Monday, July 15, 2013

Lemur L'amour: I Do

Our officiant warned Mr. Lemur one more time that this was his last chance to run...

All pictures by Niki Marie Photography.


Thankfully, he decided to stay.


We decided to use traditional vows—I honestly don't remember exactly what we said. We repeated after our officiant, and I think they went something like this.


Me (crying again): I, Miss Lemur, take you Mr. Lemur, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.


Mr. Lemur: I, Mr. Lemur, take you Miss Lemur, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward until death do us part.


As I continued to fight back tears, we began to exchange rings.


The twenty-five dollar ring I bought for Mr. Lemur off Amazon slid on perfectly—and looked great!


We both had our rings on, so there was only one thing left to do...

Did you write your own vows or stick with traditional ones like we did?
The wedding day began at 5:30 am and continued as we got ready at the venue. We had our perfect first look and then took couples pictures in the road. After bridal party pictures and family pictures, it was time to begin the ceremony! I walked down the aisle and began the ceremony.

Wednesday, July 10, 2013

Lemur L'amour: Love Never Fails

After my father walked me down the aisle, it was his turn to do a reading. Although our ceremony was not in a church, we wanted a way to express the importance of our faith, and we were able to do that through readings and a song. The first reading was from Ephesians 5.

All pictures by Niki Marie Photography.


"Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her... In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church—for we are members of his body. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh."


After my dad finished reading, my mom, Mr. Lemur's mom, and two of Mr. Lemur's sisters sang "O Wondrous Love," a song about the love of God. I still cry when I hear this song played because it reminds me of standing there with Mr. Lemur's arm around me listening to some of the most important women in my life sing about our faith.


O wondrous love that will not let me go 
I cling to You with all my strength and soul 
Yet if my hold should ever fail 
This wondrous love will never let me go

O wondrous love that rushes over me 
I can’t escape this river’s glorious flow 
You overwhelm my days with good 
Your wondrous love will never let me go


Finally, Mr. Lemur's dad read from I Corinthians 13, the chapter of the Bible commonly known as the love chapter.


"If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."


Our officiant shared a few words of encouragement and admonition.


To which we apparently listened very intently.


And all too quickly, it was time for vows.

How did you choose readings for your wedding? What personal elements did you choose to include?
The wedding day began at 5:30 am and continued as we got ready at the venue. We had our perfect first look and then took couples pictures in the road. After bridal party pictures and family pictures, it was time to begin the ceremony! I walked down the aisle...

Sunday, July 7, 2013

Lemur L'amour: Walking Down the Aisle

A tradition we hung onto was the seating of the grandparents and mothers. Although we didn't have "seating" for the ceremony—as in there we didn't have bride or groom sides—we did reserve the front row for family members and my sister's boyfriend and brother walked the our grandmothers and mothers down the aisle.

All pictures by Niki Marie Photography.


My sister's boyfriend is a serious usher professional. Perfect form as he walked Mr. Lemur's mother down the aisle!

After the grandmothers and mothers were seated, it was time for my sisters and Mr. Lemur's brothers. We debated how to do this part, and ended up with just a quick casual walk down our very short aisle. Possibly the shortest aisle of all time. Within a few moments of the first chords of Canon in D, everyone was in the front except me.


My dad asked if I was ready to go and before I even knew it, I was walking down the aisle. I was completely blindsided by the fact that I started to cry. I was choking back tears for the eight steps down the aisle—maybe it's a good thing it wasn't longer!


None of that matters though, because I had this guy waiting for me at the other end.


Our officiant asked "Who gives this woman to this man?"


My dad answered "Her mother and I," and gave us a hug.


We were getting married!

What processional traditions did you hold on to? How did you do seating?
The wedding day began at 5:30 am and continued as we got ready at the venue. We had our perfect first look and then took couples pictures in the road. After bridal party pictures and family pictures, it was time to begin the ceremony!