Our Mountaintop Wedding - Familiar Love

Hiya!! Thanks for believing me when I told you "I was back"!! And thanks, too, for following this emotional journey with me, as I recap our Fernie wedding! The last stage of the journey was a quiet reflection of our relationship, as our photogs had taken us to a location that was rooted in our history! We knew we were truly blessed to be together, to love each other, and to be getting married in one of our most favorite locations!!

When the cliff-side photo shoot ended, we went back down to meet up with our bridal party again... this time we were OUT OF THE RAIN (yah baby, the sun was SHINING!!) and went from barns and umbrellas to sun and rocks!
So let me explain the title of the post... there is so much about a wedding that is foreign to me... of course the obvious is the WHITE DRESS (ya, sooo not my familiar!!), but there were MANY elements of the day (or prepping for the day) that were completely unfamiliar. Here's a short list: being called 'bride' for MONTHS, opening shower presents in front of a LOT of women, shedding tears in front of a LOT of people, getting beautified for HOURS, being obsessed with the weather, having people take my pictures with the expectation that I look GOOD, being 'pretty' (that's a whole notha blog-worthy post!)... you get the idea! BUT, there were also many FAMILIAR parts of the wedding day too, and it was our bridal party (ok, who am I kidding, it was my girls!!) that really made me feel at home. These three girls have literally been my side since I was born... aren't they gorgeous!!

And Ian's boys were definitely a bright spot in his day too... BOYS! Enough wedding talk... flowers, seating arrangements, playlists, menu.... let's just have fun!

And there is something about that familiarity that made our love even sweeter:

Here's some solo shots of my girls (which I highly recommend getting done!). My sister and maid of honour:

And my two cousins... the first, P-ah, was born a couple months before me, and we have grown ULTRA close... and her smile is a showstopper:

And her sister, JB, the eldest, and leader of the pack, has always been my ally... if we were fighting with our sisters, we would align and conquer! She is a great friend, and quite a beauty:

The girls were there for me to make sure I was looking good... and this is about as familiar as it gets! My three girls have always been the "pretty" ones, and they have always worked to smooth me down, touch me up, dress me up, primp and poke, as I was more concerned about getting out the door to par-tay!! Well, here is a glimpse of those roles staying true to form:

And it looks like the shot came together!

And of course, familiarity rings in the FUN we had all afternoon... goofing off in front of the camera:

Until we were ready to strike a pose:

And sometimes we like to just kick back... I love this picture for a couple of reasons. First of all, the scenery and the lines melt my heart! But more importantly, I love how my sister is watching over me... and she has that look in her eyes of "don't you mess with my baby sister"!! I love her to bits, and this picture is a perfect reflection of us... I have always been off on my own a bit, but my sister doesn't need to be standing right beside me to hold a watchful eye! Now this is familiar love!

A group shot... sorry, I tend to focus on the girls, but yes, we had a blast with our ENTIRE wedding party!!

And what about the 'bride and groom'?! Well, in spite of wedding dresses and suits, we had that comfy, familiar ease too... and we took another moment to steal off for a kiss or two...

For me, these moments of familiarity in a day that can otherwise seem COMPLETELY foreign are what make all worthwhile. My day would not have been the same without the familiar COMFORT and PROTECTION of my ladies, the laid back quiet support of the hubs' boys, and of course, the simple, unmistakable love between 'bride and groom'!

As always, photo credit is given to Kev and Duane of [6:8] Photography... thanks for capturing the familiar love in a way that makes our wedding day fit seamlessly into the record of our lives!