January 20, 2024

1.20.24 was the best. day. ever. I am still replaying the weekend over and over in my mind trying to savor every memory of our wedding with our amazing family and friends. 

Thankfully with the long MLK weekend right before, I had gone to Athens to knock out some tasks with my mom like stuffing the hotel welcome bags, wrapping the groomsmen and bridesmaid gifts, and assembling place cards for tables. Not to mention a million dance practices with dad! Then, I headed back to Atlanta for a short work week and spray tan, nails, etc. Charles and I also enjoyed a last "single" date night at Superica on Wednesday. I headed up to Athens Thursday afternoon and stopped by the jewelers to get my ring cleaned, CVS to print some last minute baby pictures, and Lauren Douglas's to have a play date with all the children (Pittards, Douglas's, Satterfields, and Malchows). Afterwards, Sarah, Sam, mom, the boys, and me went to an early dinner at ZZ and Simone's while the Walkers went to one last family dinner at The National. Once we were both finished with our respective dinners, mom and I went over to Hotel Indigo to check out the hospitality suite and for Charles and me to do some last minute dance practicing. I loved starting the wedding weekend off in a low key setting with our families and cherished this time so much.

I woke up Friday morning and started getting ready since Aunt Susan got there early to set up for the Bridal Tea Luncheon. Once I was ready and the guest started arriving, I loved introducing everyone and making connections. We served tea sandwiches including pimento cheese, cucumber, egg, and ham, assorted pastries, stuffed dates, chicken salad bites, and smoked salmon. For dessert, there were the most amazing scones and chocolate croissants and of course enjoyed sipping tea (and champagne!) while enjoying each other's company. Some of the special details of my bridal luncheon were using Grandma Val's china, Grandma Jane's cream and sugar dishes, and Aunt Ruthie's table cloths. I also loved giving my bridesmaids their white getting ready shirts, a handwritten note, and white furs to wear with their dresses, Doris her flower girl gift of a book and pink picture frame of us, and our moms an embroidered handkerchief. 

After the luncheon, the bridesmaids headed into town to check into our hotel rooms and get ready for the rehearsal dinner. I quickly stopped by the hospitality suite to say hello to some of the guests that were arriving and then took a cat nap. Ellie, Shelby, Nikita, and Hannah came to get ready with me and then we drove over to the church for the rehearsal. The rehearsal had all hands on deck (way too many with Nancy's committee!) but went smoothly and the children did great practicing. Once we were finished, I gave the ring bearers their gift, which was a book that reminded me of them and a white old-fashioned toy car that I wrote "just married" on the back of. Dad and Dan signed the wedding book as our witnesses and we were off! The bridal party headed back to the hotel to catch the shuttle to Five and Ten for the Rehearsal Dinner. Once we arrived, we quickly made our way to the bar, took some photos, and enjoyed some of the charcuterie while waiting for dinner. Dinner was so delicious and then we got cozy in one of the rooms for speeches. This was my favorite part of the evening as we got to hear the sweet words our friends had to say about us. A fun surprise was Greyson and Marshall's remix performance to "Aint no Mountain High Enough"! After the dinner, we made our way back to Hotel Indigo and stayed up way too late at the lobby bar (where my phone went missing thanks to Nikita!) followed by a sleepover with my mom! 

On the morning of our (chilly!) wedding day, I popped up to Charles's room for some quick cuddles (and to retrieve my phone/drop off my luggage!) before we would go our separate ways. Then, the bridesmaids and I made our way to Athens Country Club to start getting ready! We had the best time listening to girlie music, attempting Tiktoks, popping champagne, and getting glammed all day. The hours quickly passed and before we knew it it was time for the photographer and videographer to arrive, and I headed upstairs to put on my dress and then read my letter from Charles. Once all the photo ops were through, I did my first look with Charles (where we were both so awkward not knowing what to say in front of the photographers), and then we quickly went outside to bear the cold for bridal party photos. This was one of my favorite moments... having everyone all together for the first time of the day- bridal party, the children, and parents. We loaded up the trolley and enjoyed a drink on our way to the church! 

We took a few more photos once we were at the church to take advantage of the pretty courtyard area. Shortly after, the bagpiper arrived, everyone got in place, and it was game time! Sarah said a beautiful prayer for the girls before we lined up. Everything about the ceremony was so special. The children did an amazing job, I loved the music- especially Lance's solo, and communion was so special getting to watch everyone come down the aisle. We took a few pictures after the ceremony and then got on the trolley to head to the reception!

Once we arrived, Steve the planner took Charles and me back to a private room so we could enjoy our appetizers and champagne in peace. This was a special time together, but I was mostly anxious about my dress during our first dance! Once cocktail hour was over, we got introduced and had our first dance as husband and wife. Then, we made our way to our seats, listened to the blessing from Mr. Johnson, had a tequila shot with some friends, and made our way around our sides of the room to say hello to our guests. I really did not have much of an appetite because of nerves/adrenaline, but the food was delicious! Once we were wrapping up, my dad went up to give his speech. Of course there was no surprise that he did an amazing job reciting it all from memory! We shared our father/daughter dance (which he was so nervous about!!), watched Sassy and Charles dance, and then opened the dance floor for the party to get started! I loved our band and had the best time dancing my heart out. In fact, I never left the dance floor since people kept bringing us drinks the whole night! My favorite parts were bringing out the light up sticks, doing the limbo (and falling for the first time!), having fries come out as our late night snack, and everyone chanting "ONE MORE SONG!" at the end of the evening, which the band responded to with "All I Do is Win." Of course Charles and I got on stage to help out. After that, we had our sparkler exit and Bill and Erica drove us back to Hotel Indigo so we could change for 9D's Bar!!

Sarah picked us up and took us to 9D's. Much to my surprise, it was ONE IN ONE OUT, but I made sure people with the wedding cut the line. We had the absolute best time jamming out (with all the young college kids!) with our favorite people. Once we were finished there, we walked back to the hotel where Blake, Justin, Carl, Alex, and Lawson came up to our hospitality suite and hung out until 3 am!!! I cannot believe we made it that long but were on cloud nine the entire night. 

The next morning, we tried to sleep in a bit before packing up and heading to mom and dad's for our farewell brunch. It was so nice spending some last minute time with family before everyone headed out of town. From there, Charles and I reorganized our stuff and hit the road for Palmetto Bluff!! We wanted to relive the entire weekend over and over again because it truly was so special and fun. Being in the same room as all of your favorite people is the best feeling ever.

Minimoon recap coming next...