The Wedding

Before we got married, everyone - and I mean everyone - told us that the day would fly by, that we wouldn't remember much, and that we wouldn't have time to eat. We tried desperately to prove them wrong, because we wanted to soak in every moment, remember the little details, and of course enjoy our delicious meal! So how did we do?

Everyone was right about the first part - the day would not slow down once we hit 5:00. We did a good job of trying to soak it in and remember as much as possible. And as for eating - while we weren't able to eat more than one or two appetizers, we made sure that we scarfed down as much as possible during dinner. It was all delicious.

Here's what we do remember about the big day:

Julie

• Laughing a LOT with my bridesmaids right before lining up
• Enjoying a few moments with just my dad before we went down the aisle
• Hearing the music we chose for the ceremony and feeling a calm wash over me
• Catching glimpses of people's faces during the ceremony and feeling so loved and supported
• How stunning our bridal party looked - wow!
• Holding Terry's hand for the first time that day and him giving me a reassuring smile
• Terry reading his letter to me at the altar
• Taking tons of pictures with our photographer and enjoying some semi-alone time
• Watching our bridal party's reactions as the DJ read the introductions we wrote about them
• Terry obsessively watching the guests during our first dance to see if they picked up on the fact that the song says, "Terry and Julie" (no one did)
• Scarfing down our meal and drinking some Jan Lanier-provided Silver Oak along with it
• Dancing with my dad and crying a lot as he told me how excited he was for us to go to Europe
• My mom telling me over and over, "You're married!" She was just so excited all day. :-)
• Seeing so many of our family and friends in one place; everywhere we turned, someone wanted to hug us or congratulate us
• Tons of wind during our second set of portraits outside
• Getting a chance to actually have a conversation with a few people during the money dance
• My favorite moment of the whole day: right before they opened the doors for my entrance with my dad, I was able to peek through and see Terry up at the altar. At that moment, the wedding stopped being about the dress and the pictures and the guests and the music and all the other decisions, and it became all about Terry for me. It hit me that it was all really happening.

I can't pretend to sum up the day in some earth-shattering revelation about what my wedding day meant to me. But it was incredible; we are so grateful to our friends and family for ensuring that we were able to have such an amazing day. And now, to married life!