It makes my heart race to think about our first look. It was one of the biggest rushes of pure and unadulterated joy I’ve ever experienced. The intensity, the nervousness, the excitement of seeing each other for the first time as bride and groom, the love– it was overwhelming.
We chose the art museum where I had practically lived for the past two years as our location for the first look. The building was just a wonderful backdrop, lots of wooded area, and good shade for what was surely to be a very hot day.
We arrived in separate cars– JP out front, I was out back with my father and Laura.
Matt Odom played go-between to make sure when both parties were ready, running back and forth with his rig and crane contraption.
I was a little slower than we had anticipated, as the lovely veil that the mothers so carefully steamed would not stay on my head.
Got it on, but it kept falling off, all the while poor JP was out front wondering if he had a bride with cold feet.
With the veil sliding off my head, Laura and I made the executive decision just to take the dang thing off. I was no less a bride without a veil. Odom double-checked to make sure that everybody was set and ready, Matt Miller and Amber were camped out front with JP. It was time. Reagan and Odom quietly crept around the corner with me as not to disturb the waiting JP. Standing there, hiding behind some trees, staring at JP, I had no idea what to do. I looked at Reagan. “Now what?”
“Do whatever you want!”
A surge of energy and adrenaline pumped through my veins. “Am I allowed to run?”
“Sure, I mean–”
I didn’t hear the rest of her sentence. I bolted, running full-force towards the man I loved.
And he caught me. I have this thing where I run and jump on him when I’m excited. He said he heard the scurrying of everyone as well as the whoosh of dress and knew what was coming. That JP. Let’s check out the bridal bolt from a different angle.
I was on cloud nine.
A kiss and a hug for my groom, the first of many face-grabs to come that day.
Then it hit him. “You’re my bride! Let me look at you!”
“You look beautiful.” I, of course, giggled.
I asked him if he approved of my dress and what he thought, to which he replied, “You look like the girl I’m supposed to marry. It’s perfect.”
We talked for a few minutes and probably sounded like two little kids, but we were high on the moment. Spastic and bubbly and in love.
Then of course, he wanted to see where I’d put the mouse. I yanked up my skirt, as I did several times that day, and showed off the mouse. He was a big fan.
With my skirt already halfway up, we took some required shoe shots.
I have a shoe thing, I admit it.
After that, we all went inside and toweled off, because it was hot as all get-out. Into the air-conditioned gallery we went for portrait time!
For those questioning a first look, I say do it. I would do it one thousand times over. The rush was incredible, the moments were priceless, and it didn’t take away from the power of the ceremony either, I promise. We had an absolute blast during our entire first look. We allotted enough time so that we could have a few grand adventures, spend some time together, and just play. If you aren’t superstitious, do it, do it, do it. You won’t regret it.
*All photographs from Matt Miller of Our Labor of Love.
Need to do some catching up in the recap department?
- I popped in to say hello a few days after the wedding.
- I showed off our awesome wedding video, which was subsequently publicized by Ashton Kutcher.
- The day before our wedding was entirely too hectic, and our rehearsal was almost foiled by a contact.
- I pulled it back together and had a blast at our awesome rehearsal dinner, starting with toasts and roasts, followed by us being handcuffed together, and ending with a good old fashioned beat down.
- The wedding day morning started off with some note writing and veil steaming and then some detail shots were shown off. Then, we all got our hair done, I cried with presents, and topped it all off with some more video action, then finally savored the moment and put the dress on. Oh yeah, and the guys got ready too.
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