Beautiful Bride: Katie "007" Bond from Thomas Nelson

Welcome my friend an publicist at Thomas Nelson, Katie Bond. She's sharing her love story with us today! 

Bryce and I may not have experienced love at first sight, but I’d call it something pretty darn close.  

We are your online meeting success story: two busy twenty-somethings who’d both dated sitcom-worthy casts of characters and had no more excuses.  

Why not trust relationship compatibility to a computer system claiming to have it all figured out?  We surely hadn’t had any better luck trusting our own judgment.

He recalls that I batted my eyes incessantly for two straight hours on that first date, September 2007.

I recall that he pretended to appreciate the latte I ordered him, though he’d never had a sip of coffee before and thought it particularly foul then. 

We are as alike as siblings at times, finishing each other’s goofy sentences, and as different as could be—the easy-going fourth generation cattle rancher from Colorado and the buttoned-down, bookish Georgia city chick who thinks cowboy boots are a fashion statement.

 

Just a month after our meeting, I moved from Colorado Springs to Nashville to accept a new job and our relationship became long-distance. 

February 14, 2008 was my first Valentine's Day with Bryce. It's never been my favorite holiday, and I've always downplayed it. Knowing that I'd be away from my sweetheart for the evening though, Lisa, one of my girlfriends from Thomas Nelson, asked me back in January if I'd be her date for a songwriters night. 

I was delighted and we made plans to dress up and make an evening of it, just us girls. I went home on time that night to fluff my taffeta skirt and freshen my makeup. My doorbell rang just before 7:30, and when I opened the door, Lisa—wearing jeans—snapped a picture of me.

"She's surprised," Bryce said. "And speechless, too. That's definitely a first."

Bryce, who was supposed to be 1200 miles away in Colorado Springs, sat there on my front porch, wearing a gaudy heart-shaped tinsel wreath on the front of his shirt. Surprised doesn't begin to describe it. "Hi," he said, as though he'd just come around the corner from Kroger, not from Denver.

Turns out they'd been working together on this Valentine's surprise for weeks.   Lisa snapped a few more pictures and left.

 Before we left for our dinner, Bryce asked if I wanted to open my gift. The card on the outside read: "I'm so proud of you and you deserve the bling that goes with the position!"

I knew immediately what it was. I'd mentioned months before, when I took the new position at Thomas Nelson, that I'd always wanted a pretty silver business card case to carry. 

Sure enough, inside the tissue paper was just such a case, engraved with my monogram. I thanked him for the beautiful gift and he passed me a handwritten letter. The end read:

 "This case is only going to be good for a short time now. Never again will you use the initials your wonderful parents gave you... Open your case, girl! It's driving me crazy!"

When I flipped open the top, inside rested an exquisite vintage diamond ring—the exact one I'd fallen for online. 

I gasped and held it in my fist, and looked up at him. In his sweet, even-tempered way, he whispered, "Will you marry me?"  

We held hands and he prayed for our marriage and for each of us as we entered this covenant. Such a precious time! 

We called our parents, but got off the phone quickly to try to make our dinner reservations. As Bryce watched me pacing and fluttering about my house though, it was clear I was in no shape to make the trip or sit through a nice meal. 

I threw on some jeans and we drove around the corner to Sonic. Our wedding album contains the receipt for our first meal as an engaged couple, $8.71: a grilled chicken wrap and Diet Coke for me and a cheeseburger for him (hold all the veggies, add ketchup).

Our wedding day was a dream. I’d always wanted an autumn morning wedding, loving the symbolism of starting a crisp new day and new life together. 

For the venue, we chose a restored Tennessee walking horse farm about an hour south of the city.  It had the Southern charm I loved and a nod to the family ranch Bryce left behind in Colorado. 

My parents surprised me by renting a vintage pickup truck from a local collector to use for our photos.  My charming inlaws wore their Stetsons and ostrich boots—swoon!

After a ceremony in front of the fireplace and our brunch reception in the barn—complete with a grits and biscuit bar—Bryce presented me with my wedding gift: a silver monogrammed business card case, identical to the one he’d used to propose, but with my brand new monogram.

RH: I've heard parts of this story before but I LOVED reading it here! Thanks for sharing with us, Mrs. Bond! 

Beautiful Brides: Mary Connealy

Many of you love Mary Connealy's sweet, funny, historicals! Here's how charming her own romance turned out!

Mary writes:

Ivan and I met in eighth grade at a country school track meet.

We both attended one-room country schools (different ones) through eighth grade, then went to high school together.

We were friends in high school and ran around in a group, then we finally started dating near the end of our junior year.

We dated for four years while I rushed through college, a few ups and downs in those years but we managed to get through it because I believed he was truly the man God had chosen for me to marry...and still do.

We were engaged two months and still managed to have a full, formal wedding. He proposed on Thanksgiving weekend and we were married at the end of January.

(RH: Wow! That's awesome!)

My sister made the wedding dress for her wedding in August on one of the hottest days in the history of the planet, then I wore it in January on a day so bitter cold our honeymoon goal was to drive south until we got warm. We gave up in Texas and just turned around and came home.

(RH: LOL)

Another sister wore the same wedding dress two years later. I made that veil, which is just a circle of cloth that I hand stitched lace onto.

(RH: What a special thing to share with your sisters!)

We went shopping together for my engagement and wedding ring, so there was no SURPRISE proposal. I did tell him I wanted to be 'proposed to' though. So, sitting in his car in my parents' driveway, he asked me to marry him.

I said yes.

Then I asked him if he wanted to ask my father for my hand. (my older sister's boyfriend had done that)

And Ivan said, "Nah, Jack'll let me marry you."

Which, let's face it, was absolutely true.

(RH: What a great story!)

Beautiful Brides: Tamera Alexander

Tamera Alexander is one of the sweetest women I know. But she also possesses a sharp, funny wit. Here's some great pictures from her wedding day. Isn't she gorgeous?

Tammy writes:

Hey friends, 

Let me start off by saying: Arranged marriages still work!

I met my sweet mother-in-law, Claudette Harris Alexander, before I ever met my husband, Joe. 


Here's where that went... 

Claudette was my girl's club sponsor at Harding University, and over my four years there, she was a real encouragement to me. So when it came time to graduate, I asked Claudette and her husband if they'd like to get together for breakfast and meet my parents.


The five of us got together and oh, what a time my mom, June, and Claudette had! To say they "hit it off" is an understatement. As we were finishing breakfast, mom leaned over, patted Claudette's arm and said, "I wish you had a son!" Claudette perked up immediately and said, "I do! I do have a son!" And that was it... 

Claudette called Joe, who was living in Fort Worth at the time, and left my name and number on his machine. Well, Joe says that he "remembered having seen me in church a couple of years earlier." (Bless that man's heart!) And that he'd asked his sister (who I sang in choir with) about me. But I was dating someone else at the time, and Joe and I never ended up meeting… Until God's timing was right! 

I'm so grateful our mothers––who are both with the Lord now, together, waiting for us on the other side––and for the hand they had in helping their son and daughter "find" each other. 

Speed ahead about a year... 

The wedding went off without a hitch. Everything as planned. 


Then as Joe and I were leaving, we were getting into the car when we heard a "rustle" in the back seat. 


Out popped Laura Hall, a dear woman who had been like a surrogate grandmother to me for years. She'd been hiding back there for who knows how long, determined to go on the honeymoon with us. LOL! 

(RH: Now that's funny!)


Laura went Home years ago, but I think of her so often, and remember how we used to go to a little Greek restaurant called Athens (in Atlanta) before heading to the Silver Screen to watch old movies. 


I look forward to seeing her again…someday. Laura, a widow herself for many years, really mentored me for marriage, even before I met my husband. 

Just goes to show how God is always working… Gotta love it!

Beautiful Brides: Robin Lee Hatcher

Continuing the tour of beautiful brides... Here's Robin Lee Hatcher in '89! Doesn't she look great?

Robin writes:

First a note about my wedding dress. It was purchased for and worn first by my 5' 10" eldest daughter.

Two years later, I wore it (as I am under 5' 6" it had to be shortened plus I used a belled slip). The year after me, my youngest daughter wore it; she's 5' 8" and very thin, so the dress had to be taken in and she didn't wear a slip so that the length would work.

One is of us cutting the cake. It is pretty standard fair.

The second is my favorite photo from the wedding. Here's the story about that one: Jerry was a complete basket case before the wedding. He was so nervous during the ceremony.

But the instant the minister declared us man and wife, he relaxed and started having fun. We had finished taking all of the photographs in the sanctuary and I was headed outside to toss the bouquet.

I passed my beautiful big bouquet to Jerry and picked up the "throw away" bouquet to take outside.

The photographer and videographer were about to follow me. Then people started to laugh and the photographer went back. I turned around and there was Jerry, lying on the dais with my wedding bouquet looking like one for a funeral.

So I did a Perils of Pauline, woe-is-me pose and they shot some photos of us. Behind that hand, I was laughing like crazy.

(RH: That is hilarious! I love this picture!)

Last but not least, this photo was when the ladies from my romance writers chapter asked for a romantic pose, so Jerry gave them one.


(RH: Robin, I love your and Jerry's humor! I can see why you to love each other!) 

Beautiful Brides: Deborah Raney

Being as I wrote a book about four brides and a wedding dress, I asked some author friends to share their wedding pictures and stories with me. Now I'm sharing them with you!

First up, the beautiful Deborah Raney!

"When I met Ken Raney and it was almost love at first sight. We dated all summer, but in the fall, we went off to different colleges 60 miles apart (Ken is 2 years older than I am and was starting his junior year).

But we'd already fallen hard for each other and had even started using the "M" word. In October Ken planned to come visit me at my college and wrote to tell me he was bringing me something exciting.

He gave me clues: round, shiny, hole in the middle, and it would always make me think of him.

Well, woohoo, I polished my fingernails and prepared to receive my engagement ring! WRONG.

You know what that man brought me? A Monkee's record album. (Hey, hey, we're the Monkees!) He thought this was SOOOO funny.

(RH: LOL!!)

Well, it was round, shiny, had a hole in the middle and had a stupid song on it that was supposed to make me think of him. I was NOT amused.

But we DID get engaged that Thanksgiving and I got my diamond for Christmas. We married the following August, 1974. Almost 38 years now!

On the right is a picture of Deb's parents. :)

08.08.08

On 7.7.'77, I was sixteen, working at Publix in Cutler Ridge, FL.

One of the bag boys, Ronny Paul, said today is 7.7.'77 and noted how many years it would be before we had 8.8.'88, and 9.9.'99 and now it's 8.8.08.

What's in a number anyway?

Here's what I wrote in my diary on July 7, '77.

"Today is 7,7,'77 - cute uh? When I woke up I kind of felt the twangs of leaving but soon under control. Spent the day packing and etc. LR's car broke down at the house and Steve Emmens and friend came to tow it away. Work was OK. Blocked down most of the night. Not much else. Love, Rachel -n- Pete."

We were moving in a few weeks to Tallahassee from Homestead. It was a sad yet good thing in my life, the family's life. LR is my friend Lorena Rastrick Sikking. Pete was my boyfriend at the time.

Today my life is very different. I'm not sixteen, I'm not living with my parents or facing a major move. I don't have two years of high school left, nor the years ahead of college and training that comes with growing up and becoming an adult.

But I knew God had a plan for me. If anything in my life has ever been blessed, on the right track or redeemed, it's because God had a plan for me.

My life is charmed in many ways. We're not rich, nor famous (though I did meet a reader last night and she actually was awe-struck for about ten seconds. Even Tony and her granddaughter noticed.)

We have missed out on the blessing of children, but are so cocooned in the heart and will of God I literally have no complaints. I am as Paul admonishes, "content." Well, minus the political landscape of my country, and the cultural war, but that's for another time.

I'm writing on a really fabulous project with a co-author and it's going so great, so far. We had a call yesterday with Thomas Nelson and when I hung up, I just thought, "Thank you, Lord. You are too good to me. This is truly unmerited favor."

Tonight we have a wedding, two former youth marrying. It'll be fun and I'm really happy for them.

Well, off to work some before wedding festivities.