Wose Wedding Recap: The Ceremony

Before we knew it, it was almost five o'clock. Guests were in their seats, Adam and the guys were waiting near the boat bar, and the girls and I were killing time in the guest house. 

Pre-ceremony groomsmen toast. Looks brutal, huh?

The next thing I knew, I was lined up with my dad and bridesmaids waiting to walk up the aisle. Dad oscillated between trying not to cry, and trying to figure out how the hell we were supposed to link arms naturally. Seriously, it looks like a no-brainer, but it isn't! DOC Kim finally had to come set us straight. 

  

Notice that our "aisle" was actually a pier. When our original ceremony location flooded, the most viable back-up plan meant a pier for an aisle and about a four-foot walk through a rock bed in full view of our guests. Frankly I really didn't care where we had the ceremony at this point, I was just promising my firstborn in hopes that the rain wouldn't return. 

The location change did mean that I couldn't wear my beloved BHLDN elopement pumps to the ceremony. Thank goodness Bridesmaid Little had an extra pair of nude wedges in my size! And that's the story of the time I got married and wasn't even wearing my own shoes.

My beautiful elopement pumps and bouquet. Le sigh. 

Somehow we made it up the aisle without tripping. Dad hugged me, shook Adam's hand, and the ceremony began. 

The rest of the ceremony went off without a hitch. Actually that's a lie, I honestly have no idea how it went. I was too focused on 1. looking at Adam and smiling and 2. trying to remember what I was supposed to say and when. Thank goodness we hired a videographer and will be able to relive the ceremony soon, because I'd like to know what led to this:

What was so funny? 

Adam's sister, Kaitlyn, obliged us with a reading - twenty bucks, First Corinthians. Yeah it's cliche, but you can't get better than that verse for a wedding reading. You just can't. And it's my wedding day; I can be cliche if I want to! 

Adam's sisters also performed our ceremony music!

The next thing I knew, it was time for the big kiss and we were officially husband and wife! 

The hard part was over and it was almost time to party. As we walked back up the pier/aisle, we talked and laughed and just tried to soak it all in. Our wedding party was soon behind us, followed by our family. Hugs and smiles all around!

I love this picture of me and my Mom-mom. There was a line for bride hugs!

Next up, we get through family portraits super quickly thanks to our amazing photographers, and we take some fun pictures with our wedding party on the beach!

Wose Wedding Recap: Getting Ready

I chose Behind the Veil as our hair and make-up team, and I can't recommend them highly enough! They arrived around 11AM and got right to work, as we had quite a bit of prettying to do before pictures at 3. The plan was for Adam and I to meet then for our first look, then to take bridal party portraits right after that, so as not to cut into our partyin' time after the ceremony. 

Bridesmaid Little had put together a getting-ready playlist, so we put that on and took turns getting our hair and make-up done. Finally it was my turn! All photos by Melissa Manzione Photography unless otherwise noted.

I absolutely LOVED my hair and make-up on our wedding day. The girls at Behind the Veil did an amazing job!

That clip was a whopping $6 at Charming Charlie. Bride on a budget, y'all.

I clean up well!

The FUNNIEST thing that happened pre-wedding was when someone realized that my ribbon belt, a ZTA wedding tradition to be worn under my wedding dress, had been left at our house. 

My Big sent me a new ribbon on the back of her RSVP! (personal photo)

Luckily, Adam and the guys were getting ready at our house, so Bridesmaid Denise called Groomsman Eric to have him search for it. Being your typical guy, he had absolutely no idea what a ribbon belt was, let alone where to find it in my now completely disheveled dining wedding storage room. The search quickly devolved into using FaceTime to let me look for it myself. Finally, after some good laughs, it was located and added to the list to be brought to the wedding venue.

Yay technology!

Before I knew it, Mom and the girls were dressed and it was time to get in my gown. 

I know this is the most obvious statement ever, but I LOVED my dress. The detailed lace, the open keyhole back, the fact that it wasn't strapless or even white - ugh. It was just perfect for me. 

Now that I was all dressed and ready to go, it was time to read Adam's letter to me. He's not the overly sensitive, share-all-our-feelings type, so I didn't honestly didn't expect much. His letter to me absolutely blew me away. I'm not going to share the contents of it, but it was so wonderful. In fact, the only time I really cried on our wedding day was while reading it. Both of our letters are now safely tucked away in our nightstands. 

Next up, I meet Adam for our first look!

Wose Wedding Recap: The Morning Of

I'm always an early riser, and of course, the wedding day was no exception. I woke up at 6:30 sharp, feeling calm and excited. Adam and I agreed to write day-of letters to each other as our wedding gift, so I quietly sneaked out of bed, trying not to wake up Bridesmaid Kelly.

I made my way out of the guest house and over to The Point, where we'd be getting married in just a few hours. The early morning weather was absolutely perfect, and I was blissfully unaware of the nasty weather heading our way. A few vendors had already arrived to set up for our big day, so I got right to work on writing my letter to my almost-husband. A few tears and many more smiles later, I was done.

My letter to Adam (personal photo)

By the time I got back to the guest house, the girls were slowly waking up. Mom was on her way with breakfast and mimosas - time to get this party started! I am SO glad we decided to have a 5PM wedding, allowing us to have a leisurely start to the day. The rest of the morning was spent sipping champagne, nibbling on what little bit of food my nerves could stand, and of course, watching classic wedding movies. 

I tried to ignore the growing clouds outside, but there was no denying it: rain was imminent. I became incredibly anxious: what would this do to our outdoor wedding plans? We had absolutely no backup plan. Adam stopped by to drop off some wedding decor at the height of my anxiety, and being the rebel that I am, I sneaked out to the porch to talk to him. He was in gym shorts and a little hungover after a late night with the guys; I was a crying trainwreck in a bride robe. I took one look at him and all of my anxiety went right out the window. This was our wedding day and no matter the weather, it was going to be perfect. 

We had just a few minutes to soak it in before our day-of coordinator, Kim, our hair and make-up team, and photographers, arrived! Adam was shooed away and it was time to get ready!