Becoming Mrs. John Larson

Well here we go, my first blog! And what a better way to start this blog than to blog about the best day of my life, my wedding day!

March 1, 2014, I walked down the aisle, my dad holding my hand and telling me how proud he is of me. I looked up and I saw my handsome now husband with the biggest smile on his face. This was finally happening, the big day was finally here, and I couldn’t wait to meet him at the end of that alter.

The last few months leading up to the wedding were extremely exhausting. In October I took on a new role with my company (probably the stupidest thing I’ve ever done while I had a wedding to plan). The days were long and the nights were short with not enough time to get everything done. I had an idea of what I wanted, what I pictured in my head and trying to make that a reality was a lot harder than I anticipated. The week of the wedding, John stayed up till 4 am folding and ironing our dinner napkins (yes I know I’m very lucky!) and I stayed up till 1 am finishing some signs. By Thursday night, everything was done and I was happy with the outcome. Friday morning we packed everything in John’s truck and me and both matron and maid of honor, Sara and Marissa, headed up to the venue to unload, and set up. Rehearsal was smooth and we were all ready to head to the rehearsal dinner and enjoy the night and get to see our family and friends. It was such a great night, but I was ready to get some sleep, after all, I had a big day ahead of me.

Saturday came very quickly, we all piled up into a one bedroom cottage that had a wrap around porch, a swing, and our own lake. It was overcast that morning, but all I cared about was rain. The whole wedding was outside, and we took a HUGE gamble on the rain issue. All I remember saying when I noticed the sun come up around 10 am was that God really must love us! Shortly after, Makeup and Hair arrived, mimosas were flowing, good music jamming, and all my girls were with me which made it even that much sweeter.

The day seemed to be moving very slowly, however, I quickly realized that wasn’t the case and we were actually running around like maniacs an hour prior to the wedding. Before I know it all the girls left the cottage, it was just me and my dad, getting into a beautifully restored 1955 blue Chevy truck, and making our grand entrance. I watched the girls walk down to one of my favorite songs, Only Love by Ben Howard, and as soon as I heard Marry Me by Train start, I looked at my dad thinking omg, this is it, it’s time to walk down the aisle. I was MORTIFIED at the idea of people staring at me; I don’t like to be the center of attention. As we started making our way down, seeing all of our amazing family and friends who drove / flew from all over to be with us, I realized how blessed we truly are. I saw John standing at the end of the alter, with the biggest grin on his face (if you know him, you know those dimples!), and I just couldn’t help but stare. It seemed like no one else was there, nothing else mattered. The man that God has blessed me with, that has been there for me through thick and thin, that has loved me unconditionally, is about to be my husband, and I couldn’t be happier.

I chose for a certain blessing to be read at our wedding, The Blessing of the Hands. When I read this a few months back, I was sitting at the kitchen table and I couldn’t help but have tears roll down my face. It was perfect, it was exactly how I felt and I couldn’t wait to have it said at the wedding. Here it is below:

These are the hands of your best friend, young and strong and full of love for you, that are holding yours on your wedding day, as you promise to love each other today, tomorrow, and forever.

These are the hands that will work alongside yours, as together you build your future.

These are the hands that will passionately love you and cherish you through the years, and with the slightest touch, will comfort you like no other.

These are the hands that will hold you when fear or grief fills your mind.

These are the hands that will countless times wipe the tears from your eyes; tears of sorrow, and tears of joy.

These are the hands that will tenderly hold your children.

These are the hands that will help you to hold your family as one.

These are the hands that will give you strength when you need it.

And lastly, these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.

Then came our vows, all I can remember was staring at the officiant and telling him to go slow. I was doing great until he said “to listen to you, and to laugh with you”, I went to repeat it and forgot the 2^nd line, and instead I said “to laugh at you”. It was funny, it was perfect, and honestly it summed up our relationship. We are goofs, we don’t tend to take things seriously (most of the time anyways).  Then we were announced as husband and wife, and we kissed to which seemed to be the best kiss to date ;) We walked out, and I remember thinking this is the happiest I have EVER been, and I am so happy to have this man stand by my side, now and forever.

And now the important part, the party!! It was amazing to hear all the speeches, see all of our friends and family, see the beautiful reception area that we both have worked so hard on. Everything looked absolutely beautiful, the weather was perfect, we were right on the lake, café lights strung, good music, it was just perfect. The one thing I was looking forward to all day was our dance, which was a surprise song to me, john picked it out, and asked a family friend to sing it while playing the guitar. The song started playing and it took me a minute to figure out what song it was, then I realized, it was called “I almost am by Granger Smith”. I remember listening to this song a few years back, sitting in john’s truck, and I LOVED it. The fact that he remembered and picked this song as “our song” made my heart flutter. We danced underneath the starts, with just Nate’s voice and his guitar, with café lights strung above. It could not have been any better.

I didn’t want the night to end, it was magical, beautiful, and I don’t remember the last time I had felt this happy. I got to marry my best friend, the one who stood by me through thick and thin, the guy who puts up with my mood swings, my indecisiveness, and overall my crazy self. God could not have picked a better soul mate for me, and I am forever grateful for that.  I can’t wait to see what life holds for the both of us, but I am certain of one thing, it will be one heck of an adventure, and I’m glad to be going on this crazy ride with him.