Winter Wedding at Bakerview

Despite the power going out at home while she was trying to get ready for her wedding, Betty-Ann smiled. (The generator her Dad plugged in helped, of course.) Despite the bitter cold she faced when she walked out to greet her groom, Betty-Ann smiled. Despite the reception with no electricity, Betty-Ann smiled.  A few minor, inconvenient, unplanned adventures could not dampen her excitement  on her wedding day. Betty-Ann was finally marrying Mitchell and she was incandescently happy.

Planning a Christmas week wedding is a bit of a weather gamble, but Betty-Ann was braced: she’d chosen a first-look location with covered options (wrap-around front porch for the win!), planned family portraits at Highstreet’s Community Room, and wore the most fairy-tale of winter coats.  In all the planning, though, no one could have ever guessed that the Fraser Valley would be hit with one gigantic  ice storm on the day of Betty-Ann & Mitch’s winter wedding at Bakerview.

I loved Betty-Ann’s bouquet! Not only does it look good, you should have smelled it, too!

Driving through all that icy snow? I’m awfully thankful that I finally put my snow tires on! 😉

While Betty-Ann and her sisters primped and prepped, her brothers were out spreading salt on the porch and rearranging cars in the driveway and making sure the ice had minimal impact along the way.  I loved watching them so willingly serving their sister on her wedding day.

But oh. my. word. so much ice!

  

Waiting on the front porch, Mitchell was pretty excited to see his bride.

I loved that she chose to give him a hug before letting him turn around and see her in all her bridal finery. Way to be adorable, Betty-Ann!

We didn’t spent a lot of time out in the rain, but the time we did spent was (in my opinion!) well worth it. Once Betty-Ann & Mitchell thaw out a bit in Bora Bora maybe they’ll agree?

Again: THOSE FLOWERS!

 

See that layer of ice? It was slippery. No falls were allowed and none happened, hallelujah.

 

If you look reeeaaally closely, you’ll see the rain falling and know why I am so grateful for umbrellas, rubber boots, and wrap-around front porches. For such a rainy, cold wedding day, it was the perfect location to keep the wedding party dry.

Arriving for the winter wedding at Bakerview, the Christmas decor was glorious and the electricity was still on (warmth! light! sound!) and the lantern girls were adorable and the Children’s choir made me weep with joy as the music swelled in triumph as Betty-Ann entered the church.

 Winter wedding at Bakerview

The power flickered a couple of times, but no one paid attention: Betty-Ann & Mitchell were getting married!!

 Winter wedding at Bakerview  

One of my favorite moments of the entire day happened right here.  As the minister pronounced it time for Mitchell to kiss his bride, the entire front row (filled with young nieces) audibly gasped in delight as all their fairy tale dreams came true before their little eyes.

Winter wedding at Bakerview

Even arriving to a pitch black, powerless, no-electricity-at-all Quality Inn didn’t sap any of the joy from Betty-Ann & Mitchell’s wedding day.  It helped, of course, that the staff at the Quality Inn had improvised majestically and had crafted a system of glow sticks and battery-operated twinkle lights that allowed enough light for guests to see their food, find their table, and enjoy their evening.

Quality Inn Abbotsford Wedding  

(Geek speak: I’ve never photographed a wedding reception with so little light, but I am yet again grateful for my Nikon D810 and 35mm 1.4 lens that made these photos so magically possible. Pulling out my flashes would have been an option, of course, but with guest eyes adjusting/adjusted to the darker my flash would have only served to distract from the fun.)

Quality Inn Abbotsford Wedding  Quality Inn Abbotsford Wedding 

Can you believe this candy table?! And the perfectly sublime chocolate house with so many personalized details, completely edible?!

 Quality Inn Abbotsford Wedding

All told, Betty-Ann & Mitchell’s winter wedding at Bakerview was one of the most unique days I’ve ever experienced and also one of the best. The Ice Storm Wedding, as I will call it, was so full of love and joy the ice and cold didn’t stand a chance.

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

You have to agree to the comment policy.