My Tucson Wedding

The one season I miss, living in Southwest Arizona, is the Fall season. We really don’t get much of the Fall colors that I grew up with in the Chicago Area. I love the colors, the smell, the cooler weather, etc. that come with a mid-western Fall season. The picture below was taken from Saguaro Buttes of a few trees close to the property that make me think of the Fall Season I miss. It is also a beautiful backdrop for pictures.

Ashley and Joshua were wed at Saguaro Buttes on January 3rd, 2009, at 4:00 PM, with a dinner reception that followed. They had their rehearsal on January 2nd, at Noon. Joshua & Ashley first met in High School at the Vail High School. Joshua works at Brink, as a project manager and web designer. They have a honeymoon planned for Orlando Florida.

I never tire of the beautiful sunsets of Southern Arizona. Here is a recent sunset taken from Saguaro Buttes. Have a happy Thanksgiving holiday.  

The Saguaro Cactus is unique to Southern Arizona. Anytime to you see a movie with a Saguaro Cactus, realize it was probably filmed in Arizona. It is featured on our license plate, and also on our Arizona quarter. At Saguaro Buttes we have over 115 of Saguaro Cacti on our property alone. How do we know, because part of Pima County’s requirements for development is a “Native Plant Preservation Plan”. This is done by professionals who literally mark, map and count every Saguaro Cactus on your property.  They also estimate hight and condition of each cactus. The Saguaro pictured to the right is located at Saguaro Buttes, and is over 100 years of age. Wikipedia says, “Saguaros have a relatively long life span. They take up to 75 years to develop a side arm.  The growth rate of a Saguaro is strongly dependent on local precipitation patterns, and Saguaros in drier western Arizona grow only half as fast as those in and around Tucson, Arizona. Some specimens may live for more than 150 years”

Patrick Grimes is a local photographer that has taken a number of beautiful wedding photos at Saguaro Buttes. His pictures are featured on our web page. (Photos) He also has his own web page for more information about his services. Patrick has been a professional photographer in Tucson specializing in Wedding photography since 1983. 

The Celtic Wedding blessing can be a wonderful and simple addition to your wedding ceremony. It reads as follows. (This photo was taken by Patrick Grimes, at a Saguaro Buttes wedding.)

Celtic Wedding Blessing

May your mornings bring joy and your evenings bring peace. 
May your troubles grow few as your blessings increase. 
Be no worse than the happiest day of your past. 
May your hands be forever clasped in friendship 
And your hearts joined forever in love. 
Your lives are very special, 
God has touched you in many ways. 
May his blessings rest upon you 
And fill all your coming days.

Ryan and Amie were wed at Saguaro Buttes on December 6th, at 4:30 PM.   They had guests from California, Kansas, Pennsylvania, and Indiana.  Amie and Ryan met in 2004 when they were both worked at Canyon Ranch.

Amy and Raymond were wed on November 21, 2008 at Saguaro Buttes at 4:45 PM. In this photo Amy’s grandfather Paul Marsh is reading Psalm 45. 

Rachel and Matthew were wed on December 4, 2008, 4:30 PM at Saguaro Buttes.  Their rehearsal was December 3rd, at 4:30 PM. They first met each other at Sahuaro High School when Matthew was a senior and Rachel was a freshman in 2001. Rachel is a 5th grade school teacher in the Vail School district, and Matthew is a mechanical engineer with a local company. They  had a beautiful evening and a wonderful sunset, and Matthew got the picture he wanted with a Saguaro Cactus in the background. 

This is another picture of Tiffany and Jonathan’s wedding, taken from the reception hall looking out the window with the wedding cake in the foreground and the ceremony taking place in the background.

Tiffany and Jonathan were wed at a beautiful evening ceremony at Saguaro Buttes on November 15th at 4:30 PM. With the backdrop of the Rincon Mountains and the towering Saguaro Catus, over 200 friends and family came to witness this joyous occasions. The Reverend Patrick Cunningham performed the ceremony.

At the wedding of Ray Gotheir and Wendi Hampton they used a unique center piece that fit in with their western theme. This center piece was made of horse shoes welded to a candle holder.  

Tracy Shupe is a photographer with Snaptive Photo, and took this picture at a  wedding at Saguaro Buttes. You can see more of her photos featured on the web link on this site.

Her phone number is 520-762-4443, and her web page is  http://snaptivephotograhy.blogspot.com.

The Rose Ceremony is simple yet profound. It expresses in a visible way the giving of love, one to another. It is the simple exchange of two roses from the bride and groom to symbolize the giving and receiving of love. Usually done at the end of the ceremony before the couple is pronounced husband and wife.  Children can also be included in this ceremony. Here is the wording below.

The Rose Ceremony

You now have what remains the most honorable title which may exist between a man and a woman, the title of husband and wife. For your first gift as husband and wife, that gift will be a single rose. In the past, the rose was considered as symbol of love and a single rose always meant only one thing - it meant the words “I love you”.  So it is appropriate that for your first gift as husband and wife that gift would be a single rose. Please exchange your first gift as husband and wife.  (Rose exchange) (Also a song if desired) In some ways it seems like you have not done anything at all. Just a moment ago you were holding one small rose, and now you are holding one small rose. In some ways, a marriage ceremony is like this. In some ways, tomorrow is going to seem no different than yesterday. But in fact today, just now, you both have given and received one of the most valuable and precious gifts of life - one I hope you always remember - the gift of true and abiding love within the devotion of marriage.  

Lindsay and Kevin were wed on November 22nd at 4:00 PM.  Kevin and Lindsay met at CDO High School for the first time in August 1999, and began dating as students at the U of A. Kevin proposed to Lindsay on August 9th 2007 during a country music concert in Des Moines Ia. as Gary Allen was performing that evening. Kevin and Lindsay had a beautiful evening wedding, the weather was perfect and the sunset was beautiful. 

Saguaro Buttes is located adjacent to the world famous “Saguaro National Park” with literally thousands of Saguaro cacti. The park was established in 1933 as “Saguaro National Monument”, and then in 1994 it was changed to “Saguaro National Park”. The park consists of over 140 square miles of park or 90,000 acres, with 150 miles of trails. There is a visitor center located about 2.5 miles from Saguaro Buttes with a small museum, which is worth your time to take a tour.

Another reading that is popular at wedding ceremonies is called “The Art of a Good Marriage”

“The Art of a Good Marriage” by Wilferd Arian Peterson

“A good marriage must be created. In marriage the “little” things are the big things. It is never being too old to hold hands. It is remembering to say, “I love you” at least once a day. It is never going to sleep angry. It is having a mutual sense of values, and common objectives. It is standing together and facing the world. It is forming a circle that gathers in the whole family. It is speaking words of appreciation, and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways. It is having the capacity to forgive and forget. It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow. It is a common search for the good and the beautiful. It is not only marrying the right person, it is being the right partner.”

 A popular reading for wedding ceremonies is, “Love is Friendship Caught Fire”, by Laura Hendricks. It is a wonderful reading used quite often, and the wording is given below. The photo to the right was taken at Saguaro Buttes by Ivory Orchid.

Love is Friendship Caught Fire

“Love is friendship caught fire; it is quiet, mutual confidence, sharing and forgiving. It is loyalty through good and bad times. It settles for less than perfection, and makes allowances for human weaknesses. Love is content with the present, hopes for the future, and does not brood over the past. It is the day-in and day-out chronicles of irritations, problems, compromises, small disappointments, big victories, and working toward common goals. If you have love in your life, it can make up for a great many things you lack. If you do not have it, no matter what else there is, it is not enough.”