Last month, Brad and I flew to Georgia to attend my cousin Matthew's wedding. As with most family gathering around a wedding, the time was much too short but it was a nice weekend.
We flew into Atlanta the Thursday before the wedding and my parents picked us up at the airport. We spent the night in a motel and then got up the next morning and drove a couple of hours to Augusta. We had some time to kill before the Rehearsal Dinner and lucky for us, our hotel was on a waterfront and they offer boat tours! We enjoyed cruising up and down the river listening to the tour guide. The river serves as the border between Georgia and South Carolina and has many historical ties.
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| Waiting for the boat to leave. |
The rehearsal dinner was at a very pretty place called The Lodge on Heath. It was a wonderful night with family we don't get to see very often and we got to meet the other star of the weekend... Matthew's fiancee Rhende! She is a beautiful young lady and a perfect match for my sweet cousin. They met while both on a medical mission trip to Trinidad (he was a medical student at the time and she was a nursing student). After a wonderful dinner and lots of speeches in honor of the couple (including one I did at the spur of the moment), we called it a night... and I didn't get a single picture. :o(
The next day Brad and my Dad went to hang with the boys at a Guy's Luncheon. Mom and I went to get pedicures and had a relaxing lunch. Then it was wedding time!!!
The ceremony was beautiful and so personal to Matthew and Rhende - including a hymn playing during the pre-service music in honor of our Grandmother. Everything was obviously carefully planned out and it was a wonderful service.
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| The only picture of the three of us... and it isn't very good. :o( |
The reception was held in downtown Augusta at a place called the Marbury Center which is a converted firehouse - very cool! In a true expression of their sense of humor, the Bridal Party made their entrance wearing Sombreros, mustaches and shaking maracas... the did get married on Cinco de Mayo after all!
It was a fun night. And yes, that is me on the dance floor doing the Cuban Shuffle!
The next morning all of the family (except the newly married couple) had breakfast at the hotel. It was a nice last chance to see everyone before we all went our separate ways again. Then we made the journey home.
I am so excited for Matthew and Rhende as they begin this new chapter of their lives. And they aren't messing around... the week after their wedding, Matthew graduated from medical school, then they went on their honeymoon to Jamaica and now they have just moved to Cleveland, Ohio so that Matthew can begin working at The Cleveland Clinic! And, just official today, Rhende got a job in the NICU a The Cleveland Clinic. Whew! So many changes but they have such a love for one another, a strong faith in God and youth on their side- they are going to change the world together!!
Here are a few of the beautiful professional pictures from the wedding...
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| Before the ceremony -Rhende could see Matthew, but he couldn't look! |
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| Handsome Groom. My Uncle Brad is just to the left of Matthew and my cousin Austin is just to the right. |
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