Wed Video Recap: Moments before...

This is me singing:  "I'll take you there!"  You know that song?  Well, I'm singing it because...I have my raw video footage!!! Woo-hoo! So now I will be doing full fledged recaps with photos but also with some video as much as possible. I just love the ability to share the actual live experience...especially since there is a lot I want to share with you that my photographer missed! Or maybe didn't get great pics of. Whatever...I'll follow up on that soon.  But from this point on (and especially in these next few days and weeks), I'm going to take you with me right back to our wedding day...live and in person!  I promise to try to keep the videos to 3 minutes or less each post and will throw in pro pics as well so you get both media types to view.

So it was just moments before 5:00 pm when the ceremony was supposed to start.  I knew the guests had been arriving (heck, we even passed some of them an hour earlier while we were wandering the grounds taking photos!).  But for some reason, the guests apparently hadn't been sat yet because my mom and the best man came in asking me what was going on.  I told them to bring me my coordinator.

I didn't feel like we saw our coordinators much during the day.  Even when they were there helping at the ceremony, I don't remember them being around other than my main girl, Amanda.  She came in and I told her to have the aisle opened and the groomsmen start seating guests and she took off.  My mom and sister said every time they needed her they couldn't find her but I know her and her team were super busy setting up all the cocktail and reception area and handling other things.

Again, since we didn't really get to practice at our rehearsal, our ushers had no idea what was going on.  Plus, because of the zoo path, we had some guests coming in through the back of the ceremony area instead of across the bridge so they were not getting programs or being seated by ushers.

I had forgotten to tell the groomsmen and coordinators that some of my family/friends would have to sit on the grooms' side since I had twice as many guests as Mr Fix It.  But apparently my mom told a bunch of our family where to sit so that helped.  However, it's funny...we reserved the first 5 rows on each side for family and then half of them ended up standing in the back of the ceremony area with their kids walking around during the ceremony so the front rows were totally empty and the back rows were packed!!! :)

My mom insisted my coordinator was not around to tell everyone what to do and when to walk down the aisle and such but then my BM's told me that my coordinator was there telling them to 'walk fast' because the song was ending before they had enough time to get down the aisle.  So I don't know what the deal was but since I was tucked away, I didn't have a clue what was happening and it all worked out.

After the processional, the video started.  One of the videographers, Jamie, came in to talk to me while this was going on.  After Jamie walked out, it was just me in that room alone.  I was getting anxious, nervous, faint...whatever.  I was glad to be able to listen to the video and guests because it sort of took my mind off of what was about to happen.  Thankfully, I had my dad there. 

He would walk in and out trying to watch the video while talking to me at the same time.  He knelt down and asked me how I was doing and I told him I was worried about passing out.  He just looked at me and said "Just breathe.  Calm down.  It's going to be great."  I remember he took my hand and that was so comforting.  Funny because my dad lives in Houston and we really don't have much of a relationship anymore...but time and distance and the life that keeps people separated cannot break the love and bond of family. 

Just as it was time for me to stand up and walk down the aisle I stood in the door way.  For whatever reason, I looked behind me.  Remember how I told you back here about the spots on my dress?  Well, what I saw when I looked down just 60 seconds before I was supposed to walk down the aisle should have sent me reeling!  There were HUGE black streaks down my gown!  I have absolutely no idea where they came from...before the processional started, my sister and cousin A had taken me outside and inspected the gown and dabbed and removed all the dirt and spots they could find.  I had only been sitting in a chair during the processional and video and the chair wasn't dirty so who knows what happened? 

Amanda was standing just outside the door next to my dad and I calmly said "Amanda.  Amanda!  I need you to grab those paper towels and that bottle of water and start getting those stains off of my gown." 

As I walked out of the room, she carried my train blotting and wiping as we were walking.   No matter what, I was getting down that aisle whether my dress was ripped, stained or falling off of me!  I wish the videographer had filmed this...he shot me standing up and noticing it and calling her over, but then shut off the camera until right before I took my dad's arm. 

Disclaimer: This video was created using raw footage courtesy of Video Keepsakes of Beverly Hills.

It was created by me strictly for recap purposes and therefore will not necessarily be great quality.

There will be things you probably shouldn't hear and shaky footage in certain places.

Thank you for your understanding.

If you had trouble viewing the video, try clicking here for a direct link
Looking back, I can't believe how calm I stayed.  Apparently, the streaks/stains must have still been visible because in the raw video footage at the very end of the ceremony as me and Mr Fix It were walking across the bridge I heard him telling me that my sister didn't handle my gown right because the back of my dress was totally dirty.  It wasn't her fault, she didn't even know about it.  And you can't see it in any pictures or video...so it must have been an up close and personal thing.  Oh well...such is life at a wedding...and all that mattered was I was dying to see my groom on that altar!

TODAY'S WEDDING TIP:  Do the best you can to rehearse the elements of the ceremony...try to time songs out, practice handing off the bride/flowers/rings, confirm who will need to rise and when.  But realize, that no matter how much you rehearse, just as BiCoastal Bride and I learned, something may go wrong in those moments just before your walk that you will have no control over.  Just roll with it...chances are, no one else will ever know, notice or care!

Unless otherwise indicated, all photos by Robert Mullins Photography