Campbell Valley Park Wedding Photos, Our Wedding Story - Langley, B.C.

Believe me when I say, I wrote this a little bit rushed in the hours before July 2, 2021…which is our 5th wedding anniversary. It’s 11:24am on July 1, 2021 and I’ve been going back and forth for the past year or so about writing and sharing this blog. But here I am, thanks to the 25 people who voted “I’ll take a look” on my instagram story poll in which I asked if anyone would be interested in reading and viewing such a story. So here it goes.

My day as the bride was set to start with hair and make up at 7:00am and I’ve never been an early riser. That morning, the sun shone brightly through my window and I couldn’t help but practically jump out of my bed at an early 6:00am: I was getting married that day! I was the first person awake at my childhood home where 2 out of 3 of my bridesmaids also slept over. The morning was a flurry of excitement and went by so quickly and on time too! One of my biggest commitments was that I would not be a late bride and to stay punctual, I set a giant clock on my laptop to keep us on schedule. Of course the groom’s side has a bit of a different story…apparently they had a nice relaxed breakfast and had some time to spare before getting ready and so naturally, they started a game of Settlers of Catan. How nice.

Our ceremony was held at New Westminster Christian Reformed Church, a place that holds a lot of meaning for Derek’s family. It’s one of those places that has always been there for almost every big milestone and I wanted to honour and be a part of that history as well. It was also very special and a privilege to have people who were close to us have important parts in the ceremony like our officiant who mentored Derek in youth group, our worship leaders who came from my church at the time, and our friend from high school who read our wedding verse before the message. But if I’m being honest, the best part was just after the vows and the kiss when we were married! If you actually take a scroll through to the end of the ceremony, you’ll see, I was psyched to become a wifey!

After the ceremony, we had a receiving line and were able to greet our guests for a quick minute before being whisked away to our wedding photos with ALBA Photography. We had our photos done at Campbell Valley Park, and this was actually the first time I’d been to that park! We were at a loss for a location for our wedding day portraits but our photographer was ready with this suggestion and it worked out really well! She and her husband guided us and our wedding party through the next couple of hours for our photos and I remember it being a really easy-going and laid back time where we could spend some extra moments with our closest friends.

Our reception began at about 6pm with a buffet dinner and time spent at each of our guests’ tables. I believe we hosted somewhere between 140-160 guests and it was pretty difficult to make time to see everyone, but we did our best! There were speeches and performances…I even rewrote Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’ and serenaded my new husband! It was a really good night and the best part of it all was being able to celebrate with all the people who we loved the most at that time of our lives.

Something that was really unique was that we got a surprise visit from some neighbourhood owls! Our venue, Semiahmoo Fish and Game Club, had a lovely outdoor space that included a deck and a walkway into some trees. We indulged in a little evening photo session and found the pair of owls perched amongst the trees right by the walkway! The photos of these owls are some of my favourite images of the day.

All in all, it is pretty surreal to see so many people from all different parts of your life come together and be with you on your wedding day. We definitely felt supported as our community lovingly ushered us into this next stage of life together!

Photography: ALBA Photography
Videography: Levin Shum
Ceremony: New Westminster Christian Reformed Church
Reception: Semiahmoo Fish and Game Club
Catering: Valley Caterers
Hairstylist: Rachel Smith
Make Up Artist: Rose Quartz Beauty and Make Up By Allyda
Florist: Annette Breedveld
Wedding Dress: David’s Bridal
Bridesmaid’s Dresses: Barbara Deepwell
Tailoring: L.N. Tailoring
Groom’s Attire: RW & Co.
Groomsmen Attire: H&M
Rings: Spence Diamonds and Peoples Jewellers