Introducing the new Mr. and Mrs. John Fields!

The wedding was great! The whole time we were in California was great! The honeymoon was everything we thought it would be: warm, peaceful, and relaxing!

The days leading up to the wedding went really well! We flew in on Wednesday, March 18, picked up our rental car, then visited with John's parents. We also picked up some last minute items from Target, before retiring at the Schroeder's home for the night. My parents flew in on Thursday. We met them at their hotel and spent most of the day with them until the Wedding Rehearsal that evening. The next morning, we had breakfast with my parents, picked up the tuxes, then ran over to John's parents' print shop so that my parents could talk to John's dad about some print work they need done. Then, it was time to pick up my sister and brother-in-law at the airport. We spent some time together eating lunch and getting them all settled in their room, before going to the Rehearsal Dinner at John's parents' home.

The Rehearsal Dinner was fantastic! Bobby, my brother-in-law, provided a lot of entertainment. The room was filled with every one's laughter. It was really great! John's parents and my parents got along really well.

After dinner, the Schroeders had invited us over for drinks. It was to serve as John and my Bachelor/Bachelorette party. It was basically the Schroeders, everyone who lives at the Schroeders' home, my family, John, and I. Luke and his friend, Nick, stopped by for about a half hour as well. It was just a relaxed night of drinks and conversation. My poor sister was dead on her feet from traveling that day, so they left around 9pm (pacific). John and I went to bed shortly after they left.

Saturday was San Francisco day...after us ladies got our nails done. John and I had our very first professional massage that morning as well. I highly recommend massages now! It was SO nice and relaxing! After our grooming appointments, we all caravaned to San Francisco. We went to Pier 39 and ate lunch. We spent the day shopping and allowing Bobby and Krystal to sight-see. It was a pretty cold day and it drizzled a little off and on, but I think everyone enjoyed themselves! That night, I stayed with Krystal and Bobby in their suite. John stayed at the Schroeders' home.

The BIG day! At 7am, I get a call from John. He told me had been up all night vomiting. He said he thought he had food poisoning. NOT a good way to start your big day! Krystal was none-too-happy with John. She didn't think he should be giving me anything to worry about. Anyway, I told him that his stomach was probably upset due to nerves. He said he hadn't thought about that. (DUH!) By 9am, he was feeling fine. Dana had fixed him something to eat and he played racquetball with Tim. That seemed to help his nerves.

I spent the morning getting ready. I ate breakfast with my family. My sister and Moma went with me to my 9am hair and make-up appointment. I was there from 9am until just about 11am. During the appointment, Luke's associate photographer, Emily, snapped pictures of John's mom and I getting ready. She even took pictures of Moma and Krystal. After I was all "beautified," we went back to the hotel to pick up my and my sister's dress. My dad took my sister and I to the ceremony site so that we could finish getting ready. He, then, went back and picked up my Moma and Bobby from the hotel and brought them to the site. By this time, John and Tim were already at the hall. John and Tim had their pictures taken outside, then it was my turn. It felt like I was being followed around by the paparazzi! All I heard was "click, click, click"! As I'm typing this, I'm downloading all 501 images that made Luke's cut. I think I've got 54 downloaded so far...still a bunch to go!

After pictures, I was sat in my room and waited for the ceremony to begin. It was an indoor ceremony because the weather was undependable that whole week. While it was sunny on our wedding day, it was still chilly outside. The ceremony was to begin at 2pm, but there were only 30 or so guests who had arrived. We decided to postpone the start time. I believe we began the ceremony at about 2:20/2:30. From there, the day became a blur!

It was a gorgeous ceremony! The parents, Krystal, and Tim all walked down to the instrumental version of Big and Rich's "Lost in this Moment". My dad walked me down to the real, full version of that song. Joe Steinke, our minister, (who also performed Dana and Ted's ceremony) kind of rambled for a while. His points were great, but he had a round about way of making them. He made people laugh, though. It was very nice. John and I chose to write our own vows (and we kept them - as Joe Steinke suggested - we plan to keep them available to remind one another of them every so often):

John's Vows:
LeAnne - I promise to care for you, respect you, comfort you when things are rough. I promise to never give up on us, and be a pillar of strength when things get hard. I promise to make you laugh when you're sad, to be understanding and brave. And most of all, I promise to love you for as long as the sun is there to light our path together.

My Vows:
John - I admire you for your confidence and courage. I love you for your passion and how you make me feel so special. You help me laugh and you teach me love. When we're together, I feel that there is nothing we cannot accomplish. You are my true counterpart. I vow to hold you and honor you. I vow to respect you, encourage you, and cherish you. Most importantly, I vow to love you till the end of time.

After we had kissed and were announced, we made our guests chuckle when our choice for the "after-ceremony" song was played: Smashmouth's "I'm a Believer" (from Shrek). I thought it was perfect!

We were whisked away to get pictures done, then placed back in the room again to get ready to be announced at the reception. Tim and Krystal's toasts were very nice. I'll need to get a copy of my sister's toast, as it was VERY touching. She and Bobby wrote a poem. I'll include it in my blog as soon as I get a copy. After the traditional Matron-of-Honor and Best Man toast, the mic was passed to any volunteers. John's uncle Brian, my dad, my friend, Lisa, and her mom, Claudia, all chose to say something. Everyone had very nice things to say and it made the reception very sweet.

After the toasts, we ate. The food was so, so good! John and I made our way around the room as people were eating so that we could say hi to everyone. We actually made it to all the tables before it was time to do our First Dance. We danced to Trapt's "Stories", which is a special song to John and I. We made one mistake in our choreographed dance, but no one noticed it - not even John's mom! That was good! :) My dad and I danced to my cousin's "The Great Divide", then John and his mom danced to Elton John's "Blessed." Our group dance, in which John's parents, John's two aunts and uncles, and John and I danced, was to "At the Beginning" from Disney's Anastasia.

After the "formal" dances were done, the DJ opened the dance floor. John and I had some more time to spend with our guests. After a small bit of time, it was time for cake! John and I were nice to one another and did not smash it in one another's face.

The bouquet and garter tosses were both hilarious. First, in the bouquet toss, Tim's girlfriend, Genni, went for the bouquet. She ended up slipping and sliding across the floor. It looked like she totally dove for it! Then, when John tossed the garter, all the guys who were near it jumped back and it hit the floor. Everyone just stared at it on the floor for a few seconds before the Field boys' friend, Rob finally went and picked it up. Too funny!

We did a money dance. Then, the staff had a contest. They had all the married couples come out to the dance floor. Then, as the song progressed, the DJ asked for people who have been married, oh, say, less than 5 hours to leave the floor, then for couples who have been married less than one year...two years...so on. This occurred till there were two sets of couples remaining: my parents and John's parents. John's parents were married in September of 1970. My parents were married in November of 1970. John's parents were the couple that has been married the longest (by two months), so the staff gave them a bottle of champagne (with John and my names and our wedding date on it). Then, they each had to give us marriage advice. The staff decided to give my parents a bottle of champagne as well, so they also got to give us advice.

The rest of the event was like any other reception: dancing, drinking, socializing, etc. Except for one last thing. When I had my very first conversation with the DJ, he had asked me for a special slow-dance song. It would be, basically, our last slow dance. I picked Alan Jackson's "Remember When" because I think it is a very real story about marriage, and the good and bad times that most married people go through. It turned out that the song was way more fitting than I thought because the DJ had everyone who was still at the event hold hands and form a circle around us. John and I danced in the middle of this great circle of individuals comprised of good friends and family. The DJ told us to remember this moment when we hear this song. Remember the people who were there for us. Remember the support we have. As the song went on, the DJ asked for the people surrounding us to begin taking steps forward...until it turned into a huge group hug. It was a very cool moment.

Our last fast song was Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama". We thought it fitted well since we had just moved to Alabama. Our lives are in Alabama now. :)

John and I stayed at a Marriott hotel that was located right across the street from the wedding site. It was a perfect day!

The next morning, we met my family for breakfast. My sister's plane left at 9am, and then my parents were leaving at about 12n. After breakfast, we said our goodbyes and we were off to John's parents' home. We had planned to stay at his parents' home after the honeymoon, so we needed to drop all our stuff off and re-pack for Jamaica. We ended up opening the gifts we had that morning. That night, our plane for Jamaica left at 9.

We flew all night (from San Jose, CA to Los Angeles, to New York, to Montego Bay, Jamaica). From the time we got there on March 24 till the time we left, we layed out by either one of the pools or the ocean. We soaked in as much sunshine and relaxed as much as possible that whole week! We left the island tanned and refreshed.

We were back in California at about 8pm on March 31 (another day of flying: from Montego Bay to Miami to Los Angeles to San Jose). John's dad picked us up from the airport. On April 1, we ran errands. We dropped my dress off to get cleaned and specially boxed so it will be as preserved as it can be. We dropped my bouquet off to be professionally dried and placed in a beautiful frame. We won't see that for two or three months, but it ought to be very nice!

The rest of the week was spent meeting people for lunch or dinner, relaxing, and enjoying the rest of our time off from work. We arrived home on April 4 (after another long day of flying: San Jose to Los Angeles to Washington DC, to Huntsville), and were happy to see our kitties! (Thank you Tara and Eli for checking on them while we were gone!)

We hope to return to California for Thanksgiving...hopefully with more direct flights!