Our Wedding Part Four: The Ceremony & Reception

My fourth and final wedding post shares with you the ceremony and reception details and song choices.  They were all very personal touches, and we had a hard time deciding on some of them...

Processional: The Beatles - Here Comes the Sun

This song was probably the only song that I knew right off the bat we were choosing. And be 'we', I mean 'I'... I almost didn't want to tell Dominic my choice for this song, because it would have been such a fun surprise. In the end, I couldn't keep it a secret and spilled the beans.  When we first met, Dominic said I was like a ray of light. Because of this, "Here Comes the Sun" was the perfect song choice for our processional.  It started when the car drove us into the field.

For our vows, while we didn't write them ourselves, we didn't go with the usual vows. We looked online for ideas and found vows that suited us and what we wanted to say, and we did say the same vows to each other. I wrote them on a piece of paper for each of us, since I knew I'd be too emotional to remember them by heart. In the end, I also was too teary to be able to read them.

After our vows were said, our Officiant said a Scottish blessing we had chosen:

If there is righteousness in the heart,

There will be beauty in the character.

If there is beauty in the character,

There will be harmony in the home.

If there is harmony in the home,

There will be order in the nation.

If there is order in the nation,

There will be peace in the world.

So let it be.

We hadn't necessarily planned on a blessing, or on anything being said of that sort. I was given a book as a pre-wedding gift, and there were several blessings in it. By fluke, we both liked this one, so we decided to add it to the wedding. It was a happy coincidence that I'm also of Scottish heritage. 

Interlude: Doris Troy - Just One Look

We played this song while the documents were being signed. I admit, I was singing and dancing.

Processional: Old Crow Medicine Show - Ain't It Enough

This was a song that almost made our first dance... We both love this band, and we saw them play live last year. We both had an amazing time, and it's an album we play often in the house. In the end, we chose it for when we walked down the aisle together, as Husband and Wife.

First Dance: Van Morrison - Into the Mystic

Again, not a song that was an easy decision... As I mentioned, we almost went with Old Crow Medicine Show since it's a band we saw live together and has great memories for us... In the end, we opted for a Van Morrison song. We had a hard time narrowing it down. I'm a big Van fan, so again, it's an artist that we frequently play on the record player in our house. Dominic also tends to surprise me with albums that I don't have of him, knowing that any album would be a great addition to my collection. We debated between Tupelo Honey, Crazy Love, and Into the Mystic. In the end Into the Mystic won.

Father-Daughter / Mother-Son Dance: 

Crosby Stills Nash & Young - Teach Your Children

Instead of the traditional "Father Daughter" dance, we opted to each dance with our parent at the same time. We worried about this song being too fast, and it was border-line... but the lyrics are perfect for a dance with both parents. My father 'sang' the whole song, not knowing the actual lyrics, and making them up as he went along. 

There you have it, our wedding shared in four parts. It was such a special day, and sharing it with you is definitely something I enjoyed doing. It's different from my usual outfit posts, and gives you a look at who we are, and our personal lives, because really, this wedding really did reflect who we are.