A Wedding Every Day

Yesterday we went to the wedding of my best buddy from college, Phil and his beautiful bride, Daniella. This was the first wedding we've been to since our own, so we were very excited to enjoy a wedding from "the other side" of things. It was a lovely winter wedding. The ceremony was held at Christ Lutheran church in Baltimore, and the reception was at Martin's West. Pictures are below - some are a little blurred from being far away, sorry! :)

Phil & Daniella exchanging their vows

This is a happy bride!! Aren't they cute?

The happy couple dancing :)

We were definitely the 2nd cutest couple at this wedding

The old Towson crowd! What a crew....

Place cards & carrot cake

Because we were dressed so cute, I had to get a picture when we got home!

After the wedding, I started thinking about weddings in general. And I realized that we could live every day like a wedding day. Here's how I decided that would look:

1. Begin with God. Not necessarily at church, but at least with the acknowledgement that the day is a gift from God and the willingness to seek His will and guidance. Some reflection on your blessings would also be a good start.
2. Spend as much of your time as possible with your closest family and friends. Share a beverage with them, a meal, or even a party! Make the absolute best of your time with them.
3. Play your favorite songs and sing along as loud as you want. Take the time to share a dance with your beloved, or heck everyone! Let loose and enjoy yourself.
4. Always have dessert. Life is short, you may as well enjoy a really well-made dessert when one is available. There's no reason to cut that kind of enjoyment out of your life. If it's calories you're worried about, refer back to #3.
5. Keep a guest book - i.e. letters, photos, cards, etc. that document the sentiments you and your friends/family shared. What better reminder of how important those people are to you or how important you are to them than a heartfelt note? Also a great opportunity to reminisce about all the great times, both hilarious and humiliating :)
6. Count your gifts!! God is good and has given us MANY blessings. It's important to recognize that on a regular basis to truly understand what a great life we have been given. The better we understand this, the more fulfilling our lives will be.

Wouldn't life be so happy if we all lived every day like a wedding day? I'm so proud of that analogy I think I'll add it to my speech for Ben & Jenna's wedding. I'm rather excited for that speech :)

I just have two quick updates before I wrap this up for the night. The first is that I went to see my dad today and he was in quite a mood. Earlier in the day when he was walking down to physical therapy, he stopped in the hall and said to his therapist, "Watch my new trick!" and then he proceeded to stand there on his one BAD leg (really, they're both bad, but this is the one he just hurt with the recent fall). She told us he scared her to death and she told him not to move until she got to him. But he thought he was really funny. The other update is on our stolen Christmas presents. We did get in touch with Amazon this morning (where all 4 gifts were ordered from), and they were so nice about the whole situation. They told us they would either replace everything or refund our money. What a relief! So we asked for replacements on the items that were in stock and a refund on one that was out. We'll just re-order that one when more come in. So that was a pleasant resolution to a very unpleasant experience. Just thought I'd share :)

Thanks again, and as always, for reading. Merry Christmas!