Summer Wedding Rundown

As you may have noticed, my summer was chock-full of weddings festivities. I love getting dressed up, chowing down on cake, and dancing 'til the sun goes down... add in the fact that it's with the people I love and it's FREE... what could be better? Multiply that joy by five, yes FIVE, and you have my summer in a nutshell. And the next wedding I go to will be my own... initiate total panic. 

Anyway, there comes a time in life when you start actually caring about weddings, and apparently this is that time for me. These are the weddings of couples that I actually know and have seen progress through their relationships. Because of that, witnessing them exchange vows and make this covenant is even more meaningful and special to me. Austin and I are extremely lucky to be surrounded by a ton of couples who really, and I mean REALLY, love Jesus. From the beginning stages of dating all the way to their wedding days and beyond, these relationships beautifully represent the love of Christ.

Through singleness, dating, and now being engaged, we have found the advice and guidance of these friends invaluable. Whenever Austin and I have struggled through something together, we've always had people to call and learn from. It is inspiring to be surrounded by couples who are transparent and honest about their struggles and their victories. They hold us accountable, they encourage us when we fail, they rejoice with us in our success, they remind us of the grace of God and they are also just really fun people to go on double dates with. We wouldn't be the people we are or the couple we are without these great people. So cheers to our newlywed friends and the adventure of marriage!

Now here's my rundown on this crazy, wedding-filled summer...

-- Brittiany + Colin Gray -- 

Date: May 25th, 2014
Hashtag: #onegraytnight
Photography: Joy Hmielewski
My Dress Courtesy of: Loft (the closet of Ashlyn Deese)

Precious moment of prayer before the ceremony.

Me and Jewlz watching Brittiany get all dolled up.

Singing "How Deep the Father's Love For Us" with Jessica during communion.

           The gorgeous bride!                              Katie, my date and dance partner for the evening.

-- Lauren + Michael James -- 

Date: May 30th, 2014
Hashtag: #2jamez
Photography: Rustic White Photography
My Dress Courtesy of: Loft (the closet of Ashlyn Deese)

I mean COME ON.

 Phi Mu sistas during one of the best dance parties of the summer.

Me with the glowing newlyweds... she looked HOT in her dress.

 Wasn't kidding about the dance party. So. Much. Sass.

Picture perfect exit! 

-- Alex + David Sawyer -- 

Date: June 21st, 2014
Hashtag: #sawyereverafter
Photography: Paige Jones Photography
My Dress Courtesy of: RenzRags on Etsy 

But they literally WERE this happy the whole day.

             We're models.                                     And of course my partner in crime! 

Such a fun group of bridesmaids, I miss it already!

 She's beautiful and sure knows how to plan a wedding!

 My dance partner was finally back in town and gave a killer best-man speech.

 Started getting my Austin's confused... 

Our married best friends, nbd. 

-- Alex + John-Michael Ritchey --

Date: July 13th, 2014
Hashtag: #getritchey
Photography: Photojenik Photography
My Dress Courtesy of: Space 46 tulle skirt, H&M tank

Just two poodles in love.

Spent our whole weekend obsessing over these adorable Polaroids and our suite at the W Hotel.

Award for most unique and fun bridesmaid outfits! Tulle skirts and statement necklaces for the win.

Breaking hearts and taking names.

Too much fun celebrating with this crazy group of ladies.

She. Was. Stunning. The whole day was perfection!

-- Shannon + Tanner Guinther -- 

Date: August 2nd, 2014
Hashtag: #guinthersgettinhitched
Photography: LesleyDel Photography
My Dress Courtesy of:  T.J.Maxx

Now that's a kiss.

This couple is made out of pure love. 

Say hello to my hottie best friend and the perfect date. 

Talk about bridal perfection.

 They keep me fun and stylish.

Their first kiss ever. EVER. Definitely one to remember! 

I guess that means I'm next?
Kelly

Adventure Awaits

As many of you know, life is about to get very crazy for me and Austin. We are both entering our last semester at Georgia Tech and will be graduating in December. Over this semester I am taking my MCAT (and probably a few other tests), starting a new internship with Georgia Tech Environmental Health and Safety, finishing my research thesis and trying to plan an entire wedding. And I better get to planning because our wedding is less than a month after graduation, which is still completely surreal. We're also really excited to announce that Austin was just offered a job at Boeing in Charleston, where he has been interning for the summer. We have completely fallen in love with that city; we got engaged there and have spent many summer days exploring it's cobblestone streets and sandy beaches. But it's also terrifying to think that we might be flying back from our honeymoon in Cancun and going home to Charleston, not Atlanta. On top of that, just a few days after the big move will be my 22nd birthday. That is a heck of a lot of change in just 6 months.

Knowing that all of these things are about to happen, I am torn between being crazy excited and being scared out of my mind. Don't get me wrong, I feel incredibly blessed by all of the opportunities that we've already been given and the many more that I can see opening up for our future. I have always desired a great adventure, and I see a lot of adventure in trying out a new job, marrying my best friend and moving to a new city where we will start an entirely new life together. The newness of these situations is what makes them so meaningful and exciting, but is also the thing that makes me think "Wait, I don't know how to do any of this... What if it's harder than I expect? What if it takes a while to figure it out? What if I fail?"

What if I suck at my job? What if I'm a horrible wedding planner? What if we move away from all of our friends and family and end up regretting it? What if we can't find a church to call home? What if this great adventure turns into a total nightmare? What if I kind of suck at being a wife? What if Austin realizes he can't put up with my hair clogging the drain and my inability to wake up on time? {Ok so that will definitely happen at some point...} But seriously, I fear the possibility of failure and regret. I fear the unknown.

But here's the thing, I don't want to live in fear anymore. I want to be like the Proverbs 31 super-woman that trusts God so much that she literally "laughs at the days to come" and everyone in town thinks she's a total boss (including her children, which is pretty impressive). I don't want to mope around in Charleston being sad about not having any friends when there is a whole city full of people to meet and learn from. I don't want to waste away our first year of marriage being sad that I haven't quite perfected the whole wife thing yet.

So as these next 6 months fly by, and everything in my life gets completely turned upside down, it's my prayer that I will see everything through the eyes of my God who never changes. I don't think I've ever really needed to rely on Christ in this way before, because life has been pretty safe and comfortable and stable up until now. I've heard God referred to as the "cornerstone" countless times, but it isn't until now that I actually understand what that means for me. Just like the people in Isaiah 28, I think I've found a lot of false security in the things of this world, when a much better foundation is offered to me. The Lord offers me "a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation" with the promise that "the one who relies on it will never be stricken with panic." This makes a lot of sense when you remember that we're talking about the creator of the universe here... I mean why rely on the things of this world when I can just kick it up a couple notches and rely on the one in control of everything? So I'm excited to just give it a try and trust God to show up for me, just as he promises.

Preparing for adventure,
Kelly

**All of the pictures above were taken in Charleston by our mega talented wedding photographer Alea Moore. She is an absolute joy to work with and clearly can make anyone look like a model so we would definitely recommend her!**