Happy Anniversary sweetheart...
- jvanravensway
- Dec 27, 2025
- 5 min read
Today is our first wedding anniversary! One year ago today I married the love of my life. And if you've been paying attention to the blog so far, you'll know of whom I am speaking of.
Our wedding was absolutely beautiful. We had a Christmas wedding at a small Inn in Michigan. I love Christmas. Its my favorite time of year. And being able to spend the past few Christmas' with Katie have been amazing. I had forgotten how wonderful the holidays can be when you spend it with someone you love. So when we got engaged last fall, we knew that Christmas would be the ideal time to get married. We knew our family would already be together, so it just made perfect sense.
The wedding was small, tiny in fact. It was just immediate family. We only had a month or two to plan the wedding. And we had to do it from Arizona. Piece of cake right?! Well the planning went just about as well as can be expected. Katie did most of the planning, and her taste was exquisite. Everything she planned was just stunning. I think she would have made an exceptional interior designer. She even designed the invitations. She's so talented.
So our big day was December 27th, two days after Christmas. Katie and I left for the Inn on the 26th. The Inn is a historic English manor in mid-Michigan. We wanted to go the night before so we could spend some together, just the two of us ahead of the busy-ness of the following day. After we checked in, we went to the small pub in the lower level of the Inn and enjoyed a couple of fabulous cocktails and some great conversation with the bartender. Following our drinks we went upstairs to the main dining room. Everything was still decorated for Christmas and it was so pretty. We were seated at the table right next to the fireplace. Katie looked stunning, just absolutely beautiful. It was a perfect night. And I mean perfect. The meal was fantastic, the ambiance was magical, and of course, the company was the best. It was our last night not being married, and it couldn't have been more special.
I really appreciated that night. I knew the next night, the night of the wedding, would be different. We'd spend it with family, which is great, but we wouldn't have much time to ourselves. So to be able to have that night to celebrate, just the two of us, was wonderful.
The day of the wedding was fun. We wanted it to be fun. We had a nice morning (just the two of us) and then the fun began. Hair and makeup starting at 11:00, followed by decorating and getting the room ready. We even purchased a small Christmas tree for the room. We found the tree in Arizona and had it shipped to Michigan (There is a story there but I will save that for another post). Decorating was fun. The whole family pitched in. It was nice to have everyone there. The decorating/setup went smoothly and then it was time to get ready!!
After decorating we all went and got dressed. My son came with my, and my daughter went with Katie. I couldn't wait to see her in her dress. I had not seen the dress or her in it. So I was really excited. When I saw her for the first time. it took my breath away. I had never seen anything or anyone more beautiful. I mean she was perfect. I don't mean to throw that word around, but she literally was perfect. Her dress, her hair, her everything. Perfect. I don't know how I got so lucky. We took pictures outside, and then inside. The only thing that I could say went "wrong" is that I think we both wished there had been more snow on the ground. But that wasn't going to put a damper on our day. The pictures came out wonderful.
After pictures it was time for the show!! Katie decided to walk herself down the aisle, or in this case into the room. The room where we held the ceremony was the same room we held the reception. As I mentioned above, the wedding was small. Very intimate. There were only thirteen of us, including the two of us! So a very small affair. The thirteen was my immediate family. My kids, my parents, my sisters, and their families. Everyone was so dressed up! Even the kids were dressed up and everyone looked so great. The ceremony itself was intended to be simple and short. Katie and I wrote the ceremony, and short was our style. Katie grew up Catholic and those who have been to a Catholic wedding know how long those can go. The plan was to have my sister marry us. She got ordained and everything! but unfortunately the flu bug had other plans and my sister was feeling a little under the weather, so we had to go to plan B. Plan B being my daughter! She got ordained a couple days before as a back up, and it turned out to be a great idea. So my 18-year old daughter married us. It was actually very special. The ceremony was lovely, and just like that, we were married!!!
We spent the next few hours with my family, enjoying a fabulous dinner as husband and wife. I was so honored. I swear as the night went on my wife kept getting more beautiful. She was so happy. I was so happy. The night could not have gone any better.
In many ways it was hard to believe we were married. It all seemed to happen so fast. When Katie's cancer got more aggressive a couple months before the wedding, we knew we didn't want to wait even a second longer to start our lives together as husband and wife. So putting together a wedding like that in just a few weeks seemed like a minor miracle. We did it, and it was perfect.
Its hard to believe its been a year already. Katie passed on May 6th, a little over four months after we got married. Needless to say our love story got cut way too short. But I'm so grateful for the time we had. So tonight, to celebrate, my kids and I are going to one of Katie's favorite places. We'll spend time together with friends to honor her, and celebrate our marriage. I have no doubt she will be there with us.
So until the next time, stay safe, hug your loved ones, and Merry Christmas.
You are my favorite.
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