Family Wedding

I attended my little brother's wedding in Ohio this week. It was such a special, intimate ceremony, and I was able to capture the pure joy and love with a few pictures.

My new sister in law, getting ready at the Church:

My little brother and his new Bride:

Cutting the cake:

The rings:

And here is the speech that I wrote out and surprised them both with:

David and Stephanie,

I have some Marriage advice from my children, but first I’d like to quote two verses of the Bible:

Matthew 18:3 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.

1 Corinthians 7:14 For the Christian wife brings holiness to her marriage, and the Christian husband brings holiness to his marriage. Otherwise, your children would not be holy, but now they are holy.

Since my children could not be here today, I asked each of them to give some pointers about what they thought makes a marriage great. Here is what they shared:

Ethan’s Marriage advice:

To have a good Marriage you must believe in God. To have a great one, you need to ring the bell when you kiss at the altar. Be careful about how you dress, making sure it’s appropriate....because if you don’t you will look weird and embarrass your husband or wife. Make sure that your clothes match each other.
You should treat each other the way you would want to be treated. You should not divorce because God does not like divorce. You should talk to each other very lovingly.
When you argue, since Uncle David is a good arguer, you should be careful Auntie Stephanie.

Ethan also wanted to say a prayer for your wedding day:

Dear Lord, today you have found yet another matching pair...my Uncle David and my Auntie Stephanie. I love them very much, thank you lord. Lord I hope you bless them with kids. Amen.

Here is Alec’s Marriage advice:

Make sure you kiss every few hours.
When you argue, walk away instead of fighting.
Oh, and Good job on getting married!

And now some Words of wisdom from Annlise:

For Auntie Stephanie and Uncle David, I hope you have a good marriage!
Marriage means love, care, and happiness. You should be nice with each other when you are married because if your’re not, God will be sad. I think you will look beautiful on your wedding day, Auntie Stephanie.

Last, but not least, Kalyna’s marriage advice:

Don’t fight! Say sorry on Saturday. This was then followed by a ‘high five’, I guess she was quite proud of herself!

I then asked her two questions: What do you want to say to Auntie Stephanie on her wedding day? Kalyna answered, “I love you “

What do you want to say to Uncle David on his wedding day? And I quote: “Thank you for do the wedding.”

There’s not much more that I can add to this wonderful advice. I wish I had some of these instructions when Arnaud and I were starting off!
I have always known David to be caring and wise beyond his years. As he grows and matures, I see the effort he puts into each decision he makes. I am confident he spent the same time and care in choosing a good woman for his wife, as Stephanie has already been a blessing to him.
The biggest blessings in life come after the biggest hurdles. You both have overcome obstacles and unexpected trials to be together--and you will face many more as you grow together in love. I have no doubt that with God’s help, you will conquer the mountains and valleys you encounter in your new life together.

God Bless you both in your Marriage. Welcome to the family Stephanie!