It’s WEDDING week!!!! Excited was an understatement! I could hardly believe it was here. Time flew by so fast but at the same time it seemed like it was taking forever for the Big day to get here. I remember counting down each day and dreaming about how awesome the gift God was about to give me was. I was soon to be Mrs. Jonathan Wallace. 🙂
I had decided to take the week of the wedding off so I could work on finishing up some final details and even trying to add a few more things to the decor; probably should not have tried to add to the list of things to do the week of the wedding, but truly grateful for ALL the wonderful help I had in making it all happen. I made gift bags to be placed at the hotels to which our out-of-town guests would be staying at. We knew they had traveled so far to just celebrate with us so we wanted to make sure they felt welcome when they arrived at their hotel. Thursday arrived and it was time to deliver the gift bags and get ready for our bridal party to arrive. Jonathan and his Dad took care of delivering the gift bags to the hotel and then he had planned time for catching up and of course playing golf with the guys. They were all staying at his house for the weekend. We had booked rooms at The Battle House Hotel in the beautiful downtown area of Mobile, AL for the bridesmaids and I to stay at for the weekend. Jonathan and I had planned to give our bridal party their gifts when they arrived Thursday night; it was a fun time of fellowshiping with our family and friends; one of many memories to come on this wedding weekend. Friday morning some great friends of ours hosted a bridal luncheon for me and the girls. Everything was so beautiful and just perfect. I can’t thank Mrs. Terri McNellage and Mrs. Lynn Jemison enough for making this such a special time. After the luncheon, the girls and I went to the spa there at the Battle House Hotel; it was absolutely fabulous. It had been a great carefree day with some of the greatest friends, sister, mom, soon to be mother in law, and family a girl could have. From the bridal luncheon to the spa, it was wonderful and to think the best was yet to come. Wow!
It was now time to get dressed for the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. We all arrived at Moffett Road Baptist Church for the rehearsal and our fabulous wedding coordinator, Kristel Bergman was there to greet us. My mom and her amazing friend, Mrs. Teresa Richardson, came after the bridal luncheon and spent the day decorating the entire church. It was breath-taking and absolutely PERFECT!! As the rehearsal began, Kristel positioned everyone in their proper places and she and Pastor Ryan Howard walked us through the entire wedding ceremony several times. I was so glad they both did this as it gave me much more confidence on how the flow of the ceremony would go. It is really a surreal moment when you are standing there with all your closest family and friends practicing such a Holy moment in LIFE. Jonathan and I would make a covenant vow to each other there on that altar in just a few hours from then; this time tomorrow I would become Mrs. Jonathan Wallace.
The rehearsal went great and now we were all off to the rehearsal dinner which Jonathan’s parents had chosen to be held at the Original Oyster House. Jonathan and I rode to the rehearsal dinner together so we could talk about how things went at the rehearsal, and if there was anything either of us wanted to be changed. We arrived at the venue and everything was so beautiful and the food was very delicious. Our menu consisted of blackened shrimp penne pasta, fried chicken fingers, fried flounder fillets, cheese grits, country green beans, and a house salad. We could not have asked God for a more beautiful night. The sky was so clear which gave us an incredibly beautiful view out over the water as we had dinner. After dinner we had several of our friends and family give toast. I cried as each spoke such encouraging words. It was very moving and humbling for Jonathan and I to receive so much love from the people we hold closest to us. Jonathan and I made a slideshow of pictures of our bridal party and family in it set to our favorite worship music in the background. This was very special for us to be able to share with our family and friends at the end of our dinner. This was also a special night in that we were able to celebrate Jonathan’s Dad and my Aunt’s 50th birthdays which just happened to be that same day. Everything was so special and PERFECT.
As the night ended and Jonathan and I departed, I felt so much excitement and anticipation. I knew in just 24 hours we would be married and it was the BEST feeling in the world. The weekend with everyone was better than we could have ever imagined and created wonderful memories to last a life time.
Brooke’s Advice
When the weekend of the wedding came, I was afraid I would be stressed doing a lot of last-minute things, but I ended up choosing to just not worry about anything else. I am so glad I made this choice. Jonathan and I were able to enjoy the whole weekend with everyone there. We didn’t try to complicate things by doing more last-minute details, even though I thought of a few, lol. Enjoy every moment, every memory, every detail.
24 hours and counting till I change from a Miss to a Mrs 🙂
Photography Provided By: Brooke Wallace
Bridesmaids Luncheon Venue: The Battle House Hotel, Mobile, AL
Ceremony Rehearsal Venue: Moffett Road Baptist Church
After Rehearsal Dinner Venue & Catering: The Original Oyster House
Wedding Coordinator: Kristel Bergman
Wedding Officiant: Pastor Ryan Howard