wedding: the ceremony

       One month ago today Dave and I, and all of our loved ones, ventured out to the beautiful flint hills for Dave and I's wedding. I would not change a single thing about our ceremony. It was such a beautiful day, and I loved getting to walk down the aisle and see all of the people that I love there supporting me.

     I love replaying all of these events over and over in my brain. It was such a beautiful time and of course I loved being able to stand across from Dave and share the entire course of events with him. Happy one month Dave!
I will be sure to share the last of our photos and a little about our reception here shortly!
Read about the pre-ceremony events here.
Read more of our officiator's reflection here. 

     Our ceremony was complete with our adorable little nephews as ring bearers, a beautiful prairie backdrop, and beautiful white puffy clouds. Our friends Allison and Maggie sang Emmy Lou by First Aid Kit and Swept Away by The Avett Brothers as our wedding party entered and our Cousin and her boyfriend, Jill and Braden, sang That's Whats Up by Edward Sharpe during the ceremony. And of course our wonderful friends Natalie and Joel each read a portion of this poem by Rainer Maria Rilke.
     One of my favorite parts of our ceremony, and something that I am really glad that I included, was a blessing given by our parents. It was such a beautiful way to include them in the ceremony and I loved hearing their words of support. Plus Dave's dad even threw in a chest hair joke, which was pretty hilarious. We love our parents so much and couldn't do much of anything without them.
     I also loved the reflection that our officiator, Ruth, gave. She was such a wonderful part of our day and I was so glad that she was willing to be there with us. Her reflection was all about the flint hills. Here is part of what she shared:

"During hikes in these hills and in order to keep up with my parents, I would often have to look down just to make sure I didn’t fall. And so from an early age I began to notice all of the delicate beautiful flowers and grasses, this understated beauty that you can only see close-up. As I got older I learned that prairie grasses, such as the great Bluestem, have an amazing underground web of roots. These roots sometimes reach 10 feet into the earth. It is this hardy system of roots that allow these grasses to survive in the harshest of conditions, especially drought. The prairie grasses are tougher than most of us realize. They persist year after year after year because of their hardy root system.  
And so what might this place, what might the Bluestem teach us?
I singled out the Bluestem because I think the two of you are keen observers. You seem to value beauty that isn’t just flashy, but beauty that has more substance. You have an appreciation for what is going on beneath the surface. Another reason I thought of prairie grasses is that my prayer for you is that you too will keep developing a hardy, sustainable, nourishing root system as individuals and as a married couple. I pray that you too will be able to withstand the droughts: the disappointments, the failures, the heartaches. I pray that you too will have roots that will help you weather the extreme conditions of life; roots that will help you grow in healthy ways; roots that will be life-giving providing you the necessary nutrients all year round, so that your relationship will also persist year after year after year."