Love is a symbol of eternity. It wipes out all sense of time,
destroying all memory of a beginning and all fear of an end.
~Author Unknown
I am happy to say that Mr. Weir and I have been married for a year now and are more in love than we ever thought possible. Yes, it sounds cheesy, but we truly are blessed to have each other. As I reflect on what the past year has done for our marriage, our family, and myself I cannot help recalling all the fun and festivities of our Big Day. I was lucky enough to spend the morning (yes, because my wedding was at 1PM, I was up at 6:00AM to begin getting prepared for the day) relaxing and getting all dolled up at Mes Bon Amis. Cherie Treadway has been cutting, highlighting, and really taking care of my hair since age four and so who could I ask, but her to make me look perfect for my special day.
The photographer had not arrived when I was getting my hair done so my Mom snapped this shot. At this point, I was not nervous at all and was in full relaxation mode. Thanks to Cherie, we had mimosas and my Momma brought breakfast.
Cassie, my beautiful sister and maid of honour, was second to get her hair done.
It was wonderful to hang out with my closest friends, especially Julie, my college roommate. She came all the way up from Mississippi to be one of my bridesmaids and I could not have survived the morning without her humor and love.
I felt like a princess getting my makeup done. Thankfully, Cherie's sister is a makeup artist and owns her own spa. She came up to the salon and treated myself and my Mom to some beautiful makeup.
At this point I was getting a little nervous. Kristen, our photographer, kept telling me to smile and I didn't notice the nerves until I realized I had not smiled in a single picture while I was getting my makeup done. We were running short on time and I wanted to look perfect. The girls left to go to Grandmama's (which is where we were all dressing) and my Mom and I followed once we finished up. We were RUSHING. My Mom felt frazzled and was concerned that she wouldn't get to be part of helping me get dressed.
Kristen went ahead with the girls and took some beautiful shots of my dress and accessories while I was finishing up. My dress was hung in my Mom's old bedroom from when she was growing up. It was sentimental to see it there knowing years ago my young Mom was dreaming of her own wedding to my Dad little less than 30 years previous.
My "something blue"...
My "something borrowed"...
We ended up moving my dressing downstairs as the temperature (and nerves) was rising upstairs.
It was so much fun getting dressed with my bridesmaids, my beautiful Grandmama, Aunt Tracy, and my Mom there to help.
My Mom had her special moment when she zipped me up. At this point I have to say I was at stress level MAX. My dress fit perfectly and when my corset was hooked and my dress zipped I felt like I couldn't breathe. I was breathing heavy, I was light-headed, I was freaking out. Not to mention I rode to the church barely able to balance myself with my 20 pound dress surrounding me. This was that moment that Kimmy told me she had. It was worse than any stage-fright I had ever experienced. I was not "getting cold feet", in fact I couldn't wait to walk down the aisle, it was just a strange wedding day moment.
We still had a few moments to pose for pictures in Grandmama's living room.
And, one of my favorites from the day, walking out Grandmama's door. The last time, I might add, as a single gal.
Goin' to the chapel...or the church I grew up in:)
My wonderful husband-to-be sent back a hand-written note. This note was not only one of the most romantic I ever received, but included my wedding gift; which was a special package on the honeymoon which included a private dinner on the beach. I was thrilled and sentimental.
From his wife-to-be, Aaron received a scrapbook I made out of odds and ends from the past two years we had dated. He told me that evening that he did not look all the way through the book because he felt like he may get emotional and he was, after all, with the guys:)
Thanks to my mom I had beautiful handmade programs for the ceremony, which was about to start. Father Rich came back to check on how we girls were holding up and we said a prayer for the day. I was very nervous, but having my Daddy's arm there to grasp calmed me a little.
Walking down the aisle towards Aaron was one of the happiest moments of my life. Having my Daddy there and having him beaming and proud of me made it so special. The moment I saw Aaron standing at the end of the aisle my nerves disappeared. He looked so handsome and knowing that I was walking towards the man who would soon be my husband was a moment I had been waiting for.
I was so happy to have a full Catholic ceremony. Aaron and I spent a good portion of our planning time choosing music, reading, writing intentions, and personalizing the ceremony. After all, you only get married once so we wanted to be involved in every aspect of the planning. Everything went so perfectly and we were so glad to involve many of our close family members in the ceremony.
The Vows.
Standing on the altar next to my husband (yes, in the Catholic ceremony you are actually married in the middle of the ceremony) and my little sister was very special.
Kristen did an amazing job getting detail shots during the ceremony.
Before Mass ended we stood facing each other and shared The Bride And Groom Hand's Prayer with each other.
Presenting Mr & Mrs. Weir! Our First Kiss as Husband and Wife.
Smiles all around while we were walking out.
After greeting our guests the pictures started. It was about to pour down rain, good luck on your wedding day, so Kristen rushed us outside to take as many pictures as we could. We were worried that was all we would get in, but it did end up holding up in time for us to take some special pictures later.
This is one of Aaron's favorite photos of the day.
Our photographer's favorite photo. Check out the trees in the background. The wind was really blowing!
Isn't my hubby handsome?
We enjoyed having this time alone after the ceremony. Even though we were getting photos taken it was nice to spend some time reveling in our newly-married bliss.
We love our adorable flower girls and ring bearer. They did an awesome job posing for pictures.
I am pretty sure my Mom & Dad and Grandmama & Opa have a very similar photo from their Wedding Days.
Celebrating with the wedding party:)
Academy of the Sacred Heart was generous enough to allow us to use their beautiful grounds for our outdoor wedding photos. Definitely sentimental for myself and my Mom as we are both graduates from the school.
There were a few showers during the pictures. Penny didn't mind. She was happy to be part of the day.
My beautiful bouquet.
The ladies of the bridal party. Each one has played a special part in my life and I was so happy they could all be a part of the day.
Aaron and the boys. I love how he and his brother Ben are sharing a moment in this photo. Also loving the sun shot.
Thank you Kristen for making me feel like a beautiful bride.
I love this picture.
Although Aaron insists his hair looks silly in this photo, I love it. He is a looker.
The Academy ground just added to the beauty of many of our pictures.
Love this shot of my veil blowing in the wind.
The Rings.
Pink shoes. Cassie and I ended up wearing the same shoes as she insisted she did not want to add any inches to her height. I was happy to be matching sissies for the day.
This is definitely one I want to frame. We were finishing up the outside photos and it was starting to rain. I love the umbrella and the raindrops in this shot.
Thank you to The Columns staff and Doug Risch for a beautiful reception.
And Tracy and Stuart for arranging all the flowers of the tables and throughout the room. Daises are my favorite!
Aaron's Groom's Cake. He loves the St. Louis Cardinals!
Elaine did a beautiful job with the cake. It was exactly how I envisioned it. And delicious.
Pink and yellow jelly beans favors. These were very popular with the younger guests.
We had so much fun riding around in the party bus. I was glad we were able to share the ride with the whole bridal party. I wouldn't have had it any other way. Lots of room for dancing too!
Walking into the reception as Mister and Misses.
Everyone was clinking their glasses. Lots of kisses.
Cutting the cake.
My wonderful husband did not shove cake in my face (thank you honey), but we cut the piece WAY too big and had a lot of cake to put in one another's mouth.
The toasts were incredible. Ben, the Best Man, gave an intellectual and humorous congratulations, Cassie, my beautiful Maid of Honor, gave an adorable and personal toast to our future, and my Dad was not at a loss for words either. He quoted some memorable Bible verses from the ceremony and gave Aaron some advice on living with me. We had lots of laughs and some happy tears.
Dancing with my new husband. Jordan, our niece, loved the whole event. She called it the "Royal Wedding."
Our first dance song was one Aaron had sung to me many times, one of the first on my 21st birthday. He surprised me during our dance by singing along. It was very romantic.
My Daddy and I shared in our traditional Father-Daughter Dance song, "My Girl." It was a really fun part of the night.
The bouquet toss! Cassie caught it!
My husband took his time getting the garter.
And really launched it! His brother Caleb caught it and then was confused as to what to do with it.
We spent the rest of the evening celebrating! Everyone was up dancing. The little ones enjoyed the music and the dance lights. We started the evening with some old favorites and even Opa & Grandmama complimented the song choices. I love the old classics!
There was no lack of boogie songs and our wedding video even includes the dance circle one of the groomsmen started. It was a blast!
So here's to the endless memories we made June 12th, 2010. We are so grateful to everyone who was involved and we will never forget how perfect our Wedding Day was.
Mr. & Mrs. Weir
To many more years of health, happiness, and adventure!
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