Show Us Your Life - Bridal Party & Flowers/Ceremony

Today is another edition of Kelly's Korner Show Us Your Life.  Today's topic is bridal party and flowers/ceremony.

So ...

Welcome to my wedding day!!

We got married on June 13, 2009 (only about a month and a half ago!!)

We were married at the First Congregational Church of Kent in Kent, CT - a VERY small (less than 3,000 people) town in northwestern Connecticut.  My mom has been the pastor of this church for the past 15 years and it was really special to be able to share this special day not only with my friends and family, but with a group of people who watched me grow up.

People were shocked when I told them that my mom was NOT performing the wedding ceremony, but this wasn't ever a possibility for me.  She needed to be the mother of the bride.  A good friend of mine actually performed the ceremony - he was ordained the summer before I went to seminary and I admire him as a person and as a minister.

The church is classic New England - a wooden church with a big white steeple, no air conditioning and BOY was it HOT under all that tulle!!

For those of you Gilmore Girls fan, Kent is very much like Stars Hollow - a friend of mine from Georgia came in for the weekend and she said she felt like she was living in an episode of Gilmore Girls!!

Here are the bridesmaids beautiful flowers.  The girls were in red and I didn't want red on red, but wasn't sure what my other options were.  My florist suggested orange with some yellow and I'm SO glad I trusted her.  They were beautiful!!

We had two arrangements to match the bridesmaids flowers at the church.  That was it for decorations - I didn't want to take away from the simple beauty that is an old congregational church.

I walked down the isle to the Taize song, El Senyor (In The Lord).  Bruce proposed to me at an altar filled with candles after a Taize service at our church and that was the song that was playing.  To hear it as I walked down the isle brought me back to the night he proposed.

Our ceremony was really well-crafted.  A friend of mine sang "How Great Thou Art" and "Someone Like You," another friend read from John 15 (I am the vine, you are the branches) and Max preached a sermon about how we were not only celebrating the covenant Bruce and I were making, but also the family and friends that we are connected to through the Body of Christ.  The sermon was right before the vows and I never imagined I would be so touched by a sermon just before saying my wedding vows.  It was JUST what I wanted.

So ... my bridal party.

Two weeks before the wedding we got word that Bruce's brother, the best man, was being stationed at a Coast Guard base two days before the wedding and wouldn't be able to be there.  It's so hard to be so proud of someone for what they're doing and yet so disappointed at the same time.  About a week later, Bruce's cousin (another groomsmen) found out that his wife needed surgery.  He really wanted to be there, but Bruce assured him that being with his wife and one-year-old son was more important.  

At that point we had six bridesmaids and four groomsmen so we asked Bruce's sister (one of my bridesmaids) if she would be the "best woman" and she stood next to Bruce for the ceremony.  In a way, we were making the best out of a bad situation, but I also thought it was special that Steph could do that for Bruce - they've always had a special relationship.

This is me and my bridesmaids and my dad before we all hopped on the fire truck and road to the church.

My adorable flower girl is my cousin, who is eight years old (I had to use this picture because it was too adorable to pass up).  My aunt adopted her from Vietnam when she was four months old and she had brought so much joy to our family.  When they went to the orphanage to pick her up, my two aunts and my mom (my mom and other aunt had gone to Vietnam for three weeks for the adoption) all wore red because it is the Vietnamese color symbolizing good luck and happiness.  That's why I chose red for my bridesmaids!!

My sister is standing behind my flower girl, she was my maid of honor.  I'm being honest when I say that the wedding wouldn't have gone off without her - she was AMAZING and took care of details and was just amazing.

And now for one of my favorites ... 

Bruce has some of the most AWESOME friends who he asked to be groomsmen.  We were down two groomsmen but they did everything they could for me and my family the weekend of the wedding to try to make things go as smoothly as possible.  The hung tulle, they mowed lawns, they made small talk and they helped with music at the reception.  I'm so glad to be able to have them in my life now!!

Thanks for stopping by!!

Smile big, love hard, rejoice always, find grace and live in peace,

Sarah