our wedding: the ceremony

Hands down...I was most excited for our marriage ceremony. Here's why.

+ We had a beautiful ceremony location that was incredibly affordable and flexible.  We got married at the Silk Hope Community Center in Silk Hope, North Carolina.  Silk Hope is in Chatham County and was about a 1/2 hour from both of our parents homes.  Due to the flexibility and affordable costs, it was easily our best option.  We were allowed to set up the day before (no charge), the tables and chairs inside were provided with the rental fee, and we were supporting a great organization as well.  The community center is owned and maintained by the Ruritan Club, so it is a relatively influential building in our community.  I loved how it had an old barn look...and was smack dab in the middle of the country.

+ One of my favorite things about weddings is how love just encompasses the entire space. I believe that weddings are just another way to rekindle the love between married couples. New love is always so refreshing and it just seems to always take people back to their wedding day. I am so glad that we were able to be surrounded by so many couples with amazing, long lasting marriages.  Our preacher and his wife are no excuse.  He still checks her out as he comes down the aisle and she smiles back at him like they just got married yesterday.

+ I had a short note written to Peyton that said "I can't wait to be Mrs. Holland!" and gave it to my sister to hand to him when she got to the end of the aisle. Peyton hadn't shed a tear yet...but the note got him...and I couldn't be happier!

 + My daddy is a pretty calm, quiet, and collected man...not much gets him excited, BUT, he went out and bought a new suit, a shirt and tie, and new shoes that made him feel like he was the man. Neither he or I are super emotional people, so the entire time walking down the aisle we talked about how we could get my momma in a tizzy.  Things like running and skipping down the aisle came into conversation and making his boutonniere, a squirt gun flower...need I say more?

+ Growing up in Career and Technical Education (and being involved in SkillsUSA and FFA) is the conversation that connected Peyton and I.  I love this picture of me walking down the aisle because it had all of our mentors and teachers in the picture. Our agriculture and masonry teachers were there and it just made our day....both of their marriages are strong in faith-based love.

+ We didn't follow many traditions in our wedding, but having a ceremony centered on our relationship with Christ was so important to us. Instead of traditional vows, we recited vows from scripture in the book of Ruth.  

"Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you.  

Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay.  

Your people will be my people and your God my God. 

Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried.  

May the Lord deal with me, be it ever so severely, even if death separates you and me."

Agriculture, nature, and trees are important to us, so it felt incredibly natural to have a tree ceremony instead of a unity candle.  We took soil from both of our homes, poured it into the pot of our new camellia, watered it, and will plant it in the yard of our new home.  This tree is the start of something new and young...and we plan to watch it grow with us as our marriage develops.  

+ At the end of the day, all that mattered to us is that we were husband and wife.  Everything we had ever dreamed of came together.  We had beautiful weather (sunny and breezy)...and to our surprise, we didn't have the typical North Carolina July heat and humidity! Love was in the air and happiness radiated from so many hearts of our friends and family. All of the homemade touches and the help from our friends settting up made our outdoor ceremony space so special.  Peyton and his father made the arbor we stood under, my momma found the lace curtains at a garage sale, and our wooden barrels and stumps came from our barns at the sawmill. We knew we didn't need much because we had us...and that's all that mattered.  Fully committed and teammates forever. 

*Pictures taken by the lovely Tiffani of Tiffani Evans Photo