following an unknown path

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.

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!!

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.

first month as husband and wife

Yesterday marked our first month together as a married couple!

Lawrance went to a job interview while I was at work; we both left about the same time.  I beat him home because well my school is closer and, well, my lovely hubby stopped to pick me up some colorful gerber daises! 

What a great guy that new hubby of mine is!  They were totally unexpected! 

If there were only one thing true about my husband it is that he is VERY SWEET!! :) 

Happy one month, honey!  I look forward to each minute I get to spend with you as your wife.