12th Anniversary

My husband.  Also known as The Rock or The Oak or Mr. Sturdy, comes up with some off the wall stuff every now and then that will blow you away.  And for our 12th anniversary, he did just that.

You see, him and our precious little girl, came up with the bright idea of recreating our wedding.  In our kitchen.  With a bride that had 30-ish pounds more to love.  But that's neither here nor there.  I kept fixating on that, but tried to enjoy the moment for what it truly was: blessings galore and being surrounded by people who adore me and each other.

Nathan, all of 4 years old, was the official photographer.

Jim got dressed up for the re-creation.

He. Convinced. Me. To. Put. My. Wedding. Dress. On.

I'll spare you all the shots showing my backside and the 8-inch gap in the zipper being held together by a 63 ft. piece of ribbon.  Well, maybe not a FULL 63 feet.  But trust me, it was close to that.

Brandon was my escort and the ring bearer, carrying the rings on his buffalo pillow CowPapa got him in Montana.

Katherine knew where to find some spare silk flowers in my sewing cabinet for my bouquet.

The ceremony consisted of me walking through the kitchen, escorted by Brandon, while the laptop played "Here Comes the Bride" and Katherine reading a script tucked neatly away in her baptism bible.  Her script being the usual, "We are gathered here..." along with some prompts neatly written out by Daddy.

Jim even found the actual unity candle from our wedding.

And afterwards, we had a toast with sparkling, iced water in plastic cups.

 
As uncomfortable as I was to be wearing that size 4 wedding dress again (and I use the term "wearing" lightly.  "Strapping on" might be closer to reality), it was a beautiful reminder of what that day signified.  Our love for each other.  Through thick and thin.  And the beautiful family we created through all that.

Happy Anniversary Jim.  Thank you for the loving and thoughtful way you show me how much you love me.  I love you to the moon and back and thank God for you everyday.