The Wedding pt. 1

Finally! The story about our wedding... continued! :) Seems appropriate  as we get ready to celebrate our first Valentine's day as a married couple!

Here are a few photos of right before the wedding- after I arrived with my bridesmaids, parents and grandmother and adopted grandmother.

Wilson, our ring-beror

              

                    Leif and his best-man and brother, Austin

A moment of prayer together before everything began... I didn't want him to see me! 

My bridesmaids ditched me for picture time- so my dad helped me!

My mother-in-law and my lovely bridesmaids and maid of honour

(left to right: my mother-in-law: Amber, Ring beror: Wilson, the flower girls, 

father-in-law: Bryan 

My parents: Patrick and Beverly L.

Leif's Parents: Bryan and Amber A. 

And then it all started... Everyone lined up - I saw my former landlords wave through the little chapel window and heard the sounds of the wedding party's processional start. It was a recording of some of Leif's instrumental guitar music. I wanted to incorporate music from my favorite artist! Val- my wedding coordinator (and life-saver!!) handed us our bouquets that we had all  made the day before (I bought the flowers bulk through Sam's Club) and Savannah P. started down the isle, followed by Anna G., Savannah S. and my sister and maid-of-honour, Emma. Wilson, the ring beror walked down after that and I stood behind my flower-girls wondering if they really were going to walk down the isle. The stood at the entrance  hand-in-hand and peered around the corner at all of the people. I whispered that it was time for them to go... and Val encouraged them as well... and they started walking. :) YEAH! Then time really did stand still as Val closed the door for a moment, the music changed to an instrumental version Me and You by Kenny Chesney by Bryan Rason (click here for the link).... and I was really glad that my dad was walking me down the isle. I held his arm tight and took a picture in my mind of that moment.

The doors opened and (whew, I'm listening to that song right now and it's making me cry... I am so blessed to be married to this man!) ... I saw my grandma, and everyone else who was there for just a moment- and then I saw Leif. I slowed my pace and wanted this moment to last forever...

                                

It didn't go by too fast or too slow. I hung on each word and each moment, trying to memorize it all. This is the day I dreamed of... and it was more perfect and amazing than I imagined. Leif looked stunning, everything was perfect, sunny and most importantly I could feel the Lord there so radiantly. 

We didn't want to do sand combining or a unity candle, so we decided to wash each-other's feet as a symbol of our caring and serving each-other selflessly as Jesus washed each of the disciple's feet in John 13:1-17.

Our vows exchanged- we wrote our own