LDS Weddings 101: Our Wedding Day
By Amy Miller
The sealing
The best and most important part was done first thing in the morning: Get married to my best friend! After that, the mishaps don’t matter, because you are happy as can be!
Photography
Pictures were taken with family and friends on the temple grounds, and afterwards, Trevor and I spent about an hour taking pictures just us and the photographer. I know many people do groomals before-hand, so that the wedding day isn’t rushed. I really think this all depends on what you want. I personally didn’t want Trevor to see me before the actual day, and I also didn’t have time, or want to pay the expenses of another photo-shoot with all the hair and makeup fixings. The final reason, was that I wanted our pictures to have that “wedding day glow” in our smiles. That’s what I did, and definitely don’t regret it. I also didn’t do bridals! If the dress matters to you that much, that’s cool. The wedding pictures I planned on hanging in our apartment were going to be ones of Trevor and I, not the ones of only me and my dress. I figured I could get some of just me on the wedding day and have those count. Huge stress-relief.
Entertainment
I had an early dinner with a program, for about 65+ guests consisting of our close family and friends. We shared our story through a power-point presentation, so that everyone would know how WE came to be. People gave toasts during dinner, and we had our first dance on stage, followed by a dance party with everyone else! We also cut our cake, and ate it, too! ;) Sadly, I hear that many couples only ate the piece of cake that was shoved in their mouths by their spouse…WHAT?! You pay triple digits for a cake and don’t eat it?!
Many people don’t like having a traditional wedding cake because it doesn’t taste that great, or people don’t end up eating it all. We realized that we were paying $400 for cake that wasn’t our favorite dessert, and was so expensive. After looking over alternatives, I changed it up with a reduced-size, three-tiered cake, having the bottom and top layers be thinner, and the top layer be brownie for only Trevor and I! We loved it. We took the top one on our honeymoon to devour, and all the cake got eaten by the end of the night. What a win-win situation that was.
Reception
A reception was held about 45 minutes later at the same location. All we had to do was lay out all the treatsies on the table, and move a few things around for a receiving line. I know a lot of couples have been opting-out on receptions these days, because they are long, and some guests just don’t like them for one reason or another. I wrestled with this idea, and after much thought and input from people, we chose to hold a reception, and we are so glad we did. We didn’t leave our wedding day events until about 9:30, yes, but all of that time was well-spent. Our feet were tired of standing in line, but it was so good to see so many long-lost friends or family, who were all so congratulatory to us! I think those who attended really enjoyed the whole night, because we got compliment after compliment. And because so many people were able to be a part of our day, we received many generous gifts — Gifts that may not have been received had we not held a reception. Keep that information in mind, when thinking about starting your future together.
The things I remember the most about my wedding day, were not things. They were people, and the words that were said. I remember the many looks on my new husband’s face, throughout the happiness of our day. I remember the words that were said to us in our ceremony. I remember the people who attended, and who were outside waiting for us with smiling, happy faces. I remember how much fun we had dancing on stage, and reminiscing with family and friends we hadn’t seen in awhile. I remember the laughs shared, tears cried, and warm hugs. The special moments, to us, are what will make your wedding day the best day ever.
