Married!

WOW. My wedding was the most magical day of my life!
I married Andi on Friday and couldn't be happier. What a lucky girl I am!

I'll post photos as soon as I have them (our photographer promised to send us an online sampler within the next few days) ... but until then, I'll tell you how the weekend unfolded:

THURSDAY, July 30
I worked in the morning and spent the afternoon running around for the wedding - went to tan, picked up a birthday cake for my sister (she spend the better part of her birthday driving to Minnesota for our wedding!) and last-minute cleaning of our house for arriving company. My parents arrived around 5pm. We cracked open the liquor cabinent and sat in the backyard discussing all things wedding. Everyone kept asking me questions about what to expect and all I could say is "didn't you receive my agenda?!"

All kidding aside, we assigned special responsibilities to each person in our family and everyone wanted to be sure they knew exactly what to do during the wedding day. My sister Ashley read a scripture passage during the ceremony; my brother Adam signed the marriage license on my behalf; Andi's sister Lindsay was my personal attendant and also signed the marriage license on Andi's behalf.

My sister and her boyfriend Jason arrived in from Nebraska around 8:30pm that night and we ordered pizza, sat by the firepit and shared shories. It was the perfect pre-nuptual dinner!

FRIDAY, July 31
Wedding day! The boys woke up early to head to Lake Minnetonka for wakeboarding. Andi, Jason and Adam went along. My dad stayed back at the house to watch my little neice Brookie. Meanwhile, the ladies sat around the house, drank mimosas and organized for the rest of the day. Lindsay and I pulled together the last pieces of my wedding gift to Andi (nothing like waiting until the last minute)!

At Noon, we went to 526 Salon to get our hair done. On the car ride there, my sister popped in the "25 Greatest Wedding Hits" ... why she had this in her car, I have no clue ... and I had to make her turn it off! Listening to Here Comes the Bride was making my stomach flip! The nerves started to set in ...

After our hair appointments, we came back to my house and got dressed. Whoops! My iced coffee diet the last few weeks was a little too effective ... I lost a few pounds and was having a hard time keeping my dress up! Didn't exactly think about that when I was planning for a thin wedding day waist! Luckily my dress still fit ... I just had to hike it up a few more times than I would have liked during the day.

We left my house around 2:45pm and drove down to the Minneapolis Stone Arch bridge area. Andi and I planned for a special moment at the Guthrie Theatre. There's a big hill next to it and we each walked up the North and South sides of the hill - meeting at the top. As soon as I saw Andi I lost it. He looked amazing in his grey suit. I am seriously the luckiest bride on Earth!
I walked up to Andi, who had his back to me, and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned around and I lost my breath - this was really happening!!!

We shared a special moment on the top of the hill. Then, Andi pulled out a Red Bull Energy Shot from his pocket - YES! We chugged them down and were ready. Bring on the photos!

We took photos around the Stone Arch Bridge, Mill City Museum and Guthrie Theatre. Andi's uncle Tim brought down his old MG Midget Sports Car and we took some shots in that too. Super cute - we tied Red Bull and Diet Coke cans to the back with a Just Married sign. I cannot wait to see those photos!!

At 5pm, we drove to Noerenberg Gardens for the wedding ceremony. We snapped more photos in the garden before the wedding ceremony. A 6:52pm we were ready! Everyone got into place and the wedding began. I wondered if I'd be too weak in the knees to even get down the aisle, but I wasn't. Completely happy. Completely ready to be married to Andi.

The wedding was magical (and windy)! We said our vows, exchanged rings and Pastor announced us husband and wife. "Announcing for the first time, Mr. & Mrs. Andrew Dickson!"

Following the ceremony, we drove to NorthCoast Restaurant in downtown Wayzata. Everyone was exhaused, and hungry, so we quickly ordered drinks and appetizers. While we waited for our food, Andi and I slipped outside for a few more sunset photos on the lake. While we were on the dock outside the restaurant a guy with a $300K yacht asked us if we wanted a few photos on his boat. HECK YES! Andi climbed into the driver's seat and we snapped a few more photos - so funny!

Our dinner was fantastic at Northcoast. By far the best filet mignon I'd ever had! We said a toast, opened gifts and celebrated with our family.

The best thing about our wedding was it was exactly what Andi and I had envisioned. I couldn't help but pinch myself several times during the day. Couldn't have asked for anything better.

SATURDAY, August 1
We packed up some sandwiches and cruised back to the lake for some time on our pontoon boat. We all relaxed, drank a few cocktails and lounged on the lake. A perfect recap to a great wedding day.

Saturday evening, a few members of Andi's family came over to our house for a BBQ. We grilled hamburgers and hot dogs and made another fire in the backyard - celebrating a wonderful wedding weekend.

SUNDAY, August 2
We're off to Thailand today!!! We depart at 3pm today. Have to run now to finish up my packing. Be sure to check my blog over the next 2 weeks. I'll try my best to update as we travel throughout Thailand...wherever the wind may take us!

THANK YOU to all our family and friends who made our wedding a truly magical experience. I'm gonna love being the new Mrs. Andrew Dickson!