The Perfect Southern Wedding
If they don't depress me too badly, I generally love weddings. This past weekend my good friend Katherine got married, and I had the privilege of being a bridesmaid. It was a weekend long event with a rehearsal dinner, bridal tea, and finally the wedding ceremony and reception. It was a happy time. If you could paint a picture of the perfect southern wedding, it would look like this one. From start to finish it was quintessentially southern, and I loved it.
The rehearsal dinner was held in a surprisingly elegant hunting lodge out in the middle of no where. The house had tall vaulted ceilings and stone walls lined with all kinds of wild game- from lions to bears to rams. It was perfect for Matt, the groom, who is really outdoors. He loves hunting and fishing so much that his wedding band is encircled by trout or bass or some kind of fish. There was plenty of wild game to eat as well as bottle of Barq's rootbeer. It was a good time.
The bridal tea was lovely. The bride lavished us with gifts, my favorite being flip flops matching our bridesmaids dresses that we got to wear to the receptions. I almost cried when Katherine gave her twin sister Elizabeth a stuffed dog named Faulkner who we had all kinds of adventures with in college. Kat's grandmother gave her a beautiful cake with the bridal charms. It's a Victorian tradition for the bride and her bridesmaids to pull charms out of the cake that wish them things like a stable life, a Christ-centered life, true love, an upcoming engagement, or a happy marriage. I pulled a church that opens up and a bride and groom pop out. That's supposed to mean you will have a happy marriage, and I must admit that was the one I was hoping for the most.
The wedding was truly precious. Kat was absolutely beautiful, and Matt made us all tear up when he started to cry as her Dad walked her down the aisle.
The reception was one of my favorite parts of the weekend. Kat's family lives in a charming antebellum home about a block away from the church where they got married. Two white tents were pitched the the front yard each aligned with white lights and Chinese lanterns. There was a banner hanging off the second story. Kat, who is an artist, made it herself and it bore the couple's new initials. The Pates, who were one of our favorite local bands from our college days played songs like "Walkin' in Memphis" and "Brown-Eyed Girl". The bride and groom arrived in a baby blue Volkswagen convertible. It matched our bridesmaids dresses. That always been my dream car. The very newlyweds were doused with lavender as they ran to their getaway car. In my circle of friend's, the bridesmaids handle the getaway car. An enormous bra was on the windshield wipers which we had all signed at the lingerie party. Elizabeth had printed off pictures of Kat modeling this monstrosity, and we taped them all over the car. I'm sure she hates us now, but it was quite funny.
In spite of all the wedding hoopla, Katherine and Matt's love is what shined so bright and pure. I know it was special to share that with so many people they love and so many people that dearly love them. So here's to you Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Carpenter. May the rest of your married life be as happy and as wonderful as its beginning.
The rehearsal dinner was held in a surprisingly elegant hunting lodge out in the middle of no where. The house had tall vaulted ceilings and stone walls lined with all kinds of wild game- from lions to bears to rams. It was perfect for Matt, the groom, who is really outdoors. He loves hunting and fishing so much that his wedding band is encircled by trout or bass or some kind of fish. There was plenty of wild game to eat as well as bottle of Barq's rootbeer. It was a good time.
The bridal tea was lovely. The bride lavished us with gifts, my favorite being flip flops matching our bridesmaids dresses that we got to wear to the receptions. I almost cried when Katherine gave her twin sister Elizabeth a stuffed dog named Faulkner who we had all kinds of adventures with in college. Kat's grandmother gave her a beautiful cake with the bridal charms. It's a Victorian tradition for the bride and her bridesmaids to pull charms out of the cake that wish them things like a stable life, a Christ-centered life, true love, an upcoming engagement, or a happy marriage. I pulled a church that opens up and a bride and groom pop out. That's supposed to mean you will have a happy marriage, and I must admit that was the one I was hoping for the most.
The wedding was truly precious. Kat was absolutely beautiful, and Matt made us all tear up when he started to cry as her Dad walked her down the aisle.
The reception was one of my favorite parts of the weekend. Kat's family lives in a charming antebellum home about a block away from the church where they got married. Two white tents were pitched the the front yard each aligned with white lights and Chinese lanterns. There was a banner hanging off the second story. Kat, who is an artist, made it herself and it bore the couple's new initials. The Pates, who were one of our favorite local bands from our college days played songs like "Walkin' in Memphis" and "Brown-Eyed Girl". The bride and groom arrived in a baby blue Volkswagen convertible. It matched our bridesmaids dresses. That always been my dream car. The very newlyweds were doused with lavender as they ran to their getaway car. In my circle of friend's, the bridesmaids handle the getaway car. An enormous bra was on the windshield wipers which we had all signed at the lingerie party. Elizabeth had printed off pictures of Kat modeling this monstrosity, and we taped them all over the car. I'm sure she hates us now, but it was quite funny.
In spite of all the wedding hoopla, Katherine and Matt's love is what shined so bright and pure. I know it was special to share that with so many people they love and so many people that dearly love them. So here's to you Mr. and Mrs. Matthew Carpenter. May the rest of your married life be as happy and as wonderful as its beginning.
posted by Janalee | 1:08 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home