A Little More Wedding...
Well, I have a little more to show you from the wedding…aka, OUR WEDDING VIDEO IS HERE!
And oh my gosh, it’s incredible. Nic, Amanda and the rest of the NuGen Media team did a phenomenal job. I’ve watched this video too many times to count now and get teary eyed/cry every time. It doesn’t help that I’m really missing Joe I suppose.
And because we had the little snafu of the gunshots (apparently, the neighbor of the venue enjoys shooting their guns around the ceremony time, but I like to call it a 99 Gun Salute to our marriage), I’m sharing some of the readings from our ceremony. After watching the video back again, I remembered how amazing our officiant’s speech was, so I wanted to share it because I think it says so much about life.
If you’re like me, after reading the officiant’s message and the letter from my Grandma, you’ll savor each moment a little more, hug your family a little tighter, and kiss your loved one a little harder, because life is too short.
*Video is at the end of the blog.
Officiant’s Message
As I think back to having first met you two, I’m awed at how you have bloomed as a couple and how your lives as individuals have been enriched by the other. Over the years I have watched you two have the times of your lives together. I’ve seen you travel this earth together and I have been there to see you stand by each other and face all the ups and downs that life could throw at you. Just as you have been there with me and watched my own love story unfold. As you have been there to welcome our new baby boy. We’ve shared this life together. As I think back I will always remember the day you announced that you two were starting a family of your own, as you snuck a tiny fur baby named Grohl into my bar. Look at him now. Look at us now. Our families bigger, Grohl much much bigger and our lives even richer. When I think back to all the time we’ve shared, I’m blown away at how fast it all happens. As I held my son and thought about just how fast this day too, will go so fast, I had this thought…
As we grow older, we measure time in a different way than when we are a child.
For a child, an hour or a day seems an eternity
As we get older we begin to measure time in months… then years
And we begin to understand that they move quite rapidly
There comes a time in your life when you begin to measure time in terms of decades
And when you look back upon them
You realize that your time upon this earth is very short
And so each moment that you’re given on this earth
Is a time to celebrate.
A letter from my Grandma
When Johnna was born – she was the very first grandchild on my side of the family & she had a very special place in my mother’s heart. Before she passed away – she gifted Johnna with a Memory Book and while she prayed that she could dance at Johnna’s wedding that just wasn’t meant to be. So today – I’d like to read an excerpt from that Memory Book and invite her to join us on this special day:
In order for me to become a Gramma, of course I had to be a ‘mama’ first. I’ve always considered myself very blessed to have had six children. They and Papa Jere were my life. Those years were so busy but so much fun too – watching everyone grow and blossom into ‘real people.’ Sometimes you’re asked the question, if you could go back in years, would you do things differently. If I would ever have that chance (you don’t but lets pretend), the only thing I would change is how I spent my time. I would have spent more time with all my children and not be as concerned about how clean the house should be. Time is all we have and it goes by much too quickly and children grow up and leave home and there’s plenty of time to chase dust balls and cobwebs.
My wish for the future is your good health, happiness, and a contentment in who you are. Enjoy life’s experiences as they come along – there’s something to be learned from all of them. I wish for you a wonderful life. I love you.
Gramma P.
Our Vows
I promise to be faithful to you, honest with you, patient with you and to trust, respect and protect you.
I promise to hold your hand and always take care of you, through one foot or two
I promise to be there when our love is simple and easy but also when its challenging and hard?
I promise to be the strongest supporter of your dreams, your biggest fan, and to always help you stand back up if you fall down
I promise to grow with you and encourage you to be a better person because you bring out the best in me
I promise to challenge you, laugh with you, leap with you, be your refuge and follow you to the ends of the earth
I promise to be your home, your partner, your soulmate and your best friend
I promise to update our vows as we grow because one set of vows cant possibly cover a lifetime of growing and changing together
I promise to love you with everything I have and to continue falling more and more in love with you every day
You are the family you both get to choose. Do you promise to go on choosing one another from this day forward through all of the uncertainties of the future.