Married At The Manor
Rebecca Jane Photography
Do you believe in magic? Do you believe it is possible to find your Beloved and Soul Mate as a teenager and after one date just KNOW that they are the ONE? These are the things that fairytales are made of, yet I had the honor and privilege of supporting Kelly and Cody in proclaiming to the world that magic really does happen and young love truly can last a lifetime.
When I first met Kelly and Cody there was such a purity and innocence in them that I honestly had a little misgiving about their utter confidence that they were ready for marriage. The sweet smiles and joyful expressions then revealed an amazing eleven year backstory of growing up together and navigating a whole lot of life experiences individually and together that not only did not shake their connection but made it stronger. I was so intrigued and in a very short time formed a deep respect for these two young lovers and my belief in love and magic was affirmed once again.
So if you are made of the stuff of such romantic love stories, where would you meet? Well at a movie theatre of course! At your first job, in your own home town at barely legal dating age. Please enjoy this Love Story review excerpt from Kelly and Cody’s wedding ceremony and follow along through the eleven year “first date” that brought them to the altar at the magical Lairmont Manor in Bellingham Washington to say their vows and prepare to begin their second date called Happily Ever After.
When you were both oh so very young, not even in your twenties yet, and you met at your local movie theater where you both worked. You soon discovered that you had a shared love of video games and let’s just say nerdy pretty much everything. You also had the same friend group so getting to know each other was easy and natural.
Then came the first date and it is pretty safe to say that it might be the longest first date ever…. You clicked so well that the date just never really stopped. You had some fun experiences planned for the beginning of your day and that morphed into texting all weekend and finding more and more fun things to do together and it was immediately apparent to both of you that THIS was IT. You had found your person and that was that and pretty much the date has continued until this very moment.
It is so incredible to consider that of the 8 billion people on the planet, you found each other in your own home town and were barely old enough to even have started dating, yet the stars aligned and the bells and whistles that chime in our hearts when we recognize our soulmate definitely rung out and made it utterly clear to both of you that this was your Beloved.
It affirms for me that there truly is something we might call destiny or soul contracts and that the Spirit of Love knows who, where and when it is time for us to begin our journey on the path of love.
So you have grown up together and that also is no small feat. It is enough to figure out our own values and interests and skill sets and chosen path in life and to do all that with another who is going through the same massive learning curves is pretty impressive. You finished school, got jobs and then kept your connection going strong through five whole years of working opposite shifts so being truly ships that pass in the night.
And while you always knew that you would take this marriage step together eventually, you were wise enough to know that you had to find your foundation first.
Finally in 2019 during a very fun trip to Universal Studios to see your favorite movie sets a secret proposal was schemed up. You had been to the Harry Potter set and were on your way to the Jurassic Park one, your two all time favs….when Cody took your hand Kelly and drew you out of the crowds and said “ I know you don’t like big public displays, so I am just going to make this between us and not get down on one knee. He asked, and with butterflies in her belly, she said yes, the ring went on, a sweet kiss was snuck in and then Dippin Dots were the champagne choice of the happy moment. Filled with ice cream and excitement for the future, off you went to Jurassic Park with Kelly proclaiming “This is the most perfect day ever!!!”
And still there was some waiting to do…a small factor called a global pandemic had to be navigated and some more work developments plus the very important milestone of becoming fur parents to Murdock and finally finally here we are at your beautiful wedding day. So I would say a very successful first date that has lasted eleven years and now let’s get you married so you can begin date number two! :)
Rebecca Jane Photography
Of course, Mother Nature offered up an exquisite autumn sun filled day for Kelly and Cody and of course these two HAD to get married at a charming, castle like Manor. When our beautiful bride walked down the aisle with her beloved grandmother’s bridal crown on I could not help but well up with tears. Her beloved Cody just kept doing what Cody does, which is smile from ear to ear and calmly and joyfully welcome his sweetheart to the threshold of their new chapter. Tender yet wise vows and ring exchanges were offered and of course they sealed them with a kiss. Family and friends wiped away tears and with equal confidence in the love story they had supported over the years, clapped and cheered as our new Mr and Mrs walked back down the aisle to simply continue doing what had been their destiny all along.
As a wedding officiant and relationship coach, I obviously believe deeply in love and marriage even in a world in which both are often fleeting and fickle. I end all my ceremonies with a deep bow to our couple and thank them from the bottom of my heart for giving all of us the gift, hope and inspiration that we all so deeply long for. Love is alive and well, it can be a fun adventure AND a path dedicated to learning, growing and figuring out life together. You Dear Kelly and Cody are living proof that all of this is not only possible but happening right in our midst.
When Harry Potter and Jurassic Park are your two favorite adventure stories of all time, you are assured that you do have some magic powers and gusty courage in your hearts and are so very ready to show us all how it is done.
Blessings upon Blessings to both of you Mr and Mrs Cody and Kelly. I can’t wait to watch sequels for more decades to come. Love Grace.
Rebecca Jane Photography