Last December Kaeleigh and Boomer came to see me at the recommendation of
Jennifer Kidd, their wedding photographer, about officiating their wedding. They planned a wedding with about 60 to 75 guests at the
Hilton RTP in Durham on October 6, 2012 at 5:00 PM. They wanted an outdoor wedding on the terrace. I have done many weddings there so I was familiar with their venue and how everything was set up. So we got to work creating a wonderful ceremony--very personalized, sweet, funny and welcoming. They hired
Sally Oakley to be their "day of coordinator." And it was a very good thing because in the course of nearly a year from the date of their booking to the time of the wedding, a few changes occurred and Sally and Lauren Panameno (Events Manager with the
Hilton RTP) were the real heroes that day! Below is a photo of the beautiful wedding in progress on the lower terrace by the pool. The weather could not have been more perfect.
This photo below is how it looked when I arrived at 4:00:
The hotel was undergoing construction and 12' tall panels of curtains had been ordered to block the view of the construction site. But, by 2:00 they had not arrived and the wedding was at 5 PM! A call to the company that was supposed to furnish them revealed they had no record of the order. Lauren got busy and found that
CE Rentals had the drapes and rails available so she took the hotel van and picked up the materials and headed back for her hotel staff to assemble and get into place. In the meantime Sally announced that there would be a 30 minute delay in starting the ceremony and we were all invited to the Front Porch for hors d'oeuvres and drinks.
Anyone who has done a wedding with me that had a runner down the aisle on top of concrete or carpet knows that I consider them a hazard because I believed that it was not possible to secure them to the surface to prevent the runner from becoming wrinkled and twisted when walked upon. Well, I have to change my mind after watching Suzanne, Sally's assistant, put this runner in place with double-sided carpet tape. I was amazed that it really did stick and the runner stayed in place the whole ceremony! Boy did I learn something new and very useful!
The "guest book" was moved from poolside to the Front Porch so the guests could write their little notes to the couple before the ceremony.
Explaining to the guys what is going on here. They were fine with the delay and promptly disappeared!
The Magnolia Room was all set up for the reception and dinner. The
English Garden did the florals.
Billy Ezzell of
Complete Music DJ was set up both for the reception and for the ceremony outdoors. He was a busy man!
This beautiful cake was provided by
Sweet Memories. There is writing in the cream fondant on the bottom layer.
The ceremony delay gave extra time for photographs. The bride and maid of honor are going back to her room after finishing up the photo shoot.
I peeked out side and saw to my delight that the draping was all set up and it looked fabulous! Time to get this show on the road!
Our youngest attendant carries the sign "Here Comes the Bride" as he is escorted down the aisle!
After we located the missing groomsmen, it was time for us to make our entrance!
Kaeleigh was escorted in by her Grandfather, Earl, who was making sure he had a good grip on her.
And so we begin.....
Boomer's sister, Lori, presented the popular reading about how owning a dog is like being in love! She was good!
Then the story of how the bride and groom met and fell in love, what they love about each other and what they are looking forward to in marriage. Although they live in Cary now, they actually met when both of them were living and working in Massachusetts. Boomer's parents moved to Fuquay-Varina and Kaeleigh's family to Florida, so they just followed them down South.
Time for the rings and vows. They chose rather long vows which they read from my book where they are printed facing them, not realizing that it is not always a piece of cake reading them during the actual ceremony.
Kaeleigh went first and did beautifully! Then it was Boomer's turn.
He was reading along and supposed to be saying:
"...When you are having a bad day, I will do the stupid things to make you laugh. When I make a mess (and I will, I'm a guy), I will vacuum and clean the house. I want to hold you every night as you fall asleep and I want to laugh with you every day. I will always save you the last bite and smile when I hear you talking to Duke [their dog]
as though he can reply....." But he skipped over
"as though" and it sounded like Duke could reply......anyway, it was really funny!
He did finally get through them and get the ring on Kaeleigh's finger then I did the closing blessing.
The big moment they legally become husband and wife!
It's a done deal now!
Welcome to your marriage, Kaeleigh and Boomer!
Jennifer Kidd and I laughing about the wedding and how much fun it was. We recently found out that we were both born and raised in Georgia, not too many miles apart! Small world, right? Thanks for referring Kaeleigh and Boomer to me, Jennifer!
Despite the mishaps and delay, your wedding day was spectacular, Boomer and Kaeleigh! A day I know you will never forget! I wish you all the wedding bliss possible!
