'Tori's Winter Wonderland Wedding' Recap

Bringing Up Bates "Tori's Winter Wonderland Wedding" 

• A few days before the wedding, Tori and Bobby meet at their future residence, an apartment where Bobby is already living, to pack for their honeymoon. They will fly to San Francisco, driving to Carmel, and then head to Yosemite to spend time in a beautiful cabin.
• Meanwhile, Gil and the boys start spray painting the trees, but the paint doesn’t stick. “This is called a lesson about procrastination,” declares Kelly. “Last week, the weather was warm, and last week, the paint would have stuck, and the trees would have dried. This is the whole theme of the wedding right here in this yard. Y’all have to do better than this.”
• Elijah, a friend of the Bates, solves the problem with a paint sprayer. “Y’all get a bonus for this job,” says Gil.
• Michael arrives from Chicago, and Kelly puts her to work adding slips to the flower girl dresses.
• On Friday, the day before the wedding, family and friends are at the church decorating. Bobby’s family arrived the night before and is busy setting up for the rehearsal dinner, at which they will serve Mexican food. Tori decides to do the dinner first so the rehearsal isn’t delayed by wedding party members arriving late.
• When Tori and Bobby see the finished sanctuary, they are tickled. “I feel like I’ve poured so much into this wedding emotionally, so it meant a lot to me to make this just perfect for her,” says Kelly.
• It wouldn’t be a Bates rehearsal dinner without tears and sweet words. Carlin admits that she is a little jealous because she would like to switch places with Tori. Gil stands up to protest, with a smile on his face. “Wait a minute! Whoa, whoa! One at a time!”
• In the words of Josie, “The rehearsal was chaos.” But with such a large wedding party, that’s almost a given.
• On the morning of the wedding, Tori says she is scared, nervous, and excited. While she has her hair and makeup done, others run around making final preparations. The time comes for her to unveil the dress to her bridesmaids and some family members.
• Bobby puts on a blindfold so he and Tori can pray together before the ceremony.
• The guests are all seated, the wedding party has entered, and it’s time for Gil and Tori to walk down the aisle. “She’s walking to me, and we’re about to start the rest of our lives together,” says Bobby. “It literally felt like the entire world just stopped.”
• When the other pastor asks Gil who gives the bride away, Gil responds, “Her lovely mother, myself, and all of her 18 siblings.”
• After the sermon, Bobby sings a love song that he wrote for Tori, while playing the piano. “And the rest of our lives begin here today, but I just want to stay right here with you. Wherever we go, come whatever may, we’ll never forget these promises. Like two notes on a page, just follow my lead. You know that I’ll take us where we need to be. Keeping this love within, our song never ends.”
• During the couple’s vows--which are the traditional ones, lead by Gil--Tori stumbles over the words “lawful wedded husband.” After that, Tori starts laughing uncontrollably, although some members of the audience think she is sobbing, and she becomes embarrassed and is concerned that she’s messing things up. “This is your day,” Gil assures her. “You’re not doing anything wrong.”
• “The whole wedding, I was just honestly trying to make everything so perfect and do everything so perfect,” says Tori. “It’s just not me to be perfect.”
• While Tori and Bobby tie their unity braid, Lawson performs a song that he wrote for them, accompanied by Rachel Leftwich, Andy Leftwich’s wife. “We’re not in this thing alone. We won’t get it right on our own. It’s gonna take help. It’s gonna take faith, but with you and God and me, one plus one equal three.”
• Before they know it, Tori and Bobby are sharing their first kiss, and it’s slow and sweet just like the bride wanted.
• During the reception, Gil announces the bouquet toss, adding a plea. “No Bates kids, please. No more Bates kids for a couple years. Give me a break.” Josie ends up catching it!
• “It seems like as soon as we recover from one wedding, another daughter is announcing a wedding date,” says Kelly. “We’re happy for Tori, we’re happy for the future of our other girls, but we are praying it will slow down.”