The One Where D&J Get Married: We Get To Eat & Toast!

Contrary to many other brides and grooms on their wedding day, we actually got to eat, and we got to sit down and enjoy each other at the sweetheart table. Of course, we had plenty of visitors, but that didn’t stop us from scarfing down our food while smiling for the cameras!

Sharing a special moment with our sister.

After the salad course, the parents all got up to make their speeches.

My parents' speech was a bit long, but the highlight was when my mom called D a "good boy."

Of course, Les was crying.

... and crying!

The One Where D&J Get Married: Our Surprise Dance!

I was trying to hold out on this post until I could get the video of our surprise dance uploaded. Hubby is working late nights for an upcoming event, and the camcorder requires software to be installed on the computer before the videos can be uploaded. I have a Mac, and I’m afraid to touch his computer, because I break something every time. Luckily, I got another version from our friend, Des– you’ll just have to bear with the fact that my aunt walks right into the middle of the shot, and you’ll miss the awkward 50 seconds before the surprise dance where D and I faked everyone out with a pretend first dance. I’m pretty sure that was a run on sentence. Anyway, enjoy! [After I wrote this little blurb, I realized that there's no way to embed a video on this blog anymore! Did I run out of space, or am I just dumb? I guess y'all can just have the link to it on youtube... ]

Surprise Dance

 

The One Where D&J Get Married: Our Entrance

We barely got to mingle during our cocktail hour, so we were totally ready to enter the huge dining hall to see all of our guests. We gave our bridal party free reign to do whatever they wanted during their entrance. Taio Cruz’s “Dynamite” blasted!

The One Where D&J Get Married: Our Vineyard Photoshoot

I think this post can do without me rambling… so enjoy the peace while you can.

The One Where D&J Get Married: Mini-After-The-Ceremony-Party

*knock* *knock*

Hello? Anybody out there?!

I’m back, y’all. I started a new job last week, and have since been trying to figure out my (not) so hectic schedule. Okay, I’ve just been lazy about turning on my laptop, especially since we were having issues with our internet.

But back to the recaps! I left off at the end of the ceremony, where D did a little jig as we walked back down the aisle. Our DOC herded us, our immediate families and the rest of the bridal party into a private room, where D and I could get our marriage license signed and everyone could get a sip of bubbly.

Hugging the Moms, who whispered, "Yay! You didn't run away!" Haha, just kidding!

M, signing our marriage license!

Serious yumminess: date and chorizo wrapped in bacon, the biggest cocktail prawns you've ever seen, and "Cinderella Pumpkin Tarts" with a bit of goat cheese on the bottom (utter heaven, in my opinion, but apparently a lot of our friends don't like goat cheese).

Just another cheesy pic before D and I snuck off into the vineyard for a quiet moment.

Next up: our vineyard photo shoot, and me, almost falling over during the photo shoot.

The One Where D&J Get Married: The Ceremony II

After the tea ceremony, D and I stood to face each other and to listen to our officiant’s, Matt, story about the two of us. Matt mentioned that I met him while in a class of 300 that he was teaching, and he couldn’t get rid of me after that. He said that when he first met D, he was a scrawny guy, but he could tell that he loved me.

Matt asked everyone in attendance if they would uphold our marriage and counsel us in hard times, and celebrate with us in good times. We heard a resounding “We will!” from all our loved ones. Then, D’s sister Les did a reading:

She read 1 Corinthians 13:4.

It was so touching and beautiful!

Then, it was my sister Annie’s turn to give a reading:

She read "The Art of a Good Marriage" by Wilferd Arlan Peterson.

I love seeing my dad emotional like this... he's always so proud of us. I think he would have given Annie a standing ovation if he could.

Everyone had tears in their eyes after the sisters were through.

Then, D and I exchanged our own vows. He promised me that he would treasure my “OCD-ness” and that he would tickle my arm in the middle of the night when I couldn’t sleep. I told him that I’d always keep rocky road ice cream in the freezer, and that I loved him even though his dirty clothes never consistently make it into the hamper.

Crackin' each other up.

Coco was happy that her mommy and daddy were making it official. How cute is her tutu?? My mom made it in 10 minutes!!

Here's a better picture of her tutu. Yeah, I let her jump up on me before the ceremony. I was still her mommy, even on my wedding day!

I'm so glad that we picked that time of day for our ceremony. The sun was just setting and there was a special glow over the courtyard.

And then we exchanged rings:

And then we kissed:

WE’RE MARRIED!!

D couldn't help but jump with excitement!

Did I mention that D cried throughout the entire ceremony? Yep. <3 that boy!

The One Where D&J Get Married: Chinese Tea Ceremony

When I first decided to have a tea ceremony, I knew that it needed to be scaled down. As I mentioned before, the last (and only) time someone in our family incorporated the tea ceremony into a western wedding, the result was a bit wishy washy. There were some hurt feelings and a bit of drama. I didn’t want that to happen at our wedding, so my plan was to incorporate people into the tea ceremony that no one else could argue with, or be hurt by. The only people to be honored in the ceremony were my parents, D’s parents, D’s maternal grandmother and my great-aunt. None of our aunts, uncles, elderly cousins, or extended family members were going to be a part of the ceremony. I didn’t want a costume change, or a huge exchange of gifts. I just wanted a moment with these people, and I really just wanted a few moments.

 

Our tea set that my aunt brought from China.

Kneeling wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be!

Dang, those are some fly shoes, girl! *guest photo*

I look like I have a bit of a Kim Kardashian butt, but that’s a good thing, right?? *guest photo*

She whispered, “I’m so happy you’re part of the family.”

The tea ceremony was a way for us to pay our respects to these six people in our lives, but also as a way for them to give their approval and blessing for our marriage. I’m really happy that we decided to incorporate it into our ceremony because it gave everyone a small glimpse into the Chinese culture without it being boring or drawn out. If there were Chinese people at our wedding who were offended that we changed it, I didn’t hear from them and even if I did, I would proudly say that it was exactly what we wanted, and more.