Taylor Gets Married / Pt. 2

I wanted to share a few of my favorite memories from Taylor and Kate's wedding.  As I've shared on the blog, Mila has been talking about "Kate's wedding" for months now, excited to be a flower girl and throw petals down the aisle.  For weeks, we have rarely shared a meal without Mila praying something along the lines of: "Dear Wode, thank you for making Kate my new aunt, and for giving me flower petals to throw at Kate's wedding."  She was definitely excited, yet knowing Mila is quite the wildcard when it comes to her mood and behavior, we weren't sure what we were going to get with her!

  

Getting all fancied up!  She was a dream while getting her hair done that morning.  Jenner, the sweet hairstylist who did Kate's hair, commented that Mila had so much hair for being a blondie!  It curled really well and Beau couldn't believe how pretty she looked!  Mila was daddy's girl all day long and he commented a few different times that he got all choked up watching Kate and her dad together.  

We could not have asked for a more perfect day for an outdoor wedding.  The property of Barnes' Place was seriously gorgeous and the weather just added to the beauty!

Mila fell asleep on Beau about ten minutes before Bradly, the photographer wanted to do wedding party pictures.  Because Mila really needed a nap, Papa Curt came to the rescue and they successfully handed off our sleeping princess!  Here was Papa holding Mila, and my mom was on the front porch holding a sleeping Harper.  

Beau showing off his infamous taco-sockos he wore for good luck. ;)

Hot or cold, all the time. :)  She's mad at me here because she did not want to wear her sash.  

I didn't get any pictures of the ceremony because we were all in it!  We all got in golf carts and were escorted to the area for the ceremony.  Brad and Kate Myers did the music and were amazing.  The young pastor from Hope did the message and it was so wonderfully fitting for them.  The way he looked at them with such conviction, talked about their love as a living model of God's love, and his funny, but ever-important call to be each others' CRO, or Chief Reminding Officer, to always remind one another that they are special, beautiful, and loved.  Brad and Kate sang Come Thou Fount during Taylor and Katie's unity candle, and Mila sat in between Mom and Dad and sang every word with them.  And when it was time to pronounce them husband and wife, we all walked out to Kate sining Edward Sharpe's Home, ready to wave our streamers and celebrate a new marriage and a successful day of keeping the kids clean and mostly happy all day long). :)        

After the ceremony, we were escorted to the front of Barnes' Place for a cocktail hour reception.  Music played, we sipped Taylor and Kate's chosen signature drinks, and I rewarded Cruz and Mila with their prizes I had held over their heads all day long!

And the speeches!  Katie's dad is a retired principal and it was quite obvious he was used to being in front of an audience.  He gave a sweet speech that included Katie finishing the end of several one-liners they had laughed about over the years, and how happy he was that she had found someone else to make her laugh like he did.  Jordan gave a best man speech that characterized many of the same feelings I had growing up as Taylor's older siblings.  And lastly, little Taylor shocked us all and gave the sweetest speech to Kate, telling a story about why he is convinced God exists.  There wasn't a dry eye in the place and for most of us who know Taylor as a quiet man of few words, we were so proud of him.

The rest of the night we danced!  The live band reception was so fun, and we danced the night away while the kids fell asleep one by one.  It was a long day, but a good good day.  Taylor is married, and we wish he and his bride a lifetime of happiness, adventure, and God's blessings.    

My Little Brother Got Married!

Being six years older than Taylor, the role of “big sister” came in many forms growing up.  Some of my earliest memories involve sticking my nose up to the window of the ICU, getting my first glimpse of this adorably plump, very hairy baby and calling him my little brother.  I remember how proud I felt announcing his arrival to my kindergarten class and running home from the bus every afternoon to hold him and eventually, see what he had tore into in my room!  As he grew, my role of big sister changed a little.  It meant having to come in from playing outside in the summertime so Taylor would go down for a nap, not in his crib, but on a Mickey Mouse blanket in the middle of the living room floor.  I swear we didn't see the carpet for the first three years of his life!  It also meant sometimes having to hold his hand and take him up the street to my friend, Brooke's house so he wouldn’t be left out!  For every aggravating experience that came along with this big sister role, I loved that Taylor was my constant – always there to read to, play with, and take part in my wonderful (always carefully planned) adventures.  I remember every Christmas season, I would collect all our Christmas books and put a stack under his bed.  Then every night, I’d climb into his bed with him, read him a book and instruct him to remove a red or green chain from the paper countdown I hung in his room.  Whether he liked it or not, he went along with it, and I loved him for it.   

As our carefree childhood faded away and life got a little more complicated, being Taylor’s big sister involved cheering him on at basketball and baseball games, offering advice, whether he wanted it or not, feeling happy when he was happy, and feeling my heart break when I saw him sad.  As a mom of my own now, I realize that looking back, my feelings toward Taylor can only be described as maternal.  I longed for him to be happy and taken care of, and also wanted to protect him from this sometimes hard and broken world.  And just like the hopes and dreams I have for Cruz and Mila's futures, I had the same dreams for Taylor's - that he would be happy, content, and full of God's love.

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for calamity, to give you future and a hope." (Jeremiah 29:11)

God answered so many of my prayers for Taylor's life when He put Katie into it.  She is one of the sweetest people I have ever met and the two of them light each other up in the best way.  The pastor said it best at their ceremony Friday when he said that after he met them he was surprised they had been together for over five years because they still acted as if they were newly in love.  What a beautiful testament!  Five years in, and they still laugh together, memorize lines from The Office together, and love just who God created each of them to be.  Their love is rare and such a beautiful testament of God's love for all of us.  And it was only fitting that we all got a chance to celebrate that love on a picture perfect day last Friday when they became husband and wife!

  
It was a special day for so many reasons.  The weather was near perfect.  Our entire family was honored to be a part of Taylor and Kate's wedding party.  The wedding was in Adel, so we all had an excuse to get away for a few days, let the kids take over a hotel with their cousins, and enjoy all the thrills of an indoor pool, continental breakfast, and adjoining rooms with Grandma and Papa.  The wedding ceremony and reception were held at Barne's Place in Adel, a gorgeous property just outside of Des Moines, with old church pews and a barnwood altar that overlooks a lake, a rustic barn for the reception and dance, and gorgeous details everywhere you look.  And while keeping five kids under the age of seven clean and happy during the long day leading up to the ceremony proved to be a little hairy at times, the day was filled with joy, laughter, and sweet stories to celebrate one very sweet couple.  

The start of a million pictures, with a few more memories to come.