Dream Wedding- October 22, 2011

Ward and I have been together for 4.5 years and together, we have 5 amazing children. We've been planning our wedding for a long time. In January 2011, we set the date and reserved all the big wedding things. The venue, the food, the music.....you name it. In June, I was diagnosed with early stage breast cancer and together, Ward & decided that a double mastectomy would be the right course of action.

We debated on what, and if, the plans we had set for the wedding should change. We both new that come November 1, I would have major surgery and would be out of work for a while. After minimal discussion, we knew we weren't changing anything about this wedding.

Our family had been through so much those 4+ years. We wanted to include our children in the ceremony. After all, this wasn't just about us. People ask all the time how all of our children get along. The answer is that they get along great with the occasional sibling squabble. The kids have been right there with us through the bladder cancer, the crohn's disease, and everything else in between. We leaned on God and each other for support. The ending result was a wonderful family dynamic. We were closely bonded.

Ward & I thought it would be awesome if we each presented the other's children with a meaningful gift. Our pastor helped us right "vows". I would say them to Ward's girls and present a gift, Ward would do the same for my three. We told no one about our plans. We presented our four daughters with beautiful necklaces that had a heart engraved with each of their initials. Ward presented little Allen with a cool pocket watch. It was a very moving moment in the ceremony and more happy tears flowed then than at any other time.

Ward & I also had another surprise for our beloved family & friends. Unbeknown to anyone, we had secretly taken dance lessons. Everyone knew that we had NO clue how to dance and we played that fact up during the weeks that led up to the wedding. We had a blast surprising our guests with a romantic waltz that split into a fun, peppy swing dance. You can see our practice, sans swing, the day before here: Practice Wedding Dance

The weather was perfect, the girls were breathtakingly gorgeous, my little man was so very handsome, and Ward & I were pretty snazzy ourselves.

 It was a perfect, wonderful day that I will remember forever.

Amy & Ward, first dance

Amy with daughter, Larissa & son, Allen

Amy & daughter, Paige

Our girls Mackenzie, Jessica, and Larissa

Amy & Ward, first dance

Too cute for words!