The best week of my life

March 26, 2014

The best week of my life

I have put upon myself the ginormous task of writing about last week - the week that will always be remembered because my brother, Chris, got married to my now sister-in-law, Darby. I know that I won't be able to do it justice, but I want to try! Usually my journal entries just contain everything that happened, and they're pretty boring. So I thought I'd change it up and write memorable moments from the entire week. There are plenty of them, because the whole week was full of God's blessings. I'm still in awe of how smoothly and beautifully everything went.

The back yard at our rental house for the week.

PRE WEDDING DAY

Sitting on the kitchen counter every night as we (immediate family, extended family, and friends) talked and laughed about everything. We ate Chipotle, ice cream, and bagels. It was just a really, really good time. There are few things better than hanging out with your favorite people.
Getting our nails done! We went Friday morning and got mani's and pedi's. (My first pedicure!) The massage chair was amazing, and it was nice to relax. They had even put Bride Wars on the TV's for us. :)
Laying on the bed and having a heart-to-heart with Delaney. She is a good listener and it really blesses me.
Taking a walk at Cranes Roost at night. It was easily one of the most beautiful places I've seen. Darby took us to the exact bench where Chris proposed, and we asked questions and oohed and ahhed. We walked around the lake, took pictures, and several of the more adventurous ones even walked through the water fountains. Oh, and there was dancing involved. :)
Going to the BEACH! On Wednesday afternoon a group of us piled in two cars and headed to New Symrna. The water was chilly at first, but eventually we made our way out in the deep and had a compete BLAST riding the waves. (And screaming. Or was that just me?) Then we laid in the sun for a while, and got pretty burned. It was the first time in months that a lot of us had felt the sun though, so we didn't mind. We piled back in the car and went down the road to an ice cream shop! Two scoops of mint chocolate chip hit the spot. (Side note: I have never consumed as much ice cream as I did last week. But I have no regrets. :))
Dancing in the living room. Cha Cha Slide, Cupid Shuffle, Telephone, etc. So. much. fun. I'm glad I have friends who love to dance!
Bachelorette party! We met at a restaurant and were the loudest people there... by a lot. We made so much noise that even people outside were looking at us. Man, was it fun. Darby has some pretty hilarious friends. I don't even remember what we were laughing about now, but I'll always remember how hysterical it was.
Bachelorette party - part 2. After eating at the restaurant we headed back to the rental house. We played a couple of games, ate (more) ice cream, and kissed a picture frame to document the night.
After getting our nails done Friday, the guys and girls all headed to the Sprouls' to pack up Darby's belongings and their wedding gifts. We made lots of trips up and down the stairs, and might have broken a few things in the process. While we were doing that, a group of ladies were working on the flowers at the kitchen table. Afterwards, Mom, Aunt Pam, Paige, Caroline, and I grabbed some lunch at Chick-fil-a (sorry for spilling water all over you, Paige!) and went to the rehearsal dinner venue to start setting up.

WEDDING DAY

Getting at the church before 8:00, and all of us bridesmaids plus one photographer having to stand outside until someone with a key arrived. Then once we got inside, the bridal room was locked, and we had to wait for the wedding coordinator to arrive and unlock it!
Turning my head to see Darby's wedding dress and all our bridesmaid dresses hanging up. Holy cow, it's real.
Watching Darby be transformed into a princess. Her hair and make up were flawless, and she was glowing.
All the picture taking. The photographers and iPhones were busy snapping photos, which I'm truly grateful for.
The bouquets. They were perfect. They exceeded everyone's expectations and made the day that much more beautiful!
Walking out of the bridal room and seeing people milling around, working hard to make everything perfect. There were so many people who got up early and worked all day long. The men who put the dance floor together, the wedding coordinator, Judy, Sloan, and all the caterers. I could go on and on.
One of the most special moments of the day was praying together just moments before the ceremony. Miss Sheryl, Mom, Delaney, Lauren, Caroline, Lenna, and I gathered around Darby and prayed. We cried hard, but it was the happiest cry. We were grateful and so full of joy that our Darby was happy and about to get married.
Speaking of crying, we cried a lot that day. I had never cried so many happy tears before, and I'm not sure I ever will. Another tearful moment was when Reilly walked in the bridal room. Dressed in his suit, he and Darby stood and hugged each other. I loved watching the Sproul siblings that day and their love for each other.

Darby and Campbell seeing each other for the first time on Saturday. She has some insanely supportive siblings.
Taking family photos. It was kind of hectic/crazy to pose with 60+ people, but it was very special that so many of Darby and Chris's family had come to support them.
Standing in the narthex, all of us bridesmaids in a line, as we waited to walk down the aisle. God worked in huge ways, because we weren't very nervous. About to walk 1/4 a mile (joking) in front of 400 people? That's supposed to make us nervous. But by some miracle, we weren't.
Singing during the ceremony. We sang Be Thou My Vision and How Sweet and Awful is the Place. Of course, more tears. Between an insanely majestic organ, hundreds of voices, and it being the climax of the day, it was impossible not to cry. It was definitely one of the most beautiful moments of my life. I'm grateful to God for making His presence so tangible.
Walking into the reception with John. John is a super fun cousin - I was really glad I got to be with him. We even wore our shades and *tried* to walk with swag. :)
Party time! The reception was pretty epic. It was awesome to see people swarm the dance floor and really get into it. I was surprised by how many people wanted to participate! Running out of room on the dance floor is definitely a good problem. The food was delicious, too. And, the DJ and Emcee were fantastic.
Listening to Delaney's MOH speech, Dr. Sproul's toast, and Dad's toast. They were wonderful.
Seeing Chris take care of Darby. Enough said.
I thought the timing of Chris and Darby's departure couldn't have been better. As they ran to their car through hundreds of people and bubbles, the sun was starting to set. It made everything golden.

Photo by Delaney
That was another time for tears. We hugged them and waved and yelled. And as they drove away, we already missed them. I was really touched and comforted by my friends' kindness. They hugged me and made everything feel better. Thank y'all. You know who you are. :)

Very, very happy siblings of the bride and groom shortly after the wedding. :) (photo by Delaney)

POST WEDDING DAY

After cleaning up at the church and grabbing Chipotle, we went go-carting. We didn't stay too long, but it was enjoyable nonetheless. It turns out a lot of our out of town guests were there, too! Either go carting is a bigger deal than I realized or there weren't very many other attractions. Haha
Delaney spent Saturday night with us. I can't remember exactly what we did other than sitting in the kitchen eating more Chipotle and ice cream and talking about the day. There was a lot to say, of course. :)
Sunday morning we went to St. Andrew's, and said goodbye to several friends. We went to Chili's for lunch, then went back to the rental house and napped.
That night we went to Ascension church!
Delaney rode with us after church, and we went to The Vineyard for dinner. SO good! On the way there, Delaney got to witness our family's "method" of choosing restaurants. The getting lost, the arguments ("ANYWHERE but THERE."), etc. Lol. Good memories. After dinner, we walked to a frozen yogurt place.
Going home after dinner and lounging on the bed. Caroline composed a song and we died laughing. Then later Lauren and Alayna came over, which meant more ice cream, more laying in bed laughing, and more talking until after midnight.

I'm hesitant to hit the Publish button, because I know I'm leaving things out. But on the other hand, I'm not sure it's possible for me to write down every single wonderful moment from the week. There are just too many.

I will leave you with this picture of my brother's stunning wife, and my new sister. :D