I Must've Done Something Good: Part III - The Wedding

Aaandd, we're back. This is gonna be a long one, folks. Hold on to your hats. This is

THE WEDDING POST. 

(Duh Duh Duh)

We left off with this guy:

And this girl:

And this moment:

And their mutual agreement that the other person was pretty darn swell.

Nearly a month ago on July 5th, Luke and I were married at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Lacon. It is the church my dad grew up in, and the church my sisters and I were all baptized and confirmed in. It has always been my home church and probably will always remain my "home church", despite moving away. The threads of my family's lives are so intertwined with this place, and I'm blessed that it was the church my dad got to walk me down the aisle to marry the love of my life.

The morning of the wedding started off pretty normal. I slept in until about 8 AM, which was awesome. So much for a jittery bride or getting up early to get my hair done (more perks of sisterly-talent). I woke up, and with the advice of a dear friend in mind, prayed a rosary to get in the right state of mind for the day. It absolutely made all the difference, because there was hardly a moment of the day that I found unbearably stressful.

Before I went downstairs to hang out with my family (to be greeted by Steph with "BABY DAY!!" and "LAST SINGLE MORNING!!"), I prepared Luke's wedding gift. I wanted to put a lot of time and thought into it because, well, I've been putting a lot of time and thought into it for about the last 5 years.

Since 2008, and 2 1/2 years before I met Luke, I had been writing letters to my future husband. They included many of the times I was happy, sad, frustrated, and homesick for the person I wanted to meet more than anything. I didn't know who he was, but I wanted to let this special person know just how much I prayed for him, loved him, thought about him, and was waiting for him, until the moment I could give him the letters on our wedding day... whenever that would be. Obviously in the time that I knew Luke, I continued writing letters, but never addressed them to him (you know, just in case he left me at the altar). So, on the morning of our wedding, I wrote my last letter and finally got to write his name at the top of it.

(I know, totes adorbs.)

After I stirred from my beauty slumber/lounging, I went downstairs, got my hair done by my sister, laughed so, so much with my family, and pretty much just chilled. In fact, that's really all I did for the next 6 hours... chilled. Very calmly, very patiently. Over at the church my lovely ladies gathered in the rectory basement to get ready, and we ate, laughed, and chilled some more. It only added to the absolute perfection of the entire day.

Until the chilling became, "Um... uh oh. It's 20 minutes til the wedding and Emily is not dressed yet." Oops.

So I got dressed very quickly without much nostalgia or 1000 pictures of me slipping on my shoes or pinning my hair or freaking out because my fake eyelashes kept popping off. Those moments will have to be left to the oral histories.

 About 15 minutes before the wedding, Luke and I were each led to a corner of the church by our bridal party, while both of us had our eyes closed. Around the corner, they pulled our hands together, and the two of us had a few minutes to pray together quietly before the wedding, still without seeing each other and spoiling the fun.

And then, the rest is pretty much documented through pictures.

Seeing Luke for the first time. 

Cracking up halfway down the aisle because my dad whispering, "There's still time to run... I have the truck keys.... you can still back out." Mostly to keep both of us from losing it. Also laughing so loud the entire church heard and laughed, too. 

The beautiful wedding Mass. 

This moment. FINALLY. 

The sabre arch exit, that I managed to walk through without tripping over my killer awesome heels, which I thought was a win for the day.  

The hilariously terrifying moment when Luke did not know where his keys were. And this face I made. 

THIS PICTURE. (Our photographer was like, "Done. We are done for the day. I got all I needed.")

These beauties. 

 And these beasts.
(And I mean that in the best, 'you-are-such-a-beast' way). Seriously, these gents rocked it.

Our walk-in song, which Luke picked out and is pretty much my favorite now. 

Dancing with my dad. 

 Dancing with this guy.

(You know how happy I look? Not even close to how happy I felt.) 

New friends. 

Old friends.

 Being serenaded by devastatingly handsome military men in front of 225 people. 

But most of all this: 

And this. 

And this.

I know it is just disgustingly cliche to say your wedding day is the happiest day of your life, but seriously people. I got to have one big party with all of the people I love most in this world, and it was a blast. I got to marry a man with the biggest heart and have a beautiful wedding to celebrate our love. 

Most importantly I got to start a marriage with someone who will not be afraid

to show me the way in dark times,

who I will get to have my cake and eat it too with,

(Maayyy have been a stretch, I know.) 

and share in this crazy adventure we are about to embark on called life. 

It was the perfect day. A lot of words and stories still really can't say any more or any less than that. It was more than happiness, because there is a reason that marriage is formed as a symbol of Christ's love for the Church. It is joy, sadness, fulfillment, and sacrifice all in one. It is the rock I am going to form my family on, and the springboard for the rest of my life. I am blessed, overjoyed, and still in awe of the people we have come to know on our journey who have made the paths we took toward each other full of beauty and faith. As our paths merge into one, Luke and I just want to thank, from the depths of our hearts, all of the family and friends who made our day what it was.
Without you we would be lost. 

"Cause you make me
Laugh a little louder
Love a little harder... 

And I feel alive when I'm with you.
Every time it's something new.
You're the only reason I fight.
You're the best thing in my life." 

Dudes, if you made it through all that, rock on. Next up is Part IV: Honeymoon Stories.

It won't be as long, totes promise.

Let's Start At the Very Beginning

... It's a very good place to start, I hear.

I'm going to rewind the clock a bit to about 3 1/2 weeks ago (seriously!? How can life change so much in less than a month!?) and fill you in on the few boring things that have happened.

A mere 27 days ago, it was the day before I got hitched to this guy.

Biker, soldier, pancake-maker extraordinaire. Goofball, hard-worker, and expert hugger. Husband to moi, which I think attests to his patient heart.

Anyway, more on him later. (Much, much more so if you're sick of hearing Luke's praises sung and need another infatuated wife, go check out Pioneer Woman.)

27 days ago my sisters, mom, and that handsome man up there were decorating for a little celebration we were throwing.

 (You know, our wedding.) 

We were running around, yet staying pretty calm about everything. Things were falling into place. For the most part. 

(We shall not speak of this, aka, my wedding cake the night before. Fear not, my mama is a miracle worker and they turned out beautiful!)

We had an awesome rehearsal with all of our friends and an absolutely lovely rehearsal dinner. 

(Here is me, standing next to the Werner men and looking quite bridal)

We ended the night with Luke and I going our separate ways to watch the fireworks with our families, he in Peoria and us in Henry. We had decided a long time ago that we did not want to see each other before the wedding, so it was kind of  really exciting to say goodnight knowing that the next time we saw each other, it would be us meeting at the altar during our wedding ceremony!

There is so much more I could say about all the planning, crafting, and scheduling involved that made the day that followed so special and perfect, but at 3 1/2 weeks post-wedding, I'm still too exhausted to think about it. I would much rather remember the day for what it was, and not flashback to the horrors dwell on the not-so-perfect side of wedding planning. :) 

All I can say is without the endless talent of many, especially my sisters and mama, I'm fairly certain my wedding day would have looked a lot like this: