More in depth

So I posted some pictures yesterday but now I'll go more in depth (and include some more pictures) about our wedding day and what it means to me.

Our wedding was purely ceremonial, meaning that no papers were actually signed that day (due to an insurance debacle that has since been cleared up and papers were officially signed on August 21st). We knew we weren't signing any papers and we didn't know how long it would be until we were actually able to be "officially" married.

We decided to go ahead and have the ceremony because of my grandmother's precarious memory and Ben's grandpa's age, and the fact that our best friends were heading off on new journeys of their own. It was the singular moment in time in which everyone was loved and cared about were all simultaneously available. Surprisingly (or maybe not), that didn't make the day any less special. In fact, it made it seem more true to who we are.

We are both LGBT allies that struggled with the idea of participating in the institution of marriage (as I've written about here and here) so this seemed like a logical compromise until we were able to get married and keep Ben's insurance and it would still give me piece of mind that we hadn't completely given in. We were also able to add all of the pieces of our ceremony that we wanted (including The Lovely Love Story and I Like You) without feeling too much pressure to conform to a wedding "as it should be." We are a fun, chill couple and the best compliment we received on the wedding was that it was "so Kaytlin and Ben."

Of course, planning a wedding, no matter how relaxed, is never easy. We had a lot of handmade things, like pinwheels and origami flowers that added to the beauty and simplicity of the wedding, but those are difficult to make, especially because we didn't really know what we were doing. And you can never control for how your family is going to be. I talked about some of my wedding woes which were eventually all cleared up and it meant the world to me to know that my WHOLE family was together in one room, whether they were necessarily happy or comfortable with it. They even talked to each other a bit, something I never expected in my wildest dreams.

 Our wedding was perfect for us. There isn't a single thing I would change. My face hurt from smiling, my eyes were wet with tears of joy, and my heart swelled with the love I had for my new husband and for my beautiful family and friends. I try to recall every moment of that day, from my uncle singing Billy Joel's "You're My Home" to the cupcakes, to the rosebud and picture frame of Ben's father who passed away a few years ago. From the iPod playlist that Ben put together, to the wedding that we designed ourselves, we ensured that we were present in every detail.

 

Perhaps some of my favorite memories are those of the smiles of my family and friends as they really enjoyed themselves (which could have a lot to do with the beer and wine), showing me that we throw a damn good party.And they WERE happy. for us. Because they know that we make each other want to be better people and we make each other happy. And that's what really matters.

So now, you should probably enjoy this video that Ben put together with the pictures from our homemade photobooth. It's pretty awesome and includes most of my favorite people.

 

PS you'll need to turn the sound on because it's got a song that goes along with it and might give you goosebumps.