Show Us Your Life: Wedding Reception and Honeymoon

We walked right out of the church and went straight to the reception site so we could get pictures there as well. We booked it to the reception site and took a few pictures while the guests milled around and started eating.

Mrs. Angie had set up a sweetheart table for Jason and me. Before I knew it Mr. Dan had food in front of us and we tried to eat while people came to congratulate us.

The reception was absolutely beautiful. Pretty soon we were running through the bubbles to the 4Runner and off to start our honeymoon!

Right before we left the reception my sister told me that there was a gift in the 4Runner for me that I had to open that night. I just figured it was something funny for the wedding night. When we got to the hotel we opened the gift and it was from Erin, Uncle Bud, and Aunt Debbie. It was a digital photo frame and a memory card with pictures on it. We set it up and it was pictures from before the wedding, moments from the wedding that we didn't get to see and the reception! Erin, thank you so much for your thoughtful gift!!

The day after we got married Jason and I met our parents, Jennifer, and the Britts at Cracker Barrel. It was pretty funny to see Dad and Mr. Ray drive away in the 4Runner with Just Married on the back window. Afterward we hung out with Jason's friends from Cincinnati. It was so nice to be able to hang out with them especially since they drove all of that way for our wedding! We spent the afternoon playing mini golf and just hanging out!




Hawaiian Honeymoon
On Sunday morning we flew to Hawaii. Jason planned the entire honeymoon. He did a fantastic job! After a long flight we made it to Honolulu!! We stayed at ResortQuest Waikiki Beach while on Oahu. We walked the strip and ate at The Cheesecake Factory.



Bus TourOur first full day in Honolulu we took a bus tour of the island. It was a really good way to see the entire island. The bus picked us up after we had breakfast by the pool. Our guide, Cousin Goodlooking, did a great job showing us all of the sites. We had a pretty big group and with limited time at each stop he used a "shellphone" to give us a 5 minute warning when it was time to leave. He was serious we actually left some people at the Dole Plantation. The waves by the North Shore were huge even when it wasn't the highest it gets at peak season. We were supposed to go to a luau after the tour but we were so exhausted we opted to walk along the strip by the beach. We ate dinner at Cheeseburger in Paradise, our first stop on our burger tour!





Hike, Bike, Sail and SnorkelOur last day in Honolulu was my favorite. We got picked up again and went on our outing for the day of hiking, biking, sailing and snorkeling. First we went to the mountains which by the way was only about 10 minutes from the beach. We ended up hiking through the rain forest. It was beautiful. Then we went biking all downhill of course from the top of Puu Ohia. We stopped for lunch and had a picnic overlooking Honolulu. After working up a sweat it was time to go sailing off Waikiki Beach. We went snorkeling as well and were amazed at how huge the sea turtles were!

We had so much fun. After we got dropped off at the hotel we decided to walk to Outback. You will never believe how many ABC stores are in Waikiki Beach. They are a souvenir shop and they are everywhere!! At one corner you can probably see three. I made a game that we had to kiss every time we passed one. People knew we were newlyweds because every block we would have to stop and kiss because of those stores!





KauaiOur trip in Kauai almost didn't happen like we planned. We had to buy our airline tickets the night before because the airline we had originally booked on filed for bankruptcy a couple of weeks before our honeymoon. Did you think we heard anything from them to let us know about our flight no longer existing? Nope, not a word! One of the guys on the tour told us that Aloha airlines were not flying anymore. Needless to say we booked a flight and thankfully it was only a couple of dollars more. In order to get our money refunded we had to dispute the bill with our credit card. Crazy, huh?

Well we got to Kauai without a hitch. It is a 20 minute flight! We rented a jeep and drove the Kuhio Highway along the beach. It was absolutely beautiful. We stopped at another burger joint for lunch. We were surprised at how many roosters and chickens there were. They were everywhere!! We then drove to Poipu Beach where we were going to stay. The placed we stayed was very nice. It was much like a studio apartment complete with a kitchen. We decided to grill out...what else but burgers! While we were grilling we set off the smoke alarm because the smoke from the grill went right up to the air conditioner vent so our room was pretty smoky for awhile!



ATV TourThe day of our ATV tour was perfect and muddy! It had stormed the night before and we were supposed to do the boat tour that day but it was canceled because the ocean was so rough. After a few phone calls we switched our schedule around and headed to the ranch to go on our ATV tour. It was so much fun and we got to see lots of wildlife besides chickens and roosters! There were lots of wild pigs who were so cute! We also saw where some movies were filmed. Jurassic Park and Indiana Jones movies were the most common. At the rope swing where Indiana Jones swung in the water Jason got hurt. He was trying to hang on and not go in the water but slipped and fell in the water. Unfortunately he hung on to the rope for a a little too long and probably broke a couple of fingers. I was laughing so hard our guide I had to play nurse instead of me! For supper that night we stopped at another burger joint





Boat TourOur boat tour took us along the Na Pali coast. It was so beautiful. This is no ordinary boat tour. We sat on the edge of the boat holding on to ropes the entire time. We explored sea caves, went under waterfalls and even explored the ruins on an old Hawaiian fishing village. I even surprised out guide about my knowledge of the Jaguars. On our trip was the daughter in law and grandson of the owner of the Jaguars.





Waimea Canyon
Our last day in Hawaii we took the jeep along the roads of Waimea Canyon. As you can tell in the pictures, it was very beautiful. We were supposed to go on a three seater plane before heading home but the plane had something wrong with it so maybe on our next trip we can do that! Luckily that was the only thing that fell through in all of Jason's planning! We flew back to Honolulu and had an overnight flight home to the mainland.

SHOW US YOUR LIFE: Wedding party, flowers, and ceremony

Kelly's Korner does a Show Us Your Life on Friday's and being a newlywed, I just had to jump in this week!

The wedding party was very easy to decide. My sister was my matron of honor and my sister in law and best friend/cousin were my bridesmaids. Jason had his good friend from college, a good friend from high school and my cousin who set us up.








For the flowers we went with Gladwell's Florist. They are within minutes from the church and the lady who runs it is in Jason's parents Sunday School Class. I had originally wanted calla lilies but once I saw the simple roses bouquet I went with that. Plus it helped matters that they were a tad cheaper! A funny story about the flowers is the day before the wedding I got a phone call from the gal putting them together. She was worried that I would be upset that they had a pink tint to them. I didn't mind and they turned out beautiful!






As far as the rest of the wedding planning goes, it is described in detail here.

It was finally the day I had been dreaming about since I was a little girl and planning for about six months! The first thing I had to do that morning was get my hair done at 1100. We had the same hairstylist so we were just staggered until everyone had their hair done Diana's appointment was after me so she met me there when I was finishing up. In the midst of talking to Diana and talking about lunch I forgot to pay for my hairdo! I went to Chic Fil A and then came back to chat with Diana while she got her hair done.

I went to the church to start getting ready and meet the florist and photographer. Diana met me at the church and started doing my makeup. Brenda Estes came and started taking getting ready photos. Slowly everyone started showing up to get ready! My mom had to go buy another unity candle because the original got knocked down and broken while the housekeeper was doing last minute vacuuming.

Jason and I did our pictures before the wedding so our guests wouldn't have to wait at the reception for too long! We had a very tight schedule but I was very relieved that everyone was on time and ready for the pictures so that went off without a hitch! Although we did the pictures beforehand, I walked down the aisle and had Jason turn around to see me when I got closer to him so I could see his reaction. Thankfully Steve and Brenda were there to capture each of our faces when we saw one another. They then gave us a few minutes alone and then the photos began!












We finished up the photos about an hour before the wedding. That was the longest hour of my life. During that time, we had a snack and just passed the time. The McWhorter's were awesome and helped keep an eye on the kids and out of trouble during that time! Thank you Mrs. Denise, Angie and Katie!!

A little bit before the wedding my cousin Erin came and took a few pictures of us. I didn't have a clue she had other motives! Erin had the best gift for us in mind!

The bridesmaids and I were in another building so we put Mr. Terry McWhorter to work as the runner to come get everyone as they were needed so no one would see us. Mr. Terry came and said it was time. Mary Beth was turning to fix something and fell. Her knee was swollen and we were not sure if she was going to be able to walk on it. Thankfully she mustered some strength and pushed through the pain. When they left I was alone. It was wonderful time for me to gather myself and thank God for bringing my Jason to me! Finally my dad came and got me and walked me to the church. When we got there Mrs. Catha, who is the best wedding coordinator, was telling us that Seth and Cash had fallen down while walking down the aisle. I couldnt't see anything but Erin captured some of it! When it was time to walk down the aisle with dad I was pretty nervous until I saw what Hannah had done with the flowers. We have a loong aisle at Lake Shore. She had taken handfuls of flowers to drop. Unfortunately there were about three or four piles and then one or two flowers after that. Basically only about 1/3 of the aisle had flowers!

Jason and I decided to have his dad do the first part of the ceremony so dad could give me away. Phil did a fabulous job. He made everyone laugh and made me calm right down. Before we knew it my dad was announcing Mr. and Mrs. Jason Brown!

SHOW US YOUR LIFE: Wedding dress

Kelly's Korner does a Show Us Your Life on Friday's and being a newlywed, I just had to jump in this week! Today's is the wedding dress! I'll paste from a previous post:

I got my dress ordered from The Simple Bride in Jacksonville Beach. The ladies there were fabulous and I realized how much they spoiled me when I went to other shops! I just tried on whatever the girls brought me and did not get to see the dress until after I got my sister Stephanie and sister in law Diana's reaction because of how it was set up. Finally when I tried on "my dress" they were out of the room so I got to see it first. I thought that it was so simple but gorgeous. I was waiting for them and they walked into the room and it took their breath away!

Wedding Album

Our wedding album is almost done! Brenda did a great job on it and it was definitely worth the wait.

Wedding Day

It was finally the day I had been dreaming about since I was a little girl and planning for about six months! The first thing I had to do that morning was get my hair done at 1100. We had the same hairstylist so we were just staggered until everyone had their hair done. Diana's appointment was after me so she met me there when I was finishing up. In the midst of talking to Diana and talking about lunch I forgot to pay for my hairdo! I went to Chic Fil A and then came back to chat with Diana while she got her hair done.

I went to the church to start getting ready and meet the florist and photographer. Diana met me at the church and started doing my makeup. Brenda Estes came and started taking getting ready photos. Slowly everyone started showing up to get ready! My mom had to go buy another unity candle because the original got knocked down and broken while the housekeeper was doing last minute vacuuming.

Jason and I did our pictures before the wedding so our guests wouldn't have to wait at the reception for too long! We had a very tight schedule but I was very relieved that everyone was on time and ready for the pictures so that went off without a hitch! Although we did the pictures beforehand, I walked down the aisle and had Jason turn around to see me when I got closer to him so I could see his reaction. Thankfully Steve and Brenda were there to capture each of our faces when we saw one another. They then gave us a few minutes alone and then the photos began!

We finished up the photos about an hour before the wedding. That was the longest hour of my life. During that time, we had a snack and just passed the time. The McWhorter's were awesome and helped keep an eye on the kids and out of trouble during that time! Thank you Mrs. Denise, Angie and Katie!!

A little bit before the wedding my cousin Erin came and took a few pictures of us. I didn't have a clue she had other motives! Erin had the best gift for us in mind!

The bridesmaids and I were in another building so we put Mr. Terry McWhorter to work as the runner to come get everyone as they were needed so no one would see us. Mr. Terry came and said it was time. Mary Beth was turning to fix something and fell. Her knee was swollen and we were not sure if she was going to be able to walk on it. Thankfully she mustered some strength and pushed through the pain. When they left I was alone. It was wonderful time for me to gather myself and thank God for bringing my Jason to me! Finally my dad came and got me and walked me to the church. When we got there Mrs. Catha, who is the best wedding coordinator, was telling us that Seth and Cash had fallen down while walking down the aisle. I couldnt't see anything but Erin captured some of it! When it was time to walk down the aisle with dad I was pretty nervous until I saw what Hannah had done with the flowers. We have a loong aisle at Lake Shore. She had taken handfuls of flowers to drop. Unfortunately there were about three or four piles and then one or two flowers after that. Basically only about 1/3 of the aisle had flowers!

Jason and I decided to have his dad do the first part of the ceremony so dad could give me away. Phil did a fabulous job. He made everyone laugh and made me calm right down. Before we knew it my dad was announcing Mr. and Mrs. Jason Brown!

We booked it to the reception site and took a few pictures while the guests milled around and started eating. Mrs. Angie had set up a sweetheart table for Jason and me. Before I knew it Mr. Dan had food in front of us and we tried to eat while people came to congratulate us. The reception was absolutely beautiful. Pretty soon we were running through the bubbles to the 4Runner and off to start our honeymoon!

Right before we left the reception my sister told me that there was a gift in the 4Runner for me that I had to open that night. I just figured it was something funny for the wedding night. When we got to the hotel we opened the gift and it was from Erin, Uncle Bud, and Aunt Debbie. It was a digital photo frame and a memory card with pictures on it. We set it up and it was pictures from before the wedding, moments from the wedding that we didn't get to see and the reception! Erin, thank you so much for your thoughtful gift!!

Wedding planning

The wedding planning went really well and was not very stressful at all. Thankfully we had most of the planning done before Jason moved to Iowa in February. We had seven weeks apart before the wedding and I was able to get a lot done while he got settled in Iowa.

The date was pretty easy to decide. We knew we did not want a long engagement but needed at least 6 months to plan it. We got my pocket calendar out and said April would be a great month. His parents were going to be overseas so we decided on the weekend of April 11. We had originally decided that a Saturday wedding would be better but learned early to be flexible in the wedding planning.

I knew I was going to get married at Lake Shore Baptist where my dad has been the pastor since I was in fourth grade. He was going to do the ceremony also.

I did most of the researching of the reception sites on line and made a few calls. We were amazed at how expensive some of the sites were especially the food. We knew we did not want a sit down dinner or a formal reception. For the amount of people we were going to have at the wedding and reception we wanted to keep it simple (and affordable!). One weekend at work, I was doing some more research and telling the other ladies how hard it was to find a place. One of my coworkers, Anissa, lives in Oak Leaf and mentioned their clubhouse does weddings and receptions. She showed me the website and I fell in love with it. For one it was way cheaper than anywhere else and we could bring our own caterer in so we had more say in what we wanted.

For the food we had decided to get Dan Engelhardt, a member from our church who does a bunch of the cooking whenever we have a big church function. I have been eating his food for years and knew he would do a wonderful job. The one thing Jason and I both wanted at the reception that everyone thought was a little different were pigs in a blanket! We loved them!



The very next day Jason and I drove out to Oak Leaf to see it. It was all set up for a wedding and we both were very impressed by it. I called later that week to book it for the Saturday of the weekend we had hoped to get married. It was booked for another wedding but the Friday night before was open so we decided on April 11 was going to be the day!

I got my dress ordered from The Simple Bride in Jacksonville Beach. The ladies there were fabulous and I realized how much they spoiled me when I went to other shops! I just tried on whatever the girls brought me and did not get to see the dress until after I got Stephanie and Diana's reaction because of how it was set up. Finally when I tried on "my dress" they were out of the room so I got to see it first. I thought that it was so simple but gorgeous. I was waiting for them and they walked into the room and it took their breath away!

The bridesmaid's dresses were beautiful as well. It was really funny how most everything I picked out online was not what I ended up picking once I saw it at the store. We got the bridesmaids' dresses at The Bridal Shop at Orange Park.




The most shocked we got while doing wedding planning was the cost of the cake I had originally picked out. The price was going to be $1200 for a CAKE. We decided there was no way we were going to pay that much for cake which we probably wouldn't remember anyway. I went to Publix where an old church member was the head of the bakery and picked a cake out that was similar to the original one. It was fabulous!

The one thing we splurged on for the wedding was the photography. Estes Photography was our choice. Steve and Brenda did my sister's wedding and her friend and her sister's wedding as well. They do a fantastic job and we knew what we were getting in them.

For the music, I absolutely did not want any singing. I just could picture myself laughing at the corny songs at the alter. We went with simple and just had an awesome guitarist at the beginning. Jason's sister Jennifer had a wonderful idea. She is a fantastic flutist so we had her play as well. Jennifer mentioned that she had played Somewhere Over The Rainbow as the flower girl walked down the aisle. Hannah loves The Wizard of Oz so I thought that Hannah would love to walk with that playing. It turned out really pretty!

For the flowers we went with Gladwell's Florist. They are within minutes from the church and the lady who runs it is in Jason's parents Sunday School Class. I had originally wanted calla lilies but once I saw the simple roses bouquet I went with that. Plus it helped matters that they were a tad cheaper! A funny story about the flowers is the day before the wedding I got a phone call from the gal putting them together. She was worried that I would be upset that they had a pink tint to them. I didn't mind and they turned out beautiful!

The part of the wedding that had the potential for being the most stressful was the decorating. I don't have a decorating bone in me so I really needed someone to do that! We didn't get that settled until probably two or three months before the wedding. One of our former church member's does decorating for weddings. Mom had run into her one day in the store and Mrs. Angie had mentioned she was decorating for fun and making jewelry, too. I met with her so I could get the bridesmaids' jewelry for their wedding gift. The necklaces were so pretty! Thankfully Mrs. Angie put everything together in record time!! Also, with Oak Leaf we were only going to be able to decorate the day of the wedding. There was no way or so we were told that we could get in there any earlier than about 4 hours before the wedding was to start. Thankfully the event scheduled before us canceled and it worked out to get it started after the rehearsal!

While I planned the wedding Jason planned the honeymoon. All I knew was we were going to Hawaii and he took care of everything. He did a ton of research and planned out the honeymoon