MoG Report - Part IV: The Wedding by Leah St. James

My son and his bride were married two weeks ago on a sun-bright day, surrounded by family and friends and lots of love. And it was perfect.

Were there little glitches? Of course.
Did they matter? Not in the least. 

Rather than go into a lengthy narrative, I'll share bits and pieces and (of course!) some photos.

The Dress
(Mine, I mean.) :-)

 I chose the Adrianna Papell gown in navy with the deep v-neck and "mermaid" flare. It was comfortable to move in and made me feel good. (On a side note, shame on the woman in the hotel lobby who exclaimed, loudly, as I walked by that it was tacky to wear a long gown to an afternoon wedding. The wedding was late afternoon, the reception was evening...and I was the MoG! Shame on her!)

My sister made me a beautiful sapphire blue necklace and I found dangly earrings to match! 

The Ceremony
It was a lovely, traditional ceremony. My son got choked up reciting his vows, and when his bride reached up to tenderly caress his cheek, tears began to flow--mine, my sister's, probably half the women in the church and even the pastor's! (He couldn't talk for a minute after that!) It was moving and loving. It was perfect.

The Mother-Son Dance

You might recall what a tough decision this was for me, how worried I was I'd start bawling like an idiot. After weeks of searching, we went with Sweet Child O' Mine performed by Sheryl Crow. I know, some of you are probably thinking, What the...huh?? But it has an upbeat rhythm despite its somewhat sentimental message. And I love this version which is sung from the woman's (mother's) perspective.

"He's got eyes of the bluest skies
"As if they thought of rain
"I'd hate to look into those eyes
"And see an ounce of pain..."

(Written by Duff Rose Mc Kagan, Steven Adler, W. Axl Rose, Izzy Stradlin)

We cut it off after about two minutes, which was a good thing because I'm sure our simple box-stepping was a giant yawn to the guests. (Hopefully they enjoyed the music while we danced!) I did NOT cry, but I did indulge myself in a log bear-hug before letting my son return to his bride.

The Party
I danced all night with my hubby (slow dances) and friends (fast dances), so many thanks to whoever it was (Diane?) who suggested bringing a second pair of comfortable shoes. That was a lifesaver! Still, when the party broke up, I hobbled back to the hotel on achy feet, and when I crawled into bed later, every muscle from my waist down throbbed.  Maybe a person of a certain age isn't meant to jump up and down like a pogo stick for a couple hours straight? Lying there in pain, I had to content myself with the hope all the excess expenditure of calories made up for the excess consumption of food! 

Apologies for the fuzziness for a few of these!

The After-Party
The happy couple honeymooned in Cape May (NJ) and hubby, Son No. 1 and I retreated to Virginia with my best friend from childhood (who had flown in from Iowa). A few days later, my friend and I treated ourselves to a mini ladies' vacation at an oceanfront hotel in Virginia Beach. More perfection. (How lucky am I?)

As I post this message, my son and his bride are celebrating their two-week anniversary. I hope they are recalling the day with the same joy and love that I am. And I know they'll be making fresh, new and wonderful memories in the years to come. Sigh...

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Leah writes stories of mystery and romance, good and evil, and the power of love. She blogs here the 6th and 22nd of each month, and hangs out on Facebook and Twitter and occasionally Pinterest. She loves meeting and chatting with readers, so please stop by. Learn more about her writing at http://www.leahstjames.com.

Message for my son on his wedding day ~ Leah St. James

As this message posts on our blog, my son’s wedding is mere hours away. I tried to think of something else to write about, but my brain is too crowded with the seemingly endless details that even the MoG (mother of the groom) must attend to. More than that, my heart is too full of emotions I’m afraid to let loose. (You might recall how I sobbed just THINKING about the mother/son dance.)

Like many writers, I deal with emotions by setting them to words. So I write this a few days in advance, lying in bed while my husband snores softly beside me, and I think about our wedding day several decades ago. I remember that first joyous kiss as husband and wife, then turning to face our guests and thinking, “It’s us against the world.”

We’ve had our ups and downs and made mistakes (who hasn’t?), but those hills and valleys, joys and sorrows, have made us who we are today--far from perfect, but happy together. 

I hope we’ve set a more positive than negative example for our son as he starts out in his own marriage. Still, if he were here right now (instead of off at his bachelor party!), I’d want to share some thoughts and "learnings" with him.

I’d tell him that marriage isn’t easy, even under the best conditions. I’d tell him that it takes work, it takes trust...and lots of love to pull it off. It takes  biting your tongue and compromise and saying “I love you” when you really want to tell your spouse to go .. well, let’s not go there.

I’d tell him that as of this day, he and his bride are a team, unbreakable by their shared vows of love and honor. 

That means having her back, in public and in private. It means protecting her, being loyal to her. It means cherishing her as if she is the one woman, among the millions in the world, uniquely meant for him.

I’d tell him he needs to be strong for her, but to let her see his vulnerabilities. And to let her be strong for him, too.

I’d let him know that when they argue, as I’m sure they will, he needs to consider her point of view, really consider it, because she is half of their team. And when those hard times fall, because they most likely will, to draw closer together and work on figuring things out, together.

I’d admonish him to work hard for his new family, but to play hard as well. His bride is a young woman, full of enthusiasm for life and the world. Go out together, see that world. Plan day trips. Save for and take vacations. Try new foods and recreate them in your kitchen. Go to local museums, plays and concerts. Go bowling or play golf. 

Enjoy each other. Enjoy life.

Happy wedding day to my son and his bride. May this be the first of many days and years of joy,  together. 

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Leah writes stories of mystery and romance, good and evil, and the very real power of love. Learn more about Leah’s writing on her website. Or visit her on Facebook where she posts about life in general. She loves meeting readers!