a look back at our wedding (I can't believe I never shared these)

 I confess.  I am a hopeless romantic.

There is just something about weddings, and the beauty of watching a couple joyfully join together as husband and wife.

I can't believe I never shared our wedding pictures...

Admittedly, I was really sick with Nicholas during our first couple months of marriage, and didn't have much interest in anything other than surviving the first trimester.  

After that, life just ran away with me, and here we are approaching our second wedding anniversary already...

I thought that, seeing as February is after all the month of love, it would be the perfect time to share our love story, which I posted earlier this week, and our wedding pictures.  

You can find the full album over here if you would like to see more photographs from our special day.

Photography credit goes to Ryan van Roon-Gifford.

Our wedding story in pictures...

And now for all the details, if you are curious...

Our wedding was a simple.  Humble, but beautiful.

A budget and DIY wedding...

We only had three months to prepare...

I baked our wedding cake (a cheesecake) the night before our wedding, after spending the whole afternoon and evening setting up at our venue, along with the help of my precious mother and sister in law to be, Rucus, my sisters and my sweet bridesmaid.  

My sister, Nancy, played Canon in D on her violin as the wedding march, and our friend accompanied her on the piano.

We had well over 100 guests - friends and family from the little town we were living in, and further afield.  Even my grandparents from Cape Town were able to come.

Most of the ladies brought a plate of sweet and savoury eats which we added to the bread, cheese and cold roast chicken we provided for the lunch buffet.  It was a bring and share wedding and it was so special.

My mom, sisters and I made all the decor, and the flower arrangements my mom and Nancy did (including my bouquet), and Nancy also sewed my wedding dress and the flower girl's dresses.

My sweet bridesmaid, Meg, did my make up on the morning of the wedding, and my sister, Beth, did my hair.  I wanted a more natural, simple look.

Another dear friend did nails for me, my mom and all my sisters and bridesmaid, Meg.

Rucus wore his dad's black waistcoat over a sage green shirt.  Rucus, his best man, my dad and Caleb all wore a white bow tie Nancy made for them.

We were married by our dear friend whom I have known for years and has played a part in both Rucus and my life, and he gave such a beautiful sermon.  One I will never forget.

The theme of our wedding was white, sage green and brown.  We used lots of Eucalyptus which another kind friend allowed us to pick from her Penny Gum tree.  We did buy some white roses which were the perfect touch to all the green.

My sister, Beth, painted all the name tags for the place settings.

I sewed lace bunting which we hung up inside and outside, and with the help of my sister, Gabrielle, sewed 100 white napkins.

The beautiful wooden log cake stand was made especially for us by another precious friend who also arranged the flowers and bunting cake topper on our cake.

Our wedding venue was a friend's big house on their farm in the little town where we were living.  The ceremony took place outside, and the reception in their home.  It was a tight squeeze, but it was such a joy to have so many of our friends and our family be a part of our special day.

Our wedding day was the most wonderful day of my life.  I was so incredibly happy to be marrying Rucus; I couldn't stop smiling.

Rucus made my Damascus steel ring and had it sent away to have the lining and stone set in.  His ring was made by his mentors.

I met my dear in-laws over the course of the few days leading up to the wedding; some I only met some on the day!  I love them all and I am so happy to be a part of their family too.

We had a morning wedding...  I had hoped it would be cool and overcast, but a beautiful, sunshiny day it turned out to be.  I just about melted in my wedding dress and our poor guests got a bit sunburnt...

But it was a wonderful, wonderful day.  A day of rejoicing and celebration.

How precious it was to exchange rings and vows with my Beloved and have all our dear guests witness our first kiss.

~

Ah...  How lovely it is to remember our wedding and how happy we were to become man and wife.  

I know I have said this before, but married life is glorious and it just keeps getting better.

I praise the Lord for sending me such a wonderful man who loves and serves Him.

He is so kind and gentle and patient with me.

Rucus was and is my first and only love.  I never dated anyone before him.

How worth it and beautiful it is to wait on the Lord for the one He has set apart for you.

~

I hope you enjoyed seeing our wedding for the first time, dear readers...

If you are married, how long have you and your husband been married for?

What kind of wedding did you have?

Share in the comments below, it is always so lovely hearing your stories and thoughts!

With love, Kelly

Do you follow me on Instagram?  I hop on there fairly often to share a peek into our daily lives...  You can find me @the.handmademama