Pre Wedding Festivities...
*sigh* It's already been over a week since our wedding day. That is truly unbelievable!
The weekend started on Thursday the 21st. Our plan was to host a little bbq at our house for those that were in town from far away. A few friends and a few relatives. That's when the rain started. Almost coniciding with the grill-light-time exactly. Unbelievable. We didn't let the damp weather dampen our spirits though and had about 13 people happily munching away on burgers & calico beans in our very cozy house.
Friday morning I went for a manicure with my very good friend Sam (in from LA). She got a pedicure and my Mom was along as well and enjoyed a massage. After our beauty appointments we headed into Bennett's on the Lake for lunch. Joined by Sarah (my bridesmaid) and Kathy (my sister/matron-of-honor). We sat looking at the lake and what we saw was HUGE white caps crashing into the shore and near-hurricane like winds pushing the rain sideways. Ugh. :-(
After lunch and packing everything up at home, Steve and I headed up the shore. Seriously almost getting blown off the road! It was the worst weather I've seen in probably A YEAR!! I was becoming very disappointed but tried to buck up for our big weekend.
That night we had the rehearsal - and since the weather was SOOOOO crappy we tried to figure out how we'd do it if it had to be inside. All of a sudden Steve & I were standing in front of the minister with our wedding party around us and it started to get VERY REAL.
We went through all the logistics and I tried to ask as many questions as I could because I wanted to be CALM the next morning. Unfortunately our "coordinator" had a "family emergency" (her 4th in the year that I've been working with her....)and wasn't there! She also didn't bother to tell me or to tell anyone that she wouldn't be there which irked me to say the least. Luckily there was a very nice set-up guy there who acted in her place at the last minute. Whew.
Then we went to dinner. We had our rehearsal dinner across the highway at a little old place called The Rustic Inn Cafe. We ate in the original building built in the '20's. It's definitely rustic & very charming. There are red & white checked table cloths, it's a log cabin and the original light fixtures (!) are still in place. Each place had a personalized menu and 3 choices for our guests. It was really a nice dinner. There were a few toasts - my Dad, Steve's pseudo-step-dad and Steve & I. I did pretty good but felt my voice getting a bit wavery so cut my talking short. Ack! I'm bad at such things. I get way too emotional. It was just so amazing to be in such a intimate setting with all these family & friends who were here to celebrate with us! I knew the feeling would be tripled (at least) the next day.
After dinner everyone headed back to the resort. I went to the bar for one beer and to say hello to OODLES of family who had congregated there (naturally). It was so fun to see everyone. I had to be conscious though of not staying up too late & drinking too much beer! No one wants a tired puffy bride! Well, at least I didn't.
At the end of the evening (it was still raining & hurricane-ish), Steve walked me back to the cabin/lake home that my parents had rented and where I'd be staying that night. It was really nice to be with just him and to talk and to be excited together and to keep saying "oh my god, tomorrow at this time WE'LL BE MARRIED!!!" We were a little amped up on adrenaline and giddy and happy. It was sweet that he walked me back and it felt a little bit like he was dropping me off at my parents house after a date.
I shared a room with my cousin/personal attendant that night and had no trouble sleeping! It's rare that I have trouble, actually. I was tired and she was already asleep when I got there. I didn't even read. I was fine til about 7am and then I couldn't stay asleep for anything!! Poor Steve was awake all night and finally got some rest after 5:30am!
The rest to come....later....
The weekend started on Thursday the 21st. Our plan was to host a little bbq at our house for those that were in town from far away. A few friends and a few relatives. That's when the rain started. Almost coniciding with the grill-light-time exactly. Unbelievable. We didn't let the damp weather dampen our spirits though and had about 13 people happily munching away on burgers & calico beans in our very cozy house.
Friday morning I went for a manicure with my very good friend Sam (in from LA). She got a pedicure and my Mom was along as well and enjoyed a massage. After our beauty appointments we headed into Bennett's on the Lake for lunch. Joined by Sarah (my bridesmaid) and Kathy (my sister/matron-of-honor). We sat looking at the lake and what we saw was HUGE white caps crashing into the shore and near-hurricane like winds pushing the rain sideways. Ugh. :-(
After lunch and packing everything up at home, Steve and I headed up the shore. Seriously almost getting blown off the road! It was the worst weather I've seen in probably A YEAR!! I was becoming very disappointed but tried to buck up for our big weekend.
That night we had the rehearsal - and since the weather was SOOOOO crappy we tried to figure out how we'd do it if it had to be inside. All of a sudden Steve & I were standing in front of the minister with our wedding party around us and it started to get VERY REAL.
We went through all the logistics and I tried to ask as many questions as I could because I wanted to be CALM the next morning. Unfortunately our "coordinator" had a "family emergency" (her 4th in the year that I've been working with her....)and wasn't there! She also didn't bother to tell me or to tell anyone that she wouldn't be there which irked me to say the least. Luckily there was a very nice set-up guy there who acted in her place at the last minute. Whew.
Then we went to dinner. We had our rehearsal dinner across the highway at a little old place called The Rustic Inn Cafe. We ate in the original building built in the '20's. It's definitely rustic & very charming. There are red & white checked table cloths, it's a log cabin and the original light fixtures (!) are still in place. Each place had a personalized menu and 3 choices for our guests. It was really a nice dinner. There were a few toasts - my Dad, Steve's pseudo-step-dad and Steve & I. I did pretty good but felt my voice getting a bit wavery so cut my talking short. Ack! I'm bad at such things. I get way too emotional. It was just so amazing to be in such a intimate setting with all these family & friends who were here to celebrate with us! I knew the feeling would be tripled (at least) the next day.
After dinner everyone headed back to the resort. I went to the bar for one beer and to say hello to OODLES of family who had congregated there (naturally). It was so fun to see everyone. I had to be conscious though of not staying up too late & drinking too much beer! No one wants a tired puffy bride! Well, at least I didn't.
At the end of the evening (it was still raining & hurricane-ish), Steve walked me back to the cabin/lake home that my parents had rented and where I'd be staying that night. It was really nice to be with just him and to talk and to be excited together and to keep saying "oh my god, tomorrow at this time WE'LL BE MARRIED!!!" We were a little amped up on adrenaline and giddy and happy. It was sweet that he walked me back and it felt a little bit like he was dropping me off at my parents house after a date.
I shared a room with my cousin/personal attendant that night and had no trouble sleeping! It's rare that I have trouble, actually. I was tired and she was already asleep when I got there. I didn't even read. I was fine til about 7am and then I couldn't stay asleep for anything!! Poor Steve was awake all night and finally got some rest after 5:30am!
The rest to come....later....
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