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wedding

Joy

Flight attendant gets entire plane to write down bits of marriage advice for bride-to-be

She'll never forget this moment.

@southwestair/TikTok

Watch this and infuse some joy into your day.

A bride-to-be was recently en route to Austin with a few of her gal pals to celebrate her bachelorette party. But little did she know that she’d be getting a cherished memory long before she reached her destination.

A flight attendant for their Southwest flight announced over the PA system “we have royalty onboard,” and that this woman, Bri Kunkle, would soon be married.

“She is quite the princess,” the attendant said before asking the other passengers for a favor.

“I need a little help from every lady on the plane that is married or has been married. I’m going to walk up and down the aisle, and I’m going to give out a napkin,” she instructed.

“Get out a pen or something to write with, share amongst yourselves, if you would take a moment to write a little note of encouragement or piece of advice. What was something you would like to have known before you became a bride? If you could write that down so that I can pass that off to her, and she can hold on to those for a long time to remember this specific trip.”

In the clip, we see an emotional Bri receive her stack of sweet paper notes, along with a crown and snack sash.

@southwestair Its giving ✨princess bride✨ @bri kunk #feelgood #goodnews #bride #bridetok #bachelorette #southwest #celebrate ♬ Positive background music such as play and games(1251730) - earbrojp

Then the video ends with a look at the insightful messages she received.

“Before you say ‘I do’ make sure you know who you are as an individual, so you can grow together as patterns in life, in a healthy way. Congrats and enjoy the ride,” one note read.

Someone else wrote, “Marrying your best friend is such a special moment. Congrats! Remember to enjoy the little things with your partner! It’s you both against anything, and as long as you attack life together with kindness and honesty you’ll succeed. I wish you a lifetime of happiness. Now go have fun!”

Many spoke to the importance of appreciating the little things and communicating openly…but also remembering to avoid difficult conversations until hunger, anger, loneliness, or tiredness have subsided. As one person put it, “it’s okay to go to bed angry.”

There were even a few bits of pragmatic advice for the big wedding day, like this one:

“Have you MOH hold a tissue for you during the ceremony so you can gesture for it if you need to wipe away tears. And plan all you can beforehand, but on the day, just relax, enjoy, and bask in marrying your person! Congrats!”

The wholesome video was originally posted to Southwest Airlines TikTok account, and reposted by Kunk herself, who wrote in her caption “my heart is full and now I have to go make a scrapbook of these.” Over in the comments section of her accounts, many viewers swooned over how this special moment encapsulated the magic of “girlhood.”

“Something about all these women's handwriting makes me feel so emotional. The young, the old, the way the old women all added the date. I love women. What a special moment with a bunch of strangers,” one person shared.

Well said. Kudos to the flight attendant who gave this future bride a memory she’ll cherish forever.

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Man tears up at his wedding sharing emotional vows to his new 7-year-old son

Already showing up as a wonderful dad 🥲


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Not a dry eye in the house

When two people marry, they bring not only each other into their lives, but also any children from previous relationships. It’s been a growing wedding trend for grooms to also give vows to these children, offering them unconditional love, support, protection and ultimately pledging to be a parental figure in their lives.

Recently a groom named Eldridge Buchanan gave some special vows to his new seven-year-old-son Kayden during his wedding to Asia Green Buchanan.

The touching moment, captured and shared to Instagram by the wedding’s photographer and videographer Daka David and A Love Experience, shows Buchanan stands in front of little Kayden, as tears begin flowing.

"I want you to know, Kayden, that we're going [to] have fun. We're definitely going to do homework," Buchanan says. "But I want you to know that with everything in my body, Kayden, I'm going to pour into you to make sure that you grow up to be a young Black king that you are."

As he continues, his voice gets more choked up.

"I'm gonna teach you how to be a leader. I'm gonna teach you how to be a man of integrity, a man of respect, a man that values himself. And most importantly, I'ma show you every single day what it looks like for a man to love a woman and to love his family and to lead his family so that when you grow up, you will know exactly what that looks like and you'll know exactly what that feels like. So I vow to you from this day forward that I'm gonna love you, I'm gonna teach you, I'm gonna guide you and I'm gonna pour into you because you are a king. And you're my king. I love you, man."

Watch it all unfold below. You might wanna grab a tissue:

In an interview with “Good Morning America,” Buchanan revelad that the entire exchange was a spur-of-the-moment idea, one that came to him mere minutes before he walked down the aisle.

“It was just kind of a heartfelt moment, a reiteration of things that we talk about on a daily basis,” Buchanan told GMA. “I just really wanted him to know in that special moment not only was I going to give a vow to his mom, but I was giving a vow to him as well—as my son.”

The sincerity of the impromptu speech was felt by nearly 46,000 viewers online, many of who commented on how beautiful it was to see, and how important that kind of influence will be to Kayden as he grows up.

“Words every boy needs to hear from a father,”one person wrote.

Another added, “he is going to watch this video when he's older and finally understand everything he said to him.”

Indeed Buchanan seems more than ready to step into his role as a father. And it’s wonderful to see. Congratulations to the entire family.

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Pop Culture

Woman breaks down just how much work it took change her last name after getting married

She still stands by her choice.

@chiknnuggiesinmytummy/TikTok

Newlywed Delanie Kristek breaks down the lengthy process of changing her last name

Though the age-old tradition of wives taking their husband’s name after marriage has dwindled somewhat, it is still very commonplace. According to a Pew Research Center survey taken this year, 79% of women reported taking their spouse’s last name when they got married.

But would this custom still be so mainstream today if women were made aware of just how drawn out and mentally draining of a process it can be? Having just gone through it, 27-year-old newlywed Delanie Kristek doesn't seem to think so.

In a now-viral TikTok clip, Kristek recounts the lengthy tale of getting her last name changed, breaking down the stress involved.

Still in the “beginning stages,” as she calls it Kristek has successfully changed her social security and is now onto changing her driver’s license. Even with the “exact instructions” given to her on her NewlyNamed box (a special kit that helps newlyweds keep track of what documents to change), it was “incredibly time consuming."

@chiknnuggiesinmytummy Dont even get me started on our digital footprint and all the places our names are online. #changingyourname #namechange #namechanged #newlastname #lastnamechange #newlymarried #newlywed ♬ original sound - Delanie Kristek

Why? Because "everything's on the government website, which we already know is trash," Kristek explains, adding that "now, post-COVID, I can no longer just show up to the DPS [what Texas calls the DMV], I have to make an appointment. I go to schedule an appointment...all the DPS's near me, in DFW? There's no openings until January 2024. Guess what? I have a flight in December 2023...the name on my ticket is my new last name."

This left Kristek with no choice but to schedule an appointment at a DPS over 40 minutes away.

But that wouldn’t even scratch the surface. She continues, “at that point, I've only changed my social and my driver's license. I've still gotta change my insurance cards, I've gotta change my bank accounts, I've gotta change my passport...Global Entry, which means I'm gonna have to go to the airport."

But wait. There’s more.

"You've gotta change your name in all the systems you're in. Most of us have multiple doctors. I have primary care physician, I have a gynecologist, I have a therapist. There's so many places where my name appears, and now I'm gonna have to go change it. The mental load that it is taking on me...every time I see my name, I'm like, 'Oh my god, that's ANOTHER place I'm going to have to change my name,’” she says.

Understandably, Kristek can’t help but acknowledge that this is a special inconvenience reserved almost exclusively for women in heterosexual relationships, and says that most of their male counterparts "will never understand the mental load and time investment of changing your last name.”

And this is in part why Kristek posted her TikTok.

In an interview with Buzzfeed, she shared her hopes that it would ”shed some light to hetero men so that they can better understand,” and inspire them to help their partner during the process where they can. Whether that's helping directly in the name-change process or even taking on a different task that maybe their wife typically managed. In turn, freeing their wife up with some time and brain space to go through this name-change process."

Still, she stands by her choice to take her husband’s last name. And other than maybe the amount of time it took to get there, she has no regrets being Delanie Roselle Majors Kristek. She just wants others to be fully informed, and therefore more empowered, when going the traditional route.

As she told Buzzfeed, "each couple and person is different, so they need to decide what works for them versus just changing their last name because that's 'the thing you do.' It's time-consuming, it costs money, and there are pros and cons to whatever decision you make. Changing your name after marriage shouldn’t be an automatic yes, it should be a thought-out, conscious decision.”

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Bride who was given 6 months to live celebrates 'miracle' anniversary 20 years later

"For those living with cancer - keep hoping, believing, dreaming."

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Clare Runacres didn't expect to make it to her one year wedding anniversary.

Back in September of 2023, BBC newsreader Clare Runacres celebrated 20 years of marriage with her husband Mike Ramsden. Like many folks in the modern age, Runacres commemorated the milestone by posting a picture of her wedding day onto her social media pages.

While of course two decades of marriage is lovely in its own, it turns out there was even more for Runacres to celebrate. A “miracle,” in fact.

As she explained in her post, the picture was taken only six months after discovering that a cancer she had been diagnosed with during college had returned. What’s more, it was aggressive, with zero options for treatment.

As she explained in her post, the picture was taken only six months after discovering that a cancer she had been diagnosed with during college had returned. What’s more, it was aggressive, with zero options for treatment.

The news prompted the couple to marry immediately, and despite the harrowing news, their special day was “beautiful,” Runacres noted, surrounded by love, tears, friends and dancing til dawn.

But you don’t have to take her word for it, the pure joy is evident in Runacre’s photos. Take a look.

The BBC star told Daily Mail that although she did undergo surgery to remove the new cancer, just before her wedding day her doctors still told her she would probably only have six months to live.

Runacres and her beloved didn’t think they’d make it to their first anniversary. And now, at their 20th, can’t help but get emotional when she sees images from that day.

“Mikey, thank you for taking a chance on me. You're the best person I know. You are my miracle,” Runacres concluded in her caption. “For those living with cancer - keep hoping, believing, dreaming.”

Indeed, Runacres’ touching post inspired optimism to those going through their own difficult health challenges—be it themselves or a loved one.

Take a look as what readers shared:

“This brings me so much joy! My 5 yo has cancer. There’s a 35% chance it will return by the time she’s a teen and the medications are not kind on her poor little body. To have hope in a future like this is beyond words.”

“I’m 4 years in remission of stage 3 bowel cancer, constantly worrying about it returning and reading your post has made my heart sing with hope.”

“As someone diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer 4 months ago, this post has brought me so much joy and hope. Thank you for sharing ❤️”

Others contributed. their own miracle stories. One person commented, “my mom got diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer…October 2009…She’s still here. Cancer free. I thank God for healing and using the doctors and treatment , her survival rate for 5 years was 1%.”

Another added, “I was given 48 hrs to live in fall of 2018. Jokes on them! I’m still here! Don’t ever give up!”

While feelings of hope might not technically change a person’s chance for survival (though many survivors have attributed a key part of their success to optimism), studies have shown that positive thought can at least improve the quality of life for someone dealing with cancer.

And really, on a more universal level, none of us really know how much time we have on this planet. We can do all the “right” things and still get sick. We can receive a life-threatening diagnosis and live on for years after. So hearing stories like this reminds us to treat each day as a precious milestone. And that maybe we shouldn’t hold off on the celebrating.

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