following an unknown path

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.

not suitable together

(No, no, not me and Lawrance  . . . we are perfectly suitable together! :))

That is what the manager at McDonald's told me when I asked for mayo on my cheeseburger the other day.  In fact, my request was so not ok, the clerk had to go get the manager.  She wouldn't do it because beef and mayo are not suitable together. 

She said she would be happy to put some mayo in a cup and allow me to put it on my own burger but she couldn't couldn't add it to my cheeseburger for me because they "don't go together."

What!?!?!?!

It's been a looooong time since something has shocked me culturally . . . but this sure did.  I mean totally . . . mouth hanging wide open in total culture shock.  I felt like I must be an alien for wanting mayo with my beef.

But, "why?" I asked her.  Her only answer was "well, people in Taiwan don't think mayo goes with beef." 

In my head I'm thinking, "WHAT!!!!! You guys put mayo on EVERYTHING . . . even fried shrimp!!"

Up until this point our whole conversation was in Chinese.  Seeing I was still suffering from acute culture shock the manager switches to English to ensure me that I heard correctly, "they are not suitable together."

Ok, fine, whatever.  I'll take it on the side and put it on myself.

I'm still not satisfied and I've continued to try to think about why . . . is it something to do with ying and yang?  something with the fact that cheeseburgers don't have lettuce and mayo in Chinese is only called "salad dressing" (doesn't work--what about the shrimp)?  something she made up to get me to leave her alone? 

Anyone out there with a another "suitable" possible reason?

She was nice in that she did give me the mayo--enough for 15 hamburgers, no joke--on the side in a sundae cup.  She must have felt really bad for literally sending me into acute culture shock.

(FYI: pic on left is from a few years ago when Sam was here . . . he ordered his dessert in Chinese by himself.  I was so proud of him.)

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 :)

oreo cookie kisses

Our photographer took some really fun photos with me and some of my family.  Since they were all in black and me in white . . . I nicknamed these photos "oreo cookie kisses."

Of course with my grandmothers, they would be pink oreos.  Come on NeeNee, you can make it!!

Waiting for Mom Sarah gets a head start.

And I love these next two of me and my dad.  I always loved the photo of mom and grandpa hanging in Grandmother's hallway.  I thought it was a such a sweet photo.  I loved it so much she actually gave it to me a few years ago.  Now I have my own to hang next to hers. 

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? 

so kiss me

After my dad blessed our new marriage with payer, he then told Lawrance some words he'd been waiting a LONG time to hear:

Can you tell how excited we are?

Finally, he hears . . . "Lawrance, you may now kiss your wife."

And so . . . we had our first kiss, as husband and wife. 

I have no idea how long it lasted . . . all I know is that he started kissing me before I had a chance to "pucker up." So, the entire time we are "kissing" I'm actually "smiling."

So, when he finally releases me from our first kiss, I can't help but laugh . . . from excitement, joy, and from not actually being able to kiss back and just the blissful awkwardness of it all. :)

We are so grateful for God's grace in enabling us to be able to share our first kiss as man and wife. 

You should see the looks on people's faces--especially nonbelievers--when I tell them our first kiss was on our wedding day.  They can't believe it.  Sometimes, ironically, it seems like if in that instant they lose all respect for me, thinking I must be insane. 

We dated nearly two months before he held my hand because he knew that once we started touching we would just want more and more.  So he waited. 

After we were engaged is when the physical intimacy beyond hand holding started.  The day he asked me to marry him is also the first day we hugged--a very awkward side hug at that.  The first time he kissed me on the cheek was a few weeks later during our engagement photo session (right there in that photo to the left).

Anyway, point is even with caution and even with taking it very slow, after getting engaged the physical intimacy began to heat up rather quickly, especially the month we were in America together.  We are both so glad that we had that line of no mouth to mouth kissing because in so many ways it helped us stay pure--even when we wanted more. 

There were a couple of times the month before the wedding where I was like, "ahh just go ahead and kiss me . . . there is nothing wrong with kissing before our wedding day."  But, he wouldn't.  He had promised me our first kiss would be on our wedding day, and so he kept his promise.

What a blessing!! 

In all it's awkwardness it was totally worth waiting for . . . and a moment I will never, ever forget.

{Oh yeah, and by the way, I think kissing this guy has now become one of my favorite pass-times. ;)}

unity cermonies (part two)

In addition to the sand ceremony, we also choose to do a "cord of three strands ceremony" too.

I have no idea how I found this, but I do know I found it while surfing for ceremony ideas, and that I ended up here, which is a site that explains the idea and sells the cords. This was probably the last thing we added to the ceremony. 

Lawrance loved the idea.  It was also something that we could easily do in both the American and Taiwanese ceremony, and something we could frame and keep for a long time.

I braided the three cords while Lawrance held them, and then he tied the end of the braid together with a small wire when I was done braiding. 

Here is what we put in the program to explain the symbolization of this unity ceremony:

Ecclesiastes 4:12 illustrates the importance of Christian companionship. Two Christians that are bound together in Christ are stronger than the individuals themselves. We believe that Christian marriage is about more than the union of one man and one woman. The Bible teaches us that God performs a miracle in our marriage, uniting us together in a covenant relationship with Him as one. The Cord of Three Strands is a symbol of that sacred union created today.

The gold strand symbolizes that we have invited our Lord Jesus Christ to the position of authority in our marriage relationship.

The purple strand represents the groom. It illustrates the majesty of God as head over the husband. As Lawrance submits himself to the Lord, the Lord in turn will hold the marriage together through him.

The white strand represents the bride. It illustrates the purity of the bride of Christ. As we receive Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and Lord, we are cleansed through Christ.

(Some of this wording came from the site where we got the cords.)

Here is also what my dad said before we started to tie the cords: 

Lawrance and Amanda have also chosen to braid three strands together into a single cord. A "threefold cord" is a symbol of union. Where two are closely joined in love and fellowship, Christ will, by his Spirit, come to them, creating a threefold cord.

In braiding these three strands together, Lawrance and Amanda are demonstrating that their marriage is more than a joining of two lives together. It is a unity with God as well. They are choosing to allow God to be at the center of their marriage, woven into every aspect of it.

As I started braiding the cord, Lawrance told me I was going too fast and needed to slow down.  So, I slowed down a lot just to tease him.  Well, apparently to some of our guests the exaggerated movements I made as I slowed down seemed to them that I was flirting with my groom during the ceremony.  That wasn't the case . . . but we both did laugh at my silliness in taking his slow down command very seriously. :)

While we tied the cords, we had "Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us" playing.  We used 4Him's Hymns: A Place of Worship CD.  This song was my mom's suggestion--she always thought this was a great hymn to use at a wedding, and we agreed.  We thought about using it for the recessional, but it just wasn't "peppy" enough.  However, I do love the words of the song, and I am glad we found a place for some of it to be heard during our wedding.

Savior, like a shepherd lead us, much we need Thy tender care;
In Thy pleasant pastures feed us, for our use Thy folds prepare.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast bought us, Thine we are.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast bought us, Thine we are.

We are Thine, Thou dost befriend us, be the guardian of our way;
Keep Thy flock, from sin defend us, seek us when we go astray.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Hear, O hear us when we pray.
Blessèd Jesus, blessed Jesus! Hear, O hear us when we pray.

Thou hast promised to receive us, poor and sinful though we be;
Thou hast mercy to relieve us, grace to cleanse and power to free.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! We will early turn to Thee.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! We will early turn to Thee.

Early let us seek Thy favor, early let us do Thy will;
Blessèd Lord and only Savior, with Thy love our bosoms fill.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast loved us, love us still.
Blessèd Jesus, blessèd Jesus! Thou hast loved us, love us still.

(Words attributed to Dorothy A. Thrupp, 1836)

unity cermonies (part one)

We decided on two unity ceremonies.  We were going to wait and do the unity candle when both mothers could be present to help light the starting candles, so I looked online for some other options.  I will explain the first one today, and plan to explain the second one tomorrow.

So, from searching online (which is how I did 94.9% of my wedding planning) I saw the "sand ceremony."  From what my online surfing tells me is that it started as a trend from California beach weddings.  Candles don't stay lit very well on a beach, so those wanting to have a unity ceremony started combining two containers of sand into one.

We made two unique twists to our sand ceremony--at least I've not read about others doing what we did.  One, we used sand from two different countries.  This is what really sold me on the idea of doing the sand ceremony--that we could combine sand from Taiwan and sand from the US.  And, we also used a solid white base at the bottom of our vase; this was to symbolize Christ being the foundation of our marriage. (We had talked about using rocks--because who wants a marriage built on sand--but Lawrance was afraid the rocks might eventually break the jar.

While we poured the sand, we played recordings from three special people in Taiwan reading Scripture in Mandarin Chinese.  Ellen, one of my dearest friends, read Isaiah 60:19-22; Dennis, one of Lawrance's Christian teachers, read Psalm 67; and Corrina, our matchmaker read Psalm 128.

Also, to make things more simple--it is not easy to move in a big white dress--instead of moving to a table to pour the sand, we just had the table placed behind my dad.  And then when it was time for the sand pouring, my dad turned around, handed us the separate vases, and held the vase we were pouring into. 

I found official "unity sand ceremony" vases online for upwards of 50/60 dollars or more.  We got ours at Hobby Lobby for just a few dollars.

We carried our combined sand jar/vase back to Taiwan with us.  Lawrance had it in his carry-on.  He was stopped at every security check-point because of it.  :)  And, the sands inside are now all mixed up completely. Since we were already expecting this, we weren't too disappointed that it's no longer in pretty layers.

This is how we explained the sand ceremony in our wedding program:

Just as Jesus Christ is the Lord of our lives and the Rock of our Salvation, He will now be the solid foundation that holds our marriage firm. This is symbolized by the white sand in the bottom of the bottle. We both have sands that symbolize our individual lives and selves. As we pour our sands together, it shows how our lives—once separate—are now inseparable. Just like Matthew says, we are no longer two but one flesh, what therefore God has joined together, let not man separate. To make our sand ceremony even more special, Lawrance is pouring sand from Taiwan, while Amanda is pouring sand from America.

another look at the wedding bands

Here is a photo we took after the ceremony showing off our wedding bands.  Lawrance loves this photo, and I guess I do too. :) 

And, I can never decide if I like the photo with the rings on the pink flower or the yellow flower better.

symbols of our love and faithfulness

We have matching wedding bands--the only difference is that his is hammered and, of course, larger.  Also they are both engraved on the inside with our initials, the symbol for eternity, and our wedding date.

For this part of the ceremony we repeated after my dad and used English only. 

I loved this part of the wedding.  I'm not sure why, but it was a "magical moment" for me.

Just look at the way this guy looks at me . . .

 . . . his expressions melt me.

love is . . .

Following our vows, my sister and brother, our matron of honor and best man, read aloud the famous 1 Corinthians 13 passage on love together.    My sister read part and then my brother the next part, back and forth sharing the reading of the entire passage.

I felt just slightly like I was at a tennis match. :)  But, I loved the way it sounded with a shared reading like that.

Both our vows and their reading of 1 Corinthians were just on plain white computer paper that my dad had hidden in his black officiant's notebook and then handed to us at the right time.  We could have tried to do something a little more sophisticated, but well there isn't time for everything.

I love this shot of Sam taken right after they had finished reading. 

honoring grandparents

In Chinese culture, respecting ancestors and elders is important.  So, Lawrance wanted my grandparents to be an important part of our wedding.  He wanted to find a way to honor them in our wedding.

So, we asked my grandparents to read 1 John 4:7-21.  PawPaw, my paternal grandfather read the first seven verses, and my maternal grandmother read the last seven verses.

My maternal grandparents were married for over sixty years before my grandfather passed away.  And my paternal grandparents have been married for over fifty years.  What a blessing to hear two people I love and admire SO much--who all have and still do play a very important part in my life--read scripture about love at our wedding!

 

who gives this woman?

Since my dad walked me down the aisle and also officiated our wedding, we had Jerry--a neighbor and close friend for a long time--to open the wedding with prayer and then wait with Lawrance at the front. 

He also asked the question, "who gives this woman to this man?"

Before my dad answered, Jerry moved out of the way, and my dad took his place in front.

He then spoke very personal words as he "gave me away."  When he was done, I had to ask for a tissue--I'm so glad that Sarah had one.   . . . and that wasn't the last of the tears either.  A few more would come later.

I LOVE this photo taken while my dad was "giving me away."  The smiles on both his and Lawrance's faces are awesome!!!

a walk to remember

When I started thinking about a song to walk into with (I didn't want to come in with traditional wedding music.), I immediately thought of and really liked "For the Beauty of the Earth."  Lawrance liked the melody but didn't think it had enough "power" or "majesty" for a bridal entrance.  When I told him that was the exact reason I wanted it, he thought it was a great choice.

So, are you ready?  Here we go . . .

Uh, yeah . . . it was not exactly like that. :)  This great photo--that Lawrance and I both love (and want to duplicate with the two of us when we get married in Taiwan)--was taken after the ceremony. 

I was a bit emotional walking down the aisle with my daddy. 

And, uh, yeah, "a bit" is a huge understatement! :)

Over a million thoughts flooded though my head we walked together.  My dad was so kind.  He was talking me though walking down the steps out of the chapel, being very gentle and supportive.  I then told him, "Daddy, I'm not gonna make it.  I'm gonna cry." 

His response was "You are?" 
"Yes," I cried back.
"That's ok," was his calm response.

Then I did all I could to stop the tears--hence all the funny faces.  They were happy tears, but still I didn't want to totally be crying all the way down the aisle. 

Here is a photo of my dad talking me though walking down the steps.

I finally was able to manage a smile . . . and I finally rounded the small curve and was able to see my groom. Yay!!

For the joy of human love, . . .
Lord of all, to thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.  (lyrics from "For the Beauty of the Earth")

the processional

Like I've mentioned before, we got married outside under a big tree.  It was a gorgeous tree that is over 100 years old.  All the pompom flowers you see hanging from the tree were made by Lawrance (well, I did a few to show him how, but then he did all the rest)--didn't he do a great job?

While Sam and Lawrance seated the grandparents and my mom, Fairest Lord Jesus was playing.

And, here is a moment I am SO glad was caught on film!!  I love my mom!!!

Then Jerry--our dear friend and neighbor for many years, who also welcomed his home up to Lawrance while he was in Texas--opened the ceremony with prayer. 

Then the boys--Lawrance and Sam--came in.  My brother served as Lawrance's best man.  He did such a great job.  I loved looking over at him several times during the ceremony, sweat pouring off his face, but always getting a smile from him.
 

Then our junior bridesmaids and my sister, serving as the matron of honor walked in.  The bridesmaids walked while "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling" was playing.

These precious girls are from my home church.  I used to take them to "little ladies lunch" after church when I was at home working on my master's degree.  They would sit with me during the service, and are some of the beautiful young woman I am blessed to call my "little friends."  God has graciously blessed me with "little friends" everywhere I go!  Now, they are young woman . . . it was a treasure to have them be a part of our wedding. 

Also my junior bridesmaids were a HUGE help!  They carried my train while we took photos.  They ran to get me some lip gloss in the middle of the reception.  Anything I needed they were happy and willing to help with.  One of my friends said that she wish she had had junior bridesmaids at her wedding because of just how wonderful a help they were to me. 

next time . . . here comes the bride . . .

a private moment together before the wedding

We wanted to see each other before the wedding . . . so we did. :)

After getting ready, we had a few moments alone.  Then our photographer (my oldest, as in longest known, friend) came in and took some shots of us enjoying those first few moments as bride and groom--our last few moments before becoming husband and wife.

I LOVE this photo; she caught his expression beautifully!!!

I also decided--a few days before the wedding--I didn't want the veil to cover my face.  I needed to read my vows and do some other things during the ceremony, and to me it was just in the way.  So, I was just going to wear the veil in my hair.  But, then when all was said and done, (like after it was in my hair and I was putting on the dress), it bugged the heck out of me.  Too puffy and now it no longer served a purpose, so it seemed pointless to me.  Wearing a veil didn't make me more or less a bride.  So, I wanted to remove it all together.

I knew this part of the wedding was important to Lawrance--the lifting of the veil.  So we talked about, and he suggested we do the veil lifting privately on our own before the ceremony.  So, we got a few veil shots before the ceremony.  And, I am SO glad that we did . . . some of them turned out really cute!!

There is one more thing I have to tell you about the veil-lifting.  In Taiwan, men roll the bride's veil up and over, so it is a slow ceremonious event.  So, that is what he did.

But . . . after he was done rolling . . . still not kissing on the lips.  We've waited this long we could wait another half hour. ;)

Here we have it step by step.  It was so fun!!  I'm glad we did this . . . and I liked very much that it was just between the two of us.

We're ready . . . come on guests hurry up!  We wanna get married!!! :D

Seeing each other before the wedding was a great decision.  It wasn't part of Lawrance's culture to wait to see the bride.  In Taiwan, the groom goes and gets his bride and brings her to the celebration--lots of cars, noise, and fireworks in procession (in modern times at least).  And, we'd already seen each other all that morning and early afternoon . . . so why not? 

It was a very special moment and perhaps my favorite of the day--ok, one of the top highlights of the day.  It also made my walk down the aisle much less nerve-wrecking.  We were able to fully enjoy the ceremony and the meaning of it all rather than be so caught up in seeing each other for the first time after getting ready--which is so absolutely wonderful in and of itself.

I would highly recommend it to others!!!  It is a decision I am VERY happy with!

On the other hand . . . sometimes looking back at some photos I regret that I made the decision to not wear the veil so quickly; I love photos of brides wearing veils.  I love the photos we have of me wearing a veil.  So, I console myself by thinking I can make sure to wear a veil at the Taiwanese celebration.  So, it's all good.  If I didn't have that bit of consolation, I'd choose to be pleased that I did at that moment what seemed best.  HOWEVER, I still reserve the right to decide at the last minute I don't wanna wear it again. ;)

it's hot under there you know . . .

I love this playful shot of me waiting for someone to bring me my flowers. 

(We forgot them for most of the bridal shots and almost missed them for the shots we took with the bridal party.)

I am so thankful that we did decide to go with an outdoor wedding even if it was August in Texas!  It was hot . . . but not unbearable! :)

I never would have chosen an evening wedding . . . but I preferred outdoors over afternoon (afternoon would have been unbearable) . . . so evening it was. ;)

putting on "the dress" and other bridal details

Finding a modest wedding dress is NOT easy!!  There are many more choices online than there are in the stores. . . but after just a few hours of trying on dresses, I realized how VERY important it is to actually try on the dress.  Especially when the wedding day is less than 60 days away. :D

So, what I ended up with is perhaps not one I would have picked had I had more time to be selective (picky), but I learned to love it and am happy with this choice.  And, I was also very grateful that it fit without alterations; the only alterations needed were to add the bustle to the train.  Oh, yes, and we added cap sleeves that I taped with body tape to my shoulders to keep in place and give just a little more coverage.

Lawrance was totally unfamiliar with the "can't see the dress before the wedding" tradition in America . . . and not very happy about it either. He kept begging to see the dress.  The dress hung in a bag on my bedroom door for a week before the wedding . . . he was very tempted to unzip the bag and take a peak. 

But somethings are worth waiting for. Later, he told me that he thought the wedding dress is like wrapping paper on a present.

The Dress:

Mom and Sarah helping me get dressed:

Mom reassuring me (I love the look on her face here):

Everyone helping out:

I also took a few bridal shots before the wedding since I hadn't done that earlier:

Some of the bridal details . . .
The pearl earrings I wore were the same ones one my mother wore on her wedding day.  My paternal grandmother had given them to her upon my parents' engagement. 

The necklace, was my "something borrowed," it also belongs to my mom.  My dad gave it to her this past Christmas.  I liked that it was simple and elegant. Just a single drop pearl on a 

The strand of tiny pearls around my wrist was my "something old."  My mom had a broken pearl necklace that had belonged to her paternal grandmother (my great grandmother).  Lawrance and I restranded the smallest of the pearls into a bracelet. I was so afraid it might break (they holes were very tiny so we had to use really skinny string) and that 60 precious little pearls would spill everywhere.  But, it didn't.

And, my shoes . . . cuz I wanted to go barefoot but that didn't please the groom . . . I compromised and wore sandals that I found at walmart for next to nothing . . . and that Lawrance absolutely loved. :)  So, all was good there.

And the lace on the dress . . . that was probably my favorite part of the whole dress . . . the train was lace!!

Yay!!  all ready . . . now let's get this party started!!   Bring on the groom . . .

getting ready for the "big day"

After the quasi-rehearsal, we all grabbed a quick bite to eat and then started to get ready.

The hardest part of my entire wedding planning was finding someone to do my hair (and make-up).  No one seemed to be available because it was a holiday weekend and others never returned my calls.  At times it was a bit frustrating.  But, in the end, I finally knew why I had to wait until the week of the wedding to secure someone to do my hair (and make-up). 

She--the stylist--was at another salon.  We had to wait for her to change jobs and then for her new employer who had turned me down before to go through a list of brides and see if they had found a hair stylist yet.

Why??  Because this stylist needed to hear about God's kindness.  She needed to be encouraged in her faith.  She freaked out and got goose bumps as I told her our story of God's grace in our lives.  It meant a lot to her.

Did I enjoy the bumpy, emotional roller coaster ride of stylist after stylist rejecting me or accepting and then later declining?  No, not at all.  But, now looking back . . . I see God's hand in it.

This was one of the things were I was glad I was not "married" to any one idea.  Because she totally didn't do what I had picked out from online photos, and she didn't do exactly what she had practiced on the practice day.  But, it turned out to be something I liked, and that looked like "me" (my style) and still captured the feel of what I wanted (simple but elegant). [Oh, yeah, and I also wanted something that hid the fact that 85% of my hair was permed straight.] So, that's great!! 

So, without further ado, I give you the wedding hair:

And, just for comparison, here is the trial run from a few days before the wedding:

Here are some other shots of us getting ready. 
 

Not only was the stylist blessed on that day by our story . . . she made my getting ready simply fun.  She was relaxed, comfortable in her own skin and made me laugh--which as you know I love to do!!

And, of course, what wedding day is complete without the official MOB nap?

Side note: It took me a long time to finally voice why looking "beautiful" was important.  When I had a little meltdown over not yet finding someone to help with hair styling, Lawrance of course was like "What's the big deal.  You are beautiful no matter what. You could come down the aisle with nothing done to your hair and no make-up and you would still be the most beautiful bride in the world to me." He was very kind and encouraging. 

I knew he was right.  I knew beauty is all in the eye of the beholder and only skin deep.  I knew my mom was right--that I'd glow because of the day and day's events. 

But . . . I wanted to "feel" beautiful too.  I wanted to "feel" special.  Since I'd permed my hair straight, I felt like I had no idea how to make it "nice" or wear it more formal.  Curly hair is so much easier!!  And, I wear very little make up on a day to day basis.  I wanted a little something that looked natural and accentuated the positive.

At times I felt very vain for wanting to feel beautiful . . . but . . . this was a special day, so I wanted to feel and look special too.