Cheeseburger in Paradise

After the toasts, it was time to eat!  My mom had been running frantically from table to table, making sure everyone knew what was for dinner, apparently in order to avoid a mutiny in case someone showed up demanding chicken or fish.  A little late, but it was sweet of her to worry.

We had the In-N-Out truck parked in front of the venue, and the DJ announced that the head table would go first, followed by everyone else.  Jeff and I walked down with our bridal party, and it was a relief to be in relative solitude for a few minutes while we made our way.

Jeff and I were, of course, the first ones in line to order.  He got the order ticket that said "Order #1", and I think it was the highlight of the day for him.

As we were waiting for our food, our guests came down and lined up to order.  We had already nixed the idea of a receiving line, but when I saw everyone already lined up, I grabbed Jeff and seize the opportunity to talk to all of our guests without missing anybody.  My aunt was nice enough to take our hamburgers back to our table for us so that we could personally welcome everyone and catch up with friends and family.

Jeff and I were eventually herded back to our table so we could eat our burgers before they got cold.  I was so excited and had so much I wanted to do and so many people I wanted to talk to that I barely finished half of my meal.  Jeff, of course, went back for seconds.  That boy seriously loves his In-N-Out.

We had board games set up on a table in case people didn't feel like dancing in the bright afternoon sunlight.  Jaymi brought a Jenga box to our table and we played a quick game while waiting for everyone to finish eating.  I had so much fun just relaxing with her, without pressure or scrutiny, and I was really glad to have that moment with her.

 

After Jenga, it was time for our first dance, and for the party to get underway!  More of that, up next.

Tonight's Gonna Be a Good Night

After pictures we went back into the bridal suite to wait for our big entrance--although it seemed a little bit contrived since everyone had been watching us take photos the whole time.  We watched through the windows as guests played lawn games, lined up at the bar, and milled around checking out the decorations.

Reverend Bruce came in to collect our marriage license and congratulate us.  All of us girls fixed our hair and makeup.  The guys enjoyed a cold beer in the rare quiet moment.

Before long, the DJ came in and told us it was time.  We walked out onto the porch  and the song "I Got a Feeling" began to play.  Over the opening notes, the DJ announced Danielle and Matt:

Then Jaymi and Matt:

Then Jeff and I took our place at the head of the stairs.  We saw all of the guests seated at their tables, smiling and looking comfortable and happy.  The DJ announced us, and immediately the first notes of Smashmouth's "I'm a Believer" rang out.  Jeff and I walked out, making our way through the tables and our guests' smiling faces, to cheers and applause.

 I danced and waved to people as we meandered toward our table.  Jeff smiled and seemed comfortable, despite having everyone's eyes on him:

We took our seats at the head table and I was glad to be flanked by our best friends as everyone stared at us like animals in the zoo

Immediately the DJ announced that it was time for toasts.  Matt went first with a very nice, and funny, speech about how he knew I was special to Jeff when Jeff was more excited about hanging out with me than about riding dirt bikes with Matt.  He said what a great couple we make and ended with a very sweet toast.

Jaymi was up next and gave a beautiful, thoughtful speech that began with teasing us about our widely varying interests (driving sandrails, visiting museums, shooting guns, and going to the symphony), and went on to say how Jeff brings out the best in me and how much she likes him.  She ended with the lyrics of the Colbie Callait song "Tailor Made": though I may have been the only person present who knew the reference, the words were just as touching, and they held special meaning for me.

My dad came up prepared with a speech, but in the end decided to wing it.  He told the story of the first time he met Jeff, when he was helping me move, and said it was a great first impression: Jeff showed up with a GMC truck and a hand truck that was bigger than my dad's.  Everyone laughed.  My dad welcomed Jeff into the family, and I admit I teared up a little.

Having maxed out our sappiness for the time being, it was time to move on to dinner.  Up next: Jeff's very favorite part of the whole wedding!

On Another Note...

We interrupt these regularly-scheduled wedding recaps to bring you a very special message.

One thing I'd really like to address that I haven't yet is Jeff's brother, Paul.  Very early on in the planning process, we set our wedding date for July because Paul, who is in the army, was supposed to be back from Afghanistan and home on leave during that time.  Thankfully, Paul did make it home safely, and for that we could not be more grateful.  However, due to the army's ever-changing schedule, he came home a full month ahead of time, and was due back to his current station exactly 8 days before our wedding.  No amount of wheeling and dealing on his part could change his leave to allow him to be there for our big day, and we were so upset to miss him there.

I don't want to sound ungrateful for what we've been given, and we were so happy to have time with Paul while he was here in June.  But I won't lie: not having him at the wedding totally sucked.  All of our family was there with us except him.  He had been so excited to be there (and more excited than is normal for the In-N-Out truck), and it was a huge blow for him to have to miss it.  I haven't talked about this in any posts yet because it seriously gets me down every time I think about it.  However, with the last post so full of family pictures and all of our loved ones surrounding us, his absence could not go unmentioned.  As far as Jeff and I are concerned, there was a big, Paul-shaped hole in all of the family portraits.

Paul, we missed you, and we really wish you could have been here.  We can't wait to see you again!

Our People

After the ceremony there were SO.MANY.PICTURES.  Seriously, it was ridiculous how much standing and smiling there was to be done.  Without further ado (and because my posts have been getting longer and longer), here are some of the key players in our wedding:

 Jeff and his guys

Me and my girls

Me & Jaymi: our true selves shining through.

The whole gang

Serious, formal poses

And one that's more "us"

My side of the family: parents, sister, and brother-in-law

My grandparents

Us with Jeff's parents and sisters

Jeff's grandparents

My aunt, grandparents, us, my parents, my sister and brother-in-law, and my aunt and uncle

Jeff's cousin, sister, grandparents, us, his parents, sister, and aunt and uncle

There were tons and tons more of these, but for the sake of semi-brevity, we'll leave it at that.  Finally, after all the photos had been taken and our cheeks hurt from smiling, it was time to party!  Reception stories, up next...

We Do

Inside the gazebo, Jeff and I were in our own world.  I don't remember most of the words to the ceremony, all I remember is staring into Jeff's eyes and smiling bigger and more genuinely than I ever have in my life. 

And I remember Jeff, smiling back at me, not taking his eyes off of me for more than a few seconds at a time (and only when the Reverend stared at him so long that Jeff had to look back at him).  I barely remembered our guests out in the audience.  I heard the Reverend's words but couldn't recall his face.  All I knew was Jeff's eyes looking at me, Jeff's mouth smiling at me, Jeff's hands holding mine.  At that moment, he was my whole world.  The only thing I was truly aware of was him.

I do remember Jeff saying "I, Jeff, take you, Kayci, to be my lawfully wedded wife.":

 

I remember repeating vows after the Reverend (though I can't clearly remember exactly what I said):

I remember Jeff sliding the ring onto my finger (nervous that he had the wrong hand, just like he was when he proposed):

And I pretty clearly remember holding his hand in mine as I put on his ring:

It was a real struggle throughout the ceremony to not just reach up and kiss him.  So when the Reverend finally--finally!--said "I now pronounce you husband and wife: Jeff, you may kiss your bride," I'm pretty sure I'm the one who made the first move.  I kissed him and smiled even while we were kissing.  He was smiling too:

The Reverend announced us as Mr. and Mrs. and we turned to face our guests.  We smiled, I took his arm, took my flowers from Jaymi, and we took our first steps together as husband and wife:

I raised my bouquet in triumph as we danced down the aisle:

At the end of the aisle the photographer stopped us for more pictures, but I'm pretty sure I was still dancing:

We were followed down the aisle by Jaymi and Matt:

And then by Danielle, Elisa, and Matt:

My parents just in love at my wedding as they were at theirs more than 27 years ago:

And Jeff's parents smiling proudly as they make their way down the aisle:

Everyone poured into the bridal suite: bridesmaids, groomsmen, parents, grandparents, sisters.  And everyone was hugging us and congratulating us and welcoming us to each others' families.  And I have never in my life felt as loved as I did at that moment.

What followed is a blur.  There was a champagne toast from blue Solo cups, there was beer brought in for the guys (by the awesome MOH Jaymi), and there were lots and lots and LOTS of bridal party and family pictures.  More of those, up next...