Unless The Lord...

Jon and Autumn's wedding was certainly what some would call a "homegrown wedding". We didn't hire musicians, a caterer, a florist, a bakery, a photographer, or a wedding coordinator, but we certainly don't think that the outcome of the special day suffered because of it.

I (with TONS of help from Collin) prepared all of the food from the cookies and candies, to the meal, to the cupcakes. Was it alot of work? YES! Did I survive? YES!

Mac was in charge of music. He loaded all of the music for the pre-ceremony and ceremony onto his new iPod, and played it through the church's sound system . It worked perfectly, and we saved several hundred dollars. He also played guitar for one hymn that we sang, and while the best man sang 'All the Things You Are' during the lighting of the unity candle.

Autumn wanted simple flowers, and we did keep it that way. However, when I got estimates from the local florists, they wanted about $75 for 4 flowers! Autumn would have had a bouquet of 3 gerbera daisies tied with ribbon, and Abigail would have carried a single stem. No way were we falling for that.

I called my good friend Tina, and she offered to arrange the flowers for free. We bought 15 flowers and greenery for $54. Autumn carried 9 flowers, Abigail carried three, and Tina made three boutonnieres; one for Jon, one for the best man, and one for the ring bearer.

Tina's daughter Ashley helped, too. They incorporated three pinwheels into Abigail's bouquet. It was beautiful and age appropriate for a 10 year old all at the same time. Autumn was pleased with the end result of all the flowers, and it was fun to have Tina and Ashley here the day before the wedding.

See the lady to the left of Autumn in the above picture? That's my good friend, Lori. She is a godsend. She's a bundle of ideas and energy. Lori thrives on making things just right, and we couldn't have pulled the wedding off without her. Autumn had picked her colors, and flowers, and I had the pinwheel idea. Lori then suggested the seashells and everything came together. When I mentioned the seashells to my friend Jennifer, she assured me that she had two large buckets and I need not buy any. And she did!

Lori and her daughter in law, Candace helped clean and decorate. It was Lori who made the beautiful sand castle centerpiece for the food table. I'm telling you, she's amazing!

She had idea after idea, and was very gracious if we had other plans. She made an amazing scene on the porch of the church for all to see as they entered. She made a sand scene complete with netting and driftwood. She carved the wedding date into the sand, and wrote 2=1. She then had the bride and groom come to the porch separately, and had them place their hand prints in the sand, side by side.

Not only was Lori full of ideas, but resources as well. Since I was doing all of the catering I needed serving pieces. Lori provided everything I needed from cut glass bowls, to tiers for the cupcakes, to Wilton-Armetale serving platters and bowls, to silverware and goblets. She had tables and pillars and plates and tablecloths. It was she and her husband Gene who provided the Jones sodas and threw the rehearsal dinner.

And she's humble. Each time we thank her, she grins and says, "It was fun!", and leaves it at that. God has certainly blessed us through their friendship.

And now, Sylvia, a few more photos of the food. Autumn wanted blue and silver. We brought the silver in by using galvanized buckets and watering cans. And Wilton -Armatele serving pieces.

The food was arranged on a circular (more oblong) table with the sand castle in the center. We served an assortment of rolls from a galvanized trough. There were choices of ham, turkey, and roast beef and cojack, provolone, and pepperjack cheeses. There were pickles and olives, and Sun chips. We had grapes on platters, and Ambrosia and broccoli - bacon salad.

The reception was divided into two separate rooms. As the people entered the hall, we had a table set up with cookies and candy, pretzels, and pink lemonade. We also had a table set up with the guest book, and we had lots of chairs for people to sit.

Once Jon and Autumn were finished with pictures, everyone moved to the other room where we ate lunch. This worked well to keep the tables from getting messed up before the bride and groom arrived.

The last person I want to mention is our neighbor, also named Lori. She does photography as a hobby, and takes wonderful photos. She spent hour after hour with us last week as she took photos of the rehearsal, getting ready, and the entire wedding and reception. When Jon and Autumn left the reception, they went to her house where she took pictures for another hour. I can't wait to share some of them with you when we get them back. This Lori (is there something creative about that name?) was also a blessing by letting us borrow tablecloths, the punch fountain, lanterns and more.

This I know: the Lord cares for His people. We had a very limited budget, and wanted to give our daughter a beautiful wedding. The Lord wanted her to have a beautiful wedding, too. He orchestrated every last detail and made it far more beautiful than any of us could have ever imagined.