Here is our ceremony:
Opening Remarks and Blessing
Family and friends, I welcome you to this day of celebration. We are gathered here today to join Tanya and Dan as they reaffirm their marriage vows and their love for one another. Tanya and Dan are happy that so many of you who mean so much to them are here to share and celebrate this, their vow renewal day.
Tanya and Dan have invited us here to this place to share in their declaration of lifelong commitment to each other. Your blessings, support, and encouragement are important to this union, not only now, but in the days and years to come.
Amidst the turmoil of our world, with all of life's struggles and concerns, it is with deep joy and a sense of wonder and awe that we pause to affirm the power of love. As we gather to witness the union of Tanya and Dan we also celebrate the blessings we all cherish in our intimate relationships. This ceremony calls us all to renew our vows of love and commitment to one another.
Let us Pray.
Loving God, you are at the heart of all our relationships.* You are the understanding spirit that brings us together in friendship.* You are the caring spirit that enables us to listen to each other's needs.* You are the enduring spirit which holds fast when the storms of life hit home.* You are the trusting spirit which builds our faith in one another.* Bless this time together, we pray.* Amen
Remembering Loved Ones
I would like to take this moment to mention that there are those close to Tanya and Dan who could not travel to be here today, but whose thoughts and blessings are with them; and there are loved ones who are no longer here in body, but who are here in spirit. Let us remember them now in a moment of silence.
Here is where we compromised with our family. This is why Dh says he really married me three times. LOL! I wouldn't do our private vows in front of everyone, so we chose to do a hand ceremony instead.
Hand Ceremony
Tanya, please face Dan, and hold his hands, palms up, so you may see the gift that they are to you.
These are the hands of your best friend, strong, yet tender and sincere with love, as he again promises to love you all the days of his life.
These are the hands that have worked along side yours, as together you built your home and family, as you laughed and cried, as you shared your innermost secrets and dreams.
These are the hands you placed with expectant joy against your stomach, until he too, felt his child stir within you.
These are the hands that look so large and strong, yet were so gentle as they held your babies for the first time.
These are the hands that worked long hours for you and your family.
These are the hands that have held you tight as you struggled through difficult times.
These are the hands that comforted you when you were sick, or consoled you when you were grieving.
And these are the hands that will continue to love you passionately and cherish you through the years, for a lifetime of happiness.
Now, hold his left hand in yours and repeat after me:
I, Tanya, give to you, Dan,
a new promise and yet not so new;
a new wife, and yet not so new;
a new affirmation of love from the heart that has loved you for over 10 years
and will love you for as many more as God allots to it.
This is the covenant I renew with you today.
Dan please hold Tanyas hands, palms up, where you may see the gift that they are to you.
These are the hands of your best friend, small, yet strong and sincere with love, as she again pledges her love and commitment to you all the days of her life.
These are the hands that have worked along side yours, as together you built your home and family, as you laughed and cried, as you shared your innermost secrets and dreams.
These are the hands that held you in joy, excitement and hope, each time she told you that you were to have a child, that together you had created a new life.
These are the hands that holds each child in tender love, soothing them through illness and hurt, supporting and encouraging them along the way, and knowing when it is time to let go.
These are the hands that massages tension from your neck and back in the evenings after youve both had a long hard day.
These are the hands that have countless times wiped the tears from your eyes: tears of sorrow and tears of joy
These are the hands that have comforted you in illness, and held you when fear or grief wracked your mind.
And these are the hands that even when wrinkled and aged, will still be reaching for yours, still giving you the same unspoken tenderness with just a touch.
Now, hold her left hand in yours and repeat after me:
I, Dan, give to you, Tanya,
a new promise and yet not so new;
a new husband, and yet not so new;
a new affirmation of love from the heart that has loved you for over 10 years
and will love you for as many more as God allots to it.
This is the covenant I renew with you today.
Prayer
God, bless these hands that you see before you this day.
May they always be held by one another.
Give them the strength to hold on during the storms of stress and the dark of disillusionment.
Keep them tender and gentle as they nurture each other in their wondrous love.
Help these hands to continue building a relationship founded in your grace, rich in caring, and devoted in reaching for your perfection.
May Tanya and Dan see their four hands as healer, protector, shelter and guide.
We ask this in your name, Amen.
(Then hand a necklace to Tanya and one to Dan to give to the children.)
Mackenzie and Drew, please come forward. In presenting each of you with this necklace, the circle pendant represents not only the union of this marriage, but the importance of each of you within this family.
Officiant: Tanya and Dan, please repeat after me:
"With this medallion, we pledge our continuing love to you."
Sand Ceremony
Officiant: As you stand beside the ocean tide, may your love always be as constant as these never-ending waves, flowing endlessly from the depths of the sea. Just as the waters touch and nourish the many shores of the earth, may your love be a moving sea between the shores of your souls. Your love came softly upon each others heart, just as the foam comes softly upon the sand, and just as there will never be a morning without the ocean's flow, so there will never be a day without your love for each other. You have pledged yourselves on this day. Your love will be as dependable as the tide; as these waters nourish the earth and sustain life, may your constant devotion nourish and sustain you until the end of time.
Tanya and Dan, you have just sealed your relationship by exchanging vows and jewelry. This covenant is a relationship agreement between two people who agree that they will commit themselves to one another throughout their lives. Just as we have now bound Tanya and Dan to one another, we will also celebrate the unification of their children, Drew and Mackenzie, into this covenant. The couple will first pour their sands into the vase, showing that their marriage is the foundation of this family. Their sands mix together and symbolize their bond of love and respect that can never be separated, just as these grains of sand can never be separated and poured again into the individual containers. Your marriage is a molding of two individual personalities, bonded together forming one heart, one love. The life that each of you experienced individually will hereafter be inseparably united, for the two shall become one.
As Drew and Mackenzie now add their sands, we are reminded that though we are all different people, it is our individuality which adds a unique color to the tapestry of the family. Like the sands poured before it, so these sands will also mix and be unable to be separated. This symbolizes that this family will always be together and nothing will be able to come between them and separate them.
Pronouncement
Officiant: Your friends and family, all of us here, rejoice in your happiness and we pray that this day marks only one of many more blessings you will share in the days and years ahead. Now that you have reaffirmed your love and your marriage vows for one another, as well as committed yourself to a unified family, I am proud to say with great joy and happiness that you are once again Mr. & Mrs. Daniel Downs. You may kiss your wife.
Dove Release
The releasing of doves raises our eyes up, and fills our hearts with joy and peace.
For many centuries, the white dove has been an emblem of love, peace, and hope.
They pair for life, and at the end of each day
They return to the same home for the night.
As Tanya and Dan release these doves,
We ask you, their family and friends,
To witness this very symbolic gesture,
Which heralds the beginning of their new unified life together. We wish you love,
That, like the doves, continues to soar.
We wish you peace as you work together
To develop a home
And we join in your hope for a long and happy marriage.
Go now, hand in hand, forever in each others' hearts.
With that, I now present to you Mr. & Mrs. Daniel Downs.