New Beginnings

It seems appropriate, on this first day of a new month, to write about the wedding date we enjoyed this weekend!

Back in the day before there was a Shafferland, Ryan belonged to an accountability group with three other guys: Adam, Brad, and Darr. You remember Adam...he was in our wedding. But it was Brad's daughter, Megan, that became a wife over the weekend, and we were excited to attend the wedding. I got to know Megan when we all went to church together for a few years. And while I'm definitely closer in age with her parents, Megan and some of the other {then} teens from that church had a special place in my heart.

Megan emailed me a few months ago, asking for prayer. She didn't offer many details, but I prayed and eventually I learned a bit more of the background...I was actually praying over her relationship with Daniel and whether or not this was the right time to pursue marriage. They're young, but I believe the Lord honors young marriages just as much as He honors "old" ones like mine and Ryan's, so praying for this union is a special privilege.

So Ryan and I wore our best blend of wedding-pretty and hot-day-appropriate attire and headed to a WEDDING!

The ceremony was beautiful {and short!} and the bride and groom - clearly radiant with love, which made me cry, and we won't count how many times.

{Sorry for the grainy photos. We were in the back and I was trying to be respectful and stick with cell photos vs my clicky fancy pants camera. But never fear. It was employed at the reception!}

Their guest book? The fingerprint tree. I had seen these before on Pinterest but haven't attended a wedding that used one until now. SO CUTE!!

The reception was outside, and all the food was cookout food! Burgers and hot dogs, salads and chips - DELICIOUS. And while we were all so grateful it didn't rain {much threat of it in the old forecast}, it was H.O.T. outside, so Ryan did a wardrobe change for the second half of the event.

Isn't the silverware packet adorable? The words by the date stamp say "Best Day Ever" - and a tribute to Megan's library job.  The trees were a motif throughout the entire wedding.

 I just had to. His big mouth cracks me up.

One of the best treats? Seeing Adam and Sara, who drove a LONG way for this day.

Almost the whole accountability group reunited:

Another really big blessing of the evening was the chance to catch up with friends from our old church we never get to see anymore. So many great conversations...we both talked about how much fun we had with them!

Ryan caught up with his high school choir teacher {a GEM of a woman I love just as much as he does, even though I wasn't a choir student} - and I got to sit with the lovely mother of the bride while she ate dinner. YOU MADE THE BLOG, LORI!! And you looked stunning. Thanks for spending time with me!

The rest of the evening was made up of all the stuff you would imagine at a wedding - dances and cake cutting:

And then...the moment we REALLY needed on video. Ryan and I stayed to help clean up after the reception, and he and I each rolled a big round table from the pavilion, UP a gravel driveway {UPHILL, I mean} and across the parking lot to the church. Well. Ryan did. I wrestled and warbled and had to be rescued TWICE. I can ONLY imagine what it looked like from afar. After that, I stuck to cleaning up the little stuff.

{I should also mention that en route, I discovered a piece of gum stuck to the bottom of this table, and I can't handle gum - CANNOT HANDLE IT - so I had to make Ryan switch me tables. LOL!!!}

All in all - a lovely, lovely day in every way. So excited for Daniel and Megan as they begin a whole new chapter of life side by side. Excited to have been a witness to their vows and to enjoy not just a fun date with Ryan, but a fabulous evening with so many friends.