Shannon here: Caryl McAdoo shares her wedding story. And what a story it is. Comment or answer the question at the end of any post dated Sept 14 – 18 to enter the drawing for a copy of her latest historical romance, Daughters of the Heart. Deadline: Sept 26th, 11:59 pm central time. Here’s Caryl:
It rained the morning of our wedding day, a precursor of things to come, though not the first. My grandmother had come to Texas from California to attend the wedding of her favorite granddaughter. Four days before the big day, she was in an accident. Another vehicle ran a red light and she suffered several broken bones and too many bruises. Impending weeks of hospitalization wouldn’t keep her from our joyous occasion. Daddy arranged an ambulance to take her on a stretcher to the church. The local paper’s headline read: Gritty Grandmother Attends Wedding.
The early showers dried up that day, and we said our ‘I do’s. Afterwards, we hurried to a nearby hotel for the party celebration. Since the photographer had never arrived, no picture-taking opportunities compelled us to hang around the church. At least he had called, whined about car trouble, and promised to meet us at the reception.
In the ballroom, we arranged our welcome line – my seven bridesmaids, each sandwiched between Ron’s groomsmen, then my new in-laws, but wait a minute. Where were my parents? We waited and waited. Ample time had passed, even if they’d gone to the hospital to see grandmother comfortably settled. It wasn’t that far. Guests piled up in the lobby.
Our picture taker showed up gushing apologies. Light bulbs flashed away, but still no Mama and Daddy. We finally opened the doors without them and welcomed our guests. Like the photographer, Mama and Daddy, too, did eventually make the reception.
I asked her where they had been and she answered at the hospital. Was Grandmother okay? Had something gone wrong? Yes. No. Grandmom was fine, but my granddaddy, Mama’s dad, had started hemorrhaging at the wedding and they had rushed him to the hospital where he was admitted for tests and transfusions. Mercy! So after the lovely reception, we drug our cans behind the car to the hospital. It was on the way to our new apartment where we would spend our first night together.
Finally at home, giggles took over. We were hungry, so we put a couple of frozen pot pies in the oven and watched Death Valley Days on television, drinking our champagne from lovely engraved goblets a cousin had given us. Communication never posed an issue since we’d been high school sweethearts for two years, we talked the night away trying to decide what to do.
Plans were to leave the next morning for San Antonio, but I didn’t see how we could. After much deliberation, we agreed to postpone honeymoon travels until my grandparents were at least out of the woods. Besides, with Daddy staying with his mother at the hospital and Mama being there with her father, my young siblings would need someone to watch them.
On the morning of the first day of our honeymoon, I called Mother and told her we’d be over to watch eight-year-old Cathy and five-year-old Norman. She tried to refuse, but reluctantly accepted our offer to delay our trip and help out. We showed up at my “old” house, and I packed a couple of boxes with the last remnants of my life there. Ron loaded them in the car.
Then we hauled out the Monopoly board for a game with Cathy to keep us all occupied. Norman was too young to play and plenty upset about it. I don’t remember how long we purchased new properties and bought houses and hotels and, but a humongous crash and subsequent scream interrupted all deals.
Everyone jumped up and ran. When we opened the bathroom door, water rushed into the hall. Norm had climbed onto the bathroom sink to look in the mirror. It had separated from the wall and crashed to the floor where it lay in pieces. Water gushed from the broken pipe protruding from the wall. I couldn’t believe my eyes, I felt sick to my stomach which was cramping anyway.
My brand new husband tried to calm me as ripples flowed down the hall several inches deep into the living room. He called the fire department then phoned his dad for instructions for turning the water off at the street. Stopping the raging flow seemed to take forever as water seeped under doors and made a waterfall into the sunken den. Finally, the firemen arrived, got out their big sucker-upper machines, and started vacuuming.
Ron swept while I sat on the couch in tears overwhelmed. I figure the after-wedding let-down with the grandparent woes then the flooded house caused me to cry that day. We did eventually get out of town and made it to San Antonio for some wonderful, bliss-filled days.
Looking back, what a comedy of errors! But love, sweet love, will get you through anything.
About Caryl: Award winning author Caryl McAdoo currently writes four series: the historical Christian ‘Texas Romance’; a contemporary ‘Red River Romance’; The Generations, her Biblical fiction and a mid-grade The King’s Highway. The prolific, bestselling novelist loves singing new songs the Lord gives her and painting. In 2008, she and her high school sweetheart-husband Ron moved from the DFW area—home for fifty+ years—to the woods of Red River County. Caryl counts four children and sixteen grandsugars life’s biggest blessings believing all good things come from God. Praying her story gives God glory, she hopes each one will also minister His love, mercy, and grace to its readers. Caryl and Ron live in Clarksville, the county seat, in the far northeast corner of the Lone Star State with two grandsons, Christian and Benjamen. Learn more and connect:
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About the book – Daughters of the Heart: God’s perfect plan is oft so hard to determine.
In his life, Henry Buckmeyer has never been so beside himself. His little girls are so young, just babies, too young. He hates the whole idea of men coming to take them away and is inclined to shoot every one of them, but praise God for a level-headed, loving wife and step-mother! She helps keep him sane amidst the female chaos. Packed with fun, romance, deception, action, heartbreak and tears, this delightful Christian novel keeps the twists and turns coming.
Gwendolyn, Cecelia, and the youngest, Bonnie, make a pact never to break their father’s heart like their big sister did. Then their determination is sorely tried when suitors show up, and he gets so pigheaded with his rules.
Will Henry survive his daughters coming of age? Will they endure and keep their promises to each other?
From one man asking to court her—who Daddy sends packing—Gwen goes to three! How can she ever decide? Cecelia knows exactly who she wants, but she’s still a year away from Daddy’s acceptable courting age. What if her beau doesn’t know or won’t wait? And Bonnie hates being the baby and wants to be grown-up more than just about anything…except her man. She is for sure and for certain in love.
Will the Buckmeyer home ever be settled and peaceful again? Will any of his daughters find true love…a man he’ll approve and to whom he can give his blessing?
Purchase Link: Amazon
PRE-ORDER Daughters – http://www.amazon.com/Daughters-Heart-Texas-Romance-Book-ebook/dp/B012EBN35G
Question for Readers: What went wrong at your wedding or on your honeymoon? Or a family member or friends mishap?
Come back Sept 16th for Caryl’s romantic gesture!
It rained and then it was so hot and muggy for a outside wedding and then was bitten by a horsefly during the ceremony! Very memorable day!lol
I had a scuba diving accident on our honeymoon & nearly died. I spent the next 8 months in therapy. It was a very had & traumatic beginning to our marriage, but God was very faithful & my sweet husband stuck with me through it all. It bonded us together in ways that takes years for couples to achieve. In 2016 we will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary. I am so thankful for my precious husband & his enduring love…..it is a picture of Jesus.
Hey Sheila! Wedding stories are so much fun. At my cousin’s I was maid of honor and had a little nettie thing on my head, backed too close to the candle and caught fire! Thos horseflies can be vicious!
Hi Alison! Oh, what a bad start! But how sweet that God used it for your good. Bless your husband’s heart. You’ve definitely got my ‘horrors’ beat! 🙂
Hugs and blessings to you both!
I just got married this spring, and it all went very well! Only thing I regret is that we didn’t have a videographer… but we do have photos, so we will have to remember the day by looking at them.
We were suppose to take family pictures before the ceremony and ended up doing it after the ceremony which made us late to the reception. Once we got to the reception, the floor plan that the restaurant gave us turn out to be wrong, so instead of family and close friends having the best seats, they ended up on the fringe of the room. All that seemed important and crucial at the time BUT in actuality it doesn’t and didn’t matter…….What matters is the journey after the ceremony….. we celebrated our 26th anniversary this year!
Thanks for the giveaway!
Hi Miss Caryl! Love your story! I remember a soft rain as we went to the car for our reception. I have always heard that rain on your wedding day is good luck. We will celebrate our 40th anniversary next month….we are truly blessed!
Our wedding went off without a hitch but the honeymoon was something else. We spent one night at my “new” home. We left the next day to spend a week with my husband’s aunt and uncle at their house. I wonder how many people have spent their honeymoon with relatives.
My wedding went along just fine, but our honeymoon was spent in a nearby town at a bowling tournament. My husband’s family were also in the same tournament so they were in the same hotel. His next to youngest brother decided to play a prank on us. How he got into our room I still do not know. He put clear wrap on the toilet seat and, of course, I did not know it and was the first in the bathroom. What a mess to clean up. Then when I turned town the covers, the bed was full of leaves and pine cones. It was not my idea of a honeymoon, but then we couldn’t really afford anything else. I was never so happy to get home so I could be alone with my husband. Unfortunately, the marriage only lasted 10 years.
We didn’t know we were supposed to light the candles before the ceremony, so our candlelighter – my 13 yr old cousin had an awful time getting them lit. Our centerpiece flowers – silk – caught on fire during the reception. And my husband’s step-grandparents came to surprise us at the wedding, but they got lost and we had already left for our secret honeymoon destination before they arrived. But we didn’t know any of that until after we got back home.