Our Wedding

 Chad and were married in June 2017 and since I haven't really done a proper personal introduction on this blog, I thought it might be nice to at least start the hellos with you all by sharing our wedding day. We were so very lucky to have two family/friend photographers at our wedding. They gave us the best wedding gifts we could ask for and I felt that their work could not go un-showcased. These photos were taken by Chad's very talented cousin, Jaymee Martin. She doesn't regularly do wedding photography, so we felt so blessed when we asked her at the very last minute (the rehearsal dinner) if she wouldn't mind helping with family photos. Luckily, she happened to bring her camera with her for the weekend. 

We were married at the Riverstone Retreat Centre in Durham, ON. About an hour and 45 minutes outside of Kitchener-Waterloo. This place is definitely a best kept secret. It's affordable, rentable for a whole weekend, out in the countryside, but also not so desperately far away from a city centre. The family who owns and operates this venue were so lovely and eager to make sure the day was perfect. You can also rent the two homes on the property to accommodate several guests that may be traveling from exceptional distances. We did this especially for family coming from out of province.

We were married in a stone labyrinth surrounded by rows of trees that parted down the centre to allow for a natural aisle. Chairs were set up in a semi circle around the centre of the labyrinth. There was a small pergola that my mom draped antiqued lace around and lined the trees of the aisle with containers holding babies breath. Besides that, we left the rest natural and the venue really spoke for itself. Amidst all the rain the week prior and the week following, it felt like this one day the sky cleared and the birds came out just for us. We were both pretty nervous. 

We were also so very lucky to be wed by a couple whose been good friends with Chad for 10+ years. We asked that they both marry us, with one being our legal officiant and the other doing a sermon that blew us away.

Nothing really prepares you for pouring your heart out to the person you love in front of all the family and friends that you love.

Another really special touch was having my aunt do my hair. She was absolutely meticulous, and I've been told (by her actually) that when remembering who to thank during your speeches, you shouldn't really thank your hairdresser. But I was so in love with all the time, effort, and energy that she spent with me to add all those special touches, that I absolutely gushed over her during my speech.

And I don't mean to say that we were at all nervous to marry each other. I felt that it was 1000% the right decision and didn't get cold feet for a second, and Chad echoed the same sentiment. Just before we were announced husband and wife, I let Chad know that I would be taking his last name. This came as a surprise to him after months of me denying that I would ever dethrone my maiden name, just to throw him off. We didn't do wedding gifts to each other, so I thought this might be a nice sentiment for the last minute.

And honestly, I couldn't be luckier in the world if I tried to have the family that I do. I can't really describe in a single post how much effort they and Chad's family put in to making this day as absolutely perfect as it was. The tiny details and little gestures made this day so much more than Chad and I could have ever imagined it would turn out. 

I regularly catch myself wanting to get married all over again. There are definitely a few things I would change (like hiring more people to take on tasks), but otherwise everything was perfect beyond anything I had imagined. 

- Katie