We Got Married

We just got married July 24th! It had been a long sixteen months of planning, replanning and even more planning. I have been planning my wedding since I was ten. I had the bulky pre-Pinterest sketch book filled with magazine clippings, which then transitioned into mass files on my first computer with beautiful pictures from Snippet & Ink and Martha Stewart's wedding blogs. When Pinterest became an online portal for beautiful images, I jumped on with fervent joy. I had everything planned for my one day wedding and then when I met Bryan I knew he was the one. After he proposed, we went into lock down and everything changed. I quickly created an updated Monica Gellar Wedding Book- you know the one- the one where she says "this baby has got everything". Mine had everything too. The problem was everything shut down, so there was no in person shopping, taste testing or appointments. Everything was booked online & bought online. There was no guarantee how many guests could come, or if any could come and our venue was six months behind building due to supply shortages. We planned a wedding for 90 people, then 50, then ten, then two, then 30 and finally once we had the provincial go ahead, we planned for 38 guests. I had originally started shopping and DIYing for 90, and then for 10 and finally I had given up because of such uncertainty up to 30 days before our wedding. Thirty days to plan the wedding of our dreams just wasn't enough. Adding to this stress was mother nature. The week before, we had record breaking heat which prevented nearly all of the flowers I wanted from the flower farm to die or just not grow but it also put our house on evacuation notice due to raging forest fires. As I was packing my wedding dress to leave for our wedding three and a half hours away, I was also frantically looking for our passports, birth certificates and heirloom jewelry. Then the week of the wedding, we had huge storms with pouring rain right up to the moment our ceremony started. There were so many things that I wanted to set up outside but the downpours prevented me in doing so. I was someone who dreamed of having her wedding published on Martha Stewarts blog, or any of the blogs I grew up reading, but the day before I was struggling to get it all done. I took on so much myself, to stay within budget but also I didn't know who to trust to carry out my dreams. I took on making my own cakes, flower arrangements, flower installations, appetizer menu & shopping, decorations, favours, details, collecting dishware, flatware, glassware etc. I was struggling to get everything into place and I was so embarrassed. I felt so much shame that I couldn't do it all, that I couldn't pull something I've planned my whole life together. The day before, my mum called one of her best friends and daughter, my sister and her partner came, as did Bryan's mum and sister. Bryan called all of our best friends who all came to frost cakes, hang drapery, greenery, make centrepieces, make cocktail puree's, place decor, set tables, steam tablecloths and even our photographer came to dress our alter. It was amazing that they all came together to help us pull this off. Our hearts are endlessly full of gratitude.

T H E S T A T I O N A R Y D E T A I L S

H E R D E TA I L S

H I S D E T A I L S

M O R E D E T A I L S

I had my veil custom made to say our wedding quote "Eventually all things merge into one and a river runs through it" This come from the book, and then movie, A River Runs Through It. It fit our relationship perfectly.

“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it. The river was cut by the world's great flood and runs over rocks from the basement of time. On some of the rocks are timeless raindrops. Under the rocks are the words, and some of the words are theirs.” - Norman Maclean

M O R N I N G O F

My parents dismantled an old barn on their new property to build their home this year. The barn was beautiful, but unsafe and already half torn down before they bought it. I took one of the old planks and had a local woodsman create it into three charcuterie boards; one for my parents, one for my sister and one for myself & Bryan. I loved the idea of creating three boards from one plank from the barn where their home now is.

Grooms Gift: I had bought him a fly fishing reel with line and then two of his favourite tyers tied him flies

C E R E M O N Y

It rained all morning the day of our wedding, only to stop right before guests started heading down to the site. Throughout the ceremony, thunder silently rolled above as rain clouds circled around us as a halo.

C O C K T A I L H O U R

Bryan and our woodsmith friend built the champagne wall of my dreams. This was the one piece I built everything around. I knew I wanted to serve our guests cava as soon as we came up from the ceremony to kick off cocktail hour. It was raining all morning however, so we hung glasses upside down to flip the rightside up before we served them.

Our Bars used the phrase "come tie one on" to pay homage to Kate's fly tying business and Bryan's love for tying.

R E C E P T I O N

While dinner didn't go as planned unfortunately, our band saved the day! They were amazing, and kept everyone dancing with an Alan Jackson meets the Eagles vibe.

My parents ate a kransekage with both of their parents in 1987 when they got married. It is a traditional Danish celebration cake made up of staked rings. I made this for our wedding (and got distracted from finishing the flower accents) to honour their marriage.

Looking at the photos, it's hard not to see all of the things I missed or didn't exactly go as I was dreaming of, and yet everyone says you're the only one who will see them. That may be true, but it doesn't exactly help those feelings. Everyone also says the day will be a blur, and while I tried to stay intentional about being present all day, there were certainly moments that were a blur. The important parts, however, I will cherish.

Photographer: Hope Linzee Photography

Rentals: Signature Wedding & Events

Band: Chris Goodwin Band

Bouquet & cut flowers: Edgewood Farm & Co.