I last left you all with a sneak peek into our day, thanks to our amazing trailer courtesy of Weddingmix. Hopefully that kept the 'Hive satiated during my mini-furlough - apologies!
After we made sure we were all touched up, it was time to partner up for our walk down the aisle. This is yet another time I was so damn grateful to have DOC/Friend E around - she was such a calm presence. I cannot say enough how glad I am to have had the foresight to ask her to play this role in our day as well as how glad I am to have her as a friend.
I'm going to write a post solely about music, because so much thought went into the song choices, but for the sake of this post: Vitamin String Quartet was used for our ceremony and cocktail hour. I found out about VSQ on Weddingbee and it is one of the many things that has made me indebted to the wonders of the world wide web. I was so excited because, to me, their covers provided us a way to incorporate songs that have very special meanings to us but might not necessarily be "wedding appropriate" into our day (like, the Goo Goo Dolls' Iris - amazing song, of course, and one that has a lot of meaning for one of my girlfriends and I, but it's not lyrically suited for a wedding).
I chose My Heart Will Go On for the processional. There is not a real way for me to explain the power that this song (and Titanic in general - foreshadowing!) have over our group. It has been karaoke'd countless times, it's been jammed to in countless cars, it's been whispered in serious situations - it's just a very 'us' group song. Again, the lyrics don't necessarily lend themselves to a walk down the aisle, so VSQ's version was perfect.
First up was Mr. Palm Tree and Rev. Fun:
*all photos courtesy of the a-maz-ing Limelight-Images
MIL Palm Tree with GM J, who grew up with Mr. Palm Tree and myself. His mom is MIL Palm Tree's best friend (and also the one who gifted us our Save-the-Dates!).
Best Man R came next, escorting my aunt. You may recall from this post that my aunt and I have a unique relationship. I say this with my whole heart: I am so glad that I had her take this role in our wedding. I do not regret it for one second. I look at these pictures proudly and with love.
GM L and BM Blackout:
GM J, who had circled around after his trip with MIL Palm Tree, and BM Tiny Dancer:
GM Pythagoras and BM Badonk:
The Y's:
Best Man R, another double-duty escorter, and MOH Mem:
Then came my beautiful flower girls, Pad and Pie. I cannot tell you how many times we practiced this walk over the course of my engagement. It was their favorite thing to do. . . Mama P&P told me that they would watch the wedding episode of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic repeatedly so that they could "learn".
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| I am told that Pie (right) had this look almost the entire time. Utter concentration, folks. |
The doors closed and then it was my turn.
I briefly touched upon the fact that I would be walking down the aisle alone. I'm hardly the first Bride to do this and definitely not the first 'Bee (check out Mrs. Wizard's post about her decision). Leading up to it, it wasn't something that affected me much. I think that Mr. Palm Tree was more worried about it and my feelings than I was. He had offered and even asked his stepfather, whom I love dearly and am close with, to escort me. He had numerous suggestions, like asking Best Man R or having us walk down together, but I kept saying no. None of those felt right. The more I thought about it, the more I thought about the fact that what would really and truly represent myself and our relationship would be for me to walk alone. It was very symbolic and meaningful (I am a meaning whore, can you tell? ;) ): here I am, finally able to leave my family drama behind me because I am officially starting my own family.
I was standing with DOC/Friend E, The Fez's coordinator Debby and two of The Fez's staff behind closed doors when VSQ's Can't Help Falling In Love With You started playing. I knew that I would walk into this song from the minute I got engaged, Hive. Years ago, during Mr. Palm Tree's and my break, we were up late chatting on AIM. I had just discovered Ingrid Michaelson and I sent him a link to her version of the song. He responded with (seven years later, I'm paraphrasing), "Today, I was washing my dishes and I was singing this song the entire time. You know me, I don't sing while doing things and I certainly don't have things that stick with me strongly enough to remember them. The fact that you just sent this to me proves something. We were meant to be together, Miss Palm Tree, and I know this in my heart. I think you do, too - so take your time, if that's what you need, but we'll get there."
Tears immediately filled my eyes when I heard the first notes (who am I kidding, they're filling my eyes now as I type!). Debby asked if I was ready and I shook my head no and asked for one minute. I did a little shake-it-out dance and nodded. They opened the doors and I looked up to see a room full of people, people who were there to love and support Mr. Palm Tree and myself.
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| DOC E preparing me and me trying not to lose my shit. By the way - how perfectly scattered are those petals? Best Flower Girls ever. |
The above picture, Hive, is the only picture I have of my groom waiting for me as I walk down the aisle. Why? Because somehow, the microphone was knocked out of its holder and Mr. PT was trying desperately to help Rev. Fun replace it. If we hadn't had a First Look, I would have been pissed. It would have been the first time he had seen me all day and he would have been distracted - my heart probably would have dropped, as I raised my eyes to meet his and he was otherwise engaged. Thankfully, though, we did have a First Look and had spent the majority of the day together, so I was just laughing as I approached him. We both had wide smiles on our faces, sharing one of those "only us" moments, as our ceremony got started.
Up Next: everyone cries and we talk a lot - our vows!
