Signed, sealed, delivered! This project is officially in the hands of this beautiful bride. Can I hear a resounding … yay!!!
I’ve posted just the ‘artistic edits‘ on my website, the rest you can view on Pictage, by entering ‘ten four’ in the search field.
I feel so blessed to have been at this wedding, let alone take photos of it. Taylor came with me to assist {thank you so much Tay … and I should mention I still owe her a pair of Converse from the deal!}, so the fact she was with me for the entire day was a blessing in itself.
Kris was my original BFF, and that was back in the day where we coined the phrase BFF. Man, we had some awesome, awesome good times together. Some she remembers and I don’t. Some I remember and she doesn’t.
We met in fifth grade when I moved to Oak Creek. By sixth grade, we were at BFF status. She even left her original, original BFF for me. It was everything I wanted a friendship to be. We even went to homecoming together one year. Um yeah, losers …
Kris and I went our ways after high school. We kept in touch a little, but our lives seemed to have brought us different roads to travel. She had a baby, I had my awesome barber degree to pursue. :)
We shared a few emails here and there, saw each other a few times and then seemed to reconnect a little better a couple of years ago for our high school reunion {I refuse to say what one we were celebrating}. We were total Romy & Michelle’s, and I’ll leave it at that! And needless to say, the girls that were drunk and dancing on tables in high school, are now women that are drunk and dancing on tables. Not cool.
Okay, back to the wedding … Kris and Mark have been ‘dating’ for 18 years. Neither have ever been married and they never married each other. They were content doing the “Goldie Hawn/Kurt Russell” thing.
Mark is an incredible man. I never really had a chance to get to know him, and I regret that. He’s a quiet, gentle spirit. A very caring man. He raised Bethany with Kris, from the time Bethany was just a few years old {threeish?}.
This was the first wedding for them both and it was special. Kris never expected to get married. Mark asked her to marry him last Christmas … in the same spot her parents got engaged {goose bumps yet?}.
They met when they both worked at a trucking company. Kris in the office, Mark as a driver. They would flirt over the phone and he’d end the conversation with “ten-four.”
When she told me they’d gotten engaged and were contemplating a date, I wasn’t sure why she kept saying she was going to try for this October 4th. If it wasn’t then, she wasn’t sure when it would be.
Come to find out the significance in that, is that October 4th, is also translated as “ten-four!” {goose bumps?}.
Kris has 3 sisters and a brother. They were always so close … and still are. An incredible family and love. As I’m typing this and remembering our childhoods together … I almost feel as if somewhere deep inside me, I loved being in the midst of her family and the craziness of everyone all around … I’m realizing this as I’m typing, but I’m almost thinking that her family is the reason I have a large family myself.
As crazy as things get, I love it. I love the madness and love that lives in my house.
Back to the wedding … I loved watching this wedding and their love, from behind the lens. As I said, I felt truly blessed. Blessed to witness such a deep commitment to each other. Blessed to see her family together again.
But I also felt a twinge of regret. Regret that I missed so many years.
And then blessed again that we’ve been able to stay in touch and connected after so many years.
Kris, Mark, Bethany, Dale, Sandy, Kathy, Kelly, Kerri, and Jason … thank you for allowing me to capture this special day and be with you in such a special way.
wow tracie… what can i say about that lovely story except.. thank you… thank you for your kind words and special thoughts about me mark and beth and also for loving me and my family so much ! the feelings are definitely mutual ! as I have told you… WE were the ones { the whole family } who felt blessed to have you be a part of our wedding and capture the day as a friend.. not a photographer.. you knew just what to take and of who and your gift to us your pictures (and your time)- were just so perfect i can’t stop looking at them… your blog made me laugh and cry and left me just feeling thankful that we are still friends and glad that we have gotten closer again… i was sad to leave the other day, i felt like talking more with hunter or sitting in your office and catching up..your friendship truly makes a person feel special ! mark has told me over and over how lucky i am to have a friend like you ! he said he can just imagine the amount of time you put into our gift.. i want to share the picture books with everyone i know and at the same time i don’t want any one touching them because they are just so special… so mine..
( so me, hey.. issues ! ) your gift was not something i expected and we are truly grateful !
i am grateful that you spent the day with us, grateful for the gift and grateful to be your original bff ! thank you my friend ! xo