Brides tell about the most unexpectedly joyful moments they experienced on their wedding day. Although being in love and married topped the list, there were plenty of other surprises, too.

The biggest surprise was the ceremony.  It was much more moving than I’d expected. I had somewhat randomly chosen the officiant – a relative of the best man – because we were already legally married. He completely surprised us with a really personalized ceremony, and I could tell he’d gone out of his way to learn a lot about us. He even quoted some poetry from my in-laws’ native country. It was surprising and touching, and it’s the thing I remember best about the whole day.

Marney

My favorite thing about my wedding day was the view.  I am an outdoorsy type and I chose my venue because of the natural setting.  I can still vividly remember how, during the ceremony, I was looking out at all that beauty and thinking how lucky I was to be right there, right then, in that place.

Jennifer

It was our rehearsal dinner – an afterthought that we held last minute at a relative’s house. It was a backyard barbeque and not fancy at all, but it was a moment to relax and enjoy spending time with loved ones and people I hadn’t seen in a long time, without the stress of the wedding itself. In that sense, I enjoyed it more than the wedding reception.

Rachel

The most surprising moment was when I got home later that day and realized I was married. I just started laughing when it hit me. I was so happy and it really did feel different, even though we’d been living together for years. 

Olivia

I LOVED my bouquet.  I mean, I loved it so much that I carried it around all day – even on the dance floor!

Inga

I was really surprised that I enjoyed wearing my wedding dress.  In my day-to-day life I wear pants only and don’t even own a dress, so I wasn’t even sure I wanted a wedding dress until I tried one on that I really felt beautiful in. I had still planned to change out of it at some point during the reception, but I couldn’t bring myself to take it off.  I wore it all night and all the way home – veil and all.

Aisha

The best part of the wedding was the ceremony.  Leading up to the day, I so worried about every detail of the reception, that I think I sort of forgot I was actually getting married. So it really took me by surprise when the officiant began reading the vows and I suddenly got really emotional and started to cry and laugh at the same time.  I looked over at my husband and then we both got a fit of the giggles, which was kind of horrifying and hilarious at the same time.

Adella

Cover photo by Poppy and Lace Photography