris and his
mom danced to Rascal Flatts’ “My Wish”.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
I am not
one who loves being the center of attention, so I was looking forward to the
time when the dances would be done, and I could just mingle. Our DJ had
something else in mind though. He had us play this toilet paper game that
caught me way off guard. Basically, it was a race to see if the bride or the
groom could pull the paper off faster. Chris won. The whole thing was a little
weird, but we just went with it. People laughed and it wasn’t too embarrassing.
The rest of
the night we danced with our closest family and friends. Everyone had a great
time and the food, cake, and donuts were delicious. Our sparkler exit turned
out really well, and the pictures look pretty awesome too!
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
Once the
crowd was winding down, we decided to go home. Chris carried me in over the
threshold and we spent a few minutes chatting about the night. Then I got
hungry again, and we went to Taco Bell. You can’t beat going around the Taco
Bell drive-thru in a wedding gown complete with veil. #fourthmeal
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| So happy my neighbor, Emily, captured this moment! She's the best! |
Our wedding
was the best day ever. Everything that I was stressed about turned out so well.
I was so happy that at the end of the day, I had married the love of my life.
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| Photo Cred: Skylar Wyatt Photography |
I plan to
do a few more posts that are wedding related about how I made my cake, budget
and planning, how Etsy was a goldmine for wedding things, and our honeymoon.
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