Monday, October 17, 2011

Keep Calm and Ramble On

My stepdaughter Lindsay got married on Saturday.

Not only am I happy for her, but I'm also happy for me.

Now that the wedding's over with, Chuckles can stop dreading it!

Don't get me wrong, Chuckles is happy for her as well, but he was so worried about walking her down the aisle, dancing with her at the wedding, and just losing his oldest daughter to being married.

He woke up on Saturday feeling a bit anxious. His brother and sister were up here from Florida for the wedding and I was hoping they'd distract him/calm him down.

Lindsay and her now-husband Mike were having the wedding in their backyard, which is a pretty piece of land with a pond and everything. Chuckles and I had to go over early, I wanted to be there while Lindsay was getting ready.

Lindsay called and asked Chuck to bring her over a pre-wedding brewski. Of course he saved the day.





Chuckles was a lot calmer after that.

Lindsay has a LOT of damn hair, so it took awhile for her to have it done. In the meantime Chuck and I wandered around the house and around the yard, milling about with the family.




Mike asked Chuck to hold the ring boxes while he tied a harness to their dog, Ozzy. Ozzy was the ring bearer (which turned out better than I thought it would), and he would carry the little pillow on his back.


Aw, Chuck looks so sad. He also looks like he's slyly giving the camera the finger...




I think Desiree (Chuck's other daughter) was tired even before the wedding started...




Chuck and his younger brother Steve and older sister Laura in the backyard.




Lindsay and Chuck weren't the only ones with pre-wedding nerves. Chuck kept trying to convince Mike to take a shot of that Jameson that you can see sitting on the counter, but Mike wouldn't play.

Wedding-pooper.




The weather was absofuckinglutely perfect for a wedding. Not a cloud in the sky, and there was a really nice breeze.

There were some unavoidable snafus and the ceremony started quite a bit later than it was supposed to, but the soft lighting of the afternoon made the pictures really beautiful.

I didn't realize until Friday night (the night of the rehearsal) that I was going to be a part of the ceremony.

I was a bit shocked. If I would've known this, I would've lost 30 lbs first. But Lindsay said it wasn't decided until the last minute, and I was honoured to be in the wedding procession, no matter how I looked. The day wasn't about me anyway, everyone would be looking at my beautiful stepdaughter.

So I rocked what I had.

My sister-in-law Laura was awesome enough to take pictures for me because I couldn't, and my brother-in-law Steve videotaped it.

Mike's brother Dusty walked me in, and of course I couldn't resist making a Kyna-face towards the camera....




Desiree was the flower girl. I loved her dress!


Lindsay and Chuck made their entrance to Led Zeppelin's "Bron-Yr-Aur".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GQKQ3-bzXV8

Lindsay looked like a freaking angel in her wedding dress. Chuck looked so proud to walk her in...I started to get teary.



I'm not a religious person, but the pastor that officiated the ceremony was a really cool guy. Mike's grandfather was supposed to officiate, but unfortunately he passed away right after Lindsay and Mike were engaged this year.

They had a chair set up for him and for Chuck's mother Mary, who passed away in 2002. I thought it was a nice gesture.



The magic words were said, and abracadabra, Lindsay and Mike were married.


The reception was held offsite, but we had time for a few last pics in the fading afternoon sunlight before we took off...









Mike's daughter Cailey, putting some artistic touches on the getaway vehicle.



I heart this one.



Chuckles is awesome in this pic, isn't he? Radiating happiness.


I love Lindsay. People always raise an eyebrow when I tell them that my stepdaughter is 25, but I don't care. She's one of the greatest friends and daughter one could have.


Even in pics where Lindsay isn't looking, she still looks awesome.


Chuckles and some hotties.



Preacher signing the marriage license. Told ya he was a cool guy. I'll give you three guesses as to who gave him that beer, and the first two don't count...




The reception was a fun time had by all. The food was delicious, catered by Mike's stepfather. Jambalaya and red beans & rice. The decorations were put together by Mike's mom.



My crazy in-laws. I love 'em.




 

The best part of the day was seeing Chuck and Lindsay get out and cut a rug for the father-daughter dance.

They decided on Led Zeppelin's "Ramble On". And it was a great choice! I'm sure you don't want to watch an entire video of my husband dancing with his daughter at her wedding, but I implore you to watch till the first change in tempo happens.

 Chuckles gets fancy with it. (For some reason the new Blogger won't accept the embedded video code, so I just had to post the link, but click the link anyway. Because you love me and I want you to.)


I swear, I was crying the whole time I was videotaping. It was ridiculously awesome and touching. I'm so glad I got to be there to experience something like this.

Anyway, it came time for the bride to throw her bouquet to all the single ladies...






...and guess who caught the damn thing?


Desiree did.


It was hilarious...Chuck was like, "Oh....shit. Not again."

As was I. I don't think I could go through this again in just a few more years!

The wedding was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. And they planned it in only 3 months!

 This was definitely the sweetest picture of the day. I'm going to get it framed.


I didn't get to sing after all, because of various circumstances. I was kind of sad about it, but once again, the day wasn't about me. So it's all good!

But Mike'll bring his guitar over soon, and Chuck's gonna take some video of me singing the song I was supposed to sing, so ya'll can judge me anyway.

How 'bout that? :)


12 comments:

Rose VonDettes said...

Wonderful photos! ♥

Erin said...

This is so cool. Must say, I am a HUGE Zepplin fan. One Christmas my husband got me the complete set of CDs. Love that man.
My son is getting married to the sweetest woman ever in Feb on the Big Island of Hawaii. This post really got me thinking about it. Thank you. I'm faving it.

Rohrerbot said...

Looks like a great time. The bride has A LOT of hair, but she looks beautiful in her wedding dress.....and so does her hair. Kudos to the hair stylist.

Alison said...

Looks like it was a great wedding! In almost every pic, Chuck looks so happy, he looks like he's about to bust his buttons! What a beautiful bride. And that empty chair was a sweet touch.

Liz said...

Hi Kyna,

It certainly looks like you had a blast...

Gotta 'fess up to also crying just looking at the photos. I'm such a sap.

The Idiot said...

So, according to your retelling of the day, not one single inappropriate thing happened?

That's just not wedding behaviour!

Al said...

looks like a great time was had by all!

Turling said...

I agree with IG. Unless a bridesmaid ends up upside down in a fountain and at least one fist fight breaks out, it's just not a wedding. At least, not mine...

Melissa said...

How wonderful. and oh my gosh, what a beautiful bride. Glad everyone enjoyed the day! You, too, mom!

Kyna said...

Rose: Thanks! Nice to meet you! Hope you'll be back, I visited your blog and you seem like an interesting person. I love interesing people :)

Erin: Hey, you're in good company. Chuck and I are huge Zep fans ourselves (can you tell?), and that's how we met, on a Zep message board.

Zeppelin was a huge part of Lindsay's upbringing, and it was awesome of her to include it as a nod to Chuckles.

I don't have any kids of my own, so it was cool to be a part of this. I'm sure you'll enjoy your son's wedding just as much!

Rohrerbot: Lindsay was blessed with the Adams hair genes. Lots of it (thank goodness...I'm a hair girl...I love dudes with awesome hair, and Chuckles was blessed with it)! I swear, it took two hours to get her hair all curled...

Alison: Ha! Chuck says to tell you he's busting his buttons because he thinks the shirt I bought him was too small :P I think the shirt was fine, but the tie was too short.

Whatever, I think he looked awesome! I'm going to get him to wear the same thing (minus the boutonnière) for our anniversary outing in December. I thought he looked kinda sharp.

Liz: No worries! I'm still tearing up, and this was a few days ago already. A beautiful wedding does that to me. I'm such a chick about these things....

IG: Actually, there were many things that happened that I would have LOVED to weave into tales of hilarity.

Stories that involve drunken guests and crazy family members. If you really want to know, you can email me.

The problem is, Lindsay and Mike both read my blog on a regular basis. I don't want to say anything that might make them upset or embarrassed. I don't mind embarassing myself (in fact I'm quite used to it, and revel in it), but not people I care about.

If this had been anyone else's wedding, I wouldn't hesitate. Because I'm kind of a doucheface.

Al: It was fabulous. Happy to be a part of it!

Turling: Unfortunately, this was just a country wedding. There were no fountains in the vicinity.

But hey! The preacher partook in some libations. In good redneck-wedding fashion.

Chuckles calls himself 'The Beer Whisperer'.

Melissa: Aw, it still makes me get all verklempt when I hear myself referred to as 'Mom'.

Makes me sound like I'd want kids of my own. I don't. I'm glad to have had them all ready-made and grown. Because I'm a selfish bastard.

But Lindsay's my homie. When I met Chuckles I was 24 and she was 18. She could have hated me because I was so close to her age. Instead we became great friends. I love that I've been her 'Mom' long enough to call her 'Mrs.'

It's pretty cool, and a little surreal.

Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness said...

I love the way you take ordinary days and make them extraordinary. Even though a weddding is suppose to be so great but they are usually great for a few people. You made this fun for everyone.

Marguerite said...

That looks like an absolutely wonderful day. Everyone seems to have had so much fun despite the jitters. The picture of Chuck sitting on the steps beaming is adorable.