I invited my dear friend Claudia to witness my wedding. When we arrived at Bedrock Gardens...
the guinea hens ran into their little hen house.
Fernando and I decided to keep our wedding very small and intimate. We each picked one person to be our witnesses. Fernando chose his sister Regina. She is pictured above with her daughter Claire.
Claire brought such joy to our event.
Fernando selected the basket and decorated it with flowers and ribbons.
I love his idea of tucking the rings in a nest with a few eggs. What a great metaphor as we begin this new part of our lives.
Claire came over to greet me while Fernando headed over to where we would exchange vows.
One might think that we coordinated our outfits, but we didn't. I knew that Claire would look beautiful in any color. I do love that we are both wearing ivory and pearls. Simply perfect!
Claudia and I discovered Bedrock Gardens the year before and visited this magical place several times. It was so fun to return here with her. She loves the gardens as much as I do.
We were married in the evening and we carefully selected the time of day so we would have the best light.
I am so thrilled to have a new niece.
As Claire walked down the steps she imagined that she was escorted by her future husband.
You'll notice peeking outside of my dress is my "something blue." I wore my favorite little "mermaid shoes."
Now let's see which path shall we take?
Meanwhile, Fernando, his sister Regina, and brother-in-law Donny are waiting for us. If you look closely you'll see that the sculpture has three figures or acrobats.
Claudia led the way followed by Claire.
The groom waits patiently.
Donny came over and escorted me for part of the walk.
In place of musicians, Fernando started humming the wedding march. Before you know it, everyone was humming it. I totally cracked me up. The environment was so friendly, fun, and lovely.
Bob Munger officiated the wedding. Here he is getting things started.
Behind us is a petit pond, waterfall, and Japanese tea house.
Claudia read the following:
Bless this marriage, O’ God, as Kathryn and Fernando continue their journey down the road of life together. We don’t know what lies ahead for the road turns and bends but help them to make the best of whatever comes their way.
Help them to realize that if they hold onto each other, they will know that things have a way of working out for the good.
But most of all, dear God, help them to keep lit the torch of love that they now share in their hearts so that by their loving example they may pass on the light of love to their children, families, friends, and all people with whom they share this journey of life.
This is what Regina wrote:
Now you will feel no rain,
for each of you will be shelter to the other.
Now you will feel no cold,
for each of you will be warmth to the other.
Now there will be no loneliness,
for each of you will be a companion to the other.
Now you are two persons,
but there’s only one life before you.
May beauty surround you both in the
journey ahead and through the years.
May happiness be your companion
and your days together be good and long upon the Earth.
Now for Claire to do her important job...
... present the rings.
We exchanged vows and rings.
Now you may kiss the bride!
This is one of my favorite photos.
Another favorite.
As we all gathered under the acrobats, Fernando had this idea that we would...
...form a heart to show off our new rings.
I love this section of Bedrock Gardens. It is hard to pick a favorite, but I think this spot might be it.
It is so lovely here.
Fernando wore the same orange socks he wore the night we first met. I thought these socks were so cool.
It is time to walk the gardens and head to our reception.
Check out the goldfish and cool reflection in the water.
Here we are crossing the little foot bridge and entering the next stage of our life together.
We walked along a watery path carved into the gardens called the, "Wiggle Waggle."
We set up a couple of tables in the shade garden. One of the tables was my grandmother's. The white table cloth on the left was given to me by Claudia a few years ago and the table cloth on the right came from my friend's Pieter and Maureen. They brought it back from Germany last summer as a thank you gift for taking care of their cats. Both table cloths are beautifully embroidered with a flower motif.
Here is another look at the tables.
Oh it is time to pop our favorite sparkling drink, Prosecco.
We had two toasts. The first one was with these glasses that my friend Deb hand-painted for us. The second toast was with a set of beautiful Lenox glasses from our friend Terri.
Here have a glass. We love it with fresh raspberries.
Cheers!
Each person received a little wooden spool that was from one of my grandmother's sewing tins. I pulled off the old thread and wrapped some pretty floral bookmaking paper. I closed each one with a ribbon and button. I designed the top with our names and the date.
Each one had a personal message for the recipient.
Claire is showing us her scroll.
Here I am reading the message Fernando wrote to me.
Fernando baked this gluten free cake (his sister is gluten intolerant) with freshly crushed hazelnuts and orange. We decorated the cake with a light whip cream frosting, sweet little wax flowers, and a sunflower. Isn't it darling?
Here is a closer look at the cake stand that our friend Deb Lapointe made for us out of natural materials.
I love the little details including this fairy with wings made of mica.
One more shot of our sweet Claire before she...
runs off with the guinea hens.
Thank you for stopping by to check out our wedding photos.
Special thanks to the following:
Art Ferrier - Photography
Claudia Gray - Photography
Bob Munger - Bedrock Gardens, Lee, NH
Deb Lapointe - Fairy Cake Stand
warns that we make experience some emotional days. Well, yesterday was the first time that came up for me. It really doesn't come as any surprise that when we clean out our bodies, that we also clean out some of the emotional stuff. I spent some time thinking about my insecurities and areas where I'm feeling vulnerable. I hunkered down early last night with a book and went to bed early. I woke up feeling refreshed and renewed.
