Happily Ever After

Every little girl dreams of her wedding day. She thinks of her Cinderella-like dress. She picks out her bridesmaids. She paints pictures in her mind of her handsome groom. Of course we all know that very few of those dreams will actually turn out the way they were once imagined. But for Ashlee Willeke, turned Ashlee Wells, the wedding was almost exactly the way that the typical young girl would imagine. In fact, a lot of it was the way Ashlee dreamed of it being - even right down to her groom. Ashlee told me (and for those of you who attended the wedding, Angela repeated this) that when she was little she wanted to marry a red-headed pastor. Quite interesting considering the fact that Daniel Wells is, in fact, a red-head, and is studying to become a pastor.

The day before the wedding, the bridesmaids arrived at the Willeke house to help with bouquets and boutonnieres.

This was Angela's bouquet


The guys arrived shortly after us and spent their afternoon playing frisbee and riding dirtbikes. Unfortunatley, the dirt bike adventures turned out quite hazardous, as Peter Hopkins got thrown 50 ft off of the one he was riding, breaking his collar bone. Mr Willeke, Peter, and Angela went to the ER and were surprisingly back in time for the rehearsal.




After the rehearsal, we headed over to the town hall for dinner, which was a time of food, fellowship, and fun!

Joe, the best man


ahhahahaha, LOVE this one! What a cutie :D


Delicious desserts!



That night the bridesmaids stayed at the Willeke's house, and the groomsmen at the hotel right down the road from where the wedding was held. We stayed up late, painted nails, watched movies, and had fun girl times.

Wedding day!!!!


We got up around 6:30 because all of our hair and makeup and everything needed to be finished before 10:00. We headed over to the Blair center's bridal suite in our pajama pants and adorable tank-tops that read "bridesmaid" "maid-of-honor" or "bride" on the front.

Yes, I do have curlers in my hair, and no, none of us have makeup on..but it was worth the memory :)


Once there we set right to work getting ready.



The GORGEOUS bride putting on her shoes <3


The wedding day was picture perfect. Not too sunny, but the rain hadn't come as the forecast predicted. The ceremony was held outside under a big, white tent. The music started and the groomsmen filed in, every one of them looking quite dashing. Then the bridesmaids walked slowly, one-at-a-time down the aisle. Next, the four adorable flower girls and Owen, the ring-bearer, tripped thier way down the walkway. As soon as they made their way down, the music began anew, and all rose to their feet and turned to watch the bride and her father enter. I couldn't see over them, so instead, I turned and watched Daniel. I knew the exact moment when he saw her for the first time, for his eyes grew wide, and he mouthed the words "O my goodness." The expression on his face was indescribable.



The ceremony was beautiful. The tents overlooked a golf course, with fountains and flowers in the background. The sermon was perfect- not too long, but not too short either. The kiss, so pure and sweet. The newlyweds...adorable.

The reception was just as gorgeous. Their first dance made me cry, as did the father-daughter dance.














The send of was picture-perfect, complete with a horse and carriage!!!




The most difficult part was saying goodbye to one of my very best friends. We've always done things together. We've watched movies, gone shopping, spent the night at each other's houses, and ever since I can remember, there are so many memories with her in them. As Ashlee put it in a letter to me "Who would have ever thought that two (3 including Angela) fuzzy-headed girls would grow up together, be best friends, and be in each others weddings?" I cried when I hugged her and said goodbye. I cried on my way home. I cried when I got into bed. But even though I was sad, at the same time, my tears were also tears of joy for the new life that Ashlee and Daniel have together. Things will never be the same. But, Lord willing, things will just keep getting better. By God's grace, I will get married as well, and Ashlee and I and our husbands can have new memories together, and our children can grow up knowing each other :)