Meg and Chad’s Wedding Blog

On August 2, 2008, my big brother got married.

On August 1st, I was driving myself to Muncie to take part in the wedding rehearsal. My car had just gotten out of the shop, but it was still acting weird. Unfortunately for me, the Tortoise (my third-hand Ford Taurus) decided that she’d reached the end of her road about 25 miles short of my destination–which just so happened to be on a very busy interstate.

The car was towed, but I made it to the rehearsal on time, and the rest of the day went smoothly. I quietly resigned myself to being car-less for a while. (I had no idea that I would remain so for over 4 months!)

The wedding ceremony the next day was very beautiful and formal. My hairdresser for the event was awesome, and she made my hair look really good. My makeup was great, but my dress was a little too tight and low-cut for my taste (and I know I gave everyone an eye-full all evening because I have the photographs to prove it).

The reception was fun for many reasons–karaoke, dancing, food–but most of all because it was the first time Chad met my extended family. My cousin Tammy, in particular, gave him a thorough grilling, and happily reported to me that she gave her approval.

For me, the highlight of the evening had to be the garter toss.

During the bouquet toss, I was hidden somewhere on the side–I don’t even think I lifted my arms towards the flowers as they sailed straight into the hands of my eager 12-year-old cousin. Chad, on the other hand, was seen doing side stretches and warm-up exercises next to the other bachelors. As my brother flung the garter through the air, Chad reached up–blocking out the man beside him–and snatched it up. I was stupefied. What in the world did he mean by that? I wondered.

Flash forward to Monday evening, Chad and I were at his house and both of us were exhausted from an afternoon of car shopping. My head was still reeling with all the numbers and I was struggling to stay positive after some severe sticker shock had set in.

We sat down to discuss some of the options available to me/us. This conversation quickly became more about our relationship and less about cars. Whether or not marriage was mentioned by name–I can’t recall. But I do remember saying that I didn’t want to JUST live together (Oh, the eloquence!). Soon we were both blushing and flustered and definitely excited. Then Chad said the most beautiful words, “Well, would you marry me?” I’m not sure I could even get words out of my mouth, I just shook my head. I believe we then danced around the house and giggled like little kids.

All the next day I had to keep the news to myself because we decided to not tell anyone until we had a chance to pick out a ring. That was HARD! But, that evening we went ring shopping and we found the perfect one. I set some parameters, and Chad picked out a real beauty. On the ride home I called my mom to let her know, and then we went to his parents’ house to share the news. The funny thing is–no one was really surprised. I guess it was obvious we were meant to be together, even to our parents.

Oh, and another funny thing:  for a week before Trey’s wedding, I had recurring dreams that Chad proposed to me. When I told Chad this, he said he had been dreaming about it, too!