Our Wedding

The wedding ceremony took place at 11:00am on April 27th, 2002 at Shirley Acres in Houston, Texas. We had chosen the date because we had wanted an outdoor wedding and it begins to get rather hot in Houston by late May. Of course, you can never predict the weather and the whole month of April ended up being very warm. It was a balmy 85-90 degrees by the time our wedding began. It was pretty humid, too! But, at least it didn't rain! Our poor minister was dripping with sweat the entire time. Our guests didn't complain, though. We warned them to dress light! The grounds were beautiful and the ceremony went off without a hitch! Well, okay, so there were a few bobbles here and there, but I must say, I thought it was PERFECT! Click on the links for pictures and examples of the various things that made our wedding special.

Wedding Journal - I kept a journal of the various benchmarks leading up to our wedding day!

Wedding Newsletter – The newsletter was mailed out to all out of town guests about three months before the wedding.
We also provided an Out of Town brochure for all of the guests who were interested in places to see and do around Houston.

Welcome Bags – Out of town guests received welcome bags as they arrived to the hotel. A welcome letter was attached to the outside and various goodies were inside. Some things I included were: water bottles, chips, and cookies. I also included various Texas themed items: pencils, mints, stickers, and playing cards.

Gift Ideas for Wedding Party – I really enjoyed creating the gifts for the wedding party. Jeremy and I gave the gifts at the rehearsal dinner. There were a lot of happy tears shed at this time and I loved seeing everyone enjoying their gifts. My Mom, Dad, and sister, Kristi each received a photo frame with three openings. I placed a poem in the center opening and an old childhood photo of that particular person and me on the left. The opening on the right was left open for the future picture from the wedding day. To read each poem, click on each: Mom Poem, Dad Poem, Sister Poem. I made photo collages of each bridesmaid and myself as well. They loved them! I also gave the girls their necklace and earring sets for the wedding. Jeremy gave his sister, Michelle, and his Dad a photo collage of themselves as well. His men received gift certificates to each of their favorite stores.

Attire:
The Dress -- I wore a beautiful silk gown by Mon Cheri.

Bridesmaid Dresses -- My girls wore navy dresses from David's Bridal.

Groom’s Tuxedo --Jeremy wore a black tuxedo with a white vest and tie. (He looked extremely handsome!)

Groomsmen -- His men wore black tuxedos with a navy vest and tie.
Accessories:
Wedding Program -- I made the programs myself and we printed them on our laser printer. The programs, wedding newsletter, and CD favors all had the same soft rose background on them.

View the inside of the program and the outside of the program.

Wedding CD Favor – All guests received a personalized CD, which contained special songs from the wedding day as well as some of our favorite songs. It was a big hit!

View the Wedding CD Favor

Wedding Quilt– I wanted a special keepsake of my wedding day and this idea came from the Ultimate Wedding Site (from which I got many ideas). My guest book attendant, Laurel, gave each guest a white quilt block as they signed the guest book. A picture was displayed of an example quilt so the guests would get an idea of what I had in mind. Black fabric pens were at each table and the guests were asked to fill their own block. They could draw, write a message, or simply sign their name on it and return it to Laurel when they were finished. Every single guest filled one out! Some even did two! I loved reading these over after the wedding. I’m still in the process of hand-sewing the quilt but here is a picture of blocks all laid out. It will be a fabulous heirloom.

View the quilt.

Our Videographer was the best! If anyone living in the Houston area is looking for a Videographer for their wedding, I highly recommend ours: Keith Tomshee - In Focus Productions.

Click on the link to view our wedding video summary.

For the first part of our honeymoon we ventured to the ever popular San Antonio Riverwalk for a 3 day getaway. The second part of our honeymoon had us relaxing amid the warm white beaches and beautiful turquoise waters of the most breathtaking area on earth. During our 7 day cruise, we visited Key West, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. It was definitely relaxing! Just what the doctor ordered.....

Click here to see our honeymoon photos.