Wow - what a beautiful wedding we were privileged to be a part of this past weekend.

Michelle and Ryan were married at her grandparent’s home in Waterloo.  Their house is on a lake, with a large deck/yard/beach area in their back yard.  Wedding consultant Dominique Frost (www.fromthismoment.biz)  did a wonderful job planning the logistics of the wedding - building a large platform on the beach for the bride, groom, and wedding party to stand on - arranging seating on the lawn, a sound system so that the minister and bride and groom could be heard well, and the decorations and flowers - just lovely.  Nature cooperated, and it did not rain, and was not as warm as it could have been in June - appreciated by everyone outside.

As nice as the environment, seeing the love and connection between this couple was even better.  As I spent time with the bride during her pre-ceremony preparations, I realized how deep their love and spiritual connection was - the groom had moved from the East coast to live closer to the bride in the time leading up to the ceremony - and had lived with the bride’s parents during his time in Omaha before the wedding.  The bride told me about how she had thought about her future and her husband, before she met Ryan, and it was clear that he had brought her dreams to life.

A lovely reception at Omaha Country Club followed their ceremony.  The caterers had set up what is becoming a trend at buffet-style receptions - food “stations” rather than just 1 long buffet line.  They had Mediterranean food at one, seafood at another, and an excellent roast beef at last station.  This is such a great way to present a variety of tastes to your guests, and the sooner your guests eat, the sooner the rest of the party can begin!

Michele and Ryan left the reception to a shower of sparklers as they embarked on their new life together.

We celebrated the marriage of Ashley and Brandon this past weekend.  It was a lovely day for everyone involved.

Their wedding took place at St. Cecilia’s Cathedral, a beautiful cathedral in Omaha.  As a musician, I really enjoyed the male cantor who sang at their wedding. Ashley and Brandon had put a lot of thought into the music they wanted for their wedding and reception, and it really personalized the wedding for them.

Their reception, at the Joslyn Castle in Omaha, was very nice.  One decoration I noticed right away - they had thoughtfully put out a votive candle for each person that could not be with them to celebrate their wedding, which I found very touching.  Ashley had also made all of the table runners and decorations herself.  Each table had a word and definition related to love and marriage as a part of their centerpiece.  We plan to include these words and definitions in a special part of their completed DVD.

We pride ourselves on being as helpful as possible to our brides and grooms.  In the last few days before the wedding, Brandon had a number of songs he was unable to locate that he wanted played at the reception, as well as a few songs he wanted to edit to use specific parts at different times throughout the evening.  As he ran short of time, he called us for help, and we were happy to edit music, track down recordings, and burn some custom CDs that the DJ used that evening at the reception.  It really makes me happy when I can extend a service of that type to make a wedding day better for a bride and groom - that’s what it’s all about, after all.