Love Not Lipo ... Live a Little, Love a Lot

When we exited the church, we greeted all our guests in the receiving line, and laughed about the firetrucks and the gunshots.

Then most of our guests went back up to the inn for a cocktail party, while Todd, Jake and me, and my parents and siblings, stayed for photos behind the church. I sent Jake to the front of the church to get my sister and law and mother-in-law, and was crushed to learn that Todd hadn’t realized what we were doing and sent his mom, sister, and nephews back up to the inn, so they are unfortunately missing from this beautiful photo series.

How could I have forgotten to include in the previous post details about one of my most favorite moments of my wedding day preparations…when my extraordinarily talented florist, Nancy Bishop, presented me with the bouquet of all bouquets a little while before I left for the church. Never before have I seen a bouquet of such splendor, nor has anyone ever been able to take a picture from my mind coupled with a rudimentary description, and turn it into something that surpassed my vision. Remember, I often have serious problems with managing expectations.

I start off with the flowers, because moving into the description of the rest of the evening is absolutely built upon and around the tremendous creativity and perfection of Nancy and her team’s work. Even Nancy’s husband and his partner who I met at sunrise before my run this morning made me feel just so…..special. Like I was the only bride on earth!!

I walked up to the path to join the rest of our party, and met this gorgeous surprise along the pathway.

I will have to wait for the photographer to give me the rest of the photos in hopes that it even come close to adequately capturing the beauty of this wedding decor, but here are a couple snap shots that may give somewhat of a sneak peak. Again, Nancy Bishop nailed my vision. Un-effing-believable.

My wedding had a perfect toast from my father and my maid of honor….

A perfect first dance with my husband, who picked out the song his self, and sang it to me the whole time.

And a perfect platform to express love that sometimes goes unexpressed at other times.

The band played at my college graduation, and came full circle to my wedding day. How lucky am I to have a BFF with a rock star for a father with a band called Blue Hand Luke. And how lucky am I that even the band let the day be about me, and rock it out like the old days. My husband has never really seen me party, (likely not a coincidence why he ended up being my husband) but  think he got a sneak peak on our wedding night of what his lady is really capable of under all that sobriety and spirituality!

We danced and danced and sang and sang. Just when we thught the music was really over, another song started and I got back on the mic. My friend Marlena affectionately yelled out from among the crowd listlessly sitting along the perimeter of the dancefloor, I on the stage, ”it’s the wedding that never ends!” and I started laughing my ass off. It still makes me laugh just typing it out.

You know I could gush about my wedding on and on, and I wish I could say I am now done posting pictures of it and will go back to my fitness regimens etc. but I know myself well enough to not be able to resist a few more when the photographer gives us our photos. Hopefully my readers can put up with me.

Every person thinks their wedding is the best…because it is! When you are true to yourself and what is important to you, your wedding is an expression of your soul, and therefore no one elses wedding could be better than yours. Although there was no single solitary detail I would have changed from the food, to the flowers, to the music, to the church, it was the outpouring of love and joy around us that stunned and overwhelmed me. I begin to cry every time I think about it.

So in conclusion, this is not a conclusion. Love and joy are forever if we choose to impart it every single day. Our wedding was such a reminder to Todd and me of the precious, fleeting miracle that is our existence on this earth. And with this reminder, we commit to reflecting our love back to all the mirrors around us.