Our Happily Ever After

August 14, 2014

 When Zach and I started to talk about where we were going to get married I told him that I really wanted our wedding to be about us and our family. I have always loved the beach and the San Diego Temple. When we started to talk about it realistically we weren't sure if it would work with our families...babies, expenses, work, traveling....but once we spoke with everyone they were more than amazing about helping us have the wedding we hoped for. We flew out on Tuesday August 12th to spend a couple days doing things with our family and then get MARRIED on Thursday August 14th! We went down to the beach on Wednesday the 13th to get some engagement pictures on the beach as well as some family pictures! We are so incredibly blessed to have the amazing supportive families that we do! 

These are a couple pictures of "the first look."  

Thursday morning I went to get my hair done bright and early. We left after that to head to the temple and had to be there by 9 AM. We were greeted by the sweetest temple workers! We were the only sealing that day so we were never rushed and felt like we had all of the time in the world. The temple workers took my temple bag when we first got there and once I got to the bridal room they had made sure my dress was freshly ironed and had everything laid out. My shoe had lost it's bow and they had noticed and sewn it on and added a velcro piece to my packet so it wouldn't open. The bridal room was so beautiful and they had a glass vase of water and a cute little dish of mints there for my Mom and I. There are so many little details about the day that I never want to forget.

Having our closest friends and family there with us was the biggest blessing. Our sealing was so special and I'll never forget the promises I was able to make to my sweet husband. When the sealing was over we were able to stay on the temple grounds and soak it all up. Keeley took a ton of beautiful pictures for us and we are SO grateful for her.

After pictures we headed back to Carlsbad where we were staying and we had a little lunch at our condos and visited with the family. The kids all had a little break and either went to the pool or the beach to play for a few hours. Later that night we had a dinner with all of the family at the Carlsbad Seapointe Resort. It was absolutely gorgeous and right on the beach. We had a big banquet room with the whole wall of windows overlooking the ocean. My Mom went above and beyond what I could have ever hoped for. The caterer had a beautiful table set up with yummy food! Denise had made a cake for us while we were there that we cut and had for dessert (yes she packed all of her cake plates and cooking supplies ALL of the way to California). We had our wedding video playing and also had a DJ with a dance floor! The DJ was so much fun and played music for us while we ate and then we had our parents and siblings give us a little toast. I was able to have my first dance with my new hubby that night as the sunset! Our first dance was to "Hey Pretty Girl" by Kip Moore (the song that Zach sang to me when he proposed).

We danced for a couple hours that night! It was so much fun to dance with our family and see our cute nieces and nephews have so much fun. We also roasted marshmallows in the firepit that was right outside of our banquet room.  Our last dance that night was to "Not A Moment Too Soon" by Tim McGraw. This was the song I had sent to Zach a while after we started dating that was exactly how I felt about him. "Not a moment too soon, with not a minute to spare. You touched my heart when I didn't have a prayer. In my darkest hour, when my world was filled with gloom. Your sweet love saved me, not a moment too soon." We spent our first night together at the Seapointe resort and then stayed for our honeymoon in Oceanside until August 21st. 
The weekend we returned home we had an Open House in North Ogden. We had so many family members and friends come to support us and show their love for us. We had an ice cream bar in a waffle bowel with tons of different toppings. I can honestly say that I would never change a thing. I have married my best friend and the most amazing man I could have ever imagined. He amazes me on a daily basis of the way he is able to give and show love to me and the people around him. 

“Marry your best friend. I do not say that lightly. Really, truly find the strongest, happiest friendship in the person you fall in love with. Someone who speaks highly of you. Someone you can laugh with. The kind of laughs that make your belly ache, and your nose snort. The embarrassing, earnest, healing kind of laughs. Wit is important. Life is too short not to love someone who lets you be a fool with them. Make sure they are somebody who lets you cry, too. Despair will come. Find someone that you want to be there with you through those times. Most importantly, marry the one that makes passion, love, and madness combine and course through you. A love that will never dilute - even when the waters get deep, and dark.”