The focus on Saturday, May 15th was JT and Mallory's college graduation. Once that day passed, the focus shifted to getting the two of them married!
Sunday, May 16th began with a lot of us going in different directions. Jeremy preached in Dresden, Dad gave an OABS report in Bolivar (where JT had worked as a youth minister for the past year), and Shawna, Gary, and Kaylee attended a congregation in town. Chris and I decided to go with Mom and Dad to Bolivar because we wanted to see where JT had been working (and we had been to Dresden with Jeremy before). However, after morning services concluded, we all met in Huron at the wedding venue for a catered lunch and rehearsal.
There were a few errands that needed to be ran in Jackson before the wedding the next day, so Chris and I volunteered to be the errand runners during the actual rehearsal. We left Brianna at the wedding venue with Shawna, and went to Jackson with our other three. Our first stop was Sam's to get some things for the reception, then we stopped by four or five other stores in search of a dress shirt for JT for the wedding. He had misplaced the one he had planned on wearing.
Meanwhile, Brianna was standing in for the bride during the rehearsal, haha!
She said she was pretty embarrassed, but I think she enjoyed being there with the wedding party!
We did eventually find a dress shirt in JT's size, just in time to drive back to Henderson for evening church services. Many of us who were in town for the wedding were there at worship services together, and that's always special to me. After evening services concluded, we went to the FHU campus to eat together in one of the large meeting rooms in the building where Shawna works. We had lasagna and salad, and it was delicious. The group included my family, Jeremy's family, Mom and Dad, the Daltons, Shawna's Dad, Mallory's Dad, and Mallory and all her bridesmaids. Afterwards, we let the kiddos play while we cleaned everything up.
Brecklyn, Chara, and Brooke
We were all pretty worn out from a full day, but once we got back to Jeremy and Shawna's house Chris put the kids to bed while I helped Shawna make tea and went with Jeremy to hunt down a punch ladle. Just when it seemed like we had every detail for the wedding covered, it seemed like something else would come up.
On Monday, May 17th, Jeremy, Shawna, and Kaylee headed out to wedding venue fairly early to make sure everything was going smoothly. My family stayed back at Jeremy and Shawna's house for a while, which worked out well because Shawna was able to text me with anything that they had forgotten or not realized was needed. The wedding was at 2:00pm, but we arrived at the venue around 11:30am to help with whatever was needed and to take photos.
I was concerned that the kids would not do well with all the waiting (especially since Chris and I were helping in the kitchen), but they all did great. Brianna went to be with Mallory and the bridesmaids while they were getting ready and was living her best life with all the college girls!
Bailey (the wedding coordinator) and Brianna
JT with Brecklyn and Brooke
Shawna, Brianna, and Chelley
Bren and Isaac had no problems entertaining themselves with Isaac's video games!
The two sets of twins did great keeping one another company, haha!
And, sometimes they'd take turn joining the boys to play video games :-).
The wedding venue was out in the country on a beautiful plot of land. The ceremony and reception were in a barn-like structure. There were horses and pathways and a gorgeous patio to enjoy. It was lovely!
Brianna, Mallory, and Chelley
Micah Grace, Brianna, Mallory, and Chelley
At around noon, the photographer starting taking photos. Thankfully, my crew didn't have to be in too many.
I love this one, though!
After photos were finished, we had about 45 minutes until it was time for the wedding to begin. Lisa, Russ, and Chloe arrived during this time, so the girls wanted a photo with the bride.
Brianna, Mallory, and Chloe
G-Jo, Brianna, and Kaylee
Micah Grace, Brianna, Bailey, and KJ
Since we had some time, Chris and I decided to walk around the grounds. It was a beautiful day!
I didn't like these photos because it was so bright that we looked squinty. Ah well.
Yeah, I don't know . . .
We took our pretty little girls with us 💜💗.
Brecklyn, Brooke
Grampy was also out walking around, so we had a little photo shoot.
Brooke, Grampy, Brecklyn
Grampy tax!
Dad and Chelle
By the time we made it back to where the ceremony was held, the place had started to fill up. We decided we'd better occupy our seats so we didn't lose them!
Lisa, Russ, Bren, and Chelle
During the ceremony, Chris stood up on the balcony to video for JT and Mallory. They had asked that the ceremony be "technology free" - and I respected that - but Chris took these photos for me since he was up on the balcony by himself.
As you can see in the first photo of the ceremony, Jeremy officiated. Dad actually made the opening remarks, and immediately got choked up . . . to the point that he forgot to lead the opening prayer! Jeremy was also very emotional during the ceremony, and JT barely made it through his vows because he was so emotional! This pretty much made it really difficult for the rest of us! At one point, I could hear Lisa sniffiling behind me, so I handed her one of my last two tissues I had on me. She ended up giving it to Russ because he was such a mess of tears, haha. What can I say . . . we are a close family and the men are as emotional as the women! And I don't think that's a bad thing!
Everything was decorated beautifully!
Brianna, Jeremy, and Chloe
Grampy, Brianna, Chloe, and Jeremy
Russ, Lisa, Mom, Jeremy, and Chris
Lisa, Chelle, Mom, and Jeremy
Cousins!
Kaylee, Brecklyn, Brianna, Chloe, and Brooke
Chris and I had agreed ahead of time to help in the kitchen. We kept busy making sure all the finger foods stayed full and things stayed picked up. Brianna started out helping in the kitchen with us,
but eventually joined Chloe Jo at the drink station helping serve tea, water, and punch.
Jeremy being Jeremy . . .
Such a lovely set-up!
Aunt Chelle and Kaylee
Seeesters!
This is one of my favorite photos from the day . . . the grandparents of the groom just enjoying each other after the reception had mostly cleared out 💓.
Kaylee, Mallory, Brianna, and Chloe
Parents of the groom! I told them they threw one fabulous party!
Bren and Isaac continuing to live their best life! Bren didn't think he'd like the wedding, but he decided it wasn't too bad with a buddy!
MARRIED!
While the reception was winding down, I took the two sets of twins out for a walk and to take some photos. Aren't they precious?!?
Chara, Brooke, Brecklyn, and Chloe
💗💜💗💜
My girls were pretty worn out from all the excitement of the weekend, so they decided to sit down in the grass and pick flowers. Love these two!
Brooke, Brecklyn
At around 4:30pm, the bride and groom made their exit and getaway, haha! Mallory was so cute when she popped out of the sunroof to wave good-bye to everyone!
After Mallory and JT left, it was time to get to work! All of the groomsmen and bridesmaids stayed to help us take down decor, put away tables and chairs, and clean. It was a BIG job, but many hands made swift work. Some of the wedding party even drove all the way back to Jeremy and Shawna's house (about 30 minutes) to help us unload all the decor and wedding gifts from the cars and into the garage. JT and Mallory have some quality friends who were very pleasant to be around!
By the time we all made it back to Jeremy and Shawna's house and got the vehicles unloaded, it was after 6:00pm. I knew my kiddos were probably hungry, but I asked them to give me 30 minutes to rest. We were all exhausted! We ate leftovers from the night before for dinner and just let the kiddos play. Somehow, they all were still full of energy! Mom, Dad, and Gary left pretty early to go back to their motel rooms, and the rest of us didn't waste much time finding our beds.
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