I am back!

My sweet readers, I am sorry I have abandoned you! Never did I expect the last 2 weeks to be as crazy as they were. It's been a whirlwind of gift shows and travel, filled with so many fun adventures, I can't wait to share. I am going to take this weekend to catch up on my last wedding post and then I have lots of fun posts to share next week!
I am going on a boat tonight for a 40th birthday bash. I get a little panicky on crowded boats (the thought of a cruise gives me heart palpitations) so I'm a tad nervous, but apparently it's a big boat (hopefully big enough to give the 150 guests lots of space) and wont be moving around too much :) Fingers crossed I do well and don't turn a lovely shade of green! Happy weekend to all! xo

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Our Wedding Day-Portraits

Part 3 of 4 is finally here! Charlie and I sneaked off with Tec twice during the day, once before the ceremony to Meeting House Road and once to a field across from our house right after the ceremony. Both times allowed Charlie and I to relax away from the hubub of the day and just focus on each other. It was really special.
I'm in Nashville at the moment visiting my mom for two days before driving to Atlanta for the gift show. I can't wait to do some posts about the trip! I am in love with Nashville already and totally understand why my mom adores it so much. As last week, posts might be scarce this week as I focus on building my candle empire! You can always follow me on twitter for updates along the way. Hope you're all having a wonderful week!

Our Wedding Day-The Ceremony

It's been hard for me to write this post because the thought of our ceremony gets me emotional. Partly because I am pregnant, but mostly because it was one of the best moments of my life. Hearing Charlie read his letter to me is something I will cherish forever. I was reading it the other day (as I like to do when I'm feeling particularly mushy) and I read a line that made me so happy! It said, "I want to get you ice cream and bacon when you are pregnant, or fruit loops, or French fries, whatever you want". I smiled so big because he has been doing all of that and more.
Our ceremony was about honoring our love for each other, for our family and for our friends. Our family was our "wedding party" and my brother Charlie and step-sister Katrina sang as I walked down the aisle. My sister-in-law Kendall read a beautiful quote by Charlie's favorite author Tom Robbins. Our friend Marc read a wonderful quote from The Prophet. My little brother, Beckett, was the "ring boy". Ted was the dream officiant and spent months helping us get the ceremony just right. He also surprised us with his own kind words about us on the day. It was a joyous, tear-filled ceremony and I loved every second of it.

















{All photos by Tec Petaja}
Check out Tec's post on our wedding here!

Our Wedding Day-Getting Ready

This week I would love to share some of our wedding photos taken by the talented Tec Petaja. We LOVED working with Tec and couldn't imagine more beautiful wedding photos. I had been such a fan of his work for so long I couldn't believe my luck when he had September 25th available (due to a bride switching her date)! You can also see more of our wedding photos on his website.
The morning of our wedding I went to Lucy Vincent beach with all of the ladies in my family and a group of close girlfriends. We went for a walk, dipped our toes in the ocean, ate breakfast sandwiches from the Menemsha Deli, and then they all formed a circle around me and one by one said love filled messages as I filmed them with my flip video camera. It was so sweet and touching! It was the perfect way to start my day. I went home, showered, Troy did my make-up in the kitchen, and then I began getting ready in the room Kate and I shared as teenage girls. As I mentioned in my vendor guide, my friend Jen (who was 7 1/2 months pregnant!) did my hair, which turned out even more fabulous than I could've imagined. Kate gave me a beautiful letter along with her Grandma's hanky and my mom gave me a charm belonging to Nell, which I attached to my bouquet. It was from a necklace her husband, Maurice, gave her on their wedding anniversary. My mom, wearing a bathrobe she has had since I was little, helped me into my dress. The whole atmosphere was cozy, nostalgic and calm with bursts of giddy excitement. I then met my husband-to-be at the stone wall where we saw each other for the first time and shared a tear filled moment.











This week, the Martha Stewart Weddings blog, The Bride's Guide, is doing some behind the scene posts on our wedding. Today you can read about the inspiration behind our bridesmaid dresses by Woodford & Co!