The whole reception went too quickly. Even now, I have moments where I'll remember something that I had completely forgotten or hear a story about something that happened that I had completely missed. I do remember that the dance floor was packed pretty much the whole night thanks to our awesome band, Gearhead. At the end of the night, the crowd made the band keep playing. It was kind of funny because I've never seen a band play an encore at a wedding. The band would have kept playing, too, but our venue was closing down and our towncar was waiting. 
Here are a couple of other moments (in no particular order) that stand out in my memory:
The Cake Cutting. Neither of us really had any idea how we were supposed to cut the cake and I guess we did it wrong because we started on the top layer. We had not planned to save the top layer so it wasn't really a problem, but it did look funny. We did not smash it into each other's face. That was the only bite of cake I got the whole night. I was really disappointed I didn't get more (especially of the almond poppy and rasberry filling layer).
Ladies Night. I asked the band to play a song that would get all the ladies (single and married) out on the dance floor before I threw the bouquet. The went with "Ladies Night" and the girls went crazy. One of my bridesmaids, without prompting, undid her sash and, thus, a limbo bar was born. Some of my guests were more flexible (and sober) than others. I made it under, despite my huge dress, without any problems. But Judge McHugh did not fare so well. 
The Bouquet Toss. As the song ended, I raced to the table to grab the bouquet Elise and Katie had helped me make earlier in the day. I wanted to throw it before anyone had a chance to escape from the floor. This was important because the bouquet was not intended for just the single girls. I have been at enough weddings where the single women are dragged against their will to catch the bouquet and "be the lucky girl who will get married next." I didn't want that for any of my guests. Instead, I made a fortune bouquet. It is basically one bouquet made out of several little bouquests. Each of the bouquests had a silver charm and a fortune on it. All of the charms and fortunes were different. I was so fun to see everyone scramble for all the bouquets. I still don't know who got which fortunes, though. If you got one, please email me or post it in the comments!
The Anniversary Dance. With my actual bouquet, I had something more special planned. About six months before Rod proposed, my grandma was diagnosed with Guillon-Barre Syndrome, a neurological disease that causes temporary paralysis. No one knows what causes it and there are not really any accepted treatments except to administer gammaglobulin and wait. One day she was up walking around, the next morning she could not get out of bed. Although this disease usually goes away 100%, she is older than most of the people affected with it and has had a really hard time recovering from it. When Rod proposed, she still could not walk or even move her legs. After Rod proposed, I told her that she would have to get better so that she could dance at my wedding.
Over Christmas, she still could not walk on her own, but she was starting to get stronger and be able to get around with her wheelchair. She could walk with a walker if her physical therapist was holding onto her. She told me then that she would really like to dance to Anne Murray's "Could I have this Dance for the Rest of My Life" at the wedding.
When I started planning the details of the wedding, I knew the perfect place for it. I asked Larry, my stepdad, to sing it with our band (they learned the song just for our wedding). At the beginning of the song, the band invited everone who was married onto the dance floor. After about 30 seconds, they asked anyone who had been married for less than a year to leave the floor. Rod and I were clearly eliminated. The band continued to eliminate couples by the length of their marriage until only my grandparents were left on the floor. After they had the floor to themselves for awhile, Rod and I joined them. At the end of the dance, I handed my Grandma the bouquet. My grandma still had to hold onto my grandpa for support, but it was incredible to see them dancing together. You could just see the love in their eyes! Other than the moment I said I do, this was by far the most emotional (and unforgettable) moment of the evening for me.
When I was planning the anniversary song, I did not know that my grandparents would win. I knew that they would be out there until almost the end, but I also knew that Rod's grandparents had been married for a long time too. Rod's grandparents, who had taken the shuttle, had to leave just before the song. I tried to get them to stay and the band to play the song early, but it just didn't work out. It turns out, though, that it would have been a very close contest. Rod's grandparents have been married for 58 years--one less than my grandparents. I love that Rod and I both have these great examples of lasting marriages.
UPDATE: This moment seems even more poignant now. I just learned that Grandma is back in the hospital. Her platelettes and white cell blood count are really low. It seems like every time she is making progress something happens to set her back. 
Garter Toss. Mindy was kind enough to get me a garter. I had completely forgot about it. Rod didn't take it off the traditional way (with his teeth), but he still managed. We were so happy when our friend Kevin caught it. His girlfriend of several years, Jael, is beautiful and awesome and we hope that this is a good sign for their futures. 
Let's Get this Party Started. Judge McHugh, never one to sit on the sidelines, grabbed Rod as soon as I finished my dance with my Grandpa and hit the dancefloor. Judge McHugh is such a fun, wonderful person. This only confirmed that we had made the right choice in asking her to perform our ceremony. 
Okay, now it's really official. About midway through the evening, we realized we had still not signed our marriage license. Oops! We had to take a break from the dance floor and git'er done. All jokes aside, though, it was really nice to have a minute alone with just our best man and our maid of honor. It felt so final when I set my pen to the paper. Yes, now we are officially married . . . well, we will be after we remember (post honeymoon) that we also need to fill out the rest of the application and mail them to the state). 
Dancing with my little men. If I haven't mentioned it yet, our ringbearers (my nephews) and our junior groomsmen (my baby brother Jordan) are adorable. Towards the end of the night, I grabbed Bradley and Jordan each for a different dance. The spinning concept was interesting since they are both quite a bit shorter than me (Jordan is quickly gaining on me).
Dancing with Rod's Dad. When the band struck up "Play that Funky Music White Boy," I couldn't resist grabbing Rod's dad and dragging him onto the dance floor. He didn't take too much persuading. :) 
WDWGDAS. Rod is a huge Jimmy Buffet fan. Some of my earlies memories of him were during our first year of law school when Rod would get up and karaoke to Jimmy Buffet. His favorite, of course, was "Why Don't We Get Drunk and Screw." So for the last dance of the evening (before the encore anyway). Rod requested WDWGDAS. The band leader was a little incredulous, but eventually gave in, "It's your wedding man." I know it is a crass song, but it brought back so many memories during our relationship, and well, it is just a fun song. It was exactly how I thought the evening should end. 
The Getaway. Right before we ran out, our friends and family made a quick stop at the birdseed table. We walked out the door and ran down the front path, getting sprayed with birdseed the whole way. Everyone was cheering. Despite my efforts to shake it out that night, I found about 6 oz. of birdseed in the bed the next morning. I'm sure the Hotel Monaco housekeeping crew is still scratching their heads about that one. :)
Sunday, August 17, 2008
The Rest of the Night
Thursday, August 14, 2008
A Warm Reception
After the ceremony, Rod and I had a few minutes to ourselves. We walked around the meadow and just enjoyed the new feel of being married. We took this moment to see what we had engraved in each other's ring. Much to our amusement, we had both written the same thing (an inside joke) on the ring. I guess we are on the same wavelength. :)
Afterwards (and after some family pictures), we joined our guests on the waterfall patio for cocktail hour. After being announced (by the wrong name . . .), we were excited to see that everyone seemed to be having a good time. The candy buffet was already completely depleted. We heard rumors that elbows were thrown in the process. We were just glad that we didn't have to take any candy home with us.
We hurried and ate our dinner while everyone else went through the buffet line. We had been warned about forgetting to eat. As soon as we were done, we started making the rounds. We had so many people come from all over, and we were determined to visit with everyone. Big plans! We started in the ampitheater, but barely made it through those tables before it was time for the toasts. 
Stephen got things started. 
Mindy followed him with a toast that made me bawl. 
Carrie was up next with a toast to lighten the mood. Since Stephen knows Rod so well and Mindy knows me so well, Rod and I asked Carrie, who has known us both together and apart, to give a toast. It was exactly what we wanted! My favorite line was "Jen is the most forgiving person I know, which is great for Rod." I couldn't stop laughing. 
It was a tough act to follow, but my dad was next. He didn't tell too many embarassing stories about me. 
Rod and I finished things off by toasting the crowd for being such a wonderful and important part of our lives.
The rest of the night is such a blur. We danced the first dance to our song: Alison Kraus's version of "When you say nothing at all." My stepdad, Larry, sang, which made it that more emotional. Rod had warned me he didn't intend to use the dance lessons we spent the last four weeks attending, but he did surprise me with a dip at the end. We definitely got our money's worth. 
The next song was the daddy-daughter dance to "You look wonderful tonight." 
What came next was as a complete surprise to me. My grandpa has always been a really special part of my life. When I was little, I spent every other weekend with my grandparents, and when I got older, I lived with them. I have always been able to count on them. Anyway, as soon as I got off the dance floor with my dad, my grandpa grabbed me to dance--"A crazy little thing called love" or something like that. And he stole the show. I hadn't planned a dance for us because I didn't know if he would feel up to it. He has been ill lately. But I was the one who couldn't keep up with him. He had me spinning all over the place. It was one of the best moments of the evening. 
Stay tuned for more great moments this weekend.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
The Wedding Day
Like a kid on Christmas, I could barely sleep the night before the wedding. I woke up early, before anyone else was up, and sat on my front porch writing letters to my parents, grandparents, and Rod and my vows. When I finally finished, the sun was up and I was drained. I went back to bed. When I woke up, Rod had left the sweetest card on my pillow. I won't share all the intimate details, but he did say that he couldn't tell me what my wedding present would look like, but it would be fluffy and bark. Yay!
Mindy and Alicia were already staying with me, and Carley Anne and Alex came over early to make breakfast. Elise (Rod's brother, Stephen's, girlfriend) and Katie (Rod's groomsman, Chris's, wife) were also there to help me put together last minute details. It was busy.
In order to keep myself from going crazing, I purposely planned a pedicure party for my bridesmaids that morning. We headed to VIP Nails with mimosas and a cheese and fruit tray. It was a very relaxing way to bide my time until things got started.
Afterwards we went back to the house, where everyone got ready (except for me). Carley Anne steamed the dresses, while Jayde and I picked out pictures to frame for the guestbook table. 
I thought I had planned everything down to the last detail, but I forgot one important detail . . . how we were all going to get to Log Haven. After a few minutes of panic and some creative thinking, we all made it there (Thanks Mitch and Katie!) . . . well except for my hairdresser, who got lost and was a half hour late. I was freaking out just a little (okay, a girl can have one bridezilla moment), but luckily my bridesmaids and Lee and Lainey were there to keep me calm (and to make sure I always had a glass of wine on hand). 
The hairdresser, Martha, got there eventually and it only put us behind a little bit. In the end, it really only cut down on the amount of time we had for pictures before the ceremony. I was a little disappointed that we had to be in the meadow taking photos when people started showing up.
Finally, it was time to start. It was really important to us to have the ceremony as personal as possible. We tried to involve our friends and family in every aspect of the wedding. Melanie, one of my best friends from law school and an amazingly talented musician, played several beautiful cello suites for the processional. 
After the mothers and grandmothers were seated, Rod and his dad walked to the front of the aisle. The groomsmen--Stephen, Rod's best man and only brother; Chris, Rod's friend since high school; Jordan, my baby brother--joined walked in from the side, joining Rod at the front. Then, my bridesmaids followed suit: Alicia and Carley Anne, some of my best friends from high school; Jayde, my beautiful younger sister; and Mindy, my maid of honor and best friend since seventh grade. Next were our superadorable ringbearers--my nephews Dustin and Bradley--and flower girls--Lainey and Catherine, Rod's second cousins. 
Finally, it was my turn. My dad and I walked in from a pathway that ran along the meadow. On the walk, my dad told me a story about the day he married my mom and how choked up my Granpa got about his only daughter getting married. He had told my grandpa then that he would not look forward to the day that he had to do the same. 
When we finally got to the aisle, I couldn't see anyone but Rod. I looked at him every step of the way. I paused at the front row to give a rose from my bouquet to my Grandma and Grandpa and to Rod's grandparents. 
Our officiant, was the beautiful and wonderful Judge Carolyn McHugh. I worked with her before she became a Judge, and Rod and I have spent a lot of time with her at social gatherings. We really wanted to have someone we both knew perform the ceremony. She did a beautiful job and made the ceremony so personal. Our good friend Paul also did a reading of "The Art of a Good Marriage" by Wilferd Arlen Peterson. 
Then it was time for the vows. Rod and I each wrote a personal statement, which we read to each other. I had to concentrate on the words on the paper to keep from totally losing it. Even the Judge got choked up. 
Then we said the vows we wrote together. It all seemed so surreal.
We exchanged rings. 
Judge McHugh pronounced us husband and wife and we (finally) got to kiss. 
I still cannot believe how lucky I am to be married to this incredible man. Stay tuned tomorrow for the reception details. 
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