ugust 14th is a special day on the Zubiate family calendar. Nineteen years ago, in 1993, that day was a Saturday, and was such a beautiful summers day, blue sky, hot and sunny, a day I was determined to enjoy every minute of, but to my dismay, it came and went all too quickly. That day was our wedding day! Most girls dream of their wedding day, they plan and re-plan. We think it will be the most perfect day, or at least that is what we want. But in reality, things just don't always go as planned, no matter how diligent we are, even the best laid plans can go awry. Such was the case on our special day.
The flowers were not what I had ordered; the florist shop apparently changed ownership between the time I ordered the flowers and the day of our wedding and I forgot to make the flower girl's basket like I had planned to do. Fortunately, my mother assured me that our guests would have no idea the flowers were wrong, and my father-in-law stepped in and saved the day by purchasing a basket from the florist at an exorbitant extortioner price. I even had some family members who were threatening boycott if other family members were invited, causing me great emotional distress. Yet, in the end all family members that came behaved civilly with each other, a blessing to be sure. These are only minor mishaps compared to some horror stories I have heard, so I am very grateful. As anxious as I was, I never saw these mishaps as an excuse to berate, or belittle others like the bridezillas seen on the boobtube - these creatures are ridiculous, talk about making a mountain out of a molehill! And what's their excuse for their horrid behavior - money, or their dreams are on the line?
I wonder how these unfortunate souls will handle the rest of their married life if they can't handle these minor catastrophes, as they really are minor, compared to real tragedies? It is my hope that future brides who read this post will keep this in mind when they encounter a hiccup or two on their special day. Dear lady, please act like a lady come what may! Yes, be a very gracious lady, like a goodly queen. Face any challenge you are meted out with a smile, give it to God and be amazed by how things will work out, by letting those around you rise to the occasion and come up with solutions. Things may not turn out like you envisioned; it might just end up better! Why? Because love came to the rescue and saved the day.
Now I realize that most women are very observant of this special day, their wedding anniversary, however, I am rather unusual in that I don't get all bent out of shape if Robert forgets our anniversary, or if we don't celebrate it on the exact day. This is a strange behavior I know, and goes against all stereotypes. It gets stranger still, because I'm usually the one to forget our anniversary, sorry ladies, but it's true. Maybe it is because it is so close to our eldest son's birthday. But not this year, no, this year my darling Robert, I remembered!
So in honor of our special day, I will be sharing with you, dear reader, some of our favorite wedding pictures, and some of the memories they bring back to me, what a wonderful day it was, so full of joy, love, mishaps that were overcome, and one terrific party!
House of Zubiate est. Aug. 14, 1993
I also designed my bridesmaid's dresses. I used one of my favorite colors, purple, it was an evening wedding, so I went with a darker shade instead of a lighter tint like lavender. The girls looked just beautiful, don't you think so? I don't recall the halter neck line being en vogue at the time; so that is why I chose it, because I like being different, a trend setter if you will. Their full skirts were covered with a shimmery tulle that gave them a ballerina like feel, and we all wore ballet type slippers, very comfy when you will be on your feet for a while, and it kept me from being taller than Robert too!
I told him we were staying as long as possible.
I have to share this, because I believe Robert had it in for my dress, let me explain.
While were were leaving the banquet room after the ceremony, my husband stepped on my dress and put his shoe print right in the center of my train! Miraculously, his shoe print came off. Then he stepped on it again, at the edge of my train, after it was being hooked up into bustle mode and tore it where the bustle hooked to the dress a bit - oops! And like a good husband, he immediately apologized and tried to fix it, but to no avail. Thankfully, Lori the seamstress, was on hand and saved the day. Unfortunately, later at the hotel, my dress suffered yet another mishap at the hands of my husband. While I was instructing him on how to carefully undo my bejeweled collar, I felt him impatiently pull and the next thing I knew, half of the beads rained down all over the floor! I gasped and looked at the mess in horror through spread fingers against my face. I tried to pick them all up, as I thought of what our escorts would think if they saw the mess the next day, so I was motivated to get every last bead, but apparently I missed some. And Needless to say, my worst fear came true and it caused me some embarrassment when my brother-in-law and his girlfriend Christy, came to our hotel room to take us to our honeymoon cruise. Christy laughed upon entering the room when she saw some of the beads that I had missed, still on the floor, and she snickered, "Have a little trouble with the dress last night Robert?" Oh well, I lived though it.
God works everything to our good for those of us who love Him and are called according to His purpose. We have to take the sweet with the bitter, the good with the bad, otherwise how will we grow, and how will we know when to rejoice and when to be sorrowful? That is life, and I look forward to many more years with my love, my Robert, Lord willing. I pray that we have more good than bad days, and as long as we are together, come what may I can endure it, especially with God's help. I am so grateful to God that you are my loving husband, what a wonderful gift and treasure He has graciously entrusted me with, I pray I never take it for granted. Happy Anniversary my darling Robert!