The Special Things We Did-Day 4

I think I might have mentioned (just a few times) that there was a lot about our wedding that was not traditional.  The word etiquette can send my husband into a tirade that lasts longer than one of Hollister's tantrums. As our spiritual growth has increased over the past few years, I tend to agree with him more and more.


But that's really a post for another day.


I think we did a good job of making our wedding "us" without being super traditional or just totally "out there." We definitely looked for ways to cut some costs, but also tried to do what just felt RIGHT for us.


So a few of the special things we did...




1. My veil was a combination of the veil that my mother wore and the one that my mother-in-law wore. (more about this in tomorrow's post).


2.  Instead of the traditional guestbook everyone signed the border of a picture that hangs in our bedroom.

3. We displayed wedding pictures of our parents and grandparents at their weddings.


4. Dan sang to me as I walked down the aisle. (My engagement song of course).


5. I had my bridesmaids each carry a single rose. The groomsmen and our parents each had one too. We had everyone put them in a vase as they came up the aisle. Traci hung them to dry while we were on our honeymoon and they now reside in a vase in our kitchen. I love to look at that bouquet because it represents the "combining" of our lives.


6. I made a board game about our relationship for Dan as a wedding present.


7. Dan took a ring that my dad had given me for my graduate school graduation (I never wore it because it was gold) and had it remade into a pair of earrings and a necklace that I wore on my wedding day.

8.  My grandmother wrote a song and sang it to us during the ceremony as we released butterflies.

9. Each groomsmen was escorted by 2 bridesmaids, except for my maid of honor. Traci was escorted by 2 best men!


10. Our rehearsal dinner was in the pizza place that we eat at each year at camp. Very casual and lots of fun. My brother paid for boats to drive us from the rehearsal to the pizza place. Along the way, we had a "tour" of Lake Lure and learned the history. (Did you know Dirty Dancing was filmed there?)


11.We did a honeymoon registry and many people contributed to that instead of regular gifts. 

12. We did our toast together in wine glasses that belonged to my grandparents.


13. Dan sang "I want to be Your Everything" by Keith Urban during the reception. His favorite line is "And I'll be your compass baby, when you get lost." If you know Dan and his sense of direction, then you know how true this is. :)

14. Our friends Jud and Elizabeth sang acoustically for us during the prelude. We didn't play traditional music. We had them play songs like "IN THE MOMENT" (Sister Hazel) and Landslide by Stevie Nicks. We walked down the aisle after the wedding to "These are the Days" by 10,000 Maniacs.

15.  We made sure the cake had almond in it, because that was my mom's favorite. 

16. We wrote our own vows. We didn't hear each other's vows until the actual wedding. 


17. I made little wedding coloring books for the kids in the wedding and we had a Kids room set up for them to hang out and watch a movie, play games or color if they wanted to. 


18. We spent our wedding night in the same room that we stayed in the first time we visited the wedding site at Lake Lure. 


19. The bridesmaids and I did manicure and pedicures the day before the wedding. That was my gift to them. 


20. There aren't really hotel rooms in Lake Lure. Everyone stayed in condos and town homes on the golf and beach resort property. I just always thought this was really cool. 

21. Our program was written like a screen play. 

22. My friend Michelle arranged the flowers herself. She bought them fresh the day before the wedding and we saved a lot of money that way. 

23. My godson and my brother were groomsmen.   Dan's ring bearer was his godson, Tyler. 


24. The pastor who married us was the Camp Director for Camp Lurecrest-the campsite that we hold our camp at each year. 

25. The bridesmaids walked down the aisle to "Going to Carolina" by James Taylor. This was the song that came on years before on the day that I was trying to decide whether to follow Dan to North Carolina or not. 


26. The bridesmaids chose their own dresses. So did the flower girls. 


27. We put together a slide show of ourselves, our relationship and all our friends and family and showed it at the rehearsal dinner. 


28.  I wore flip-flops.

29.  We made cd's with all the songs that had been a part of our 12 year relationship. Everyone got one when they left.


30.  I didn't change my last name. :)