Details...

Because I have nowhere else to put pictures like this, here is a post about some of the details of our wedding...

The Centerpieces

Above is our lovely centerpieces! They absolutely turned out PERFECT! I got the general idea from Pinterest and combines several centerpieces I saw to get this look. I don't like centerpieces that leave little room on the table for you plate or obstruct your view of other people at the table... how are people supposed to talk with a centerpiece in the way. So I wanted simple and elegant. First off, I LOVE antique books! and guess what? Aaron does too... so that was a must! We pulled together books from our own bookshelves, thrift stores, and our parents' bookshelves. Some of my favorites were from my dad's library. So many old books from when he studied bible and history in college. We of course also had some old copies of Jane Austen, Peter Pan by JM Barrie, and Mark Twain. We tied 2 to 3 books together on each table with jute and at the knot put a skeleton key (skeleton keys were bought in bulk from Etsy for super cheap!). 

I liked the country/backyard feel of mason jars. Well of course when I brought the idea up to my mom, she told me she had like 30 in her house alone. We supplemented with some from thrift stores and we had our flower vases.

We then took jam jars (again from my mom) and put a candles in then to add a soft glow for when the sun went down.

We finished off the look with the beautiful flowers designed by Kendra and executed by Chris and Bailey at the reception!

When the reception started, we also added a wine bottle on to the table (either red or white from Trader Joes).

Bride & Groom table

This was also a Pinterest inspiration! My mom (ha!) of course already had all the pieces in her back yard... the wooden pieces were sanded and treated by my dad and then I hand painted them. My mom and dad re-upholstered the old chairs for Aaron and I to sit in and they were so lovely!

The Guestbook Table

The guestbook table was also fun to put together like the centerpieces. My mom painted the little mailbox for people to put our cards in. It turned out great!

We also gathered pictures from our grandparents and parents' weddings and placed those of the table. A way to display our heritage of beautiful marriages.

Our guestbook was a photo album of our engagement photos that people got to sign. I love that it is not just a list of names, but pictures of Aaron and I with words of love and encouragement from people we love and respect.

As people entered the wedding and signed the guestbook, they also had a chance to take our wedding favor, which was a CD of music from our wedding! The CDs were in brown paper bags with our Monogram (designed by my brother) stamped on the front.

People also picked up a wedding program (also masterfully designed by Shawn).

The Jewelry & Accessories

For my bridal accessories I chose pearls... very elegant, simple, and understated. The necklace is from Mykonos, Greece and I bought it on my trip there. Soon after I got home the necklace broke and needed to be re-strung. My parents surprised me with getting fixed and even a new antique clasp put on it! Since my dress had such a pretty neckline, I decided to wear the necklace as a bracelet. It was my something old. The earrings were from my mom. Simple drop pear earrings.

The hair clip was my something borrowed. It was my friend Tara's from her wedding a couple years ago. I always thought it was beautiful and when I bought my dress I knew I wanted something in my hair like a flower. Tara was so gracious to let me use her flower! (Which reminds me, I need to return that to her... ha!)

The bridesmaids dresses and shoes. My girls did an amazing job finding such pretty and interesting bridesmaids dresses to display their personality and style. Their shoes were also an awesome example of their awesome style! My favorite were Ashley's with the spikes on the back! So fun and creative!

My gift to my bridesmaids was a burlap and lace clutch with wedding day essentials in it. They got some Chapstick, tissues, breath mints, and a note of thankful words from me. They also got this bracelet from 31bits. It was so pretty with my wedding colors. They each wore it for the wedding :)

A picture of my gorgeous bouquet!! Kendra did an incredible job arranging it! I loved it and it was exactly what I pictured :) It is now dried and on display in mine and Aaron's bedroom in a vase. I did not toss the bouquet at the wedding... I hate that tradition. As a woman who was single for most of my twenties as all my friends were getting married, I grew to resent the tradition. So I would have been a hypocrite if I had one at my own wedding... so I got to keep my bouquet.

Our pretty rings... enough said :) love this picture!

The Communion table

For our ceremony, Aaron and I got married under a traditional Jewish Chuppah and Aaron broke the glass and everything. We also decided because of our own convictions we wanted the first act as a married couple would be to take communion and remember Christ as the focus of our lives and marriage. On our communion table was Aaron's grandpa's prayer shawl. It was so sweet to have it there on our table.

The Dessert and Snack Table

After the ceremony as everyone waited for the reception to be set up and the tables arranged, everyone snacked on popcorn and M&Ms. My mom put together this basket for the popcorn, even topped off with her Cath Kidston oilcloth she bought when she came to visit me in England with my dad.

The beverage table! Mark and Joni (parents of some of my best friends and like second parents to me growing up in high school) were in charge of the drinks table. They took all the pieces and made it so pretty! Lemonade (strawberry & regular), paper straws, and chalkboard labels adorned the station.

Next to the drinks table were two galvanized buckets on a stand filled with bottles of water and beer. We had a limited supply of beer, so it was first come first serve :)

For dessert we had a drink table of hot beverages from hot chocolate, apple cider, coffee (regular & decaf) and a different assortment of teas.

um... I love paper straws! enough said :)

The Dessert Table

One of the most beautiful spots of our entire wedding was the dessert table! Nancy took this under her wing and from decoration to food, made it gorgeous! It was so nice to completely trust her to make the dessert section a beautiful part of our reception!
She hung paper lanterns and twinkle lights above the table to create a soft glow... just like a Pinterest picture I sent her!

Our wedding cake was made by non-other than Joanne Stern. She has been making wedding cakes for year, but her last wedding cake she made professionally was for my brother and sister-in-law at their wedding 8.5 years before.When Aaron and I got engaged she offered to make our wedding cake as a gift!!!!!!!! Since we were having such an assortment of desserts, the cake was mainly for a centerpiece and to cut! So she made a gorgeous cake that would serve about 75-100 people. We ordered extra flowers for her to arrange on the cake and it turned out spectacular! Delicious too! I only got the one bite from Aaron, but it was so yummy!

Lastly this banner was from my mom... you might remember it from my Prayer Shower decorations and it also adorned the dessert table as well!

Next post will be about food :) So excited to tell you about our amazing caterers!!

Reception!

And now the party!!!

This was the point in the night, where everything important had been done, and now it was time celebrate!!!!

John Lynch wrote this on his Facebook wall the morning after our wedding and it perfectly describes the night:

I helped perform a wedding last evening. But it was an entire historic community marrying off Aaron Mertz and Miranda Thompson. It is easy, in the day to day, to forget the power of life-giving community which stands together long enough, allowing a setting for God to do His wonder. Under a canopy of lights and perfect weather, in a magical backyard, God showed us His glory, power, love, patience, timing and grace. Friends laughed, mingled, danced and reunited, with great joy, not even noticing they'd been the heroes in this story. Sandy Mowen came out of retirement to shepherd us with grace and masterful skill, Don Nelsen did his magic with sound, David Pinkerton was the perfect MC, Kelsie Pinkerton and Sarah Doyle floated around the event, taking majestic pictures, Chris Tinard filmed with brilliance, the legendary JoAnn Stern made the cake, the Mozingos and great friends served up food fit for heaven. Nancy Hahn and friends helped present incredible desserts. Pat and Laurie, Randy and Linda showed how healthy families give their kids away, dozens of heroes helped serve, Mark Williams embarrassed us with dancing that is banned in several states. Dozens of others served without notice or fanfare. Last evening, I stopped several times and just stared at what love looks like in a community. Well played community. Well played.           ~ John Lynch

And with that, there is no better way to describe the night except to just give you more pictures - 

A picture of our Venue - The Hearn House - after dark

Thousands of twinkle lights provided a magical glow

Nancy Hann did a flawless job of designing and coordinating our dessert table. She asked people to contribute and people made the most delicious treats for our guests! Literally perfection! I got one of the S'mores treats before they were all gone.

Introducing Mr. & Mrs. Mertz!

Our first dance was to "Today" - by Joshua Radin

My dad and I danced to "Mandolin Rain" - by Bruce Hornsby. I have had that song picked out for years. It is one of my dad's favorite songs and I think of him whenever I hear it. When I told him months before that it was the song I'd chose for us, he nearly cried. Nailed it!

Aaron and Laurie danced to "My Wish" - by Rascal Flatts

I'll do a separate post for the dinner, but it was in a word - Phenomenal!

After the dancing and before the food, we watched a slideshow of mine and Aaron's lives. Shawn put it together for us and it was a hit! So fun that so many people at the wedding were in pictures with us when we were little or in high school. Amazing!

Andy gave the "best man" toast

Kendra gave the "Maid of Honor" toast

After dinner, it was cake time! Aaron was a gentleman and didn't get any frosting on me... I on the other hand gave no mercy.

Get you're dance on!

Another photo favorite! He looks so terrified... what is going on here?

Another must at my wedding was to have Mark Williams dance to "Shout!" He has done it at all of his kids weddings, and I had to have him dance at my wedding. His break-dancing is truly something you can't look away from, but kind of want to! ha! He also asked me if he could wear his kilt to the wedding, and Aaron and I could not refuse!

There it is... those who weren't prepared for it, were in awe - NOTE: He does have something on under the kilt... no worries :)

Josh and Kate did our guestbook and they are getting married in May!!!

with John and Stacey Lynch

Bruce was a groomsmen of course, but he and Janet did our pre-marital counseling. So blessed by them as friends!

These are my girls! We have stood by each other for the last 10 years! Can't believe I get to have each of them in my life! (From left to right: Kelsie, Nicole, Heidi, Sarah, me, Tara, Jessica, Jeannette, and Meredith)

Our amazing Photographers Sarah and Kelsie! They are responsible for all these beautiful pictures!

My nephews, Jonah & Nathan, made a night time appearance at the wedding!

Read on my mom's blog about how she made the boys onesies with vest... such a sweet story!

During the dancing and dessert time, we had a photobooth open for our guests to have some fun! Our friend Rod Gipson did the photography! What a sweet keepsake to have our guests pictures from the photobooth. We also saw some crop up in this years Christmas card pictures! 

Aren't we adorable!

The groomsmen

Fun with Sparklers!

And the Grand Exit!

A perfect end to the wedding!