Last Saturday, Brandon got married.

Lindsey spent the night before the wedding at Diane’s mom and dad’s house with all the other bridesmaids. Ken and Kathryn and I arrived there before lunchtime to get photos of the girls getting ready, and to do some of the detail shots, like rings and shoes and The Dress. Diane’s mom mentioned that she had her wedding dress and her late mother’s wedding dress upstairs if we wanted to do anything with them. I jumped on that: how beautifully sentimental! Through tears, her mom told us it felt like having her there with them.

A few weeks ago, I offered Diane my brooch to use; I wore it in my wedding and both of Lindsey and Kathryn have said they want to wear it in some way for their weddings. Diane was delighted, and decided it would be perfect pinned on the lace from her mom’s wedding dress that would be wrapped around her bouquet. It meant a great deal to me that she used it, and now my brooch will have even more meaning when Lindsey and Kathryn use it someday.

We set a record that day for the ALL-time high temperature in Atlanta (106 degrees) and had a Code Purple air quality alert (that’s worse than what I thought was the highest alert of Code Red). I had a cold, and went through nearly half a box of Kleenex just driving the hour or so to the wedding venue. I wasn’t sure I could make it through the ceremony without sneezing at some key moment, and I looked like I was crying all day from my watering eyes. But thankfully, the achy feeling I had in the few days before had gone away by Saturday. It was an outdoor ceremony, and everyone was concerned about the heat. All day leading up to the wedding Diane instructed everyone to lie and tell her it was “86 and sunny.”

Thankfully, no one melted or passed out, and we even found shade for photos. Everything looked exactly like Diane had pictured it, from the green grass, to the lemon and hydrangea aisle decorations, to the honeysuckle and mason jars with candles in the arbor they stood under. It was beautiful.

Brandon knew that Diane had engraved the inside of his ring with “forever and always.” That wasn’t a surprise. But he had her simple solitaire engagement ring reset and kept it hidden from her until the moment he placed it on her finger during the ceremony. Gorgeous, isn’t it?

During the ceremony, Brandon cried. So did Diane. They giggled — which made everyone else giggle. They exchanged vows and rings and kisses. And they were married.

And now, y’all, I have a new daughter. {Thanks to a tripod and a helpful guest to click the shutter button, we got in one of the group shots.}

With all the blendedness going on in our family, we confuse people. Brandon’s stepdad officiated the ceremony. Ken and I photographed it. There were grandparents and step-grandparents. Brandon’s siblings from his mom’s side, and from our side. But we all get along, and I think sometimes that confuses people more than the complicated relations.

The reception was lovely, and had all the things a good reception ought to have: dancing, toasts, a beautiful (and yummy!) cake, laughter, a few tears, and AIR CONDITIONING!

At the end of the night, we sent the couple off amidst sparklers in Diane’s dad’s ’57 Chevy. They spent the night locally, and are now honeymooning in Savannah.

We were completely exhausted by the end of the night, and fell into bed well past midnight. Kathryn lost a tooth right after we were all in bed, and she came to tell me about it. That amused me; earlier that day I’d thought about what different stages of life our kids are in, and her tooth falling out on the day our oldest got married just demonstrated that perfectly.

Jamie

Wife, mom, J-ma. Introvert who enjoys good books, sunshine, and authentic conversation. Often seen with a steaming mug of tea in hand – unless it’s lost yet again in the microwave. Read more »