July 8, 2006 ~ Patti & Wade

[njbride06]

So glad I found this site to share my story!! I will have to add in some of the prior planning stuff when I get a chance. And I don't have too many pics yet, sorry!

Wedding day story

Our day was absolutely magnificent, it could not have gone any better. I am so happy with the whole experience, from our longer engagement, to the planning process, to the vendors we chose and all the people that were involved in making this day so special. We had such a memorable time and yes, it did fly!!! Our honeymoon was the greatest way to end this whole journey and start on the next phase of our lives as a married couple!!


The Days Before

The days before the wedding were sorta hectic. No matter how much careful planning you do, it seems like you can’t get away from those last few moments of running around. We had to pick my dress up an hour away. Meet to finalize things with the reception hall. I got all the gifts together for the bridal party, parents and participants. We finalized details on the programs. Made rehearsal favors and out-of-town guest bags. But all the hard work definitely paid off in the end!

[njbride06]

Didn’t start off so well b/c our priest forgot about it!! It was not our pastor, but a priest from a local missionary. I started the rehearsal on my own and between the organist and I, we had things running thru pretty smoothly. My family and bridal party kept commenting on how organized I was and at the same time pretty calm and collected. I don’t know what it was, but I was just not all that overly freaking out. I was just ready and did not want to make a fool of myself. I literally had to send my DH over to the missionary to find the priest! He was very apologetic and also impressed with how I was running things, he basically just sat down and let me continue being in charge!! It was a good thing I brought some flip flops to run around in, b/c I was running all up and down the aisles to help people with where they were supposed to go. I don’t have any pics from that yet. So we were about an hour and a half late for our dinner!!

The restaurant was so accommodating and understanding. The service was great, and the food out of this world. Everyone could not get over the amount of food we had. Giving out the gifts got very emotional when it came time to give to our bridal party and parents. DH even got a little teary when talking about his guys, so there was no way I was making it thru talking about my girls without crying. It was sorta funny at the same time though. It was also very emotional when he talked to his Mom, being he lost his Dad at a young age, going thru all this brought back a lot of that emotion from everyone. And of course when we gave each other gifts it was emotional.
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I was so excited he got me one of those huge fortune cookies with the icing! I had to break it open and inside was a beautiful diamond pendant and earrings set. I absolutely love! I had no idea he was going to get me anything like that.
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[njbride06]

I woke up at 6:30 a.m. and I was actually tired! I had slept good all night, no jitters. But by the time I got ready and upstairs my bridesmaids were arriving and my Dad made us breakfast. I ate, surprisingly, well. We were off to the hair salon…but I forgot my veil and tiara, so we had to turn around!! One minor bump in the day. All went well with the hair. I just relaxed and looked thru magazines, while joking around with my girls. Everyone’s turned out really well, I was pleased. Only thing was, once they put the veil in your hair you feel like you can’t move! I was so robotic the rest of the morning, afraid I was going to mess it up!!
When we got back, the makeup girl was there and started right away. She was great too! All of my vendors were an absolute pleasure to work with, I’m glad I put in a lot of extra time researching them. Our flowers arrived and they were beautiful. DH had sent me a beautiful dozen roses, two red, which he said represented us. Cute!

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[njbride06]

So, eventually it was time to get dressed and start pictures. My photographer was so amazing, she just gets right to work and is so easy to work with. We did a lot of pics in my house with BMs and parents. We were completely on schedule which I was very happy with…then we got the call, our limo was delayed b/c of a bridge opening?!? What?!? I was so peeved b/c here I am completely ready and no limo is going to make me late. So I quickly remembered the other limo that picked up the guys was at the church (5 minutes away). So we called around and finally got someone to go and tell that limo to pick us up. It worked our perfectly. We were at the church by 5 of 2 p.m. and ready to go!! I was nervous about DH seeing me, so I stayed in the limo for as long as I could.

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When it was time to go, I was so excited, not really sure what to expect. When the doors opened I was surprised by the number of people there and how filled the church was. I guess I expected less people to come to the service. So at first I was just busy looking around and then I’m like, o yea, where’s wade? So I met his eyes and didn’t lose it the rest of the way. It was a great moment, I got glossy eyed, but no tears, we were both just big, huge smiles. The service went well. All the personalized aspects came out great, we got many compliments on our ceremony. Our vows and rings were fun, we had the giggles a little! The part where we honored our parents was, again, emotional. We had a table with his Dad’s picture and a candle, which we stopped to pray at. All of that was hard, but I think all of the rest of the family appreciated it and I know it was something we needed to do for our own sake. We had our introduction and kiss, I almost forgot that this is where we walk out! We had everyone stop near the back of the church and crowd around us, and our photographer got a big group picture from the balcony. Then we did our receiving line which seemed really long!!

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We went back in the church for some pics, then off to my Uncle’s farm for pictures. We took some great shots, I can’t wait to see them. I think our photographers must have taken between 500-700 shots, I can’t even imagine. It was fun just hanging out with our bridal party and enjoying some champagne. We had a blast!

http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y254/frenchflava/OurWedding7806072.jpg

Sorry if the pics are orangy or grainy, these are just with my cousin using my digital camera.

[njbride06]

Then it was off to the reception. The banquet director I worked with could not have nailed my vision for the room any better…and my florist, just perfect. The room was exactly what I wanted. I wish I had pics to share now! We mingled with guests during our cocktail hour. Everyone was surprised by our lobster tree. It was a station where people could get cracked tails and claws, as well as clams and shrimp, it was a big hit!! And all the appetizers were yummy. The food overall was great, we received many compliments on that as well.

Our introductions were a blast, our BP did all kinds of funny things. Our first dance was so amazing, I was holding onto DH so tight and buried my face in his shoulder practically. I only got teary a little. I was proud of myself for no all-out bawling moments!! It definitely was somewhat of a blur! We ate a couple courses, then our meals came out. People danced in between, it was a very smooth night. Then we did our parent dances which were emotional, again! And then cake cutting. Everyone was expecting us to smash it, but we just did it nice. At that point, I was so full from everything else, I wasn’t even sure I could eat that little bite of cake. I wish I could’ve ate more cake b/c it was so good. But I did get to have some chocolate fountain, which was another big hit of the night! The rest of the night we just danced, talked, had a great time! We actually extended ½ hour b/c everyone was having so much fun. I’ve never seen so many people stay until the end of a wedding. I was just so happy with how it turned out and I got the exact reactions that I wanted out of people. They loved all of our personal touches, the food and the music. To me, 3 very important things.

In the days to follow, our parents received emails and phone calls on how nice everything was. We heard that some people were commenting that it must have cost X amount of dollars, when it was actually less! That’s a great reaction to get!

There is so many other little things I would love to add, but it just gets too lengthy!! I took a journal along on our honeymoon where I recorded everything down right away. I also wrote about all the things we did and places we went on our honeymoon, so I would have some sort of record to remember. Our honeymoon, was great, so relaxing!!


I don't have any pics right now..we just got our disposables back, so i have to scan some pics in.

Thank you for reading my story! I will try to add stuff in and maybe I will try to recreate my journal here so I can help out any other brides with ideas. Its fun to be on this side of the spectrum now, having gone thru it.

Thanks!

[yogi_deuce]

July 8th is a great day. It is my son's birthday also. The fortune cookie was too cute and wow to the present inside. I would have hated to open it though. You looked so happy. I can't wait to see more pics. I am trying to envision the lobster tree. Sounds really cool. Glad your day turned out just the way you wanted.

[~Sara~]

Hey fellow July bride!! Your wedding day sound like it was perfect and your pics so far are beautiful! Your bouquets look amazing! I can't wait to see more pictures (so hurry back with those will ya? :lol2: ). Where did you guys go on your honeymoon?

[katieandalex]

Everything looked great so far! I can't wait to see more pictures! Congrats on your big day! Its looks like everything turned out great given the few bumps in the road you had.

[saraw04]

Congratulations! I can't wait to see more pictures. You were a beautiful bride!

Sara :)

[mrs.g]

Congratulations! I'm so glad everything turned out the way you wanted. I can't wait to see more pictures from your wedding day and honeymoon! :)

[TeenieBeanie]

Congrats on yalls wedding! You were such a beautiful bride & the pics all look lovely so far. I absolutely LUV that huge fortune cookie & what an awesome prize to find inside!! Can't wait to see more pics!

BTW...do you have any close up pics of yalls bouquets? They turned out beautifully!

[Mimzy]

The fortune cookie is to cute - sweet guy! :)
Your Day was very pretty with so many meaningful touches!
Yes- I also would like a close up of your bouquet.

[Emily]

Congrats!! Love your pictures!!

[dolphincc]

Congratultions!!! Everything looks beautiful. I love the huge fortune cookie. Can't wait to see more pictures.

[StaceyG]

congrats! great pics cant wait to see more!

[Kari]

Hey Patti!! I am so glad that you made it here! I was anxious that I wouldn't get to see your wedding pics. It looks like you had a wonderful day! Congrats!!

[njbride06]

Thank you all for your sweet compliments! I will get more pics up as soon as I can!

[rowanmayfairs]

Congrats on the wedding !!

You looked beautiful !!

[jrbecca]

I can't wait to see more pictures--it looks and sounds like it was as perfect as a dream. Congratulations!

[~LeAna~]

You look beautiful!! I can't wait to see more pictures!!

[Kristie]

Congrats! You looked very beautiful, and I love your BM dresses!
I can't wait to see more pictures.

[rowanmayfairs]

Congrats !!!