Wedding!

On October 2nd, my longtime friend and former college roommate got married.

I met Katherine Ches Reynolds in 1998, when we were both freshmen at James Madison University. No doubt, humanly speaking, it was one of the upperclassmen on the Executive Team of InterVarsity who placed us in the same small group, but it was the Lord who slowly brought us together as friends. And it was He who brought Katherine to Maryland after graduation and made her a part of Covenant Life Church.

And then, about six years later, God brought her Tom Martin.

(Disclaimer: My camera is not very well, and many of the pictures I took that day turned out very blurry. I apologize in advance, but I'm still going to post some, as they're the best I have.)

The following names, which you might recognize, appeared in the program for Tom and Katherine's wedding.

Nancy Nalle: bridesmaid
Don Nalle: groomsman
Lena Nalle: scripture reading
Cara Wilcox: bridesmaid
Meg Wilcox: flower girl
Matthew Wilcox: ring bearer

Quite the family affair, no?

Meg was terribly excited about the wedding, starting many weeks in advance. I mean, new dress, new shoes, basket of flower petals, walking down the aisle to prepare the way for THE BRIDE... what's not to be excited about? Oh, and let's not not forget getting your hair done with the big girls...

I know this is cliche, but Meg honestly looked like a picture-book angel in her beautiful up-do, courtesy of the amazing Mrs. Erin Hill.

From the back:

Our dear friend Miss Mariel was on hand to help with Meg and Matthew that day. Meg was just a little bit happy to have her as a playmate. Can you tell?

The bride, getting all dolled up for her man...

Nana and Meggie...

...plus me makes three generations!

Given the level of family involvement, I don't have any shots from the ceremony. But it was lovely. And I didn't go down the aisle with a crying, contorted, red face (like I might possibly have done in another friend's wedding, when I was pregnant with my first child). Abstention from extreme weeping was my contribution to the loveliness. However, I definitely needed the wadded up tissues that rode incognito in my bouquet when Katherine came down the aisle on her dad's arm. If her serene, locked-on-Tom smile wasn't enough to get me going, the tears sliding down Tom's cheeks and onto his tux would have done it.

My favorite shot of the day is this one, taken during formal-portrait time, as the bridal party was waiting for the family shots.

OK, so let's state the obvious, shall we? Now well into their fifties, my parents are still pretty much the best-looking "real folks" (air-brushed magazine people excluded) that I know.

And Matthew? Well, Matthew was, um... profoundly cute in his little suit. And speaking of the clothes, this little man was almost as excited as his sister about the new wedding duds. I don't know that I ever imagined a small boy being quite that thrilled with a pair of black, patent-leather shoes. I kid you not. By the by, I think that Matthew looks more than a bit like my dad in the shot above. Any takers on that notion?

This picture is lousy, but the moment that followed it was very dear. I put my camera down and watched my friend of twelve years, standing there next to her husband, arrayed in her pristine, bridal white... and then she glanced at me, and we locked eyes for a long moment. And as my tears welled up and overflowed, my eyes were telling her, I can't believe we're here. I can't believe all that God has done in our friendship. I can't believe you let me be a part of this day, your day. You are standing next to your husband! You look so beautiful. You are going to love being married. I can't believe we're here!

And then she mouthed "I love you," and I mouthed, "I love you too." And she went back to the conversation with Tom, and I dabbed my eyes with a napkin and thought about how stupid it is to wear make-up at weddings.

One more shot of my cutie-tooties at the reception:

And this is Matthew's portrait of Peter Bang, wedding photographer extraordinaire.

Hey, Peter! I know you're super busy, but I sure am looking forward to seeing some of the REAL wedding pictures from Tom and Katherine's day. Hint, hint. Not that I've been waiting, or stalking your blog or anything like that.

OK, so Peter's not reading this. But a certain K Martin might be, some day, and if so, I want to say: thanks. Thanks so much for making my family a part of your wonderful wedding day. We can't wait to be a part of your married life too.