Our Wedding

{PROFESSIONAL PHOTOS & HIGHLIGHT VIDEO ARE TOWARD THE BOTTOM OF THIS PAGE}

On Friday, May 30th, 2014, I finally married my handsome love. While he was a cadet at the Air Force Academy, he wasn't allowed to have any dependents... and since he graduated on May 28th, we didn't waste much time!

The weather was NOT as nice as it had been all week, and that was kind of a bummer... but Mother Nature did her best to take care of us, and it didn't start raining until the ceremony was complete! We were able to dodge the weather for pictures as well, and everything fell into place.

Our guest book! We will add a photo from our wedding when we get them back and hang it in our house each time we move. It'll be a nice piece of stability wherever we go. It's BIG! 

My little brother walking me down the aisle... he looks so proud!

Our ceremony was a blast! We had so much to laugh about, and I was SO giggly! 

Seriously. Our officiant (and friend) made us laugh several times.

I had an AMAZING time during our ceremony!

We sealed up a bottle of wine that we made together along with love letters that we wrote to each other from separate places the night before our wedding. The plan is to open it on our five year anniversary, but if we have a big fight before then and need to remember why we got married, the box will always be there! 

I felt 100% triumphant as I slid that ring onto his finger!

You may now kiss your bride! (and he did... a few times!)

Feeling on top of the world as we walk away!

Happiest we've ever been!

I love this one because it's so candid. His tongue is out, and I'm smiling ear to ear!

Of course we had a saber arch! I can't wait to see the real photos from this moment! We had six AMAZING friends do this for us, and we couldn't be more thankful that they all agreed to. 

One of my coworkers and friends made all of these cupcakes for our guests... and a cake to cut on top for us! (And you can KIND OF see the groom's cake to the left... it had a Thunderbird (Air Force jet) on it, and Dan was so surprised.

Cutting the cake with the saber - such a fun moment! 

Three amazing friends and fellow wives of USAFA grads came to watch us get married... so here we are in year order showing off our rings! Danielle is married to a 2010 grad, Ellie to a 2011 grad, Lizzie to a 2013 grad, and me to a 2014 grad!

We made 120 bottles of wine ourselves to serve at our reception. They were a BIG hit! A friend of a friend designed the labels for us, and they are ADORABLE! I can't wait to share a better picture when we get them. 

This is the "Fab Five" from high school... the five of us ALWAYS hung out together and had a lot of fun eating Chinese food and making prank phone calls... and they came out from Washington, Kansas, Florida, and Missouri for my big day! Love them!
I sat on the Best Man's knee while my groom fished out my garter with his teeth... awkward but so much fun!

Dan called up the entire Air Force Academy Flying Team (the team he was a part of until he graduated), and they serenaded me Top Gun style with "You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling"... and it was SO MUCH FUN! A friend posted video of it already, and it's great. I'm so glad those guys (and gals) were able to make it! 

I feel AMAZING right now. Our wedding day was definitely the best day of my life, and I can't get over being called "wife", "bride", and "Mrs." - so fun!

PROFESSIONAL PHOTOS & HIGHLIGHT VIDEO

Our photographer was Callie Riesling, and our videographer was Sean Halverson. Check them out by clicking on their names - they are both stellar at what they do! :)

We were sealing the letters we wrote to each other when we were apart the night before the wedding with a bottle of wine that we made together. The point is to open it on our five year anniversary, read the letters, and drink the wine. If we have a big fight before that, though, we will open it up to read the letters and remember how amazing our love is.

Yeah, I accidentally called him my wife in the middle of my vows... and according to my friends, this is a typical "Janelle face", so that's nice. Haha.

But really... my wife?! Haha! 

We had a saber arch at our wedding, and the coolest part of it is that it was full of AMAZING friends. These three guys and three girls are just wonderful, and I'm so glad the arch was able to be so personal! 

"Kiss her! Kiss her longer! You can't go until you kiss her more!"

Best Man Aaron is tapping me on the butt with his saber... "Welcome to the Air Force, Mrs. C!" This photo shows every emotion I was feeling that day, and it is my absolute favorite!

Every bride deserves a picture like this one! :)

I *think* this is the one we'll use in our giant guest book frame! 

Garden of the Gods is beautiful in the background, but the love we felt from our friends in our wedding party that day was 100 times more beautiful. 

Yes, it's pouring down rain, but we were dancing and didn't care! :)

The cake was made by an awesome friend and {former} co-worker of mine - and it was DELICIOUS! I can't wait to eat it again on our anniversary... hopefully more gets in my mouth and less up my nose this time around! ;)

We took one class to perfect our mad dancing skills {joking... I was terrified to dance unless we took a class and could only fit one into our busy schedules}, but our first dance song was "Come Fly With Me" by Frank Sinatra... it was magical. :)

Dan's former teammates from the Air Force Academy Flying Team serenaded me with "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin'" during our rehearsal... Top Gun style! It was so much fun, and you can watch it at the very end of the video below. 

And here is the video highlight reel! We absolutely LOVE that we have not only still photos but also this video that just completely encapsulates how we were feeling that day. We also have a video of our entire ceremony, and I'm sure that will be amazing to watch for YEARS and YEARS to come! I HIGHLY recommend a videographer for all of the brides-to-be out there. :)

6 comments:

  1. I love that you're having a groomswoman! How awesome!

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  2. Wow! It's so cool to see a wedding with all are in military attire.

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  3. This is so cute <3 I used to follow your old blog Always Write and now this. It has been a while since I checked in but I just wanted to tell you I am sooooo happy that your wedding happened the way you wanted it to always. I hope you always get what you want and are always happy. :) - Ankita from Mumbai, India.

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  4. Oh my goodness!! This was beautiful!! I just realized you commented on my blog forever ago and I haven't blogged since January!!! Agh!! I would love to connect!!! Find me at TeamPinkPatrol.com

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  5. Your photographs gave me tips to make a wedding perfect! Thanks for sharing these amazing photographs here. Your post would help me in making my special day memorable. You know I have booked pretty wedding venues NYC, and now will hire a decorator.

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