The Last Wedding of the 2023 Season!
This was a great wedding to end the season, there were laughs, tears, and lots of dancing! Baillie is not only a CJ bride, but she is also family. We have been through so much together it is unreal how we have survived all of the trials life has thrown our way. Her father was my husband's great uncle (brother to his Papa). When we first met it was not under ideal circumstances, but instead to deliver sad news. My husband and I just happened to be at the same arts and crafts fair that Baillie was when my husband got news that her father had passed. I don't think my heart could have sunk so hard so quickly. Baillie was so young and should not have had to endure a loss that great so young. I've always been close with my husband's family, but this loss was a hard one, even though it was one that was expected as her father had suffered from ALS. Well fast forward a few years it was Baillie's turn to be my shoulder to cry on as we lost my husband's grandfather to Leukemia. Most families will tell you that the grandmother is usually the glue that holds the family together, but in this case it was Papa. He was so proud of his family and as we knew his days were numbered it was Baillie and her siblings who came to sit with him and us and reminisce on the good times and help lift our spirits.
It was such an honor to capture Baillie's wedding. My heart had never felt more full. I have to give shout-outs to her mom Allyson because as a mother of the bride, she went above and beyond to make sure everything was perfect and to make sure she honored all those that the family had lost. From the decor to the food everything was phenomenal and beautiful. Every detail was thought through carefully, but the one detail I hadn't expected and brought on the biggest tears was the letter Baillie's dad had written to her before he passed. That letter made a room go silent.
There wasn't a dry eye during the ceremony, between the officiant (Baillie's older brother) and the groomsmen we could not stop laughing. Even though it was a little bit of a hard day emotionally, everyone banded together to make sure the day was bright and happy. To finish the night the DJ had the whole barn bumpin' with some fun tunes and everyone was on their feet. The night ended with Baillie and Logan having a private final dance under the stars.
