Kelly and Michael's Wedding Day!!!

Saturday, May 11th 2013 was the day we had all been waiting for!  Kelly and Michael's wedding day was finally here!  I remember when he proposed to her last August during our family beach trip and thinking that May seemed like it was worlds away.  Now, here we were on the day we had all been anxiously awaiting!  Ready or not, it was here!!

Kelly and I spent the morning together, getting her make up done first and then going to Mary's for our hair appointments.

We quickly crossed paths with my Mom, as she was coming out of her make up appointment and we were going in.  She was on her way back down to the lodge to finish up the decorations.  Mom's hair and make up looked SO pretty!  Kelly was still sporting the "natural" look at this point! (Just in case there was ever any question! Ha!)

My Mom ordered this adorable shirt for Kelly from Etsy!

Before.......

During........

After..........

Next, it was off to Mary's to get our hair "did".........

Talking to her groom!

So pretty!

Kelly's "something borrowed" was my tiara that I wore 5 years ago in my own wedding!

By around 1:00 we were both starving, with no chance of getting anything to eat until the reception later that night.  I made a quick run for some grub.........and at the Bride's request, this was her gourmet wedding day lunch........

My turn..........

After our hair was done, we headed to the lodge and encountered quite the downpour of rain on the way.  =(  We were bummed, but Kelly didn't let it get her down.  Thankfully, the ceremony and reception were both planned for indoors, so it really wasn't a big deal other than for pictures.  I reminded her that it rained (hard!) on my wedding day, but it cleared up just in time for the reception and our get-away.  Plus.....they say it's good luck!

Matthew brought Kyndall around 4:00 and I was SO happy to see that she was in a great mood, thanks to a good nap!  She was in awe of Aunt Kelly's dress and especially her bouquet!

Kelly had about 4,842 teeny tiny buttons on the back of her dress, so Mom and I took turns working on getting them fastened.......

Once the photographers were finished doing all of the pre-ceremony shots, the girls just had to hide out in the suite until 5:00 when the wedding started.......

So pretty!!!!

We waited until the very last moment possible to dress the girls, for obvious reasons.  They shared some Goldfish crackers in the meantime........

"Monkey See, Monkey Do" is what I call this pair!!!

Michael's sister, Mary Beth and Beatrice

SO excited to finally see all of this flower girl talk becoming a reality!

She told me I looked "pitty"  =)

Still waiting.........

Obviously, I didn't get any pictures during the ceremony.  In fact, I didn't even get any pictures of the ceremony site.  It's really hard being in a wedding, having a toddler in the wedding AND trying to take good pictures!  Thank goodness Kelly hired two of the best, Jennifer Powell and Jenna Reichert!  Can't wait to see what they came away with!

The ceremony was very sweet, and took place in front of the fireplace at the lodge.  There were candles inside the fireplace which created a nice warm glow and the mantle looked absolutely gorgeous, decked out with strands of pears, crystal candelabras and greenery.  Michael's Dad performed the ceremony, which made it even more special.  

I walked down the aisle and then turned to watch with bated breath as Kyndall and Beatrice made their grand entrance.  Keep in mind, I had been practicing this moment with Kyndall for months and stressing to her how very important her job was as a flower girl.  After about four steps down the aisle, Beatrice took a good look around and decided this was not her idea of fun and she proceeded to throw her basket down and lay on the floor, just in front of Kyndall's path.  The look on Kyndall's face was priceless!  She bent down and said over and over "It otay, Beatrice.....dwop flowers now....."  Beatrice was having none of it and began kicking and screaming as she literally rolled around in the aisle.  The guests got quite a kick out of it, as did Kelly, who received the play-by-play from the wedding planner from behind the doors.  Kyndall finally gave up on the pep talk and shouted "get up Beatrice!" and gave this look of absolute disgust, as if to say "what are you doing??  We practiced this!!  It's our big moment and you're ruining it!"  By this time Michael's Mom had left her seat on the front row to remove Beatrice from the situation, which only infuriated her more.  I leaned into the aisle from my spot at the front and motioned for Kyndall to come towards me.  She got a big grin on her face, looked around and realized she was now the sole center of attention and finished out her duties beautifully!  Whew......crisis #1 averted!  The doors opened and we watched as my Dad escorted Kelly down the aisle.  Kyndall was awe struck, and thankfully stayed quiet while Kelly made her entrance.  At some point, just as Kelly and Michael were beginning their vows, she spotted my in-laws on the second row and called out "Nonie!"  I bent down and told her to go sit with Nonie, which she did.  Again, crisis averted!  I knew there was no way she would stand there for 15 minutes without completely melting down, so I was glad she did her thing and then made a quick exit!

After the ceremony, the wedding party gathered outside for pictures while the guests made their way into the reception.  The rain had cleared out and it was a gorgeous afternoon!  Yay!!  

I passed my camera off to Matthew during the announcement of the wedding party and the first dance.  Somehow, he completely missed the first dance......oh well!

Waiting to be announced.........

Kyndall was fading fast by this point, but managed to walk in with me and be announced at the reception

Mr. and Mrs. Michael Thomas!!

They had their first dance and then it was time to EAT!!

Kelly asked me to give a speech, so I did.  I was up until 2:30 a.m. the night before putting the final touches on it.  

Time for the get-away.........

Look at Kyndall's little hand sticking out on the left  =)

I love the look on Kelly's face in this one!

My cousin Jeffrey's girlfriend Sydney caught the bouquet......which is pretty ironic considering Jeffrey caught the garter at my wedding!  =)

There's really no lady-like way to hoist yourself up into a truck when you're toting 40 pounds of "fluff" on your body......

And just like that, they were off, on their way to married life!

This is what a tired little flower girl looks like...........

It was a beautiful wedding, and a day I will always remember!  Welcome to the family, Michael!  We all love you and are so happy that the Lord brought you into Kelly's life!  

Now, as I mentioned in my speech.......hurry up and make me an AUNT and give Kyndall some cousins!!  =) =)