A Match Made in Heaven - Mark and Michelle's Lyman Estate Wedding

2013.09.21_Vartabedian.Gauvin-0560_WEB A few weeks ago, I blogged about Mark and Michelle's engagement session, and I shared the story of how Mark and Michelle weren't sure they wanted a wedding or an elopement with a big party. Michelle had lost her father a few years ago, and Mark's mother passed while they were in the early planning stages. They were worried about these very important people in their lives being absent from the wedding, and how that would affect them. After a lot of soul searching, they decided on the full wedding, and we had a wonderful time during the engagement session. While I spent time with them, I listened to their stories and tried to make them feel as comfortable as possible. I had a feeling that the wedding would be healing for the both of them. When planning their day Mark and Michelle weren't exactly sure where they wanted to get ready for their wedding. They had recently purchased a house about six months prior so I decided that it would probably be a great idea to get ready there. I suggested that maybe we could tell the story of their new life together, starting in their home and they liked the idea. My second shooter, Vanessa Walsh, worked with Mark and I stayed with Michelle while she got dressed upstairs. They opted for a first look right in their new dining room. From there we did some formals in the backyard and we headed off to the Lyman Estates.

When we arrived at the venue, Mark greeted his two brothers and spent some quiet time outside with them, while Michelle got herself together inside the estate. I could tell she was feeling a lot of anxiety surrounding the loss of her father and him not being there. She spent some time with her maid of honor taking deep breaths and having some quiet moments by herself and then she was ready for their ceremony. Their service was outside and we couldn't have asked for more perfect weather. The funny thing was, when I first met them, they had both told me that rain follows them EVERYWHERE and not to be surprised if it pours on their day. I said to them, "Your parents are watching you and there is no way it's going to rain on your wedding day!". Then I went home and prayed I was going to be right. Tah Dah! I was right. Perfect weather. Cocktails followed the ceremony and before we knew it everybody went inside and danced their booties off.

There were some really powerful moments where I saw Mark and his brothers all hugging and crying and I found both the bride and the groom looking up at the sky quite a bit as if they were communicating with their loved ones. You could feel the love all day long. As the day went on you could see the mood lighten up, especially in Michelle. It was almost as if she was able to finally to tell her father how much she loved and missed him.

If you go to the answering machine intro on my website, you can hear Michelle's message to me. I love listening to her and knowing how I was able to help both her and Mark find peace on their day and move on to greater things in their new life as husband and wife. Oh and you guys...told ya it wouldn't rain!

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