Wonderful Wyoming (Windy!) Wedding

Alex and Deena W___ were married at 2:00PM, August 31st, 2007 at a ranch that's been in Deena's family for six generations. It was hot, it was dusty, windy, it was beautiful! This is Wyoming, people!

I have no shots of the ceremony itself: the kids had a very talented photographer to do that for them and mine would pale by comparison, but I do have highlights and a few nice photos from the rehearsal dinner and the reception:

• The setting: grazing land amongst the sweeping plains of North East Wyoming with a view of the Black Hills. The boys had created an arch of iron(?) with linked horseshoes for the couple to stand beneath. I didn't realize it until later, but the horseshoe motif was very clever, picture two horseshoes entwined, or crossing one another. The symbol of two becoming one works very well, it's also the first letter of their last name (W).
• The Gents: four groomsmen dressed in black cowboy hats, top coats (Alex, correct me if I'm wrong, k?), vests, white shirts, black jeans and boots.To say it was sunny would be an understatement, no rain for our newly-weds' day. The must-have accessory turned out to be sunglasses.
• The Ladies: a quartet of Deenas' closest friends, each with a pretty purple dress specially designed for her. Despite the wind, hairdos held up, make-up stayed fresh. The flowers made it through the ceremony; good thing they had extra for the reception.
• The Little Ones: The ring bearer, a cousin of Deena's, I believe, was darling. He was dressed just to match the Big Boys and did a beautiful job, standing still without complaining through the ceremony. Cheryl looked darling with her hair in loose curls and a wreath of baby's breath. Deena's mom, Luanne, designed her dress so that the bodice was made of the same material as Deena's dress and the skirt of the same material in the Bridesmaid's gowns. She carried a tiny white basket filled with pink rose petals remembered it was OK if they blew away.
• The Honored Guests: we were very fortunate to have so many members of both families join us. Besides both sides of Alex (and my) family, all of Deena's grandparents were able to attend, including her grandfather whose health has been declining. Poppop and Uncle Rick were there, representing the W's, along with my mom's sister Karen. Best of all, the same uncle who married Bill and I also performed the ceremony for Alex and Deena. Both Alex and Deena had unexpected friends show up from far away, both at the ceremony and the reception.
• The Groom: Alex smiled. A lot. This is big. Alex smiles at Mom and Dad, he smiles at me, at Cowboy, he smiles quite a bit at Deena, and even at his friends. That afternoon, Alex smiled and smiled and smiled. But not during his vows. Maybe it's a sign: both Alex and Cowboy said their vows with faces set in stone, men of their word, they took it seriously. When it came time for him to say the "I take you Deena" part, he was also loud enough to be heard in Utah! When this guy makes a vow, he says it so everybody can hear.
• The Bride: Soft blond curls floated down Deena's back, her delicate tiara sparkling in the sun. As I think on it, every inch of Deena's ensemble was created or set by someone who loves her very much. The dress was made primarily by her mother, but Deena's whole family helped with various parts. The tiara I mentioned was made by an Aunt in Texas just for the occasion, her hair carefully set and prepared by a long time friend of the family, her flowers arranged by the sister of one of her best friends, even the cake prepared by someone close to her. I gave her a handkerchief that had belonged to our great-grandmother, Miriam to carry as her borrowed thing. Alex and Cowboy said their vows the same way; Deena and I did too. We both sniffled just a bit in awe of the moment.

It was so bright, the wedding party wore shades but I didn't feel it detracted at all. Afterwards, everyone piled into the vehicles for the drive back to town and the reception. Tons of barbecue chicken and beef, fabulous potato salad, tons of ice tea and lemonade and a keg. Cowboy felt it part of his groomsmen duty to assist in the draining of the last, and had enough to make him the best dancer in the room. No really, he gets better with a little beer.

Some other highlights from the reception:

• Mark (the best man) gave a fabulous toast that really did capture the heart of Alex and his bond with Deena. It also captured Mark's bond with Alex.. which mostly involves horsepower.
• Alex and Deena are darling together. During their dance, I cried.
• My parents danced. In my memory, I can't recall ever having seen them dance in a formal setting. I cried.
• Patrick danced with Deena, as did Bill. I didn't cry, I got pictures.
• My mother didn't stop dancing the whole night. She danced with my dad, then she danced with Deena's dad (more than once, actually, I think), she danced the hokey-pokey, the chicken dance and the conga. It was awesome!
• The cake was handmade by one of Deena's friends and turned out beautifully; she'd never worked with fondant icing before but she did so well!
• I got to dance with my husband. I think it's been close to five years since we had danced and I forgot how much I missed it.
• Will caught the garter. Not sure how happy I am about that...

Last but not least, the best thing about the whole day.....

Alex did NOT have to work!!!

Congratulations, Alex and Deena. It was a privilege celebrating with you both!

Check out the album I created for this on Flickr (boy I hope this works!)

Wedding Album