(Weddign Recap) The Ceremony!

Finally the time came to walk down the aisle, exchange vows & rings, and officially become husband & wife!

From my spot out of sight in the balcony, I got a good look at the crowd gathering:

 

The chuppah translates to mean "covering" or "protection" and symbolizes the new home of the married couple.  It represents our desire for our home to be under the protection of God.  The marriage ceremony in Jewish faith cannot take place without a covering and four poles.

I remember standing at the top of the stairs, sneaking a peak and waving at friends who noticed me.  I listened to Wachet Auf lead our bridal party to their positions.  I heard the laughter and "awws," telling me my niece successfully made her flower girl debut.

I popped my head phones in and half listened to the chorus of Lady Gaga's Just Dance, to get me amp'd. Truth be told: I needed no help; my nerves turned over themselves, tears welled up in my eyes.  I heard the first chords of Pachelbel's Canon softly hit the air, just as I learned to play it on the piano around age 10.

Mike began his way to the chuppah with his mom and dad on either side.

When I successfully memorized Pachelbel's Canon way back when, I knew it would guide me to my groom in the future.  And here I was.
The music filled the air as I saw our wedding planner motion for me to start down the stairs.  Surprisingly, instead of don't fall don't fall don't fall I thought This is it.

 This is it.

My wedding!

Our wedding.

My dad waited for me at the bottom, with the biggest smile on his face.  He whispered to me how gorgeous I looked.  Blinking back tears, beyond my veil I saw so many familiar faces, all in one place, all smiling back at me.  So much love. Amazing.

As I approached Mike, I saw, with out any doubt, the happiest expression to ever grace his face.  I wanted to kiss him right then and there! (I also love his brother's face in the background)

Then I began the Seven Circles around my groom.  The seven circles represent my bond to him, just as the Teffelin straps are wrapped around a man's arm.  Also the number seven nods towards the complexity of the creation of the world, just as marriage reenacts the creative process.  Interestingly, some couples share the seven circles, taking turns rotating around each other.  We went traditional and I tried not to get too dizzy and fall down as I went around him seven times. For those of you wondering, the rabbi counted for me.

In Jewish faith there are actually two parts to the marriage ceremony: Kiddushin (Betrothal) and Nisuin (Nuptials). "Both parts are introduced with the benediction over wine, the traditional symbol of joy and abundance. The bride and groom each take a sip of the wine for each." {taken from The Jewish Wedding Guide}

 

During the Kiddushin we exchanged rings, by placing them on each other's right index finger.  Apparently, long ago one used their right index finger to make a mark or signature. 

I'm honestly so excited right here.

During the Nissuin the rabbi recited seven blessings over us, love, friendship, and completeness amongst them.  
We shared our own vows here.  And let me tell you, I thought we had this one covered, but...

Well, using a stock "fill in the blank" with sentence starters, we both had the same 8 statements to make.  I added a little bit to mine and so did Mike.  We had our bridesmaid and close friend, Kathryn, read them both to ensure we were on the same wavelength and literal length.  Kat encouraged me to add a little more, but it didn't feel natural.  

After I read my half page and felt pretty proud of myself.  Then seeing Mike pull out two pages just about made me gasp out loud.  He wrote and read the most heartfelt words.  I give him a lot of strife for not being "mushy."  Not anymore!

(And so much for trying to be on the same page - I guess you can't put a limit on love!)

Our rabbi read our ketuba and hand it to me.  I "own" it now. It's mine, all mine!

Finally, after the second cup of wine, hot veil was lifted off my face.  

The last thing left to do: break the glass!

The breaking of the glass can be a reminder of the fragility of life and also an affirmation that in times of happiness there should be a touch of seriousness.  It signifies that we are still mourning over the destruction of the Holy Temple of Jerusalem.  It also serves as a reminder of the sanctity of marriage.  A broken glass cannot be mended. 

We shouted "Mazel Tov!" (good luck!)

and kissed!

We were married!

Husband & Wife.

beautiful.

{all photos taken by Studio Juno photography}

(Wedding Recap) Putting on the Dress

We headed downstairs to the lobby of our hotel, with my wedding dress in hand. I previously arranged (and by arranged, I mean double-triple-checked with the hotel manager) for their Escalade to take us the 3 blocks down the street to our venue. My bridesmaids already wore their dresses and heels. Who wants to hoof-it 3 blocks in the mid-summer's heat, in fancy dresses? Not us. So you can imagine our surprise when the Escalade disappeared to run another errand, leaving me pointing at the scheduling book where it said "Bride plus 4, 2p." Luckily they called us a cab. Do you know what 4 girls in bridesmaids dresses looks like in the back of a cab?

 (picture phone quality apology)
Now that's a bridesmaid's shot if I've ever seen one.

Unfortunately my sister is behind the headrest and got cut off.

The 5 minute ride passed with lots of laughter.

At any rate, we made it to the venue & upstairs to the bridal ready room: the Library.

Special thanks to Lila Frances for their lovely gift of my personalized wedding wire hanger! I simply love it & look forward to passing it down to someone else, someday.

 

 I really love the simplicity & meanwhile complexity of this shot.

It says "Here we go!" to me...

But then, right as I stepped over to my dress, almost ready to go, I thought, "Oh my, I should really use the restroom one. last. time...since we all know how complicated that can get..."
I looked down at myself:
veil, button down shirt, special underwear, garter, heels.
I looked like something out of a pin-up catalog.  Which elicited these reactions from my mom & sister:

 

 Clearly, my sister thinks I'm hilarious.

My mom shakes her head and says "Oh, Vicki."

Typical. 

I love it.

 Here's a censored version of what I looked like:

 

 Thank goodness for caterer's napkins.

Although I will admit I did run down the back hallway of the venue with out said napkin....

But once I came back, it was time.

(suck it in, Vicki)

And in a matter of minutes, I really felt like a bride.

My wedding day finally arrived.

Butterflies tried fluttering in my tummy,

but I overcame that nervous energy with thoughts of seeing my

soon-to-be husband at our first look!

{amazing photography by Studio Juno, phone pic aside}

(Wedding Recap) Getting Me Ready

Many ladies shared with me that they didn't sleep the night before their wedding.  I wasn't going to let their horrible night's sleep get me! I totally took a Valium and slept like a baby. (<--take this advice)  My bestie (& bridesmaid) Meagan and I shared a junior suite the night before the big day.  Thank God for her, because she totally kept me sane.

That morning, when I woke up, I saw something on TV about a huge triathlon going on in DC.  It didn't phase me as a problem until our hair/makeup girls were 30 minutes late.  Cue a little anxiety.  However we changed plans about a week prior to have them arrive earlier.  So basically they were late to arrive early.  We were fine with time.

My bridesmaids arrived at our honeymoon suite with the makings for great mimosas.  They even had the little aluminum bottles (like mini coke cans) of champagne we had when first trying on wedding dresses!

champagne-death-grip

While I put my final post up as a single lady & my girls finalized their hair plans, I chatted with my mom, niece, brother-in-law, dad, and anyone else who took my mind off the fact my marriage was around the corner.

my niece, my salad, and me

This is me freaking out.

At one point I had to put on headphones and removed myself from the reality surrounding me.  

(I was listening to KT Tunstall, for those of you curious)

Mah hairs

By the way, don't eat a salad before your wedding.  I nibbled on it like a bunny, then scarfed down half of my niece's cheeseburger.  

Finally, the finished me!

THIS is one of my favorite pictures!

Veil me!

Grabbed "my things" and ready to go!
(note what's important to me here...)

{all photos courtesy of the wonderful Studio Juno }

Something Borrowed

So far we have:  Something Old, Something New....
I mentioned previously that my sis and I went through her wedding stuff and I stole borrowed some of it.
Ah ha! "Something Borrowed"

I've also mentioned my adversity to veils and the need to wear one for the Bedeken.
I found the perfect solution to my veil issue.

My sister's veil will be my "something borrowed."
And from what I remember, she MADE that awesome thing!

So I'll wear it for the Bedeken to cover and uncover my face.
Then I'll take it off for the ceremony! Poof!
Something Borrowed!



Oh, and since you can't see it in the collage so well, I will share this picture separately because I love it.

{All photos by Yours Truly, Me}

What was YOUR "Something Borrowed"?

A year from today...

A year from today I will be married!
MARRIED!

There's still plenty left to do, and enough time to sort things out.
I'll leave you with this one thought, though:
Peacock Feathers.

Classy, elegant, and a bit vintage - they will accent bouquets and centerpieces.
Their jewel toned colors will complement my bridesmaids' dresses.

It will be awesome.

ClutchThat's peacock clutch, Etsy Store
Siri's Funicello Dress, in SignatureTeal & Chocolate
Peacock accented bridal bouquet, featured on Weddings Unique
Loren veil, by Wedding Aisle, Etsy Store
Peacock Invitation's wedding programs, Etsy Store

Vale, Vail, or Veil?

Once I finally figured out how to spell "veil" correctly, I stumbled across MANY interesting things (aside from the fact that as a 2nd grade teacher, YES, I should know how to spell 'veil').

Interesting fact number 1: There are some flippin' ugly veils out there. I know, I know - to each their own, but honestly, someone is going to put that on their head? Do I really need to worry about tripping over my veil because it's SO long? I think not.  Pretty pictures, though...

{source}

Interesting fact number 2: You can attach anything you want to your veil, aside from the obvious feather/flower attachee one can find.    People have them monogrammed, too!

{source}

Interesting  fact number 3:  There are many options, almost as many options as there are opinions.

 

silk chiffon {source}

I have 2 needs from a veil:

1) It can actually veil me so I can be unveiled, to follow a Jewish tradition.*

2) To make me pretty/accessorize me.**

*Back to the Jewish tradition.  It's called Bedeken, which in Yiddish means "to cover up" and likens to the English cognate "bedeck" which means "to cover with decorations."  According to a valuable site, Jewish-History,  "The groom brings down the veil over the bride's face, reminiscent of Rebeccah's covering her face with her veil upon seeing Isaac before marriage. The veiling impresses upon the Kallah her duty to live up to Jewish ideals of modesty and reminds others that in her status as a married woman she will be absolutely unapproachable by other men. The covering of the face symbolizes the modesty, dignity and chastity which characterizes the virtue of Jewish womanhood."
The Jewish Chronicle notes "There is a powerful romantic charge at the Bedecken; the groom is danced into the room where the bride sits surrounded by friends and family."
Sitting all prettied up in a room and having people come dancing in to see me sounds awesome, by the way.

**I have no need for something over my face during the ceremony.  You can see the obvious conflict here.
I luuuurve birdcage veils.  Their simplicity warrants sophistication and class.  Seeing one makes me want to listen to jazz music and lounge in a speak easy.  While I know those have no connection to a wedding, it does make me feel all swanky and glamorous! 

Chasing Rainbows, Kissing Frogs found many pictures, making a great post showing off birdcage veils.

I think I might have a solution to this, which involves "something borrowed" and a costume change, of sorts.  Oh yes, this will be grand!