April 27, 2013: one of the greatest days of my life, from start to end, with this somewhere in the middle:
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| Moments after the ceremony |
Mere moments after being pronounced husband and wife, we left friends and family on Chapel Island and recessed in a canoe. There was much speculation about the wiseness of putting my new wife in a shaky canoe, but we managed just fine and I can't wait for the official pictures.
We got married at YMCA Camp Ockanickon, the summer camp where I spent 5 summers as a child, and another six years, off and on, as a staff member. Stevie and I also spent last year's Memorial Day there at their annual family camp.
The ceremony took place on the area of camp known as Chapel Island, literally an island on the lake, reachable by bridge and a brief walk on a trail that leads to an open air chapel, complete with wooden pews, cross, and stone altar.
My Uncle Gary performed the ceremony, and Stevie and I selected several readings for our friends to read, and we wrote our own vows. Between the intimate, rustic setting, the personalized ceremony, and recessing in a canoe, we're really proud of the ceremony and feel it is what people will remember most of the weekend.
Other highlights include campfires on both evenings, the 5k on Saturday morning, an epic game of capture the flag in the woods, and dancing to the YMCA with all the camp staff. All told, one of the highlights of my life so far. Can't wait to start this next chapter of life with Stevie in tow.
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| Me, Uncle Gary, Sister Kirsten at the rehearsal dinner |
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| Stevie and me at the campfire on Friday night |
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| The ceremony at Chapel Island |
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| Sharing a dance with my grandmother, Evelyn Partenheimer |
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| Dancing to "She Said Yes." |
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| With my dad at the reception |
