Wedding Blog

We invited everyone invited to the dinner later that evening to join us as we emerged from the temple as husband and wife. For an LDS temple wedding, a small number of people are present to witness the sealing. All of those who witness the sealing leave the building before the bride and groom and the entire crowd waits outside for the new couple to emerge.

Most of the time the couple comes out, maybe raises their arms in triumph and then stands around awkwardly for a few moments before they figure out they are supposed to start hugging people. That wasn’t the case for us, as upon emerging we were greeted by Suavacado’s grinning parents walking towards us, looking, shall I say, a little bit mischievous.

Then, the coins came pouring out on our heads.

If you look closely in the middle of the frame you can see me screaming in shock and delight, for I happened to know exactly what they were doing. I wrote a post for the Bridal Guide a few months ago talking about different Danish and Polish traditions I was interested in incorporating into the wedding, and this was one of them. To quote myself:

Probably my favorite Polish tradition is throwing pennies at the bride and groom as they leave the ceremony. The best part of this practice is that the bride and groom must stop and pick the pennies up after they are thrown at them. It makes for some really great photos! The pennies are supposed to be an indication of financial fortune in the future, which must be why this bride and groom look so eager to bend down in their wedding attire and collect them.

I don’t know if I was eager to be picking them up, but I really didn’t have any other choice with all of our family and friends saying “Oh, I see one over here.” and “Woohoo, you guys missed one.”

Everyone present loved it. I even had one little cousin come find me afterwards and hand me $1 in quarters. “Here,” she said “I forgot to throw these when you came out because I was so excited.”

Reasons why I love these photos:

1. Isn’t it obvious? A real Pole incorporated a Polish wedding tradition into my thoroughly American wedding. My folklore professor would be so proud.
2. This was obviously something that had been planned ahead of time. Someone else planned something for our wedding. To think, I didn’t have to do any work to make this moment happen.
3. In the second photo I am attempting to both hold the coins and keep everyone from getting a look down my dress. My train wasn’t bustled and so I kept gathering coins underneath and sweeping them around. Don’t worry, my family pointed all of them out to me.

Kelli Nicole, you amaze me.