Whew, what a month! I've been catching quite a bit of heat for slacking on my post but I do feel that I had a valid excuse. But do not worry, life is slowing down so the post will begin to be more frequent!!
We started the wedding weekend off with a bit of a scare. Blake's parents were in an accident in Tyler, TX on their way into town for the weekend on Wednesday. Thankfully no one was injured but the car is still in the shop as I type this. Blake went and picked them up in Tyler and brought them to Shreveport just in time for us to meet my parents at Superior for supper.
All of our family and friends began to arrive intown on Thursday, May 13. Blake and I had everyone over to our house for tacos and beer and are so glad many were able to make it by. It was so much fun seeing everyone and being able to visit. There were a few folks (the Downers) that I hadn't seen in a few years so it was great to have some "down time" to catch up. It was a wonderful way to start the weekend.
We got up a hit the ground running Friday morning. I was off to the Bridesmaid's Luncheon with the girls while Blake did some errand running. The day was over before it even started (or so it felt) and before I knew it it was time to be at the church for the Rehearsal. Thankfully we have wonderful friends who really came through and helped when we needed them. A BIG thank you to Bennett (and Dave) for errand running with Blake gathering up much needed things for the weekend (kegs, suits for groomsmen, etc) and a ENORMOUS thank you to Jill (and Mikala) for everything you did all weekend (there is too much to even mention!)
Blake's parents travel hicup was just the beginning as we had a few of our out of town guests get SUPER delayed along the way. We had 1 groomsmen stuck in Dallas, TX all day Friday finally arriving 12 hours after his scheduled arrival time and the Luddeke's stuck in Dallas as well not arriving until Saturday morning. Thankfully the McQuown's flight made it out of Houston in a brief window of good weather. We want to thank everyone who traveled in for the weekend. We know that traveling is not easy and we thank you for coming!
The Rehearsal Dinner was so much fun. A friend of ours from work, Clark Chandler, catered the event and the food was delicious. The location, Fox Creek Farms, could not have been more appropriate for the atmosphere we were looking for. Thankfully the weather held out too until everyone was inside the barn and it had stopped raining by the time we left that night. A BIG thank you to the Garrett's for a wonderful evening with family and friends.
Saturday morning began with rain. Blake had been telling me for days (as I looked at the forcast and saw rain) to only worry about the things I could control so I just prayed all day everyday for sunshine. We had a lot of people doing a lot of praying for pretty weather and low and behold, about 9 am it quite raining, the clouds evaporated and the sun started shining!! It was a glorious moment for me! Daddy dropped me off to get my hairdone at 7:30 am and picked me back up at 8:15 and he and I went and had a father/daughter breakfast at none other than McDonald's (a good balanced meal to have on your wedding day!) We really had to be efficient with our time considering the wedding was at noon and everyone did a great job of getting where they needed to be on time.
It was noon before I even had time to get nervous and daddy and I were lined up about to head down the aisle. It was such a moving moment to see all the people who have meant so much to Blake and I throughout our lives all in the same place. I cried, which I knew I would, when I got a glimpse of the 20 people standing in the front of the church. Blake and I both have been blessed with the best friends any one person could ask for. We feel extremely blessed to be surrounded and loved by such wonderful people!
The wedding was PERFECT!! The guys linen suits looked amazing on them, the girls dresses were beautiful, the flowers were soft and elegant, the homily was good (and short!), Blake's surprise feet washing was so Blake and so moving, Matt's solo was breath taking and the Sounds of Harmony recessional of "Oh Happy Day" was not only entertaining to all in the church but exactly what I had imagined since I was a little girl. PERFECT is the only word I can use when people ask how the wedding was. It truely was and neither one of us could be more grateful for all the hardwork from everyone involved.
The reception was just as wonderful as the ceremony. We ended up tenting the entire outdoor area at the Barnwell Center since rain was predicted for the day. It was a little hot at first but once the crowd cleared out the breeze was able to cool us down a little. KC Ray and the Southside Rockers were fantastic as always and really got people moving and shaking on the dance floor, the Petroleum Club out did themselves with the food, Alison Foreman's cakes were delicious (as always) and Thirfty's milk punches were a crowd hit (and Blake's favorite)! Sadly, we were told that the band could not play forever and that we must leave our reception (I could have stayed and danced all night long!!!)
We were not away for long, as we reappeared at the Robinson Film Center for a dinner celebrating our marriage hosted by many of my parents wondeful friends. It was a great way to end the evening, being able to visit with many out of town guests who we were unable to visit with at the reception. When I say the stars aligned perfectly for us on the weather front I am not exaggerating. As we entered the Robinson Film Center 2 hours after our outdoor reception ended the bottom fell out and it began to pour down rain!! All I can say is the Lord really had a hand in our special day as he will throughout our marriage!!
After the supper, we hit the tables with our wedding party. What a great way to end a fabulous weekend! I started with $100 and lost it all after about 2 hours at the BlackJack table (not bad for someone who knows nothing about BlackJack!) Blake and I finally headed home about 1:30 am to catch a quick nap before waking up at 3:30am to head to the airport! (It was totally worth the lack of sleep to be able to hangout with our friends!)
For everyone who was here to help us celebrate, thank you. To those of you who were unable to attend, you were missed and you missed one heck of a party!!
We started the wedding weekend off with a bit of a scare. Blake's parents were in an accident in Tyler, TX on their way into town for the weekend on Wednesday. Thankfully no one was injured but the car is still in the shop as I type this. Blake went and picked them up in Tyler and brought them to Shreveport just in time for us to meet my parents at Superior for supper.
All of our family and friends began to arrive intown on Thursday, May 13. Blake and I had everyone over to our house for tacos and beer and are so glad many were able to make it by. It was so much fun seeing everyone and being able to visit. There were a few folks (the Downers) that I hadn't seen in a few years so it was great to have some "down time" to catch up. It was a wonderful way to start the weekend.
We got up a hit the ground running Friday morning. I was off to the Bridesmaid's Luncheon with the girls while Blake did some errand running. The day was over before it even started (or so it felt) and before I knew it it was time to be at the church for the Rehearsal. Thankfully we have wonderful friends who really came through and helped when we needed them. A BIG thank you to Bennett (and Dave) for errand running with Blake gathering up much needed things for the weekend (kegs, suits for groomsmen, etc) and a ENORMOUS thank you to Jill (and Mikala) for everything you did all weekend (there is too much to even mention!)
Blake's parents travel hicup was just the beginning as we had a few of our out of town guests get SUPER delayed along the way. We had 1 groomsmen stuck in Dallas, TX all day Friday finally arriving 12 hours after his scheduled arrival time and the Luddeke's stuck in Dallas as well not arriving until Saturday morning. Thankfully the McQuown's flight made it out of Houston in a brief window of good weather. We want to thank everyone who traveled in for the weekend. We know that traveling is not easy and we thank you for coming!
The Rehearsal Dinner was so much fun. A friend of ours from work, Clark Chandler, catered the event and the food was delicious. The location, Fox Creek Farms, could not have been more appropriate for the atmosphere we were looking for. Thankfully the weather held out too until everyone was inside the barn and it had stopped raining by the time we left that night. A BIG thank you to the Garrett's for a wonderful evening with family and friends.
Saturday morning began with rain. Blake had been telling me for days (as I looked at the forcast and saw rain) to only worry about the things I could control so I just prayed all day everyday for sunshine. We had a lot of people doing a lot of praying for pretty weather and low and behold, about 9 am it quite raining, the clouds evaporated and the sun started shining!! It was a glorious moment for me! Daddy dropped me off to get my hairdone at 7:30 am and picked me back up at 8:15 and he and I went and had a father/daughter breakfast at none other than McDonald's (a good balanced meal to have on your wedding day!) We really had to be efficient with our time considering the wedding was at noon and everyone did a great job of getting where they needed to be on time.
It was noon before I even had time to get nervous and daddy and I were lined up about to head down the aisle. It was such a moving moment to see all the people who have meant so much to Blake and I throughout our lives all in the same place. I cried, which I knew I would, when I got a glimpse of the 20 people standing in the front of the church. Blake and I both have been blessed with the best friends any one person could ask for. We feel extremely blessed to be surrounded and loved by such wonderful people!
The wedding was PERFECT!! The guys linen suits looked amazing on them, the girls dresses were beautiful, the flowers were soft and elegant, the homily was good (and short!), Blake's surprise feet washing was so Blake and so moving, Matt's solo was breath taking and the Sounds of Harmony recessional of "Oh Happy Day" was not only entertaining to all in the church but exactly what I had imagined since I was a little girl. PERFECT is the only word I can use when people ask how the wedding was. It truely was and neither one of us could be more grateful for all the hardwork from everyone involved.
The reception was just as wonderful as the ceremony. We ended up tenting the entire outdoor area at the Barnwell Center since rain was predicted for the day. It was a little hot at first but once the crowd cleared out the breeze was able to cool us down a little. KC Ray and the Southside Rockers were fantastic as always and really got people moving and shaking on the dance floor, the Petroleum Club out did themselves with the food, Alison Foreman's cakes were delicious (as always) and Thirfty's milk punches were a crowd hit (and Blake's favorite)! Sadly, we were told that the band could not play forever and that we must leave our reception (I could have stayed and danced all night long!!!)
We were not away for long, as we reappeared at the Robinson Film Center for a dinner celebrating our marriage hosted by many of my parents wondeful friends. It was a great way to end the evening, being able to visit with many out of town guests who we were unable to visit with at the reception. When I say the stars aligned perfectly for us on the weather front I am not exaggerating. As we entered the Robinson Film Center 2 hours after our outdoor reception ended the bottom fell out and it began to pour down rain!! All I can say is the Lord really had a hand in our special day as he will throughout our marriage!!
After the supper, we hit the tables with our wedding party. What a great way to end a fabulous weekend! I started with $100 and lost it all after about 2 hours at the BlackJack table (not bad for someone who knows nothing about BlackJack!) Blake and I finally headed home about 1:30 am to catch a quick nap before waking up at 3:30am to head to the airport! (It was totally worth the lack of sleep to be able to hangout with our friends!)
For everyone who was here to help us celebrate, thank you. To those of you who were unable to attend, you were missed and you missed one heck of a party!!
Honeymoon post coming soon..............
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