Wedding Week: The Party

What would our wedding be without a great group of people standing up there with me? Actually, the more I think about it, the stranger it is. Think about it. This is the most special day of your life up until this point. You're becoming a partnership, a team, a wife/husband. The day is all about you and your new spouse, but for some reason, we can't stand up there alone. Instead we have 8 other people standing around us, while we let all our other guests sit down. Mean? Huh.

As strange as it is, I don't think I could have picked a better group to stand up there with us.

Lets start with the girls.



I have a few very special girls who I would have loved to have up there with me, but I knew I had to draw the line somewhere. 27 Dresses, anyone? Luckily for me, I had 4 built in bridesmaids. Four best friends. Four girls who used to dress up, taking turns being the bride. So it was pretty obvious who I would choose.



First up to the plate was my best friend. My sister. My maid of honor. Anastasia. I really couldn't have asked for a better fill in the blank. She was great the whole time. From "Yes, I will" to "I do" this girl was my cheerleader and my lion tamer. She held my flowers, and swung my whip. She made our day special, from start to finish.



Next up is Michelle. She has been my cousin and a friend, all my life. We spent endless nights talking about what our life would be like when "we grew up." It was only fitting to have her by my side when I took that first step to "growing up."



Next girl in line is Joslyn. Michelle's twin, she has been here since the beginning. I don't think anyone could have been more excited (aside from myself and possibly J) about this wedding. You wouldn't know it during the process, but on that day, she was radiant. It was great being around that.



Finally, we have Emily. Beautiful Emily is yet another cousin, the younger sister of Joslyn and Michelle. Annoying as she was growing up, she has been a great friend. A little ditzy plus a lot of love are what make Emily so special. I couldn't imagine my day without her up there.



Oh, and can't forget Shaye. J's second cousin made the best flower girl I could ask for. Miniature me in her love of weddings, dresses, fancy shoes, flowers, dirt, chasing boys, bugs, scowls, and magic wands. She was perfect.



Now for the boys.



Justin is J's main man. His brother. His best friend. His best man. They have too so much fun together. And its not always mature fun. Okay, who are we kidding, its never mature fun. But the day wouldn't have been the same without him up there with us. And he even got his suit.



Next comes the second best man. Yes, there were two best men. Two manly speeches. But J made sure they knew the order of their importance. That's just how sweet he is. Matt was J's college roommate, and although they live states away from each other, they're just as close as ever.



The next guy in line is Nathan, J's cousin. He's also dating my sister (thanks to our wedding). This guy is great. One of the most fun people to be around. J was so excited to have him as part of our wedding party, and to be frank, so was I.



Finally, we have Matt (number 2). Another college roommate, another different state resident, another very close friend. He's a goofball, and made it his mission to make sure J enjoyed every minute of the weekend. We were so glad he was there.



So there you have it. Our wedding party. Like I said, there are many more special people both of us would have liked to ask to stand up there with us, but 4 was the magic number. Besides, someone had to use the chairs we rented.

Coming up tomorrow, our ceremony!