So the day started off nice and calm. Both girls had a good night's sleep. Ella seemed super excited and we found a makeshift basket and flowers to practice tossing the flowers as we walk. She couldn't wait to put her dress on, and had been so disappointed when she couldn't wear her flower girl dress to the rehearsal the night before. She was pretty disappointed when I told her that she couldn't put her dress on until we arrived at the church.
Ronnie and Ella needed to be at the church at 2 p.m. for wedding party pictures. Kendall and I needed to be there at 3 p.m. for family pictures. The wedding began at 4:30 p.m. As hard as I tried, I could NOT get Kendall to take a nap before we had to leave to take Ronnie and Ella for pictures, but thankfully she fell asleep in the car so we drove around for an hour after dropping them off so she could get a somewhat decent nap in. I probably wasted 1/4 tank of gas, but it's worth it for a nap! I was disappointed to not be at the church to see Ella in the pictures, but also thought she might do better if I weren't there. Thankfully Ronnie said she did great and was cooperative. I can't wait to see the wedding pictures!
After we took photos Mom and Dad arrived and I handed Kendall off. They sat in the back with her for an easy exit, just in case she decided to be loud (if you've ever met Kendall, you know what I'm talking about...she's a pretty vocal little girl!). I handed her off hungry, and thankfully she didn't make a peep thanks to a full ziploc bag of Cheerios I sent her with. I was ready in the front row...ready for a quick Ella-grab if need be. Ella was hanging out with the female bridal party, I hoped bonding so that she would be ready to stand with all of them during the ceremony. Then it was time!
The wedding was absolutely beautiful. The singers, and song choices, were perfect. They had a duet of "When God Made You", a song that was also sung in our wedding, and also had the song, "God Gave Me You", which is one of my favorites! Everyone looked beautiful. Tara was absolutely stunning, and all the girls looked gorgeous in their purple dresses and the men were handsome in their tuxes. When it was time for the flower girls to walk out my heart was literally beating out of my chest. Ella looked adorable, and was walking with her oldest cousin. Things went well until they got about 3/4 of the way down the aisle. Then I watched her expression change from "having fun, throwing flowers, having fun, throwing flowers" to "hmmm, everyone is looking at me and a photographer is taking pictures of me, what should I do". So, she stopped and dumped all of the flowers out of her basket, with a look on her face that was part innocent, part mischevious. Then she ever-so-lightly dropped her basket, then gave it the slightest little kick. Not a soccer kick, just a "this is in my way, I think I'll move it" little kick. Of course the guests erupted in laughter. It was pretty funny, and much along the lines of what I expected. But since I had no idea what would happen next and was 100% sure that she would NOT be able to stand still for a ceremony, she sat with me. Next came Ronnie, Rocky & Ross walking Tara down the aisle. It was a very special moment for all of them, and Ronnie was a little teary when he sat next to me after giving her away. I couldn't help but think about Ronnie giving away our girls one day....SEVERAL YEARS down the road! After the ceremony we told Ella that she could exit down the aisle with the other flower girls. Unfortunately that didn't work. She started out walking with them, then stopped right in front of the altar and began picking up flowers. Oh well. At that point, she was done. A long day with lots of pictures, lots of people, lots of things to do, and no nap had caught up with her. Thankfully we had about a 20 minute drive to the reception for her to relax for a minute.
The reception was a blast. The food was delicious, the DJ was great and the dancing was pretty awesome. Tara, Ronnie, Ross & Hannah had a special surprise dance planned that they had been practicing. It was from the "Evolution of Dance" on YouTube. Check it out...
Ella danced her little heart out. As soon as the dancing started, she did not stop until we literally had to drag her crying from the dance floor. She had so much fun. You can see her in the video above...she really wanted to participate!
So I seriously have like no pictures from the wedding. I was so busy chasing the girls around, making sure Ella was doing ok and Kendall wasn't disrupting anything. Hopefully Tara's wedding photos will be ready soon, but for now I only have a few pictures to share!
Me and Ronnie before the wedding
Ella dancing her little heart out!
Kendall dancing with Daddy and Mammaw
Yep, somersaults on the dance floor!
Ross, Tara, Ronnie & Ella!
Passed out!
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