Tommy And Emily's Wedding, Part Three: Wonderful, Wonderful Day

Books By Patti Liszkay
​Available On Amazon

​"Equal and Opposite Reactions" http://amzn.to/2xvcgRa
and the sequel, "Hail Mary" https://www.amzn.com/1684334888
​Available on Amazon.

​TOMMY AND EMILY'S WEDDING, PART THREE: WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL DAY

...Continued from yesterday: 
      The following day, Sunday, July 3, was Emily and Tommy's wedding day at the Swan Lake Event Center.
      The Swan Lake reception hall is flanked on either side by long wings, one for use by the bridesmaids, the other for the groomsmen.

     When we arrived a couple of hours before the wedding the ladies' wing was a hive of activity with the girls busy getting their hair, nails, and make-up done, steaming out last-minute wrinkles,

...and bustling around helping each other get ready for the wedding.

      Meanwhile over in the groom's wing the guys were playing soccer and ping-pong.

      Still, the mood in and around the wings was happy and fairly chill, even.

    And there was food and drinks available.

      As the time for the wedding approached, the meadow where the ceremony would take place was set up with chairs.

     The path down to the meadow.

      Emily's mom and friends set up a beautiful gold ring sculpture in front of which the ceremony would take place.

       Soon before the ceremony Emily and Tommy and their Wedding Cabinet (see previous post) gathered for pictures.

     Emily and her parents, Lisa and Bruce.

     The rest of us strolled the beautiful grounds.

     By a little after 5:30 pm all the guests had arrived and the wedding procession began.

      Tommy and Emily had decided to have co-ed attendants, with Emily's people on one side,

...and Tommy's on the other,

​...which I thought was a good idea and made sense. 
​    The officiant, Tim, presided over a beautiful ceremony,

...which included, instead of a unity candle, a unity sapling, to which Emily and Tommy each added soil from the backyards of the homes in which they grew up and ashes from their beloved dogs who had crossed over the rainbow bridge. They've subsequently planted the tree at Audubon Park in Columbus.

      They exchanged the vows that they'd written to each other.

      Then came the "I do's,"

...a kiss,

...and a brand-new married couple,

...happily joined the world.