Hawkily Ever After: Dancing with Daddy Hawk

Although I had the best intentions not to cry, there was no fighting the tears back when it came time to dance with Daddy Hawk. Working with my DOC/DJ Liz, we created a special surprise recording to the beginning of our song.  While I had already made the recording and knew what I said, nothing could have prepared me for hearing it for the first time and seeing my father's reaction.

"Nothing Can Change This Love" by Sam Cooke with Hawk intro:

My special message received plenty of applause and tears from our guests. Luckily the remainder of the dance was mostly tear-free.

It could not have been a more perfect moment for Daddy Hawk and me.

Did you/do you think you will get emotional during the parent dances?

All photos by Valerie Demo Photography, Mix created by Liz Daley

Miss a Hawk recap? Don't fret! Catch up here:

We review our planning journey
We rehearse and welcome our guests
The girls get pretty
I share my bridal details
Mr. Hawk becomes a groom
Our first look
We take photos at Crim Dell Bridge
We explore campus for more photography
The groomsmen ham it up
The bridal party channels their inner model
The entire wedding party regroups
My last moments as a Miss
Welcome to our wedding ceremony
The bridal party procession
Miss Hawk's walk down the aisle 
We're married!

We were surrounded by love during our impromptu receiving line

We take our family formals

All our reception details

I scarf bread ends while our guests enjoy cocktail hour
We make our grand entrances
Mr. Hawk and I have our first dance

CONFESSION: I am a crier.

One way that Mr. Hawk and I greatly differ is in our emotions. In the nearly two years that we've been together, I can only specifically recall seeing Mr. Hawk cry three times. (One of those being the day he proposed. Awwww.) And even then I've never really seen him cry more than a couple glistening tears down his cheeks.

Me on the other hand, I am a crier. I'm sure Mr. Hawk is lucky to see a week or two go by without my tears. I don't want to make myself seem coo-coo-cachoo, but I often get moved to tears by movies, music, TV shows, or even commercials. And unfortunately for me, also unlike Mr. H, I am not a one to two tear crier if I'm feeling particularly moved.

Image via FanPop via ABC's 2003 special "Britney Spears: In The Zone" with Diane Sawyer

Exhibit One: Marley and Me. I made the mistake of going to see this movie in the theater. (Heck, I made the mistake of seeing this movie at all, but I digress...) I knew Marley was going to be a goner, but knowing it could not prepare me for the overwhelming emotion. It started off with silent tears, but pretty soon I couldn't contain myself and embarrassedly audibly sniffled several times before holding my breath to get myself together. Once I got to the privacy of my own car, I had a full-on ugly cry complete with snotty nose and puffy red eyes.
Exhibit Two: Grey's Anatomy a few weeks ago. Mr. H came in while I was watching. Within five minutes he looked over and saw the tears freely falling. I composed myself as the show progressed, and Mr. H went to the kitchen. But by the time he came back I was crying again. He was baffled. I'm pretty sure the conversation went something like this: "What happened now? You were just fine a minute ago!" My response, [sniffle sniffle] "they're [sniffle] taking Meredith's [sniffle, sniffle] baby [sniffle] away!" Mr. Hawk shakes his head and walks back to the kitchen.

Now I have a very strong feeling that I'm going to be "particularly moved" on our wedding day. The multitude of opportunities for me to be affected by crying are a little frightening. Vows? Yes. First dance? Possibly. Toasts? I could see it. Daddy-Daughter dance? Abso-freakin'-lutely. I don't know how I'm going to hold it together and it makes me a little concerned. I mean, I am paying boo-koo bucks for photos to last a lifetime. I don't want to be red, puffy, and snotty in all of them! I have a feeling the day is going to be full of trying to keep myself in check and several emergency trips to the bathroom to make sure my makeup isn't all over my face.

Are y'all worried about becoming emotional on your wedding day? Do you have any tips or tricks to keeping yourself tear-free?