A Very Fun, Romantic & Memorable New Year's Day Wedding Ceremony - Seattle Style!

David and Lindsay.

They live in Minneapolis.

They trekked to Foxglove Guesthouse on Capital Hill to be married.

And not just on any day.

1.1.12

Surrounded by their parents and siblings, David and Lindsay shared in a ceremony that not only celebrated the history they have shared, but a ceremony that celebrates the joy and anticipation they feel as they move forward in life together.

In particular, look at these faces! Near the end of their ceremony, David and Lindsay tied a fisherman's knot, symbolizing the unbreakable bond of their partnership. They did a fantastic job with the knot and the smiles were everywhere.

David and Lindsay - here's to much joy in your first year of marriage and beyond!

Photo: http://www.abeautifuldayphotography.com/

The "Kid Wild Card" At Weddings - From An Officiant's Perspective...

This is Blake.

This is Blake's Dad.

Run, Blake, run!

I took this shot at Eric and Charene's wedding at a waterfront home in July.

Time and time again, Blake would run up the driveway incline, somehow captivated by the ascent! And time and time again, Dad would follow.

Might not have been much fun for Blake's father but all of us watching got a great chuckle out of the antics.

Children at a wedding are a wild card. The beauty is they truly can't do "anything wrong."

While many weddings don't include children, many do. And if you are having children at your wedding ceremony, here are a few tips:

1) Seat children in the back or on the "ends" of rows. This allows a fussy child to be taken from a ceremony with little drama or problem.

2) Provide something "new" for children to be entertained with during a ceremony. Some couples provide a basket of books, play toys or whatnot as guests and their children enter a ceremony area.

3) Consult with your Officiant on children in the wedding party. It's important that your Officiant take leadership with the children in your wedding and know their personalities, where to place them after processional and what to do in the event there is hiccup.

Lake Union Crew - Mark & Stephanie At One Of My Favorite Venues in Seattle, WA!

Look a these smiles!

On a sunny and cloudy Friday evening with Lake Washington in the background, Mark and Stephanie were married surrounded by 100+ of their family and friends at one of my favorite venues here in Seattle - Lake Union Crew on Lake Washington.

This dynamic duo (they are!) met on a 12-hour plane flight to Beijing, China and by the end of their adventure (Stephanie was a tour guide on Mark's adventure), they were in love.

With grand faith, alot of planning and true devotion/commitment, Stephanie left her life in Denver and made her way to be with Mark in Seattle.

Mark and Stephanie - I wish you grand fortune as you embark on your married adventure here in beautiful Seattle!

Take A Page From Justin & Tristin's Wedding Playbook For A Memorable Wedding Day...

Tristin and Justin - gracious, kind, very fun and most of all, inspiring.

I had much fun getting to know this couple long distance and actually didn't meet them until their wedding rehearsal.

And on a beautiful sunny evening, Tristin and Justin celebrated their loving relationship with many of their family and friends during an evening ceremony at Seattle's landmark Edgewater Hotel.

If you are planning your wedding ceremony and day, take a page from Tristin and Justin's playbook - lead with your heart, make a stand for what is important to you as a couple, take a few moments after your ceremony for just the two of you, smile big and enjoy the little things and most of all, remember that giggles during a ceremony are a good thing!

www.wedbyannemarie.com

"Hi, Remember Me? You Married My Brother, Terrance...."

Sometimes my job is just so darn great and I can't believe I'm actually paid to do this amazing work.

I had the great good fortune to marry Charene and Eric on July 17th in a beautiful waterfront ceremony in Suquamish, Washington, surrounded by family and friends, hosted by Charene's Mother, Chitra.

Eric and Charene share a very powerful and humbling love story and it was such a pleasure to celebrate their partnership and launch them into their marriage adventure.

Their little one, Kaylani Mya, did a beautiful job with her walk down the aisle and sat on Chitra's lap for the ceremony watching with her big eyes.

I had the pleasure of marrying Charene's brother, Terrance and his wife, Jamie, a few years ago at Newcastle Golf & Country Club. And I also had the profound honor of officiating a Memorial Service for Charene and Terrance's Father, Roger, in 2008.
Today, I am just taking a moment of great gratitude for this couple and family and for including me in the tapestry of their lives.

The Case Of The Missing Rings - You've Gotta Love A Wedding Ceremony

I checked and double-checked. Wedding planner, Rebecca, did the same.

And the best man still forgot the rings!

So, we all had a good laugh while the best guy ran to the lobby to pull the rings from a hiding place and raced back to Darrell and Irlanda's wedding ceremony at The Canal in Seattle, WA.

You've just gotta love a wedding ceremony!

And there was so much joy and laughter in the room to accompany this "snafu."

Truth? I roll with wedding snafus. They make a ceremony real and authentic and create lifetime moments to remember.

Photo: www.alantephotography.com

William and Patricia's Wedding Ceremony At Sahalee Country Club, Sammamish...

William & Patricia Banks - April 30, 2011

Sahalee Country Club is a gorgeous setting for a wedding ceremony.

It's situated in a private community on the Sammamish Plateau. This venue suits a couple who wants a more formal and traditional approach to their wedding ceremony and celebration and at the same time, Sahalee offers contemporary elements for today's bride and groom.

Event Manager (Colleen) is amazing in the dedication and heart she brings to couples and their wedding day. If anyone is "on it," when it comes to details big and small around a wedding, it's Colleen!

Beautiful Photo: Chris Sollart www.chrissollart.com

Darrin and Christy's Wedding Day at Laurel Creek Manor ~ A Love Story Of Devotion, Challenge, Resilience and Triumph

Darrin and Christy - 4/30/11

I won't say much here.

I'll let you read between the lines.

Darrin and Christy are inspiring in all ways.

They first met in high school and went their separate ways. They came together many years later and rekindled a friendship and ultimately fell in love as circumstances of life swirled around them - blessings, huge challenges.

Darrin and Christy - thank you for giving me the beautiful opportunity to celebrate with you what is really true about life - that love is the 'marrow' of all that we know. You both know this much more poignantly than many...

A Sunrise Seattle Wedding Ceremony On Alki Beach For Alan And Karla!

Alan and Karla did it "simple and sweet" for their small ceremony on Alki yesterday morning, April 23rd (8 a.m.!) They exchanged vows on a dock near Salty's on one of the most beautiful days of this year so far. It was a sweet moment with close family and friends and then it was off to Salty's for an early first-seating celebration Brunch.

I love the big weddings. And the small ones are super sweet, too.

Get Married in Sequim, WA! Be Like Ben & Sarah And Create An Intimate And Sweet Lifetime Moment...

Road Trip! What a fun drive I had to Sequim on Monday, April 4th to marry Ben and Sarah waterside at a romantic bed and breakfast overlooking Puget Sound. Ben and Sarah flew in from Michigan to make their way to Sequim for their ceremony - and this was truly all about them. Under black and white umbrellas with grey skies and raindrops, Ben and Sarah exchanged vows near the water - with lots of joy and laughter. I am smiling big this morning as I look at some of the photos of this wedding day sent to me by Mitzi and Kier at Firstlight Photography. These images capture what Ben and Sarah desired for their day: an intimate, fun and personal ceremony to create a life time moment. Ben and Sarah ~ I hope your planned adventures after your wedding day during your time here in Seattle/Puget sound were hugely fun and memorable! So delighted to know you both!

*****

Firstlight Photography: http://www.firstlightphotography.com/

Your Wedding Recessional: It's So Bright You Gotta Wear Shades!

Forgot a boring wedding recessional!

As you are planning your wedding ceremony, take a little time to consider how to jazz up your walk down the aisle as husband and wife.

Here are four tips on how to add some "kick" to your wedding recessional for a fun and memorable "we're just married' walk down the aisle - not only for you but for your wedding party, too!

1) Surprise Roses & Note Cards for Mothers or Parents: Creating authentic and loving memorable moments within a wedding ceremony just doesn't happen. Most of the time, such moments are planned and orchestrated with a bit of planning and heart.

One nice touch for your recessional is to have your Officiant or Minister hand you both note cards and roses at the end of your ceremony (after the kiss and pronouncement, of course!).

Before you take your sweetie's hand and walk down the aisle, you both give your mothers or parents surprises roses and note cards as an "end of ceremony flourish!" This touch is especially special for a bride and groom who are especially close to their mothers or parents and makes for a sweet memory for a couple and their parents.

2) Parade of Children: This is a nice end of ceremony touch, especially if you have a lot of children at your wedding. Seat and group children together with their parents. At the end of the ceremony, the children pick up their small instruments which may be placed under their chairs (horns, kazoos, small drums, etc) and they become the "recessional music" and lead the bride and groom out for recessional.

You would need to put someone in charge of all of this. To create extra joy in the room, you may have your Officiant mention what is going on so everyone can fully participate and appreciate the chaos and joy of a children's parade. And what is true? A wedding is about authenticity and giving children a big and unusual job in a ceremony creates a lifetime moment.

3) The Interactive Recessional: Flowers and Kudos: As guests are seated, a hand-picked group of ladies are seated on one side of the aisle on the end and gentlemen line the other side of the aisle on the end seat. As the couple walks down the aisle after they are married, the ladies hand the bride flowers which become her "recessional bouquet."

The guys can "high 5" the groom, shake hands or conduct other fun "male bonding activities" as the couple creates an interactive recessional. The guys and gals lining the aisles are in on this surprise and if well orchestrated, makes for a great recessional moment!

4) It's So Bright You've Gotta Wear Shades! I was just at a wedding last year where as the bride and groom shared a kiss and were pronounced as husband and wife they turned around, pulled bright sunglasses from their pockets and danced down the aisle with their shades on! This moment created so much joy in the room.

To top it off, the wedding party then pulled shades from their pockets and danced down the aisle, too!

Seattle Wedding Nightmares: 4 Important Things To "Know" As You Plan Your Wedding Day in Seattle, Washington...

Weddings are a beautiful thing. Especially in Seattle, Washington during the popular summer months.

And, on the way to a wedding day in Seattle, there are "local/regional planning situations" that can create added wedding day anxiety, stress and the occasional wedding planning nightmare.

As you plan your Seattle wedding this summer, I invite you to consider these 4 planning tips if you want to want to move into your wedding day with more grace and ease:

1) Seattle's Seafair Weekend - Traffic! Each Summer, Seattle goes crazy for its annual Seafair celebration. This culminates on the first week-end of August (check the calendar for exact dates) with a 3-day weekend extravaganza which includes hydroplanes and aerial acrobatics by the Navy's Blue Angels. Due to hydro practices and Blue Angel practices, the two bridges over Lake Washington are closed for periods of time on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, creating traffic chaos in Seattle.

If you have other dates to work with before confirming a wedding date, I encourage you to select another weekend. If you already have your date planned, consider putting an earlier ceremony start time on your invitation as people are often delayed/late because of traffic. Also, depending on where your ceremony is located, you may have engine noise from overhead as the Blue Angels fly over!

2) The Seattle Mariners/Seattle Seahawks/Seattle Sounds (August/September traffic nightmare combo) - Again, this is a well-known event cocktail that can create serious local traffic snafus, particularly if a wedding is located in downtown Seattle. Each August and September, the Seattle Mariners, Sounders and Seahawks schedule a game on the same day - and as both sports facilities are only a block or so apart, this create monumental traffic jams in and out of Seattle.

If you can, check ahead and see when the Mariners, Sounders and Seahawks are scheduled and adjust your wedding start time as needed. If you have already booked your wedding date and both teams are playing, alert your guests and suggest they arrive early to enjoy a complimentary cocktail!

3) Be Careful About Booking Your Wedding At The Seattle Center Space Needle On Bumbershoot Weekend - Bumbershoot is a huge and very fun music festival hosted at Seattle's Seattle Center each Labor Day Weekend. If you are looking at The Space Needle for your wedding ceremony and celebration (a very cool place!), talk to staff about logistics and parking because of the high auto and foot traffic all over The Seattle Center grounds.

Also, beware that if you do hold your wedding high in the sky in The Space Needle, you may hear music from the bands playing below. For most couples, this only adds to the color of their wedding!

4) Timing It Right And Don't Get Left Behind: Catching A Ferry to Kitsap County In The Summer Months - Each year, hundreds of weddings are held across the Sound from downtown Seattle in the beautiful area of Kitsap County. From Seattle, you can drive to Kitsap County and it's most convenient to take a ferry from downtown Seattle to either Bainbridge Island or Bremerton.

If you are planning your wedding on a popular Summer Seattle day, beware that the Washington State Ferries are packed with autos and people and oftentimes, family and friends have to wait one or two ferries before they can get on.

To make things more convenient for your guests, consider having them walk-on the ferry and then plan to have a bus or shuttle on the other side to get them to your wedding venue. This way, your family and friends can just park on the "Seattle side" and enjoy a ferry ride with curbside service to your wedding!

On Your Wedding Day, Take A Break To Create Sweet Personal Moments...

My wedding day was a blur.

I don't remember much.

What the heck happened?

I wish I could have relaxed more.

In working with couples, I often take pre-emptive action around the ceremony portion of a wedding day so a couple has some private time or quiet time immediately after their ceremony.

Yes, a wedding day is a huge/big experience. A smart couple consciously creates "moments" during a day where they are alone, quiet and can just "be."

As you consider "what to do" immediately after your ceremony, consider this possibility - take "quiet/private time" right after you walk away from your "we're married" moment.

Instead of a receiving line or turning around to greet family and friends, take 15-20 minutes alone together. You will never again have your "just married" moment so take advantage of this time to sit together, go for a short walk with your photographer or share some champagne and appetizers.

Also, while the words of your ceremony are very important, work with your Officiant around the "feeling" of your ceremony. This will help create moments within your ceremony that you will remember. Oftentimes, a couple doesn't really remember many of the words from a ceremony (really!). In other words, it's the feeling one remembers more than the words.

The key to sweet personal moments on a wedding day? Set them up - don't expect them just to happen.

Beautiful Photo: David & Rachel - http://www.tashaowen.com/

February ~ Many Couples Are Now Planning Their Wedding Celebrations In The "Off Season" of February. Why?

What a sweet kiss!

Moments after Peter and Hannah walked down the aisle, I managed to capture this intimate moment before they turned to greet family and friends.

At rehearsal, we weren't sure what was going to happen on Sunday, February 20th - snow, sleet, rain, sunshine.

And remarkably, Peter and Hannah got a cold and crisp day with lots of beautiful sunshine for their wedding ceremony at The Canal in Seattle.

More and more couples, like Peter and Hannah are being married during the month of February in Seattle. The weather is a tad more predictable than January - venue costs are value priced for couples - and couples find that family and friends love a celebration in this month as it brightens up a grey time of year.

Getting Married Outside Of The Seattle, WA Area? 3 Tips For Your "Destination Wedding!"

Each year, I travel to wonderful places all over Puget Sound and Washington State for wedding ceremonies - big and small.

And over this time, I've had many experiences on the way to a destination wedding day. If you are planning your wedding outside of the Seattle area, here are three tips to help insure an easy and comfortable wedding ceremony:

1) Get Real About Timing Issues. If you are planning your wedding at a destination site that involves travel by car or ferry, your family and friends will appreciate sensitivity around the scheduling of your wedding day.

During a Northwest Summer, traffic and increased tourists can mess things up. As you work on a timeline for your wedding day (no matter if your guest list is 2 or 200), be overly generous with timing out the events of your wedding day so that you allow for traffic snafus, lost guests (or vendor), etc.

2) Shop Local For Vendors. Many couples hire wonderful wedding professionals out of Seattle/Tacoma and immediate areas for their destination wedding. And at the same time, don't forget to "look local" for vendors who may live in the immediate area. This can save your considerable money on travel fees and you have peace of mind that one or more of your wedding day vendors are "nearby!"

3) Be Extra Generous To Family and Friends. Don't underestimate the effort and expense it often costs to travel to a destination wedding - hotel, car, ferry fees, etc. If you are hosting a destination wedding, what a lovely thing it would be to throw a special party, dinner or barbeque for your guests who have travelled far or delight people who have made great effort to be a part of your wedding day with a special surprise or welcomed gift.

Fabulous Photo/Alderbrook Resort (Dustin & Erin) by www.jennygg.com

Jason and Kelly's Winter Wedding Day At The Salish Lodge ~ Snoqualmie Falls...

Jason and Kelly did The Salish Lodge proud!

With their wedding designer and planner, Kevin Bradford, Jason and Kelly created a winter wonderland for their ceremony and celebration.

Yes, the wedding ceremony was beautiful and the reception was spectacular.

Yet, most inspirational is the love, commitment and devotion shared by Jason and Kelly and the intention they brought to their wedding day.

For Jason and Kelly, December 17th was all about their wedding day and this celebration was also about consciously envisioning their marriage.

In the chaos of planning a wedding, planning a marriage can get lost among the chaos and gentle tension of all things wedding. One of the gifts a couple can give themselves on the way to a wedding day are "time-outs" to focus on partnership, marriage covenants and opportunities to explore/expand intimacy and trust.

Beautiful Photo: www.azzuraphotography.com

Jonmark and Emilie's Wedding Ceremony ~ At A Hidden & Little Known Park In The Center Of The Seattle Universe ~ Fremont!

It was a grey January morning last week and an email popped up on my screen.

I was delighted to see the note was from Jonmark and Emilie, a couple I married in the most wonderful and obscure park in Fremont last Summer!

Like Jonmark and Emilie, if you are looking for a hidden gem of a Seattle park for an intimate wedding ceremony, take a peek at the Fremont Peak Park ~ it's quaint with a lovely view and being a neighborhood park, it doesn't have alot of foot traffic.

Fremont Peak Park: http://www.fremontpeakpark.org/

"Annemarie - Six months in and the wedding seems a bit far in the past but the joy, laughter and warmth of the day are still very present. Thank you again for making the ceremony cheerful, simple and authentic to us." ~ Emilie and Jonmark

***

Photo: Sacha Blue at http://www.sachablue.com/

Getting Married "Holiday Style" in Seattle ~ A Big Tip For A Pre-Holiday Wedding Ceremony...

John and Cassie ~ I had so much fun with you on your wedding day at Port Gamble Church!

Just look at the photo to the right - John is proud and so handsome on this wedding day and Cassie was over-the-top stylish and gorgeous, too. Best of all, at their core, this couple is all about graciousness, kindness and loving commitment.

John and Cassie took advantage of off-season rates and discounts for their December wedding.

Big Tip: A holiday wedding is all about timing: you'll find great deals from wedding vendors and many venues if you schedule your wedding between the weekend immediately after Thanksgiving thru December 15th.

This three-week window is often "downtime" for many of us in the wedding business and while some take this as vacation time, many wedding professionals offer sweet discounts and added value to provide products and services during this time.

2011 ~ Looking Ahead To A New Wedding Year And A Few Inside Planning Tips....

Greg and I are back from a wonderful two week vacation in the Caribbean ~ rested and excited to re-engage for a new year.

Much like a bride and groom may feel at the end of their wedding day, is how I often feel at the very end of a 10-month wedding season - happy, worn out and so glad it's over.

Glad it's over?!

Yes ~ absolutely. It's a wonderful feeling to know that my weddings for the year are complete and well done (hopefully my couples agree). What I'm not shy about sharing with my couples and colleagues in the wedding world is the gentle tension I often carry and hide around every wedding.

The challenge of creating and officiating a wedding ceremony is this: you can't do it over. So with this work comes a level of attention and performance that demands a high degree of dedication and planning to insure a beautiful and memorable result - i.e., an authentic weddding ceremony.

As Kelly and Ryan worked to create a beautiful wedding day experience, thousands of couples in the Puget Sound area are now planning their weddings for 2011. Let me humbly offer a few hard earned "planning tips from the frontline of all things wedding..."

~ Keep It Real: If you want to be married on Alki Beach with 2 witnesses ~ do it. If you want to be married at Villa Academy like Kelly and Ryan with great pomp, do it. This is your wedding and keeping it real means doing what is right for you. Tune out all "do this/do that" wedding noise and stay true to what is important to you.

~ Plan Not Only A Wedding, Plan A Marriage: Your engagement time is not only for wedding planning, it is a remarkable moment in time to grow deeper in your loving relationship. Ask the big questions, create your covenants, road map your vision/desires for your marriage - use your engagement time to grow deeper in love and understanding so you may walk into your wedding day with grace and ease.

Here's to a wonderful 2011!

A Seattle-Kitsap County Inter-Faith Wedding Ceremony - Travis & Margot Style!

I met Travis and Margot more than a year before their wedding ceremony on May 30, 2010.

And on this day, I had the marvelous opportunity to officiate their Inter-Faith wedding ceremony which celebrated their Jewish and Christian traditions/backgrounds.

The night before their Sunday evening wedding, Margot's parents hosted a beautiful sit-down dinner at their Mercer Island home before the casual wedding rehearsal (a bit cramped in a living room and it worked well!)

More than 150 family and friends traveled by ferry to Bremerton for this wedding day. Under a gorgeous Chuppah, Travis and Margot exchanged their vows and involved their parents and wedding party in the exchange of their rings.

Wedding Coordinator Alison Lum did a terrific job pulling together all details for a gorgeous ceremony setting and reception - Alison, you made my job extra easy!

Travis and Margo ~ Thank you. I loved being a part of your wedding day and one day I'd like to tell you about a sweet exchange I had with Margot's Grandfather after the ceremony.