Our Sunset Wedding

Day 3 of Our Aruba Destination Wedding

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My Dad and youngest brother, Kenneth, shared a room to get dressed so us girls could make ourselves beautiful.

Growing up with three younger brothers, I never really had much “girl time” with Mom. So, I secretly cherished this wonderful hour or so and tucked it away as one of my favorite memories. A day filled with love and hope and joy...me, my mom and my best friend...putting on make-up and dressing in frilly lace and sequins...Like sisters I never had, getting ready for the prom...or a romantic Aruba sunset wedding...Corny, I know!

Then it was time...

My mom had arranged for a car to drive us from the Surf Club to the main Marriott Hotel. It was only a short walk away (two buildings down) and at first I protested having a car drive such a short distance, but, I am very glad she insisted. It was 90 degrees and humid and the tight corset of my gown made it even more difficult to breath.

Scott was not allowed to see me in my dress before the wedding so we waited in the lobby of the hotel as our guests were seated. I watched, keeping out of sight, as our wedding coordinator, Deseree, directed Scott to seat his mom, and then stand at the beautifully decorated wedding arch with Reverend Jacob. Then two of my brothers, Kevin and Kenneth, walked on either side of my mom, escorting her to her seat. Next, came my Maid of Honor, Nicole, and Scott’s Best Man, Jim. Then, as I slipped my arm through my Dad’s at the top of the palm lined white sandy aisle, the steel pan player began playing “Here Comes the Bride”.

It was an absolutely magical moment as I saw Scott’s face light up as I glided across the warm sand towards him. I caught just a hint of a tear starting to well up in my Dad’s eye as I kissed him and he turned to take his seat next to my Mom.

The next 30 minutes flew by in a blur. The minister welcomed our guests and said a prayer. Mom read a lovely passage from the family Bible that she had brought with her. Nicole had designated the Bible at the last minute as the “something old” AND “something borrowed”. Apparently, I had been so caught up in the wedding day excitement that I had forgotten about that tradition. Thank goodness my dress was new, and my tiara, garter and bouquet had some blue, or my slightly superstitious Maid of Honor might not have let me out of the hotel room.

Scott and I exchanged rings, and repeated the time-honored vows. The Sand Ceremony was a very nice touch to incorporate the tropical beach location into our sunset wedding. Instead of lighting a unity candle, we combined two containers of sand into one vase symbolically uniting the two of us in marriage. (The personalized heart shaped vases arrived intact with us on the plane in a carefully padded carry-on, then passed into the hands of our wedding coordinator, who made sure that it was arranged artistically on the table at our beach wedding.) We used this set... But, you can see other choices at our online store.

Our Aruba sunset wedding ceremony came to a close as the minister pronounced us “Husband and Wife”, we kissed and walked hand in hand up the beach, with our guests cheering and the waves gently caressing the sand behind us.

The sun set over the Caribbean sea, and our wedding photographer, Julia Renfro, took the most magnificent pictures of me and my husband.. Wow, I still need to get used to saying that... We signed the wedding certificate, popped a bottle of Champaign, and cut the cake, with a magnificent backdrop of golds, oranges, pinks and lavenders reflecting on the rippling ocean. She did an excellent job on the photographs, but I can’t give her all the credit. The backdrop was out of this world! And the subject matter was not too shabby either! (impish grin!)

(More on Julia's sunset wedding photography here...)

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