Weddingbee

Let me just say: our ceremony was amazing - despite the fact that it was absolutely in no way how I had pictured it. For one, I had pictured it outside. Sun shining. People squinting. A giant, petal-covered aisle leading to a modest gazebo.

It was nothing like that. Outside, rain was falling. At three pm, I was told my ceremony would take place on the dance floor while people sat at their assigned table. I would have no petal-covered aisle, no gazebo - just an arbor on a large slab of linoleum. I was grateful for the ceremony, but something about having no aisle was nagging at me.

At three thirty, I pointed out to my coordinator that we had already paid to have the ceremony chairs… and as almost half the room was clear of tables, I wanted her to fit as many chairs as she could. At first, she told me 10. Later, she told me 70. At about four fifteen, they had fit all 109 chairs with room to spare. I had an aisle. The best man quickly set to work on the petal design I had pictured.

At five, the ceremony began - and from that point on, the green carpet felt like thick grass, the arbor felt like my own personal gazebo, and the ceremony was better than anything I could have pictured. Problem was, for the year that I spent picturing my perfect ceremony, I imagined places and things. In reality, what made this ceremony amazing was the people that surrounded us. I have never in my life felt so loved.

In addition to the vows that Mr. BG and I had written for each other, we had asked each of our attendants to share an “anecdote” during the ceremony. We purposely left this vague - it could be one story, one message, one jab at our expense, anything. And what resulted was a ridiculously wonderful assortment of emotion and humor that will stay with me forever (and oddly enough had a board game theme). I often remark that I liked a movie if “I laughed, I cried” - well, throughout the ceremony, I frequently changed from holding back a weepy, sobbing cry to guffawing uncontrollably. Best of all, as we cried, guests cried; as we laughed, guests laughed. And by the end, the ear-to-ear grin was plastered to my face.

With that, let me share some ceremony pictures…

The aisle:

Proud mama:

Attendants reading:

The laughter:

The weeping:

The marriage:

• Tossing Fortune
• Engagement Picture Attire