Betsy and Matt got engaged in January and I thought they would be married within weeks. But then things changed. They started discussing dates. Some were close, some were further away. Some involved a larger family affair...others involved just them. There were a few months there where I can honestly say nobody knew what was going on. And for the most part, we were totally ok with that. In fact, all my mom asked was that they try and avoid May...between it being the last month of school for me, finals for Ted, graduation for Joe, and so much more....May was packed. So when do you think Betsy decided to get married? May, of course. :)
On April 30th we got a text on the family thread that said "the announcement of a wedding date is imminent.....stay tuned!" This set off a flurry of speculation. The next day, we found out the day would be the following Wednesday....May 8th...at my parents' house....at 8ish. Robby put it best when he said "This is the most Dower event I've ever been, too....I mean....the wedding is at '8ish' for pete's sake!" Haha...and we loved it. Us Dowers are really good at flying by the seat of our pants, but even for us a week to plan a wedding was pretty crazy! But it was awesome. Because I knew my sister was getting the exact wedding she wanted.
Over the next week, Betsy went and bought a dress off the rack, my mom set up appointments with a florist and cake lady, and the rest of us just helped out where we could. And let me tell you.....it was amazing.
It was amazing for a lot of reasons. It was amazing because it was in my parents' home. There was something so, so special about that. It was amazing because it was exactly what I wanted and pictured for my sister (and then some!). It was amazing because of the way Bets and Matt love each other....if you haven't read Matt's blog about my sister then you are missing out. Love the way he loves her. It was amazing because the whole day was just so special. I got to spend the day hanging out with my favorite people, watching my sister marry her favorite person...I just loved it.
At the end of the day my sister told my parents that it was her dream wedding day. Just like my parents spent 10 months planning my dream wedding, they spent 7 days planning Betsy's....and we both got exactly what we wanted. Without further ado....here are a few pictures from Betsy and Matt's wedding day!
First up, let me say, photographing your sister's wedding is HARD! I would get so distracted just chatting, hanging out, and taking in the day that I would forgot to take pictures! But between me and her new sister-in-law, Kelsey, I think we got the day covered. :)
Savannah came over and did Betsy's hair that afternoon. Savs always does her own updo's for dances, and Betsy always loves them! This was the first time she had done somebody else's though (and why not start with somebody's wedding day...go big or go home, right?). Anyways, while Savannah may have been nervous, Betsy never was....and her hair turned out beautiful!!!
We joked that this was Betsy's beauty team....Savannah did her hair, I helped with make-up, and Kelsey kept her company while she had her nails done! :)
Love this picture...I have a very similar one of me and my mom on my wedding day. :)
Even though they weren't there, she was thinking of all of her wonderful Theta friends when she pinned this inside her dress. :)
How beautiful is 19th Avenue? Who knew the perfect picture spot was right outside my parents' front door? :)
Her beautiful bouquet. She must have said 100 times that day "did you get a picture of my flowers? It is the prettiest bouquet I have ever seen!" She included stalks of wheat in memory of my Poppy, a small town Kansas farmer (he was an incredible small town doctor, too....he was just all around incredible). She also asked the florist to include some peach roses...Poppy (and now many family members) call her Peach. It is just her name....and I loved that she incorporated that into her wedding bouquet. :)
I love her little bare feet. She bought a pair of shoes for the wedding day, then returned them after deciding to wear a pair she already has. Thing is...she never got around to putting them on. After her wedding day she kept saying "I didn't mean to get married bare foot....I'm not that hippy-ish...I just never put my shoes on!"
This beautiful cake topper is the same cake topper that was on my grandparents' wedding cake, my parents' wedding cake, my wedding cake, and now Bets and Matt's wedding cake. Love this little family tradition. :)
The new Jaderston family!
The new Dower family! :)
And, of course, with Savannah. :)
Love my siblings so much!
They truly are my best friends....blessed am I.
The ceremony was in my parents' living room...and beautiful! The yellow walls gave everything a warm glow...so all my pictures look really yellow. :) Oh, well!
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This gives you an idea of the room in color...I color corrected the yellow-ness a little bit...but you can still feel how warm and beautiful it was. Also, we had the porch doors open and it started raining later. It was just all too perfect.
This kiss!
Love how my dad is smiling at my mom in this picture (even though you can't see my mom...she was sitting right there). I'm thinking their smiles are saying "another daughter married to another wonderful man!" :)
Listening to some speeches...
Love this picture of Matt and his grandpa!
Betsy tossing the bouquet!
Yay, Savannah!
Bets with all of her brothers and brothers-in-law....so fun!
And a couple pictures I took on my iPhone. Here they are signing the marriage license with my dad. :)
I laugh at this because we also have a picture of my dad at my wedding, holding Betsy's bouquet. We should frame them side by side. :)
Joe and Savs with her bouquet!
I was in the kitchen picking up after all the festivities were over and heard some laughing/commotion coming out of the foyer. This is what I saw when I went out to see what was going on...Betsy and Ted having a hand stand contest...because, why not? :)
As her and Ted laid on the ground after their contest, Betsy said it was her dream wedding day. And I would have to agree...the day was absolutely perfect. So happy for my sister and new brother-in-law! Love you both so much!
I have about three other posts in the works...so be on the lookout over the next week! :)
My heart is full! Love your family so much. What a beautiful start to their adventure...and so beautifully documented!
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