Shawn and Lindsay Marry Amid Great Joy at Prestonwood Country Club

 This Fall it was a real joy to marry Lindsay and Shawn.  They had a fabulous time and so did everyone else - all of us delighted for them.  They had guests that came from  from the East Coast, the West Coast, The North, Canada, even Ireland to share their wedding day with them.   

And just think.  It all started when Autumn, Lindsay’s sister,  who really loves pizza, especially, Checker’s pizza, went there with Lindsay.  And it was there that she met Shawn.  And that, as the expression goes, 'is all she wrote.'  Lindsay and Shawn had their wedding at Prestonwood Country Club, a spacious and elegant setting perfect. 

And they had these excellent professionals and just great people helping make their day perfect:  Dara Blakeley of Dara Blakeley Photography took these wonderful photographs, Sally Oakley was their wedding planner and, Randy Bennett from Joe Bunn DJ Company did both their ceremony and reception music and Watered Garden did their amazing floral arrangements.  

In their ceremony I asked each of them (of course, with the words 'wife' and 'husband'): 'The person who stands by your side is about to become your spouse. They will look to you for gentleness, for support, for understanding, for encouragement, and for protection. You must never take them  for granted, but be continually sensitive to their needs. Your life and love will be their greatest source of joy. So I ask you, will you have this person to be your lawfully wedded spouse? Will you love and cherish them? Will you always uphold her and encourage them? Will you be loyal to them, and true? Will you honor them all their days, and be respectful of them, and will you promise to always bestow upon them your heart’s deepest devotion?'    And of course they said, 'Yes'.

They wanted all their guests to know that their love is unwavering and everlasting.

 And very playful!

 They told me that 'they are so grateful and appreciative of each other for the unconditional love that they give each other. They are grateful for the support that they provide to each other through the good times and the hard times.'  It is the good times that buoy us up and it is the hard times that refine us and define us, and like jewels, help us shine.  This couple has the glow that comes from a mature seasoned love and I am so delighted for them.

 I received this lovely note from Lindsay after their ceremony:  'Hi Robin, Thank you so much for a wonderful ceremony. Everyone has been talking about how much they LOVED you and how special you made the ceremony. THANK YOU. ... It was so wonderful to work with you. You made it such a wonderful and delightful ceremony. We couldn't have asked for anything better. Thank you :)'  And I thank them, too, and send them both many many blessings and know that they will have a love that continues to deepen through all their years. 

Kourosh and Lauren Marry at St. David's Chapel in Raleigh

It's been a long while since I've done a blog.  I traveled much of the summer then life picked up at a quick pace with many wonderful couples.  I wanted to make sure to take a special moment to honor Kourosh and Lauren in my life.  They were a delight, I loved getting to know them and to learn about their love for each other, their love for their families and friends, and their generosity to all who know them.

Some couples especially touch your life in a way that heartens your faith in the future.  Lauren and Kourosh were one such couple.

Thanks to Robyn of Robyn Van Dyke Photography for these wonderful pictures!  I so appreciate having them.

They both share a sense of humor and a deep sense of play, as you can tell by Kourosh's great smile as he's seeing Lauren in her dress for the first time.

Their wedding was held in gorgeous St. David's Chapel at St. David's School in Raleigh on May 10th of this year.  That ceremony was preceded by a Persian Ceremony on the same day.  They were very married by the end of the day!

I loved officiating their ceremony in this chapel because it felt spacious and wide open, like their love.   The chapel is so lovely.  You can see how unique it is with the seating to the side. 

They both come from closer families and both sets of their parents are still married.  Their parents are neighbors and their sisters are best friends, and excited to now be family.  Here is Kourosh shaking Lauren's father's hand.

 We had special words of appreciation for their parents and asked each family to affirm and support their choice of partners, which they did joyfully!  They are smiling at their parents at this moment.

 In their ceremony we offered these words: 'In the Persian and Christian traditions, marriage is a sign of God's intention for wholeness in all creation.  That creative purpose is still at work.  The joining together of two persons into one unique, intimate, and creative unity in marriage is therefor not only a symbol but also a demonstration of the well being, and the purpose of human society.  And so, marriage is truly a celebration of God's work in creation.'

 Thanks, too, to Michael McLamb at Fleurtations for these beautiful bouquets and floral arrangements.  It takes a unique skill to create flowers to enhance a large space.  These are wonderful.

In their vows they promised to continue to cherish their union, and I have no doubt that they will.

 We also had a salt covenant as a part of their ceremony to symbolize their binding themselves to one another in an unbreakable promise of friendship, honesty, loyalty and love.

 In our blessing we said that we all offer blessings that their love, joy, and friendship will be renewed daily.  May they play and love together for a lifetime!  I send them love!

Also making their wedding day special were Paul Harris, our organist at their wedding, the North Ridge Country Club where their reception was held, DJed by Mark McNally with Joe Bunn DJ, and Danielle Ettefagh created their cake.  You can find her at Pinterest and at Classy Kids Cooking.  I bet it was a labor of love.

Matt and Ashley Marry at The Barclay Villa With Much Joy

Matt and Ashley are planners and that's good.  You could see the result in their beautiful wedding that not only celebrated their love and their marriage but the family they create with Riley.

Thanks to Justin Cook Photography, our wonderful professional photographer for these images.  He was so good at capturing their fun personalities and their joy.  I had never been to Barclay Villa before.  It's an hour and 20 minutes from my home so I rarely travel that far.  I was glad to experience it.  It's wonderfully elegant inside and out, as these pictures showcase.  It was just the atmosphere that Matt and Ashley wanted.  They also wanted to honor their family who had passed on and have a special ceremony with Riley.  

Ashley and Matt booked me for only the ceremony, not the rehearsal, which is only possible in a venue like that with professionals who will see to every aspect of the rehearsal, and do it flawlessly.  (Thank you, Cindy, staff member at the villa.)

Matt and Ashley did all the flowers themselves.  Kudos to them.

We performed a Celtic Handfasting Ceremony for Matt and Ashley.  Then we customized the sand ceremony to include Riley in a special way and so that Matt said vows to Riley and that Matt and Ashley gave Riley a family medallion as a part of the ceremony.  I'm so glad the photographer got such wonderful pictures of the moment.

Now you can see how lovely the wedding garden is.  And the day was gorgeous and not too hot.  A gift to NC in early September.

After the ceremony everyone relaxed a lot more!  Justin has a quirky sense of humor which made it easy for everyone to smile and relax.

The main staircase at the villa.  What an entrance!

She'll never live this one down.

Their first dance, of course.  I love this aerial view for photographs.

The Villa at night.  Now you can see how lovely it is, too.  And quiet.  I've officiated at other lovely venues where lawn mowers or radios, or even Harley conventions created lots of distracting noise.  This is out in the country and was joyfully quiet.

 I'm so delighted for Matt and Ashley.  They found me because I had married friends of theirs Laura and Matt, in 2007.  It's so much fun when life weaves in weddings from the past and I can hear that couples I've married are doing well.

Thanks to all the other great professionals who ensured that Ashley and Matt had the perfect wedding.  Joe Bunn, of Joe Bunn DJ, and Not Just Cakes in Raleigh for their cake.  

Calvin and Pat's Wonderful Wedding

It's especially a treat when you can officiate the ceremony for dear friends.  I've known Pat and her younger daughter, Katie, for, goodness, it must be almost 10 years by now and love them both.  Then in 2009 I had the joy of officiating her daughter, Beth's wedding to Mike on Ocracoke Island.  Another blessing and a great couple.  Then when Pat met Calvin, and Ruben and I got to see their attraction grow into a love that kept maturing and growing, we were delighted.  Besides - they both have wacky senses of geeky humor.  Just our style.


They were married in June at a church where I used to be one of the ministers so it felt, in many ways, like coming home.  The Community Church of Chapel Hill Unitarian Universalist is a lovely church, newly remodeled, filled with light, color and art.  And it has a big fellowship hall for a reception.  And they rent to non-members.  It's all good.

Pat's daughters, Katie and Beth were two of her attendants, as you can see from the Charlie's Angels pose. They inherited their mother's sense of humor.  Hallelujah!

Here is part of what we said to guests in their opening words.  I planted the ideas for these words and they crafted the words. 

....This is a love that grew from friendship and common interests. They met at a Meetup group called RDU Geeks,.... At first, their friendship was based on sharing popcorn at the movies. Their first date was playing Scrabble at Calvin’s favorite hangout, The Open Eye Café. The fact that Pat was willing to spend an evening playing Scrabble was a good sign for Calvin. On their second date, Calvin proved his ability to sit still at a Durham Bulls game and even learned to keep score. These first two dates cleared the way for even more exciting dates like taking recycleables to the dump. Somewhere along the way, there was a first kiss. The deal was sealed for Pat when he took charge when Pat had pneumonia. The deal was sealed for Calvin when she supported him through his mother’s last days. Today they complete their journey to come together as a family.'

Their ceremony was them, to a sweet and loving 'T,' all the way through to the kiss.

One of their close friends is Tracey who is a baker who used to bake professionally as Sugarpunk, but decided that the professional part had too many restrictions.  Now she just bakes for close friends and you can see how good she is.

If you haven't seen the movie, 'Up' then you won't get the reference.  If you have, you'll be amazed at the likeness.  It's also one of Ruben's and my favorite movies.

Don't forget to notice the dog, Doug, or is it Dug, at the bottom who's best line in the movie is 'I luv you.!'

Tracey also baked the groom's cake.  A surprise for Calvin.  Yes this is the cake.  Both these folks are readers and science fiction fans.  Another amazing cake.  I don't know how she does it!

A close up for even more amazement!

Pat comes from a large family of siblings who really know how to party.  Add Calvin's family, their mutual friends, and DJ Mark McNally of Joe Bunn  DJ Company to the festivities, and they danced well into the night.  I must admit that Ruben and I were really tired that night so left early, and were sleeping blissfully by 11PM.

Thanks to Kerry Bassett, their friend and photographer for these great photos.  Heather at Triangle Catering for their amazing food.  I tasted all of it! And to Linda, at Harris Teeter for their flowers.  Also wonderful. 

It's fun to have Pat and Calvin still in my life.  With so many wonderful couples I know them only for that special moment of their wedding (and the planning of it).  As Candide would say, 'This is the best of all possible worlds.'  Not long after their wedding, Ruben went to see 'Cowboys and Aliens' with them.  Now that's good friends.  I wish them much joy every day.  And I hear they now have 2 new kittens.  New adventures in loving, and parenting.  :-)

Matt and Alli Light up the Day at the Horace Williams House

Alli and Matt wanted a small wedding and the Horace Williams House in Chapel Hill provided the perfect venue for the 50 plus guests of friends and family.  I've done lots of ceremonies there over the years and it adapts well to many needs.  ( I even did a ceremony years ago under the branches of the Magnolia tree on their yard.  We all climbed into the little cave created by the massive branches, about 9 of us, and felt that we were in a chapter from Tolkein's 'The Lord of The Ring' trilogy.)

Matt and Alli chose the front porch of the house in the sunshine, and it was a gorgeous day.  Almost everyone had traveled to NC to be with them.  They're both in, or have been in science programs at UNC so Chapel Hill is their home now.  They met in 2004 at a summer internship together.

Alli and Matt both have a dry easy low key wit.  They connected over cooking and their shared senses of humor so decided to have a quote from Julia Child's 'Mastering the Art of French Cooking' because, as Julia says, 'Cooking is like love; it should be entered into with abandon or not at all.'

I also loved their music choices and their musician.  Local classical guitarist, Matthew Kanon was wonderful, and he played 'Grow Old With Me' by John Lennon for the processional and 'Here Comes The Sun' by The Beatles for the recessional.

They had their cocktail hour at the Horace Williams House ...

 

and then everyone walked downtown, or rode, to The Franklin Hotel for the reception with Greg Ramsey from Joe Bunn DJ Company and I'm sure a wonderful cake by Sugarland Bakery in Chapel Hill.  Alli's and her attendant's flowers were made by Charles House at University Florist.


  
Carisa Chee was their fabulous photographer. .Here's the link to the slideshow of 9 of her pictures for Matt and Alli's wedding on WeddingChannel.com:  Enjoy.  http://galleries.weddingchannel.com/Wedding-Details/87562/view.aspx?id=87562&type=18

I loved having Matt and Alli in my life for that short time.  They are easy low stress people.  They even had their photos taken before the ceremony so they could relax and enjoy their guests after the ceremony.  Their ceremony was a sweet moment on a lovely NC spring day.  I'm so glad I was there with them.  I wish them many many blessings!

Nam and Abby Get Married Twice

I got to be at both of Nam and Abby's weddings and they were both special for the wonderfully happy couple who have consciously grown their love to embrace their very different cultures and faiths.

On Friday was Abby and Nam's Vietnamese ceremony at a family member's home.  Here is their wonderful photographer, Lauren Mann taking their picture after the ceremony.  The great pictures in this blog are the ones she took.  The so so pictures are the ones taken with my Droid.




 
 Abby's parents and family are from the Philippines with a wonderful Catholic and cultural heritage. Nam's family is from Vietnam who have kept their rich Buddhist heritage and Vietnamese customs alive, too, especially during important times, like weddings. Nam and Abby wanted to honor both their traditions and they did, with great rejoicing by the combined families who had come from Florida, the Philippines, and even Italy to be with them.

Their Vietnamese wedding was a beautiful family oriented ceremony in which both families were honored with gifts, and prayers were offered for Nam and Abby's marriage.  Below is the family procession into the house.

Below are my pictures of the altar set up for the Vietnamese ceremony.

Nam and Abby and Nam's parents knelt on the cushions you see before the altar. Below is a close up which shows the pictures of their grandparents.

 
 

This was a much smaller wedding for only close family on both sides. I loved being invited so that I could offer the continuity between both their ceremonies. In the second ceremony on Saturday I spoke of the Vietnamese ceremony we had had the day before.

The celebration was outside under tents had lots of family laughs and really good food! And these beautiful little boys in their traditional Vietnamese wedding garb.

Then on Sat, yes the same day as the tornadoes, Abby and Nam married at Marbles Kid's Museum in downtown Raleigh. The tornadoes had roared through not two hours before so there were no traffic lights downtown and no electricity at Marbles.

I was lucky to get there on time because my Sweetheart, Ruben, talked me through downtown on my cell phone while he was looking at Google maps with the traffic overlay, so I missed all the bad spots.

All went amazingly well without electricity. We were all a little warm but had my battery operated amplifier and the DJ's backup IPOD for music and sound. Randy Bennett of Joe Bunn DJ Company is always a joy to work with, and so professional, was even more so that day with all we had to contend with to ensure that Nam and Abby's ceremony went seamlessly.

Here is Nam placing Abby's ring on her finger.



These bridesmaid's dresses were amazing.  They're called Magic Dresses or something like that since the bodice can be tied in several different ways that are all beautiful.  Abby and Nam's colors of ocean and red really were fabulous in this neutral setting.




 

Here is a closer picture of Nam and Abby's unity candle, lit by their mothers at the beginning of the ceremony. They also had a traditional Filipino ceremony with a veil, cord, and coins that I hope to have a picture of a little later. It was beautiful.

Their reception at Marbles was gorgeous in their colors red and ocean blue. An the staff really rose to the occasion. My only concern was with no electricity, and no backup generator, they would soon be in the dark. Apparently at 8:30 when they had to leave Marbles, because of no electricity (Marbles had no electricity even the next day), they went to a guest's condo in downtown Raleigh to continue the celebration. I'm so glad because Nam and Abby are a wonderful couple who had planned for this celebration for well over a year.

Picture taking outside after the ceremony was damp but possible and we knew we were racing the clock. 

Here are Nam and Abby looking wonderful with their parents after the ceremony. I took this picture so that's why it's hazier.   I so appreciated the balance and calm of Abby and Nam during the whole day as they navigated what must have been big disappointments. They're a wonderful couple. Nam wrote me to say, 'Hi Robin, Thanks again for all that you've done for us (even with the craziness on our wedding day). We are very grateful to have had everything work out the way it did.

I'm glad they were pleased. They have grown their love consciously and have formed a strong bond that even tornadoes can't shake up. Blessings to them.