Emilee Ann McDonald and Todd Gregory Thomas were married at 5:30 p.m. on April 21, 2012, at Belle Terra. The bride is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Benjamin Edward McDonald of Rome. The groom is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Greg Thomas of Carrollton and Donna Thomas of Villa Rica.

The Reverend Beau Swafford of St. Simons Island performed the double-ring ceremony under a wrought iron arbor adorned with ferns. The wrought iron unity candle was accented with greenery and ivory cascading ribbons.

A program of wedding music was provided by Fay Ellen Steelnack of Rome. Selections included “Morning has Broken,” “Canon in D,” “Trumpet Voluntary,” and “Spring.”

The guest book was attended by Christa Aaron of Decatur.

Jessica McDonald, sister of the bride, of Rome, was the maid of honor. Bridesmaids were Dorris Ottens of Tifton, Morgan Trepte of Roswell, Maggie Bryan of St. Simons Island, Danielle Cronin of Lawrenceville, and Kylee Bowen of Bonaire. They wore formal gowns of latte chiffon. The one-shoulder design was adorned with elegant flower details. The bodice featured an asymmetrical neckline and ruching along the waistband. They carried hand-tied bouquets of yellow skyline roses, crespedia, solidego, and yellow button poms, wrapped in French latte satin.

Hayden Thomas, niece of the groom, was the flower girl. She wore a sleeveless ivory satin dress with a ballerina skirt, accented at the waist with an ivory sash complete with intent to distribute an ivory satin rose at the waist. She carried a satin basket filled with yellow rose petals.

The bride, given in marriage by her parents and escorted by her father, wore a strapless formal gown of ivory silk organza. Double tulle fringe accented the sweetheart neckline with cross-over draping across the bodice in pleated silk organza. A silk organza double peplum finished with mohair floated over a flared, pleated tulle layered skirt. The waist

was accented with a silk organza belt and handmade flower petals in ivory. A fingertip veil completed the look. In addition to the bridal gown, the bride wore white pearl earrings as her “something new.” An heirloom Moravian star pin affixed to the garter, a gift from the bride’s great-grandmother, served as “something old.” The bride borrowed a silver angel brooch from her mother and attached it to her bridal bouquet, and she adorned the soles of her shoes with blue “I Do” rhinestones. She carried a hand-tied bouquet of Victorian garden roses, white hydrangea, yellow miniature calla lilies, yellow skyline roses, crespedia, and white stock, accented with aspidistra leaves wrapped in French ivory satin.

Dustin Thomas, brother of the groom, of Villa Rica was the best man. Groomsmen were Greg Thomas, father of the groom, of Carrollton, Ben Phillips of Bremen, Michael Best of Villa Rica, Blake Harrelson of Moncks Corner, S.C., and Kris Pierce of Carrollton.

The mother of the bride wore a formal modified A-line gown of flowing flora green silk chiffon. The sleeveless gown was topped by a matching sheer flora green silk chiffon jacket with three-quarter sleeves. The mother of the groom wore a long navy dress of sheer chiffon with a beaded sheer overlay. The scoop short sleeves featured a cut-out detail along the shoulder. The step-mother of the groom wore a royal blue taffeta dress featuring ruching detail along the waistband, which finished into a flower made from the same fabric. The look was completed by a 3/4 sleeve jacket. The mothers were presented with corsages of miniature ivory calla lilies accented with crespedia.

Following the ceremony, a reception was held at the Conservatory at Belle Terra. Refreshments included the bride’s five-tier cake adorned with ivory stylized rosettes, sugar pearl trim and topped with two yellow lovebirds. Three tiers were buttermilk vanilla cake covered in a smooth vanilla butter cream icing. The remaining two tiers were made of a rich dark chocolate cake with smooth peanut butter frosting. The groom’s cake was a German Chocolate cake made by his grandmother, Ora Lee Carroll.

The evening before the wedding, the groom’s father and step-mother hosted a rehearsal dinner at La Scala. Other pre-nuptial parties included a couples shower in Villa Rica hosted by Kim Thomas and Jaime Best, a miscellaneous shower in Athens hosted by Terri Aaron and Christa Aaron, a bridal tea and wedding shower in Carrollton hosted by Brenda Matthews, Deborah Holland, Susan Lewis, Billie Jo Blair, Beth Blanks, and Beverly Swafford, a bachelorette weekend and lingerie shower in Savannah hosted by the bridesmaids, and a bachelor weekend in Destin, Fla., hosted by the groomsmen.

A bridal luncheon at La Marie’s was hosted by Betty Canada, the bride’s grandmother, in honor of the bride’s attendants on the day before the wedding. Refreshments for the bridal party on the day of the wedding were provided by Lynne Griffin.

After a wedding trip to Antigua, the couple will reside in Cartersville.