rehearsing for the big day

rehearsal day dawned bright and beautiful, as one would expect in hawaii.  

we got ourselves ready and then headed over to the resort to meet up with the wedding party.

everyone had begun to gather in the lobby - the bride and groom, all of the parents, our BFF/officiant, wedding party members.

oh!  and at the welcome party, the hub had presented me, the old lady and the bean with these beautiful matching rings that we've all worn every day since.  

once the wedding coordinator arrived, she gave us a quick overview of how things would go and then we made our way down to the beach.  this is where we would all gather the next day to begin the walk down the aisle to the ceremony spot.

the arch was in place, and even without the flowers it was already so pretty.

the coordinator directed us all to line up in the order that the old lady and the fiance had put together, and i got to walk down with the fiance's dad.  the old lady had asked both her dad and the hub to escort her down the aisle, and the hub was so touched and honored.

BFF/officiant went first, followed by the fiance and his mom.

it was as we started walking down the aisle that everything started to hit me, and i was so glad i was wearing sunglasses because i started crying even before i got to my seat.

the bridal party was comprised of some of the most important people in the bride's life, and i spent some time reflecting on how much i've enjoyed watching every one of these girls grow up through the years.

rehearsal ended pretty quickly, and we managed to get a big group shot before heading off to find some lunch.

on our way out to hop in the car, we passed the tent that was set up for another wedding that day.  this is also where we would be partying the next evening after the ceremony.

with the rehearsal dinner not happening until later that evening, we'd opted to have lunch at the nearby food trucks.

and after lunch, there was a good chunk of free time that most of us spent down at the beach.  i happily took a chair under this umbrella and took a well-deserved nap while everyone else frolicked in the water.

the old lady and i had found the smoking boar and the coconut via yelp, and not only did we get the whole place to ourselves for the night but were also able to bring our own alcohol.  remember the costco trip when we got off the plane?  most of that was for this.

first course?  spam musubi.  so good.

and then we had kalua pork and deep fried fish with macaroni salad and rice.  everything was delicious.

there was a cute little trio of desserts to round out the meal - macaron, chocolate crunch cake and a lemon bar.

of course, there were lots of pictures.

and then everyone gathered in a circle for some impromptu toasts. i wasn't expecting that as the fiance's stepdad had originally claimed the floor to make a toast but instead called up each of the parents to offer marriage advice to the bride and groom.  

soon afterwards, the evening came to an end and everyone got in their cars to drive back to their respective hotels/condos to rest up for the next day.  

the WEDDING DAY.  eeeeeeeeeeeeee!!