Taigen + Grady

Where to begin with this love story?  They made it through high school, missions, college, and more to make it to this day.  And what a special day (or rather, few days) it was.  Ryan sure liked to tease Taigen that it wouldn't happen, that she couldn't wait two whole years, but she was more than happy to prove him wrong.  And we are certainly glad she did.  Grady was the missing piece to our family and we are happy to have him join our crazy clan.

Things started off in the best way as we gathered together at the temple for Taigen to receive her own endowment.  What a special and memorable night we spent all together learning about our purpose in this life, and the special blessings that await us in the next if we remain faithful.  I can't imagine that for a parent there are too many moments in life that surpass seeing all of your children together in the temple with the people they love.  I know both of my parents were so proud of each of us that night, and I also know that we spent the evening ALL together enjoying the blessings of the temple.

The following day meant wedding time and thanks to Taigen's awesome sealing time of 2:15 (why did I think I needed to get married at 9 am?) we were able to spend the morning getting pampered and spending some girl time prepping for the big event.  So grateful for these awesome women in my life and their shining examples in all that they do.  It makes me excited for what is to come with these little sisters I am raising.

And then it was time for the main event.  The ceremony was wonderful, with Grady's grandpa having the privilege of performing the ceremony.  It was full of wonderful words and a strong spirit, and emotionally I kept it together pretty well.  That was until I watched Jace and Taigen embrace at the end.  Then I let the tears fall freely.

While we all missed dad terribly, I have to say how nice it was having Paul there with us.  He has been such a blessing in all of our lives, and while I don't want to speak for all of my siblings, he has certainly filled voids in my life that I almost didn't even realize needed filled.  He is a good man, and we are very lucky to get to share some of this life with him and his family.

And this is what our "new" family looks like.  We were only missing Paul's oldest grandson, Hunter.  What a crew!
Also, how cute is Gib?  He is every one's favorite.

After the ceremony and the obligatory pictures we headed over to Herm's Inn and enjoyed a delicious dinner in the quaintest of settings.  It was a couple of hours full of yummy food and visiting with the many people who love Taigen and Grady.  Kyrsten once again did her best to make everyone cry by having Jace read an excerpt from a paper my dad wrote on marriage for one of his college classes.  It is nothing else but a tender mercy that she found this paper as Taigen prepared to start her life as a new wife, and it has provided all of us with even more evidence of my dad's love for my mom, as well as motivation to try and be better in our own marriages.

I know dad was with us every step of the way as we celebrated the beginnings of Taigen and Grady's new life together.  But no matter what I know in my heart, it doesn't exactly make up for him physically not being there.  It was hard doing it all without him, and I am sure even more so for my sweet sister.  Thankfully we did our best to make him part of our celebrations from perfect charms worn on the bride's bouquet and sister's wrists, special handkerchiefs held close in the temple, and that same bouquet being left at his grave on our way back to Pocatello for the reception.  Joni always knows how to help us keep his memory and spirit close, and we are so grateful for her efforts.  I know she misses him, too.

The reception was as perfect as any of Joni's parties have ever been.  The details were simple and feminine, and it was a night full of delicious cakes and socializing.  It's always fun to see so many people who love and support our family.

It's hard to believe our baby is married!  Nearly five years later the high school sweethearts have finally become Mr. and Mrs. Burch, and I know that there are only great things to come.  Okay, probably some hard stuff, too (sorry, Shag!) but somehow even that becomes beautiful when you are navigating through with your best friend.  So yes, very good things to come.