Post wedding recap

Thank you to everyone who left kind words and wedding wishes here and on your blogs. That was so very sweet of you all!

The wedding happened last week.I can't say without a hitch but what wedding is. After all the scrambling and hijinx it seemed pretty perfect to us. On Thursday, family and friends began from all over the country. Sweets' family flew in from Indiana and Chicago and some drove from Tennessee. One of his friends made the trek by motorcycle from Indiana in record breaking time. One of my uncles flew in from the Pacific Northwest. My bridesguy, ME, and his fiancee came in from California. And my Uncle Mike and Aunt Linda drove up from Florida to be part of our day. Although a bit stressful to have so many people on hand, it was great to see our families getting to know each other a bit more. I just wish I had more time for visiting with them all but bridezilla duty called! I'm a control freak. My mother says it. My boss tells me every so often. Boy, did it really come out in me in the final days before the wedding. If I got too bossy with any of you there, please accept my humblest apologies.

We had amazing, glorious weather. As guests arrived they were escorted through a grove of apple trees to a clearing filled with chairs. Forget-me-nots were underfoot. Between white dogwoods and a pink magnolia they enjoyed the birds flitting about Mill Grove while listening to our pre-ceremony playlist playing on our new Bose SoundDock which we got with the generous gift from my co-workers. Of course, we weren't ready to begin on time. It was the bridesmaids, I swear!

Behind the scenes there was alot of rushing around trying to get everything "just so" in the barn before the guests arrived. I frantically pointed out things to fix and my mother, mother-in-law and new sisters-in-law made it all perfect in a flash. (Thanks, ladies!) Guests were arriving already so I chatted with them. When I saw my friend, Tiffany, who'd flown in from Seattle, I hugged her so hard I bit my lip. All the while, I was trying to dodge Sweets so he wouldn't see me in my dress until I walked down the aisle. Finally, we were ready and everyone lined up in front of the Audubon museum to start the procession. Sweets went first to join the mayor in front of the old magnolia tree. I peeked around the corner to watch him. He looked so handsome. Then the bridal party made their procession to "Ceremony" by New Order which made Talulah super happy. Then it was finally time to take my Uncle Mike's arm and take the surreal walk for myself. I chose the amazing song "Northern Sky" by Nick Drake for my processional music. My uncle was exactly what I needed at the moment- relaxed, reassuring, funny and proud of me. I was so honored he agreed to escort me down the aisle. Once he delivered me to Sweets, I started feeling emotional. After a greeting by the mayor who officiated; our friend, Tiffany, came up to read ""A Birthday" by Christina Rossetti. From her emotional delivery of the first line I was in tears. I didn't expect to be so emotional. Sweets was the calm one. (Evidently, his older brother slipped him a nip of whiskey pre-ceremony to settle his nerves.)
I tried very hard not to get distracted by the guests and concentrate on Sweets' face while the mayor spoke. My mother kept insistantly calling my name quietly and then hissed to fix the strap on my dress. She said I was about to flash the crowd. Whoops!

After Tiffany's reading we said our vows and exchanged rings. Then our friend, Dipti, came up to read "i carry your heart" by e.e. cummings. After that the mayor declared us husband and wife and we finally got to smooch. The recessional music was "Come Rain or Come Shine" performed by Billie Holiday accompanied by Harry "Sweets" Edison. Then we chatted with all the guests before slipping away for some quiet time and portraits.

In the barn, Lenny Lounge got the party started with rockin' music. People danced under bobbing cream and green Chinese lanterns. < a href="http://cafespice.com/2005/pa35menu.html">Cafe Spice from Philadelphia served a magnificent Indian feast of samosas, grilled wedges of cheese stuffed with mint, tandoori chicken, basmati rice, Goa fish curry, assorted naan breads, saag paneer, chicken tikka, navrataan korma, spiced eggplant with cashews and raisins, papadums and masala tea. The bartender mixed up the Cafe Spice signature mojitos and other specialty cocktails. To finish the meal, we served cupcakes custom designed for us by Flying Monkey Patisserie. Tiny birdsnests holding jellybeans sat on green coconut grass atop buttercream frosted vanilla and chocolate cupcakes.

We're waiting to receive the photos from the "official" photographer. In the meantime, there are plenty to look at from other people's viewfinders. There were so many photographers there I felt like a celebutante coming down the aisle. My friend, Lucius, put together a Flickr set. Sweets parents posted lots, too.

I'll tell you more about the dress and the flowers and such when I've got more photos to show y'all.

The day after the wedding was super busy. We had to go back to the site and pack everything up. There was alot of leftover food and alcohol. Plus gifts, the paper lanterns and more. It took three cars to get it all packed up. So my plan to have a mini break holiday immediately was delayed slightly. We had to drive back home, unload, parcel up all the food, rejigger the luggage and then head back out. It was almost midnight when we checked into the Latham Hotel in Philadelphia. We spent the next two days just chilling out, sleeping in, reading magazines and sleeping some more. The weather was great. We walked around the city, had sushi, saw a movie and went to the art museum. I haven't downloaded the photos yet.

The day we came home I got a cold and lost my voice. I sound all froggy and ridiculous right now. Sweets has been taking care of me making lots of cups of tea. What a nice husband, I have. Yes. Indeed.

I'll be back with more soon. I've missed my little blog.

Comments

[Janet]

Rachel, your wedding looks and sounds just beautiful. The photos your friend took are gorgeous. And the music, and the food! Glad you had a great day!

[Katharine]

Wow, that all sounds and looks amazing! Congratulations to you both. x

[bekka]

i'm glad everything went so well. can't wait to see the official photos, but Lucius's were great. what a perfect space!

[chocolate covered musings]

wow! it sounds like you had the perfect day. and you look so beautiful and happy - positively radiant.

thanks for sharing your special day.