Wedding Day: Part 1

I really thought I would be an emotional wreck the day of our wedding.

Not because I was nervous, but just from the raw emotions of the actual day. I waited MANY years for this to happen. I've played it out in my head as we took our first dance together as man and wife...planned every detail on Pinterest because we all know it turns out exactly as we pin it. (Right ladies?)

I just knew there would be a time when I got so overwhelmed that tears would flood my eyes.

Believe it or not...there were no tears!!!

Well, that's not entirely true. Kayleigh had two meltdowns that day over the silliest things. Aside from her diva moments, the day was perfect.

My only regret was that there just weren't enough hours in the day to enjoy it all. Every second seemed to fly by faster and faster as the day progressed.

I guess you could say I didn't cry because I didn't have time to even think about crying!!

The morning of December 13, 2014 began with hair and makeup. I must stop here and admit that this was the part of the day I was most excited about. I've never had my makeup professionally done before and I haven't had a need for a formal hairstyle since my senior prom. This was a much anticipated moment!!

Fortunately, I know some amazing ladies who made me look and feel absolutely beautiful!! Meredith Miller pretty much saved the day by fitting me into her schedule that week to color my hair. It was looking pretty rough before she got her hands on it!!! Thank you, Meredith!!! Christy Cosby did a phenomenal job on my hair and makeup. I am fortunate to work with Christy on photo shoots and know how amazing her work is.
 

There were quite a few special things about my attire that day. You know the old saying -- something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue. 


I am blessed to have an amazing support system of family and friends. A lot of things from our wedding was given to us for free or borrowed. My veil was my borrowed. My dear cousin, Ashley, sent her veil all the way from north Dallas (Texas) for me to wear. Although she could not be with us, she was there in a very special way. The veil, to me, is what completes the bridal look. I am forever thankful to Ashley for allowing me to wear her veil. 

The new is a given. You have to buy a dress for the big day. I purchased a dress in February right after we decided to have the wedding. It was a plain white dress, but I loved the style. Although it was simple, I felt beautiful in it. 

Then, the Fairy Godmother stepped in. She took my dress to her Royal Dressmaker for a little glitzing. I've seen Mrs. Wanda's work through the years and knew it would come back fabulous. When I got it back, it blew me away! I can't say thank you enough, Mrs. Wanda! I really did feel like Cinderella!!

Of course, Cinderella's attire wouldn't be complete without her shoes. Rather than glass slippers, I chose something a little more modern. Sparkly silver flats to be exact. Kayleigh even had shoes to match mine.

The old wasn't worn by me, but carried on my bouquet instead.

Bouquet by Bittersweet Flowers & Gifts

I knew I wanted to incorporate my mom into this wedding in a special way.

While looking through her jewelry box at home, I found several pieces of jewelry that I knew would be the perfect touch. 

One of those was her charm bracelet. She started collecting charms when she was a teenager. We even started a charm bracelet for me about the same age she was when she started. 

I love looking at her bracelet. The charms tell her story. They represent things she enjoyed, her accomplishments and her family. 

It's something I'll cherish forever.
 

 

I also took a different approach to my something blue. 

Mom passed away from colon cancer. Cancer was something I didn't even know existed until she was diagnosed. As much as I hate cancer, the blue ribbon that signifies the disease was an element I incorporated to honor her. I don't remember my mom as a cancer patient. I don't like to remember her days of chemotherapy and radiation treatments or how sick it made her. Instead, I cherish the time she felt her best and was able to live her life with us.

A blue ribbon tied to a single rose was placed in a seat on the front row with her photo. I know she would've been front and center at not only my wedding, but at my brothers as well. After all, she was our biggest cheerleader, supporter and best friend. 

Tied to the rose with the blue ribbon was her ring. It was one she wore every day. It has all of our – my dad, mom, brother and me – birthstones on it. I can’t think of a time she didn’t wear it. The reason I chose it over her wedding ring was because this particular ring represents the Crane family. My family. 

One of the most important things I wanted for our wedding was a great photographer. Since the Fairy Godmother banned me from ANY and ALL photo taking that day, I knew I had to find someone I could trust to do the job right. Fortunately, our area is filled with great talent! 

ShaRelle and Amanda (what a coincidence!) did a fantastic job of capturing our wedding day. Not only were they super fun to work with, but they were professional and exceeded all my expectations. I must admit...I’m a very picky person when it comes to photos. (I’m such a particular person in general and a little bit of a control freak.) BUT, the images I received captured memories I vividly remember and sweet moments that I didn’t eve know happened!!! I’ve probably flipped through our wedding photos a million times since I got them home and downloaded them. Thank you, ShaRelle Studios Photography!!!!

I can’t wait to share more photos in the next post!!!

ShaRelle Studios Photography

Our Love Story

December 13, 2014.

When 2014 began, I was asked by a dear friend {lets just call her our Fairy Godmother} what day I'd like to get married. It sort of became an inside joke about how cool it would be to get married on that particular date...12-13-14. I mean, how catchy is that anniversary date?

Just the thought of getting married, though, was enough to throw me into a whirlwind of memories. Here's a little back story about us...

Summer 2008

Gerrit and I met October 27, 2007. By February 2008, we were engaged...and made it an official engagement in May 2008. I was ecstatic (to say the least)! I knew early on that Gerrit was the one I would spend the rest of my life with.

Upon telling my mom, her only request was that we wait until I finished college. My thoughts -- No big deal!! I was in my third year of college and on schedule to finish in the next year or so. So we set a date! December 11, 2010. It was the perfect date....a catchy date {12-11-10}. It was also my mom's birthday so we planned to have one big party to celebrate!!

Then life threw us a curve ball...

 We found out the day after Christmas in 2008 that we were expecting. That certainly was not how we planned our lives, but it took me many years to realize that God's plan for us was more than I ever thought it would be.

By January 2009, my mom got sick. There was an initial cancer diagnosis in 2000, but she had been through treatment and remission twice in those nine years. This round was much different. Mom was in the hospital from the beginning of the year through about April or May when she went into a nursing home. It didn't phase me at how serious her condition was. I think it was my family's way of keeping me calm and not giving me anything other than a baby to worry about by not telling me details of her condition.

Mom passed away August 25, 2009. I'll never forget that day. Nine days later, our little Kayleigh Ann was born.

But wait...how could the biggest moment of my life be mixed into the worst time of my life? That is something I questioned God often. {Why would he do that to me?}


Needless to say, wedding plans were never made and December 11, 2010 became just another day for us. Life became all about Kayleigh.

That's when it hit me...God had this child planned all along.

May 2011

As cliche as it sounds, Kayleigh became my reason to live. To this day, the brown eyed girl with the larger than life personality brings a joy to my life that no one will fully understand. There are little things that trigger memories and remind me of the mom I had and the grandmother she will never physically know.

As much as it still hurts, this was my blessing in disguise.

Fast forward to February 2014 and after six years of being engaged, it was finally OUR time. We delayed sharing the news of our upcoming nuptials for many months...seven months to be exact. We discreetly took engagement photos in the middle of summer and planned our big reveal for September, right after Kayleigh's fifth birthday.

The days and weeks leading up to December seemed to stand still. I never thought the day would arrive.Then it did and it turned out to be more than I ever dreamed it would be.

-Amanda