Saturday, October 20, 2012

A Most Magical Day

A month ago today my new husband and I shared the happiest day of our lives.


We're still in the process of selecting the pictures taken by our professional photographer (which we'll post around the holidays), but for now we thought it'd be fun to share a few moments captured by our talented family and friends.



The day of the wedding, my bridesmaids were there to make sure I had everything I needed.



And my hairstylist was amazing! She was able to create beautiful looks for all five of my bridesmaids and our moms! Here she is pinning the last few clips to my veil.


I couldn't have asked for a sweeter, more caring maid of honor. L♥VE you Jess!


And now I'm about to be married!

 

This was the moment I had dreamed of.



My husband and I asked Mother Mary to bless our union.



And we shared a quick "I love you" before...


We shared our first married kiss!


After coming down the aisle as husband and wife, we were able to enjoy a quiet moment together in the back of the church.


And then the celebration began!



Our lovely little flower girl was so careful to look after my veil, and for good reason...


My grandmother made this beautiful veil for my mom over thirty years ago. I was so blessed to be able to wear it on my own special day.


Jess gave a touching toast at the reception.


And my husband had the crowd laughing as usual...his sense of humor is one of the many reasons I love him.


Our first dance was to Neil Young's "Harvest Moon," which is not only our song, but also especially fitting since we were married the first day of Fall.




And then Jess and I hit the dance floor and kicked off the party by celebrating our Greek heritage!



Thanks to our awesome Uncle Jim for capturing the fun and posting it to Youtube!


We were blessed by the presence of so many beloved family and friends. Here's my beautiful mom, Sheri, on the right with her lovely cousin Sheila.


The cake was four tiers of alternating red velvet with cream cheese frosting and marble with amaretto filling.


We're planning to ring in our one month anniversary by defrosting the last piece we saved.


The celebration lasted all night, and oh did we let the good times roll!


It truly was the most special day of my life, and all of us at Red Rose Alley couldn't be happier to share some of these treasured moments with YOU.


~Nel~ 

67 comments:

oldthings said...

Ι do not know you personally, today I saw you all together and you're all wonderful. You were a beautiful bride like a princess!
Now that I write , roll down my cheeks two tears of emotion. I saw the video, I was moved by your joy and the wonderful dance with your sister. I admit that you danced with more passion than that Zorba! I wish you love and happiness in your new life! Please give a sweet kiss to your lovely mom from me!
Olympia

valerietilsten59.blogspot.com said...

Dear Sweet Nel,
I start at the last photo.. The three girls from "Red rose Alley"..
I have been waiting to see your photos.. Nel, you looked stunning a most beautiful bride.
Your husband a most handsome fellow.
I could feel the love of your family coming through this most wonderful post of your wedding.
So much gaiety and laughter and happiness.
Family photos, are often the best.
Wishing you many years of happiness together Nel.
Our Lady and Our Lord will be watching over you both..
with big hugs..
To Jess.. you looked lovely Jess. To Sheri.. your face was lit up with happiness Sheri.. and you all look like sisters.
xxxx thank you
val x x x

Draffin Bears said...

Hi Nel, Sheri and Jess,

So lovely to see the beautiful wedding photos and what a special day it must have been for you all. Thanks for showing the photos of your wonderful wedding day and great to see the sweet Red Rose Alley Gals.
Best wishes for the future together, you make a beautiful bride and great couple.

Happy weekend
hugs
Carolyn

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

THERE YOU ALL ARE! HELLO EVERYONE!

Nel, You are a most BEAUTIFUL BRIDE...that veil, that GOWN, YOU!!! And your sister is so lovely and drumroll........................SHERI! YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL MY FRIEND! So good to see you all! I know how long a good wedding party can last. YEARS AGO when my aunt got married, the party lasted two days. FABULOUS, BRAVO TO ALL! Oh Sheri, this is so beautiful! Anita

Antee Gurung said...

Wow. Ongratulations ...the wedding looks beautiful n not to mention u look amazingly gorgeous....

Btw do check out my new post
Stay in touch
Xoxo

Susie said...

Wishing you the best , for many years, many. Smiles, Susie

Unknown said...

Beautiful wedding, Congratulations!!!
I especially loved your wedding dress..
Wishing you all the best~

Japolina said...

Gorgeous!

rose said...

Congratulations Nel, you are a most beautiful bride!!! I wish you all the love and happiness!!! :)

It's me said...

You are looking great Nel !!...congratulations with one month !!..lovely weekend...xxx..

Anne said...

Fabulous photos! Your dress is amazing! Lovely to see the three of you together in the photograph:) Have a good weekend!
~Anne

RobinfromCA said...

Congratulations! Such a beautiful wedding! You were a gorgeous bride and everyone looked fantastic! My daughter wore my veil at her wedding too and it is a very happy memory for me. Happy one month!
Robin

Susie Swanson said...

Congratulations Nel..What a beautiful wedding it was.. You look gorgeous and your new husband is very handsome.. I wish you many, many years of joy and happiness..Susie

Jenna said...

Congratulations to you and your hubby! :o) that was such a beautiful wedding, you looked just beautiful Nel...Your dress and veil are gorgeous. Have a nice weekend! Hugs Jennifer

Laura said...

Beautiful photos and stunning dress! Congratulations :)

hi-d said...

Congratulations, to a beautiful bride. Loved the veil your grandmother made for your mom. Thanks for sharing...best wishes to you and your husband.

LILA MOONLIGHT said...

Dear Nel, I enjoyed looking at your wedding pix very much. That 2nd photo is just perfect! Your bouquet, dress, hair, makeup all wonderful. And so nice to see you all : ) I wish you a life long full of love marriage : )

Unknown said...

Beautiful...Lovely and Gorgeous!! You are a beautiful bride...you have the best and prettiest mom..and a great beautiful sister Jess..and I must say you could not have picked a better song as my husband and I dance to 'Harvest Moon' often..our favorite song..(not our wedding song, but would have been if was written back then)..Enjoy your married life, looks like you have a very handsome and fun loving husband..Blessing..
(love your bouquet)...

Teresa said...

I believe this is the first time I'm at loss with words in your home... all emotions and blessings flew from you and I was wraped in them... So much beauty. So much Love.

You had such a lovely celebration. You are (all) so beautiful.

Insomuch as love grows you, so beauty grows. For love is the beauty of the soul.
-- St. Augustine

So Happy you shared it with me. I was sleepless and wandering the net. No more. I have Grace to give and people to pray for...



note to my friend Sherri: Congratulations on your new son, Dear Friend!


"May your joys be as sweet as spring flowers that grow.
As bright as a fire when winter winds blow,
As countless as leaves that float down in the fall,
As serene as the love that keeps watch over us all."

Barefoot in Blue Jeans said...

Ahh, you looked gorgeous! It looks like a wonderful celebration and I wish you and your new husband many many happy years together
Tammy

Nely said...

Ohhh it looks a wondeful celebration,you looked amazing,I am so happy for you,and I wish you and your husband many happy moment together in love:)
Many hugs and kisses,
Nely!

E. said...

Hello girls!
What a great post, thank you for sharing these pictures with us! You all look beautiful and Nel, you look like a movie star.
It must have been the perfect wedding! And as we say in Greece: "Βίο Ανθόσπαρτο!"

Cheryl said...

Congratulations!! You were absolutely beautiful, what a happy day it was and all I can wish you is a life time of happy days!

Hugs
C
xxx

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

My sweet Sheri, thank YOU for coming my way and leaving such dear comment. YOU LOOK BEAUTIFUL and it is so great that you put up your photos! We are thrilled to see your happy day, together with all the people you love! What a feast to be celebrated and everyone is just gorgeous!

Now - NOW is the time to live and be as bold as possible to get OUT THERE and shine my dear. No holding back. We can all do it and with our best effort forward. I say that to myself as well, for tomorrow I have a substitute teaching assignment that was probably given to me by mistake, but it is to teach middle school physics! But I am going in to be there for the kid and probably learn something VERY NEW!!!

Have a lovely Sunday dear and generous friend! Anita

Rustic Vintage Country said...

Gorgeous, Fabulous, Happiness!! xox

Deborah said...

Oh Nel what a beautiful, beautiful day you had and you shared it with us! Thank you!
You shine with beauty and joy!
Your dress is just lovely and your happiness is overflowing.
Everyone did such an amzizng job and I felt like I was there. I s
was smiling and giggling and emotional all the way through this gorgeous post. I l o v e d that dance! It looks like so much fun and you made it look so easy.
Jess is such a blessing as well as your sweet Momma.
You all look so beautiful and the love you share is all over your faces.
Thank you for gracing us with this beautiful day and such wonderful full-of-life photos! I love the rings in the roses-how unique!
God bless you both as you begin this journey of love!!! Hugs to you all.xo

Deborah xoxoxooxox

Anonymous said...

I am beyond happy that you shared these beautiful images of such a special day with us. There is love and joy in every photograph. A lot of the moments you captured reminded me of my own wedding 27 years ago, including that private moment at the back of the church after going going down the aisle as husband and wife.
Loved the photograph of the rings in the roses...gorgeous. So special to have worn your mother's veil made by your grandmother.
I am thrilled to finally see you, Sheri, and you are just as beautiful and gracious as I imagined. I especially love that you wore blue. Not many moms do this anymore, but I believe the mother of the bride should wear blue since she's gaining a son, and the mother of the groom should wear pink or a blush color since she's gaining a daughter. It used to be very traditional and the funny thing is that our moms did this for our wedding without any of us knowing at the time. :)
LOVE the Greek dancing and all the joy that is so very clear.
Best wishes and many blessings,
Marcia

Unknown said...

Nel, The happy day finally arrived! As the years go by you will cherish the pictures you have more and more! Every July (our anniversary month) I put our wedding photo album out for the entire month. That way, we get to enjoy it over and over again, and so do lots of other people, including our children. As they grew up, they saw the start of our life together and our love for one another.

I can see now that you LOVE red roses--and they look so beautiful with with your dark coloring and that goegeous white dress! I'm so glad you also included pics of your beautiful sister and mom! We readers love to see who writes the blogs!

I'm assuming you went to Paris for you honeymoon? Hope to see lots of pics of that! Maybe you have and I've missed them! Let me know if I've missed them, because I really don't want to miss out.

The very best blessing to you and your husband as you start your life together!

Love,
Mary

Unknown said...

Marcia, Never knew that about the blue and pink. Now that you shared what your moms did, our mothers did the same thing without knowing-- if they knew, they didn't tell us or I've forgotten!

Mary

Unknown said...

Anita, I'm sure you can write about your SUBSTITUTE PHYSICS teaching job as a lovely and etherial blog post! Can't wait--you can do it!

Love,

Mary

Kerri said...

OMG so beautiful!!! Congratulations!! I love Catholic weddings. Thank-you for sharing your special day with us in blogland.

xoxo
Kerri

Kaipiroska said...

Your dress is gorgeous. So beautiful!! I wish you and your husband all the best :)

Marie said...

Absolutely lovely. Thank you for sharing your special day with us. You are all beautiful!!

andrea@townandprairie said...

Your new name is bombshell Nel! You gorgeous beautiful bride!! WOW!!

magie said...

Congratulations Nel! Thank you so much for sharing photos of your special day with us all. It looks like such a beautiful wedding and you are a stunning bride :)
I wish you lots of happiness in the years to come as husband and wife.
Magie x
Ps: Sheri and Jess you both look so lovely as well. It so nice to see photos of all of you :)

Miky said...

Congratulations Nel!
Sheri thank you very much for giving me this wonderful post. The photos are beautiful and you girls are all very nice!
Kiss
Miky

Anonymous said...

Too funny, Mary. I cannot recall where I read it a few years ago, but it's definitely not typical nowadays or inappropriate not to choose those colors either. I just think it's such a gracious gesture, and there are so many shades of those two colors too. LOVED the powdery grayish blue that Kate Middleton's mother wore at the royal wedding, not to mention Sheri's gorgeous jewel-toned blue here too. :) Okay, I feel like a wedding commentator now. ;)

Kristie said...

Congratulations Nel!

What a lovely bride! Sheri, your daughters are so beautiful and Nel looks so happy! It's a wonderful picture of you and I love the shade of blue you are wearing...it looks gorgeous on you with your dark hair.

Wedding can be so hectic and tiring. I bet all of you are glad to be kicking back and relaxing now that it's all over. :)

Great photos!

El ele geziyoruz... said...

wow great pics...congrads on a wedding :) I have my wedding pics posted on my blog too :) if u want we can follow each other :)

www.samiraslifeandstyle.blogspot.com

Castles Crowns and Cottages said...

Precious Sheri, your kind comments really mean so much to me, for behind them, is a dear friendship that I treasure. Keep on reaching for your art and make it happen. LET IT GO.....

Anita

Unknown said...

Nel, what a beautiful wedding. I enjoyed the pictures so much. It is wonderful to finally put faces to you, Jess and Sheri! What a beautiful family. Best wishes on a long and happy life with your husband and marriage. Can't wait to see more!

Ricki Treleaven said...

OMGoodness what a gorgeous family! Trip just walked in so I've got to come back later.

xo,
RJ

Ricki Treleaven said...

Nel, Jess, and Sheri, y'all are *GORGEOUS*. What a pretty wedding! I went through and took my time this time (Trip and I had to take Shelley together to the post office to get her passport.) But I'm home now...yay!

:D

I love your wedding colors, Nell....so pretty! Good luck to you, and congratulations to your groom!

xo,
RJ

Ingeborg van Zuiden said...

Hi Nel,

Many congratulations on your wedding and I hope you will have a long and happy life ahead of you with your loved ones. You all looked so pretty and happy! May God bless you and your family!
Hugs
Ingeborg

miss b said...

Congratulations! What a fantastic day and thank you for showing these wonderful pictures. Nel, Jess and Sheri - you all look lovely. The wedding dress is stunning and the veil too (I remember the post about the veil so it's nice to see it on the big day!) The bridesmaids' dresses are so elegant too. Best wishes for a very happy future!
P.S. I've mentioned Jess's gorgeous lacy pumpkin in my 'stylish pumpkins' post. I've linked back to the post - I hope that's OK.
http://missbbobochic.blogspot.co.uk/

Nettie's Blog said...

happy happy life together ..congratulations to you both...how very special to have your veil that has a wonderful heritage...it makes the day so memorable ..the photos you have shared looked already so professional..cant wait to see the professional ones...Good Luck and may god bless your union...

Unknown said...

Dear Nel, congratulations on your wedding! I hope you will have a happy life ahead of you with your loved ones! So wonderful pictures!!! & Nel, Jess and Sheri - you all look lovely!!!!
The dance wonderful and your little flower girl, so lovely! Kisses from Greece!!!

Aida said...

Oh what a lovely couple You are and what a beautiful bride!!! Your wedding was amazing and You looked astonishing! Wish You a great live together full of Love, happiness, understanding, strength, health and money - it does help a big right? Most of all I wish You the best!!!

Kisses my dear friend

romance-of-roses said...

Hello Sweet Sheri, Jess and of course Nel and hubby,
Thank you so much for sharing these lovely photos with all of us. I have not posted in two weeks, sad for my cousin that passed away of breast cancer, so I really needed something to lift my spirits. Your photos sure did help me, I appreciate that so much. The wedding was a dream and a dream come true for Nel, what beauty in everything and everyone. I must say that I loved the red roses then the rings inside the rose, fabulous idea. Sheri you are a lovely mom to your two very beautiful girls, how proud you must be of them and now with a new handsome son also. Loved the Greek dancing. I thank all of you for taking me away to this magical wedding, you made me feel so much better. Thank you for sharing and thank you for your friendship. I send blessings, love and many years of wedding bliss to the bride and groom. Big Hug, Lu

Anonymous said...

Thank you for stopping by, Sheri. Seeing your name pop up in the comments always brings me a smile. Just wanted to return the visit right away since I had time tonight. Oh, let's face it, I wanted to see these gorgeous pictures again. ;) So lovely. Who thought of the rings in the roses? I know I mentioned it before, but it is so beautiful.
Loved visiting.
XOXO's,
Marcia

Cami said...

Oh what BEAUTIFUL photos!! I adore your dress - beautiful!! What a stunning wedding. I am SO happy and excited for you!! Such a gorgeous bride - gorgeous family!!!!
Many blessings & MUCH happiness in your new life together! ox

Anonymous said...

Hi Sheri,
Everthing is just stunning! Congrats to everyone!
Warm wishes,
jackie

poppilinnstudios said...

Congratulations, Nel! Thank you for sharing such a special moment of your life. You are a lovely bride. Sheri, you have a beautiful family and you are radiant! Best wishes.
-Lynn

Leslie said...

Hi Nel,

First time stopping by, via bobchic :)

Congratulations! You are a beautiful bride and it looks like you had a gorgeous and fun wedding celebration.

xx
leslie

Lavender and Linen said...

What a beautiful wedding! Congrats and Best Wishes! Sheri you are beautiful too!

Unknown said...

Such a beautiful bride and beautiful wedding. May you be blessed with many happy, prosperous and healthy years together.
xoxo,
Mary

Beauty Follower said...

You look very lovely in your wedding gown!
I can see from the pictures how wonderful was the ceremony and party!

Thanks so much for visting my blog and for your sweet comment.

Chenille Cottage said...

Blessings and Happiness to you both! Oh, what a joyful celebration with your Greek heritage at the forefront of your reception. Of course, I have to say how much I love the movie "My Big Fat Greek Wedding"!
I wish you much love as you share your life together.
OOOOOMPAHHHHHH!!!!
Carolynn :-) :-)

Galina Hristova said...

Dear Nell, you're just perfect!Lovely you dance Sirtaki.Thanks for sharing this magical day with us!Be happy forever!

Robin Beck said...

Nell, you look GORGEOUS! Just breathtaking! I'm so glad you shared these photos. I loved seeing your beautiful sister and mom and your handsome groom!

georgia ~ gi gi said...

Congrats Nell!!!!! You looked STUNNING!!!! It looked the a perfect wedding! All my best to you and your new hubby!
Let me just say you girls are GORGEOUS! I am so glad you decided to share your pics with us!!!
Much love
gi gi

Anonymous said...

Congratulations so much!!! You looked stunning!I love your red roses!!! And how nice to see photos of you. Dear Sheri, I think you look a little like me. We have the same colours and the same eyes ;) And I will not post on a page of inspiration for a while, I will not delete it, but I think beatesfoto.blogspot.no will be my primarily blog. It's my Norwegian blog that I started not too long ago. It is a photography blog, but I will also post from trips and special occasions as I usually do. Hope you will follow me there, because I would love to stay in touch with you! Have a wonderful week!

love, Kristin

♥ Miss Tea said...

Big Congratulations to the lovely newlyweds! you look beautiful, gorgeous and stunning! loving your wedding dress and the veil that your grandmother made for your mom, oh what a happy day and i wish you both happiness and more!

loving all the photos and thank you for sharing them with us on your happiest day!

x susan

Lori said...

Wow, these are GORGEOUS, congratulations!!!! What a beautiful day ~ you look radiant!!
I don't recall ever seeing all your beautiful faces before, is this a first?!! Yay, now I have faces behind this blog!!! You all are beautiful!!!

Cindy @ Dwellings-The Heart of Your Home said...

Oh my! Such a beautiful bride and handsome groom! Such a gorgeous mother of the bride too! Loved being able to share in their big day...loved this post!
Blessings,
Cindy

Lisa Montsion said...

You and your husband were meant to be.

lisa

Linda Walker said...

So glad I asked to see this. It is beautiful and your daughter is a beautiful bride! So special to be able to wear this veil made my her grandmother.
Linda
Sewwhat!