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our taiwanese wedding banquet

So, right after the ceremony, we headed over to a large Chinese restaurant for the wedding banquet. 

Law's parents picked out the restaurant, but we were pleasantly surprised that they had chosen a restaurant that was own by a Christan.  Very cool!!

Here are some of the banquet highlights:

• Before the whole thing started we (the bridal party) were ushered into a little room for a small rest.  This was very nice.

• We were then introduced and entered the banquet hall.
  

• There were 27 tables at our wedding, which means 270 people.   (Ten people per table is the traditional standard. You tell others how many were at your wedding by telling them how many tables there were.)

• 270 people at a wedding banquet is not considered a large wedding.  Small to medium at best.  I've been to one with 100 tables--that's 1000 people!!

• Also, just FYI, only about 80 people attended both the church ceremony and the wedding banquet.  Many just showed up for the banquet, some were only able to attend the ceremony only, and students were invited to ceremony only.  So, less than a third of the people at the banquet had been at the ceremony.

• After the formal introduction, we sat at the head table at the front with parents, and uncles (and their wives).
  

• After the first dish or so was served, we went "on stage" with his parents and my best friend's father, Lin BaBa, who stood in as my "Taiwan father." (I love how the two dads seems as if they are standing at attention.)
  

• We toasted everyone (using cranberry juice, interesting to me since in the States we probably would have used grape juice).
  

• Law and I then did the "couple entwined armed" toast together. :)
  

• After a few more dishes, we sang a Karaoke song together.  The only love song I know in Chinese is "The Moon Represents My Heart," so that is what we sang! :)
  

• Then he had to "wei wa" wine.  "wei" means to feed someone something--kinda like a mother bird feeds her baby chicks (and "wa" means "me").  SO . . . he first had to put the wine into his mouth and then "pour" it into mine. All I could think about was "don't you dare get any on my dress!" :)
  


• Soon after that the two of us toasted the main family table--parents and uncles.
  

• Next, his parents, Lin Baba (my adopted Taiwanese dad), and Big Uncle joined us as we toasted each table.  Waitresses guided us through the entire room, and followed us making sure we all had full glasses.
  

• There were several other Karaoke songs sung.
  

• Law's parents decided on all the dishes that were served.  There was a lot of seafood.  I ate little, and appreciate the photos people took of the meal since I didn't get to see it all.
  

• When Law's brother and his girlfriend wanted to sing a song, Law "punked" them by making them kiss for a long time.  They "punked" him back by making us show him how . . . so we kissed for 9 seconds--the whole room helped keep count. "9" in Chinese is pronounced "joe" which is the same pronuncation of "long."
  

• After a bit more eating and Karaoke, we stood at the door kinda like a receiving line, passing out candy and photos to our guests.
  

• Some of our good friends stayed a bit longer, and so we took a few more photos together.
  

• Then finally we left . . . .
  

• YAY!!  Weddings OVER!!!! :)

after the ceremony

Traditionally family photos are taken after weddings in Taiwan.  Traditionally the bride and groom sit down front and center, and the most important people in the family then sit beside them.  With others filling in behind. 

They usually look something like this:

or like this:

At the church weddings I've been to here in Taiwan.  After the family photos there is then time for photos with different groups of classmates and friends.  Bride and groom stay put, guests fill in the spaces and photos are taken.

For a plethora of reasons (namely we are fun-loving Lawrance and Amanda, our photograph liked to have fun, and we were a bit rushed for time) our group photo shots are a bit more . . . um  . . .  well . . .  "lively" than your typical Taiwanese wedding. :) 

See for yourself in another slideshow from Abu's photos below:

photos from our ceremony

Here is another slideshow of Abu's photos; this time from the ceremony.

Here are some of the highlights:

• Before the ceremony started, Lawrance lowered my veil.
• Seating of the family included his maternal grandmother, "big uncle" and aunt, and his mom
• His dad walked me down the aisle.
• We had two missionary friends officiate--Mike (from America) and Jonathan (from Malaysia)
• I choose to walk 7 circles around Lawrance at the beginning of the ceremony (a Jewish tradition symbolizing that, as his wife, my life revolves around his)
• Then, he rolled the veil (again, I wanted to see during the 2 hour ceremony, but I knew the veil was important to him)
• During the charge to the couple, Mike shared the Gospel clearly and succinctly using a wedding as an analogy.  It was GREAT!!
• We tied the Cord of Three Stands again
• We also washed each others feet (symbolizing servant leadership and mutual submission)
• We used the same vows, but this time we each only used our own heart language
• Lawrance sang a solo to me right after our vows (it was great!!)
• There were five different songs in the middle of the ceremony (so we sat down)
• I cried again during the vows . . . but this time for different reasons. :) 

I fell deeper in love with my husband as a direct result of celebrating our marriage in front of new witnesses.   However, I did tell him that although I love him deeply, I will not marry him again. ;)

After we talked, trying to compare our two weddings, Lawrance and I concluded that it must be kind of like having two children and trying to choose which one you love the most . . . it is impossible.

 

precermony at church

We didn't want to "hide" before the ceremony.  We were already ready; we were already married; we wanted people to know we were glad they were there, so . . . . there was no reason to hide.

The hardest part of standing out and greeting people was helping my groom let go of his wedding planning role and just relax and be in the moment.

And . . . . to answer yesterdays question . . .
Great guesses with an Asian focus!! :)  But, all wrong . . . I was told that in Taiwan rain on a wedding day indicates that when the groom was a child he used the bathroom outdoors.  I thought that was funny since I thought most little boys have done so. :)

And now for a few photos that Abu took before the ceremony started.  Mostly they are just us with friends and family.

groom gets the bride

Most Taiwanese grooms go to the bride's home to "get her."  Usually the bride's sisters and friends make it difficult on him by playing tricks on him. 

Since the three bridesmaids and I needed to start getting ready at 5 AM, we decided that it would be best for all the girls to say here and for Lawrance and his brother to come and "get us" just like tradition.  However, unlike tradition, my friends were nice to Lawrance. :)

It was raining, so we decided to use my paper umbrella, which is an icon of his mother's hometown (which is also the first city I lived in when I first moved to Taiwan six years ago).  It was the first time my paper umbrella had seen rain. :)

Although unpleasant, the rain provided for some neat photos. 

In American folklore, rain on a wedding day means good luck.  Do you know what it means in Taiwanese folklore?  Guess in the comments and I'll tell you what I was told is the answer in my next post.

Enjoy another flickr slideshow of Abu's photos.

getting ready for the taiwanese wedding

There are so many great photos, I don't know which ones to share first . . . so I'm just going to share them all.  Here is a flickr slideshow of our photographer friend's, Abu's, photos.

The three girls in purple are my bridesmaids: Ellen, best friend and previous college roommate, have known her since 1997.  Kady, former coworker and office mate, very special friend since I moved here in 2003.  And, Cindy, my future sister-in-law, she is my husband's brother's girlfriend (maybe they will wed next year!!). :)

The woman dressed in purple but not in a "bridesmaids dress" is also a very special friend of mine.  Her name is Corrina.  I've known her since 1999, when she became my long-lost big sister.  She is also the one who introduced me to Lawrance . . . I probably owe her my firstborn child she's done so much for me.

Corrina got her sister-in-law to come do our hair and make-up.  She did an awesome job and also loaned us all the hair stuff and the veil too.  She also was the one who brought the bouquets, bouts, and corsages for us.  All I did was provide photos of what I was wanting with the directions of "please use purple and no roses" . . . what she brought was better than any of the photos I sent.

God is kind. :)

 

our taiwanese wedding . . . a quick synopsis

Our Taiwanese Wedding ceremony and banquet was on Saturday! Today is Monday . . . I am still tired beyond all get out.

Our rehearsal ran late, and the bridesmaids all stayed in my home for the night . . . so we didn't get to bed till 1 or 2. Then we were back up at 5 for make up and getting dressed.

Groom and groomsman arrived to pick us up at 8:20 (Taiwanese tradition), and it was RAINING!! :)

Before the ceremony started we stood at the door and greeted our guests for about 30 minutes or so. We had lots of people call or text to say they weren't coming because of the rain. However, still so many of our friends and loved ones braved the rain to come celebrate with us.  We were and are SO grateful!!

The church ceremony was 2 hours long (I've been told that's about average for a Taiwanese church wedding).  In addition to the vows, and charge, and unity ceremonies, it included seven songs that were song and two that were played by instruments (trumpet and flute), in addition to the bridal procession and recession.  So, we had a mini-concert in the middle of our wedding.  I was worried about it being too much and too long, but having our close friends and church family bless us with song was GREAT and made me cry. 

Oh yeah . . . .and one of those songs was a solo from my hubby to me!!!  It was SUCH a BEAUTIFUL SONG . . . and he sang it SO beautifully (if I do say so myself).   Every time he practiced it, I cried, but at the actual wedding I made it through his song without crying.

After the ceremony, we took pictures with different guests for about 45 minutes (mostly students that wouldn't be attending the banquet). Then we took off to the banquet--got there at 12:15 and most all of the guests were already there. All the banquet activity started at about 12:30ish.

Then for the next three hours there was loud karaoke and a huge feast. We sang a song together in Mandarin (the only love song I know in Chinese). We toasted each table one by one.  That's 27 tables and about 27,000 thank yous.  

One traditional thing that I did not do was change dresses three (or more) times. They do this to "show off the beauty of the bride." They rent the dresses from a wedding photo store, but since I had purchased my dress from America, I didn't need to rent a wedding dress. So we choose to keep things a bit more simple, and I just wore my own wedding dress the entire banquet, which also means I actually got to eat and enjoy all the karaoke. :)

After all the feasting and toasting and singing, we stood by the door and said goodbye to our guests passing out candy from special baskets--one was the basket his mom used at her wedding and the other one was made by his grandfather many years ago.

We must have literally taken over a thousand photos. But, so far we only have a few that our friends have posted online. I'll share more as we have them.

 

                       

That's it for now . . . .

All in all it was a GREAT day. . . . a long, exhausting day . . . but VERY wonderful too. :) 

(I "stole" some of these photos from Sandy, who blogs here.  Sorry and thanks, Sandy!!)

please meet our apo

This is Lawrance's maternal grandmother.  In Hakka, grandmothers are called "Apo."

Isn't she beautiful?!? :)

wedding reception in usa (part 4)

alternate title: cutting the cakes

Our cakes were made by our wedding coordinator.  The "wedding cake" was strawberry, while the groom's cake was chocolate.  And, can I just say they were DELICIOUS!!  I don't care for most cakes . . . but this stuff was great! 

The groom's cake has a Chinese "chop" (or seal) that is supposed to be the wedding word for double joy or double happiness inside a door, which Lawrance choose because he and I (two joys) were starting a new home (door).  BUT . . . they left off the bottom part of the "double joy" . . . so EVERYONE--American and Taiwanese--ask us what it means. :)

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Cutting the cakes was a blast!!  Lawrance had no idea what we were going to be doing.  I didn't tell him anything.  I just told him "wait and see."  So, he really was clueless, which made it WAY more fun for us and our guests too.

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Posing with the Cake

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Feeding him a rather large piece, but doing it nicely.

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His reaction. (And, me not wanting to get cake on the dress.)

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Me preparing a SMALL piece for him to feed me.

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He wants a big piece and says, "Now I will show you how we do it in Taiwan."

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As he puts it in his own mouth, I am a bit confused thinking he is going to feed himself.

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Then I realize what he is going to do . . . and EVERYONE laughs loudly as they figure it out too!!

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If you haven't figured it out yet . . . He wants me to eat it FROM HIS MOUTH!!!!  OH MY!!

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After all that drama . . . we move on to the groom's cake.

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Obviously, cutting it together.

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And, to ensure he didn't make me eat from his mouth again, we fed each other at the same time. :)

Yay!!  It was so much FUN!! 

And what was wonderful too . . . is that a big plate of the leftover cake was snuck into the honeymoon suite for us.  We got to enjoy our wonderful cake throughout our honeymoon!  Thanks to whoever did that . . . Mom??  Sarah??

(Most photos taken by Jessica at JGM Photography.)

wedding reception in usa (part 3)

alternate title: the joy of kids at a wedding

We both LOVE kids (I'm not sure why but Lawrance doesn't like to admit it, but by his actions it's clear he does). I think it is so important for children to have adult friends that love and care about them.

Anywho, we so enjoyed having children at our wedding. :)  I couldn't have imagined it any other way!
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Our three junior bridesmaids were such a joy, and oh so helpful.  They were never very far away during the entire reception.  What a blessing these three girls are!!

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The little girls in blue and yellow have two younger brothers, they both totally adored Lawrance.  And, Lawrance returned the love.  You can also see in the background my cousin dancing with his daughter.

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We also had an impromptu dance with the kids present to the song "Skid-a-ma-rink-a-dink-a-dink, I Love You" by the Go Fish Guys.  The same primarily a cappella preschool group that we walked down the aisle to . . . Lawrance loves their music.  Like I mentioned before, if you have preschoolers in the house, you have to check them out!

(All photos taken by Jessica at JGM Photography.)

wedding reception in usa (part 2)

alternate title: special moments with the men in my life

Oh, my PawPaw . . . I love this man.  My grandfather is OH SO special to me.  One of the greatest men I've ever met.

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The new Wu's first dance. We danced to "Someone Like You" by Van Morrison.  The only reason we danced was because Lawrance wanted to dance on his wedding day.

Dancing with my daddy.  We danced to "I Loved Her First" by Heartland.  I cried . . .again.

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I also got to dance with Sam, my younger brother.  He needed to leave a bit early, so right after cutting the cake he asked for a dance before he needed to go; I was happy to oblige. :)  He is so sweet, and he is turning into a great young man!

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And, last but not least, my nephew, "caught" the garter (with a bit of help from his daddy).

(All photos taken by Jessica at JGM Photography.)

wedding reception in usa (part 1)

We had the reception at the same place where we got married, right next to the old tree in a historic inn's reception hall.  Most of the floating tissue pompoms were made by Lawrance (we used these directions to make them). 

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The above photo was taken in the afternoon before the ceremony started.  The one below was taken during the reception.  I love all the twinkle lights!

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Being announced for the first time . . . what a great memory. :)

(All photos taken by Jessica at JGM Photography.)

our wedding reception in the states

Our Taiwanese marriage covenant ceremony is less than 19 days away. So, I thought I should finish up writing about our American wedding before the Taiwanese one happens.

Therefore this week will be full of posts about the various special moments from our American wedding reception. 

We had a blast, and we enjoyed every minute.  

Also, I just wanted to offer . . . if you have any questions about the reception or wedding in America or about the upcoming Taiwanese ceremony and banquet ask those questions here on this post, and I will try to answer them either later this week or next week.

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Here is a tiny preview of what's to come this week . . .

Don't you just LOVE all that color?  We wanted it to be a joyful, happy celebration . . . and that's what we got!! :)

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I only have three "regrets" in regards to the reception . . .

(1) we didn't get a chance to tell everyone thank you for coming.  We ended up leaving earlier than planned because most of the guests needed to drive an hour or more to get home, and they were wanting to get home before it got too late. So, we didn't get a chance to get to every table to say thanks.

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(2) we never played our "game" that my PawPaw made for me.  We didn't have a DJ, and I didn't exactly give the best directions to the person I asked to help with the game, so it just never happened.  And, it just makes me kinda sad that my grandfather spent time and money to make this awesome game that never got to be played. 

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(3) and, last but not least, I wish our "guest book" (photo mat) had been either announced or in a better location, not even half of the guests signed it. :(  I made my dad and brother sign it later after we got back from the honeymoon.

a great surprise

I found these in my desk chair on Friday . . .

I was so totally surprised that I actually cried. 

He choose purple flowers because our Taiwanese marriage covenant ceremony is using the color purple.  And, he knows I don't care for roses. :)

Perfect! 

And, he left them in the perfect place too.  There could have been no better place where he could have left them for me to discover. :)

Thank you, Honey!!! :)

i have a valentine

For the first time in my adult life I have a valentine.

Sweetheart, you are the love of my life!  I love you.

You have totally changed my life . . . for the better in every way imaginable! 

Happy Valentines Day, Honey!!

red bombs

Tuesday night we folded, stuffed, and addressed all the Taiwanese wedding invitations.  We are still missing a few addresses . . . but this is one major "to do" that we got done. :)  YAY!!!

Our invitations to the Taiwanese ceremony and banquet are traditional Taiwanese in style . . . and yes, they are red with gold lettering.  Lawrance's parents picked them out.

The inside wording follows the traditional form and announces that an oldest son will be marrying an oldest daughter.  And, we chose to go with Chinese only for these invites.

Oh, yeah, and, like most Taiwanese wedding invitations, they are scented too. 

In Taiwan, wedding invitations are known as "red bombs" because receiving one means you must now "pay money" (wedding gifts are not given, but red envelopes with cash inside are given ).  I think it is kinda sad that, like children, wedding celebrations are considered a burden and not a blessing.  Don't get me wrong, Taiwanese people love weddings . . . but to have the first gut reaction to be "oh no, a red bomb" . . . well, that's just sad.

Anywho, I guess this week are bombing close friends and family in Taiwan.

a sea of flowers

"Where flowers bloom, so does hope."
Lady Bird Johnson, Public Roads: Where Flowers Bloom


Part of our Chinese New Year break we went back to Meinong.  There we found a lovely sea of flowers that delighted me to no end.

a pictorial year in the life of amanda

Continuing a blogging tradition that I started three years ago when I first started blogging . . . a month by month look at my 2008 using only one photo per month.

(BTW, each month name below is a link to a calendar view of pictures taken that month and uploaded to flickr. Just in case you wanna see more than 12.)

January: We Went on Our First Date

February: And Dated Some More

March: We Shared the Gospel Together

April: I Turned 30, but I had Someone to Celebrate With Me

May: We got Engaged

June: I Got to Meet My Nephew for the First Time

July: Smith Girl's Threw Me a Bridal Shower

August: Lawrance Came to Texas and On the VERY Last Day of the Month . . . We Got Married!!

September: We Honeymooned in San Antonio

October: We Enjoy Married Life (ie. I learn to cook Chinese food and Lawrance builds some shelves)

November: The In-Law's Come over for Dinner

December: We Celebrate Our First Christmas as Husband and Wife

So, this was one LIFE CHANGING year . . . awesome in every way imaginable!!  We look forward to seeing what 2009 brings! 

Blessings!

A Little History:

The first year I did this, 2005, I had just started blogging which started because I had discovered 43things, flickr, and library thing.  Flickr and the blog are the only two things that stuck.  And, just like my non-virtual life, my flickr account is in need of a little organization.  Maybe one day . . .

Anywho, back to 2005, it was the year I discovered the freedom a digital camera offers.  I have carried a camera in my purse since 1999.  That's nearly ten years now.  I wanted to be able to record moments of life as an exchange student.  It became a haibt to always carry my camera with me.  In fact, the non-expense of picture taking with a digital camera hit me so strong I took so many pictures that year, I was so overwhelmed I quit printing them out.  Too hard to choose which ones to print. 

In 2006, my brother came to Taiwan and my sister and good friend (as well as three others) got married. And, I took over 9000 photos to record these awesome events.

In 2007, even though my cousins came to Taiwan (which was awesome), I didn't even take half as many photos as I did in 2006--a measly 4,000 something. 

So, in 2008, life changing year, . . . wanna guess how many photos I took?

tong yuan tradition

For the first time in 30 years, I went to school (aka: work) on Christmas day as did Lawrance.  In fact, since he didn't come home till after 10, there was no point in cooking a special meal.  So, in order to still do something special, after lighting our advent candles and opening gifts, we made tong yuan. 

We also made these sticky sweet dumplings right after we decorated our Christmas tree in late November. 

Below is a video of Lawrance showing you how to prepare tong yuan.

witnesses

Right after the wedding we got a group shot of everyone who came to witness and celebrate with us our marriage.

Group Shot #1: Everyone look at the camera

Group Shot #2: Everyone give the Taiwanese "yeh" sign

Group Shot #3: Everyone watch the groom get to kiss his bride again :)

i now present to you mr. and mrs. . . .

Being presented as man and wife for the first time ever . . .

At first we were trying to find a peppy version of" Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us."  But that just didn't seem to exist.  Lawrance wanted something happy, so we tried to find an "Ode to Joy" we liked.  But, have you ever really listened to "Ode to Joy" without the words?  We had a hard time finding a recorded version that was well . . . joyful.  (I am sure that with a live musician they could liven up the tempo.)

Lawrance wanted something totally fun and celebratory to walk down the aisle to together.  So, I played the "If you wanna be happy for the rest of your life" song for Lawrance and told him I'd love to find a song like that that we could walk down the aisle to.  Finding nothing, we eventually decided to just go with the best "Ode to Joy" I could find.

Then, it hit me.  Children's songs.  "I've got the joy, joy, joy down in my heart!"  There had to be a version of that song that we could use.  We are, after all, both kids at heart.

So, I started my search and soon found this song by Go Fish, an acappella children's group. (If you or your child likes their songs, what preschooler wouldn't, you can download some of the songs being given away here at the official MOPs site.)

Lawrance absolutely loved their "I've Got the Joy" song.  So, I spliced it together with about 10 seconds of a very formal "Ode to Joy" beginning.

We made it a "surprise."  The program said "Ode to Joy."  The music started to play "Ode to Joy."  But, then it switched to this and we proceeded to dance down the aisle.  It was a blast!

Also, a few seconds after we started walking, the wedding coordinator at the inn began ringing the chapel bell.  We had no idea she would do that.  It was great.  So, we actually had wedding bells ringing on our wedding day . . . how cool!!

Yay!!  We are married!!

P.S.  In honor of keeping it real, I will now tell you the part of the story that I asked Lawrance to stop telling because I don't want to dwell on an "uh-oh." 

I told our wedding coordinator at the inn all about the surprise ending, but she forgot to pass the word on to the lady doing the cds.  When the music switched she panicked a little and turned down the volume.   

However, in my head the music was loud and celebratory, and even with quieter music the two of us still had a blast. . . and that's all that counts, right?