As I put this submission together, I relived the most incredible day of our lives together. We took the wise advice of others and stopped, periodically throughout the day, to look around and take it all in. Sean’s cousin, Erica, came up before I walked down the aisle and reminded me to stop as I approached and look around because that very moment, where you see everyone is staring at you, your heart pounds a little faster, your eyes well up with tears and then your eyes meet your husband-to-be, and then the euphoria sets in and you’ll never forget it. She was right.
Sean and I wanted our wedding to be a celebration of our love but more importantly the people whose love has filled our whole lives. We are laid back people who just wanted to throw an event where guests walked away knowing how much we appreciate them. We didn’t hesitate to host a welcome bbq at our home the night before since one party was simply not going to cut it for the time we wanted with our out of town guests, which was everyone.
I was raised in a very historical town on the east coast and by a mother who was an antique market phene. We spent our weekends scouring and while being totally bored by it back then, designing a wedding with that aesthtetic came totally natural. Thanks to beautiful blogs like The Wedding Chicks, all the little DIY accents came along perfecty and having a wedding like this wasn’t so far from the norm anymore. We ride our bikes to our venue every week in the summer and it holds a special place in our hearts. Plus, Sean told his mom way back when we first started dating that he was going to marry me there, a fact I found out later and my heart melted even more.
Being a wedding photographer, planning was easy since I hired my ‘A’ team immediately. Each and every vendor are wonderful friends and we knew we were in good hands. A first look was the only way we wanted to go. Seeing each other beforehand calmed our nerves immensely so that we could remember so many moments.
Sean and I are both very close with all of our grandparents, those with us and those who have passed on (see ring story link). The weather was a perfect Tahoe day, sunshine and not an ounce of wind. During our ceremony, the room was quiet except for David’s voice (our officiant) and a refreshing breeze floated into through the open french doors.. Neither of us are overly spiritual people, but we looked at each other and knew everyone who couldn’t be there floated in on that breeze. Its those kinds of moments that I wish all couples can remember and when wedding planning gets out of control crazy, cut out the bull and remind yourselves what its really about. There are so many things that didn’t get done in time for our wedding, but no one noticed. When guests started arriving to town, yes there were a ton of last minute things to handle, but we were more concerned with enjoying the only time in our life where this group of people will ever be together celebrating. We enjoyed every second of it!
