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Tuesday, June 9, 2015

Non Traditional Weddings



Non-Traditional Weddings

Thank you for stopping by today. Your guide is moi! And I'm a non-traditional! But what does that mean? I don't like to do things that everyone else does. In fact, my family is a little unique. *wink*

My poor father has five daughters. This man taught us how to fish (even Ice Fish) and shoot. And yes, drink and change the oil in the car. 

Love a little beer!

When it came time to walk us down the aisle, most of us selected unique experiences. My sister, Michelle started it. She and her husband ran away to Hawaii to get married. They were married looking over a beautiful bluff on a beautifully sunny day. She gave up the traditional reception for a once in lifetime wedding.







Marilyn looked for her own twist. She decided on a backyard wedding during an Early Ohio Fall, complete with bonfire! (Burr!!- it was a wet rainy, cold day!)

Melanie married her Naval Officer after being wooed while he was overseas fighting. The sweet guy asked for her hand to both my father but also myself. They also took off for a get-away wedding on the seas! They were married on a catamaran. This type of wedding adventure  was perfect for the guy who missed the water during his trip in Iraq.

And when it was time for me to choose my big day, I selected Vegas! It was a second marriage for both of us. As a teacher, I had a limited window of time so we decided to combine the honeymoon and the wedding! While our event didn't have Elvis, it was filled with fun Vegas style, from our trip to the courthouse (long lines!) and a limo ride to the chapel. We loved it so much, we are going back to renew our vows next year!

I know that many people choose fun weddings over traditional these days for a variety of reasons from financial to timing. Places like Vegas and destination settings capitalize on the unique bride who wants to be pampered and memorable. 

Luckily, weddings these days can be whatever the couple wants. And Thank God for that! It allows me to play around with fun wedding ideas for my books. There's a fireman proposing with a firetruck ride to a wedding that brings two good friends together when they fall off the wagon.  

What was your wedding day like? Where would you want to be married if you could?

Don't forget to stop back next month for another wacky look at my writing and life!

Melissa Keir
www.melissakeir.com

ps. I still have one sister who has decided not to marry.... Monica isn't married yet....Did you also notice anything strange about our names?

21 comments:

Lynda Bailey said...

Great post, Melissa! Mine was definitely a non-traditional wedding...
DH and I had been living together for about 4 1/2 years (moved in with him after I dislocated my shoulder - loooong story there... ) when we decided to make it *official.* We married in a little dive chapel at the north end of Reno. (Yes, we live in Reno...) Only 6 friends were in attendance and I walked down the short aisle to Vivaldi's Four Seasons in a pale yellow, knee-length dress.
No white dress and big hair for me. Hubby did buy me a beautiful bouquet, though...and I still have the petals - after over 30 years! ;)

Anonymous said...

Five daughters, wow! And I thought my parents had it bad with 3, lol. Loved this post. Love non-traditional weddings :)

Cara Marsi said...

Love your blog, Melissa. How fun! I never wanted a traditional wedding either. Several years before we married (in a church. My husband wanted a traditional wedding), we were in Reno. I was wearing cutoff jeans and a halter top. I wanted to go into one of the wedding chapels and get married. My husband said no. When we did marry, it was a small wedding and I didn't wear a traditional wedding gown. I'd been married before, in Toronto's City Hall, wearing a cream-colored mini dress. I was old-fashioned enough to believe I shouldn't go all out with a fancy wedding dress the second time around. That was just me. I still wish we'd gotten married in Reno and dispensed with all the hoopla.

Daryl Devoré said...

Got married in Hiram Walker's mansion. He was the founder Canadian Club whiskey - my grandpa was a rum runner for him during prohibition.

Great and fun post.

Melissa Keir said...

Oh Daryl! That sounds like a fun story!! You should add it to a book!

Cara...That was my thinking too. My first wedding was a small affair in my family church, wearing my grandmother's dress (she died three days before the wedding) and while we were married 20 years, it wasn't my dream marriage. Found that with #2!.

Thanks Jennifer. My dad still is surrounded by girls. He's only had 2 grandsons but 4 granddaughters!

Lynda, that sounds like a sweet time! How fortunate you have the petals.

Tina Donahue said...

What a great post, Melissa! Your dad sounds like a cool guy. How lucky you are. :)

Melissa Keir said...

Thank you Tina. He has his moments. I must give him credit for staying sane with five teenage women in the same house!

Vicki Batman, sassy writer said...

Hi, Melissa! I love how your family is non-traditional in some ways. Doesn't the vows stay the same?

Mine was typical. Just typical. A typical was the eldest of four girls marrying the eldest of four boys. And our siblings were our attendants.

I wish my dad had taken us fishing, etc. He thought girls shouldn't do that. He was wrong. lol

Melissa Keir said...

Vicki- I think my dad decided to take us places because he didn't have a son and missed those times. My sisters were my attendants at the first wedding. Thanks for stopping by!

Adele Downs said...

Fun post, Melissa. My husband and our daughter have always gone fishing together. I'm glad they have that special time to relax, talk, and stay connected.

We had a small wedding at one of the oldest churches in the city during a cold winter's night. The entire church was lit with candles, and my bouquet was lit with lights. I'll never forget the beautiful effect of our candlelight ceremony. Twenty-seven years later, we're still the light of each other's lives.

Best--Adele

Judy Baker said...

Great blog Melissa, it was fun hearing about you and your sisters' wedding. My daughter's wedding was in Disney World and it was a blast.

Melissa Keir said...

Adele-that sounds like an amazing night. I'm glad to hear that you are still going strong.

Judy- Disney would be a wonderful wedding destination. Was she able to be married at Cinderella's castle?

JM Maurer said...

Great post, Melissa. Atypical and in Jamaica for me. We went alone and invited people we met while we were there. One lady was so excited, she congratulated us completely topless. Loved this post!

jean hart stewart said...

Fun post...loved reading about all you M's.

Cindy Spencer Pape said...

Very working-class traditional, wedding in church, reception at a VFW Hall with a buffet and a cake from the bakery my folks had been going to for decades. We were young (22) and the idea of anything else hadn't really taken off yet. I suspect now we'd have chosen something very different. Later this month it will have been 30 years, though, so I guess it must have worked!

stanalei said...

Love the post, Melissa. And love how your sisters found a unique way to tie the knot. I hazard a guess that your time with Dad had a hand in the unique thinking. I've been married 3 times, the last time, (the right one), was in my parent's living room, only family and a judge. The kids had a pinata party and the cake my sister made for a wedding gift was all chocolate. It was a blast!

D'Ann said...

Awesome! Traditional Catholic church wedding for me. My daughter will be marrying her GF in the fall, so we'll be pretty un-traditional for that!

Paris said...

Loved your post, Melissa! Non-traditional is the only way to go:) You have a wonderful family!

Melissa Keir said...

Thank You Paris! Some days I might disagree but that's the family part! :)

D'Ann-I love your daughter. In Beach Desires, I have one of the Wilder Sisters marrying her gf in the family church. :)

Stanalei- Your wedding sounds wonderful. Sometimes it takes us awhile to find the perfect fit!

Cindy-I know you have your perfect guy! He's a doll!

Thank you Jean! I'm glad you enjoyed it.

JM...Now that would be a photo to remember!

PRM said...

Your dad and mine would have made great friends, Melissa. My dad didn't care that he had only daughters...we got to learn all the stuff only boys are "supposed" to learn, including ice fishing. Lucky us! As for my wedding, being that I married an ultra traditionalist, we had the classic Formal Wedding. What I REALLY wanted was a beach wedding at dawn followed by a party, complete with clam bake...and not having any of that that is as good a reason as any to write romantic fiction!

Melissa Keir said...

Awww Polly... too bad our dad's didn't meet up in real life! Maybe you can renew your vows on the beach. What a fun way to get your way too!

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