One Shell Of A Wedding! : Time To Get Ready

Hive, it's finally here. The actual Seashell Wedding Day. This is where the real fun begins: pro pics, pretty details, "I do's" and all that good stuff.

I woke up the morning of our wedding feeling great. The sun was shining and the day looked beautiful. I slept well all night and didn't have the same overwhelming feelings of anticipation that plagued me the day before. When I got out of bed to brush my teeth I was struck by how ordinary I felt. Like, shouldn't there be birds singing on my window sill from some Disney movie? I looked in the mirror. Nope, just me, getting ready for one of the biggest days of my life.

First order of business: hair and make up with my girls.

When our photographer arrived I was in the midst of getting my hair done. After struggling to choose the right look, I finally found something I was excited about.

With my hair done, it was time to model my "Kiss The Bride" tank. Sparkles are definitely necessary on your wedding day. 

My girls were up next. I opted to hang out on the floor and chat.

Right around this time I got accused of checking Weddingbee on my phone. Bridesmaid Allie snapped a pic and posted something on Facebook like, "You can't take the weddingbee out of the bride..."

We got to enjoy some girl time and chatted away most of the morning.

Mama Seashell takes a peek to make sure she approves of my 'do. 

Next it was time for makeup.

I got a turn too.

Last but not least, Sister Seashell had her turn at makeup. I think it was the first time she pulled her nose out a book all morning! This was a good thing though, I wanted my girls calm and happy.

As we wrapped up Carmen (our photog) snapped this great shot of me with my bridesmaids. I'm laughing as I look at this now - they look lovely and beautiful and I look like I'm off to a beauty pageant. Go big or go home, right?

I also adore this photo of me and Mama Seashell. It kind of makes me teary if I look at it for too long.

After several hours at the salon it was time to hit the road. I had something pretty important waiting for me...

{All photos from the fabulous Blink of an Eye Photography}

Previously in the Seashell Wedding:

• One Shell of a Wedding! : Two Days Before
• One Shell of a Wedding! : The Day Before
• One Shell of a Wedding! : We Rehearse 
• One Shell of a Wedding! : The Welcome Party

One Shell Of A Wedding! : The Welcome Party

While we were busy rehearsing, Mr. Seashell and I organized a "Welcome Party" for our out of town guests to attend. Since they were arriving at different times throughout the weekend we planned an event for later in the evening on Friday. We offered dessert, drinks and coffee in the penthouse of the hotel with the intent of letting our guests grab dinner as they pleased, but also with enough time to see everyone after we were done rehearsing.

It worked out perfectly - we were able to have the smaller, more intimate rehearsal we desired and also the warm, large, invite-everyone party as part of the evening too.

Speaking of those arriving guests, when they were greeted at the hotel they found...

Out of Town Boxes!

The boxes came together as a major group effort. Mr. Seashell's Mom did the majority of the work leading up to the wedding. She stained the boxes with a paint brush to make them more "golden" and then hand stamped the leaf pattern (which we also used on our programs), chose the ribbon, and designed the box labels. Then Mr. Seashell's Mom and I made all of the "detail" labels together. After she passed, we discovered that everything for the boxes had been prepped and ready to be shipped to Providence. (Like, she had pre-cut each and every purple ribbon for all 75 boxes. Unreal, right?) Mama Seashell took them to Providence and purchased additional supplies - the SunChips, Shout Wipes, and retrieved Providence Brochures. Additionally, Mr. Seashell's Mom's childhood best friend baked homemade cookies (that FMIL Seashell had intended to include) in her memory. Last, once we were all in Providence Mr. Seashell and FIL Seashell assembled and had the boxes ready for our guests' arrival! PHEW!

Back to the party! By this point in the evening I had given up on picture taking, so I don't have many visuals to share. I can tell you this, though: it was a great end to the night. It was the first time I had seen the majority of our out of town guests and it was a treat to welcome everyone with smiles and hugs.

After making the rounds saying hi to  everyone, I had some camera time with my girls.

{look close - you can see the necklace from FIL Seashell}

We took the opportunity to recreate one of our favorite college photos. We lovingly called the original "the sandwich".

{2010}

{2004}

I finally felt like my usual self. My head was clear. I was surrounded by my friends, family, soon-to-be husband...all was right in the world. As the hour approached midnight I teased Mr. Seashell that it was almost September 25 and I couldn't see him on our wedding day! He agreed the day had been long, and drove me back to my parent's house.

While we were driving we joked about how we felt like teenagers - getting dropped off at home before midnight and then I joked that we might be able to sneak a kiss in the driveway without my parents noticing. We pulled up to the house and Mr. Seashell walked over to me as I went to get out of the car. He said, "I know you wanted me to kiss you a certain way on the altar tomorrow." And he pulled me in close. There, in my parent's driveway we kissed. He dipped me back - it had to be romantic, but not dramatic or too over-done  - we got it just right. There I was, standing in the driveway where I'd ran through sprinklers in the summer, taken the car out for my first drive alone, left for prom, posed for graduation photos, and now practicing my "first kiss" with my almost husband. It was surreal. He took my hand and walked me over to the back porch. The next time we saw each other it would be our wedding day.

Previously in the Seashell Wedding:

• One Shell of a Wedding! : Two Days Before
• One Shell of a Wedding! : The Day Before
• One Shell of a Wedding! : We Rehearse

One Shell Of A Wedding! : We Rehearse

So, when we last left off I was in a state of panicked anxiety and Mama Seashell mentioned "she might have something for me". Exact details aside, let's just say by the time I was rehearsing for our wedding I was slightly sedated. Praise pharmacology. 

After seeing each other for the first time since arriving to Providence, I ran to Mr. Seashell and the words fall out of my mouth: "I've been so spazzed out that I had to drug myself." I hugged him so tight it was unreal. Normal Mr. Seashell would have made some comment about how reassured he was about my mental state prior to our nuptials. However, he admits its taken him 4 drinks to feel sober. What? The beauty of nerves. So glad we're both doing so well at this point.

Our blissful reunion aside, our wedding party had gathered in the chapel. (What? There were other people there too?)

From the front of the chapel Reverend Nancy starts directing the crowd. Her advice is to first line everyone up to where they'll be standing during the ceremony. So, we did the recessional first.

Everyone takes their spots and prepares to exit.

Nancy looks happy that we've all managed to listen to some basic directions. Yay us!

Now the show really begins. Mr. Seashell takes is official "mark".

The bridal party gathers in the rear of the chapel.

Mama Seashell and FIL Seashell practice their entrance.

Here comes the (sedated) bride!

Mr. Seashell's cousins take direction on overseeing the ring passing.

We prepare for our vows.

And that's that!

Knowing the next day would be quite busy, Reverend Nancy decides we'll save time and get our marriage license signed the day before. Then she made me pinky swear we'd go through with the wedding the next day. We promised.

Sister Seashell was excited to fulfill her MOH duties.

...and then we were off to eat!

The dinner was wonderful - lots of delicious food, laughter, toasts, and celebration. 

After everyone had dinner Mr. Seashell presented his groomsmen with their gifts and we shared our slideshow with the group. We thanked our friends and family for their love and support and gave gifts to our parents as well as our godparents (who were doing readings during our ceremony) and Mr. Seashell's cousins who were ushering and facilitating our ring passing. Mr. Seashell's father made a toast and acknowledged the love and hard work FMIL Seashell had put into coordinating the rehearsal dinner before her passing. In fact, she handmade and mailed these beautiful invitations just days before she suddenly passed.

After FIL Seashell's toast he approached me with a small box. As soon as I opened it I knew exactly what it was; I'd seen it in the days after FMIL had passed away. My eyes filled with tears, and then I just let myself cry. I put my head in my hands and full out started sobbing. FIL Seashell put his hand on my back, leaned in and said, "I gave this to Justine on our wedding day. I can't imagine anyone having it but you". "I know, I know" was all I could get out. I finally pulled myself together and gave him a hug. We stood there, at the end of the restaurant, crying. I don't usually give into my emotions like that, but in that moment the reality of our loss hit hard. It is a gift I will forever treasure.

As we wrapped up our rehearsal and dinner, our guests were partying elsewhere....up next!


Previously in the Seashell Wedding:

One Shell of a Wedding! : Two Days Before
One Shell of a Wedding! : The Day Before