This weekend it was pleasure for my wife and I to attend a family wedding. The bride was the daughter of a cousin. This was a wedding that had a beautiful blend of traditional and non-traditional elements. There were the traditional elements such as the parade of the bridesmaids and the giving away of the bride.

There was also the legal stuff such as the exchange of vows, the signing of the marriage certificate, and the ceremony being conducted by a person recognized by the government to have the authority to a perform marriage ceremony.

However, this event also included some elements that were not traditional. And it was beautiful!

It was a ceremony that reflected the character of the couple being married. Both the bride and the groom are free spirits and they have found in the other a person who both complements and completes the person they are.

Some of the neat things they did included having a lady standing with the groomsmen. And to balance things out, there was a man standing with the bridesmaids – no, he did not join the parade of bridesmaids!

The special non-traditional moment that really touched me was that both parents were there to give their daughter away. The term “give away” is really fascinating in a wedding. Since both families are actually gaining. In a healthy relationship, the grooms family is gaining a daughter and the brides family a son.

And what is a wedding without some sort of memorable slip up? How about the groom starting to repeat back the brides vows! This is a couple that is free flowing and living each moment to the fullest. They simply laughed off the little slip up and carried on.

Wow, what an example for the rest of us. So what if there is a little slip up. Just laugh it off and carry on.

Once the formal part of the ceremony is complete and the couple are declared husband and wife, it is traditional for the newly wed couple to exit in a solo procession back down the aisle.

Not so for this couple. The wedding party made their exit by dancing in pairs down the aisle. They were followed by the bride & groom. Then the brides parents – not to be outdone – also danced down the aisle in the spirit of the moment! Maybe this is a clue to where the bride got some of her spirit from!

The reception that followed was a time for the guests to mingle while the photographer earned his keep creating photo’s for the happy couple to reflect back on. The dinner and dance rounded out the day and lasted well into the night.

Then came time for a family tradition of the family that I married into. Our extended family gathered the next morning for brunch.  It was our own family time together to celebrate. This is a tradition that is well worth preserving!

Congratulations Cole and Noah. Welcome to the family Noah!