After a good nights sleep, it was finally the day that we had been waiting for for a year and a day...our wedding day. I woke up before the alarm went off and Courtney, Sarah, and Amber were still fast asleep. I got up and quietly left the room and headed down to the gym where I got a 45 minute yoga session in. It was so relaxing and much needed after the craziness of the week. I didn't even turn the lights off in the gym, just enjoyed the peace and quiet of the morning. At 8 AM I headed upstairs and got all the girls up and dressed before heading downstairs to grab breakfast. I got to rock my slippers and "bride" robe that my sister had gotten me so it didn't take long to get ready to go. Once we had eaten, we decided who was driving, then headed to the hair salon.
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| The Before... |
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| My MOH and Best Friend :) |
I had chosen to do hair and make up at Taylor Brooks Salon because it was close to the hotel and church and it was the most reasonably priced place I could find. I had already done two hair trials there and the staff was very friendly and easy to work with. I also had quite a group with us, including my bridesmaids, mom and grandma and mother in law, so it was much easier to go to a salon where it would only take a couple hours to get ready. Once we got to the salon, they helped set up some food we had brought and a mimosa stand. Each girl got called up one by one to get their hair done. This was part of my bridesmaid gifts to them, and some of them had also opted to get their makeup done. Alyssa was my hair and makeup stylist and she was absolutely wonderful. She did my mother in laws hair and makeup first while I waited and chatted with the other girls getting ready, and then it was my turn. I had done two hair trials, and although during the trial I loved my hair, after thinking about it a couple days, I would change my mind. I came in with a very specific idea and Alyssa made the image I had in my head a reality. She did an absolutely amazing job with my hair, and used about a bottle of hairspray so that we would insure that it stayed curly for at least the majority of the evening (it actually lasted the whole day)! Once all of the girls were done, they got their bridesmaid dresses on at the salon and we got all of the jewelry squared away. We wrapped up at the salon right after 11 and we were on schedule to hit the road for the church!
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| The After... |
We had a bit of confusion with the tie for Joe. One of my bridesmaids makes custom ties and bow ties (https://www.facebook.com/EllisGDesigns) so she had made the groomsmen ties and pocket squares match the bridesmaid dresses and a gold set for Joe. Although the groomsmen go theirs the night before, Joe had not gotten his yet. She forgot them in the morning as we rushed to get to the salon, so we asked a friend to drop them off at the salon. After failing to get in touch with her, we headed to the church where we got a quick text from her that she was with the cops (she got pulled over and had some issues :) ). Of course, I freak out and call Joe's mom to see if a family member of his staying at the hotel could bring them to the church, and she took care of getting the tie to the church.
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| At the church before I got dressed! |
When we arrived at the church our photographer Steve (http://jstevensphoto.com/) had already arrived to take pictures of the dress and details and my little brother showed up with fruit salad and sandwiches for the bridesmaids. We realized we didn't have any water so he headed out to get some water and was so so helpful throughout the process. Before we knew it, it was time to start taking pictures. It started with me reading Joe's letter, then some group pictures with the bridesmaids. Then I got dressed while he took some pictures of Joe and his grooms party. Before I knew it, it was my turn again and we were taking pictures in the dress with all my bridesmaids, and a small bridal shoot. After a few hours of pictures, it was time to walk down the aisle! I hadn't been nervous all day, and was so excited for this moment.
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| Tears of love... |
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| Getting Dressed in a Pre K room :) |
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| Getting Dressed in the Bridal Room |
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| Bridesmaid first look... |
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| Rockin their Bridesmaid Gifts! |
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| Our helper for the day :) |
The ceremony began at 2 PM. It started with the procession and I cannot express the excitement, tears, and look on Joe's face when I saw him at the end of the aisle. Everything was simply perfect. The ceremony was short (for a catholic wedding) and we did not do a full mass. I struggled to make it through the vows, we barely go the rings on our hands during the exchanging of the rings because they were so tight, the homily was beautifully done by the deacon, our readers were amazing, and we honestly couldn't have asked for a more beautiful ceremony to make our marriage to each other official.
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| exchanging rings |
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| First Kiss |
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| Mr. and Mrs. DiDia |
Before we knew it, we had our first kiss and were announced as Mr. and Mrs. Joe and Vida DiDia and it was time for our family pictures. The church was beautifully decorated because it was the weekend after Easter. After about 30 minutes of photos, we took Joe's dad's car and his brother as our chauffeur and headed down to GT for a photo shoot. We chose to go to GT because that is where Joe and I met, making it so special to us. It was a long shot to go all the way to Tech for pictures, especially with the Hawks playoff game and the Braves game being in Atlanta, but God really was on our side and we sat in no traffic. Joe soaked in being married and enjoyed some champagne during the drive and really just got to be together away from all of the commotion for a bit. We took some amazing pictures at Georgia Tech since that was where Joe and I had met. We couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day to take pictures outside. Once we wrapped up the pictures, we headed to Alpharetta Athletic Club.
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