Forever Grateful

Before I get into the "bad and ugly” that lead to my PWD, I need to take a moment and back up to the “good”. I want to acknowledge all the people who treated my day as if it was their own. And for that, I am forever grateful.

(L-R) Brittany, Moi, Amanda, & Ashley at our hotel's bar the night before the wedding.

My bridesmaid Brittany and my Matron of Honor Amanda (aka my BFFs!):

Although we’ve all hung out together before my engagement, Brittany and Amanda were really only friends through me. But as the wedding festivities became more frequent, they got closer and closer. Besides both hosting some of those pre-wedding festivities, they both traveled with me down to Savannah the Wednesday before the wedding to help with last minute prep. It was then that they truly bonded over their shared interest in making my wedding the best it could possibly be. They worked side by side the entire weekend taking the initiative to get things done. They routinely answered my phone and dealt with needy (and I mean NEEDY) vendors. They would come up with a Plan B whenever possible so I wouldn’t have to deal with problems. They constantly hopped in the car and made trips to buy last minute wedding supplies and slaved over making the OOT bags and touching up other DIY projects. The best part is that they are now truly friends on their own. It’s always great to have good friends that don’t depend on a mutual friend to remain close!

Bridesmaid Ashley (aka mash8!):

Thank you for introducing me to Weddingbee. Without WB I wouldn’t have found the inspiration necessary to create my wedding from scratch. I also wouldn't have all the amazing support afterward to work through my PWD. So in essence, this is also a thank you to the hive. It is easy to see who I drew inspiration from by checking out some of my DIY posts. And having the feedback and support of my fellow bees and all the hive members has meant the world to me. You all rock!

Jennifer

My simply amazing day of coordinator Jennifer of Tybee Island Wedding:

I already know that whatever I say here won’t be enough justice for this wonderful woman. From the moment I first talked to her I knew she was going to be nothing less than amazing. She took the time to read through my blog and familiarize herself with my vision. She lovingly put up with my email communication because I suck so much at making time to talk on the phone. She went on the final walk-through at our reception site, ran our rehearsal, and like Amanda and Brittany, spent the entire wedding day running around getting things into place and avoiding disasters. If you are getting married in the Savannah area, do yourself a favor and hire this woman to ease your mind! Not only is she great at what she does, she also comes at an incredibly affordable price. Jennifer, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for EVERYTHING!

My two moms: (L-R) MIL Lab Denise & Mama Lab Leslie at my bridesmaids' tea party.

My mother-in-law Denise:

Simply put, without her this wedding would not have happened. She graciously opened up her checkbook and helped make up for our financial shortcomings. Although we had what most would consider a “budget” wedding, it was still too much for my mother and I to handle. She made sure all the necessary vendors had their final head counts and took care of all the big-ticket items (including our last minute hire of a cinematographer). I cannot wait to get my tax refund and proudly hand her a check for “loaning” us extra money to make sure our wedding was a reality. Not to mention, I can now officially say I have the best MIL in the world!

My mother Leslie:

Although she spent a lot of the wedding day stressing out loud, which got me worked up a bit, she was stressing about making sure my family was on their best behavior. The Labrador family is known as a rowdy bunch that butts heads quite often when at family functions. Thankfully she was able to keep them under control (with the exception of a few outbursts by my teenage younger brother). I wish I could go back and spend a few more quiet moments with my mother on my wedding day. I know she didn’t get to fully enjoy being the mother of the bride.

Don with his wife Meredith.

Our Best Man Don:

I can’t really speak to all the things he did to help out Mr. Lab but from what I've heard, I do know Don throws a hell of a bachelor party and was thoughtful enough to take Mr. Lab out to Denny's the morning of the wedding. And just the fact that Don snuck us mini bottles of Patron during photos to help us relax and while we were eating our dinner in private during cocktail hour speaks volumes. ;) But seriously, Don is very attentive to the needs of people around him and he was always quick to lend a helping hand whenever possible.

Our groomsman Jimmy:

You might remember when I posted about my two wedding party members that got married back in July? I tried to take a lot of photos for them so they wouldn't have to wait for the pro pics to see their wedding day. Well Jimmy did the same for me and ended up capturing a lot of things I wouldn't have photos of otherwise (like our entire rehearsal dinner and Mr. Lab opening up his wedding gift). Thank you so much for not only giving me that coveted wedding photos turnaround, but also being there with a camera to capture once-in-a-lifetime moments.

My friend Kevin:

Thanks for all the money you saved us on some amazing hotels for vendors and our wedding night hotel! And thank you also for the incredible, show-stopping song you sang at the reception. :D

Whew...they'll be more thanks in the official recaps but these people deserved the special recognition for all they did for our wedding. I wanted to make sure they knew how much their generosity meant to Mr. Lab and I before I delve into the "darker" side of the wedding. I hope all of you know that I will be there for you in a heartbeat to return the favor one day!

Did you have a core group of people who would go to the ends of the earth to make your special day as perfect as possible?