Today’s wedding blog is a little “retro” as we feature the real wedding story of a couple who just celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary. The sight of the bridal party’s late-80′s style gowns really brings me back! Peter and Adelaide had a military wedding aboard the USS Mt. Vernon, and it sounds like it was quite the experience.

This bride injected a lot of humor into her interview, really bringing home the fact that a good sense of humor is necessary in just about any strong relationship. Please read on for more details about Peter and Adelaide’s special day!

Susan: How did you and your spouse meet?
Adelaide: I went to church because a friend asked me to and I brought my son, too! He attended the children’s church and when I came to pick him up afterwards, a very short pink man asked to speak with me about my son. I knew he didn’t have anything to tell me but just wanted to talk to me. The day he put ice down my back at a picnic, I thought, “What a jerk!” Eventually, though, I took a second look at the “old man” (12 years my senior) and the rest was history for us.

Susan: Tell us about the proposal.
Adelaide: You often hear wonderful stories of romance by candlelight. Well, our experience was more like an “I Love Lucy” episode. Peter gave me a ring in his apartment (hardly romantic) and without noticing whether or not it was the right size, he shouted, “I can’t believe it fit! That’s great, because I bought it for someone else!” And would you believe I married the man anyway?

Susan: Why did you choose your particular wedding location?
Adelaide: I had nothing to do with it, actually. A ship’s captain once told my husband that because of his service for the U.S. military, if he ever got married he would be given a full military wedding as a way of saying thank you. So we were married on the USS Mt. Vernon with full military honors.

Susan: What were your thoughts as you walked down the aisle?
Adelaide: I thought I would see my cousin or my grandfather or my best friend, but what I saw instead was room full of people I didn’t even know, including most of my bridesmaids. I’m an only child and I married a man with 10 sisters, and most of them were in my wedding party.

Susan: What was the most memorable part of the day for you and your spouse?
Adelaide: Probably when they put their swords in front of me so I couldn’t pass through, and then one of them hit me on the behind with a sword and said, “Welcome to the Navy, Mrs. Zindler.” I almost forgot where I was, I was so thrown-off.

Susan: Based off of your experience, would you share some advice for other brides and grooms who may still be planning their weddings?
Adelaide: One thing I plan to do whenever my son gets married is get the two of them together with both of us in-laws for an informal premarital counseling session. I would have benefited a great deal from understanding the family I was marrying into and why my husband of 20 years does some of the things he does. You aren’t just marrying one person but two families. Not an easy task!

Thank you, Adelaide and Peter, for sharing the details of your wedding with all of us! Do you have a real wedding story you would like to share? If so, please email me at the address below with your experience and some photos. You might be the next bride featured in this wedding blog!

If you have questions on this or any other wedding related topic, please post for me here or send me an email to susan(dot)southerland(at)pwg.com. Also become a fan on Facebook by clicking here and follow me on Twitter by clicking here.

Your partner in perfect planning,
Susan