the small day

Our relationship began quietly. We made a habit of bumping into one another walking our dogs.  That led to a few scheduled walks.  There was really no way around it.  A magnetism grew.  Being teachers in a small, remote village every move we made was always noticed.  Even as we began regularly seeing one another we kept it as quiet and close as possible. Observant students made comments that were quickly fielded.  We managed to make it three months into our relationship before it became common knowledge.

Traveling together after the school year ended put aside some of the nagging questions. What if this only works in the village?  Can we actually handle relating to one another in the context of the culture in which we were raised?  Quickly we realized life was so much better together no matter where we were.  The decision to marry was made of mutual thought and discussion.  That discussion also involved my request: to have our ceremony be quiet and small.

Having been a part of eight of my dear friends' weddings I have witnessed so many beautiful unions.  There were elaborate decorations, gorgeous details, months of planning and they were beautiful.  But I also saw the intense preparation, elevated stress levels and same outcome. Two people making the choice to join their lives.  My request to Isaac was that we have a very small intimate wedding, just a notch more involved than elopement. The nature of our jobs were very stressful.  We constantly make decisions all day long.  I had no desire to begin our marriage with anything complicated.  Fortunately, neither did Isaac.

Our date was chosen because it was when our parents and siblings were free.  My wonderful friend, Maggy, and her amazing family agreed to play host. The location was out of the way for everyone, which seemed oddly fitting in that Isaac and I live our lives traveling to and from our out-of-the-way home.  Dinner was a reservation at the local restaurant. Dessert was pie from the local orchard. Drinks were from local brewers. Isaac ordered a suit and I stitched a dress. Our simple gold band rings were ordered from the small town jeweler my mom uses. Flowers were whatever was growing on the farm.  Save the dates were verbal and invitations scratched on a Central Lake postcard.  Everything was taken care of with a few phone calls, texts and emails.

The weekend was perfect. Friday the family arrived. It was the first time our families had met. Andrew, Maggy's husband, grilled dinner then we walked across the road to rehearse. Chatting around the fire finished out the day.

Saturday morning, after a classy breakfast, a cohort was convened at Maggy's to snip flowers and arrange them into our day's needs.  To spend the morning together and create together was so nice.

 It was wonderful to have the help of such sweet people. 

Please note, many wonderful nearly empty coffee drinks.  Thank you Smiths!

 Fern helping to fill her flower basket.

 Back in May, when she found out we were getting married, my mom put a whole bunch of my favorite peonies in the refrigerator to "sleep" them until the end of July.  It worked and there were peonies everywhere.

 All the other flowers were gathered from the farm.

 The flower girls had the most beautiful baskets of blooms.

 Once the list was all crossed off it was time for a break.

 After the flowers were finished we went for a dip in Torch Lake.

 Back at the Inn there was a wonderful surprise waiting for me. Whitney had made the last minute trip to come and "crash". Her company was very welcome. She and Rachel helped me get ready.

 Back at Maggy's Rachel made me a flower crown and we got into our dresses. 

 From there all my sweet friends and family took over. Signs were hung, the drinks and pie table set out, the ceremony site prepped, flowers dispersed. 

 While this was happening Rachel sent Isaac to meet me up the road a ways. We got to say hello and see each other alone. It was one of both of our favorite parts of the day.

 Together we walked over to the farm and greeted our group, including a few close friends who had made the lengthy journey. 

 After a few family photos it was time to begin.

Liam played his acoustic guitar as Isaac walked in with his parents. Jason seated my mom. Eurydice and Fern threw their petals, followed by Rachel and Ross.

Dad walked me down the isle and then took his place as officiant. 

 Dad was a wonderful officiant, thank you again.

Following his remarks, he read a favorite poem we had chosen. Monica, Isaac's sister, added a beautiful reading from the book of Ruth.  We both made our promises.  Then we walked in the path through the woods to dinner.

Dinner was more like a large family meal.  Old friends chatted and everyone found something good to eat.

From dinner we returned to the farm for pie. There was cherry, blueberry and apple. I made a special one for Isaac and I to cut.

Isaac and I shared our first dance which was finished off with a bang of fireworks. When we were first discussing our wedding Isaac had said he wanted fireworks. I didn't know if that would be possible on the wooded farm in July. But Andrew agreed to take on the task and made a fantastic show, which was really cool.

Dad and I danced.
Isaac and Mary, his mom, danced.
Then we put on the playlist and enjoyed the evening. Mostly all the old friends just took the opportunity to catch up.  With so much adulthood happening these days it was just nice to have a moment to relax.

Next came toasts. Rachel, Ross and Isaac's father, Don, gave wonderful speeches with great emphasis on our mutual appreciation for adventure.  We are so lucky to have such wonderful people in our lives.

 We took care of the legal stuff.

Somehow it happened that Isaac and I were the last two attendees left at the end of the night.  And Andrew, putting one last magical touch on the day drove us back to the Inn using a motorcycle and sidecar. It was perfect.

So many wonderful faces made our small day possible.  Thank you many times over.  

I am grateful to have such a sweet memory to officially mark the beginning of marriage to Isaac.