That Wedding

I give him a hug and say seriously, "There's no one else I would've asked."

Lori takes her place at the altar, and I catch another glimpse of Phillip.

God, he looks so handsome.

Our eyes meet, and those eyes make me melt for the millionth time.

He grins just as the wedding processional starts playing.

My emotions swell inside me. Mr. D has to literally hold me back because all I want to do is pick up my skirt and run as fast as I can down the aisle.

I can't wait to marry that boy.

The boy I've loved my whole life.

The boy who knows what a freak I am, and who loves me in spite of it.

I smile and walk slowly down the aisle, like I'm supposed to, and take Phillip's hands. When this is over, I'll be his wife.

Above our head is a hanging altar made of white branches. It's adorned with purple flowers and dripping with crystals. The branches remind me of the trees we used to climb as kids.

Our wedding is a blur of scriptures, songs, and poems. Before I know it, it's time to say our vows. Phillip and I face each other and hold hands. "Phillip David Mackenzie. I love you. I love how you've always been there for me. How you think you need to protect me. How you make me coffee every morning. How you always know exactly what I need. How when I lay my head on your shoulder, I can fall asleep in a heartbeat. I love that you've called me Princess since I was ten, and I love how you can practically read my mind. I love the way you look at me, and how your smile lights up a whole room."

"When I was little, I used to tell my parents I was go

Da

Phillip eyes are glistening, and he's gri

"Jadyn James Reynolds, I love you. I loved growing up with you. I loved fighting you with swords and climbing trees with you. I really loved watching you end relationships with all the dumb boys you dated and how you'd always run to me for comfort. I love how I'm the first person you call when you need someone. I love how all our lives, no matter where we are or who we're with, whether we're all alone or in a crowd, when you flash that little grin at me, I know exactly what you're thinking. I love the way you look at me, like I'm the only guy in the world, and how when I hold you, I feel like I could conquer that world. I asked you to marry me when we were ten, and I'm here today making good on that promise. No one has ever compared to you. You've always been my world. You're my best friend, my love, my life. My Princess."

I'm trembling as Da

And not because I'm scared.

I'm overcome with emotion.

So many emotions I don't think I could even name them all. I just look at Phillip through happy tears and smile.

Phillip slides the band on my left ring finger. The finger every girl dreams of having a prince slide a ring on. The finger that's supposed to co

"When we were kids, I used to pretend to be your knight in shining armor, and now, with this ring, I promise to be the man to protect you, to cherish you, to support your wild ideas, to not get mad when you bring home another pair of shoes, to love you, to rescue you, to not be bossy, to adore you, and to continue this adventure of life with you, right by my side, for the rest of our lives."

Pastor grins at us and says, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride."

Phillip pulls me into his arms and kisses me. He was supposed to give me a sweet, sorta chaste kiss, but this is not that kind of kiss. This is a lean me back, kiss me until I can't breathe kind of kiss.

I'll remember this kiss forever.

"I present to you, Mr. and Mrs. Phillip Mackenzie," Pastor says.

The Nebraska fight song starts playing, and everyone claps and cheers as we walk down the aisle as husband and wife.

We took a few more photos then enjoyed the last half of our cocktail hour. I didn't get much to eat, but I made sure I got a princess martini. After the cocktail hour, we all headed into the reception.

It looks even better than I'd dreamed.

The big ballroom overlooking the Plaza Lights, the huge crystal chandeliers, the icy tree centerpieces dripping with crystals, the pale purple uplighting, my four tiered chocolate cake, the sparkling place settings, and the beautiful silk linens.

Phillip holds my hand and says, "Did you notice I changed the centerpieces?"

I look around some more. I'm a bit overwhelmed because all I can think about is how much my mom would've loved this. Then I notice that the tables don't each have a tree centerpiece. Some have huge arrangements of the palest pink roses I've ever seen. "The roses?"

Phillip smiles. "Yeah, each one has four dozen roses. I'm pretty sure I win for biggest bouquet you've ever gotten."

"You already won that contest when we got engaged."

"I know, but I told Amy that story, and she said that four dozen roses would be the ultimate profession of love. I love you, like in case you didn't know that yet."

He kisses the tip of my nose.

I press my lips into his and say, "I think I have a pretty amazing husband."

About midway through di

Again.

And this is something you never see in a Disney princess movie. They never show the production it takes to pee in a ball gown.

I have a sudden epiphany while a troupe of my bridesmaids are stuffed into the bathroom stall with me.

"THIS is the real reason why Cinderella had mice and why Snow White had those pesky dwarfs. She needed them to hold up her dress while she peed!"

"Maybe you should stop drinking so much," Lori tells me.

"It's not my fault Phillip keeps handing me bottles of water. The bottles of water that I don't remember ordering, but must have, since they have my wedding monogram on them. He keeps telling me to stay hydrated, like it's my big game."

"Well, it kinda is," Lori says.

"That's true, but when he has to pee, it doesn't require a small army of groomsmen to unzip his fly."

And just when everyone is in place, my dress is held up, and I'm in position to pee, Lisa says, "Uh, hang on a sec." Then she drops her corner of the dress and runs into the neighboring stall.

Katie says to me, "You need to pick your dwarfs a little more carefully."