Josh Huskin

Photo Credit: Josh Huskin

Thursday morning, I was thinking how sad I was that Orlando and I weren’t going to have the big 10-year vow renewal celebration we were dreaming up just a few months ago. We were picturing a downtown rooftop ceremony, a big bash with all our San Antonio friends and family, and having my parents and siblings fly in from the Midwest to join in the party as well. We imagined the girls walking towards us all dressed up as flower girls, and even told them about our plans. Of course, in the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic I genuinely thought we could still make it happen. Maybe we wouldn’t have guests flying in anymore, but maybe we could still do something small. Then the venue let us know they had no plans to open up anytime soon. Then the recommendations for the sizes of gatherings kept shrinking smaller and smaller. We shifted into focusing on mentally and emotionally surviving the pandemic, and let our dreams of recommitting our marriage in front of those we love slip away.

Then at approximately 8:55am on Thursday, completely out of the blue, Sunshine Yard Greetings (run by a special ed teacher at Cora’s school!) messaged me on Instagram and asked if they could gift us with a sign for any special occasions we have coming up. “…Uhhh, could you do like, tomorrow??” was my sheepish request around noon on Thursday. I explained that it was actually our 10-year anniversary the next day, and we hadn’t had a chance to really plan much. “Sure, we’ll have it set up tonight!” was their simple and happy response. As I soaked in the joy at having at least something to surprise Orlando with in the morning, my mind started mulling over a tiny spark of an idea. If we were going to have a giant sign in our front yard announcing our anniversary, why not renew our vows right there, in front of our home we built, with our two girls by our sides? That’s all we need in the end, after all, right?

At 9:05 pm on Thursday, I realized a vow renewal wouldn’t be complete without acknowledging and centering the occasion around the blessings we have received. We had to give thanks to how much God has protected and guided our marriage over the years. Truly, marriage is hard work, and I know I am not alone in saying that sometimes you are walking purely by faith to make it through the highs and the lows. So who did we know that is a pastor, and might, by some miracle, be available on such short notice? Sam Bernal is the Minister of College + Young Adults at Oak Hills, and he and Orlando actually got to know each other playing basketball at Lifetime. We’ve spent just a bit of time with Sam and his fantastic wife/children, but they are good, honest, giving people, and I said a silent prayer as I found his number in Orlando’s contacts and sent him a text message from my own phone. Was he available the next evening perhaps, and would he be willing to lead a short vow renewal for us?

That same evening, Sam responded that of course, he’d be delighted to help since I’d given him so much time to prepare! HA! You gotta love a man of faith with a sense of humor. That REALLY set things into motion for me. My next step was to get my sister Hadley involved, since she’s staying with us at the moment and could be involuntarily contracted into being my wedding planner for the next 24 hours. Friday morning we discussed logistics in her room, keeping the conversation hushed so the surprise wouldn’t be ruined. Ironically enough, I was having my braces removed that morning (more on that later!), so we made a plan before my appointment and agreed to reconvene in the afternoon. I sent hurried texts to our absolute closest friends and family, trying to stay cognizant of the current state of the world, and of course never wanting to endanger anyone. Anybody who wanted to come could be on a FaceTime call with my sister, stay on the sidewalk, or in their cars, and we would just gather for mere minutes. Hardly the hours-long fiesta we had conjured up in our minds, but I was starting to feel a sense of hope and excitement that this could still be a special moment for our family.

Mid-afternoon Friday, Orlando stepped out of the house so it was my chance to really set things into motion. I ran to HEB for tiny bouquets for the girls and I. My sister helped me squeeze into my ACTUAL wedding dress to see if I could wear it for the vow renewal. The good news? It still fits! The bad news? I looked like I was trying WAY too hard and I am SO glad she talked me into wearing another white dress from my closet instead. This moment was about our life we’ve built, not just that one day 10 years ago. As much as I still love and reminisce about my dress, I am a very different person now than I was then. We paired it with some nude Cult Gaia mules I had just bought prior to the pandemic, and the girls would wear some fun tutu dresses they’ve loved for years. Ironically the girls chose this day of all days to discover metallic temporary tattoos, but I actually kind of love that their free spirits can shine through in the photos.

Orlando had planned an anniversary dinner for us, and a trip to the drive-in movie theatre later that evening. My sister was all set up to babysit for the evening so we could have our first date night in months. But my guise for getting him back to be at the house for the ceremony was that we just HAD to take pictures with the yard sign. Sunshine Yard Greetings WAS kind enough to give it to us on SUCH short notice, it was the least we could do to take some pictures in front of it! And we could dress up! And do it at EXACTLY 7:45pm so the light would be perfect! 😉 Shockingly Orlando says he picked up on NONE of this being strange, and just thought his blogger wife was being extra. Which is not far off, actually. He just didn’t realize HOW extra. LOL.

The final pieces of the puzzle, especially as I realized this was truly turning into an ordeal, was to capture it. One of our dearest family friends and photographer April was up for capturing the moment, but at 1:16pm on Friday afternoon, she let me know her youngest son wasn’t feeling well. Even in the best of times I never expect my friends to put their kiddos’ needs aside for me, but of course I understood her need to stay home and miss out on the evening. I scrambled thinking of any other photographers I know who might be available within literally hours of our start time. At 2:19pm I text Josh Huskin, who has photographed Orlando and myself before, but whose talents extend FAR and beyond a cheesy vow renewal, that I was desperate and didn’t know if he might be willing to just come snap a few photos. Y’all, Josh doesn’t normally even shoot weddings. He photographs for magazines, for the Spurs, for people much more important than the Mendez-Valdez family. But he said yes. And he captured all the moments perfectly.

The actually ceremony started a few minutes off schedule because, after having just gotten home from dinner, Orlando immediately changed into pajamas, apparently still having zero clue what was about to happen. After I gently reminded him that we were scheduled to take “pictures” in front of the sign, he begrudgingly put his outfit back on, and came out of the room to see me dressed in a white dress, holding a bouquet. LOL. I kid you not, his first reaction was, “WOAH. Are we having an ACTUAL wedding?” I nervously explained it away that no, no, it was just his wife being extra for the photos still. Which he bought, hook, line, and sinker. I know this because he went to put shoes on and tried to wear chanclas in his dress pants. Thinking we could just crop the photos to not show them. Despite protests, he changed into his dress shoes for his strangely nervous wife, and it wasn’t until we opened our front door that he started to realize the full extent of what I’d been cooking up. I still think for half the ceremony he was just in shock.

My family and my bestie Tori tuned in on FaceTime. We mic’ed up Sam and recorded the ceremony with my phone on a tripod so we actually have higher quality video for this than our original wedding video. Technology has come a long way in 10 years LOL. The girls got to be flowers girls just like we promised months ago. Despite Cora needing to go potty in the middle of the ceremony. And then letting Frenchie out the front door accidentally so she’s running around like a maniac for half the video. It was real, and it was a tiny capsule of our life. And although it was vastly different than our original picture for our 10th wedding anniversary, it was perfect. God has been so, so good to us, and we are blessed to have the kind of friends and family that will jump at a moment’s notice when I come up with a crazy idea like this.

Orlando, I love you. I want to include our vow renewals here so we can remember the words we said years from now. When we celebrate our 25th, our 50th, our forever. I meant every word, and I don’t care if we celebrate the next anniversary with 2 or 200 people. Thank you for giving me our girls, for being an unconditional rock in my life, and for walking beside me for the past 10 years. Te amo, mi amor.

10 years ago, I pledged my love and commitment to you, but it seems like only yesterday.

I promised to love you, honor you, comfort and keep you.

I pledged to be by your side in sickness and in health, in times of want, and times of plenty, for better or worse, for the rest of our lives.

We have had all of those things, and you have been by my side as we created a family, a home, and a life together.

Today, at the beginning of our 10th year as husband and wife, in the presence of God, and our family and friends, I renew my vows to you, pledging my eternal love for you, and eagerly awaiting what life may bring us.

XO,

A

vow renewal

Photo Credit: Josh Huskin