The wedding took place in the hall across from Frank's childhood church, St. George's Ukrainian Catholic Church in Oshawa, Ontario. His grandparents had a large part in fund raising to get the church established into the community. It's green domes are a familiar sight to those who drive past it regularly on the 401 highway, and since it sits within a few miles of Frank's old home, we've driven past it numerous times.
For years, Frank has indicated that he thought I'd like to have a look at, and to photograph its beautiful interior. We tried once or twice but our timing was off and the church's doors were closed during those times.
Brendan and Margaret's wedding (we'll get to that soon) offered us that opportunity, and at some point during the reception, we headed over to have a look.
This stunning and intricate wall of architecture and art is the first to greet you when your eyes and camera adjust to the dim light.
"Look up" Frank said.
And so I did.
And when I turned around to look back toward the entrance, I saw this.
Frank and his sisters chatted with the priest for a bit while I snapped a few more photos. And then it was time to head back to the hall.
This was the simple and sweet message that welcomed guests to the ceremony, earlier in the day.
Instead of the ususal guest book, the groom's brother's fiancée painted this lovely birch tree with all its bare branches. On the table, there were two shades of green stamp pads, markers and a package or two of handy wipes. Guests were instructed to ink their thumbs and leave their leaf-shaped print on a branch of the tree. After cleaning the ink from our thumbs, we wrote our names on the newly-formed leaf with a marker. What a great idea and beautiful keepsake.
Table decorations were these casual but elegant mason jar candles.
One of the fun new trends at weddings is the photo booth with obligatory dress up beforehand.
Here's the happy couple enjoying their first dance as husband and wife.
And if you like dancing - and kidlets, you might just enjoy my next post in a few days. It features one very cute little wedding guest. Stay tuned.
