Swamp Gravy: love

One of my favorite things about weddings is the amount of time the couples put into the details. Without the simple little details that take hours to plan and coordinate, weddings would all be the same: ceremony, reception, and getaway. That's why when it came to planning the details of our wedding, I wanted the best possible reflection of Wes and I and who we are as a couple. Despite the fact that planning said details made me what to pull my hair out, it was these little touches that made our day our own and, ultimately, perfect in every way. So in honor of those devilish little details, I want to name my top 5 favorites from our wedding.

1. Our Love Tree

Wes and I knew we wanted to have some sort of unity ceremony at our wedding, but neither of us were fans of the traditional candle or sand ceremony. We wanted it to be something different, yet something we could enjoy for our entire lives together. We decided to pot a “love tree” during the ceremony. We each poured a jar of soil from our childhood homes over the roots of the tree and watered it to symbolize the nourishment that we new we needed God to provide throughout our lives. The tree is now planted in our backyard, and we can't wait to watch it bloom throughout our marriage.

2. Yard Games

Yes, I know, yard games have become very trendy at weddings nowadays. But I like to think Wes and I put our own spin on it. We hand painted the cornhole boards ourselves (one set was monogrammed and the other had outlines of our home states), and the Giant Jenga board doubled as a guest book. Now when we play them, we get to laugh about the sweet message and memories (and drawings) each of the pieces has on them.

3. Firefly Jars

One of my favorite things about summer in Kentucky is the glow of the fireflies. Being that half of my family hails from South Georgia, they had never gotten to see the glorious lightening bugs before, so I wanted to make them part of our wedding day. My mom wrote a beautiful poem about fireflies and we had jars set out for all the kids to house the bugs when they caught them. It truly was the perfect setting for the magical glow of those mysterious little bugs.

4. Quotes

I might be stating the obvious, but I am a bit of a lover of words. I knew I wanted to incorporate this love of words in our wedding. I spent hours coming up with a list of my favorite love quotes from movies and songs and Bible verses, and we strategically placed them throughout the reception. We framed them on each of the tables, and Wes’s mom hand painted them on giant chalkboards that we hung on the walls.

5. Vows

By far my favorite part of the day was exchanging our vows. We decided to write our own, and it was the most tender and romantic moment of my life. It didn’t matter that there were 200 of our closest family and friends just steps away; it felt like we were alone in this perfect moment of time. Wes’s words to me were the most beautiful I’ve ever heard, and each time I think about them I am reminded of how very lucky and loved I am.

Photos by Erin Blinn, Honey & Salt Photography

As much as I love words (and, let’s be honest, I love them), I don’t think I could ever describe the beauty of our wedding day with them. So, instead, I am going to let the pictures to the talking, and add a few details here and there to fill in the gaps.

June 28 was a rainy, gloomy morning, and my anxiety was high being that we had planned an outdoor ceremony. But my sweet husband-to-be knew exactly how to make me smile. He sent a special delivery via his mom: 52 Reasons I Want To Marry You.

My mom and I had a perfect mother-daughter moment when she gave me my something old, new, borrowed and blue and helped me put on my dress. My bridesmaids made me feel absolutely beautiful when they saw me in my dress for the first time. Despite the rain and the last minute change of plans, the morning was shaping up to be quite beautiful.