Weddingbee Blog

After a halcyon-esque morning, the air went from placid to sparking with activity in a span of 10 minutes. In rapid succession, Twofoot Creative, Aruna B., and Epic Motion came on the scene while Laura R. from Posh took the arrivals as her cue to put the final touches on my makeup:

{Photo by Aruna B. Photography}

Adding to the wedding fever, our bouquets had been delivered by a friendly staff member from The Parsonage:

{personal photo}

I zipped around as if I had bouncy balls in my feet, squealing in delight at the beautiful arrangements Liz and her team had created. As we had carefully planned, each of my bridesmaids had a unique bouquet, all accented with seeded eucalyptus and scented geranium leaves. My sister chose the arrangement of Juliet roses:

{personal photo}

Laura carried a cluster of velvety Caramel roses:

{personal photo}

While Tanya held a lush bouquet of Combo roses:

{personal photo}

Once my stint in the makeup chair was over, zipper and tie checks were done…

…last minute emergency Kleenex was distributed (just in case)…

…and two floors up the men finished getting ready in GM Michael’s room that he and Laura generously let us use for the day.

My brother is not a tie kind of guy

Their final preparations were interrupted by a knock on the door: Laura and Tanya had arrived, bearing the card I wrote to Mr. Tartlet earlier in the day, along with the gifts I had carefully spent the last two years acquiring:

The Romeo and Julieta Vintage #1 cigars were a hit, as were the cutter and lighter I supplied. However, I failed to read the instructions that the butane lighter required…butane. I love the expressions captured in the photo below–even though I wasn’t there, I can almost guarantee this was taken at the moment my brother confirmed my mistake.

While Brother Tartlet made an emergency run for the aforementioned butane, Tanya, Laura, and Michael made their way back to the bridal suite with a special delivery for me:

Mr. Tartlet managed to find the perfect card:

“All I want is to love you for the rest of my life…to wake up every morning with you by my side, knowing that no matter what happens, I’ll be able to come home to your loving arms. All I want is to share everything with you…to talk about our ideas, our dreams, the little everyday things that make us laugh, and the not-so-little things that we can’t help worrying about. All I want is to give you my love…as a place you can always come to for acceptance or the simple comfort that silence brings, when things left unspoken can still be understood. All I want is to grow old with you…to watch our life unfold, our dreams, one by one, come true. All I want is to love you, forever.”

Although my card to Mr. Tartlet was far less poetic, part of it read (this will be key later, although some of you with sharp ears may figure out why before then):

“This morning when I woke up next to you I smiled because I get to continue waking up next to you until we’re old and gray. I’m looking forward to those long, tottering walks and evenings of enjoying each others company–even if we’re doing absolutely nothing. You’ve made me a better, stronger person. While we were getting to know each other, I also somehow found myself. Thank you for that, from the bottom of my heart. ’Should you fall, I will always be there to catch you. Should you ever feel alone, I will always be there to take your hand.’ It’s not exact, but you understand.”

With cards and gifts exchanged, I dialed my mom to let her know it was time. Not long after I hung up the phone, she sashayed into the bridal suite and stunned her daughters who have never before seen her in a long evening gown. If you were a fly on the wall, the conversation might have gone something like this:

Me: “Wow. Mom looks good.”

Sister Tartlet: “Yep…yep, she does.”

Me (putting my hand up in a “for real” kind of way): “I mean seriously, if I look like that when I’m her age…day-um.”

Sister Tartlet: “Oh my. Oh my.”

Mama Tartlet: “What is wrong with these two?”

A few pivots, poses, and laughs later, and it was time for me to get dressed! Up next: I step into my dream of lace and get bridal!

*Unless specified, all photos by Aruna B. Photography

• Sweet Beginnings: Good Mornin’ To You
• Sweet Beginnings: Welcome to Michigan
• Sweet Beginnings: Practice Makes Perfect
• Sweet Beginnings: Let’s Get It Started!