Here Come The Brides: Kristen Henderson And Sarah Ellis Marry -- Part 1 (VIDEO)

Rocker Kristen Henderson and magazine executive Sarah Ellis had started to think marriage just wasn't in their future. That's because the couple, who met in Manhattan in 2005, live in a state where same sex marriage wasn't legal. Or at least it wasn't until last June.

The two women watched in frustration in 2009 as the state senate voted down a bill that would give LGBT citizens the right to marry.

By the time the senate had another opportunity to legalize gay marriage, in June 2011, Sarah and Kristen had two more reasons to hope the bill passed: their two-year-old children, Thomas and Kate. In a June 15th blog post on The Huffington Post, Sarah wrote that the thought of the Marriage Equality Act not passing left her "heartbroken, for my children. With all of the countless precautions I take to nurture and protect my children, I cannot guard them against the deep ramifications the non-passage of this bill would have on them."

Then on June 24th, 2011 the bill passed.

Sarah and Kristen, who now live in Seacliff, New York with their kids, told the story of their road to motherhood in their memoir "Times Two: Two Women in Love and the Happy Family They Made" published in April 2011, but we wanted to tell the story of their road to marriage.

In the video above, the first of three chronicling that journey, you'll catch Kristen and Sarah as they recall how they met and begin, at last, to plan the wedding they've always wanted.

On Tuesday, look for Part 2, in which the couple recall their first attempt to marry and how their quest for a legal union intersected with their path to parenthood. (Pregnant on the same day? really?)

And Part 3, live Wednesday, follows Kristen and Sarah from the Senate's vote in June to the October evening just a few weeks ago that they waited for so long.

Some of the music featured in this video was provided by Kristen Henderson's band, Antigone Rising. Their new album, 23 Red, is available online.

Comments

[talkstocoyotes]

10:17 AM on 11/17/2011

This is such a beautiful story, with two beautiful brides.

But I can't wrap my brain around anyone actually supporting a legal system that gives these two women fewer marital rights than convicted felons, including child molesters. Whatever that is, it's not morality.

[irene mccann]

08:01 PM on 11/16/2011

OMG I was brought to tears by this God Given Love Story of those two magnificent women & mothers. All my prayers & best wishes for you in the wonderful years ahead. I'm 71 years old, but only in body NOT in mind & heart...with LOVE, Irene McCann

[lacrosselamore]

02:08 PM on 11/17/2011

Fanned. Thank you.

[SomethingToSay2]

02:35 PM on 11/15/2011

Loving this coverage! Yay for part 2!

To all the nasty, ignorant comments... You should read a book. Like the one you claim to follow. Perhaps then you'll see how ridiculous it is.

[lizzythegreek]

02:12 PM on 11/15/2011

Nobody is saying that we hate gay/lesbians neither does God. It's just the fact that God never said for the same sex to get married.

[Tiffany Marie105]

02:35 PM on 11/15/2011

It honestly doesn't matter in terms of the law what your God.... or any other God for that matter says and doesn't say, marriage isn't strictly a religious institution. It's first and foremost a civil institution which explains how Atheists among others get married every day in this Country.

[virescentgirl]

03:35 PM on 11/15/2011

F&F

[lizzythegreek]

04:17 PM on 11/15/2011

Your right! I didn't mean any harm! Two of my friends are gay they are my greatest friends in the whole world. I always tell them things like this and they say blah! blah! LOL!

[virescentgirl]

03:35 PM on 11/15/2011

I am not sure about your God, but My God and Goddess are totally fine with the life long commitment of two people (aka Marriage) no matter what orientation they are. But like Tiffany already said - it doesn't matter in civil law what either of our deities say, because civil law must treat all of us equal regardless of religion.

[lizzythegreek]

04:24 PM on 11/15/2011

I apologize for my comments really I do. My 2 best friends in the whole world are gay and they are the sweetest and kindest people that I know. Many times I tell them these things but they just ignore me lol! But we are always there for each other!

[talkstocoyotes]

10:21 AM on 11/17/2011

It's probably wise to take these claims of complaisant "gay friends" with a few handfuls of salt. During the 20th century's civil rights movement, the woods were full of white folks who claimed to have many "Negro friends." Most of the time they were referring to the cleaning lady or the janitor at their workplace. And of course that was a reprise of the claims of Jews being "some of the best friends" of people who under no circumstances wanted Jews living next door to them.

[thecoffeeparty]

01:39 PM on 11/15/2011

Love it! Can't wait for Part 3. And folks don't worry about those that say all of those short sighted ignorant comments or who try and say they have the direct pipe line to what God wants. Just remember what Susan B. Anothony says "I distrust those people who know so well what God wants them to do, because I notice it always coincides with their own desires."

[LoyalBob]

09:06 AM on 11/15/2011

Obviously, pretty sick. Wouldn't you say? I mean to be checking out a link that one surely will not approve of, that is a cute story about LOVE, by the way, and then making a completely hateful judgement on that story. Pretty sick indeed. A sad, hateful, sick world with comments made by those who wish to continue this trend. Yuck.

[lacrosselamore]

09:35 AM on 11/15/2011

Maybe if you wren't such a miserable looser you could just live your own life and let others live theirs.
You are sick, indeed.

[LoyalBob]

08:07 AM on 11/15/2011

What a sweet story. Nice to see positive articles about love amidst the turmoil of the day.

[indsereng]

06:00 AM on 11/15/2011

Riiiiiiiiiight.......

[tccat4]

05:24 AM on 11/15/2011

I was trying to reply to many of these post, but thought, they just dont get it, no matter how I could explain.
The couple across my street, they have been together many years, they have children, have weekend BBQ, go to church every Sunday. Pay their taxes, have good jobs. I have baby sat for those kids since they were babies. My other neighbors, married, kids, good jobs, go to church... they divorced last year, those poor kids are so messed up, the oldest one turned to alcohol and drugs. They come over and say how sad they are. The only difference is the first couple I told you about are gay, the second straight. So someone please explain to me how they can condemn the first and not the second.

[Nonpc1]

05:04 AM on 11/15/2011

A good start in correcting this problem is to stop calling this thing gay. We should instead refer to it by its clinical term. Homosexual. There is as we all know nothing gay about this. Its like painting a happy face on a pig. Its still a pig with a pretend face. Same with this issue. God Bless America. In God We Trust.

[soccerus]

05:59 AM on 11/15/2011

Which God?

[motherbird2]

08:49 AM on 11/15/2011

The GOD, who made us. That is the problem here. They have used the Constitution to get their own way. It is sick and way beyond GOD,S will. Read your Bibles and find out how GOD, feels about this. Most of them cannot get a mate of their own or keep one. So they settle for this. SICK SICK SICK. Am I judging.? No way,just telling it how it is.

[talkstocoyotes]

10:27 AM on 11/17/2011

**Read your Bibles and find out how GOD, feels about this**

The Bible tells you nothing about what "GOD" thinks. It's an anthology of hero stories, legends, nature-based superstitions, religious law and poetry. The Creator isn't in the book publishing business.

[LoyalBob]

08:08 AM on 11/15/2011

Yep. I bet your god really approves of your hate. Oh well, ignorance is ignorance. There is no pretend face on that pig.

[Nonpc1]

04:59 AM on 11/15/2011

America agrees. Two same sex room mates playing house is not a marriage and should never be reconized as such. Marriage is ONLY for a man and a woman. Not to gender confused same sex room mates playing house. God Bless America.

[lacrosselamore]

09:40 AM on 11/15/2011

When did we elect you spokesperson for America? I didn't get to vote.
RECALL.

[cenourinha]

10:50 PM on 11/15/2011

and you're only playing at being human.

[Valksy]

04:55 AM on 11/15/2011

Oh, the "traditional marriage" argument. Which tradition do you want back? That most marriages were arranged? That women lost all rights and autonomy? That women could be beaten or raped at will?

Marriage has evolved. The concept of marriage being about a loving couple is a modern concept. It isn't your word.

And no, being LGBT does not work the way that you describe. We aren't like an allergy and we do not recruit.

[bytebroker]

05:56 AM on 11/15/2011

Homosexuals have their own rules about what is and what is not unnatural sex. I'm cool with that, so meet me halfway and get your own name and ceremony for what your attempting to call a marriage, because it's not. Create an "evolved" word for co-habitation with financial / sexual / emotional joining with no biological hope for natural procreation.

[motherbird2]

08:58 AM on 11/15/2011

Women have rights now. They just hate men. Not me boy.

[cenourinha]

10:52 PM on 11/15/2011

and 168% of the statistics you see around here are made up

[dymedoutbllaa]

03:51 AM on 11/15/2011

WHO CARES?? People are so concerned with making sure the LGBT community gets the same treatment as the Straight Community, however Huff post will devote an entire article with video of a gay marraige. Straight marriages occur daily, where are the articles for those?

[Valksy]

04:39 AM on 11/15/2011

Click the "Weddings" option under "Life & Style" in the navigation bar beneath the name "The Huffington Post" and you will find literally dozens of articles, stories and blog entries about heterosexual marriages.

[bytebroker]

05:58 AM on 11/15/2011

Right, but this one's going to be a multi-part series. How many of those did you find?

[GOODDOC1]

06:08 AM on 11/15/2011

When gay marriage is accepted by all, you won't be seeing articles about it. Until then, you might want to stop clicking on the articles.

[denisehazemail]

02:22 AM on 11/15/2011

The homosexual community is going to have to use other traditions and words to address their shacking up and playing house. The hetrosexual people already own the whole "marriage" thing and marriage traditions. Come on now! Why they trying to be like us???? Confusing!

[Valksy]

04:40 AM on 11/15/2011

No, you don't own that word. The word refers to a contractually based agreement between two people.

[bytebroker]

06:04 AM on 11/15/2011

Pffffttt! Hogwash! You left out some of that definition. Here's what Merriam - Webster says:

a (1) : the state of being united to a person of the opposite sex as husband or wife in a consensual and contractual relationship recognized by law (2) : the state of being united to a person of the same sex in a relationship like that of a traditional marriage

Lie of omission? We DO own the wrod ...... INFINITY!

[LoyalBob]

08:18 AM on 11/15/2011

Know how to read? Look up information on the internet? Then before you spout your ignorance please do some research. The definition of marriage has changed over the centuries.

Did you marry for property? Part of a harem of multiple wives? Then you hijacked marriage for your own definition of one man, one woman.

This old bigoted ignorance is becoming tiresome. Figures the religious right latches onto such foolishness.

[europe1127]

01:51 AM on 11/15/2011

i believe in god but not in a god that hates, but one that loves and if god doesnt love us for who we r then i dont want to spend eternity with him anyway

[tiabroph]

03:33 AM on 11/15/2011

So true

[Lulo]

04:04 AM on 11/15/2011

I am pretty sure God at this moment is not happy with the guy who suggests lesbians should be gang raped.

[LoyalBob]

08:19 AM on 11/15/2011

God isn't going to be happy you are speaking for him. Better watch out!