Sunday, August 30, 2009

Our 12th Wedding Anniversary Today


Twelve years ago to this day Gerard and I were married. It was a beautiful warm day. Everything went as planned except for the limo arriving a bit late and the photographer insisting on so many pictures right after the ceremony. It made me feel bad that the guests had to wait so long to eat. Gerard and I did not smoosh the cake in each other’s face either. We shared it very nicely because we respected each other right from the start. We had the reception right at the church immediately after the ceremony.

It was a nice ceremony, not a lot of people but intimate. We invited our guests to pray for our marriage. I was surprised how many actually did. My mom was in poor health so I made all the arrangements myself. I was so glad that she and my dad both got to see me get married. I felt bad though that Gerard’s parents weren’t there for him because they both died before I even met them. He did have his brother and sister there though, and his three nephews were his groomsmen. Gerard helped me choose the flowers and we had balloons that we released afterward which was kind of fun.

Afterward, we went to Stan Hywett Gardens in Akron, Ohio for more pictures with our whole bridal party. It really was nice that they took all that time and didn’t kill me because they wore heels—I changed into tennis shoes on the way there and replaced my veil as soon as they let me with a baseball cap. Yes, I’m a bit strange—comfortable is top priority with me! Our photographer, Mike Solomon, got some great shots and it was my childhood dream come true. We had to pay $100 up front, not knowing what the weather would be that day, but Gerard encouraged me to go ahead and do it because otherwise I’d always regret it. I remember standing on the little bridge over the lagoon looking into his eyes and thinking, “Wow, he’s my husband!”

Gerard got a headache and laid his head in my lay on the way home. We were both tired from all the excitement of the day but enjoyed going through the cards at my parents house when we got back. We were thrilled with how generous people were! We spent that night at my place (upstairs from my parents), went to worship at our church the next day and then left for our honeymoon on Monday when we were fresh. My parents took care of Dickie Bird while we were gone (he was Gerard’s bird).

Getting married is kind of scary because there are no guarantees, but if you go into it determined to work at it and stay faithful to each other no matter what, it can still work in today’s world. There have been a lot of changes over the years but it’s fun growing together and having someone to share our dreams, experiences and responsibilities with. We both got married when we were in our 40s and neither of us were married before.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY MR. WONDERFUL! I’M SO GLAD WE GOT MARRIED!

(I posted our favorite reads for August yesterday.)

Coming up:
Living Arrangements at the Beginning (9/1/09)
Our Honeymoon (9/2/09)

18 comments:

Deborah Katy said...

That´s the thing, to wait till you be mature enough to marry cause it´s a lot of responsability to make it work. My congratulations to both of you! Nowadays it´s hard to make it work and people normally give up easily.

Daisy said...

Happy Anniversary! I also do not like the tradition of smashing cake into each other's face. It seems kind of mean-spirited, especially on a day when you want to look your best.

Dreamgirl said...

Happy 12th wedding anniversary!

Sounds like it is going to be a great day!

The Florida Furkids said...

Happy 12th Anniversary! Thanks for sharing your wedding day story.

Sniffie and the Florida Furkids

Sandee said...

Happy Anniversary to you
Happy Anniversary to you
Happy Anniversary Dear Karen and Gerard,
Happy Anniversary to you.

What a lovely post Karen. Have a terrific day. :)

Tina Kubala said...

Congratulations to you both.

Mike Golch said...

Karen and Greald,Congrats to the both of you on your anaversary.I hope that you have as many blessed years as celestine and I have had. 29 years and counting.

BeadedTail said...

Happy 12th Anniversay Karen and Gerard! Wishing you many more years of happiness together!

scrappysue said...

happy anniversary! here from sits

Spicybugz said...

Thank you for sharing your anniversary with us. Happy Anniversary and a prayer for a life time of more to come.

Matthew C. Keegan said...

Happy anniversary to you and Gerard!

My wife and I were married (first time) when we were in our forties, so we can certainly understand where you both are at.

We do have two children, however, which means that we have to summon up a lot of extra energy to keep pace with them.

The Silver Age Sara said...

Happy Anniversary Karen and Gerard. There are no guarantees in marriage. It's finding the right person and then it's working on the relationship. Your advice is so very wise.
What a lovely day and thanks so much for sharing the photos.

Karen & Gerard Zemek said...

Thanks to all for all the well wishes for our anniversary!

Deborah Katy: Waiting until you are older and more mature does help I think when it comes to being realistic about working at a marriage.

Daisy: Nice to know others don't like the smashing the cake in the face thing either.

Dreamgirl: Yes, we had a nice day.

Sandee: Thanks for the song, glad you liked my post. It's hard to know how much to share without it turning into a book! I try to keep my posts short but these are longer than usual.

Mike: Congrats to you too! Nice to hear of other happily married people these days. So many things attack a good marriage.

Spiceybugz: Thanks, we look forward to our best years ahead of us!

Matthew: Good luck on keeping up with your children! That sounds a bit tough.

Mountain Woman: This was such a fun post to do. I loved going through our wedding pictures and thinking back 12 years ago to our wedding day. It was so special for both of us!

The Bumbles said...

Thanks for sharing your day! My boss and his wife were married the very next day - I remember we had great weather that weekend too!

And I don't think you are weird at all to change into comfy shoes and a hat - my mother sewed a veil onto a Red Sox hat for me and bedazzled it with sequins for our shower - don't you know I forgot to bring it to the wedding :0(

Karen said...

Happy Anniversary! I loved reading your story. It is nice when people find true love.

Modern Mom said...

What a sweet photo. Happy Anniversary! Wishing you more years of blissful togetherness.

Karen & Gerard Zemek said...

The Bumbles: What a great veil! How could you forget it?? Thanks for not thinking me to be too weird.

Karen: Thanks for your kind comment. Glad you liked it.

Modern Mom: Thank you--we look forward to our best years yet to come!

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing your story. Celebrating your anniversary is such a blessing. Keep it up!

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